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Have an Old Website That No Longer Ranks Well in Searches?

March 10, 2014 By John

p-google-search-boxFor years, many have believed the age of a domain name is a factor in Google search results rankings. We have seen anecdotal evidence that it seems to be true, to a point.  Google’s Matt Cutt’s answer to a related question in a Google Webmaster Tools video prompted this post.

Does this sound like your business?

  • Your domain name was registered several  years ago.
  • You had a website before a lot of others understood the importance.
  • Your website was doing pretty well in Google for many keyword searches
  • Lately, the last statement is no longer the case.
  • You are wondering why you no longer do as well in Google SERPS (Search Engine Results Page) rankings.

Does this sound like your business or organization?

  • You have not done any meaningful updates to the content on your website in years
  • You have not redesigned the look and layout of your website
  • Your photos and graphics are not optimized to be fast loading
  • You are not using Social Media
  • You have not included Social Media share & follow buttons
  • Your competitors have been doing all of the above

Take a fresh look at your website to see just what visitors are experiencing, and compare that to what they experience on your competitor’s or other similar websites.

Don’t just listen to us. See for yourself what Google’s Matt Cutts says in his video, “How can an older site maintain its ranking over time?“

Filed Under: Google, Search, SEO

Google’s Hummingbird – Why? What Have We Learned? What You Need To Do.

November 15, 2013 By John

The Hummingbird algorithm update has changed Google search. You don’t have to be a weatherman to know which way the wind is blowing, and you don’t have to be a Search Engine Optimization expert to know that Google search results are not the same as they were. The change isn’t necessarily bad. It is just different.

Why and What?

There are a couple of things in play here.

For at least a couple of years, Google has been moving towards “semantic search” and “entity” (which we’ll talk about in a future blog post) results, and with the Hummingbird algorithm update, Google is continuing that path. Simply put, semantic search tries to understand searcher intent and the contextual meaning of the keywords in a search query.

Humming BirdAs we all know Google has a treasure trove of data about how we search, how it relates to us, where we are, and on and on it goes. The results are meant to be more natural, or “conversational,” because search queries are increasingly more conversational in manner. Hummingbird is an effort to leverage that premise and provide more relevant search results, which is what Google is always trying to do and sell.

The other thing in play is the extremely rapid embracement of mobile devices and Google’s refinement of voice search capabilities. The keyboard (with shorter queries for many reasons) is falling victim to voice search on phones, tablets, notebooks, and even some desktops. For most people, voice search is as “natural” as it gets.

What do you need to do?

Those of you who read this blog or know me, might expect me to say, “your content needs to be well-written, describing the benefits of each of your products and/or services.” That is exactly part of what I would say. The content has to be structured correctly on the page. You should take advantage of linking (correctly) to other relevant pages within your website. Of course, there is more that can be done to individual websites, that I won’t generalize here.

Quality, well-written content will be rewarded even more, as long as it is natural and conversational. Keyword cramming won’t work so well for you, and that’s a good thing.

Of course, we are always happy to help. If you would like some help sorting out all the talk about Hummingbird, please give us a call at 1-800-281-9993 or 608-822-3750, or email us contact@webwisedesign.com.

Filed Under: Google, Search, SEO

Search Engine Optimization Benefits from YouTube Videos

August 21, 2013 By John

YouTube One ChannelNot many think of their YouTube videos as a Search Engine Optimization (SEO) tool, but here at WebWise Design & Marketing, we do. A high percentage of our clients who use videos on their websites, or on YouTube, have experienced excellent improvement in SERP (Search Engine Results Page) rankings. Next time you do a search on Google, take note of the companies with YouTube accounts linked to their websites and how they rank in the search results.

To benefit the most effectively, start by creating a YouTube “One Channel” for your business, community, or organization, and upload your videos there. Be sure to include keyword search terms in your titles and descriptions so your videos will be found when people search.

Setting up a YouTube “One Channel” (an abbreviated version):

Do

  • Do: Create short, quality videos for display on your website and on YouTube
  • Do: Create and customize your YouTube “One Channel”
    • Use a properly sized, quality version of your logo.
    • Use the same color scheme as on your website. (Think consistency in marketing)
    • Enable the Overview tab
    • Link to your website
  • Do: Upload your videos on your YouTube “One Channel”
  • Do: Search Engine Optimize your YouTube Channel
    • Write keyword-rich titles and descriptions for your videos, and use relevant tags
  • Do: Judiciously embed your YouTube videos on relevant web pages

Do Not

  • Do not upload business or organization videos to a personal account, and likewise, do not  upload personal videos to a business account.
  • Do not use the default settings when customizing your YouTube One Channel
  • Do not ignore the fact that users present multi-device and multi-platform challenges
  • Do not upload videos that are not relevant and complimentary to your website content

Summary: DO use videos as part of your content and SEO marketing efforts. If done properly, you will reap rewards in more and relevant traffic to your website.

