Terri's Corner

Why isn't my site listed #1? (A Primer on Search Engines)

2007-01-02T15:19:00Z

Your site has launched and you’re ready to welcome throngs of visitors to your site. In your excitement, you type a few search terms into Google or Yahoo to see where your site comes up in the listings…

“WAIT A MINUTE! Where is my site?” you wonder. “Shouldn’t I at least be in the first page of results?”

Ideally, yes. Realistically, it’s not so easily achieved.

Search engines (e.g., Google, Yahoo, MSN, Lycos, etc.) use complex algorithms to crawl the web and index websites. These algorithms are complex sets of instructions written as automated computer programs. The search engines constantly scour the internet via “bots” or “spiders” created by these algorithms, which in turn find websites and return the data to the search engine. The details of these algorithms are fiercely guarded by the search engine companies, and they change often. As a result, webmasters must constantly try to keep abreast of the changes to how sites are found and ranked.

When search engine optimization (SEO) first hit the scene, the most common practices were to boost your page rankings by:

Using keywords in meta tags (code within your webpage, “behind the scenes”)
Bold or emphasized text on the web page, such as headers
Keyword repetition within the page

All of these factors, however, were completely reliant on the webmasters to provide the data. The search engine companies found that some webmasters were trying to pad their search rankings by creating pages loaded with search terms that had nothing to do with their actual site content, just to get the web surfer to their site. Think of it as a bait and switch. They also were spamming the search engines by overusing keywords in the page and in the meta tags. As a result, the search engines revamped their algorithms. According to Wikidpedia, “Today the only major search engine which says it considers meta keywords in its ranking algorithms is Yahoo, though most experts feel that even there the attention paid to meta keywords is minimal.”

Even with the constant changes and improvements, some unscrupulous webmasters have tried to circumvent the system by employing shady techniques to obtain higher listings. Be wary of any company that employs the following practices:

Guarantees top listings in the search engines (NO ONE can guarantee this)
Creates “doorway” pages on your site. These are pages created specifically for the search engine crawlers that the webmaster overloads with keywords that are supposedly relevant to the client’s site. Not only is this ineffective, but it can be construed as search engine spamming, thereby getting your site banned from the search engine listings. Also, the webmaster may put hidden links to other clients’ websites in these doorway pages to try to boost their page rankings. Not only does this drain the page ranking from your site, but you never know if some of those sites pertain to obscene or illicit activities.
“Spams” the search engines by repeating keywords over and over and over on your site.
Uses hidden text (e.g., making text the same color as the background) to add more keywords to your site.
Refuses to divulge how they specifically plan to boost your rankings

Although not unethical, many companies employ the use of automated programs to submit your site to “hundreds” or “thousands” of search engines. These tactics are rarely helpful, and some search engines view such usage as a violation of their terms of use.

So how DOES a site improve their rankings? There are many, many factors that go into it (each search engine company usually has over 100 factors they take into account). A few of the widely recognized ones are:

Keywords in the title tag (the title in the blue bar at the top of your browser window)
Keywords in links pointing to a page (i.e., links within your site are descriptive, such as “welding supplies” as opposed to just “supplies”)
Keywords appearing in visible text (that is, not in an image or other non-crawlable text)
Link popularity – the likelihood that your site will be found randomly by a web surfer just by following links from other sites

An important thing to keep in mind is that even if you have carefully chosen and placed all of your keywords, you likely aren't the only other website on the internet in your industry. Think of how many real estate websites are out there. A condominim developer in Michigan has to compete with every website on the 'net that has "real estate" or "condominiums" as their primary keywords.

In a nutshell, search engine placement is never a guarantee. Frankly, even showing up within the first two pages of a search makes me happy. Just remember to write your content to appeal to your site visitors first, then go back and tweak it, if necessary, to make it search engine friendly. Just don’t go overboard by overusing your keywords. So use a lot of keywords, but don’t go so crazy with them that you drive your site visitors nuts and make the search engines ban you because you are keyword spamming. Are you sensing the delicate balance here?

Remember that it will take some time for the search engine spiders to find and index your site. It won’t happen overnight, but with patience and a little luck, you may find yourself in a great position.

My nephew/niece/brother-in-law/daughter/son/grandchild/friend can do a website for me...why should I get a professional to do it?

2006-10-17T18:04:00Z

The short answer: For the same reason you should hire a professional to build your house or fill a cavity in a tooth. Web development is both an art and a science wrapped into one. Although there are many people that dabble in it, you shouldn’t entrust your professional image to someone not well-versed in creating and delivering professional, high-quality web solutions.

It may seem more cost effective to have a friend or relative do a website for you or for you to do it yourself, but you need to consider some of the intangible costs associated with that choice. A boring, outdated, broken or ineffective website can cost more in the long run by what it tells visitors about your company. Many times we have seen companies go this route and then come to us when they realize their website isn’t working for them. Why go through the process twice? Going with a professional web development firm will save you both time and money by delivering a high-quality, engaging website the FIRST time around.

A professional web development firm will approach your project by assessing your current business processes and identifying potential areas for streamlining and improving those processes. The experience of a seasoned developer will be invaluable in helping you to define the goals for your website and how it fits into your overall marketing plan.

In web development there are many roles. Rarely is a web developer highly skilled in both graphic design and the actual programming of the site. A firm, however, has various resources available so that you are getting an expert working on every aspect of your site. When hiring a friend or relative to do the work for you, you are generally sacrificing in one or both of those areas.

