Posted by Liz Gallagher on Wed, Feb 03, 2010 @ 07:00 AM
One of the wonderful things about a Content Management System is the ability to easily expand your web site with new pages and new features.
Once your web site is built on a CMS, the options are practically endless - especially if your CMS is Open Source, such as WordPress or Drupal. These are two of the open source Content Management Systems that I typically work with. Open Source means that the source code is available to the public and therefore developers from all over the world can expand on the functionality of the CMS by adding new features. These new features are called modules, widgets or plug-ins, which you can download and add to your own CMS web site.
For example, I am working with a client whose target market spans multiple industries and each industry has its own set of problems and situations. We recently moved this client's web site to a Drupal CMS and they would like to add Forums for each of their target customers. To develop something like this from scratch would be a large and costly undertaking. With Drupal, I just had to download and install the Forum module. Once the forum module is installed, you can begin to add your forums & topics. In this instance, I did do some customization to the look & feel of the forums before going live but it could be used right "out of the box."
The forums module is just one example of the many modules available for Drupal. WordPress is another great CMS that offers many plug-in modules and widgets for customizing your WordPress web site.
So beef up your web site. Use the power of your CMS to add a blog or a forum & start to interact with your customers. An interactive web site is likely to see more traffic because it keeps them coming back for more! Offering free advice in a blog or answering questions in a Forum increases your credibility and can help you to close the sale.
Posted by Liz Gallagher on Mon, Jan 11, 2010 @ 06:50 AM
A lot of companies come to me looking for a new web site with all of the bells & whistles. They want Flash, video, lot of pictures, oh and yeah some content. Sometimes it seems like the copy is almost an afterthought. Clients will often spend the extra money in their budget on a glitzy Flash banner but skip the copywriter. "I'll write it myself" is a phrase I hear all of the time.
The problem is that most of us are not professional writers. We don't know how to write good marketing copy that focuses on the needs of our target markets. Heck, some companies don't even define who their target market is before they begin to write. Remember, the copy shouldn't be about you and what you do. The copy should be about the customer and how your product or service meets their needs or solves their problems.
Not to mention that it's hard to find the time to write all of your web pages when you have your own business to run. This is the number one cause of project delays (ask any web developer and they'll tell you the same!) The client is too busy to write the content themselves but is afraid or unwilling to hand over the reins to someone else.
"Nobody knows my business as well as I do so how can someone else write the web site copy?" This is a question that I am often asked when I suggest using a professional copywriter. The answer to this question is you're right and you're wrong. Yes, you know you business better than anyone else, but a good copywriter will know the right questions to ask during an interview, learn about your business, research your industry and put it all into words that will sell your product or service.
Higher sales are the end result. Isn't that what we all want? So if you are considering a new web site - why not skip the glitzy banner and put your money into copy that sells.
Posted by Liz Gallagher on Tue, Jan 05, 2010 @ 07:54 AM
It's hard to believe that it's the year 2010 already. I remember as a kid hearing the Prince song "1999" and thinking that was light-years away. And now we are more than a decade beyond it!
As we enter this new year, I wish for you:
Happiness
Prosperity
Customers that pay on time!
Time for Family and Friends
A world wide rave!
Good Health
Viral video or blog post
Tweets with great reach!
Fanatical Facebook Fans
Lower bounce rate for your web site
Higher lead-to-customer conversion rates
Less stress and more fun in 2010!
Posted by Liz Gallagher on Tue, Dec 29, 2009 @ 07:00 AM
How do you keep up with blogging and social media when business is busy? This has been a big challenge for me. Unlike most years when business slows down around the holidays, this year business is booming. On top of that, holiday shopping, decorating the house, putting up the tree, hanging the outside lights - life in general is busy. Something has to give.
For me, I've found it very hard to keep up with blogging and social media. This can be a time drain when I really don't have any spare time.
A New Year's Resolution
I was recently given some great advice that I think will make a great New Year's Resolution. Go offsite to a coffee shop once a week/month and write multiple blog articles at once. So if you blog daily, write 5 articles every Monday or if you blog monthly write a month's worth of blog articles. By leaving the office and turning off your phone (this is key!) you'll have fewer interruptions and will be able to spend your time more efficiently. Plus, if your blog software has a scheduler, schedule your articles to go out automatically and check that task off the to-do list!
As far as social media goes, you should at a minimum promote your blog articles on Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn. There are even applications that can automate this task for you.
So no more excuses - businesses need to keep marketing during the busy times to keep business rolling in.
How do you keep up with blogging and social media when things get hectic? Please share your tips in the comments below.
Posted by Liz Gallagher on Thu, Dec 17, 2009 @ 08:36 AM
Once a client has made the decision to move forward with their web site project, they usually want it done
yesterday and are surprised when I tell them that the web design process takes 2-3 months on average.
I understand the desire to have a beautiful, professionally designed web site up and running as soon as possible, but you want it done right - don't you?
