The following is a simple introduction to the use of heading tags in the formating of on-page SEO activities.
In descending priority of importance, H ref tags should be used to group content on the page, and the titles need to include one or more of the primary focus keywords within the title text.
Heading tags (<H1> to <H6>) are given an additional boost in Search Engine rankings by search engines. The reason for this is that headings traditionally carry important information about the structure of a page. For this reason, it is preferable to use headings to mark important elements in a document and to utilise keywords within the heading tags.
Use your keywords in the headings. Make sure the first level (<H1>) includes your most important keywords.
For greater SEO, only use one <H1> title per page.
Friday, April 1, 2011
Friday, March 25, 2011
Will my website benefit from SEO?
Understanding the principles of how search engines operate, and how users interact with Search Engines, is fundamental to the core of Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) and the service that our specialist team at Search Group performs.
Did you know that 85% of people who click on a search result click on the organic search result? Organic, also known as the 'natural' results attract the majority of attention and consumer trust, as opposed to Search Engine Marketing (SEM) such as Google Adwords sponsored links that appears at the top and along the side of the search results page. And the important thing to remember from this 85% of search traffic, is that the only way to rank in the organic results is from SEO.
If we see 100% of searchers clicking the first organic search result, less than 50% will click the first paid result (sponsored link).
When SEO is performed on your website it has a cascading effect. Most of the work you do for organic SEO - content creation, site performance improvements and link building also improves conversion, grows your overall brand awareness and strengthens other marketing efforts.
Search puts you in front of the customer when they need you. Unlike traditional press or off line advertising efforts, and even banners and such, search-driven marketing appears in front of the customer right when they need your services. You know that, because they're searching for you.
81% of internet users use search engines to find a website.
73% of all online transactions begin with a search engine.
87% of searchers only look at the first page of the Search Engine Results.
SEO has a lasting effect. Assuming you stick to good quality SEO techniques with long-term viability, your search engine optimisation work will help you for months or years. Every improvement you make, every page you add to your site, every link you earn will stick around, boosting later efforts.
There is also an opportunity for the little guy to have a win. SEO is a small business' best chance to beat out incumbents. SEO requires a degree of agility that big companies often can't manage. The internet can really be a level playing field, but if you take advantage of the wealth of experience from our dedicated Search Group team, the specialists in SEO, you can tip the online advantage in your favour.
Did you know that 85% of people who click on a search result click on the organic search result? Organic, also known as the 'natural' results attract the majority of attention and consumer trust, as opposed to Search Engine Marketing (SEM) such as Google Adwords sponsored links that appears at the top and along the side of the search results page. And the important thing to remember from this 85% of search traffic, is that the only way to rank in the organic results is from SEO.
If we see 100% of searchers clicking the first organic search result, less than 50% will click the first paid result (sponsored link).
When SEO is performed on your website it has a cascading effect. Most of the work you do for organic SEO - content creation, site performance improvements and link building also improves conversion, grows your overall brand awareness and strengthens other marketing efforts.
Search puts you in front of the customer when they need you. Unlike traditional press or off line advertising efforts, and even banners and such, search-driven marketing appears in front of the customer right when they need your services. You know that, because they're searching for you.
81% of internet users use search engines to find a website.
73% of all online transactions begin with a search engine.
87% of searchers only look at the first page of the Search Engine Results.
SEO has a lasting effect. Assuming you stick to good quality SEO techniques with long-term viability, your search engine optimisation work will help you for months or years. Every improvement you make, every page you add to your site, every link you earn will stick around, boosting later efforts.
There is also an opportunity for the little guy to have a win. SEO is a small business' best chance to beat out incumbents. SEO requires a degree of agility that big companies often can't manage. The internet can really be a level playing field, but if you take advantage of the wealth of experience from our dedicated Search Group team, the specialists in SEO, you can tip the online advantage in your favour.
