Many businesses and online marketers are happy to have their website rank once on page 1 of the search engine results. However, it is possible to have more than one search result listing on the first page. In fact, it is possible to dominate the page 1 rankings for keyphrases that are relevant to your business – keyphrases that your target audience is using when actively researching your products and services online.

Multiple Listings Gives You an Advantage Over Online Competitors

Multiple page 1 search results for a single business or brand dramatically increase the likelihood of an online searcher clicking on your link and being directed to your website or your Facebook page or your blog article. Also, having multiple listings on the first page of the search results pushes your competition further down or even off the page 1 results.

By completely saturating the search engine’s page 1 results, you build legitimacy in the mind of the online searcher within that search term’s category. It is a clear statement that your business is the most relevant and credible choice within your market and competitive landscape.

An Integrated Approach is Best to Boost Search Engine Rankings

Some people think this is just a dream, but this strategy requires an integrated approach. Google’s search algorithm now requires that businesses engage in a multi-facetted strategy that includes tactics that span diverse specialties including blogging, copywriting,  coding and programming, directory submissions and social media engagement. By turning multiple cogs, you can dramatically generate online exposure on several online platforms that pours into expansive search engine rankings.

If We Can Do It, So Can You

As you can see in the screen shot below, Xcellimark is able to dominate the page 1 rankings for the search term, “Orlando interactive digital agency.” It is important to note that this search term or keyphrase is a non-branded keyphrase. It does not include the word, “Xcellimark.”
Xcellimark has identified this keyphrase as a relevant keyphrase for those likely to need Xcellimark’s services. In response, Xcellimark has implemented an integrated online marketing strategy to dominate the page 1 rankings for that keyphrase. As you can see, Xcellimark-related search results make up 8 of the top 9 search results.

Strategic Optimization & Distribution is Key

Through optimizing and distributing branded content such as online press releases about Xcellimark, information from Xcellimark press releases ranked 1st, 2nd, 6th, 7th, and 9th on the page 1 search results. By optimizing Xcellimark.com’s coding and content, as well as building incoming links back to the website through directory submissions and content marketing, Xcellimark’s website ranked 3rd on the page 1 search results.

And by optimizing and engaging on the social media platform Facebook, Xcellimark’s Facebook page ranked 4th and 5th on the page 1 search results. All of these strategies resulted in compelling and effective search rankings and online exposure.

If your website and/or company only ranks once, or not at all, on the page 1 search results for targeted keyphrases, contact Xcellimark to find out how you can implement an integrated approach to online marketing. Our comprehensive and measurable marketing strategy helps you generate leads, increase business growth and enhance customer acquisition performance.

By now, you’ve probably seen some of the changes that Google is making to “provide a better user experience.”  With these changes come a more personalized search experience, but on the flip side of the coin is privacy vulnerability and limited access to analytics for your website.  Some may consider these changes good while others may feel otherwise. The important thing is to know what they are and to understand how they may affect your business and/or you personally.

So, here are the top 5 Google changes that you need to be aware of and how they may affect your business. 

1. Google will no longer give full search-query information to businesses for free. Google says the change in policy is to protect consumer privacy. But, for $150,000/year, Google will sell you all the information and analytics about your site that you want. 

2. Google is also making a big push to collect personal cell phone numbers.  They have released a new feature that requires users to provide their cell phone information before logging into their gmail account. Google will text you a code that you will need in order to login. Google says this is to prevent anyone from hacking into your account.

3. Google is moving towards consolidating all their accounts into one place so they can use that information to monitor your search behavior and provide a more personalized search experience. The Google update is called SPYW, which stands for Search Plus Your World. I’m a big fan of convenience but I am reminded of an old parable, "Don’t put all of your eggs into one basket."  I approach with caution whenever a company makes moves to consolidate information – the downside is that when you are trying to track consumer behavior, you will be limited in what you can track. For example, if you are not logged into Google and you do a search for "Orlando Catering" you will see a certain set of results. But if you log in and do that same search, you may see a completely different set of results. That’s because Google starts monitoring search behaviors and tends to show what a user previously searched for, making the search more biased and decreasing site neutrality.

