Search Engine Optimization

Building a Successful E-Commerce Website

August 18th, 2010

At Digital Peabody, we’ve developed e-commerce websites for all sorts of different businesses, and we’re often asked what goes into a successful one. Though the answer has lots of different facets, at its most basic level, it boils down to two requirements: an idea and a platform with which you can realize that idea to its fullest potential.

Planning

The site planning phase will be different for every business. It depends on your business, your existing model and how e-commerce will fit in. When we built a site for Scribbles, a stationery and invitation shop in Denver, we recognized that the company already operated a successful physical store. Scribbles’ online storefront, then, needed to offer the full functionality of the store for their online storefront — specifically, product customization. So we built them a site that offers just that: nearly all of the stationery and invitations can be tailored to a customer’s needs. Custom font faces, ink colors, monograms and names are all at users’ fingertips on Scribbles’ site.

The extreme ski movie producers at Matchstick Productions, on the other hand, have a completely different model. Matchstick sells extreme skiing DVDs and ski merchandise worldwide, both through various vendors and directly through its website. For this site, we needed a whole different set of capabilities, so we integrated a state-of-the-art ExpressionEngine content management system to stream high-definition video and display photo galleries, among other things, in order to showcase their products and athletes.

Execution

Coming up with a great idea for a website is one thing, but it is meaningless if your web design company can’t fully execute it. At Digital Peabody, we specialize in the Magento e-commerce platform, which has the unprecedented flexibility you need in order to realize your web goals.

To begin with, Magento has every feature you would want and more — the average e-commerce site doesn’t need half of the functionality it offers. We’ll run through a more complete list of features in an upcoming article, but here are a few of the most popular ones:

• offer coupons and gift cards
• allow users to compare products and create wish lists
• ability to ship to multiple addresses for one transaction
• create product bundles
• display related products
• product personalization
• much, much more

In addition to its out-of-the-box features, developers worldwide have created, and continue to create, every sort of extension imaginable to expand Magento’s functionality. Chances are, if you want a certain feature for your site, it either comes standard with Magento or there is a tested, proven extension that does exactly what you want. Magento is also easily integrated with other inventory and accounting systems through its highly flexible application programing interface (API). This means that our developers can seamlessly integrate Magento into whatever software you are already using to keep track of everything.

Another key benefit of Magento is its excellent SEO (search engine optimization) performance right out of the box due to its support for customizable URLs, an auto-generated site map, meta information for products and more. In an increasingly competitive e-commerce world, Magento’s SEO advantage makes it that much easier for potential customers to find your site — and potentially buy from you.

Digital Peabody can give you the expert help you need with both the planning and execution phases of building a successful e-commerce site. Our specialty, and our passion, is helping clients dream up their websites — and then making those dreams a reality.

Want to learn more about building an e-commerce site with Magento? Contact Digital Peabody at 303-468-5707, and take a look at our featured sites for more examples.

Posted in Content Management System, Search Engine Optimization, Tips, Web Design, Website Development, Website Tips
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Who Should Do SEO, and Why

July 6th, 2010

More and more, people find what they’re looking for online with search engines like Google, Yahoo and Bing. But for companies and organizations with websites, being found isn’t as easy as just throwing together a website and hoping for search engines to rank it highly. Search engine optimization, or SEO, aims to make sites more findable by improving their search engine rank. But who really needs to do SEO?

The short answer: everyone could benefit from SEO. Most companies will turn up in the first few search results if they have a website and someone searches for the company’s name, but when it comes down to competition over keyword searches, SEO is a vital practice for nearly any type of company or organization with a website.

E-commerce: No matter what you’re selling, customers need to find your site before they can even think about buying your product. If you’re one of the top results on Google, then actually achieving a sale is just a few clicks away — whereas if you’re on the second page, the third page or the 50th page, selling your product becomes harder and harder. In a competitive industry, SEO work can mean the difference between success and failure.

Other businesses: Even if you’re not trying to sell anything over the web, your web presence is key to direct physical traffic and attention to your business. If you operate X type of business in Y city and people search for X type of business in Y city, a strong search engine presence means you will be noticed and likely end up with new customers. A weak presence, on the other hand, will probably mean more business for your competitors.

Nonprofits: Nonprofits need SEO work, too. If you’re operating a nonprofit, you want people to find your organization, hear what you have to say, access your resources and maybe even make a donation. If your site isn’t easily accessible on major search engines, that entire interaction is lost.