Thursday, March 24, 2011
Add a Blog to your online marketing approach
Adding a blog to your current website is a beneficial activity to increase interest in your website and business services and products. It creates one of our preferred sticky effects, where website users are able to add, subscribe or follow your blog and retain a connection to your business whereby you can market to. A blog also provides a forum for you to make announcements, updates, and share knowledge and advice in an area where you have knowledge and know how.
My recommendations are using a Blogger blog due to the relationship with Google ownership, and content crawling associating to being found more readily within Google's own SERPs. It is free to set up and there are a wealth of template designs that you can choose from, add a logo and you are away...
More intimate template customisation is possible, and our own design team can create a customised template to match your business branding activities as well as assist in creating additional cross pollenation activities for stickiness such as adding links/follow integration with FourSquare, Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and the like. This is a good initial strategy to help cross promote your other Social Media activities encouraging uptake within different Social Media verticals.
Once you have your blog set up, customised, particularly with your contact details and bio, it can assist in providing additional back links into your primary domain shaped around keyword anchor text and draw clients into the business portion of your online activities where they can then request quotes or go into your online shopping cart if this is what you use.
Determine a frequency, as in how often you will blog, and this may be a weekly task or when special information is worth releasing about your business or service area.
Ensure you have a good link strategy back from your website and other social media back into your blog to cross promote this, and also add it to your sitemap for search engines to crawl.
Consider opening your blogs to comments, and thus creating communciation, but I would suggest ensuring you have the moderation option set as unfortunately there are still a few spammers out there which need to be filtered out. Engage with your clients and ask for their feedback, this will then provide you with an informed look at your own business and what clients require.
My recommendations are using a Blogger blog due to the relationship with Google ownership, and content crawling associating to being found more readily within Google's own SERPs. It is free to set up and there are a wealth of template designs that you can choose from, add a logo and you are away...
More intimate template customisation is possible, and our own design team can create a customised template to match your business branding activities as well as assist in creating additional cross pollenation activities for stickiness such as adding links/follow integration with FourSquare, Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and the like. This is a good initial strategy to help cross promote your other Social Media activities encouraging uptake within different Social Media verticals.
Once you have your blog set up, customised, particularly with your contact details and bio, it can assist in providing additional back links into your primary domain shaped around keyword anchor text and draw clients into the business portion of your online activities where they can then request quotes or go into your online shopping cart if this is what you use.
Determine a frequency, as in how often you will blog, and this may be a weekly task or when special information is worth releasing about your business or service area.
Ensure you have a good link strategy back from your website and other social media back into your blog to cross promote this, and also add it to your sitemap for search engines to crawl.
Consider opening your blogs to comments, and thus creating communciation, but I would suggest ensuring you have the moderation option set as unfortunately there are still a few spammers out there which need to be filtered out. Engage with your clients and ask for their feedback, this will then provide you with an informed look at your own business and what clients require.
Friday, March 18, 2011
Maximise your online marketing efforts in your Social Media bios
Regardless of the Social Media platform, I recommend that you don't leave your biography blank... or created in a haphazard manner with little thought, time or effort.
In the exercise of setting up your new online presence in each Social Media channel (Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, YouTube, FourSquare et al), take some time to consider firstly your choice of username - does it include any useful keywords for your industry, services or products for example? Have you considered having multiple user accounts/usernames so that your business can be found under distinct categories or sections?
When your Twitter account shows up in the SERPs (Search Engine Result Pages), your description/bio will also show up in the SERPs. This makes it quite helpful when trying to be found for a keyword and/or phrase in your industry vertical.
Many Social Media channels enable you to upload images, design backgrounds and customise the overall design of your Social Media platform. Use this important screen real estate to reinforce your brand and business logo, keep consistency with your corporate colour scheme to show the relationship to your website, and include useful information such as web address, email address, physical address, other contact details, and perhaps even some Call To Action activity with a current advert tile for your latest offer or incentive.
Now take note, if you weren't already aware, Bing and Google Search Engines confirmed in December 2010 that social media positioning, and commentary has a direct impact on rankings. So let's use the value from this to aid your online marketing efforts and get it all tied in together for your business. Bing has a direct content relationship deal with Facebook, and Google likewise has a relationship deal with Twitter. So the more you self promote in these Social Media platforms, the search engines are able to discover more and more of your content pages, links, and the keyword anchor text that point to these pages.
