Search Optimized Sites
This is what we like to see!
A year later this client has a nice stream of organic search results and is topping the list for the two main service components he offers.
2014 Orange
2015 Blue
So many important metrics, new visitors, bounce rate, conversion, all taken into account when measuring traffic to a site through Google Analytics.
IPhone 6, Kindle Fire table, Android phone – sites need to look great on all devices. Are you curious how your site measures up? Use this handy link to see how responsive your site is on multiple devices Test my Site. Responsive designed sites are fluidly designed, they will work on almost every device as they are designed to respond to window sizes in a flexible way. Odds are your site can be easily adapted for a more responsive performance.
Most new WordPress themes are responsive, or mobile-friendly. If you are purchasing a new theme make sure that this feature is included and check the theme demo from your phone to be sure. I’ve found that more popular themes have included responsive features in their updates. For older themes or theme that have been abandoned by their developer there are several options. You can add a plugin that incorporates mobile or add some custom css code for smaller devices. The best option would be to upgrade to a new theme as it probably means your theme is outdated and unsupported and thus not only stale but a possible security risk too.
Beginning on April 21st, Google will assess sites responsiveness and give higher visibility for mobile-friendly sites in search results from phones. They have provided this link to test your site and suggest ways to improve your mobile-friendly performance.
Google Mobile Friendly Test
We all know great design when we see it but creating great design takes talent and practice. Adobe Illustrator is a powerful tool for creating graphics for your site but it also has a very steep learning curve. Recently, I began using an online graphic design tool, CANVA.COM , to create simple graphics and my impression so far is that it is easy and fun. Canva is a creation of Guy Kawasaki, a former evangelist of Apple and Motorola. Guy presented at Hubspot’s INBOUND 2015 and was a relaxed and amusing presence. He has a twitter account that seems to post thousands of tweets a week, keeping a small cadre of graphic designers busy just to keep up. I immediately checked out Canva and much to my delight it really does simplify the graphic design process in many ways.
First, you select your platform and began working in a pre-formatted canvas. Every type of social media canvas is represented including posters and infographics. You then choose elements for background, text etc. Canva is very flexible in allowing you to upload your own elements or choose from free and $1 canva elements. The text elements are pre-designed elements, just waiting for you to drop in your text. In this image I used a photo of mine from Rock Harbor Cape Cod and a Canva text element. While it looks simple, that circular pattern is not easy to create from scratch. Proportion of design elements is already determined allowing for modern and clean balance…
I often struggle to collect professional photos from companies that represent products, location, staff. One excellent, professional photo can do a lot of heavy lifting on a site, presenting brand and other messaging with ease. One of the freeing aspects of Canva is that you learn you can create infographics, postings and headers using many other sources for backgrounds. While these may not be appropriate for main site images they are really useful for social media and other quick turnaround channels. Twitter posts with a great, but not site specific, image are very captivating when done with attention to layout. Canva text is pre-designed for appeal with font details carefully determined. Here is an infographic I had fun with, it illustrates the difference between just brand traffic and great search traffic.
Combined with a source of free images, such as UNSPLASH.com, you can really create some high level looks in a flash. Here is an UNSPLASH city scene and Canva graphics, basic of course but also lightning fast… and free! No monthly SAS fees, no expensive content purchases. The text design components are just where they should be.
SurfSkiRacing is a collaborative site for which I provided the WordPress expertise and a focus on search visibility. The aim of the site is to promote the sport of surfski kayaking. As an avid surfskier myself, I really enjoy both coding and reading the content. Planning a recent redesign for the site and selecting and customizing our new theme was great fun.
Not really.
Well it can depend, for most of my clients we have spent time building up a better web presence. Yodle, Yellow pages, all these services will mirror your site on a new domain with a phone number they can use to track incoming calls. While it may seem great to gain usage of the domain CoffeeMaine.com for your Maine roaster shop, you won’t actually own the domain. When Yodel and you part ways, which you will eventually, then they still own the domain and all the traffic associated with it. That is your Traffic! To further complicate issues the floating domain may now be used by a competitive coffee shop in Maine. Clearly not an ideal setup, owning your domains and controlling how they are implemented is critical. We can create lasting results by building up traffic resources over time.
Bing, Yelp, all these locations will have your listing claimed by Yodle and then they will sub out your contact info for their floating domains and numbers. When you leave Yodle it will be very difficult to get these back.
The phone number is also an issue. Clients will see a Yodle number rather than your business number. The number generally will have an “out-of-state” feel to it rather then having your states area code.
Situations where I may want to use Yodel: quick business setup that is short term, maybe popup retail shop. Any solution where we need traffic real fast but maybe aren’t as concerned about future traffic.
This map shows live hacking attempts on WordPress sites from around the world. WordPress powers one in six websites on the web today. Even more amazing is that all the power of WordPress itself is provided for free!
Continue reading “Hackers, Scammers and More…How to Minimize Damage…”
If you want to be found locally you need to pay attention to the local search ecosystem. It sounds simple but as this map below demonstrates it can be a bit complicated. Google geographic search results are powered by local search and that means determining which of these paths are important for your segment. In developing a search optimized site one of our goals is to utilize this environment- the local search ecosystem – as effectively as possible. We begin with the foundations and then incrementally build a robust and consistent network of feeder sources for your site.
Istock is also a great source of illustrations, and animated short clips:
Here’s a sampling of some of the photos we’ve edited for use on sites…
Some of my favorite istockphotos used in sites:
