How to Get Your Website High Up in the Google Rankings

August 25, 2009

Website optimisation, also called search engine optimisation – or SEO, is critical to your website’s success. There really isn’t any reason to invest in website development, no matter how incredible it may look, if the only person who can find it is you. Optimisation is the process of preparing your site – as efficiently as you possibly can, so that people will find it during a search.

Assuming that people aren’t aware of the existence of your site, how do you change this? One of the primary ways of approaching this problem is to design your site in such a manner that the so-called “robots” agree that it’s a good source of information relating to the keywords in question. An individual who’s searching will usually type in a phrase that has to do with his or her particular problem, and it’s then the responsibility of Google, Yahoo or MSN to retrieve the most relevant selections. These companies employ complex algorithms within their powerful search database, based on information that their robots find when they crawl through each and every website in the known universe. These algorithms are automated processes and they utilise proprietary methods which these companies will not disclose.

An entire industry has been built up around search engine optimisation for online business. There are many experts and those who purport to know what it takes to optimise your site efficiently. Whilst there are many gray areas still in existence, there are a number of fundamentals that you have to bear in mind.

Before you even think about designing your website, you should have chosen and purchased a domain name which goes along with your products or services. The domain name should ideally contain your keywords, which are basically phrases that describe your product and service very specifically; for example, “article writing services” or “East Bay chiropractor.” Note that, in many cases it’s advantageous to optimise your site according to your location, in addition to your area of expertise.

Once you have selected your keywords, you should optimise one page for each selected keyword. You can have hundreds of keywords if you choose, but you should make sure that you conduct careful research in every case. As you’re hoping that your website will appear in the search results when somebody types in “East Bay chiropractor”, for example, you need to try and make sure that the robots interpret your page as relevant to this phrase. Therefore, they must see the exact keyword phrase in the page title, in the description of the page and in the meta-tags.

The content within your web page should be informative and very relevant to your keyword, and it should contain the keyword a certain number of times; most people recommend a 1% density. Don’t forget that your website must be readable when visited, and there is nothing worse than what is called “keyword stuffing”, where web masters try and include a relevant keyword too many times within an article, severely affecting its readability. Technically speaking, the keywords should also appear in a related “alt” tag attached to each photograph or image on the site, and filenames referenced from within the site should also contain the keyword. Furthermore, a clear internal linking framework should contain, once again, your relevant keywords.

Search engine optimization doesn’t have to be particularly difficult, but you should pay careful attention to it. If you try to rank for “long tail” keywords (a more precise description of your product or service), and especially if you try to geo-target the audience, you’ll stand a pretty good chance of ranking well within the search engine pages for your terms.

Michelle Dale is The Managing Director of Virtual Miss Friday, an accomplished Executive Virtual Assistant Service which helps companies of all sizes reach their commercial targets. Want to get more information about online business building success strategies that really work? Contact VMF today!

Posted by Virtual Miss Friday | Filed Under **Blogs**, **Internet**, **Marketing**, **Media**, **eBusiness**, Advertising, Development, Promotion | Comments

Maximise Your Online Business Potential with an All-in-One System

August 16, 2009

Watch out for the new market leader all-in-one online business building system that offers cutting edge features, services and solutions to today’s busy entrepreneur. This complete solution covers four primary categories – web hosting, e-mail marketing, lead management and e-commerce.

The web hosting and content management system have a fully integrated customer database, proprietary software that makes it really easy for you to edit your pages at any time, and the facility to create all sorts of interactive communities. Readily available dynamic reporting capabilities are included, and this system was specifically designed – from day one, to integrate with Google, Yahoo and Windows Live from an SEO point of view.

Ease of operation is key with this system, as your website development can be altered on the fly, and you can use a simple WYSIWYG editor for this purpose. The template-based architecture provides consistent interface and appearance, and the content approval rules can be quickly be set up for management review.

From a security point of view, member only access areas may be established according to different parameters, and there are comprehensive reporting capabilities, including detailed visitor information, geo-location, keyword productivity checks and the ability to export to a simple interface for further analysis. Complete social networking functionality is readily available. Set up a variety of forums with fantastic usability and an efficient administration control interface. The blogging platforms also have a nearly unlimited list of customisable selections.