Search Group have regular Social Media training seminars each month, so if you are interested in a free lunch, with 2hrs free training and resources provided let me know so I can forward you an invitation. If you require some direct assistance with researching suitable usernames in the different Social Media channels, or getting set up please simply let me know.
Saturday, March 5, 2011
Custom Website Development with Perth webdesigners Star 3 Media
Not just a website, it is your online business portal and entrance point for your consumers to your products and services.
Looking to stand out of the crowd and get noticed?
Search Group, leading Perth SEO company, is the sister company to Perth website design company Star 3 Media (http://www.star3media.com.au/). This enviable relationship provides a natural harmony in overall online marketing practices and synergies between the Vorian Media Group (http://www.vorian.com.au/) of companies.
This operational partnership provides a two way resource flow in skills and knowledge. Search Group is able to offer website maintenance, upgrades and rebuilds in-house, along with custom web based programming. Star 3 Media have exceptional graphic designers and talented web developers able to provide a range of web based applications to suit your requirements.
Star 3 Media involves Search Group from initial client brief, website development and go-live launch processes where Search Group then take on the long term search engine optimisation and marketing activities for client.
Get on board today and enjoy the combined benefit of our online specialists.
Looking to stand out of the crowd and get noticed?
Search Group, leading Perth SEO company, is the sister company to Perth website design company Star 3 Media (http://www.star3media.com.au/). This enviable relationship provides a natural harmony in overall online marketing practices and synergies between the Vorian Media Group (http://www.vorian.com.au/) of companies.
This operational partnership provides a two way resource flow in skills and knowledge. Search Group is able to offer website maintenance, upgrades and rebuilds in-house, along with custom web based programming. Star 3 Media have exceptional graphic designers and talented web developers able to provide a range of web based applications to suit your requirements.
Star 3 Media involves Search Group from initial client brief, website development and go-live launch processes where Search Group then take on the long term search engine optimisation and marketing activities for client.
Get on board today and enjoy the combined benefit of our online specialists.
Thursday, February 24, 2011
Don't miss out on business because of 404 errors
Have you heard of a '404-Error' before?
If you have ever visited a page of a website that has been moved, deleted or renamed, or if you typed in part of the address wrong yourself or even clicked on a broken link, you’ll see an error telling you that there’s no page at that address. The technical name for this is a ‘404’ error - Page Not Found, and they’re very important to handle correctly.
When a website doesn’t have a custom 404 error page, website users will see the hosting company's default error screen which as a general rule isn't all that useful, and starts to create a sense of frustration for website visitors, and in many cases becomes the point of abandonment for the user leaving your website. Once you've spent all the time and effort in driving traffic to a website we certainly don't want to see the user leave without spending time on your site!
It's actually possible to customise your 404 error pages that website visitors will see on your website. This allows you to make the page look exactly like any other page of your website maintaining your branding and professional appearance along with access to your site's navigation menu, but at the same time displaying a clear message to your visitors telling them that the page they were looking for has not been found. A simple statement to include on the page is: “Sorry, it looks like we couldn’t find the page you were looking for”. I also recommend the inclusion of a simple on-page site map or search box, so that the user can quickly locate the area or page of the website that they want to go to and you direct them along their way.
Remember that a 404 error page may be the first page a user sees of your website and it’s an error page. They might assume the entire site is down, where actually the only problem is that a page has been renamed. Users don't tend to expend the energy thinking about what the issue might be and problem solving this for you!
Some websites even use the 404 page as another place to push their products onto visitors. “We couldn’t find the page you were looking for… so why not have a look at these other items instead…”
I've even seen a few funny customised 404 error messages from companies used to generate 'viral' marketing, and encourage discussion about their company online such as the following:
Every website hosting operating system, and development application has a different manner in which they can implement customised 404 Error Pages, and some are definitely more complex then others. Search Group can assist your online marketing efforts working with your current designer or developer, or independant to these, and provide a customised 404 Error Page to suit your brand requirements.
