Before jumping right into search engine optimization (SEO) for your web site, there are some very important steps you must take. SEO can provide a very high return on investment - if done correctly. Wasting time and money on SEO has happened to many who have jumped in too quickly. The excitement over seeing high rankings and the perceived sales benefit from them can blind some people from some important preliminary steps. Before retaining SEO services, ask yourself these questions:
1. Have I Done My Keyword Research?
We all want great search engine rankings and traffic to our web site, but will you get highly targeted traffic or visitors who couldn't care less about your product? Choosing the best keywords and using them effectively in your web site copy is essential in order to maximize the effectiveness of a link building campaign. Services like Keyword Discovery, Wordtracker, and even the Google AdWords Keyword Tool are an SEO's best friend. They show us the current trends in every industry as well as popular and niche keywords we should be targeting. How can we properly optimize a web site if we don't know what our potential customers are searching for? An SEO will do this as part of the campaign, but it doesn't hurt to use some free services ahead of time to help them narrow their research faster.
2. Is My Web Site Content Ready to be Shown to the World?
Have you hastily created copy and added it to your web site just for the sake of "having something up there" for people to see? Have you ensured that the writing is effective and free of mistakes by getting a professional editor or copywriter to analyze it? Have you created specific landing pages for different keywords, making sure that your pages present the best information for visitors? Is the site structure and technology attractive to search engine spiders? You wouldn't open a physical storefront without doing it right so don't skimp on your online store.
3. Do I Have a Clue About Web 2.0?
Many people don't even know what Web 2.0 means let alone how the concept can help their web site. Web 2.0, to put it simply, is the shift towards more social networking and the ability to share information in a collaborative and community-based way. Making use of sites like Del.icio.us, YouTube and Myspace as well as things like blogging, podcasts, wikis and online photo albums are examples of Web 2.0. This shift is from the "old" version of the web where we had web sites acting more like brochures or business cards, with few ways of actually connecting with other users online.
So how can you harness the power of the new Internet to help your business? Work along side your SEO company by updating a blog regularly; create unique content that your competitors don't have - if you offer something different it can be "linkbait", which is something that can entice others to link to you; create articles or how-to pieces that can be syndicated on other important sites within your industry; participate in Facebook groups related to your business and share links with others on social bookmarking sites. The possibilities are seemingly endless if you take advantage of the tools that are out there.
4. Have I Installed Analytics Software?
Any reputable SEO company will insist that there be a way to track visitor behavior and statistics. But you can go one step further and install that software before the SEO even begins to get a "before and after" look at SEO efforts. My personal choice is using the free Google Analytics program - it's easy to install the small piece of code on your site, and once you get used to the online interface, the amount of information available is astounding.
5. Can I Commit Company Resources For the Duration of the SEO Campaign?
I've had clients who chose to enter into a contract for SEO services only to find a couple months into it that they don't have the cash flow necessary to continue the campaign long-term. Employee turnover has also affected SEO if the go-between leaves the company. The disconnect between you and your SEO can stall progress and at worst end up wasting previous efforts. Search engine optimization is an investment, not a quick fix. While it may seem expensive in the first few months, good SEO pays for itself before too long, especially if your sales are on high-priced items like real estate, cruises or vacation tours. The most important thing to remember is backtracking equals a loss in time and profits. Get it right the first time and follow these steps before jumping into search engine optimization.
Showing posts with label great advertisers. Show all posts
Showing posts with label great advertisers. Show all posts
Thursday, November 27, 2008
20 Things You Need to Know Before Optimizing Your Site
20 Things You Need to Know Before Optimizing a Web Site
One of the most important aspects of a search engine optimization project is also one of the most overlooked – preparation! There are some important steps to take in advance of optimizing your site that will make sure your SEO is successful.
Before You Start
Before you start any search engine optimization campaign, whether it's for your own site or that belonging to a client, you need to answer the following questions:
1)What is the overall motivation for optimizing this site? What do I/they hope to achieve? e.g. more sales, more subscribers, more traffic, more publicity etc.
2)What is the time-frame for this project?
3)What is the budget for this project?
4)Who will be responsible for this project? Will it be a joint or solo effort? Will it be run entirely in-house or outsourced?
