Ever wondered where to start with getting selling on Google?  A good place is to identify if your target market searches for you online.  The only way to do that is to find keywords that they might use, and then find out if there is enough searches per month to make the keyword worth going after.  Before we start, I just need to advise you that a keyword may sometimes actually represent a keyword search phrase so may sometimes actually be 2 or more words long!  I use the terms interchangeably but I mean the same thing.

The following tips are aimed at beginners and are a way to get started with Search Engine Optimisation.

• Open the Google Keyword Tool
• Research your keywords by starting off with something that describes you – such as “accountant Bristol”, “florist Clifton” etc.  Districts are easier than towns but will have a lot less traffic.  Enter the keyword in the box that is marked word or phrase, you don’t need to fill in any other fields at this stage, and click Search
• Look through the list and select 3 to 10 which are closely related.  If you wish you can download the list into Excel to work on by clicking Download then All.  You WILL need the reverse of the keyword phrase as well as plurals and singular.  This means “Bristol accountant” and “accountant Bristol” are NOT the same, as “Bristol accountant” and “Bristol accountants” are not the same either!

An example of a good, closely related keyword list is:

1. Accountant Bristol
2. Accountants Bristol
3. Accountants in Bristol
4. Bristol accountants
5. Chartered accountants Bristol
6. Bristol accountant

• Top tip – to start just plan to use your homepage as it’s easier and faster to get ranked, for the purposes of this blog we will presume you use only your homepage.  Later on you may wish to use other pages for other keyword phrases too

1. Look at the LOCAL monthly searches
2. Ignore the competition field as this is used to find AdWords competition
3. Search volumes of up to 500 are easier and faster to get on the front page for
4. Higher search volumes than 3,000 are competitive and mean it will take longer

Now you have your keyword list, you’re ready to move onto the next stage, competing the SEO Setup.  More on this will follow next week in this SEO tutorial series!

If you have any questions or if you’re struggling, please do comment below.  If you’d like to receive a quote for our SEO Services starting from £30 per month – please give us a call on 0800 3277327 or email us at sales@marketingbyweb.co.uk

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Search engines are constantly “crawling” the web through the millions of links that can be found within it. These crawlers are generally referred to as “spiders”.  Once the spiders have gone through a link and visited a page (web page, music, image etc) it will add it to the search engine’s massive database. This is known as indexing, and is the first step towards appear in the Search Engine Result’s Pages (SERPs). It is imperative to be added to this database because that is how you will end up appearing on the search engine’s results.  This could be as simple as sending out a tweet containing your website URL, as Google will follow the Tweet and examine the website.

Once you have grasped this concept, it becomes clear that in order to rank highly on the search engines, you will want your website and its various pages crawled by the spiders. In addition, the more links going to and from your website, the higher you will rank in the search engine.

However, it is actually a lot more complicated than just allowing the spiders to visit your website, and building links. Google and other search engines use a highly complex algorithm to calculate the relevancy and value of a website.  SEO companies try and understand this confusing algorithm in order to signal to the search engines the relevancy of a certain website matched to a search term. One of the things calculated by search engine algorithm would be the strength of the various links that go to the website. The strength of the link might be judged based on the volume of traffic that visits it (Alexa Rank) or the Page Rank of the page. Basically, if you gain a link your website from a link that is not very highly ranked, then the link would be nowhere near as powerful as if it was linked to a more popular, higher ranked website.

Search engines are constantly changing and adapting their algorithms in order to create more relevant and useful information to its users. That basically means; if you wish to ensure you are appearing on the front page for your website, you will need to change and adapt with it. – no excuses folks!

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Lance.Nike?

If you’ve not heard the news, ICANN (who handle all of the top level domain suffixes such as .com, .net, .biz etc.) have made the decision to open up the suffixes to wider use.

So whereas before you would find that most domain suffixes were of the country variety, or suffixes such as .biz and .org, the theory is that now anything goes.

As I say, the THEORY is that:

• We could have marketing.claire or claire.marketing
• Pepsi could have pepsi.cola (although they might have to fight it out whit the cola of the Coca variety)
• Nike could have .nike
• Plumbers could have .plumber
• etc

Sounds great, doesn’t it? But before you go off to register that must have suffix before anyone else does, here are a few facts:

• There’s a $185k fee to pay up front
• You need to know how to run a TLD and manage it
• The documentation to gain one is apparently over 200 pages
• And you could be refused anyway

The internet is buzzing with the news, and while I can see it’s great for ICANN and good for those with huge amounts of money to put behind it, i’m not so sure it’s all that good for the rest of us.

