Frequently, clients come to us with mountains of text designed to showcase their skills and the unique benefits of their products. However, it’s often a waste. Research indicates that users are generally not browsing the web looking for a long, detailed read. They prefer bullet points, clearly picked out headers, and most of all, a strong call to action. Having 82 years of knowledge is one thing, 82 percent off is quite another.
But in a business where there is no clear pricing opportunity– for example, a lead-generation site where the deal is still amorphous at the time the customer contacts you, or a B2B site where the price is negotiated over several months and proposals, what can you do to add spice?
Don’t discount the customer, discount the customer who is like your customer. Show a typical offering with a reasonably competitive price, and perhaps reinforce it with a short-term ‘lock in before prices change’ offer.
Offer something else entirely. A local dentist advertises a free iPod with a brace plan. You don’t have to compete on price there, as it provides a reason to move independent of price. It can backfire if the buyers have gift-from-vendor policies, but they can be avoided by making the gift part of the package offered– free training, a more robust service contract, or peripheral products where the percieved value exceeds their cost.
Sell benefits, not costs. A phrase like ‘our services paid for themselves after week 19′ does not mention any specifics, but still reinforces the concept there’s good value there. Indeed, many times, it’s exactly the message expected for major purchases where there’s a budget case to be made.
Incentivize the lead, not the sale. A downloadable white-paper or free t-shirt might be enough to get someone’s attention enough to fall into your sales funnel. If it’s clear that it’s a limited commitment, there’s less resistance and a small reward is an acceptable choice.
While obviously, price-related calls to action are best, when you can’t do “free shipping” or “30% off”, you can still build a page with a solid call to action.
Do write copy with local language. You know the sort of things I mean- is it “pop” or “soda”? Matching their word choice ensures you match their search terms.
Don’t stuff pages with zip codes and city names. It’s spammy and frequently chasing no-volume searches. A rank for a popular -search term- in Mesa beats ten low-volume -search term- in 85215 rankings.
Do use secondary means to imply your locality. Make sure the phone number, especially a local one, appears in text. Licence numbers are a good excuse to mention local authorities. Reference local codes, or charities you support in the area. It helps with semantic analysis– these words go with your address, reinforcing your relevance for the area.
Don’t get too wrapped up in trying to handle out-of-area leads. Some firms believe they can turn into a firm that sells business to others- if they rank for every city. Good luck unless it’s a full commitment thing. Finding shops out of town can be a hassle, and you can end up spending all your time running the side business.
Do claim your business in local sites. Aside from adding link value, it ensures they’re under your control to see reviews and spam.
Don’t buy any services from local sites. Most of them are just selling Google traffic, and you can outrank ‘em and get users directly.
Do promote cross-media. Search is big, but some businesses still benefit from brick-and-mortar messages or social-network activity to put the service in front of a visitor at their need. The more emergency your service is, the less non-search brand you have to build, but there’s still merit in being the brand a visitor recalls from other media.
Don’t go for excessively labor-intensive promotions. Give the visitor a coupon; don’t expect him to Like you on Facebook before you’ll cut him a promotion. It becomes analogous to the shops which demand 20 page forms for their discount-club card.
A few days ago, this google patent application was awarded a patent that details a “System and method for modulating search relevancy using pointer activity monitoring ” according to the patent title and abstract. If you read on, it explains that the data the patent suggests collecting is the mouse location on page and hover duration. What could this mean for SEO?
The simple answer is that there’s a new factor influencing rankings. The patent calls it the “client attention coefficient.” That wording suggests that it will have a direct effect on how “relevancy” is calculated for all Google searches. Any time a search engine makes a change in how they rank sites it’s reflected in the rankings. That may sound obvious, but it’s something every good SEO thinks about when changes start happening. Should Google incorporate this mouse tracking idea into their search engine it could produce some interesting results both good and bad. One thing we know is that we’d have to start paying more attention to how our indexed pages appear on SERPs (Search Engine Results Pages.)
When Google builds a SERP for a search query it takes the titles and descriptions of the results and serves them up as a vertically aligned list with higher ranking pages at the top. The typical searcher begins scanning with their eyes at the page and sometimes follow with a mouse pointer. Referring back to the patent, this shouldn’t have a direct effect because the patent proposes a timer or “threshold value” that would filter out times when a cursor “temporarily passes through [these] regions.” However, this doesn’t change the fact that the results at the top are more likely to get mouse pointer attention. Depending on how much weight Google assigns to this new metric this could strengthen the barrier-to-entry for new rankings even more.
The “client attention coefficient” might also accidentally favor indexed pages with longer titles and descriptions. The two search results below illustrate an example case.