4. Google launched a freshness update at the end of 2011. Google is now requiring website content to be continuously updated with new and unique information. Never again will we see the days of a "set it and forget it" website or the field of dreams website "if you build it they will come." For the sake of the user experience your content needs to be continuously updated.  One way to do this is through a blog that publishes on a frequent basis, preferably a couple of times a week.

5. Watch for Google’s changes in mobile search. When Apple released their iPhone4S with the "Siri" function, Apple took a chunk out of the mobile search industry. I’m expecting Google to respond with changes to the Droid Operating systems.

Google is evolving to keep up with the times and is positioning themselves to be the dominant force in information gathering and search marketing, whether it’s on a PC or a mobile phone. 

Get your website "Google Ready" for 2012. Contact Xcellimark for more information.

In my article last week, I talked about some of the new changes to Google’s algorithm and how it impacts your website’s rankings. One of those changes was the addition of Google+ and how “bounce rate”or how long someone actually stays on your website affects how Google ranks your site in the search results. There are pros and cons to this new change. It may be great for you if people stay on your site or really bad if you have a high bounce rate.

We’ll Start With the Good News

Let’s start by addressing what happens if someone STAYS on your site for a while.  What’s “a while”? Well, that’s up in the air, but some people have found that if they stayed on a site longer than 7 minutes and then hit the back button to return to their original search results, then Google added a pop-up notification on the search listing asking them if they had found the page useful. Not only that, Google goes on to encourage them to +1 the page in order to recommend it to others on Google search.

Wow, what a great promotion for your site. Google decided that because someone stayed on your site longer than an “average” amount of time, then they must really like the site and would want to recommend it to others through Google’s +1 social media platform.

Now the Bad News

On the other hand, if someone stays on your site for a relatively short period of time and then hits the back button to return to their original search results, Google may add a new message to your search listing on the search results page asking them if they would like to block this listing from their search results! In fact, it will be a link that says, “Block all www.site.com results” (where site.com is your site they just left).  That link will allow them to block your site from ever showing up in their search results again. Pretty harsh!

That doesn’t mean that your site that they blocked from their search results will not show up for other people’s search results. But if your site gets blocked by a lot of people, will Google decide that your site should not show up in the search results at all? Hmmm.

It’s Important To Get It Right

Bottom line, you need to be sure that your website is “sticky”, meaning when people come to your site it offers them what they are looking for in an interesting and clear manner. You may think your site has everything people are looking for, but if it’s not clear to the visitor and they don’t immediately understand where they are and what they can do and why it’s best to do it on your site, then there is a good chance that your visitor will hit the dreaded Back Button.

So, it’s never been more important to ensure that your site is ready for prime time. If you’re unsure if your site can withstand the Back Button, Xcellimark can help you evaluate what needs to be done to fix the issues.

Last month we talked about Google’s latest major algorithm change and how it has definitely shaken things up in the search results. The update (called Panda for those who care) takes into account many different factors on a website including (just to name a few):
 

• How fast a site loads
• How long a user remains on the site
• The “freshness” of the content
• The uniqueness of the content

The last article talked about Google’s promotion of “fresh” content and how important it is to have new content on your website through blogs, social media and press releases. This time we’ll focus on how long someone remains on your website and how that can affect your search ranking results.

Google Adds New Dimensions To Its Search Results

Google has added another aspect to their Panda update by including their Google+ social media platform into the mix. So you may see some interesting things happen when you do Google searches going forward. It won’t show up all the time, but it can be a great boost for your website (and business) or it can be dramatically bad, depending on how well your website performs in the Google “Panda” world.

So How Does Google Help or Hurt Your Business with Its New Changes?