Inside this incredible business building system, the e-commerce functionality provides you with the ability to sell real products or e-products, set custom individual discounts, utilise an integrated customer database which updates continuously in real-time, set a variety of cross and up-sell features, communicate organically with Google, Yahoo and Windows Live and acquire an array of comprehensive reports.

E-mail marketing goes beyond traditional methodology. Feedback is critical here, and this system goes beyond the mere reporting of open rates or bounces, and analyzes what actions customers actually take. A key customer report generator helps you to focus on your customer database for better tracking purposes, and your e-mail marketing campaigns may be set up according to a wide variety of parameters.

Emphasising its flexibility, the business building system also allows you to create any number or different types of web applications. Web apps can be created for numerous functions, and various management options exist. Events may be managed and bookings handled through a framework of processes, including the ability to collect payments and send automated confirmations.

With an eye firmly on all-important search engine optimization, this all-in-one business building system integrates with Google, Yahoo and Windows Live site maps on a daily basis. Optimized URLs, catalogue, product and file names are incorporated within its functionality to maximize search engine friendliness.

Most people that work with online business understand that to really make an all-in-one business building system do what it’s supposed to – across the board, it needs to have an almost unlimited functionality. Most entrepreneurs are striving to find ways and means of enjoying the advantages of centralisation, but they’re also looking for a system which is truly user-friendly, and doesn’t require them to outsource for help or updates – just a bit of assistance to understand how it all works. Today, more than ever, you should set up all your business functions “under one roof”, to achieve optimum time savings and cost efficiency. Make your move today – one easy to use system, all of your services…

Posted by Virtual Miss Friday | Filed Under **Business**, **Internet**, **Marketing**, **eBusiness**, Advertising, Development, Promotion | Comments

Blogs and Forums: Only Comment if You Have Something Meaningful to Say!

August 11, 2009

When working with any level of online business, commenting on popular blogs and high traffic forums should be a fundamental part of your Internet Marketing strategy. Once again we see the power of networking at work here, and the same basic rules apply – be relevant, be interesting and don’t “hard sell”.

Whatever niche you’re in, there are forums galore out there. In these places you can get to know people who are actively interested in your particular subject, and have invested the time necessary to become members of these forums because they really value the information which is available. Where could you find an audience with better potential? While there are a wide variety of forums for every niche imaginable, there are still a large number of independent blogs, written and created by individuals who are also very interested in your subject. You may consider these people to be competitors in many cases, but that doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t interact with them for overall marketing purposes.

One thing to always remember when commenting on blogs or forums is that you should consider the power of the content that you post as opposed to any potential benefit that you could receive from links. This is absolutely crucial. Some people undertake a commenting strategy with the sole purpose of getting back links. In some instances this may also be technically flawed, but you need to be confident that the content posted next to your individual or corporate name is to the very best standard!

Blog and forum commenting is highly recommended as part of an overall website development strategy. As is the case with blog production in general, or with social media network interaction, the material that you publish will be read and its composition judged. You don’t want to be posting irrelevant comments, or comments that are designed just to get your name out there. There seems to be no point at all in typing “great post”!

Blog owners will usually look at comments with great interest, and forums are almost always moderated by motivated individuals. In every case, whatever you write will have an impact. If you have something contrary to say, make sure that it’s constructive. There’s nothing wrong with being negative as such, so long as it can be viewed as a positive contribution to the conversation in view. Being negative just for the sake of it, or to create some kind of viral controversy isn’t really a good overall marketing technique for you.

You should note that some blogs have installed a “no follow” link policy, which means that if you have a link associated to your post, either in the signature or otherwise, the search engines are being told not to score the link. Most experts in this area recommend that you give more attention to the content of your posts and make sure that they are informative and contributory, rather than worrying about a potential back link to your site.

Initiate a policy of commenting on active blogs and popular forums associated with your niche. Use your competitor’s sites in a creative way to build your credibility as well. Remember, as is the case with many Internet marketing strategies, a subtle yet consistent approach is key.

Michelle Dale is The Managing Director of Virtual Miss Friday, a cutting edge Executive Virtual Assistant Service which assists organisations and enterprising individuals with every detail of their entrepreneurial aspirations. Do you want to peruse some further information on these incredible online business building success strategies? Contact VMF Now!

Posted by Virtual Miss Friday | Filed Under **Blogs**, **Business**, **Internet**, **Marketing**, **Media**, **eBusiness**, Advertising, Development, Promotion | Comments