Of course, we are happy to help you with any or all of the above. Give us a call or drop us a note.

Filed Under: Search, SEO, YouTube

Google Local Search Results “Carousel” Display

June 26, 2013 By John

Google Local  Search Results “Carousel” Display was rolled out last week for desktop users. Some iPad and Nexus tablet users have seen this new look since December, but now it will significantly impact a much wider audience and a larger number of local businesses. Here is an example search for Italian restaurants Madison, WI; you will see results similar to these.

Google Local Carousel

Google says “searches for local dining, nightlife, hotels, and other attractions” will display carousel results. Try it for yourself to see what displays in your area.

The “carousel” is interactive, so we all know that those businesses, restaurants in this case, with the most attractive photo or logo are very likely to be clicked on first.

“While we can’t guarantee inclusion in search results, we can say that the carousel will show results from listings in Google Maps using categories. Just as in regular ranking, Google’s algorithms take into account many factors to select the places and results that are most relevant to the user. This algorithm based approach is also used to decide which businesses are in the carousel.”

“The Google business listing is one of several sources we use for the photos in the carousel, and making sure high-quality images are posted to it will help improve your photo. However, the image selection, like the actual ranking of businesses, is primarily decided by algorithms and so we can’t guarantee complete control over the image.”

How do you get your business photo there? It all starts with your Google Places Listing, which we have written about previously. If you currently have a Google Places page (where you can upload photos, your logo, business hours, etc.), Google wants you to “upgrade” to a local Google+ page (some of you may have already done that). There are some advantages including the ability to understand customer feedback and respond to Google+ Local reviews.

In an upcoming post, I’ll write more about the somewhat confusing two types of Google Places pages, help you understand the differences and the actions you can take to maximize your visibility in local searches.

Filed Under: Google, Google Maps, Local, Search, SEO

Google’s Instant Search and its ‘predictive’ nature has changed the way we search

December 13, 2012 By John

This isn’t new, but from talking to clients and others, it is evident that many businesses don’t consider how Google’s Instant Search might influence whether a searcher clicks on a particular search listing on a SERP (Search Engine Results Page).

A little over two years ago (September 8, 2010), Google announced Google Instant Search. They wrote,  “Google Instant is search-before-you-type.”

In addition to being faster (if you click on one of the suggested results), it is predictive search. Google says, “One of the key technologies in Google Instant is that we predict the rest of your query (in light gray text) before you finish typing. See what you need? Stop typing, look down and find what you’re looking for.”

As you can see by the example results below, Google clearly is predicting I was looking for “property” in central Wisconsin.

Google SERP screenshot

So, how does Instant Search predict, and what does it display? Google says, “A list of predicted queries is generated using the autocomplete algorithm.” Here is a short version of what it is based on.

  • Search activities of others
  • Contents of pages indexed by Google
  • If you have a Google account, and are signed in, your Web history and past searches
  • In some cases, Google+ profiles come into play

Google writes, “Apart from the Google+ profiles that may appear, all of the predicted queries that are shown in the drop-down list have been typed previously by Google users or appear on the web.”

We humans often take the path of least resistance, and Google Instant Search provides such a path. Not surprisingly, when we click on one of the suggestions, instant search impacts what results we actually see. Previously we used a search phrase we believed would yield what we were looking for. If we did not find it in the first batch of results, we would refine the search and try again. Now, Google has changed that. For many the temptation to click on one of the first suggestions is just too great (even though it may not be the keyword or phrase we were planning on including), so they succumb, and the results are considerably different than those we would have received had we searched using the keywords we originally planned to use.

What does all of this mean? That depends on one’s perspective. I am not saying it is good or bad. However, it has changed the way we search.

Filed Under: Google, Search, SEO

Poor Search Results? Can you Blame it on a Penguin or a Panda?

October 10, 2012 By John

If you are among those who have noticed their search results have gotten worse lately, it is possible you can blame some of that on a Penguin or a Panda. Those two culprits belong to Google. They are the names given to major changes in Google’s search algorithm. In addition to major updates, Google continually tweaks “signals” in their algorithm, as well as features. For example, there have been four updates in the last two weeks.