A result that shows up on a serp (search engine results page) looking like the first result might not hold a visitor’s attention as long as the second. Another advantage the second has over the first is that it simply occupies more space on the page. It will grab more mouse time because of this but, Google’s engineers aren’t dumb. I bet they’ve already thought up a solution but there’s no best way around it. There will be some artificial-ness leaking into the organic rankings.
We won’t know how effective it is in improving results until Google actually implements it if they ever do. They may never implement this hopefully out of respect for our privacy. Hopefully we can prevent Google from looking through visitor’s webcams and tracking eye movement across the page. Anyone want to file that one now before Google does?
I recently had a discussion with a customer annoyed that it’s hard to edit the home page contents in Zen Cart. Not surprising. It’s a cart, not a full-service WYSIWYG website system. Given the hammer he has, the home page became a nail.
While it often makes sense to make a shopping cart, or a blog, the central aspect of your site, you do have to recognize the tradeoffs. (more…)
There are two major types of analytics systems: client-side and server side. Client-side analytics relies on an event fired by a user to record a page-view. Google Analytics is the most common client-side system. Client-side packages are beneficial because they can also track non-page-loading events, such as interacting with a form or video. Being user-ran, they can also harvest user data like screen resolution and connection performance. A server-side system, like AWStats, looks at server logs to determine the volume of pages requested. Server-side analytics are good for tracking special cases– like lost pages that need redirects, the traffic of search engine spiders, and mobile users, but have limited insight on conventional PC users.
It’s important to recognize that client-side and server-side analytics never match exactly. Since a client-side system cannot record traffic by robots, and some limited users– like mobile users with no image or script support, it tends to undercount by a few percent. Server-side systems often mis-classify users based on browser headers- many obscure browsers emulate IE or Safari.
Moreover, even inside a category, disputes occur. Does a visitor who sees a second tab on one page count as a bounce? Is a user who hits a Bing ad driven by Bing or the Microsoft ad network? Analytics vendors have many judgement calls. An important guideline is to use analytics data for month-to-month comparison in a single vendor. Google Analytics for June compares sensibly with Analytics for May, but trying to reference it against AWStats for June leads to confusion and bad decisions. Occasionally, a disparity between packages can reveal unusual user behaviour, such as a denial-of-service attack seen by the server-side system and not Google Analytics, but it’s more often statistical noise.
At Web-Op, we’ve been doing sites for local real estate agents for years. In many ways, it’s still a market which is fairly weak in the SEO space. Many firms rely on cheap ‘iframe’ display of listings, so they end up with a site that Google sees as having no real content.
However, even innovations in data import technology, like TransparentRETS and dsIDXPress, allowing you to import MLS data in bulk onto a familiar, easy-to-install backend, are not a cure-all for top rankings. (more…)
Web developers and SEO firms often focus on increasing the sales from a defined keyword base. Realigned forms, layouts, and landing pages can take your site from selling to 2 out of 1000 visitors to 15 out of a hundred, depending on the market. However, conversion optimization can only get you so far.
The next level of sales boosts comes by a broader target. Maybe an optimized selling effort is moving 15% of 500 customers per month, and it can become 15% of 5,000 instead. Here’s the method to expand your target audience:
Recognize the nontraditional applications. A dealer offering estate auctions, for example, could re-target their services towards storage unit owners and landlords who often have abandoned assets to sell.
Find low hanging fruit. Especially on a non-traditional market, there’s often cheap ads and easy rankings to be had. $50,000 in SEO may only move you up one or two places in “Real Estate”, but “buy short sales in Scottsdale” might cost only $5,000 to get to number 1.
Manage risk using landing pages and sub-sites. If you’re a trusted expert in one market, you don’t need to rebrand totally to reach for another.
Yes, I’m being deliberately inflammatory. The media seems to imagine it’s the salvation of the newspaper, and some brilliant shift in the Internet to accomodate it. Sorry, but what it is is a shiny, locked in gimmick.
Apple has steadfastly avoided the Netbook trend– the sub-$400, 7″-12″ laptop which now represents a significant amount of all PC sales. No surprise– a $399 iNetbook would cannibalize sales of their $1,000 and up machines.
Instead, the iPad runs a limited system most reminiscent of an iPhone scaled up to twice its original size. Among the major limits: limited developer access, crippled multitasking, and the same interface conventions.
Limited Developer Access doesn’t sound like a big fear. Get anything you want from the App Store. It’s all pre-vetted and safe too! Consumers initially like the concept of a ’safe’ source for software. Apple drools over a cut of every sale. But what happens when there isn’t the App you want, because of Apple’s policies? We’ve seen it plenty of times on the iPhone platform already– Google Voice was delayed and hobbled, turn-by-turn navigation arrived late to the party. Unfortunately, the truly breakthrough products– from the open-architecture PC to Facebook– have benefitted from an ecosystem which allowed someone to bring out the “out of left field” application.
