Tips For Bringing People To Your Web Site

There is a great mystery out there in the world known as SEO (Search Engine Optimization). This is the Holy Grail for web site owners. It is the phantom that they try to capture in their attempt to bring more people to their web sites.

SEO isn’t hard. It is time consuming and, if you don’t know what your are doing, can be a real headache without a lot of return on your investment. No one ever built a successful web site and did nothing with it. The good news is there are ways that you can help your web site yourself! Below, you will find some very good answers to having people find you online:

Building Your Web Site. When you begin to design your web site, the first thing you should consider is how SEO will factor into your marketing plan. What keywords and phrases will you use? How will content urge people to come to your web site and link to you?

Content. This is the single most important factor to any self-serving web site. Your content must have good keywords and phrases – the same ones you want people to find you on when searching the internet. Search engine spiders love that text!

Renew Your Content – and often! The search engines love it when you start making changes to your pages. If you cannot do this, then you can always blog. Blogging creates an RSS feed that allows spiders to find your web site. Make sure you follow proper anchor text linking in your blogs and tag keywords to help find your web site.

Longtail Keywords. Short, common keywords won’t get you anywhere. There are other web sites out there using the same keywords for a lot longer than you. If you have a web site that does video production, you might find it hard to get onto the first few pages of Google with words like “video”. Instead try Cincinnati Video Production. This will help you get your business found more easily. Remember: Be precise in what you want your keywords to be. They will help bring people to your web site.

Links. Right behind content, you have to build up a group of links back to your web site – using those keywords and phrases that you are using in your text. Another important thing about links: If it is on a page that has nothing to do with your web site – it won’t really work that well for you. Make your links relevant! For example: If I wanted a link to my web site from this article, I’d put it as Web Site Design and Marketing.

Anchor Text. When you create links within your web site between pages, make sure the links are using specific keywords in which you want to be found. For example: I might put the following as a link - Web Site Hosting.

Title Tags. First, make sure you have a title tag on each page. Then, make sure it doesn’t say HOME PAGE. Your title tags should contain relevant keywords that will bring people to your pages.

Avoid Flash. I know. It looks nice. It is cool. Search engine spiders find this inedible. They hate it! Why? Because Flash is pictures and they like text. If you must use Flash, use it sparingly. Also note, not everyone has the latest update of Flash, so all that fancy design work may look like nothing on some people’s browsers. If you just have to have Flash, make sure you add some text below the movie frame. This is known as “below the fold.”

Javascript. OK, while you’re avoiding Flash, avoid drop down menus, too. The search engine spiders just don’t see it. Use it at your own peril.

Alt Tags. Every picture you use should have text associated with it to let the search engines know what it is about. These should be keyword rich words, as well. The text is referred to as an Alt Tag.

Social Networking. Use it. What is it? It is mySpace, Facebook, sta.rtup.biz, Linked In, and many others. Make sure you put your link back to your web site and make sure you comment on as many other member’s pages as possible. Social Networking will help your web site tremendously.

So, is that all there is to it? Nope. This will give you an excellent starting place, though. In addition to these things, look into a strong Pay-Per-Click marketing campaign. Some people will tell you that Organic Search Engine Marketing is the only way to go, but a homogenous blend of SEO (what we’ve been talking about) and PPC (pay-per-click) will give you the most bang for your buck. Additionally, PPC offers the most obvious way of tracking where your money is going, so your accountant will love it too!

Good luck on this endeavor. It takes time, but it will definitely help you build your web site’s success.

Squidoo working for You 2.0

by James Fowler

www.mywebsource1.com

In a world of Web 2.0 there is a plethora of new terminology: blogs, vlogs (video blogs), RSS, Atom, wikis, folksomony (or do you call it “tagging”?) and making things “SEO compliant”. It is enough to make your head spin.

What are examples of Web 2.0? A simple version of this is a blog.

“That’s something kids do, right? Sort of like mySpace.”
Well, sort of. mySpace is a type of blog. You can find blogs everywhere today on all topics and from all sorts of people – not just kids. Businesses use them to inform people about their products and services. Some businesses use them as educational pieces (like what I try to do).

Other examples on putting Web 2.0 to use are:

Flickr (www.flickr.com) a web site that enables you to put pictures online that are “tagged” and can be linked back to your web site. You can see my pets on Flickr at http://flickr.com/photos/8660095@N08/

Technorati (www.tecnorati.com) a blog search engine that allows you to find and rate blogs of all sorts.

Feedburner (www.feedburner.com) a blog site that helps you broadcast and promote your blog. You can sign up for this blog at: http://feeds.feedburner.com/blogspot/Kgxq

…and then there is…

Squidoo (www.squidoo.com) This is a new sort of site that allows you to build a single page, that the people at Squidoo call a lens. Basically, this gives a person’s viewpoint of a web site or group of web sites that have a related interest. You can put your favorite web sites together and bundle them in a group.