Google search algorithm updates affect both website owners and those searching. It is important to never forget that Google is selling relevance. They want to deliver links to the most relevant and current information available. Here is a brief history of major Google search algorithm and feature updates.

Panda (aka Panda/Farmer) came first in late February of 2011.Panda It was a major algorithm update that hit some websites hard, affecting up to 12% of search results (a number that came directly from Google). It seemed to crack down hardest on content farms and links, low quality content, and sites with high ad-to-content ratios. Throughout 2011, there were another 15 or so major Google algorithm updates, ten of which were specifically tied to Panda. In November, Google announced that they applied an algorithm change rewarding freshness that would impact up to 35% of queries (almost 3X the publicly stated impact of the first Panda release).

It is important to note that each of these updates include updates to multiple signals with specific purposes that Google uses in evaluating pages. For reference, on January 5 of this year, Google posted 30 search quality highlights (with codenames!): December Some of those changes affected landing-page quality detection, more relevant site-links, and more rich snippets.

The year 2012 so far has brought us around 30 major algorithm updates. Again, including updates to multiple signals, as stated in this Google post, Search quality highlights: 86 changes for June and July

Penguin imageGoogle’s Penguin joined his furry friend with this announcement on April 24, 2012 named, Another step to reward high-quality sites. Since then there have been three Penguin updates of significance. The latest of which was October 5.

Oh, Panda has not gone away. So far this year there have been at least a dozen “updates” or “refreshes” (there is a difference, but that is for another time).

So why all of this talk (and there is so much more) about Google’s algorithm. If it changes (Google likes to think they are improvements, not just changes), your website content has to improve as well. Google is selling relevance. The most current content is generally more relevant. It is plain and simple, if the content on your website pages is well-written, relevant, and current, your Search Engine Results Page rankings will reflect that. If it is not, your rankings will reflect that as well.

Talk to your webmaster. Hopefully that’s WebWise Design & Marketing. We can be. Call us today! 800-281-993 or 608-822-3750

Filed Under: Google, Search, SEO

Two Things You Can’t Ignore: Landing Pages and Quality Score

April 30, 2012 By John

I am sure our clients, and others who take advantage of advertising using Google AdWords, wonder why I frequently talk about landing pages and quality score. Well, they are simply two things you can’t ignore!

The people of Google write about understanding landing page experience, and it is important to know what they say about it. It is also important for anyone wanting to maximize their investment in Google AdWords to use the advice they offer.

Here is how they start their article about landing pages, “Landing page experience refers to how good we think someone’s experience will be when they get to your landing page (the web page they end up on after clicking your ad). You can improve your landing page experience and Quality Score by focusing on three things: relevant and original content, transparency, and ease of navigation.”

How do your landing pages stack up?

Don’t forget the ever important quality score. Here are a few considerations that Google says can come into play when calculating “Quality Score.”

  • The keyword’s past click through rate (CTR): How often that keyword led to clicks on the ad
  • The display URL’s past CTR: How often the display URL received clicks
  • The account history: The overall CTR of all the ads and keywords in the account
  • The quality of the landing page: How relevant, transparent, and easy-to-navigate your page is
  • The keyword/ad relevance: How relevant the keyword is to the ads.
  • The keyword/search relevance: How relevant the keyword is to what a customer searches for
  • Geographic performance: How successful the account has been in the regions targeted.
  • If targeting the Display Network – The ad’s performance on a site: How well the ad has been doing on this and similar sites.

It is important to note the number of times in the above list that Google looks at account performance. It is easy to not worry about a particular keyword or a handful of keywords that are not performing well, but it is a costly mistake to ignore the impact poor performing keywords can have on your ad display placement.

Here is more from Google on Quality Score.

Don’t forget. When it comes to Google AdWords campaigns,  there are “Two Things You Can’t Ignore: Landing Pages and Quality Score.”

Filed Under: AdWords, Google, Search, SEO

Five Reasons You Should Claim Your Google Places Listing, Today!

April 17, 2012 By John

If you have not, and many of you have not, claimed your Google Places listing, here are five reasons you should claim your Google Places listing today!

Google Search for Insurance Lancaster WI

1. This Google quote, “97% of consumers search for local businesses online.”

2. Google’s Universal Search results

In today world of Google’s Universal Search results, nearly every time a potential customer does a Google search that contains your community’s name (or the region where your business  is located) and the type of product or service you offer, they will see a Google map with pins on it, and a list of businesses represented on that map. Is there a pin for your business there? There is no easier nor quicker way to improve visibility in Google SERPs, than claiming, and using your Google Places listing.

