What is SEO and why is it important?

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Posted on 18th July 2010 by Todd in Uncategorized |websites

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If you have a business and/or a website, at some point you will be solicited via email or phone by a company doing SEO.  I have received emails and so has one of my clients looking to help us rank better in the search engines.

Black Magic SEO, SEO Comic

http://www.flickr.com/photos/byronshell/

So, what is SEO?  SEO stands for “search engine optimization.”  Search engine, of course, refers to search engines such as Google, Yahoo and Bing.  Optimization, is the act of optimizing or “to make as effective as possible” the object which needs the optimizing.  In this case, SEO is the act of optimizing your website to rank as high as possible in the websites.

Over the years SEO has changed.  SEO has evolved along with website design over the years, and now there are a number of ways to do SEO effectively.  Hiring a good consulting firm to manage your SEO can be very expensive.  These folks are really good at what they do and the businesses they help usually have huge benefits from their work.

So, what is a small business like your to do?  After all, you don’t really have the budget to hire a full time consulting firm to begin to handle your SEO.  There are a few options.

Learn more about SEO

As any consumer of a product, you really should learn more about SEO yourself.  That might start with a book which can sometimes go over our head or some other kind of resource.  I would start with Google’s own article on SEO and then move to something a little more specific such as SEOBook.com.   A good book to get would be Search Engine Optimization for Dummies

Talk to your Website Designer

Some of the best SEO folks are actually website designers.  If they aren’t sure how to at least navigate SEO for the purpose of building your website, then you might need a new designer.  They should have set the ground work for a well optimized website, and many offer additional SEO services for a fee.

They will be able to walk you through the process of choosing keywords and inserting them in to the appropriate areas of your website.  Further, if they haven’t already, they should be able to get your website indexed in the “big three” search engines; Google, Yahoo and Bing.

Social Media Saturation

One of the best things you can do is join the social media channels.  Social media sites are some of the best places to get additional “fuel” for your search engine rankings.  A friend of mine refers to this as “social media saturation.”  Make sure the URL to your site is linked to your Facebook, your twitter, your Linkedin and your Youtube accounts or whatever else you use for social media.

Blogging

Blogging is technically part of social media saturation, but it can also be an example for having an active website.  Blogs show activity at your website, making it dynamic, not static.  The search engines are attracted to activity.  When you blog, you create a regular update to your website that is noticed by search engines.

When you blog, you should create good content, and by that I mean content that is in line with the purpose and keywords of your website.  For example, if you have a website for your pet sitting business, then you would blog about pet sitting tips for pet owners.  Create a reservoir of good content that will be searched for and found by a frustrated owner looking for help.

One more thing, I highly recommend getting either your blog or your entire website built on WordPress.  WordPress is built to be SEO friendly out of the box.  Many of the things I mentioned are a lot easier with WordPress.

There is much more to SEO than this such as Pay Per Click and online advertising.  Further, there is also “black hat” and “white hat” methods.  There is also link building which can take time and there is being included in directories.  Nevertheless, you can learn enough to know how to approach SEO with your website.

I am only trying to get you thinking about the subject.  Don’t react impulsively to an unsolicited email or phone call from someone offering to put you on the front page of Google.  Often they aren’t better than the one who designed your website.


Why businesses don’t value their websites

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Posted on 13th May 2010 by Todd in Uncategorized |websites

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How much do you value your website?

Yesterday, I saw the company truck of a business that I know has a website. While looking at the truck, complete with all logos, etc., I noticed it did not have its website URL listed.  I was flabbergasted.  I asked myself, “Why don’t they have their website listed on their truck?”  Then, my next thought was, “I guess they don’t really value their website.”  Which makes me wonder why they went to the trouble of building a website to begin with if they are not going to promote the site.

In this day and age, we are lead to believe, a website is indispensable, and I believe it is.  However, if we don’t value the website, we might as well not have one at all.  There are three ways (at least) that businesses don’t value their website.

First, a business does not value its website if they do not promote the site. Not putting your URL on your business card/company vehicle/stationary, etc.?  Then, you really don’t value your website.  You are not putting the website to good use if that is the case, and what other tool of business would we invest money (you did invest money didn’t you?) in and not use as it was meant to be used?

Second, a business does not value its website if it does not utilize it to generate leads or customers. Would you invest money in retail space and not bring customers in to buy your product?  That is what you are doing with a website if you do not learn how to bring in traffic and convert them to customers or, at the least, a good lead.

Businesses put up websites because “everybody is on the internet.”  However, when we let the website become stagnant, then we have wasted the money that we invested in to begin with.  This brings me to a third way that businesses fail to value their website.

Businesses fail to value their website by having it built for free or cheaply. If you don’t believe it is worth investing in the website up front to get it designed well, then, then you do not value your website.

Businesses often wonder why their website becomes useless, but they fail to value it enough to invest properly in it’s use.  That leads to little to no results.  If you don’t invest up front, then what incentive to do you have to promote the website or use it well.

People who are good at this cost money.  However, the rewards are many.  Have you wondered what it would be like to be on the top of the first page in your major key words?   How about what would it be like getting quality leads from your website without sending a salesperson?

Solutions

First, you need to invest up front in a good website.  Find a good website designer who has done good work, and get over the sticker shock because he or she is worth the money.  If you don’t know anyone, contact me and I will help you find someone.  Having this done right up front can save you a lot of time.

Second, you need to either learn or pay someone to optimize your website for maximum performance.  This involves skills such as search engine optimization (SEO) and copywriting.  The copywriting can be tricky, but you need to find somebody who knows how to do it for the internet.  A good place to start is with Copyblogger.  They have a lot of articles to help you learn on your own.