Answering these questions will help you to build a framework for your SEO project and establish limitations for the size and scope of the campaign.
Get Ready: How Search Engine-Compatible is the Site Currently?
Something I find very useful before quoting on any SEO project is to produce what I call a Search Engine Compatibility Review. This is where I carry out a detailed overview and analysis of a site's search engine compatibility in terms of HTML design, page extensions, link popularity, title and META tags, body text, target keywords, ALT IMG tags, page load time and other design elements that can impact search engine indexing.
I then provide a detailed report to potential clients with recommendations based on my findings. It just helps sort out in my mind what design elements need tweaking to make the site as search engine-friendly as possible. It also helps marketing staff prove to an often stubborn programming department (or vice versa!) that SEO is necessary. You might consider preparing something similar for your own site or clients.
Get Set: Requirements Gathering
Next, you need to establish the project requirements, so you can tailor the SEO campaign to you or your client's exact needs. For those of you servicing clients, this information is often required before you are able to quote accurately.
To determine your project requirements, you need to have the following questions answered:
1)What technology was used to build the site? (i.e. Flash, PHP, frames, Cold Fusion, JavaScript, Flat HTML etc)
2)What are the file extensions of the pages? (i.e. .htm, .php, .cfm etc)
3)Does the site contain database driven content? If so, will the URLs contain query strings? e.g. www.site.com/longpagename?source=123444fgge3212, (containing "?" symbols), or does the site use parameter workarounds to remove the query strings? (the latter is more search engine friendly).
4)Are there at least 250 words of text on the home page and other pages to be optimized?
5)How does the navigation work? Does it use text links or graphical links or JavaScript drop-down menus?
6)Approximately how many pages does the site contain? How many of these will be opt
imized?
7)Does the site have a site map or will it require one? Does the site have an XML sitemap submitted to Google Sitemaps?
8)What is the current link popularity of the site?
9)What is the approximate Google PageRank of the site? Would it benefit from link building?
10)Do I have the ability to edit the source code directly? Or will I need to hand-over the optimized code to programmers for integration?
11)Do I have permission to alter the visible content of the site?
12)What are the products/services that the site promotes? (e.g. widgets, mobile phones, hire cars etc.)
13)What are the site's geographical target markets? Are they global? Country specific? State specific? Town specific?
14)What are the site's demographic target markets? (e.g. young urban females, working mothers, single parents etc.)
15)What are 20 search keywords or phrases that I think my/my client's target markets will use to find the site in the search engines?
16)Who are my/my client's major competitors online? What are their URLs? What keywords are they targeting?
17)Who are the stake-holders of this site? How will I report to them?
18)Do I have access to site traffic logs or statistics to enable me to track visitor activity during the campaign? Specifically, what visitor activity will I be tracking?
19)How do I plan on tracking my or my client's conversion trends and increased rankings in the search engines?
20)What are my/my client's expectations for the optimization project? Are they realistic?
Answers to the first 10 questions above will determine the complexity of optimization required. For example, if the site pages currently have little text on them, you know you'll need to integrate more text to make the site compatible with search engines and include adequate target keywords. If the site currently uses frames, you will need to rebuild the pages without frames or create special No-Frames tags to make sure the site can be indexed, and so on.
This initial analysis will help you to scope the time and costs involved in advance. For those of you optimizing client sites, obtaining accurate answers to these questions BEFORE quoting is absolutely crucial. Otherwise you can find yourself in the middle of a project that you have severely under-quoted for.
The remainder of questions are to establish in advance the who, what, where, when, why and how of the optimization project. This will help you determine the most logical keywords and phrases to target, as well as which search engines to submit the site to.
For those of you optimizing web sites for a living, you might consider developing a questionnaire that you can give clients to complete to ensure you tailor the web site optimization to their exact needs.
Go!
So now you are clear about your motivations for optimizing the site, you know more about the target markets, you know how compatible the existing site is with search engines and how much work is involved in the search engine optimization process. You're ready to tackle the job!
One of the most important aspects of a search engine optimization project is also one of the most overlooked – preparation! There are some important steps to take in advance of optimizing your site that will make sure your SEO is successful.
Before You Start
Before you start any search engine optimization campaign, whether it's for your own site or that belonging to a client, you need to answer the following questions:
1)What is the overall motivation for optimizing this site? What do I/they hope to achieve? e.g. more sales, more subscribers, more traffic, more publicity etc.
