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Posts tagged SEO
Google takes social search a step further with ‘+1′
Mar 31st
Search engine giant Google has announced a new feature called ‘+1′. +1 is essentially the same as Facebook’s ‘Like’ button, which when clicked shares that page on the user’s Facebook Wall. Google +1 will do this as well, listing all links +1ed by a user on their Google Profile.
However, the integration will go deeper than this, as +1 buttons will also appear on search results, and the number of times a result has been +1ed will appear next to its link, potentially influencing which result a user will choose. This could end up being incorporated into the algorithm that Google uses to rank its listings. Also of note is that this does not just apply to the ‘organic’ listings- these +1 buttons will also be a feature of the ‘sponsored’ pay-per-click results that appear at the top and down the side of results pages.
The impact of this new feature on SEO is obvious, so we will be watching this development with great interest. The social aspect to this button highlights how important a social media strategy is when considering the online promotion of your website. If you’re interested in our online promotion services, contact Areatrade on 020 8366 2050 or email More >
Google increases emphasis on social search rankings
Feb 18th
Google has announced an upgrade to its social search features. A feature has been available for some time that shows links related to your search at the bottom of the results page that have been shared by your contacts on social networks.
Now Google will be further integrating this feature by moving the social results higher up in the rankings. This feature is only available to users signed into a Google account that is attached to social networking accounts.
What does this mean for people optimising their websites for promotion on Google? It seems clear that a strong social networking presence is becoming a increasingly important component of an effective online promotion campaign.
Link Building
Feb 8th
Link Building
The creation of links for your website – that is, attracting other sites to link their website to your own is a crucial part of the SEO process which is often poorly carried out, or is done so unethically.
We recognise that the links to your site need to be of a high quality and on a relevant topic that relates to your website in order to have a positive and long term effect on your rankings. Again, a lot of companies will promise you huge numbers of links which in actual fact offer little or no ranking value to your site but look impressive to a client who has approached that company for their help and does not realise that this is the case.
We look for linking opportunities by finding relevant high ranking websites that already provide links to quality sites similar to your own. We can also add your site to business directories; provide content to sites in return for links or alert similarly themed websites to useful information articles that have been placed onto your website which would be of interest to their visitors.
We are a London website design company that specialises in website planning, website design and More >
Importance of Search Engine Optimisation Reporting
Feb 7th
Importance of Search Engine Optimisation Reporting
As part of any of our SEO services, you will receive regular reports that contain details of your site’s progress in the search engines and the number of visitors you receive. Complete details are provided on where visitors come from, how they find your site and recommendations are given as to how to grow your site’s visibility and ranking even further. We collect this information from a tracking code created by a program called Google Analytics which we install on your site once your SEO plan begins. In addition, we conduct our own research using tools and manual methods.
The reports allow you to review the new work that has been carried out on your site and the effects it has had. The information given to you is explained clearly so that you can make your own assessment on progress at every stage of the project. This means that you are always involved and informed on how your website’s promotion is progressing.
Without proper search engine optimisation tracking and reporting we will have no idea of the success of the campaign and what else is required to improve your online positions.
We are a London website design company that More >
Competition Analysis
Feb 5th
Competition Analysis
A lot of valuable information to help in promoting your site can be found from looking into who your top competitors are and how they have become the most visible businesses in your marketplace. By performing a detailed competitor analysis, it is possible to look at any high ranking site and work out the reasons why it has a top position. Most importantly, we can use their success as a model for your own site – by replicating their online marketing strategies and applying the methods they use to develop your site so that it can potentially outrank theirs in the search engines.
This works well when you identify the number 1 positions on your keywords to construct good link building strategies. There are many online tools that help you highlight the number of back links a website has, here is a quick simple method:
1. Identify your competitorsSearch on Google for your main keyword and take note of the number 1 position, if it is a competitive keyword you may also want to jot down the number 5 position. Comparing your website against these can give you a realistic target, in some cases number 1 may be large websites More >
Do larger website do better on Google?
Feb 2nd
Do larger website do better on Google?
Larger sites tend to be ranked more highly than smaller sites due to the amount of information they contain and because there are more pages to be ranked by the search engines. While not every site can be huge in size and shouldn’t aim to be – it’s important to add some sort of new pages to the site as fresh content helps your site keep its ranking and improve on it. Each month you should be adding new content using a company blog or else creating informative articles on a section of your site, which link back to products on your site. Another point of content creation is that the more optimised pages you have, the more often you mention your target keywords – which is a factor in you achieving high rankings for those keywords in search engines.
We perform competition comparison to show you how your website stacks up against the no 1 positioned websites on Google for each of your keywords. This will show the number of links they have and also the amount of pages listed on Google. This highlights the amount of work we need to undertake to compare More >
On-Page Website Search Engine Optimisation
Jan 31st
On-Page Website Search Engine Optimisation
One of the first stages in optimising your website should be to consider how relevant the page titles, headings, images and other aspects of your site’s content are to both your visitors and the search engines which will categorise them. We use our keyword research to ensure the correct keywords are used in this process.
One or more main keyword is chosen for each page of your site and used to ensure your site is on topic. This is known as on-page optimisation. Generally, this is a one-time job for the site as a whole although new keywords can always be added or changes made to improve the site in the future – such as making sure that pages link to each other where appropriate (known as internal linking). Also any new pages for the site should be optimised in the same way when they are added.
Article Directory Submissions
Jan 27th
Article Directory Submissions
An extra way of boosting traffic to your website and increasing the links to your site is through the use of article directories. An article is created that relates to your site and then it is submitted to high ranking, high traffic article directories. These sites provide articles that can be republished by other sites for free – on their website pages, in emails, or elsewhere.
The benefit to you is that each article can contain at least one link to your site – which counts as a positive vote or recommendation of your site as far as search engines are concerned. An article you create may rank highly in a search engine because it is featured on the article site – bringing you extra traffic to your pages. Also, if it is republished, you receive visits from the new site’s audience and an extra link – or vote of confidence – for your own site.
Creating articles and submitting them to directories can be a simple and effective way of link building (creating links to your site) which can boost your rankings and draw in extra traffic as well.
We are a london website design company that specialises in website planning, More >
Understanding SEO – Search Engine Optimisation
Jan 27th
Understanding SEO – Search Engine Optimisation
When your website is first noticed by a search engine, it is scanned by a small computer program called a search engine ‘spider’ which collects important data about your site’s topic, relevance, quality and value. Then a ranking is assigned to your site based on how many other websites have already been found to contain information on your subject. Having good rankings, particularly in Google – the most commonly used search engine, makes the difference between your site being visible on the first page of searches and being visited by huge numbers of visitors a day to the worst case scenario of your site being lost amongst the last pages (if in the search engine at all) and never receiving a single visitor.
The search engine creators, especially at Google, are always updating the way that search engines rank sites in order to weed out sites that offer no quality or relevant information to visitors. In the early days of the search engines, it was common for rankings to be manipulated by using hidden text and code on websites to save time on making improvements to a website. This rarely works anymore and a long-term strategy More >