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Archive for the ‘Internet Marketing’ Category

I don’t know how many times I hear “How do I get my site to turn up higher on Google.”

If anyone tells you they will guarantee to GET YOU and KEEP YOU at the top of Google they are lying to you.  The trick to getting you there is keyword spamming and it quickly deprecates the value of the pages on your site when you are discovered (if you’re not dropped altogether).

By the way, if you get approached by an “internet consultant” who has worked with THOUSANDS of companies yet reaches out using a gmail account, you may want to pass on their services.

That being said, here are some tips on how to improve your page rankings.

Why page ranking?  Because Google -and visitors – don’t care about “sites”. They care about specific pages where they can find the answer to their problem.

To do that, you need to think about what you’re trying to achieve with each page in your site.

Unique page titles, descriptions & keywords

Each page on your site (if you’re still not using a CMS) should have a unique title, description and keywords in the meta. A lot of times when static HTML  sites are developed, a template page is used throughout. They often share titles, descriptions and basic keywords.

Google sees this as duplicate content and actually deprecates the value.  If you’re guilty of this, rename our pages with unique attributes that accurately reflect the content on the page.

(I have to admit being guilty of this in the past as well!)

Use of heading tags

You may have a lot of content on your page and as a result, you may break it into scannable “chunks”.  Use your heading tags to appropriately label these sections (Google sees this as “important”).

Internal & External links

Since pages mean more than sites, you should make sure that hyperlinks are placed

Also, instead of typing “Click here to view our custom homes”, you should consider “View our Custom Homes“.

Keeping it fresh

Make sure you update the content on your site regularly. A 3 year old web page probably isn’t relevant so Google will treat it that way.

Webmaster Tools

Need more tips on improving your page ranks? Go to Google Webmaster Tools and sign up for a free acount.

Q: With so many builder websites having a similar home-page and lay-out, what can I do to stand out from the crowd and hold the viewers attention?
– Enzo Perfetto, Enzoco Homes, Munson, Ohio

A: The NUMBER ONE way to keep your site sticky is by keeping the information on your home page current. We are way past the brochure-ware days of websites where you make your changes once a quarter.

Content Management Systems (CMS) make it easy for non-programmers to make most simple updates to websites. Plus, the more you update your site, they higher you will help it rank in search engines.

Short video tours and photo galleries also go a long way to help you stand out. Let’s face it, most people can’t visualize a 3D space by looking at a floor plan but if you show them a photo, they get it. Make sure the clips are well produced and the images are crisp.

Finally, make sure the content quickly addresses the wants & needs of your best prospects. If you specialize in million dollar customs, then your pitch is going to differ from the low-price, zero-down production guys.