2)What is the time-frame for this project?
3)What is the budget for this project?
4)Who will be responsible for this project? Will it be a joint or solo effort? Will it be run entirely in-house or outsourced?
Answering these questions will help you to build a framework for your SEO project and establish limitations for the size and scope of the campaign.
Get Ready: How Search Engine-Compatible is the Site Currently?
Something I find very useful before quoting on any SEO project is to produce what I call a Search Engine Compatibility Review. This is where I carry out a detailed overview and analysis of a site's search engine compatibility in terms of HTML design, page extensions, link popularity, title and META tags, body text, target keywords, ALT IMG tags, page load time and other design elements that can impact search engine indexing.
I then provide a detailed report to potential clients with recommendations based on my findings. It just helps sort out in my mind what design elements need tweaking to make the site as search engine-friendly as possible. It also helps marketing staff prove to an often stubborn programming department (or vice versa!) that SEO is necessary. You might consider preparing something similar for your own site or clients.
Get Set: Requirements Gathering
Next, you need to establish the project requirements, so you can tailor the SEO campaign to you or your client's exact needs. For those of you servicing clients, this information is often required before you are able to quote accurately.
To determine your project requirements, you need to have the following questions answered:
1)What technology was used to build the site? (i.e. Flash, PHP, frames, Cold Fusion, JavaScript, Flat HTML etc)
2)What are the file extensions of the pages? (i.e. .htm, .php, .cfm etc)
3)Does the site contain database driven content? If so, will the URLs contain query strings? e.g. www.site.com/longpagename?source=123444fgge3212, (containing "?" symbols), or does the site use parameter workarounds to remove the query strings? (the latter is more search engine friendly).
4)Are there at least 250 words of text on the home page and other pages to be optimized?
5)How does the navigation work? Does it use text links or graphical links or JavaScript drop-down menus?
6)Approximately how many pages does the site contain? How many of these will be opt
imized?
7)Does the site have a site map or will it require one? Does the site have an XML sitemap submitted to Google Sitemaps?
8)What is the current link popularity of the site?
9)What is the approximate Google PageRank of the site? Would it benefit from link building?
10)Do I have the ability to edit the source code directly? Or will I need to hand-over the optimized code to programmers for integration?
11)Do I have permission to alter the visible content of the site?
12)What are the products/services that the site promotes? (e.g. widgets, mobile phones, hire cars etc.)
13)What are the site's geographical target markets? Are they global? Country specific? State specific? Town specific?
14)What are the site's demographic target markets? (e.g. young urban females, working mothers, single parents etc.)
15)What are 20 search keywords or phrases that I think my/my client's target markets will use to find the site in the search engines?
16)Who are my/my client's major competitors online? What are their URLs? What keywords are they targeting?
17)Who are the stake-holders of this site? How will I report to them?
18)Do I have access to site traffic logs or statistics to enable me to track visitor activity during the campaign? Specifically, what visitor activity will I be tracking?
19)How do I plan on tracking my or my client's conversion trends and increased rankings in the search engines?
20)What are my/my client's expectations for the optimization project? Are they realistic?
Answers to the first 10 questions above will determine the complexity of optimization required. For example, if the site pages currently have little text on them, you know you'll need to integrate more text to make the site compatible with search engines and include adequate target keywords. If the site currently uses frames, you will need to rebuild the pages without frames or create special No-Frames tags to make sure the site can be indexed, and so on.
This initial analysis will help you to scope the time and costs involved in advance. For those of you optimizing client sites, obtaining accurate answers to these questions BEFORE quoting is absolutely crucial. Otherwise you can find yourself in the middle of a project that you have severely under-quoted for.
The remainder of questions are to establish in advance the who, what, where, when, why and how of the optimization project. This will help you determine the most logical keywords and phrases to target, as well as which search engines to submit the site to.
For those of you optimizing web sites for a living, you might consider developing a questionnaire that you can give clients to complete to ensure you tailor the web site optimization to their exact needs.
Go!
So now you are clear about your motivations for optimizing the site, you know more about the target markets, you know how compatible the existing site is with search engines and how much work is involved in the search engine optimization process. You're ready to tackle the job!
