How Search Engines Work: The Road to EASY SEO Tips

Hello and welcome to Small Business EASY Branding Tips.  Brought to you by SSS for Success (EASY Brand Marketing Specialists), working to help Small Businesses Survive through EASY Sales. 

Originally, I intended for this week's topic to be “EASY Search Engine Optimization (or SEO) Tips: Making Your Website Search Engine Friendly”, then I realized that in explaining how you can optimize your website for search engines, that a discussion on search engines themselves and how they work was warranted.  So, to that end, next week’s topic will be “EASY SEO Tips”, and this week’s topic will talk about the basics of search engines, and how they work.

To put this in the “grand scheme of things” for how this fits in with your business, as well as the EASY Brand Marketing Program, Search Engine Optimization is a key component to a successful web strategy that continually generates traffic to your site, and not just ANY traffic, but the right traffic that comes to your site, ready to take the action you need them to (which is really more important than how many people are actually visiting your site). 

So, whether you have a website, or are considering constructing a new one, you’ll want to keep search engines in mind, unless you already have some magic formula for driving direct traffic to your site.

When I talk next week about “EASY Search Engine Optimization Tips” and how you can make your website more search engine friendly, I’ll be giving tips on some of the things you should keep in mind when designing or redesigning your website, in order to obtain optimal placement on the organic search engine results page (also called SERPs).

To give you a frame of reference for what organic search results are, see the image below:

Why is this important to you?  Because the organic results are where 70% of most web traffic driven from search engines come from.  

If you know you’re selling a product, and you know the behavior of your shopping audience, then you can surely use PPC to drum up more business, but the bulk of our focus at SSS for Success (EASY Brand Marketing Specialists), is really on Search Engine Optimization as an integral part of web design, thus insuring that you not only have a website, but a website that people can find without it costing you extra money on a continual basis. 

In order to get organic search results, and end up on one of the first 3 pages of those results (with the first page being the “prime location”), you need to optimize your website for search engines, so that your site’s content gets returned for relevant keywords.  And how you end up on those results page, is a process known as Search Engine Optimization, and in order to do this, you first have to know how search engines work and how they operate. 

A search engine uses special software (often called a “spider” or “robot”) to crawl the web, and automatically follow links and index web pages based on their readable content that’s embedded within the website’s code, then compiles that data into the search engine's database.  The way the engine works, is when you search for a term, say for instance “wedding cakes”, the search engine checks its database for all the websites it’s crawled for the terms “wedding” and “cakes”.

In terms of how a search engine like Google knows how to rank one site over another based on the relevancy of its content, THAT is the “Holy Grail question” for many Search Engine Optimizers, as people have tried for years to figure out the algorithm that’s used, but no one ever quite gets it, and the good thing is, you don’t really need to know the specifics of that, if you simply build a site that’s automatically friendly to search engine robots. 

One of the best pieces of advice I give for search engine optimization when constructing new websites is to design a website first for a blind person, then construct the visual components.  Some people think this is crazy, but if your business plan calls for search engine-driven web traffic, then you need to design your websites for search engines, and in order to do that, you need text.  Because, generally speaking, search engines read text!  They can’t "see" pictures or colors or graphics, in fact, even as search engines are changing the way they’re yielding results, they’ll still using the tried and true mechanisms of acquiring names for images from the ALT image tag.

How a website ranks on the search engine results page is a direct result of a variety of Website Relevancy Factors.  And while there are numerous factors that effect a website's relevancy within search engine results, for the sake of brevity, I've highlighted 10 positive and negative factors that can effect your site’s ability to be ranked higher on search engines.

You can listen to this week's podcast for more details on each factor, but here are both lists:

Ten Positive Website Relevancy Factors: 

1. Matching keywords within the Title Tag. 
2. Matching keywords within the META Description Tag. 
3. Matching keywords within the page filenames. 
4. Matching keywords within the URL. 
5. Matching keywords within the image filenames. 
6. Matching keywords within the text links. 
7. Matching keywords within the page headings and sub-headings. 
8. The Age of the site. 
9. Domain Ownership History.
10. The number of internal/external links to the page.

Ten Negative Website Relevancy Factors:

  

1. Over-optimizing the site (using too many keywords, overstuffed with content). 
2. Very long URLs, especially those with many hyphens. 
3. Using Flash. 
4. Using Javascript. 
5. Using stop symbols within your URL, like #, $, %. 
6. Broken links. 
7. Content buried more than 3 directories deep (i.e. yoursite.com/dir1/dir2/dir3). 
8. Excessive use of graphics without text. 
9. Links to sites that are not relevant to your content, nor the linking content. 
10. Using techniques considered to be “spam” by search engines (e.g. invisible text (where you have words on the site, but change the color to the same as your background, so that visually your visitors can’t see it, but presumably search engines will, because its within the site’s code), or hidden links (which are very tiny images that are virtually invisible to the human eye, but contain linking code that search engines can read)).