In a nut shell, it really gets down to whether someone stays on your website or hits the back button too early and returns to Google’s search results. In other words, “how long a user remains on your site” from the bulleted list above, can affect your overall search rankings.

There are several factors on your website that can determine whether someone stays on your site after clicking through from a search result or whether they hit the back button to return to their original search results. These factors include:

• The speed in which your site loads
• The quality of your content
• Whether a visitor can quickly and easily understand where they are and what they can do on your site
• If your content is clear enough to direct the visitor into the areas of your site where you want them to go and interact
• Whether your site has what the visitor is looking for

So What Happens If Someone Stays or Hits the Back Button?

Ahh, that’s where it really gets interesting and this is where Google has found a way to insert its own Google+ social media platform into the mix. But we’ll talk more about that next Tuesday in part two of this article. So make sure you bookmark this link to come back and read more about how the Google update is affecting your website rankings in the search engines.

For years, Accredited-Online-Colleges.com was marketed online through traditional SEO (Search Engine Optimization) tactics, such as link-building and directory submissions. Accredited-Online-Colleges.com’s goal is to generate qualified leads to accredited online colleges for new student enrollment.

Prior to implementing the content marketing campaign Accredited-Online-Colleges.com sold about 550-950 leads per month. However, when Xcellimark started the content marketing campaign for Accrediated-Online-Colleges.com, they saw sales increase to over 2000 leads per month!

Content Marketing is the strategy of creating unique content, such as blog articles, whitepapers, video testimonials, and press releases, and publishing that content throughout the Internet to social media platforms (Facebook, Twitter, etc.), social bookmarking sites, and other industry websites/blogs. This increases the business’ online exposure and social media word-of-month, and plays a bigger and bigger role in driving traffic to one’s website via Search Marketing (SEO).

Content Marketing is one of the most influential strategies you can use today to boost leads and sales. You can find out more about how this powerful Internet marketing strategy can help you increase your sales by registering and attending the Orlando Business Journal’s complimentary Online CEO Summit Webinar on September 28, 2011.

Xcellimark has partnered with the Orlando Business Journal to host this informative virtual webinar, which allows you to attend from the comfort of your own office. Or contact us directly to start generating new customer growth for your business today.

A lot of websites tend to waste more money than they make. That is because the majority of websites are thought to be nothing more than little electronic brochures gathering dust in cyberspace according to the National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB).

The problem actually has its roots in the phase prior to launching a website. It starts with the 5 most common misconceptions business people should avoid when launching their website.

Mistake #1: An amateur website production will render professional results
Your business website is not the place to publish an amateur representation of your services. You are not just presenting your business to the local and surrounding communities, but to the entire world! Obtaining the services of a professional Internet Marketing Consultant can save you thousands of dollars in the development of your site.

Mistake #2: Developing a "Bargain Basement" site will make you rich
Ask any business owner who's ever purchased a cut-rate website if they were happy with their results. Focus on finding quality service at a reasonable rate rather than the absolute lowest price. Remember the saying "you get what you pay for".

Mistake #3: You're going to make thousands of dollars in your first month
Steer clear of anyone who proposes a statement like this. The truth is, once your site goes online, a good marketing strategy will result in a steady increase in traffic and growth each month. This is partly due to the time delay for search engines to visit your site, capture data, and index it. Only Internet marketing strategies that are tried and true will help make you successful for a long time.

Mistake #4: If you build it, they will come
One of the biggest mistakes today is the failure to recognize the importance of Internet marketing programs such as search engine optimization and online internet advertising. Obtaining a high volume of visitors to your site is a must for success. There is absolutely no "luck" involved in the process. Your website needs to be designed and developed with Internet marketing plans in mind from the beginning.

Mistake #5: All you can do is put up a site and hope for the best
Do not be satisfied with a service that only hopes for the best. A successful website is the result of a website marketing strategy that outlines how and where the website will deliver business results. Some Web designers never give much thought to your success once they have built your site.

