Marcs.ws

A different kind of blog...

The purpose of this blog is to bring you some interesting, thought provoking information that you may not have known before.

Archive for the ‘SEO’ Category

Why Your Content Sucks…

Tuesday, February 24th, 2009

When I was interning for MassMutual, there was a phrase I heard early and often: “Content is king.” Its funny that I find most web projects that I work in, that “Content is a pauper.”

When developing a site, too many people focus on aestetics while thinking “What I want to put on my website is pretty easy.” Shouldn’t it be though? Entities from a business should know their business and know it well. Effective words should flow like ambrosia from Mount Olympus.

This thought process, however, extremely over simplifies the task that content has in a site.  Rememer, that is what people are there for, not to look at the pretty pictures.Lets also remember that your web site aestetics, no matter how developed, will grow tarnished when your average user is checking their finances/stock, flickr account, myspace or facebook pages, or the myriad of other activites on the web. User’s multitask, and you should realize that when creating your page.  This is just one reason why your content should be optimized and developed with them in mind.

Tone, pacing, and style should all be brought into account. Think about it… Dwell on it…

Now that you have, go to your site, read EVERY page and work with your individual content editors to really bang out some good stuff.  Go on…and if you need help, contact me.

SEO – Or how most people throw money down the toilet

Friday, October 31st, 2008

Before we begin, I’m going to describe what SEO is. These 3 little letters stand for Search Engine Optimization. Search Engine Optimization breaks down to how well your website is ranked in popular search engines in regards to keywords.

How is this done? Well, it is accomplished between a complex combination of web page code, introducing new web page content, keyword dropping, and pay-per-click advertisement in an attempt to increase the score a web site gets from a search engine. Sounds like fun right??? No, but it does sound expensive.

There are some firms that charge above $17,000 annually for these services without a guarantee that the services will net results.

As a designer and developer my role in SEO is simple. Create well coded web pages that allow my clients to introduce and author their own content. Along with that, I hand off future SEO efforts to trusted firms in an attempt to better manage it. My other role in this process is to explain to my clients the following: understand that your web site is passive marketing. It is what your potential clients will look at when they don’t want to contact you directly. Most potential customers will find you site based off of word of mouth, a link on a trusted website, or by some form of a localized search.

In conclusion, I must say the following: Your web site being SEO friendly is good, will it be necessary? Are you a web based business that will only be obtaining clientele online – then yes. Otherwise, understand its importance and be ready to make your own cost effective analysis for your company to see if it is right for you.

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