Is My Search Engine Optimization Working?
You’ve just built a website and can’t wait to start popping up in the top listings of search engines. After all, you’ve paid this company even more money to create “optimized, search engine friendly pages, start building links and add lots of fresh content.” If it takes weeks and months for the search engines to notice me, do I have to wait that long to see if the money was worth it?
No! It’s true that it takes time…weeks, even months to build up your web presence, but there are ways to follow your progress. It’s important to note that if you already have an established Internet presence and wish to further optimize your site, it usually happens much faster than a site that is brand new with a brand new domain.
If you are already listed in various directories and your existing website has been up and running long enough the search engines have probably already indexed your site and those linking to it. (to see if your site is indexed with a particular engine, in the search field type “site:www.yourdomain.com”). As you modify your pages and add new content the process of moving up in search rank is much swifter than starting from a brand new, un-indexed site. ?
The ranking process has an inherent unchangeable variable of time. Sponsored search listings are one of a few ways around this hurdle to get you to the top instantly while the search spiders dig through your new site. But for the long haul, while you wait for that big chuck of cash you just paid your SEO to start returning, here are some ways to tell if he or she did you justice.
Ways to keep tabs on your progress:
Monitor Search Engine Positions
If you’re a brand new domain name the first step is to watch for yourself to be indexed. Chances are that your optimizer submitted your site to the most prominent search engines at the very least. While the search crawlers will ultimately find you on their own, there is some merit in submitting your site manually. It may take some weeks before a check of site:www.yourdomain.com reveals any activity though. Take care not to be over anxious and resubmit your site. That will only hurt your efforts.
Once you find yourself being listed by particular keywords in a search engine, monitor how your rank moves every week or so. (Frequently, the more you add fresh content, the sooner the crawlers will return to your site.) Change the preference settings in search engines to speed up your research efforts.
Google will display up to 100 results per page, MSN up to 50 in “advanced search.” This makes it much easier to find yourself if your down in the 300th position. Don’t be discouraged though! Being listed even at 300 is an accomplishment. And as you optimize you will see your listing move up in the ranks.
Visitor Tracking
The best, and easiest way to see who is reaching your site by search engine and particular keyword phrase is to implement some sort visitor tracking system. These are not complicated and can cost only a few dollars a month. Take a look at a company like WebSTAT - Web Statistics and Counter for example.
A small piece of code is placed on each page you want to track. When you log into the online service, you can tell the exact word and phrase someone used to reach you and from what search engine... not to mention scores of other useful data about your site traffic. This quickly gives you a snapshot of which keyword phrases are most successful and in which engines. This data is invaluable to further optimize your pages.
Are your top search engine rankings on par with the industry percentages?
Again using visitor tracking you can see if the people reaching you by Google are close to the percentage of people that use Google compared to MSN or AOL. If the industry shows that overall 25% of searchers are using MSN and 5% Lycos, your results should be similar. If they’re not, it’s a sign that some modifications might be in order.
Monitoring these processes will show you that there’s actually quite a lot of activity. And there’s nothing more exciting than watching that 300th position search climb to the first page!
No! It’s true that it takes time…weeks, even months to build up your web presence, but there are ways to follow your progress. It’s important to note that if you already have an established Internet presence and wish to further optimize your site, it usually happens much faster than a site that is brand new with a brand new domain.
If you are already listed in various directories and your existing website has been up and running long enough the search engines have probably already indexed your site and those linking to it. (to see if your site is indexed with a particular engine, in the search field type “site:www.yourdomain.com”). As you modify your pages and add new content the process of moving up in search rank is much swifter than starting from a brand new, un-indexed site. ?
The ranking process has an inherent unchangeable variable of time. Sponsored search listings are one of a few ways around this hurdle to get you to the top instantly while the search spiders dig through your new site. But for the long haul, while you wait for that big chuck of cash you just paid your SEO to start returning, here are some ways to tell if he or she did you justice.
Ways to keep tabs on your progress:
Monitor Search Engine Positions
If you’re a brand new domain name the first step is to watch for yourself to be indexed. Chances are that your optimizer submitted your site to the most prominent search engines at the very least. While the search crawlers will ultimately find you on their own, there is some merit in submitting your site manually. It may take some weeks before a check of site:www.yourdomain.com reveals any activity though. Take care not to be over anxious and resubmit your site. That will only hurt your efforts.
