We provide Web Marketing and Search Engine Optimization (SEO) services with the sole objective of helping you build successful lead-generation campaigns and attract potential customers through your website. If your traffic is high, but your conversion rate is low, the optimization of your site is not finished.
We help you learn, plan, implement, and manage the SEO of your website so that you not only get high positioning on search engines but also high conversion rates, and we do that quickly, efficiently, and cost-effectively.
It is very rare nowadays to build a website from scratch. Most professional website design firms use pre-made templates which they then re-work and enhance according to their clients' needs. The end result is presented to clients as custom design. It is possible to take this approach one step further.
We invite our clients to have a say in the process of selecting the base template. Using highly reputable and professional ready-made web templates, we source, present and discuss a number of potential versions with you and then select the most appropriate one, most suited to the needs of your project.
We then customize the look and feel of the site by changing the site's color scheme, navigation structure, styles and fonts, and other visual elements - to simulate or create the desired brand.
We then install and configure into the website pre-made modules and components to enable various required functionalities (e.g. a registration form, e-commerce, polls, comments, etc).
Our clients watch the site's development through 3 stages and at each stage they are invited to provide feedback and make recommendations.
Once the site is configured, you can then manage it and add content to it via your browser, simply by logging in. The process of creating content is almost identical to the way we write emails in Yahoo, Gmail or other web-based email systems.
Joomla web design using off-the-shelf components
An open-source free website design and website content management system, Joomla has the largest support community and the largest repository of extensions (i.e. various functionalities) - all available for download free of charge; it has been in existence for over 10 years and has gone through a number of reviews and clean-ups; and above all - it is also one of the most user-friendly open-source content management systems.
Once your Joomla website has been setup, it takes roughly 30 min to learn how to add and edit content on your website.
We will discuss with you what features and functionalities you might need and decide what additional modules and components (i.e. registration form, e-commerce, survey, polls, etc.) to install and configure.
We then provide you an estimate on how long it would take us to assemble and customize your site.
If you already have a website but would like to port your content to a new Joomla-based template, we will be happy to do that as part of the project.
If you rather not use a template and would like to have your own website created from scratch, we'd be happy to do that as well. Whether you are hoping to have fancy product galleries and sliders, funky cartoons or impressive 3D visuals, we would be happy to create them for you together with our partners, at very competitive rates.
Custom coding, 3rd-party integration (e.g. Salesforce.com) is optionally available.
It takes between 2 days and 2 months to build a new website, depending on the scale of the project and your requirements.
The search engine optimization (SEO) of a site includes the following:
rigorous competitive analysis with subsequent development of a winning strategic plan to gain a strong and lasting competitive advantage
thorough keyword analysis using industry leading tools
carefully planned optimization of your website page by page for a desired number of pre-defined keywords (URLs, folder structure, file names, META tags, etc)
revamping and optimization of existing web content, development of new optimized content, synchronized with the overall look-and-feel of your site
thoroughly researched link building campaign, implemented in full accordance with the overall marketing strategy of your company
implementation of prompting visual calls to action to maximize the effectiveness of your lead-generation strategies
budget-conscious enrolment in paid advertising campaigns with major search engines (such as Google's AdWords and others)
Having been properly implemented once, the SEO of a site begins to produce outstanding results very quickly and continues to bring generous rewards for years afterward.
Factors to Consider before Outsourcing SEO of Your Site
If you are thinking of outsourcing the search engine optimization of your website, there are a few factors that are important to account for before the start of the project. These factors are the following:
The amount of work required to successfully optimize your site depends on the type of business you compete in. For highly competitive areas, the process can be time-consuming. Depending on the market value of your keywords, the time required to optimize your website can range from one week to several months or even longer.
Once the work is complete, the SEO results may not become apparent for another few weeks (usually 4-8 weeks). At his time, it is important to start implementing marketing programs to help increase your visibility on the Internet (e.g. Google's AdWords, Overture, etc.), and we help you enroll in these campaigns quickly and cost-effectively.