The factors listed here are just a few among several, and there are TONS of resources on the web where you can learn more about this.  A great resource on this topic would be: Search Engine Optimization All-in-One For Dummies by Bruce Clay and Susan Esparza.  It’s a really great 10-in-1 book that gets into just about everything you need to know, and it gets into the finer points of search engine marketing, and it also includes a $25 gift card for trying out Google AdWords. 

Be sure to join us again next week, where I’ll be talking about “EASY Search Engine Optimization (or SEO) Tips: 10 Tips for Making Your Website Search Engine Friendly”.

Reminder: Within the next few weeks, I’m going to have a podcast episode devoted entirely to questions and answers from you, my listening audience, so please submit your Small Business Branding Questions for that upcoming episode.  You can visit our website sss4success.com and go to the Contact Us page to submit your question, or reach out to us via email at “podcasts[at]sss4success.com”, or finding us on Twitter (@sss4success), or leaving a comment below.  Don't forget to stop by our Facebook Fan Page and let us know you LIKE what we're doing.

Also you can submit your feedback about this site here: Small Business Branding Tips Blog Survey.  If you’re a Small Business Owner that has been in business for a while, please fill out this survey.  We’d really appreciate your input on both, if you have the time. 

Finally, if by chance, you would like to learn more about how EASY Sales can help your bottom line, then give us a call at 615-336-4325.

Have a great day!

Kindra Cotton

If the player above isn't displaying, or working properly, you can also download the podcast from iTunes for free!

By the way, Transcripts are now available upon request.  If you want one, please email us at "transcripts[at]sss4success.com".

What Becomes of the Broken Hearted: How to Get Over Past Bad Service

Hello and welcome to Small Business EASY Branding Tips.  Brought to you by SSS for Success (EASY Brand Marketing Specialists), working to help Small Businesses Survive through EASY Sales.

This week’s topic is: “What Becomes of the Broken Hearted: How to Get Over Past Bad Service”.  In the podcast, I talk about some issues I've encountered with potential clients who are all gung-ho to move forward with their projects, but simultaneously reluctant to release the reigns of trust or loosen their purse strings for much needed services due to some bad service experiences from their past.

I offer the following suggestions to help ease the transition back to trusting service providers after you've been wronged in the past:

1. Start in Small Doses: Get to know the company through smaller projects, and get a feel for what they can do, and if you like the level of service they provide to you.
2. Allow the person you hire to exercise their expertise:  If you’ve taken the step to hire someone to complete a task, given them the breadth of space they need to complete it without hovering over them, or attempting to micromanage the process, especially if it’s in a field or area where you lack expertise. 
3. If all else fails: Do it yourself.  That way you can make sure whatever you need to get done, get done to your satisfaction.

As a final note, for those that may have been curious, the first part of this podcast’s title “What Becomes of the Broken Hearted” is an ode to Motown legend Jimmy Ruffin, who released a song under that title in 1966 (video below).

Reminder: Within the next few weeks, I’m going to have a podcast episode devoted entirely to questions and answers from you, my listening audience, so please submit your Small Business Branding Questions for that upcoming episode.  You can visit our website sss4success.com and go to the Contact Us page to submit your question, or reach out to us via email at “podcasts[at]sss4success.com”, or finding us on Twitter (@sss4success), or leaving a comment below.  Don't forget to stop by our Facebook Fan Page and let us know you LIKE what we're doing.

Finally, if by chance, you would like to learn more about how EASY Sales can help your bottom line, then give us a call at 615-336-4325.

Have a great day!

Kindra Cotton

If the player above isn't displaying, or working properly, you can also download the podcast from iTunes for free!

By the way, Transcripts are now available upon request.  If you want one, please email us at "transcripts[at]sss4success.com".

Specials Are Ending Soon!

It has been a pleasure to offer all of the Specials that have been available at SSS for Success (EASY Brand Marketing Specialsts), but all good things, must come to an end!