Once you find yourself being listed by particular keywords in a search engine, monitor how your rank moves every week or so. (Frequently, the more you add fresh content, the sooner the crawlers will return to your site.) Change the preference settings in search engines to speed up your research efforts.
Google will display up to 100 results per page, MSN up to 50 in “advanced search.” This makes it much easier to find yourself if your down in the 300th position. Don’t be discouraged though! Being listed even at 300 is an accomplishment. And as you optimize you will see your listing move up in the ranks.
Visitor Tracking
The best, and easiest way to see who is reaching your site by search engine and particular keyword phrase is to implement some sort visitor tracking system. These are not complicated and can cost only a few dollars a month. Take a look at a company like WebSTAT - Web Statistics and Counter for example.
A small piece of code is placed on each page you want to track. When you log into the online service, you can tell the exact word and phrase someone used to reach you and from what search engine... not to mention scores of other useful data about your site traffic. This quickly gives you a snapshot of which keyword phrases are most successful and in which engines. This data is invaluable to further optimize your pages.
Are your top search engine rankings on par with the industry percentages?
Again using visitor tracking you can see if the people reaching you by Google are close to the percentage of people that use Google compared to MSN or AOL. If the industry shows that overall 25% of searchers are using MSN and 5% Lycos, your results should be similar. If they’re not, it’s a sign that some modifications might be in order.
Monitoring these processes will show you that there’s actually quite a lot of activity. And there’s nothing more exciting than watching that 300th position search climb to the first page!
Does Your Search Engine Optimization Company Understand Your Marketing Strategy?
So you have decided to hire a search engine optimization company as a part of your overall marketing strategy. The firm that you choose will have a tremendous impact on the success of your campaign, but you knew that already. However, what are your evaluation criteria? For too many companies, the answer is plain, simple, and singular: rankings.
However, any search engine optimization company worth its salt can achieve high rankings of some sort. The true question is whether those search engine rankings are for targeted phrases that are in line with your overall marketing strategy. In order for your search engine optimization campaign to be truly successful, a search engine optimization company must understand your business, products and services enough that it can accurately promote them on the Internet.
Unique Differentiators
Every company has them. Every search engine optimization company should be interested in knowing what they are. These vital components of your marketing strategy can be a huge determinant in the keyphrases that are targeted in your optimization campaign.
For example, do you provide customized solutions in an otherwise highly-commoditized industry? Modifiers like "specialty" and "customized" added to your keyphrases will help you to obtain the types of visitors most likely to be looking for exactly what you offer. This is only one example - a typical marketing plan will detail several points that effectively differentiate the company from its competition, and a good search engine optimization firm will take the time to understand what these are. By knowing and understanding these points of differentiation, an optimization company will be able to get the most out of your campaign.
High-Profit Segments
Most companies have certain products or services that are more profitable than others that they offer. Some companies may also have some new products or services that they are aggressively targeting. Without the knowledge of these facts, your search engine optimization company is likely to target all areas of your business equally. Clearly, this would not serve your company well if your marketing strategy was calling for phase-outs of certain product or service lines, a focus on higher margin business, or aggressive promotion of new offerings. Allocation of targeted keyphrases must be in line with your marketing strategy in order for you to get the most out of the campaign, and a quality search engine optimization company will pursue the data that it needs to make a proper allocation.
Defining Prospects
Are your prospects already educated about your industry, or are they looking for solutions to a particular problem? Are they a mix of both? Your search engine optimization company should be asking you about the makeup of your client base. Targeting highly technical and specific keyphrases (such as "email deliverability testing platforms") could attract highly-educated prospects, while targeting solution-based keyphrases (such as "marketing through email") will target someone who is looking for a solution while not necessarily understanding exactly how it is provided. Does your marketing strategy have a preference as to which sort of prospect you seek? Is it a mixture of both? If so, what is the percentage breakdown? Your search engine optimization company should be asking you these questions in order to bring you the most qualified prospects.