You need to be prepared to make changes to your website. In some cases, these changes can be small while in other cases, they can be quite significant. What needs to be changed and/or added will depend on how ambitious your Web Marketing objectives are and how aggressively you decide to pursue them. We will help you make informed decisions and carefully evaluate your strategies and goals.
You need to be prepared to provide as much documentation related to your business as possible, i.e. your white papers, technology overview, product description, PowerPoint presentations, demo scripts, and most importantly, your website copy (i.e. your web content).
You need to ensure cooperation of other members of your team or, in the case of a larger company, other teams or even departments, to help ensure smooth project development and fast results.
How We Start Working on Your SEO Project
As a first step, we conduct an evaluation of your website and its existing search engine positioning. We review your Web Marketing strategies, with particular attention to link building and lead-generation techniques.
We then analyze your main competitors and prepare a detailed report, outlining the strengths and weaknesses of their Web Marketing and Search Engine Optimization strategies. We contrast and compare your competitors with your existing web presence, providing specific optimization recommendations on how to out-position your competition.
For large projects, we provide a report of what is required to bring your site to the highest positioning results for selected keywords and what needs to be implemented to gain a strong and lasting competitive advantage on search engines.
Together with you and/or your team, we help you determine the scope of your SEO project in relation to your sales targets and create an effective road map for your future project.
PPC Keyword Advertising Campaigns
Pay-Per-Click (PPC) is a term used in the Web Marketing industry to refer to a class of Internet advertising in which advertisers pay a fee for every click visitors make on their ads.
In other words, paid-per-click or PPC campaigns, or simply PPC, is keyword advertising on search engines and other websites. Because advertisers pay for every click, PPC is often used synonymously with Search Engine Marketing (SEM) and opposed to organic Search Engine Optimization (SEO) of a site.
PPC Search Engines
Currenlty, there are two major paid-per-click (PPC) engines:Google AdWords and Overture. Google AdWords' most significant partner is AOL. Overture, which is now part of Yahoo!, can get you traffic from Yahoo! and MSN.
There are also a number of smaller PPC search engines:
According to SEMPO Survey of SEM Industry, spending on paid-per-click (PPC) advertising is up 62%. Advertisers spent a total of $9.4 Billion in 2006. Here is a list of 100 major advertisers.
PPC Benefits
Paid-per-click (PPC) advertising is one of the most effective and quick ways for acquiring customer leads. As a rule, people don't click on ads for no reason. Click fraud is a money-losing issue for advertisers, no doubt about it, but on a broad scale, people click on PPC ads only when they see something they might want. Hence, PPC brings substantial benefits:
PPC provides small websites with a chance to be found by customers. In fact, PPC is often the only online channel of revenue for small websites
PPC allows you to influence who visits your website, i.e. unlike other means of marketing, PPC instantly puts you in front of your potential customers
PPC provides good tracking capabilities, thus allowing you to focus on what is most profitable
PPC helps you understand user behaviour and make corresponding improvements to your site, which subsequently helps you acquire more leads
PPC spending can be very predictable, since advertisers can set maximum daily spending amounts
PPC yields great ROI, if managed properly
PPC Campaign Management Services
Paid-per-click (PPC) campaign management does not need to be a daunting task. It also doesn't have to be very expensive. Our paid-per-click (PPC) services will help you get the most out of your PPC campaigns, making your PPC spending not only very affordable but also highly profitable.
The minimum industry rate for PPC services is $150-200 per month (setup is usually extra). Some companies charge a percentage of your overall PPC spending (between 5% and 15%, depending on the size of the company). Others charge per campaign and/or per number of keywords included within each PPC campaign.
Give us a call to talk about your PPC needs. We offer flexible options for all PPC budgets.
Objectives
Would you like to increase the number of potential customers coming to you through your website? Would you like to do it quickly and cost-effectively? Register for our Web Marketing SEO webinars and learn what's involved.
The objective of our online Search Engine Optimization (SEO) webinars and in-person SEO seminars are two-fold:
to show you how to position your site high on Google and other search engines so that you can be easily found by users;
to show you how to combine SEO and Social Media Marketing techniques to significantly boost your search engine ranking.
