Do you want to optimize your website for search engines? Search engine optimization (SEO) isn’t rocket science, but there are a lot of little things you need to know about it before you start trying to increase your search engine traffic.
Harsh Reality #1: Links are everything
There are two major aspects of SEO. The first is on-page optimization and the second is the number of sites linking to you. On-page optimization is something that every one can easily manipulate, but links on the other hand aren’t.
Search engines look at:
- The number of sites linking to yours – typically the more sites linking to your website, the better.
- The anchor text of these links – if you are trying to get ranked for “dog food” it’s more advantageous if the link that points to your website says “dog food” instead of your website name.
- How relevant are your links – if your website is about dog food then you want either dog or pet related sites to link to you.
The three things I mentioned above make up an ideal link and because it’s hard to get ideal links, search engines place more emphasis on them than anything else.
Harsh Reality #2: The basics really do matter
Who cares about meta tags, right? Well, search engines do. This is the reason why Google Webmaster Central tells you how many duplicate titles and descriptions you have on your website.
When I first started working with TechCrunch 3 or 4 years ago, I was able to double their search engine traffic within 30 days. And can you guess how I did this?
Drum roll please…
All I did was make the post title the title tag and the first sentence of each blog post the meta description.
Now don’t get me wrong, I did a lot more than that overall, but those 2 simple changes doubled their search engine traffic.
Harsh Reality #3: What works for one site doesn’t always work for others
Just like how I doubled TechCrunch’s search engine traffic as well as a few dozen more blogs using the tactic I mentioned above, I also decreased WordPress.com’s search engine traffic by half through the same tactic.
The funny part about this is that they were all running on the WordPress platform, so I thought that making that same change on WordPress.com blogs would drastically increase their traffic.
But it didn’t. So what it means is that what works on one website doesn’t necessarily work on all websites. If you want to maximize your search engine traffic you have to test things out because what worked for someone else’s website may not work for yours.
Harsh Reality #4: Writing content for search engines is bad
Why do you talk about writing content for search engines? Just think about that for a second… Do you see anything wrong with it?
That’s right, search engines don’t read your content, people do. If you write your content for search engines, don’t expect them to convert into customers. On the other hand, by writing content for people, at least you have a chance of converting them into paying customers.
Now, when you are writing your content, you shouldn’t push search engines out of the picture. You should still consider them because there is a way you can write content for both people and search engines.
Here’s how:
- Titles – the title of your content should be attractive. This will convince people to read it.
- Keywords – if your content is on dog food you’ll naturally mention dog food and other related keywords when it makes sense. So don’t keyword stuff.
- Links – if you know of a good site that you should be linking to in your content, then link to it. Don’t just keep all of your link juice for yourself… if no one linked out search engines like Google wouldn’t work as well.
- Content – the more detailed and unique your content is, the better. Search engines don’t need another me-too article to place in their index, they need more unique information that people love.
If you follow the steps I mentioned above, you’ll be able to write content for humans and search engines. Those steps will help you create good content, which in turn will cause other websites to link to it. And as I mentioned in the Harsh Reality #1, links are the most important factor in search engine rankings.
Harsh Reality #5: Exact match domain names rank the best
If you are trying to get ranked for a specific keyword, the best domain name to own isn’t one that is brandable. It’s the one that’s keyword rich.
For example if you want to rank for homes the best domain name to own is homes.com, homes.net or homes.org. Pretty much any exact match domain will work.
If you can’t get a hold of an exact match domain name you could purchase cheaphomes.com, but that won’t help you rank for homes as much as homes.com. Instead it will work well if you were trying to rank for cheap homes.
Google has been placing a lot of emphasis on exact match domain name. For example if you Google the keyword “homes”, you’ll notice that homes.com ranks number 1 and 2 and realtor.com ranks number 3. And if you do a link check on both of the domains to see how many links each of them have: homes.com has over 1000 and realtor.com has over 3000.
In essence, realtor.com has 3 times the amount of links, but homes.com still ranks number 1. Hopefully that shows you the power of exact match domain names. And I do understand that these domain names aren’t the best for branding your business, but if your business is heavily reliant on search engine traffic you should consider purchasing the exact match domain.
Harsh Reality #6: It’s better to be safe than sorry
If you know me, then you know that I have done a lot of shady stuff to get rankings on Google. I have ranked for some of the most competitive terms out there and I mainly achieved this by using tactics that search engines look down on.
In the short run I made a killing, but eventually I got caught. So if you are thinking about buying text links or any other magic bullets that will help you get high rankings, think twice.
