Are You Integrating Social Media with your SEO?
According to a study from Ascend2, 50% of companies that are struggling with their Search Engine Optimization SEO are not properly integrating social media marketing into their Digital marketing strategies. How can you help boost your social media and SEO integration? H ere are a few easy steps: Make tagging and bookmarking easy for your users Include a social media bar to allow your users to share your site or articles on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and others easily. The easier it is to...
Why Do You Need Unique Meta Descriptions?
Google’s own Matt Cutts posted a video yesterday discussing the importance of unique meta descriptions. For those of you who are unfamiliar with meta descriptions, these are HTML attributes that provide concise explanations of the content on pages. Think of a recent Google search you have done. Underneath the web link on each result is a sentence or two, giving you a taste of what you will find on the website. These sentences are the meta description. IMAGE: Google Meta descriptions can...
Want to Drive Traffic to Your Site? Consider Using These Blog Topics.
In October, we told you about the Hummingbird update from Google. While it has not had a large effect on SEO, it does provide an opportunity to help your website’s rankings via blogging. Sometimes, though, you don’t know where to start. What do people want to read in blogs? Here are some topics to get you started on having a relevant and useful blog for your website: 1. Answer Questions. The Hummingbird update focuses largely on how people are asking Google questions. They are...
Facebook Graph Search Updates
Facebook recently announced that it will be allowing users to search posts and status updates within its graph search. What does this mean for your search? Now, you will be able to ask questions like: • Posts I have commented on • My posts from the last year • Posts by my friends this month • Posts from my friends about [a television show, movie, event, etc.] And receive detailed results, including both posts and status updates from you and your friends. So how can you...
Hummingbird Update: What it means for your SEO
Last month, Google announced its largest upgrade to its search algorithm since 2001, which has been dubbed Hummingbird. As you might guess, many businesses were concerned about this update, wondering how it would affect their current SEO efforts, and what they would need to change in order to stay relevant in Google search results. What is Hummingbird? Google says that the Hummingbird update will not have an effect on current SEO efforts. Original, high quality content is still king, and...
How the Recent Crackdown on Fake Reviews Affects You
The New York Attorney General’s office is cracking down on fake reviews in an investigation nicknamed Operation Clean Turf. Nineteen companies have agreed to stop writing fake reviews, and are now also responsible for paying a total of $350,000 in fines, with each companies’ fine ranging from $2,500 to almost $100,000. To learn more about the specifics behind this case, visit the New York Attorney General’s website. How can you get real reviews for your business? There are...
Facebook Punishes Pages Without Engaging Content
Just last month, we posted about the Facebook algorithm used on newsfeeds, and how it affects the content that you see. Already, there are new changes to your newsfeed. Now, Facebook is punishing pages that constantly post memes instead of new and engaging content. This update aims to drive more traffic to reputable Pages and deter spammers, giving more visibility to content that is timely, relevant and sharable.
Facebook has previously made similar algorithm changes, causing much...
Top SEO Mistakes
Recently, Google’s head of search spam, Matt Cuts, published a video discussing the top five SEO mistakes that people make. Some are simple and easy enough to fix, while others are more complicated. They include: 1. Not having a website, or having a website that is not crawlable by search engines. It seems easy enough to realize that, in order to rank in Google results, you need to have a website. But many people want to go with the glamor and creativity of a Flash website, or a website...
Other Google Updates to Be Aware Of
When everyone thinks of Google updates and how they will affect SEO efforts, they usually only think of the many different Panda and Penguin updates. But in 2009, another update was made to Google’s algorithms that can have a big effect on business: The Vince Update. Because of the Vince update, many big businesses seem to be taking over the front page of Google. This is because they have built a trusted brand - they are well know, through not only back links but also video, public...
Algorithm Updates on Facebook Newsfeed
Facebook is at it again - a recent update has been made to Facebook’s Newsfeed algorithm, making it more difficult for your business to reach its fan base. According to Facebook, the goal of users’ Newsfeeds is to deliver the right content at the right time, so that they see the stories that are the most important to them. Based on their research, there are upwards of 1,500 potential stories a person could see every time they log on Facebook - from people they are friends with...