While our SEO webinars and seminars are most suited for business owners and staff with Marketing and Sales responsibilities, anyone involved in online marketing campaigns wanting to get the very best results for their marketing budget should attend.
Overall, you would be able to apply SEO enhancements to your website immediately after the seminar and increase positioning of your site very quickly (within 2-4 weeks).
Please note that our SEO webinars and seminars do not require technical or website design knowledge.
Our search engine optimization (SEO) webinars are conducted via WebEx or Yugma. As a rule, between 5 and 8 people attend. A small group setting allows for a very comfortable and relaxed atmosphere, where all of your questions get answered and no gray areas are left untouched.
The following topics are covered in the course of approximately 2.5 hours:
Rigorous methodology on how to select the most appropriate keywords for your business
Step-by-step instructions on how to conduct proper competitive analysis quickly and effectively and how to outdo even your most aggressive competitors
Personal advice on how to maximize your investment in advertising campaigns of major search engines (Google’s AdWords and AdSense, for example), i.e. how to get more for less
Q&A session with real-life examples to help you apply the studied material to your particular business objectives, with practical guidance and improvement recommendations
Carefully researched, time-tested and customer-approved SEO guide, accompanied by a set of supporting materials (SEO glossary, references, and useful links).
SEO Webinar/Seminar Content Outline
Introduction and main SEO definitions
SEO results and what to expect
Fundamentals of how search engines work
Do-it-yourself SEO in 10 steps
How content management systems (CMS) affect SEO
Most important principles of PPC campaigns and how to combine SEO with Google AdWords to maximize results
What Social Media Marketing strategies you can use to help you boost your SEO ranking
SEO on a shoe string: what you can do right now at virtually no cost and without significant time commitment
What not to do to avoid penalties
Useful links, hand-picked and time-tested
Practice session combined with Q&As
2.5-3 hrs
Register for our SEO webinar or request a one-on-one webinar by filling out our registration form. $270 per person, tax included. Payment via PayPal.
Do not hesitate to call us at (613) 231-6308 if you would like more information or have specific requirements.
We offer regular Web Marketing and Search Engine Optimization workshops in Ottawa. The workshops are recommended to those who have previously attended our webinars but would like to receive more hands-on guidance in the process of doing actual SEO work. Two hours of hands-on instruction are enhanced by real-life case studies.
We also offer customized on-demand SEO workshops that can be delivered at your premises or remotely by phone. For locations outside Ottawa additional travel expenses will apply.
To book an SEO workshop in the Ottawa area, please give a one-week notice. For a more remote location, please allow at least two weeks for travel arrangements.
The SEO workshops are best delivered to an audience of up to 20 people.
Register for one of our SEO workshops by filling out our registration form. Call us at (613) 231-6308 for more details.
We believe that quality research and creativity are the main vehicles for competitive advantage. We take pride in conducting thorough research and delivering quality content at the best possible prices.
Whether you need a website content, a press release, a white paper, a newsletter issue, an article, a consumer blog with daily reviews or tips, or a specialized technology blog with weekly posts - we have a solution for you.
SEO Copywriting and Content Creation
Creating quality content that would be of interest to your visitors is also an ideal way to boost your SEO ranking. To rank high on search engines, you need to have keyword-rich text, i.e. pages with content related to your business.
We offer a wide range of copywriting services:
Website Content
SEO Copywriting
Corporate and Private Blogging (Ghost writing is welcome)
analysing your competitors and your target audience
helping you crystallize your unique value proposition
incorporating alluring calls to action
inter-linking appropriate pages and sections
SEO optimizing copy (content) for targeted keywords
SEO optimizing headers, subheaders, bullets and hyperlinks
Our writing and content delivery is carefully crafted to increase visitor-to-user conversion rate. This, after all, is the ultimate purpose of your website.
Our writing and content creation package features:
100% original content.
You own full rights to the content. We delete all versions in our possession after delivery to you unless you gave us express permission to use some work as samples.
All materials are well researched.
You approve a small sample before we write out the rest of your order. We will use your feedback as our quality assurance guidelines.