Do the math, search engines may be already driving you a decent amount of visitors and more importantly revenue. Yes it would be nice if you could buy text links and double that revenue, but on the other hand you could get caught and banned from engines like Google.
So the question you have to ask yourself is are you willing to risk your revenue?
Harsh Reality #7: Sometime things just take time
This is probably the worst reality of them all, which is why I saved it for last. If you want to get ranked for some second or third tier keyword, it’s possible to do so pretty quickly. But if you want to get ranked for something competitive like “poker” or “credit cards”, don’t expect that to happen right away.
Plus when you make changes to your website, don’t expect to see big traffic increases right away. Sometimes it can take a few weeks for search engines to index your new changes. Due to this, it could take weeks if not months before you see traffic increases.
by Neil Patel on February 15, 2010
Hello there Agua followers, we have just launched a new project.
A simple and contemporary website for a local Law office. Feel free to check out the website design aspects, we also did the logo design.
Visit us at www.aguaesolutions.com to see all of our package options.
Hi Everyone,
I am pleased to share this free e card website built by AGUA. Although the website looks real simple, there is lots of backend work that was needed to finish the project.
We used a combination of technologies which is commonly referred to as LAMP (Linux, Apache, MySQL, PHP). We used these particular technologies to keep the cost down and still provide a robust product which does everything client wanted. The client can login to the custom backend at http://billywoodecards.com/?module=admin . Here She will be able to upload new ecards, remove old ones, edit current ones, take a look at stats etc. Our goal was to provide a web application which is not only user friendly for the visitors but also for the person maintaining the site. The site is completely free and anyone can use it please visit: http://billywoodecards.com/ send out a free card and leave us some feedback.
Billywood Client is based in New England, USA. We are getting more and more inquiries from outside of our main market which is Calgary, Canada. If you have a project you would like to talk about Give us a call at 1 877 716 1506 or 403 921 8595.
For more information please visit: http://www.aguaesolutions.com/
Azhar Siddiqui
To thrive in a recession, the sales force at iCore Networks focuses on cold calling
By Mike Hofman and April Joyner | Sep 1, 2009
The Hiring Process
1. An executive recruiter prescreens candidates to find reps with a few years’ experience outside the telecom industry.
2. A first interview with sales manager Anthony Chapa. Only 10 percent of candidates advance beyond this stage.
3. Next, a candidate spends a full day with a rep door-to-door cold-calling. “We’ve had people leave halfway through, because the pace was too much for them,” Chapa says.
4. An interview with Michael Bertamini, VP of sales
5. An interview with founder and CEO Stephen Canton
Compensation
Base salary + commission
Average first-year income: $92,000
Average second-year income: $121,000
Average third-year income: $150,000
The Sales Philosophy
“Without a brand name and without market share, the only way to close deals is through activity — that means feet on the street and knocking on doors.” — Stephen Canton, iCore’s founder and CEO
The Employee Handbook
1. Be willing to be coached and managed. Don’t be set in your ways.
2. Be on time for the 8 a.m. meeting, and return in the afternoon to plan for the following day.
3. Be interested in a career track. The plan is to expand geographically, with account executives becoming managers and opening up new territories, starting with Philadelphia.
When Calling On Customers
1. On a scheduled introductory call, the goal is to discern whether iCore’s system would be useful for a prospective customer.
2. After that appointment, cold-call every other tenant in the same building or office park.
3. If you get no further than the outer office, make sure you size up the age of the phone on the receptionist’s desk.
The Expectations
Quotas are set by the number of “seats” the reps sell, which corresponds to the number of individual phones using the system.
Companywide quota: 8,000 seats a year
Experienced rep’s quota: 1,500 seats a year
New hire’s quota: 75 seats per month
The Results
Total revenue, 2008: $17,025,510
Revenue per salesperson: $1,418,793
Revenue versus quota, 2008: +25 percent
Revenue growth, 2007–08: +45 percent
——————————————————————————–
The Typical Workday
7:30 a.m. One or two new reps meet with their manager for individual coaching. “We use this time to help a rep who is poor in a particular area, like learning how to talk about the technology or how to set a realistic forecast,” Bertamini says.
8 a.m. Reps gather to discuss successes and failures from the day before and to role-play how to overcome objections.
9 a.m. An hour of intense telemarketing (20 to 25 calls per rep) to cultivate companies that reps can call on later that day.
10 a.m. → 4 p.m. Reps head into the field for cold-calling.