Prior to even beginning the web design process, you should:
- Identify your Brand - What is your brand identity? What makes you different from and better than the competition? Why should people choose you? You need to know what your unique message is before you can communicate it to others on your web site.
- Design your logo - Your logo sets the tone for all of your marketing materials, including your web site. It is important that you design your logo before you design your website. Don't do it the other way around or you may end up paying your web design firm double to retrofit your new web design to match your logo!
I typically break down the web design process into the following 5 phases:
-
Design Phase - Based upon information provided by the client, an image is created to show what the home page will look like. The client's feedback is incorporated into the design and several rounds of changes may be required until the client is completely satisfied with the look & feel.
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Copywriting Phase - The copywriting should be done simultaneously with the design so that the copy is complete prior to the development phase. I highly recommend that a professional copywriter be used to keep the project on schedule.
- Development Phase - After the client has approved the design, the actual web site is built. If your web site is being built on a content management system, the CMS will be customized to match the design. The web site copy is inserted into the web pages and the on-page search engine optimization is performed during this phase.
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Acceptance Phase - The web site is now ready for review and approval. All changes will be completed and a final round of testing is conducted before launch.
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Deployment Phase - Your web site goes live and is submitted to the search engines for indexing.
Congratulations! Your web site is now live! Next you need to work on your Internet Marketing Plan to make the web site a true success and to see a return on your web site investment.
Posted by Liz Gallagher on Mon, Nov 30, 2009 @ 10:33 AM
We all love a bargain.
OK. I admit it. The first thing I did when I got to work this morning was to go online to see if there were any amazing Cyber Monday sales online. I really didn't find anything that knocked my socks off, but it got me thinking about how businesses could create their own "Cyber Monday" phenomenon using social media.
Everyone likes to feel like they are getting a good deal. Why not give your customers what they want? A Cyber Monday special every Monday! Why save it for just the Monday after Thanksgiving?
I'm not suggesting that you go broke giving away your products, but you could have a special offer each week that drives traffic to your web site and social media would be the perfect tool to do so.
I've seen large retailers offer special savings exclusive to their Facebook fans or Twitter followers. It does make you wonder what you are missing if you don't sign up.
So, on your website and in your newsletters, let your customers know that they can get on the "inside" if they fan you on Facebook or follow you on Twitter. Use one or both to announce the Cyber Monday sale of the week -- exclusive to your followers. And if you consistently post the offer around the same time each Monday, people will start to expect it and even look forward to receiving your Cyber Monday online special.
Over time, you'll watch your list of followers grow and your sales too!
Posted by Liz Gallagher on Mon, Nov 23, 2009 @ 03:26 PM
Often when I meet with a new client to determine the specs for their website, the client will request a "links" page. This is fine - if you wish to link off your site to related information that may be of use to your customers. By all means - SHARE! However, it often comes out after further discussion that the client was under the impression that these links will help them in the search engines. Unfortunately, linking to other web sites helps their search engine rank, not yours.
The goal of your Inbound Link Building Strategy is to get other sites to link to your web site. This requires some on-going effort on your part to request links from external sources.
Why do we need inbound links? Because Google says so. The search engines assume that the more links you have, the more important your website must be.
The #1 way to get more links is to write Great Content. Think about it. If your content stinks, who will want to link to it? Although it takes some effort to write remarkable content, it is much more likely that people will share it in blogs, social media, etc.
Here are some other tips for getting inbound links and improving your search engine rank:
1. Make sure all of your pages are indexed in Google. If not, then add them.
2. When you type in yourdomain.com does it automatically redirect to www.yourdomain.com? If not, then you may be diluting your link authority by splitting your Google links between these two domains. If you don't explicitly tell Google that these 2 are the same website (by using a permanent redirect) then you are probably not getting credit for all of your inbound links.
3. Is your website listed in The Open Directory Project? Yahoo? Bing?
4. What about localized directories such as Google Maps and Yahoo Local?
5. Do you belong to any organizations (such as the chamber of commerce) that might offer free links to their members?
6. Are there any industry-specific directories that offer free or paid listings?
7. Do you work with trusted partners whose businesses compliment yours? Then create a partners page on your website and ask them to reciprocate by adding a link back to your website.
8. Who is linking to your competition? Why not ask them to link to you too?
9. If you are using social media (and you should be), there are many opportunities to increase your links:
10. Internal web site links are also important - make sure you add links from one page to another and use keywords in your link text!
Please share with us any creative ideas you have to help others build their link popularity in the comments below.
Related Articles:
- Choosing the Right Keywords for SEO
- Web Site SEO Part I: I've chosen my keywords, now what?
- Web Site SEO Part II: Inbound Link Strategy
Posted by Liz Gallagher on Wed, Nov 18, 2009 @ 07:00 AM
On-page Search Engine Optimization is the modification of the pages on your web site to include your chosen keywords. The keywords should appear frequently in your copy but not so often that it stops making sense to your readers. Don't try to jam all of your keywords on a single page. Each page on your web site should focus on a different set of keyword phrases.