As I stated when we announced them, they were only available at these prices for a LIMITED time, thus at the Close of Business on Monday, July 26, 2010, the following specials will be ending:

• The Personal Branding Special: $150 for a 30-minute Tech/Social Media Consultation, a Professional & Stylish 4-Page Website, a personal email address (i.e. you@yourname.com), and a full-page (Color) Digital One-Sheet (print is available at an additional charge).
• The Authors Special: $150 for a 30-minute Tech/Social Media Consultation, a Professional & Stylish 4-Page Website, a personal email address (i.e. you@yourname.com), and a full-page (Color) Digital One-Sheet (print is available at an additional charge).
• The Authors SEO Special (for established authors with a web presence): $150 for a Search Engine Optimization (SEO) Analysis Report, a 60-minute Technology and Social Media Consultation, and a 30-60 Day Self-Guided SEO Action Plan.

If you'd like to take advantage of one of these specials before they end, please get in touch with us through the Contact Us page on our sss4success.com website, or call us at (615) 336-4325.

Thanks,

Kindra

EASY Personal Branding Tips: Why You Need a Personal Brand

Hello and welcome to Small Business EASY Branding Tips.  Brought to you by SSS for Success (EASY Brand Marketing Specialists), working to help Small Businesses Survive through EASY Sales.  This week’s topic is: “EASY Personal Branding Tips: Why You Need a Personal Brand”.   

I was recently asked the importance of personal branding, and today, I want to talk about Why You Need a Personal Brand.  Whether you are a business owner, or a job seeker, there is something to be said for the level of professionalism that you project to potential clients and/or prospective employers.
 
As a personal branding strategy, I would advise that you acquire your own personal email address (e.g. you@yourname.com), in addition to a website hosted at the domain of your name for both you, as well as for your business, if for no other reason than to be proactive, rather than reactive about what’s available about you on the web.

In this week's podcast, I give an example of how I incorporated personal branding into my own life, and how it's helped me improve both my personal and professional life.  What I did was take control of my name, Kindra Cotton, and the information on the web about me and what you find whenever you perform a Google search for my name.

I sought to script a better narrative about me on the web, by first creating my own personal web portal, then by using blogging, podcasting, and the other social media tools like Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn, that I already had in my arsenal.

Within three months, I was able to change the search results for my name from obscure references from several years ago, to what you see in today's search results, which more than likely point you to my personal web portal, or one of the many blogs, online communities, or publishing platforms that I'm associated with, most of which still probably link you back to my personal web portal.

As a business owner, its important to me to script a proper narrative about myself and my company, and in this economy, I would think it would behoove the savvy job seeker to put their best foot forward and use the web as both a business card and a resume so that potential employers can learn about you from you.

And I don’t just say this because I have created a Personal Branding Special at my company SSS for Success (EASY Brand Marketing Specialists), because I created the Special to specifically meet an immediate need I saw in the market. 

Having your own personal brand is important because it helps you take control of much of what's available about you on the web, since you put it there.  I've also found that I love when people contact me and quote stuff off of my blog or personal web portal.  It tells me that what I’ve put out there to be found in Google searches is working, and that people are learning a little bit about me ahead of time, so when they call me, they’re already “warmed up”, and this is a valuable asset.  

Also keep in mind that as a business owner, you can use your personal web portal as a compliment to your businesses' websites, and provide yet another way to feed people to your business blog or site.

Reminder: Within the next few weeks, I’m going to have a podcast episode devoted entirely to questions and answers from you, my listening audience, so please submit your Small Business Branding Questions for that upcoming episode.  You can visit our website sss4success.com and go to the Contact Us page to submit your question, or reach out to us via email at “podcasts @ sss4success.com”, or finding us on Twitter (@sss4success), or leaving a comment below.  Don't forget to stop by our Facebook Fan Page and let us know you LIKE what we're doing.

Finally, if by chance, you would like to learn more about how EASY Sales can help your bottom line, then give us a call at 615-336-4325.

Have a great day!
Kindra Cotton



If the player above isn't displaying, or working properly, you can also download the podcast from iTunes for free! 

By the way, Transcripts are now available upon request.  If you want one, please email us at "transcripts[at]sss4success.com". 

EASY Podcasting: Building Web Traffic Through Expertise

Hello and welcome to Small Business EASY Branding Tips.  Brought to you by SSS for Success (EASY Brand Marketing Specialists), working to help Small Businesses Survive through EASY Sales. 