Dollar for dollar, SEO gives you excellent return on your investment because it will send highly targeted traffic to your site. And it lasts, too: cleaning up a site’s architecture is a lasting improvement that doesn’t expire like a PPC ad campaign. Most of the work in a SEO campaign is done at the beginning, meaning that as time goes on, cost per new click decreases — and you get better and better value out of your investment.

Even if you’re already appearing toward the top of rankings, SEO can help you stay there. Chances are, your competitors aren’t going to be content sitting on the fifth Google page while you’re on the first, so staying up to date on the most current SEO practices is key.

To learn more about SEO and the practices Digital Peabody will use to keep you at the top of search rankings, contact us at 312-933-3430.

Posted in Search Engine Optimization, Tips, Website Development, Website Tips
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White Hat vs. Black Hat Search Engine Optimization

February 1st, 2008

When people refer to “organic SEO” (search engine optimization), they almost always use it as a blanket term to describe the unpaid, algorithm-driven results of any particular engine. However, a sophisticated search engine optimization company, like DigitalPeabody.com will often take the meaning of “organic” one step further. To such companies, the description of “organic SEO” is not limited to what shows up in the “natural” search engine results - it includes the methodologies used to achieve such rankings.

There’s more than one way to achieve natural search engine results. A search engine optimization company usually falls into one of two camps. They are referred to as “white hat” and “black hat” search engine optimization.

A “White Hat” search engine optimization company, like DigitalPeabody.com, will use a largely content-based approach and will not violate the terms of service of the major search engines.

A “Black Hat” search engine optimization company will use a largely technology-driven approach and often ignore the terms of service.

Neither approach is invalid, and both can achieve high rankings. But a search engine optimization company that takes the word “organic” literally believes that the “Black Hat” approach is anything but “organic SEO.”

To a search engine optimization company, “organic” actually describes the approach taken to achieve long-lasting results in the “natural” section of search engines.

Below are just a few comparisons of the different approaches taken by the two types of SEO firms. I refer to the two approaches as “organic SEO” and “artificial SEO” for the sake of clarity.

Content

There’s an “old” saying in the SEO industry that “content is king.” This is not necessarily true. What is true is that good content is king. Study after study has shown that when people use search engines, they are primarily seeking one thing: information. They are not seeking to be impressed by fancy flash sites, or a virtual piece of art.  “Artificial SEO” firms, which embrace a technical loophole philosophy, which is largely technical and is designed to trick the engine into showing content that it would not otherwise. Certainly, there are acceptable technical aspects that any good search engine optimization company will use, such as relevant page titles and meta tags. But there are many more unacceptable technical methodologies than acceptable ones, including cloaking, redirects, multiple sites, keyphrase stuffing, hidden links, and numerous others. A company practicing “organic SEO” will avoid these, and focus instead on content expansion.

Attracting Links

Inbound links are critical to the success of an “organic SEO” campaign. But there are different ways to go about it. Firms that practice true “organic SEO” will look at the website itself and say “How can we make this site something that other sites would want to link to?” A search engine optimization company using “artificial SEO” will ask, “How can I get links pointing to this site without adding anything of value to it?”
A good search engine optimization company will continually seek both general and industry specific directories where your site should be listed. But truly using “organic SEO” means evolving your site into something that holds actual value to your prospects. In my opinion, this is much more beneficial in the long run than the artificial methodology of trying to garner incoming links that the site does not truly deserve.

Creating a Valuable Resource

Search engines change algorithms frequently, and for two reasons. One is, of course, to improve their results based upon their most recent user studies. The other, which is obviously related, is to remove sites that are ranked artificially high. There is, with only a few exceptions, a common denominator in the websites that remain highly ranked throughout these algorithm shifts. They offer something of value to their visitors and are considered a resource for their industry. “Organic SEO” practitioners generally do not have to worry about going back and redoing work because of an algorithm shift. These firms continue adding valuable content to a site, strengthening its value and bolstering its rankings.

Taking advantage of “organic SEO” to make your website an industry resource provides a tremendous natural boost to your rankings for your individual product or service pages. This means that you’ll get the best of both worlds. You’ll reach people early in the buying cycle, educate them, and steer them toward your solution by using your website instead of your sales personnel. You will also reach the low hanging fruit because your individual product or service pages, which are intended for people who are ready to buy now, will get a significant rankings boost.