Change over Time
Unless you are in one of those rare industries that hasn't changed much for 50 years, your marketing strategy will likely shift to accommodate new challenges and new opportunities. As an extension of your marketing team, a good search engine optimization company will want to keep abreast of these changes and adjust your campaign according to what is current today. All too often, a company will change its products or services, adjust its prospect profile, or decide to focus on other areas of business without letting the search engine optimization company know that its marketing strategy has changed. A quality search firm will be proactive in finding out if any of these changes have occurred and will address them at the same time that you are, assuring that your search engine optimization campaign is in full alignment with your current marketing goals.
These represent only a few examples of how a good search engine optimization firm will want to fully understand your marketing strategy throughout the lifetime of your search engine optimization campaign. While it is true that no single company ever understands your business as well as your company does, it's also true that a search engine optimization company with a stellar track record will understand search engine optimization better than your company will. The marriage of knowledge between the two entities can be the single largest determinant in the level of success (or failure) of your campaign. If you suspect that your search engine optimization company is taking a cookie-cutter approach to your campaign and is not taking the time to fully understand your marketing strategy, it may be advisable to look elsewhere.
However, any search engine optimization company worth its salt can achieve high rankings of some sort. The true question is whether those search engine rankings are for targeted phrases that are in line with your overall marketing strategy. In order for your search engine optimization campaign to be truly successful, a search engine optimization company must understand your business, products and services enough that it can accurately promote them on the Internet.
Unique Differentiators
Every company has them. Every search engine optimization company should be interested in knowing what they are. These vital components of your marketing strategy can be a huge determinant in the keyphrases that are targeted in your optimization campaign.
For example, do you provide customized solutions in an otherwise highly-commoditized industry? Modifiers like "specialty" and "customized" added to your keyphrases will help you to obtain the types of visitors most likely to be looking for exactly what you offer. This is only one example - a typical marketing plan will detail several points that effectively differentiate the company from its competition, and a good search engine optimization firm will take the time to understand what these are. By knowing and understanding these points of differentiation, an optimization company will be able to get the most out of your campaign.
High-Profit Segments
Most companies have certain products or services that are more profitable than others that they offer. Some companies may also have some new products or services that they are aggressively targeting. Without the knowledge of these facts, your search engine optimization company is likely to target all areas of your business equally. Clearly, this would not serve your company well if your marketing strategy was calling for phase-outs of certain product or service lines, a focus on higher margin business, or aggressive promotion of new offerings. Allocation of targeted keyphrases must be in line with your marketing strategy in order for you to get the most out of the campaign, and a quality search engine optimization company will pursue the data that it needs to make a proper allocation.
Defining Prospects
Are your prospects already educated about your industry, or are they looking for solutions to a particular problem? Are they a mix of both? Your search engine optimization company should be asking you about the makeup of your client base. Targeting highly technical and specific keyphrases (such as "email deliverability testing platforms") could attract highly-educated prospects, while targeting solution-based keyphrases (such as "marketing through email") will target someone who is looking for a solution while not necessarily understanding exactly how it is provided. Does your marketing strategy have a preference as to which sort of prospect you seek? Is it a mixture of both? If so, what is the percentage breakdown? Your search engine optimization company should be asking you these questions in order to bring you the most qualified prospects.
Change over Time
Unless you are in one of those rare industries that hasn't changed much for 50 years, your marketing strategy will likely shift to accommodate new challenges and new opportunities. As an extension of your marketing team, a good search engine optimization company will want to keep abreast of these changes and adjust your campaign according to what is current today. All too often, a company will change its products or services, adjust its prospect profile, or decide to focus on other areas of business without letting the search engine optimization company know that its marketing strategy has changed. A quality search firm will be proactive in finding out if any of these changes have occurred and will address them at the same time that you are, assuring that your search engine optimization campaign is in full alignment with your current marketing goals.
These represent only a few examples of how a good search engine optimization firm will want to fully understand your marketing strategy throughout the lifetime of your search engine optimization campaign. While it is true that no single company ever understands your business as well as your company does, it's also true that a search engine optimization company with a stellar track record will understand search engine optimization better than your company will. The marriage of knowledge between the two entities can be the single largest determinant in the level of success (or failure) of your campaign. If you suspect that your search engine optimization company is taking a cookie-cutter approach to your campaign and is not taking the time to fully understand your marketing strategy, it may be advisable to look elsewhere.
Monday, November 10, 2008
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