This week’s topic is: “EASY Podcasting: Building Web Traffic Through Expertise”.  In a previous post, I talked about “The Basics of Branding and Why Anyone Can Do It”.  In that post, I detailed the 4-Step Common Sense Branding Strategy that I think most small business owners should be aware of when seeking to create, build, and enhance their company’s brand.
Those steps were: 1^st: Determining & Defining Your Brand. Step 2: Researching Your Market and Positioning Your Brand to Capitalize on a Sector of it. Step 3: Launching Your Brand. Step 4: Managing, Monitoring & Tweaking Your Brand (Note: That’s “tweaking” your brand, meaning make minor revisions, not tweeting your brand, which is more so a function that occurs under Step 3).

In this week's post, I talk about how to use podcasting (or digital audio broadcasting) to build bring web traffic either to your blog or to your website, and to enhance your overall brand, so we’ll specifically be talking about Steps 3 & 4. 

Podcasting is like broadcasting your own radio show, that isn’t live, and people can choose to download it and listen to it at their leisure.

I recently got into podcasting and it’s an activity that I enjoy because it’s another way to connect to my audience, and I’m going to give a general overview as to how you can get started with EASY Podcasting. 

The first step towards having a successful podcast series, is to have a website or blog, just so your audience can have a central location to gather, and/or find your information if they choose to look somewhere else beyond their RSS reader.  You don’t necessarily need a website or a blog, but if your goal is to build your brand, then you should certainly have one or both.

Creating the actual podcast episode itself is something that requires 3 steps:
 

1. Creating the File: To create a podcast episode, you need to have a microphone, and audio editing software.  In order to record a decent quality podcast, I purchased the moderately priced Logitech ClearChat Comfort USB Headset, and downloaded the Audacity Free Audio Editor and Recorder with an MP3 encoder plug-in to allow me to export MP3 files.
2. Uploading and Storing the File: I upload and store my files on the web hosting and storage accounts I already have at my disposal, but an easier alternative to this would be LibSyn (short for Liberated Syndication).  While I don't use LibSyn personally, I would highly recommend it because it's economically priced (starting at $5/month and up), and they provide a lot of the tools you need to upload and distribute your podcast files.
3. Disseminating the file to RSS readers:  If you use LibSyn, this part will probably be taken care of for you, but if you choose to do it yourself, you can take your website/blog URL over to Feedburner and burn a Feedburner RSS feed, then submit it to iTunes, as well as the Microsoft Zune Marketplace.  My experience has shown the iTunes process to be easier and more user-friendly, and their turn around time for getting podcast episodes listed is great!

With your podcast episode recorded, uploaded, and ready for subscription, be sure to use Twitter and Facebook, and all of the other social media tools out there to bring attention to your blog, and encourage people to visit your site and hopefully subscribe to your content, if they find it helpful. 

There are certainly a variety of ways that you can go about setting up your own podcast series, and tons of helpful resources out there to get you started.  What I’ve talked about today is what I’ve done, but you’re more than welcome to check out the many websites and other resources out there on this topic.  For example, you can visit Cliff Ravenscraft's Podcast Answer Man website and check out his Podcasting 101 podcast that helped me learn the basics before I started podcasting.

Please keep in mind that we here at SSS for Success (EASY Brand Marketing Specialists) are always here to help with our Social Media & Technology Training Packages to help you get a better grasp on podcasting and all the variety of tools and resources that are out there, and how you can learn to use them for yourself to grow your business.

Note: Within the next few weeks, I’m going to have a podcast episode devoted entirely to questions and answers from you, my listening audience, so please submit your Small Business Branding Questions for that upcoming episode.  You can visit our website sss4success.com and go to the Contact Us page to submit your question, or reach out to us via email at “podcasts @ sss4success.com”, or finding us on Twitter (@sss4success), or leaving a comment below.  Don't forget to stop by our Facebook Fan Page and let us know you LIKE what we're doing.

Finally, if by chance, you would like to learn more about how EASY Sales can help your bottom line, then give us a call at 615-336-4325.

Have a great day!
Kindra Cotton



If the player above isn't displaying, or working properly, you can also download the podcast from iTunes for free! 

By the way, Transcripts are now available upon request.  If you want one, please email us at "transcripts[at]sss4success.com". 
 

Transcripts Now Available Upon Request

The method of posting a long list of transcripts on the "Transcripts" page, simply isn't working.

It isn't efficient for us to post, and it surely isn't efficient for readers to have to scroll for pages and pages in order to read a new week's content.

Therefore, Transcripts are now available upon request.

If you'd like a transcript of a previously posted episode, please email "transcripts[at]sss4success.com" with the title and/or date, and we'll get one promptly sent out to you.



If you know of a solution to getting transcripts disseminated in a more seamlessly integrated way, please let me know.
 
Thanks for your continued support.

Kindra