Website content for specialized businesses (HR, finance, non-profit)
Website content for consumer-oriented businesses
White papers and case studies
Product reviews
Consumer articles
E-books
Commentaries
Blog entries
Blog comments
RSS feed content management
Adsense/PPC ad pages
Wiki materials
Social bookmarking site reviews
"Expert" forum posting
Specialized blog writing and link management/annotation
All content creation and writing assignments are delivered SEO-optimized, we take care to "weave in" keywords into the fabric of the text at all required levels without sacrificing quality and without charging additional fees for this service.
Whether you need to create and manage feed syndications, develop a consumer blog with daily reviews or tips, or a specialized technology blog with weekly posts, issue and distribute press releases online, we have a solution for you. We will help you learn what is involved in Social Media Marketing at this stage, define the optimum strategy, create an executable plan within your budget limits, and then act on your behalf or help you do it yourself. Learn more about oursocial media marketing and blogging services.
You approve a small sample before we write out the rest of your order. Minimum order for content creation is 3000 words. Rates are based on word count (in US dollars). Note that the specific cost of your project requirements may vary depending on the level of complexity, number of references, links, formatting requirements, deadlines, and the availability of discount promotions at the time of your order. Specialized or technical topics are priced differently. Please contact us to get a quote.
Specialized and Technical Writing Assignments
Our network of freelance writers embraces such countries as Canada, the United States, UK, and New Zealand. All our partners have at least a Master's level degree, more than half are at the doctorate level. But their fees do not exceed industry average. Please contact us for samples and to obtain a quote. We look forward to hearing from you.
As part of our content creation services, we help you navigate the ocean of Social Media Marketing and make you stand out from the crowd. Please contact us to obtain a quote. We look forward to hearing from you.
Properly conducted, email marketing is one of the most efficient and cost-effective ways to generate interest and attract new customers.
Email Marketing Campaigns
Our email marketing services cover the following:
Mailing lists management
Content creation
Reporting and analysis
Integration with your CRM
Google Analytics integration
Template design and redesign
Recommendation on cost effective email management tools
Open-source email marketing management (optional)
The space of Web Marketing is constantly evolving. Search Engine Optimization is no longer limited to on-page optimization. Likewise, Search Engine Marketing is no longer about paid keyword campaigns and banner ads.
Like many other socio-economic phenomena, Marketing over the Internet, with all its seemingly disconnected elements, is gradually being consolidated and merged into one field - Social Media Marketing. In that, search engine optimization, search engine marketing, paid advertising campaigns, blogging, networking via forums and networking social sites - all become increasingly more and more interdependent, collaborative and user-driven. This constantly evolving collaborative nature of the Internet relations has been deemed by the term 'Web 2.0', influenced by the naming conventions used in the software development circles.
With this new wave of Web 2.0 movement rapidly coming of age (pdf), online collaboration and user-generated content are gradually becoming obligatory requirements for websites across many, if not all, industries.
In 2005 there were roughly 500,000 registered blogs. As of April 2007, there were almost 30 million active blogs indexed. The number of blogs may not continue to grow at this astonishing rate and the genre of blogging itself will probably evolve away from an all-encompassing and all-embracing movement to a more restrictive and selective medium, but there is little doubt that social media, online collaboration and user-generated content are here to stay. For website owners and company executives, it means extra requirements and extra work.
Here are a few activities that are grouped together and form Social Media Marketing (also known as Viral Marketing, Word of Mouth or WOM Marketing, Buzz Marketing, and so on). Please note that all of them are driven by research, writing and content creation:
Blogging
Posting comments and replies on individual blogs and forums (using sites that do not have a 'nofollow' tag, thus contributing to your SEO ranking)
Whether you need to create and manage feedsyndications, develop a consumer blog with daily reviews or tips, or a specialized technology blog with weekly posts, issue and distribute press releases online, we have a solution for you. We will help youlearn what is involved in Social Media Marketing at this stage, define the optimum strategy, create an executable plan within your budget limits, and then act on your behalf or help you do it yourself. Samples
We believe that creativity is the main sustainable source of differentiation and competitive advantage for our clients and ourselves. We take pride in delivering innovative solutions to our clients' Social Marketing needs, red-carpet client services, and highly competitive prices.