Why does multitasking matter? The more hardware resources you have– whether it’s screen pixels, processor cycles, or memory– the less likely you’ll need them all the time. Moreover, the more convinient it can be to have something else in the space. If you have a big monitor, you probably don’t keep one window full screen all day– so it becomes worthwhile to have media players, IM clients, and such which can fill in the extra space. A device like the iPad will be fundamentally limited if you have to stop and go to a different program every 5 minutes.
Finally, the interface conventions. Once you get to an 8″ or 10″ screen, you’re making excuses if you can’t have a decent keyboard. In such a situation, it seems like you’re really just trying to keep the device a toy– if people can’t write a document on a touch-screen, they’ll buy that $1,000 MacBook.
All in sum, it means Apple delivered a compromise device– built more around their desires and product-segmentation aims than a real consumer desire. It also means thaat it’s unlikely to become a true “platform” the way the iPhone and iPod systems did.
For the person who wants a full-scale device, the Asus EEE Tablet can do anything the iPad can and a thousand things more. For the customers who want a little less, single-purpose devices like the Kindle offer a experience built around a single need. The eBook sales logic for the iPad seems a little weak when you realize the Kindle offers 10 times the battery life and a text-friendly screen.
Finally, how does it fold back into the whole web thing? Simple: The “Our Company is an App” thing will not scale past a certain point. Yeah, when it’s a mobile phone, fine, but when you’re looking at bigger screens, bigger memories, and bigger expectations, you’d better return to the basics of the Web:
* There won’t be one master device to emulate the behavior of. The iPhone apps which follow Apple’s style guide are fine. But a website designed to match the feel of OSX looks out of place on Windows XP. It’s true even on “midsize” devices like netbooks and tablets, which may run the iPhone OS, Windows XP, Vista, or 7, Linux, or potentially even Android.
* Users will expect an experience on their terms. Their MP3s are running in the background, so don’t load music. They may be leaving an instant messenger or video open, so don’t hog every pixel on a display.
* Compatibilty is still king. Yeah, it works in Mobile Safari on the iPad, but for the people who bought someone else’s tablet and are running Firefox or, help us all, IE8?
* There’s no master storefront to get on everyone’s desktop. even if you make apps for the main mobile and “pad” systems, it won’t reach a lot of people, and especially the desktop. Instead, appeal to normal search behavior and live inside their browser. Or do you prefer deliberately reaching only a small percent of the market?
Mesa, AZ (Web-Op) February 4, 2010 – Web-Optimize LLC., a leader in internet marketing and software development, announced the release of a new real-time marketing package specially tailored for Twitter and other social mediums.
New internally developed software allows Web-Op to promote site and brand recognition on Twitter and other social mediums. Fused with current online marketing strategies it provides the ultimate in online media presence. This new marketing strategy covers all online sectors including organic search, pay-per-click, social media, and bad press. Providing an optimum balance between automation and human involvement is our goal.
Social mediums such as Twitter are packed full of opportunity. The problem is it would cost far too much attention to hand manage a marketing campaign. The common solution is to say, “Follow us on Twitter!” and periodically post updates to a Twitter account. This isn’t effective. Our solution provides incentive for interested users to opt in though keyword targeting and friendly conversation. The video shows a more detailed view.
Another strategy is through improving organic search and indexing. Organic search rankings can be frustrating for all. The keys to improvement are having a steady and strategic linking campaign while carefully monitoring the changes over long and short periods. Our time proven solution for search provides sustainable long term growth. Malicious or slanderous online press can be buried with higher rankings and the promotion of positive press.
Our strategy also includes pay-per-click campaigns managed in detail with constant tracking and split testing to maximize gains and performance.
Through our re-tooled reporting system businesses can see growth as it happens in an online statistics monitor as well as detailed monthly reporting from the experts. Our engineers have worked hard on streamlining the process to allow for such transparency.
About Web-Optimize
Web-Optimize, LLC is a leader in internet marketing campaign management and software development for both new and established businesses. Our industry expertise and forward looking strategies help businesses grow and gain positive recognition. We deliver hand crafted solutions to businesses to maximise return on investment. Unlike traditional SEO’s, our services are well documented and transparent with solid results. Web-Optimize is based in Mesa, AZ. For additonal information, please visit web-optimize.com or call 1 (866) 937-7082.
Like many of you growing up in the 1990s, I have fond memories of playing the classic role-playing games on the SNES, and later, the PlayStation. Final Fantasy, Breath of Fire, and the like. I bet many of you can still hum the level-up song from Dragon Warrior/Dragon Quest in your sleep.
A frequent theme for these titles was, about 80 percent of the way through the game, your character’s love interest ceases to be an adorable 20-pixel-high maiden, and turns into a screen-filling ball of evil spells and tumors which must be dispatched to move forward.
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