• There’s sure to be confusion when searching for a domain – was it .com or .ikea?
• It realises potentially millions more domain names into the ether, which means more competition for smaller businesses
• We don’t even know how Google et al are going to deal with these domains yet, so whether a branded suffix will take precendece over a .com or .co.uk

In short, I think it’s a great gimmick, and one that is sure to make money for ICANN and give great publicity to those big companies that can afford to buy one, but the rest of us don’t need to worry about finding $185k down the back of the sofa just yet.

Although I’d still quite like .marketing

Related articles

• ICANN approves new top-level domains: Now .anything is possible (digitaltrends.com)
• ICANN approves expansion of top-level domains (news.cnet.com)
• Internet regulators vote to allow new domain suffixes (news.consumerreports.org)
• ICANN Decision Changes the Face of the Web (blippitt.com)

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There’s been a lot of talk recently about Google +1, the new ‘button’ from Google that allows people to ‘vote’ for your site and could affect your Google positions in some instances.

So, firstly:

What is Google +1?

Google tell us that:

Adding +1 buttons to your pages is a great way to help your ads stand out on Google. By giving your visitors more chances to +1 your pages, your search ads and organic results might appear with +1 annotations more often. This could lead to more–and better qualified–traffic to your site.

This has been a little confusing for some people so we’ll try and put it in plain English for you

Basically, if you have the Google +1 button on your website pages or blog posts, then people can click on it in the same way they would click a Facebook ‘Like’ button. When they click on it (and to do this they must have a Google account), Google registeres that they like your page or post. So far so good.

When another person searches on Google, and your page or post is shown in the results, it will show the number of  ‘+1s’ it has had from their friends or contacts. Google is working on the assumption that people will be influenced by the choices their friends and contacts have made.

How will it affect my Google positions? If people don’t +1 me, am I at a disadvantage?

In most cases, the answer to this is no. Google tells us that +1 won’t affect the usual SERPS (which is a relief as we’re sure it will soon become easy to game). However, if someone searches Google while they’re logged in to their Google account, the results that have more +1s from their friends and contacts will be highlighted.

Should I use the Google +1 button on my pages and posts?

We think so. Although it’s not making a huge impact right now, think back to how little impact Facebook Likes made at one point – now they’re an integral part of promoting any blog or website.

How do I install the Google +1 button on my site or blog?

If you have a WordPress blog or site, there’s a plugin for that http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/wp-plus-one/

If you have a Blogger blog, you’ll need to install one of their addons – more about this here: http://buzz.blogger.com/2011/06/add-1-button-to-your-blog.html

If you want to install it to your site manually, it’s just a case of adding some code into the head of your code, and then some more code where you want the button to appear – more on this here: http://www.google.com/webmasters/+1/button/

As you can see at the bottom of this post, we’ve installed the Google +1 button – we’d love it if you could help us to test it, first by clicking on it, and secondly by installing it on your own site or blog and letting us know in the comments below!

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Image via Wikipedia

“Getting targeted visitors is difficult”

“I don’t have time to increase traffic to my website”

“No-one is interested in my site – what can I do?”

Just 3 of the comments we’ve heard from potential clients recently, and of course we were quick to contradict the first 2 and answer the third – so here are our top seven ways you can increase traffic to your site TODAY:

1. Write a blog post

   Far too much time is spent worrying about what to write, and not enough time writing! A blog post should take no more than ten minutes of your time once you’ve thought of a subject. Don’t know what to write about? Think about the last 3 things clients or potential clients asked, and write a blog post that answers those questions. That’s what we’ve done here!

2. Post on your Facebook wall

   Whether it’s on your personal profile or your Business page, post a link to your site. In the comment below the link, make it clear what your site offers, and invite your fans / likers / contacts to pass the link on to anyone they think may be interested.

3. Send  a link out to Twitter

   As long as you’re sharing other information and having conversations, your Twitter followers won’t mind the odd link to your site. Make sure your Tweet has your main keyphrases in it so that it comes up in the search facility too! (And, if you feel comfortable, ask people to retweet your link).

4. Comment on someone else’s blog post (maybe even this one?)

   Find blogs in your industry or niche, and make a point of commenting on them – every comment gives you the opportunity to link to your own website or blog. Make sure your comments add to the discussion though, don’t just post “Great post!” or “I agree!”