Please contact us for samples and to obtain a quote. We look forward to hearing from you.
Objectives
The main objective of our consulting work is not only to help you position your website high on Google and other search engines, but also to help you attract customers through your website. We arm you with time-tested techniques to ensurethat visitors coming to your site through a keyword search on search engines do not stop at reading your pages, but progress as far as filling out your order or registration forms.
Basic SEO Consulting Package
Our basic SEO consulting package covers the following:
Introduction to search engine optimization delivered as a workshop and customized to your particular business needs
Overview of your competition with strategic recommendations on how to out-position even your most aggressive competitors
Review and analysis of your website:
Analysis of your business category in relation to your SEO objectives (optional)
Analysis of your keywords in relation to your sales targets with subsequent optimization recommendations:
Amount of information with keywords
Frequency of keywords
Keyword positioning (how high)
Page Title tag and Metatags
Links
Analysis of your link building strategy in relation to the overall marketing position of your company
Review of your site copy (i.e. site content) with optimization recommendations on how to increase your visitor-to-lead conversion rate, i.e. the number of incoming leads registered through your website
Critique of your navigation structure and improvement recommendations on how to maximize its SEO potential
Critique of your registration form and analysis of other "calls for action"
Independent professional opinion about the look-and-feel of your website to assess your customer focus and boost the visitor-to-lead conversion rate:
B2B site vs. consumer-oriented site
Small company vs. large company
Customer-focused vs. investor-focused
Rigorous analysis of your existing Pay-Per-Click (PPC) campaigns with a focus on designing the most effective "calls for action" and maximizing ROI on selected key phrases. If you need to set up a new PPC campaign, we offer comprehensive PPC consulting and management services.
Before meeting with you, we do our homework to provide you with a detailed report, containing point-by-point evaluation of your website from the point of view of its current SEO standing and in relation to your desired SEO goals.
The fees are calculated on a per hour basis for short-term projects and on a per day basis for longer projects. Our consulting package includes a few hours of training. This is usually sufficient to learn the basics of Web Marketing, Social Media Marketing, and Search Engine Optimization and get a good understanding of what is involved in a full-scale Internet Marketing project.
Whether you are learning how to do Web Marketing and Search Engine Optimization on your own, thinking of hiring an SEO consultant, or planning on outsourcing your SEO needs, questions and answers below are meant to help you make informed decisions.
Usually, Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is understood as a set of techniques applied to a website to improve its ranking and positioning with search engines, with the goal of helping visitors or potential buyers find the website through a keyword search on search engines (see also Web definitions of SEO).
In our approach to SEO, we assume that the ultimate goal of a site optimization project is to increase the number of visitors who fill out your order or registration forms. In other words, we understand SEO as a set of techniques that help you attract customers through your website and generate sales. We believe that SEO is not merely a strategy for enhancing your web presence and driving traffic to your website. SEO is a means for transforming your website into a powerful yet cost-effective vehicle for generating considerable and sustainable revenue.
As it is typically described, a site optimization usually involves design and layout changes, new text for the TITLE tags, METATAGS, ALT- attributes, headings, creation of new links, and most importantly creation of new copy (text) as well as modifications to the existing one.
Additionally, it is also typical to supplement "organic" site optimization with Paid-Per-Click (PPC) campaigns, such asGoogle's AdWords, for example. Both organic SEO and keyword-purchasing campaigns aim at ensuring that users who are looking for your type of products and services can find you through a keyword search on Google and othersearch engines.
But what happens after your users have found your site? Do they stay and read on or do they leave it quickly? Do they visit multiple pages and review your company profile? Do they express interest in your white papers or other available documentation? Do they send you their feedback? And above all, do they register on your site to purchase your products or services? All these questions, although seemingly disconnected from the actual optimization of a site, in fact, form the most important part of the SEO project.