3. Make sure your listing is accurate and thorough. Did I say thorough?

You may add photos and videos; custom categories like your  service area, brands you sell and how to find parking; and coupons to encourage customers to make a first-time or repeat purchase.

4. Customer Reviews

Google and prospective customers both love customer reviews. You don’t have to do many test searches using Google to see that websites of companies who have several reviews on their Google Places pages, do very well in Google SERPs.

5. It is easy, and takes a very few minutes.

You may verify your phone number, address, and add business hours.  After you have claimed and verified your Google Places listing, you may go back and take advantage of the features.

To make sure the basic information you submit is accurate, Google will ask you to verify it first by entering a PIN that will be sent to either your business address or phone number. (We recommend using the phone number. It automated and is nearly instantaneous as opposed to weeks.)

Now, go claim your Google Places listing!

Here is some help from Google:

Getting started with a local business listing on Google Places

Google Places quality guidelines

Filed Under: Google Maps, Local, Search, SEO

Websites Aren’t a “Build It And They Will Come” Proposition.

February 13, 2012 By John

So, you just launched a new website? Is it a month or more later and you are wondering where all the traffic is? Google, Bing, Yahoo, and other search engines don’t just “magically” know your website exists. After they do find you, if you and your web developer both have not done your jobs, you won’t be ranked very highly (or at all) for some time. Here is roughly how it should work.

Before you launch:

Some of you have heard me repeat this mantra many times. This applies for Google AdWords and for organic search results, here is what matters, “Landing pages, landing pages, landing pages.” On those landing pages, you need well-written “Titles,” Meta Descriptions,” “Headlines” and a first paragraph that contains the keywords for which you would like to be found. If you did not provide (or have your web developer edit and provide) well-written, keyword-rich content for your pages, those pages won’t rank well, if at all. If you want your website to be found for specific keywords, those words have to be well-placed on your landing pages. That, is a simple fact.

At and after launch:
  1. If your web developer does as he/she should,  he/she will create a sitemap.xml file that includes a list, of all, or at least the file names of the primary pages of your website. The sitemap.xml file should be submitted to Google and other major search engines. With Google, the correct way to submit it is using a Google Webmaster Tools Account. Google, Bing, Yahoo, Ask.com and utilize sitemap.xml files. The search engine robots will follow the page links in the sitemap.xml file, index the content on the pages, and depending on your content, will include some or all of your pages in their search index.
  2. From there, your pages have to “earn” their way toward the high ranking in SERPS that everyone hopes to have. Notice I said “hopes.” There are no guarantees for organic search listing results. Good content and a good web developer can influence how you are are ranked, but if someone promises you a number one position or any specific position, put your hand on your wallet and run.
  3. If an existing website (preferably, one that ranks well in Google search page results, aka SERPS) has a link to your website, Google and some of the other search engines, will at some stage find that link, follow it, and as above, index the content on the pages, and depending on your content, will include some or all of your pages in their search index.
  4. Claim your Google Places page! I cannot emphasize this enough. Claim your Google Places page!
  5. You should ask to get your website listed in any local community directory. The Chamber of Commerce in most communities will have a business directory. Ask for links from vendors, and from associations to which you belong.
  6. Review and choose the Social Media that best suits you, and engage your prospects and customers.

Those are the basics. Most of the time, it takes weeks to months before a new website will rank well. If you do what I outlined above you will likely be pleased with your ranking  much sooner than later.

If you have done all of the above, and are still not ranking well, don’t despair. Just take another look at your content. Rewrite it making sure you have your keywords placed properly, and they are written according to Google’s guidelines. Review the websites that are getting found better than you. You will likely find some clues that will help with your website. Keep at it. You can get to the top!

Here are two effective ways to jump start a new website, or a newly revised website.

Filed Under: Google, Search, SEO

How Many Words in a Typical Search Query?

October 13, 2011 By John

Hitwise says September 2011 search queries of eight or more words increased 3 percent from August 2011. So, what does this meant to you? Actually not much, but it does give me the opportunity, to show you the numbers for the other search term lengths. Knowing how many words the searching public (pretty much all of us), typically uses should be used in your search engine marketing strategy. You do have a search engine marketing strategy, don’t you?

That said, here are the numbers:

How many words in a typical search query

Knowing those numbers should affect how you approach search engine optimization (SEO), and your Google AdWords campaigns. You do have both of those in your search engine marketing strategy, don’t you?

Filed Under: Google, Search

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