5. Set up a Google Adwords campaign
   
   Simple to set up, and your ads could be live within minutes. Setting up a test campaign in Google allows you to try out keyphrases to see if they work, which you can then transfer into your SEO campaign. Keep an eye on your budget and tweak accordingly!
6. Buy some Facebook ads

   Again, up and running in minutes, and you can target to the demographic of your choice. You can control your budget and choose whether to promote your website or your Facebook page – in our opinion it’s worth testing a mixture of the two to see which provides the best results.

7. Post in a business forum

   People ask all sorts of questions on business forums, and the chance is that you can answer some of them! Help others out, post your own questions, join in the discussion – every post usually contains your link in the signature, and is a great way to get traffic to your site. Don’t abuse it though, by linking excessively – the signature link should be enough.

There are many other ways to generate targeted traffic to your website – but these 7 should give you a head start. How many will you do today?

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Image by aussiegall via Flickr

Does your site measure up?

It’s unfortunate that sometimes we have to turn away SEO clients simply because their websites aren’t up to scratch. It’s hard to tell a client with money in his hand that the website he has paid out good money for just can’t be optimised.

There are many reasons a website isn’t suitable – here are just a few:

IT’S ON A FREEBIE DOMAIN

Whether it’s a free wordpress blog or a free domain on your hosting company’s space, it’s really not worth optimising on a freebie domain. With domain names costing very little these days, take the time to buy either a .com or a .co.uk that suits your company – it’s worth it in the long run.

IT’S AN ALL FLASH SITE

Although there are ways around it, Google still doesn’t like all Flash sites, and we really advise against getting them designed. With web design standards so high now it’s possible to achieve a great looking site without having to hide everything in a Flash movie.

TITLE TAGS CAN’T BE CHANGED ON EACH PAGE

It’s a fact that you can’t optimise one page of a site for every phrase – in fact we recommend a handful of phrases per page. This means that if you want to optimise for 10 phrases, you’re going to need at least 5 pages that can have the title and META tags changed. Many CMSs don’t offer this option, and sadly we have to turn away these clients.

THE SITE IS DESIGNED ALL IN GRAPHICS

Yes, even in 2011 we still see sites designed in Microsoft Pulisher or other programs that render the site all in graphics. Google can’t read them, we can’t help you – sorry!

YOU’RE NOT WILLING TO CHANGE YOUR COPY

In some cases your copy will be fine, but in others we’ll ask you to change some of it, make it more keyword rich, add H1 tags etc – if you won’t or can’t do this then we can’t do our job properly and have to say no.

YOU WANT INSTANT RESULTS ON ULTRA COMPETITIVE KEYPHRASES

Although we have achieved great listings in good timeframes for our clients, we can’t guarantee that you’ll be at #1 in Google for the keyphrases of your choice within a week – no-one can. In fact Google themselves even say not to employ SEO consultants who say they can. We’re ethical and moral and won’t promise something we can’t achieve, so we’d have to turn down the job.

That all sounds a little negative doesn’t it? But rest assured that the majority of people who come to us are taken on board with a big smile – once we’ve checked the above points and made sure we can do the best job for them.

Not sure if your site meets our criteria? Drop us a line and ask

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Image by thms.nl via Flickr

Here at Marketing By Web we’re often asked: “Which is better? SEO or Google Adwords?” and the truthful answer is that it depends on your website.
But that’s a whole other blog post

For the majority of websites, SEO and Adwords working in tandem is a great strategy.

Why?

Well, let’s look at the pros and cons of SEO and Adwords separately first.

SEO (search engine optimisation)

Pros:

• can be low cost, whether you DIY or employ an SEO consultant
• some people use organic listings more than they click on Adwords
• most sites can be optimised with a little work
• once listings are achieved, a little work every month can keep those listings

Cons:

• it takes time to see your listings rise, especially if you’re in a competitive industry
• short tail keyphrases are usually very competitive
• there’s no real way to know if you’ve chosen the correct keyphrases until you get the listings you want

Adwords

Pros:

• listings are alive almost immediately
• you can use Adwords to test the efficacy of keywords before embarking on SEO
• you can control your budget
• Google will give you advice on landing pages
• you only pay for each visitor you get

Cons:

• for very competitive keyphrases it can be expensive
• if your ads aren’t written properly then your ‘quality’ score could be low
• if your site isn’t well designed, your ads may not show often