To generate or increase revenue through your website, you cannot merely aim at positioning your site high on search engines and driving traffic to it. You need to identify factors that form users' impressions, create their motivations and influence their decisions to register on your website and purchase your products or services. You need to approach these "intangible" factors as the main building principles of both your web design and SEO projects.
The search engine optimization (SEO) of a site is not complicated, but it does imply certain skills and it does take time. Before you begin working on your site, it is important to know what is involved in a full-scale SEO project.
Below is a 10-step SEO project summary that we hope you will find useful. Please note that the first step is for the most part relevant to new businesses, but established companies should also double-check whether they are listed in the right category in dmoz.org (Google uses dmoz for its database resource):
Define (or verify) your business category and outline potential keywords
Conduct rigorous competitive analysis
Settle on your main keywords and key phrases
Create a clever navigation structure: modular and scalable
Create a large and highly specialized website (add pages)
Optimize each page on your website individually
Optimize code if using Flash, AJAX
Create as many relevant links as you can
Add content to your website regularly (white papers, demos)
Follow industry news and monitor changes (every 3 months)
If you plan on starting an SEO project, it is best to co-ordinate it with a website re-design project. If your website has recently been updated, but you plan on starting an SEO project now, you need to be prepared for SOME changes.
Before you start the search engine optimization (SEO) of your website, there are a few important factors that you need to know. These factors are the following:
The amount of work required to successfully optimize your site depends on the type of business you compete in. For highly competitive areas, the process can be time consuming, because you will need to create a lot of copy (text). Depending on the market value of your keywords, the time required to optimize your website can range from one week to several months or even longer.
Below are some relations we noticed while conducting competitive analysis for various clients. Depending on the market value of your keywords (i.e. number of search results returned for a particular keyword query), your site should have the following amount ofkeyword-rich copy in it:
2 million results – at least 50 pages
2 – 4 million results – 50-100 pages
4 – 6 million results – 100-150 pages
6 – 8 million results – 200 pages
8+ million results – 500+ pages
It is difficult to say how many links you need to create, because the more links you have pointing to other websites from your own site and especially links pointing back at your website, the better it is for your search engine ranking. As a rule of thumb, have at least 10 links per page, but make sure that these links are highly relevant to the page content. Irrelevant links (and content) may dilute your "specialization and expertise" and might even lower your SEO ranking, although this point remains to be questionable.
Once your copy and link creation and search engine optimization (SEO) work is complete, the results may not become apparent for another few weeks. At such time, it is important to start implementing marketing programs to help increase your visibility on the Internet (e.g. Google's AdWords, Yahoo Marketing, etc.). All these programs are quite intuitive and easy to use, but it will still take some time to become familiar with them and learn how to use them to your best advantage.
If you already have a website, you need to be prepared to make changes to it. In some cases, these changes can be small while in other cases, they can be quite significant. What needs to be changed and/or added will depend on how ambitious your SEO objectives are and how aggressively you decide to pursue them. In some cases, it is necessary to re-structure the navigation structure, i.e. rearrange folder and file hierarchy in order to ensure better SEO results.
You need to be prepared to post as much documentation related to your business as possible, i.e. how-to guides, newsletters, white papers, technology overview, product description, PowerPoint presentations, demos, etc. This will ensure that search engines rank your site highly for "relevancy" and "expertise". Note that it is important NOT to provide unrelated materials and to have keyword-rich copy on all your documents; otherwise, your content may not be ranked as "relevant".
You need to have the cooperation of other members of your team or, in the case of a larger company, other teams or even departments, to help ensure smooth project development and fast results. When it comes to websites and especially website copywriting, everyone thinks they are an expert. To achieve successful SEO results, you would need to keep your management and your peers convinced that there are good reasons behind your decisions and that you know what you are doing. So if you are NOT the decision maker, but you are the only one who has researched the topic and understands why certain things are required for successful SEO results and how to go about completing them, then you may feel frustrated when trying to implement proper SEO principles, because you will most likely encounter management and peer resistance.
One very effective way to avoid this type of turbulence is to hire a search engine optimization (SEO) consultant to do the job. It is very rare when someone appreciates quality of information or service coming their way if they did not have to pay for it.