Learning from Engines

Search engines conduct very expensive and frequent studies on what their users want to see when they enter search queries. Obviously, no company has a more vested interest in serving up the type of results that their users want than the engines themselves. “Organic SEO” firms will take the “piggyback” approach by trying to learn what the results of these studies were by examining the sites that figure prominently in search engine results over long periods of time. In this way, they can work to make the website not only better for search engines, but also for the user.  Presumably, the engine’s internal research has shown that these sites have what their users have consistently desired, study after study. “Artificial SEO” practitioners have no real interest in these studies- they are instead expending a great deal of energy finding the next technical loophole to exploit after their most recent one has failed.

“Organic” Revisited

A search engine optimization company like Digital Peabody that takes a true “organic SEO” approach will actually take term “organic” literally. A good website does develop in natural manner. It builds upon itself. It learns how it should behave for its own benefit. Most importantly, it establishes its territory at the top of the search engine results. And as the website thrives, artificially optimized websites fade into obsolescence.

Digital Peabody has optimized many websites for its customers – many of which are ranked #1 on Google and Yahoo for their key terms. If you are interested in learning how Digital Peabody can get your site ranked #1 on Google and Yahoo, please email or call us at 303.468.5707.

Posted in Search Engine Optimization
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WEB 2.0h No!

January 8th, 2008

Just when you thought it was safe to get back in the SEO water, the web goes and shifts the tides on you. And not just some small subtle move to the right or left, everything is upside down and cattywampus.

Web 2.0 has changed the whole ballgame. It not only places the Internet user squarely in the middle of things, but it gives that user the means and power to create and manipulate data. Web 2.0 dramatically changes how we view and use the web. Actually, in many respects, it creates a whole new Internet.

What the heck is Web 2.0?  What does it mean? Is there a precise definition that all webmasters can get their heads around and understand? The reality is that it’s a pretty nebulous concept.  Many believe Web 2.0 is just another one of those contrived buzzwords, signifying mostly marketing hype!  But it is more than that, and if you are using your website to deliver information about your business or attract clients, you want to understand how this new platform affects your site.

The simple definition can be found in the word “you”! Time magazine probably summed it up best by making reference to the “you” in user generated content. Web 2.0 can be seen or manifested in such “user centered” sites as YouTube, MySpace, Del.icio.us, Digg, Squidoo…Web 2.0 uses special scripting languages to construct interactive platforms that can be used to create all this user-generated content.

You might hear this referenced as AJAX, and no this does not refer to the popular cleaning agent under your kitchen sink! This AJAX (Asynchronous JavaScript and XML) comes from Google and if you have used applications like Google Earth, you will realize how powerful and revolutionary they can be, not to mention a whole lot of fun.

How all this new media plays out is anyone’s guess but all webmasters should optimize their sites for this new Web 2.0 and take full advantage of all the SEO possibilities presented by this brave new Internet.

Here are a few SEO suggestions you can try:

1. RSS/Blogging.
Having a blog and RSS feed will place your site into the mix. Each category you create in your blog will be seen as a tag by such sites as Technorati. RSS stands for Really Simple Syndication and your RSS feeds will get your content distributed across the web. A simple and easy way to tap into the new Web 2.0 universe.

2. Create some Google Juice!
Join as many of these highly interactive sites as you can: MySpace, YouTube, Del.icio.us, Digg, Wikipedia … one of the best is Squidoo, where you can create Lenses on different topics that interest you. Of course, link back to your sites in your posts and creations in these user-created content havens and watch your PR ratings go way up.

3. Use Interactive Scripts.
Place interactive JavaScripts and platforms on your own sites. Have membership forums, polls, blogs, feedback forms, user-contributions… to build unique content driven sites.

4. Tagging (Folksonomy).
Be constantly aware of the tags (keywords) you’re creating with your blogs and sites. This can have a very beneficial effect on your traffic and rankings. Closely relate these tags to the content on your sites and build higher rankings in all the major search engines.

5. The Long Tail.
Especially important for affiliate marketers, you need to cover special niches where there is less competition and content. These narrow niches make up a large portion of the whole vast web, creating content in these unique areas will get your site included in the search engines a lot quicker and keep them there a lot longer.

6. Holistic Web 2.0!
Be constantly vigilant in placing your sites in the whole Interactive Game, building links and partnerships with the important YouHubs: MySpace, Del.icio.us, YouTube, Digg, Squidoo… the more connections you have, the more your own sites will prosper.