So, by combining SEO and Adwords, you can get the pros of each (quick listings, testing, organic listings, good results), and use each of them to negate the pros. Let’s see some examples:

• SEO takes time, but Adwords are almost instant – so you can use Adwords to get quick wins, and use SEO for the longer term
• With SEO you may not know if you’re choosing the correct phrases – Adwords helps you to refine this
• If you have a low quality score in Adwords, and you ads don’t show oftem the work you do on your site will benefit your SEO

We understand that in some cases it’s an either/or situation, but in our opinion, SEO and Adwords work hand in hand to provide all round search engine promotion for your site.

Are you using both SEO AND Adwords to promote your website?

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Image by the|G|™ via Flickr

The first thing people do when they realise that their Google positions have dropped, is panic. Checking frantically and only seeing themselves on the 3rd page or lower while their competitors are living it up on the front page, the horror sets in and with it a kind of mist descends.

“What did I do wrong? Let me change this, and this, and this, ooh I must need more links, and I’d better write some articles.” It’s easy to start running round like a headless chicken and doing everything to fix the problem.

STOP!

Firstly, stop panicking. The drop may not be permanent, and there will be a way to fix it in most cases.

So, where should we start?

1) Have you changed anything recently? Updated the site, changed any title or meta tags, added extra content, deleted pages, moved things around? This is one of the reasons that we recommend only changing one thing at a time on a site an then waiting to see what results it has.

2) Have you done anything wrong? Bought dodgy linking packages, spammed on forums, overstuffed your keyphrases? There are often things that may seem like a good idea at the time, but turn out to be bad for your site. Buying 10,000 links for $50 may seem like a shortcut to great Google listings, but it isn’t and can get you penalised.

3) Is it a newish domain? Often a few months after a site launches it gets put into what is known as the Google ‘sandbox’ where it drops considerably for a while before hopefully climbing its way back up the rankings. The only thing you can do here is wait it out, and carry on building great content.

4) Have you changed the way the pages are laid out? Sometimes the phrase ‘if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it’ is the right one – completely changing the layout of your site can have a negative effect and can see you lose positions for a while. We’re not saying your site has to stay the same forever, but it does help if the navigation and page names stay in the right place.

The most important thing is to remember that as long as what you’ve done is in the realms of white hat optimisation, and you’ve not enlisted and black hat spammy techniques, the chances are that your Google positions are salveageable.

Just don’t panic, think through what’s changed recently and act accordingly, undoing the changes if necessary. Above all, don’t have a knee jerk reaction – think it through logically and work through step by step to fix what you can.

If your Google positions have dropped and you really don’t know why, drop us a line to claire@marketingbyweb.co.uk and we’ll do our best to help.

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Unless you’ve had your head in a hole for the last few weeks, you’ll have seen SEO experts verywhere talking about the Google Panda update. But unless you’re one of these experts, or someone with a good grasp of SEO knowledge, you’re probably wondering what all the fuss is about!

Google Panda Update – what is it?

In simple terms Google has decided it wants to clean up the internet a little. A bold move, and a huge challenge, but this is probably their first step in that direction; no doubt there will be more changes to come.

One of the things that clogs up the search results is link sites, scraper sites and some article sites. You know the ones – you click on a link and are faced with a million Adsense ads, a few lines of text, headlines that make no sense, and dubious banner adverts. In short, these sites are pretty useless, probably won’t give you what you were actually searching for, and have no real value.
So the mighty Google has decided to devalue these sites in the search results.

Google Panda Update – what does it mean for me?

Well, to be honest, unless you’re one of those aforementioned sites, it shouldn’t worry you. If you’re plastering ads and links all over our site, turning it into some sort of central hub with no value, then you’ve probably been penalised.

If your site is useful, content rich and offers valuable content, you either won’t have been affected at all, or you may have seen your positions rise and your traffic increase.

Google Panda Update – my site has dropped

If your site has decent content, you won’t have to work too hard to get it reinstated; and the drop may have nothing to do with the Panda update at all – if you drop us a line we can take a look for you and see what the problem is.

To put it bluntly, the sites affected by the Google Panda Update are usually the ones that deserve it, and dropping them means that the better sites (and that’s yours and mine, right?) will have better positions, more traffic, and the eyeballs they deserve.

Let us know what the Google Panda Update has meant for your site in the comments below!

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