And finally, before you start your SEO project, make sure you get a preliminary understanding of what your competitors are doing for their Web Marketing and SEO. Once you have completed a preliminary review of your competitors' SEO, you can begin creating your own plan.
If you decide to seek additional help with your optimization project, remember that your website is your company's face. It is the first thing people see. The look and feel of your website has a direct affect on users' opinions not only about your management but also about your products. By associating impressions received from your website, users form opinions about your products and services before they even get a chance to see them. In fact, many users often even judge your products and services by the way your website looks and by the quality of content it exhibits.
An SEO consultant optimizing your site becomes an "silent spokesman" for your company, a person whose education, knowledge, skills, and even personality would be manifested through your website, influencing users' decisions and affecting your company's revenue.
If you are thinking of hiring a consultant to help you with your SEO project, it is wise to ask and receive answers to the following questions:
How many industries has an SEO consultant been exposed to in the last three years? Ask for specific examples.
How many web sites did an SEO consultant work on in the last three years? Ask to provide customer references.
Does an SEO consultant have first-hand web design and development experience as well as user-interface development experience? Ask to provide samples.
Does an SEO consultant have a University degree, preferably in Linguistics?
Does an SEO consultant own an SEO-related website, so that you can evaluate their writing and marketing skills?
Does an SEO consultant have previous hands-on Sales experience?
Does an SEO consultant have first-hand knowledge of customer relationship management (CRM) software,such as Salesforce.com or NetSuit, for example?
Can an SEO consultant explain, in a matter of 10-15 minutes, what is involved in a typical SEO project?
Does an SEO consultant insist that an SEO project is a lengthy endeavor that requires ongoing investment? Note that even a large SEO project, having been successfully implemented once, requires very little maintenance in the future.
Does an SEO consultant want you to believe thatmonitoring keyword-purchasing programs, such asGoogle's AdWords , for example, is a difficult and time-consuming task?
Answers to these questions would assist you in evaluating the scope and depth of your consultant's knowledge and help you arrive at an informed hiring decision.
Once you learn what is involved in a successful SEO project, you will quickly realize that you cannot outsource your SEO project 100% and that your SEO consultant will be working with you and your team very closely in the course of the optimization project.
The question is what is best to outsource to an SEO consultant and what is best to do in house?
Based on our experience, we find that it is best to get your SEO consultant to do the following for you:
Explain to you and your team what is involved in an SEO project (in the form of a presentation or a short workshop). You can't manage well what you don't understand.
Conduct a critique and review of your existing website and record all pluses and minuses (it is best to have an outsider do this for you; otherwise, it is very easy NOT to find flaws and problems with your website, thus falling prey to what can end up being an expensive self-complacency).
Conduct a competitive analysis and produce a detailed report. Time and time again we see how companies dive into a lengthy and expensive website re-design and optimization project without conducting proper competitive analysis. To out-do your competition while remaining cost-effective, you need to spend 3-5 hours on each of your main competitors. Make sure to check the following:
Website size (number of HTML pages and supplementary materials, such as white papers, demos, help manuals, product sheets in pdf, etc.)
Look-and-feel and user-friendliness of their website and whether or not it is appropriate for their business
Whether or not their website copy is keyword-rich?
Do they conduct lead registration through their website? What kind of questions do they ask in their registration form?
Do they offer free web seminars and if yes, what service they use?
Do they issue newsletters?
Quality of their white papers and related documents
Management team and their background
Financial reports or VC reviews
Other questions that will help you better understand your competition
Page-by-page optimization of your existing pages for specific keywords
Optimization of your Title tags and META tags as well as image ALT tags
Creation of internal links along with a Site Map
Creation of supplementary web content to boost your rating and create outgoing links (creating 'Resources' section for your users, for example).
Directory listings to create incoming or "back" links
Enrolment in Google's AdWords campaign and other keyword purchasing programs
If you are in a general consumer business, your SEO consultant can be your SEO copywriter as well, but keep in mind that this part of the service is usually more expensive.
Depending on how experienced your SEO consultant is, in some cases, you can hire them for a few months to do a rewamp of your site and optimize it for all of your desired keywords.