The Next Generation

No doubt, Web 2.0 will play an ever increasing role in the development and evolution of the web. Make sure your sites are optimized and in the You game. Create blogs, RSS feeds, interactive forums, membership areas, user-generated content, and your sites will reap the benefits of this new Web 2.0 generated SEO gold rush.

To learn more about how to get your site ranked in the Top 5 on Google and Yahoo, contact Digital Peabody, a Denver Web Design firm, with offices in Denver and Chicago.

Posted in Search Engine Optimization
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SEO Services - Why You Need a Search Engine Optimization Maintenance Service Plan

December 11th, 2007

These days it is not enough to simply have a new website designed, have the website optimized by SEO Professionals, and expect it to continually rank well. To ensure that your website will continuously improve its rankings, you need a  search engine optimization maintenance plan. There is a very simple reason for this: rankings attract more visitors and make more sales. If you leave your site alone after the initial optimization, you are likely to quickly lose the new business your website generated from the initial optimization.

The bulk of the work was done when you first optimized your website. Now you want to maintain that success and even improve upon it. The good news is that SEO maintenance tends to cost much less than the initial optimization. The cost, of course, depends upon your website and the industry it caters to. Typically the more competitive the industry, the more expensive it is to maintain your ranking.

Here is a list of features which are included in Digital Peabody’s SEO maintenance plans:

Ranking Analysis – Search engine rankings fluctuate. Not only are your competitors trying to out rank you but the search engines also change their ranking formulas. More sites are added to the web each day so you need a professional website company to monitor your search engine rankings for each of the major search engines.

Traffic Tracking – To stay on top, you need to know where your web visitors are coming from and what keywords are being used to find your site. If the majority of your traffic is landing on one particular page, you need to know so that you can put your most important message or best products on that page. Understanding your traffic is all about keeping your ranking and using that information to increase sales and improve services.

Keyword Research – The thousands of websites that are added to the internet each day influence the ranking of keywords. Keywords that received high rankings a few months ago may not do so today. In other words, high search engine positions for your most important keyword phrases is great but if you are not receiving any traffic from those phrases, you will need to evaluate the keywords that you have used. Attaining a #1 ranking for keywords that no one will search for, is not very helpful.

Researching New Keywords – For the reasons stated above, you must maintain good rankings. Analysis of the current keywords used on your site plus researching new ones is important to your business. But you don’t merely identify a list of keywords. You need to add updated the content of your website to include the new keywords. Often times this includes minor changes to the page titles, meta tags, and text headings. Sometimes it may involve additional sections to the site, rewriting content and reorganizing the website’s structure. The degree of changes needed to accommodate new keywords is dependent upon the specific requirements of your website and market.

Competitive Analysis - An integral part of search engine optimization is determining what keywords your competitors are using. Since competition is always changing, you need to continually know where your key competitors are currently ranked for the same keywords you are using for your website. It is also a good idea to know how many competitors you have within each of the major search engines.

Inbound Links – The more inbound links or links that point back to your site there are to your site, the better your ranking will be on the search engines. You need to routinely increase the amount and quality of the inbound links to your site. This requires extensive research of other sites related to yours and requesting to add or exchange links with them.

SEO maintenance should be an integral part of your business plan. Since a website is often the first introduction people have to your business you must make sure that they will find you. After the initial optimization is done, you, therefore, need to continuously maintain and improve upon those results.

To find out more about Digital Peabody’s Search Engine Optimization Maintenance Plans, please call Lauren Engel at 303-468-5707 or 312-933-3430.

Posted in Search Engine Optimization
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What is RSS and Why Is It So Simple?

December 9th, 2007

RSS, it’s so easy that SIMPLE is its middle name. RSS is short for Real Simple Syndication. Syndication means to supply for simultaneous publication. In the print world things like newspaper columns get syndicated because it is an easy way to distribute news. On the internet, RSS is a perfect way to distribute any type of content that is frequently updated such as news, blog entries, podcasts, articles, or job listings, lost & found items, personals, and headlines.

It gives internet users the ability to quickly scan the sites that interest you without being bombarded by unwanted email or newsletters.

There’s tons and tons of information on the internet. RSS is an automated way to keep current with your favorite website.