4:30 p.m. → 6 p.m. Reps return to the office to enter the information they’ve gathered into iCore’s contacts database and Salesforce.com CRM software and to research the prospects and places they intend to visit the following day.
This Article is in the september issue of INC500: http://www.inc.com/magazine/20090901/a-sales-force-built-around-cold-calling.html
Hi All,
First of all sorry for not posting anything on our facebook page or blog for the longest time…..We have been busy working on lots of great projects….I will fill you in on the Progress of AGUA real soon… But in the mean while please have a look at our latest website launched: http://www.fitguyinc.com/ This site is a brain child of Peter Estabrooks, a well known personal trainer in Calgary and Canada. Forall of you who are fitness challeneged(that includes me) go take a look at some of petes classes…if you find anything not working properly please bring it to my attention.
thanks,
Azhar Siddiqui
Benefits of having a business website by Gurpreet Judge
Can you believe that just about ten years ago most people had not even heard of the Internet? In just a little over a decade it has grown from a very simple way to send email to a sophisticated communication medium. Today everyone is at least aware of the Internet and the majority of you use it on a daily basis.
But even more amazing is the growth in web functionality and the huge drop in the cost of that functionality. In the late 90’s it was not unusual for a company to spend tens of thousands of dollars to build an e-commerce site. Today, any business, small or large, can have a operational WEBSITE for under $1000.00. www.aguaesolutions.com
A few of the benefits for a small business with a business website…
Increased Market Size: Any business website presence broadens the market reach for your business. Local retailers can market/sell products across the country or the world.
Reduced Information Distribution Costs: Practically every business distributes some sort of information…product sell sheets, technical specifications, catalogs, order forms, proposals, etc. A business website allows you to provide that information in real time when the customer needs it at almost no cost.
Expanded Availability to Customers: Your business website gives your customers access to your business 24/7 with very little increase in overhead or employment costs. Even if you don’t have an online catalog, having your information available allows the customer to at least look at their convenience.
Increased Sales: If your small business website includes an online shopping cart or e-commerce solution you can increase your sales with little additional cost.
Customers Require It: This is probably the most important benefit of having a business web site as today Internet usage is reaching record levels.
If you own a business today your customers EXPECT you to have a web site. This expectation almost requires you to have some sort of interactive, dynamic web presence and to have online ordering enabled.
The Internet makes it possible to communicate with your customers on their terms within their time-table. It makes it possible to automate information dissemination and customer service. Even if you don’t use the Internet to increase your market reach and revenue the Internet has made it possible to keep your customers happy.
There are lots of benefits to having a business website. But the most important is that an Internet web site is now a customer requirement.
For more information on How to get Started with your Business website please visit www.aguaesolutions.com or call 1 877 716 1506.
Eastern Canada here we come, Agua E Solutions has recently hired a business development manager for Eastern Canada focusing on the markets in and around Toronto, Ontario.
If you have any questions you can contact Michael Bickel at michael@aguaesolutions.com or by telephone at 8777161507.
Now Hiring
Agua E Solutions is currently looking to hire a Search Engine Optimization and marketing expert. Do you have the passion to succeed? The desire to create, and the will to learn? Than Agua E Solutions might be the place for you!
Note: We appreciate all interested applicants, however only those that we feel are qualified will be contacted for an interview.
Please send resume and cover letter to:
Info@aguaesolutions.com
Hi Everyone,
We just launched http://www.ariadnehair.com/. This is a hair saloon based in Calgary in business for over 11 years. Ariadne Hair has gone through a complete branding make over. We started with desigining a new logo, next we worked on a unique and trendy design for the clients website. This website comes complete with an online shop: http://www.ariadnehair.com/shop
we also designed business cards, envolopes and letterheads for the client. All this for a price which is more then affordable and quality which is nothing short of world class.
To get more information on how you can give your business a unique branding experience please visit AGUA E Solutions website: http://www.aguaesolutions.com/
Azhar Siddiqui
403 921 8595
Hi Everyone,
It is fun and real exciting time for AGUA E Solutions. The Fit Guy project is on track and into its 10th week. We have now started the development of the Content Management System(CMS) for the Client. I will explain what a CMS is in my next post. The Design of the site is also final and we have completed most of the HTML Coding. You will see that most of the links on the site are functional including the blog link. We are 2-3 weeks away from launching this project …..stay tuned for the final post on this project.
here is the latest version of the site: http://aguademos.com/fitguy/staging/
Feel free to ask me if you have any questions.
Azhar Siddiqui
Internet Consultant
Cell: 403 921 8595
Fax: 1 877 716 1506
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