In addition to the body copy, the following elements of your website should include your keywords:
- Title Tag
- Page Headings
- Anchor Text (Link Text)
- Alt Text (Alternative Image Text)
- Meta Keywords
- Meta Description
Title Tag
Make sure the title tag is unique, 70 characters or less, and contains pertinent keyword phrases to match the page copy.
Page Headings
Utilize H1 tags on every page. Put your keywords in this tag to let the reader and the search engines know exactly what each page is about.
Anchor Text
The anchor text is the text that is underlined when you hyperlink. Use meaningful, keyword-rich text that describes the page to which you are linking. This is especially important if you are linking to one of the pages on your own website.
So instead of using:
Click Here to download our Internet Marketing Workbook
Use:
Download our Internet Marketing Workbook now!
Alt Text
Alt text provides information about your images to screen readers (for the visually impaired) as well as to the search engines. If possible, use your keyword phrases to describe the images on your web pages.
Meta Keywords
Although some search engines do not look at the meta keywords tag anymore, it can't hurt to list your top keyword phrases for the ones that still do.
Meta Description
Although this tag is no longer used to determine your page rank, the meta description text is often placed beneath your link in the search results. Therefore you want to populate this tag with keywords and marketing text that appeals to the reader, enticing him or her to click on your link!
Related Articles:
- Choosing the Right Keywords for SEO
- Web Site SEO Part I: I've chosen my keywords, now what?
- Web Site SEO Part II: Inbound Link Strategy
Posted by Giulietta Nardone on Mon, Nov 09, 2009 @ 07:00 AM
Small business owners tend to get all confused about branding. They think it's something only large businesses need. They think it's an unnecessary business expense. Not in today's competitive world. Every business that wants to succeed needs a brand. Without a brand, you have no way of differentiating yourself from the competition. You have no perceived value, especially to yourself. Finding your brand will make you feel better about your own business. That's the real beauty of it.
Brand = differentiation.
Differentiation = demand.
Demand = money.
Without differentiation, you have to compete on price. This is the quickest way to go out of business. It's hard to make a livable wage when clients associate your services or products with "cheapness." You work harder and longer to make less.
The solution? Hit the reset button with your new company web site. Before you design and write copy for this new Internet baby, figure out how you're different and what you want to do for your client. Then write your web copy like you're speaking to the kind of client who wants this difference and needs this transformation. The kind of client you love to work with, the kind of client that makes owning your business the best decision you ever made, the kind of client you can help the most.
Remember, your web site is always live. You may leave the office at 5 pm but your web site continues to work 24/7. It's important that everything potential clients come in contact with on your web site works to reinforce your brand. If your brand appeals to them, they'll return for more information. If it doesn't, they'll move on.
That's o.k. You want your web site to pre-screen clients. You want it to weed out tire kickers looking for the lowest price. You want it to appeal to clients who'll value your difference.
When you try to appeal to everyone, you appeal to no one.
Think narrow. Think difference. Think brand.
Giulietta Nardone of Fearless Design helps small business owners like you brand yourself from the inside out. She believes it's key to attracting clients who'll value your bold and unique difference and pay you for it.
Posted by Liz Gallagher on Mon, Nov 02, 2009 @ 09:21 AM
You've hit the point where you can't stand your old web site and you are ready for a web site redesign. You can't wait to dump the old site so that you can show off your new state-of-the-art website with the latest Web 2.0 features.
STOP RIGHT THERE! Don't dump that old website just yet! Have you considered that your old website may have built up some credibility on Google and the other Search Engines? That your current web pages may already rank well for some of your important keyword phrases? Whether you worked hard on your Search Engine Optimization strategy or you got where you are by sheer luck, you don't want to lose everything and start from scratch. Do you?
Of course not! So you need to have a web site redesign strategy in place before you upgrade to that new site.
Website Redesign Strategy
1. Install Analytics on your current web site. If you are not already running Google Analytics or some other analytics program on your website, you need to set this up ASAP.
2. Review Analytics - You need to analyze the statistics on your current website. What are your most visited pages? What keywords are being used to find those pages? This is very valuable information!
3. Keep well performing pages intact - Determine which pages are performing well and bringing a lot of traffic to your site. You want to be very careful not to make any drastic changes to the content on these pages because it might have an adverse affect on your SEO.
4. Create Permanent Redirects - There is a good chance that your new web pages will have new names, especially if you are moving to a Content Management System. You need to set up 301-Permanent Redirects to alert the search engines that your pages have moved and that anyone looking for your old pages should automatically be redirected to your new pages. The benefits here are 2-fold:
- Visitors to your site will not get frustrated with page not found errors and leave your site to go to a competitor's website
- Your pages will retain their SEO page rank. Page rank from the old pages is transferred to the new ones.
So by all means, upgrade the look & feel of your website - but not at the expense of losing your page rank & SEO standings.