There are many questions to address when developing an online presence that a professional web development firm will already be very familiar with, thus saving you the expense of any unpleasant surprises during development or after your site is launched.

Is the person you are going to hire knowledgeable about search engine optimization or other methods of driving traffic to your site? What about hosting services? Registering or transferring a domain name? Obtaining or creating high-quality graphics and images? Can they balance usability with efficient, eye-pleasing design? Integrate your site seamlessly with your legacy systems? Create a site that is easily updatable by you? Create a website that sets you apart from your competition? Provide web-based tools specific to your business needs? Do they understand browser compatibility issues and how the site will appear to various visitors? These questions are but a few of the many things to consider when planning a site.

Some may argue that it’s enough to get a website out there, and not worry about the other details. When thinking of it in terms of your business image, however, I would argue that no website would be preferable to a bad website. After all, you’ve worked hard to build your professional image. Don’t neglect the importance of your website in supporting that image.

Quick List of Website Do's and Don'ts

2006-10-12T13:39:00Z

DO:

Make your site easy to navigate with clearly placed links and navigation elements.
Make it clear to your site visitors on the first page what it is that you do. For a store like Amazon.com, it’s clear that they sell books and other media. If you run a logistics company, it might not be so apparent from the design of the site.
Offer relevant, regularly updated content for your site visitors to keep them coming back for more.
Provide an easy way for site visitors to contact you.
Make your site uncluttered and pleasing to the eye
Encourage visitors to stay on your site by opening new windows when they click on a link to another site.
Re-evaluate your website strategy on a regular basis to fully leverage the power of the internet.
Consider search engine optimization strategies and other marketing efforts for driving traffic to your site.
Make sure that any images you use are high quality with no blurriness or pixilation (jagged edges). Remember, NO image is better than a poor quality image.
Include a clearly written privacy policy.
Keep your audience in mind and be kind when using large images or files on your site. Not everyone has a fast internet connection.
Remember that your website is a direct reflection on your organization.

DON’T:

Use overly large buttons as your navigation elements.
Use color combinations that are difficult on they eyes (for example, blue text on a black background, or red text on a bright yellow background).
Encourage users to leave your site by clicking on links to other sites and having that content open in the same window as your site.
Create your site and then leave it untouched for months.
Assume that if you have a site, people will find it.
Use spinning gifs, blinking gifs, or other elements that may be viewed as less professional.
Antagonize your visitor with overuse of popup messages.
Ask the user via a popup message to bookmark your page as they are leaving your site.
Take images or content from other sites without their permission.
Use “gimmicky” effects like scrolling messages in the browser’s status bar, page hit counters, etc.

So What Makes a Good Site?

2006-10-12T13:34:00Z

The internet has undergone tremendous change since it was first made available to the mainstream population. Not only has the technology morphed and grown into an endless array of possibilities, but the standards for design and usability have matured as well. Gone are the days of spinning icons, animated gif’s, and single pages that scroll forever. The internet has come a long way. It is now a feature-rich medium that serves to extend your organization’s image and offer new ways to interact with your clients and customers.

An effective site doesn’t necessarily have to be loaded with all of the bells and whistles. A clean, eye-catching design with simple informational content may be all that is needed to extend the image of your “bricks-and-mortar” establishment. We create those types of sites often here at Nordic Technologies, which we refer to as “brochure” sites. The important thing to keep in mind is that you first want to grab the visitor’s attention – and then you want to keep them on your site.

When someone visits your site, you have mere seconds to create that first impression. Slow page loading times, annoying popups, distracting content, page hit counters, cluttered or disorganized pages will not only cause a hasty retreat by your visitors, but it also runs the risk of giving the visitor the impression that your organization isn’t as professional as it truly is.

Clean, pleasing, and fast loading designs will create that initial interest for the visitor. And while simple is good, be careful not to confuse “simple” with “boring”. Graphical elements that flow well together in the overall design can provide that clean look while adding color and visual interest.

Okay, so now that you have their initial interest, you need to keep them there. There are two things critical to doing this: usability and content. Usability, as the name implies, has to do with how easy it is for people to use and navigate your site. Not only should they be able to easily and quickly find the information they are looking for, but they should also be able to find their way back. One method some sites implement to accomplish this is called “breadcrumb” navigation, where the hierarchy of pages is shown as clickable links near the top of the page. For example, a clothing site might show a breadcrumb navigation of “Ladies Apparel >> Accessories >> Belts and Scarves” at the top of the Belts and Scarves page to show the user how they arrived there. It is also standard practice to provide a means for the visitor to return to the home page immediately. This is usually done via a navigation link as well as making the organization’s logo a clickable image that returns the user to the home page.

The other element of your site that will keep visitors there and prompt their future visits is content. Part of the beauty of the web is being able to deliver dynamic content – that is, content that changes as needed. No longer should you be content to enter in some basic blurbs about your organization and call it a day. Instead, you should be interested in creating what web developers call a “sticky site”. You want to draw in visitors and encourage them to come back for more. This is accomplished by providing them with useful and ever-changing information. Some examples could be real-time weather forecasts or stock quotes, online scheduling, online ordering, blogs, community forums, chat rooms, updated articles, free stuff, contests, web cams, etc. There could be many more examples that could be specifically tailored to each industry. The possibilities are limitless.

So remember when you are thinking about creating your site: Content may be king, but the way you present that content speaks volumes about your organization.