Sooner or later, someone else (maybe one of your friends) will put the same information on their lens and at this point, your two lenses become connected.

How does this help your web site?

A lens provides an insight from which search engines can help find you – increasing your page rank. People can find what they are looking for, as well, and this helps your business.

Because lenses link to so many other lenses, your chance of having your web site found by search engines. It gives you the chance to add tags that can overlap many times over, which makes this a perfect fit for content and whatever you create a lens about.

Check it out. Add your web site, blog, or hobby and see how well a lens can do for you.

Email: The Practically Free Marketing Strategy

by James Fowler
www.mywebsource1.com

Do you email your customers?

Email marketing can be very effective, but you have to be careful. The difference between an email marketing letter and spam is a razor-thin line. You must know your customer to email them. Most businesses don’t even know their customers to email them. It amazes me how many places I have worked with don’t collect an email with every person that walks through their door or purchases from them. I’ve even run into businesses that don’t keep the emails from the people who have purchased from them online! While you can rent email lists, the email method of contacting your customers is almost free and should be a staple in your marketing strategy!

Some simple rules to follow in making your own email campaign:

• Email specials to your customers once a month. Too little and they forget who you are, too many and you become a nuisance.
• Your email could be special, but better yet, if you want to get the emails opened on a regular basis, combine your special with some news-related items. Make it a newsletter if you have the time and mix in a special.
• If you want to email more than once a month, offer the customer something like a coupon aimed directly at them. Example: “Thank you for shopping with us. Here is an extra 10% off coupon if you buy something else in the next 60 days.”
• Invite your customers to open houses or meet-and-greets at your storefront.
• Always, always, always collect an email and keep it for your list. Have your customer service people automatically ask for an email when the phone rings.
• Add a spot on your web site to collect emails from potential customers.
• Every person you meet, every business card you collect should be added to your email list.
  

Hopefully, in time, your list will grow to thousands of people and your business will grow as your advertising costs go down!

Who Is Your Customer?

Who is important to your business?

Who should you sell to on your web site?

Who do you want to contact?

An existing customer is easier to sell to than prospecting a new customer. You want to keep in contact with people that have already given you money. Someone that has already said "Yes! I want your product or service!" should be at the top of your marketing plan.

In any business word-of-mouth (or "word-of-mouse" on the web) is generated by people that know you and your existing customers. Keeping these people happy is a keystone to your business success.

Finally, don't write someone off just because you "thought" they were going to be a customer. Keep their name and information. Email them or call from time to time. A "no" today, may be just a "not yet, thanks".

Expect Exactly What You Expect...

Great Expectations

I live in a small town with a lot of small town sentiments. People living here like the fact that we live in a small town and they resist big business. There are two grocery store chains in town.

The first is a one-stop shop. They have everything you can possibly find or need. When you leave, they have automated, self-service check out lanes. Getting in and out of this store is fast and efficient.

The other store is more expensive and may or may not have what you are looking for. However, they offer fully cooked meals for two with a different menu every night and not only will they take your purchases out to your vehicle, they put them away for you and say, "Have a nice day."

Can you guess which store does more business in my small town?
The "small town" store would do poorly in a major city. At the "small town" store (which incidentally is a large chain), things move slower and you are liable to run into people you know – and that is what people who go there expect.

Live up to what is expected of you and your business.
For more information about local business, subscribe to this blog or contact James Fowler directly.

Email this • Subscribe to this feed • Sphere: Related Content • Submit To Netscape • Save to del.icio.us • Add to del.icio.us • Digg This! • Share on Facebook • outside.in: geotag this post • Discuss on Newsvine • Stumble It!

Tangled up in the World Wide Web?

Is Your Local Business Tangled in the World Wide Web?
by James Fowler
www.mywebsource1.com

How would your local business benefit from having a web site?

Isn't the internet geared towards the world, as in world wide web?


Ask yourself five questions.
1. Do people in your community own computers?
2. Are there new people coming into your community that do not know about your business?
3. Do your customers come into your business as much as you would like?
4. Do you know who your customers are and know how to reach them?
5. If you only had a way to contact your customers when they did not come into your store that was cheaper than the U.S. mail, would you use it?

Obviously, the answers to the first two questions are 'YES' and NO your customers don't come in as often as you'd like them. So how do you get the positive results that you want from your business and how can this be accomplished with a web site?

If you don't know….don't be shy, click this link and ask me. There are no stupid questions.

I welcome all questions that you may have about Search Engine Marketing or getting your local business up on the web and making it work for you.