We recommend to clients monitoring error pages like your 404 error page in your website, using website analytics to determine what drives traffic to this point and identifying and resolving these problems whether internal or external causes.
Wednesday, February 23, 2011
Website Validation Check... is there a noise coming from your engine?
Bit like a car that may gradually, or even suddenly, start to make an unusual noise from underneath the hood you have choices...
- keep driving and hope for the best
- pop the hood and take a look around yourself
- or head over to your trusted mechanic and get it sorted
At Search Group we regularly provide ongoing reports, and expand upon our initial site audit where we outline any concerns that may exist under the hood of your website, particularly when it comes to the performance of your website both for the user experience and the performance and interaction of Search Engines across your website.
I notice regularly when performing reviews that many client website's still have invalid websites that do not conform to web standards and meet the necessary quality checks applied.
The following short and simple reference is provided to explain in depth why it is beneficial to validate your website, and answer some of the common misconceptions around this:http://validator.w3.org/docs/why.html
Having a website that has errors or even warnings can be hazardous to its performance.
Just like when you drive behind another car that has a broken brake light, you the web site owner are not always aware of the problem because it seems to just work for you... but this may not be the same experience for everyone else on the internet. Which is why website validation checks exist to help find problems and provide an opportunity to fix them once and for all.
I typically find if a problem exists on the front page of a website, that it then carries through the rest of the website. This is NOT the time for you to learn html so don't panic! I encourage you to engage with your website designer, and request them to review their website code and work toward resolving any issues. The website designer can then double check their changes to ensure that they validate through either:
http://www.totalvalidator.com/
http://validator.w3.org/
There are different settings that can be chosen when running a validator, but I encourage the designer to be ruthless in this approach. Our aim is for a perfect health score on the test, but even a reduction in the number of errors and warnings I will consider a win! And you will have a win too. By providing a website without errors will make for a better user experience and a much happier search bot with more opportunity of actually crawling through your entire website to find all your great content and getting this included within the Search Engine Results Pages (SERPs).
If you don't currently have a website designer available to assist you, or need a helping hand please let Search Group know as we supply website maintenance support as part of list of services.
- keep driving and hope for the best
- pop the hood and take a look around yourself
- or head over to your trusted mechanic and get it sorted
At Search Group we regularly provide ongoing reports, and expand upon our initial site audit where we outline any concerns that may exist under the hood of your website, particularly when it comes to the performance of your website both for the user experience and the performance and interaction of Search Engines across your website.
I notice regularly when performing reviews that many client website's still have invalid websites that do not conform to web standards and meet the necessary quality checks applied.
The following short and simple reference is provided to explain in depth why it is beneficial to validate your website, and answer some of the common misconceptions around this:http://validator.w3.org/docs/why.html
Having a website that has errors or even warnings can be hazardous to its performance.
Just like when you drive behind another car that has a broken brake light, you the web site owner are not always aware of the problem because it seems to just work for you... but this may not be the same experience for everyone else on the internet. Which is why website validation checks exist to help find problems and provide an opportunity to fix them once and for all.
I typically find if a problem exists on the front page of a website, that it then carries through the rest of the website. This is NOT the time for you to learn html so don't panic! I encourage you to engage with your website designer, and request them to review their website code and work toward resolving any issues. The website designer can then double check their changes to ensure that they validate through either:
http://www.totalvalidator.com/
http://validator.w3.org/
There are different settings that can be chosen when running a validator, but I encourage the designer to be ruthless in this approach. Our aim is for a perfect health score on the test, but even a reduction in the number of errors and warnings I will consider a win! And you will have a win too. By providing a website without errors will make for a better user experience and a much happier search bot with more opportunity of actually crawling through your entire website to find all your great content and getting this included within the Search Engine Results Pages (SERPs).
If you don't currently have a website designer available to assist you, or need a helping hand please let Search Group know as we supply website maintenance support as part of list of services.
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