What Is an RSS Reader?
RSS is usually called a feed or web channel. You read the feed through software called an RSS Reader. RSS Readers are a dime a dozen. Actually, they are free – so is the content that you get from them. Using your RSS Reader you subscribe to a feed. There are a few ways to subscribe to a feed: you can enter the feed’s link into the reader or by clicking an RSS icon in a browser that initiates the subscription process. On a regular basis the reader checks your subscribed feeds for new content, downloading any updates that it finds.

How Does RSS work?
From a high-level technical perspective, an RSS file is written in a simple (get it? simple) language that is called XML. Think of it like HTML’s simple cousin from the country. Information is put in the file and the recipients of your RSS receive that information through an RSS reader.

Now, for the BIG Question: How RSS Benefit Your Website?

• Convenient
  Instead of looking at 20 different websites, you can get an update on 20 different websites at a single glance. You don’t need to wait for a single page to load!
• Customizable - With a click of a mouse you can add or replace RSS feeds to your reader. In most cases it is faster than signing up for a newsletter.
• Dynamic - When your website has new content, users know it instantly.
• Anti-Spam - Since users opt-in to receive RSS feeds, you bypass spam filters, firewalls, and avoid spreading viruses.
• Unobtrusive - Allows users to see some of your website’s content without needing to visit your site.
• Fresh - When you add an RSS feed to your site you provide fresh content without lifting a finger.
• SEO - Search engines favor websites that have new content on a continuous basis. When you add an RSS feed you provide that new content on your site.

Do You Have Questions About RSS?

Please call Digital Peabody’s Web Strategist, Lauren Engel. You can reach her at 312-933-3430 or 303-468-5707.

Posted in Search Engine Optimization, Website Tips
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How to Make a Good Website - The Key Ingredients

September 17th, 2007

• Intuitive Navigation
• Fast Loading Pages
• Attractive Colors
• Smart Page Layout
• Browser Compatibility
• SEO Friendly

Intuitive Navigation

When you run into the store to buy a gallon of milk, you want to find the dairy section immediately, right? The same thing applies when a visitor comes to your website. They want to find information or products quickly. By using intuitive navigation, site visitor will be able to find important information with ease. It is always a good practice to place your main links at the top of the page as well as the bottom. Sometimes it is more convenient for your users to click on a link at the bottom of your page than to scroll to the top of the page.

Another important part of the navigation is the menu design. Use drop down menus. With drop down menus your visitors can easily see where they may navigate in the web site.

Slow Loading Pages

Internet time is warped. Seconds seem like minutes. Nobody, not even the most patient person in the world, wants to wait for a page to load. You literally have a few seconds to for your page to load or your visitor will click on to the next site.

High resolution graphics and rich interactive media are the typical culprits for slow loading web pages. When you work with a good web designer, like Digital Peabody just as an example, graphics are handled in a special way so that you can achieve fast loading pages.

Appealing Color Scheme

This is an important and underrated element in web design. This is feel good time. This is time to add a little extra sugar to make it sweet. You want your visitors to enjoy and savor the website - not to strain their eyes. A professional web designer knows how to use contrasting and complimentary colors just right.

Steer clear from dark backgrounds or bright ones like red, yellow or green which can draw attention away from the key messages. In addition, do not use dark text on a dark background. That’s like burning the chocolate chip cookies. Above all, make sure your text is easy to read and is more prominent than the background.

Page Layout

Be consistent. Create a model in which carries throughout the site. If, for example, you use a two-column layout, then every page should have a two-column layout. The top and bottom navigation should always be in the same location. Have the important information located in the section that is most easy to find. Most of us are trained to view a web page starting with the top right corner and then going down toward the lower left on a diagonal. Layout your key points with this in mind.

Cross Browser Optimization

Just because your website looks perfect in Internet Explorer does not mean it will look the same in other browsers like Firefox or Safari. Each browser and version of that browser will handle HTML Tags differently. A web programmer or developer who is at the top of their game will know the tricks of the trade to make your website compatible across all commonly used browsers.

Take Advantage of SEO

You wouldn’t think of having jelly without peanut butter. So, why would you have a website and not optimize it? At the very least, you should add a title to your website, META tags, ALT tags, relevant content, title tags on links and other SEO practices. Internet marketing is its own beast to tackle.

Internet marketing takes a lot of time and dedication, but making sure your website is SEO friendly is the first step to attract targeted visitors to your website.

WRITTEN BY:

Lauren Engel: President of www.digitalpeabody.com. Lauren is widely acknowledged as a leading Website Strategist in Denver and Chicago.

Posted in Search Engine Optimization, Tips, Web Design
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