Monthly detailed activity reports are essential for your success. The report should at least show detail on the number of visitors to your site, (not hits!) most popular pages, most popular search engine keywords, top-referring URLs, as well as top entry and exit pages. If search engine optimization is important to your success, then you should also have reports detailing your standings in each search engine.
 

Pay per click (PPC) is actually a form of advertising but it accomplishes results similar to search engine optimization. With pay per click programs, you bid on key phrases to determine your ranking. Normally, the more you are willing to spend on a bid, the higher you can rank in the search engines in the PPC listings, which are also sometimes labeled as Sponsored Results.

However, Google Adwords and other search engines also take other factors into consideration such as the quality of your ads and landing pages. Expenses are generated when someone actually clicks on your listing - hence the name "pay per click".

SEO is a more permanent form of optimizing your Web site without paying for your rank position. Both PPC and SEO will allow you to obtain high rankings. It's simply a matter of how you want to go about it.

In Part 1 and Part 2 of Increase Your Website Traffic with Links, I talked about attracting quality incoming links and the sources you can use to get those kinds of links. In this third and final post of the series, it's important to know about other ways to build links to your website such as online press releases, blogs, and blog directories.

Build Links through Press Releases, Blogs and Blog Directories

Press releases and blogging are quickly becoming some of the most popular and talked about methods to build high-quality links to your website. When you distribute a press release online announcing interesting company news, people who read your press release and want more information will click on the link that leads them directly to your website.

The same thing is true with blogs and blog directories. Who is better equipped to talk about your product or service than you? Creating and writing a blog where you talk about your industry, products, services, and more is the perfect way to continuously update content on your site. In addition, you can submit your blog to reputable blog directories which will provide you incoming links to your site.

In Part 1 of this 3 part series, I talked about attracting quality incoming links. The second part of this article discussed sources you can use to gain premium links to your website.

Increase Traffic With Link Popularity

Link popularity is an example of the move by search engines towards off-the-page-criteria (outside of content optimization) to determine quality content. By adding off-the-page-criteria to their algorithms, search engines feel this adds the aspect of impartiality to search engine rankings.

Incoming links from other websites help define a site's reputation. In theory, great sites will naturally attract many links, and content-poor sites will have difficulty attracting any links.

Link popularity assumes that not all inbound links are equal. For example, an incoming link from a major directory carries more weight than an inbound link from an obscure personal home page. There are many sources from which you can draw incoming links, including:

•    First-class directories
•    Industry portals
•    Content-rich industry websites
•    High-quality related websites
•    Premium press release and blog directories

Specialized directories, portals and press release and article directories typically provide a one-way inbound link. While reciprocal links with related directories and websites can help in building link popularity, one-way inbound links are of greater value to increase your link popularity.

Check back next week for the third and final part in this series. 

Improving the link popularity of your website should be the key component of any SEO program because the quantity of premium incoming links to your website is critical for effective SEO efforts. One way of doing this is to implement a link strategy that produces high-quality incoming links.

Attracting Quality Incoming Links
Not all incoming links are equal so it is important that you obtain high-quality incoming links that are considered by search engines to be valuable. The major search engines factor link popularity into their relevancy algorithms, so you need to evaluate your link structure to ensure overall SEO effectiveness.

Your link strategy and implementation accounts for at least 50% of the factors that search engines take into consideration when ranking your website. Understanding the different types of links, and the importance of each, is critical to effective website optimization and ultimately to increasing high-quality sales inquiries.

There are 3 types of links related to your website structure: incoming links, internal links, and outgoing links.

Measuring link popularity will help you determine the quantity and quality of sites that link to your website. Since link popularity is a critical element of any search engine optimization effort, you want to make sure your search engine optimization program includes a link popularity plan.

Learn another way to improve the link popularity of your website in Part 2.