With the exception of savvy technology companies, most businesses believe that web design and development firms can ensure successful search engine optimization (SEO) results as part of their design services. Is this an erroneous believe? And if yes, does it also mean that web design firms intentionally misrepresent their capabilities?
In our view, the best answer to this question can only be given in relative terms. Yes, this believe is erroneous by at least 90%, but no, web development firms do not intentionally misrepresent themselves. Web development firms also believe that they provide SEO services as part of their web design packages. But in fact, only very few of them actually do.
Back in mid 1990s, when search engines were young and not so clever, and the SEO field was just being born, web development firms did, in fact, provide professional search engine optimization (SEO) services. But at that time the SEO services for the most part consisted of certain coding and tagging tweaks. The SEO rules were few and they were confined to the realm of basic HTML programming.
In the last 5 years, however, the search engine optimization (SEO) situation has changed significantly. Search engines have evolved to become smarter and more effective; their algorithms and site evaluation matrix have become so effective that they are now just a few steps away from matching natural human perception.
In other words, nowadays the way search engines "perceive" and "evaluate" websites is not much different from the way human users do it. Search engines now focus on the same things human users do. And what do users focus on? What do they look for?
Users look for quality information that provides answers to their specific questions and needs. They highly appreciate "specialized" sites with a lot of clearly written and to-the-point information. They may not read more than a couple of pages at a time, but they certainly want to have all the wealth of information available to them. They particularly appreciate it when a site provides relevant references and links to other sites also devoted to the same subject matter, because it makes their research so much easier. Users love when information is well structured and copy is well written so that it is easy to glance through and sort out what may or may not apply to their query. They love to see free downloads and other additional documents, because all this provides more useful information and also speaks in favour of the site's expertise.
When users find sites that exhibit all these signs of "quality", they bookmark them so that to come back later, when their need to know more becomes more pressing or when they decide to purchase a specific product. Naturally, users love sites with simple easy-to-follow navigation and pleasing non-intrusive graphics.
Moreover, users often form opinions about specific products and services before they even get a chance to see them. In fact, they often judge products and services by the way the hosting website looks and by the quality of content it exhibits. In the end, it is the quality and appropriateness of content that influences users' decisions most and foremost.
Not surprisingly, the quality of your site copy and the level of your "expertise" are the two most important factors for search engines as well. When determining the ranking of a site, search engines mainly "look" at two things: 1) relevance and quantity of the links connected with this site, and 2) quality of the site copy and associated documents.
Having said all this, I can now answer the question of why it is erroneous to believe that web development firms can ensure successful SEO results. When web development firms build websites, it is exceptionally rare for them to also write the site copy, let alone provide associated documentation, such as white papers, product briefs, how-to guides, newsletters, etc.And it is your site copy along with associated documents and links (i.e. your site content) that influence your SEO ranking first and foremost.
To get the most for your money, make sure to ask your web development firm to introduce you to and then let you speak with a person who does SEO copywriting for them (often a freelancer).
Yes, we provide live on-demand SEO webinars. Our search engine optimization webinars are conducted via WebEx and can accept up to 10 participants. As a rule between 5 and 8 people attend. A small-group setting allows for a very comfortable and relaxed atmosphere, where all of your questions get answered and no gray areas are left untouched.
The following topics are covered in the course of approximately 2 hours:
Rigorous methodology on how to select the most appropriate keywords for your business
Step-by-step instructions on how to conduct proper competitive analysis quickly and effectively and how to outdo even your most aggressive competitors
Personal advice on how to maximize your investment in advertising campaigns of major search engines (Google’s AdWords and AdSense, for example), i.e. how to get more for less
Q&A session with real-life examples to help you apply the studied material to your particular business objectives, with practical guidance and improvement recommendations
Carefully researched, time-tested and customer-approved SEO guide, accompanied by a set of supporting materials (SEO glossary, references, and useful links).
Register for one of our SEO webinars or request a customized webinar by filling out our registration form. Call us at (613) 231-6308 for more details.
(613) 231-6308
info@annatulchinsky.com
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