Facebook Launches New Hashtags
You’ve seen people use hashtags on your Facebook newsfeed before, but did you know that they will now be functional? This week, Facebook introduced clickable hashtags to its site platform. These hashtags will function similarly to other social networks’ hashtags, including Twitter, Tumblr, Pinterest or Instagram. According to Facebook’s Newsroom, the introduction of clickable hashtags on Facebook will allow users to add context to a post or indicate that it is part of a...
Could Your Company Benefit from Video Marketing?
Have you considered implementing video marketing for your company? Putting together videos is a great way to show your audience what your company is really about. Here are some quick tips on how to put together great videos to help market your business: • Don’t be afraid – one of the biggest hurdles to creating video marketing is fear – fear your audience won’t like it, or fear that you won’t like how you come across on camera. But you won’t know until...
Improving Website Functionality
When building a website, many people do not take the time to stop and take a step back to check its functionality. However, website functionality can be a make or break feature when it comes to users interacting with your site. When considering how your website functions, you should look at it from the user’s perspective. Think about how your users interact with the site, in other words, how they navigate it, how they fill out forms, view pictures, and more. Navigation One of the...
Considering Writing a Newsletter for Your Company?
Have you ever sent out a newsletter for your company? A newsletter is an excellent way to get in contact with your past and present clients, and possibly up-sell products or services. But how do you write a newsletter that they will find interesting? Here are some things to check for in your next newsletter: • A Good Subject Line - if you do not include a good subject line, no one will want to open your newsletter. • Personality - it is important to show that your company is made...
Best Practices While Updating Your LinkedIn Business Page
Article Updated: Feb. 2015 Having a LinkedIn page for your business may seem like a superfluous social media gimmick but there are many reasons why having a page is essential for your business. There are over 3 million companies on LinkedIn in 148 different industries. Not only do they spread brand visibility, but they also build and sustain a community around your products and services. According to an article from Hootsuite, LinkedIn users are 8x more likely to engage with your brand, 3x...
How to Create an Infographic
You’ve heard it before - infographics are a great way to engage readers. They help make content more interesting, and they are easily used across your marketing platforms - not only on your website but also in social media marketing. How do you create an infographic? 1. Have a Goal First and foremost, you need to have a goal in mind for the infographic. That way, you will be more focused when deciding what information to include within it. You should also make sure that you know your...
Writing Engaging Web Content
One of the most important parts of getting customers to your website is providing relevant and engaging web content. This might seem like a daunting task to some, but writing web content is fairly easy, as long as you remember some simple points. It is important to understand your audience before you start writing web content. Your audience is two-fold: you are writing for both your real audience and for search engines. This means that you need to not only include key words to help with your...
What are People Searching for on their Mobile Phones?
These days, almost everyone owns a smart phone, and they are using them to do more than make phone calls. They are also using their phones to look up the answers to questions, the addresses to businesses, and everything in between. This is why it is so important to have a mobile site or a site with a responsive design that adapts to mobile devices, and to have it optimized for mobile search engines. Mobile search criteria are slightly different than the average web based searches. One of the...
Top Tips for Local SEO
If you’re a company that caters to a local clientele - whether it be a doctors’ office, a clothing store, or a restaurant - you want to make sure that people can quickly and easily find you online. To do this, your website will need a local SEO strategy to properly position you on search engines and direct the right traffic to your website. Some of the most important things you need to consider when optimizing your website for local search include: Keyword Research - first and...
Facebook Introduces Graph Search
Facebook is continuing to stay on top of innovations, recently rolling out a test of its new Graph Search capability. Graph search will be an excellent tool for many businesses that utilize Facebook, as it allows your company to analyze and act on new information about your customers that you previously did not have access to. First and foremost, you’ll want to turn on Facebook Graph Search – you can do so by signing up here: https://www.facebook.com/about/graphsearch Once you have...