Third, you should consider a social media marketing campaign.  This involves setting up social media profiles for the purpose of marketing your business.  You need to know that you cannot market the same way you do in traditional channels.  In the realm of social media, people mostly listen to those they trust.  A good to place to start is with Shama Kabani’s new book The Zen of Social Media Marketing which I have reviewed here.

If you need help in mapping out your new website strategy, don’t hesitate to contact me.  The fuel that runs the engine of these three solutions is having a strategy.

Photo Credit:  Dude With Camera on Flickr

All the best,

Todd


Five Reasons to Hire Me

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Posted on 11th May 2010 by Todd in About Me |Uncategorized

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There is more than one way for me to be hired, and this article should address these different ways.  You can hire me to do freelance work on a website or social media, or you might be interested in hiring me to work full time for you company.  It really doesn’t matter what you might want to hire me for, these five reasons transcend should transcend.

Professional Profile Picture

Todd E. Jones

1.  Maturity

I have been working since I was 17 years old.  I started working full time as an adult in 1994, so, as you can see, I have been working for 16 years.  I have done different kinds of jobs from filling vending machines, to counting money, putting up stock in a warehouse, checking out customers to building websites.  I have had my share of “life experiences” which has given me a bigger perspective on life.  Further, my faith keeps me grounded.

2.  Skills

There are several skills which I am fortunate to have, but three stand out.  I am skilled at building a positive relationship with customers.  Previous employments have left me with customers as friends.  I am skilled on the computer.  I can find my way around the directory in a computer working with several different kinds of programs.  I am adept to learning programs quickly.  Finally, I am skilled at setting up and maintaining WordPress websites.  WordPress is exploding as a website of choice for many different businesses as its benefits are being discovered.

3.  Initiative

I have taken initiative in many of my positions.  I have built and implemented websites which have filled unique niches, and I have been willing to take initiative to solve problems in other jobs.

4.  Communication

I have shown the ability to communicate effectively.  I have had articles published online at news websites such as Examiner.com and PegasusNews.com as well as successfully ran my own blogs.  Further, I have effectively communicated with many different people using the social media platforms Facebook and Twitter.

5.  Critical Thinking

All of my education has been in the area of liberal arts.  This training has given me the ability to think critically.  I have demonstrated the ability to think from multiple angles about an issue.

Now, what do you need to do?


10 Reasons Why You Shouldn’t Buy a Free Website cont.

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Posted on 4th May 2010 by Todd in Uncategorized |websites

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In the previous article, I talked about the background for having a good website and listed the first six reasons.  Quite simply, as a twitter friend of mine said, “You get what you pay for (@guynamedlucas).”

problogger

It's good to learn from the best

4.  Access to the code/directory–You need access to those things.  Try setting up a blog on one of those turn-key sites.  Do you have access to the directory; can you install WordPress.  There are times when a user needs access to his directory on the server via a ftp client, or a user needs access to the code on the web page.  With those turn-key sites, this is not always possible.

3.  Positioning your website for traffic–Simply putting up a website will not bring visitors to your site.  A skilled designer knows this.  They will do everything they can to position your website for traffic.  You still need someone who can be the webmaster, but when setting up your website, a poor functional design will have you swimming up stream from the beginning.

2.  Updating can be difficult–I worked with HTO and was amazed at how cumbersome it was.  I am a skilled webmaster, or so I tell myself.  The rest of the staff was at a loss for what to do.  It took me a week to begin to figure things out.  Other sites can be the same way.  I would rather see businesses use a free blog from blogger or WordPress because those tools are very user-friendly.  If it is harder to use than one of these two solutions, it is too hard.

1.  Would you get a house built for cheap or free? –This analogy might be wanting, but it has a point.  People ask me how much money it takes to build a website, and I wanna answer, “how much money does it take to build a house!”  Your website is your business home online.  The results might not be as catastrophic as if someone did a terrible job building a house, but it can be costly.  Do not take chances.

Hire a skilled designer who has had results.  He or she should have a good history of designing quality websites that function well, has good site architecture and does well in the search engines.  Even better would be someone who is skilled in search engine optimization (SEO), conversion techniques such as landing pages, and an understanding how to use social media to market your website.  Granted, if you find someone liked this, it will cost good money.  However, it will be worth it.

Now, this is the part where I am supposed to say that I am that person.  Not at all!  There are tons of people out there more talented than me, and I say, if you have the money, hire them.  I don’t have a problem saying that.  However, if you just don’t have a few thousand dollars to sink in to a website, then contact me and we can talk.

I have developed a page with some website packages.  These are for users to have an idea of price points, but a website can be more customized to fit your organization.

Photo Credit:  RachelC


Online Resources to Help with Social Media

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Posted on 27th February 2010 by Todd in Uncategorized

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I have been fortunate to have found and connect with some people online who are “experts’ in Social Media and Social Media Marketing.   Social Media Marketing is such a new field that few people are considered experts.  One of the people I learned about early on was Shama Kabani.  Shama has been doing Social Media Marketing successfully for a few years now, and she has built a huge following and a reputation for being the “Zen of Social Media.”

Shama has lots of resources in which you might consider tapping in to.  First, there is Shama.TV, an online site full of short videos with lots oft tips.  You can find something useful every day.

The hub of all things Shama is her website The Marketing Zen Group.  She offers a free e-book and numerous written articles with great advice.  She also has a page with links to several resources including her blog.  Along with all of the wonderful resources and tips that Shama offers is her brand new book The Zen of Social Media Marketing: An Easier Way to Build Credibility, Generate Buzz, and Increase Revenue (Ben Bella).  By clicking on the title, you can check it out at Amazon.com and order it if you like.  The book is set to be released on April 6, 2010.  You can read the first chapter on her website here.

I have learned so much from Shama, by what she says and by what she does in terms of social media herself.  Hopefully, you can learn from her too!

Thanks Shama