If you’re spending hours crafting and editing that website content, I encourage you to take a step back and ask yourself these questions:

• Am I blogging about the right topics?
• Will Google find this unique content? What about Bing/Yahoo?
• Am I optimizing appropriately AND accurately?
• Is my Content Management System outputting SEO (search engine optimization) friendly code?
• Will all this writing lead to a customer engagement?

Generating unique content for your website is a demanding task in itself ! Make sure you have a strategy to obtain SEO importance so it’s connecting with your prospects. Otherwise, it’s like exercising without knowing if you’re burning calories & getting healthier. Understand your labor to obtain the fruit!

Assuring this original content is indexable and speaks to your company’s value will enable that content to grow legs and eventually find your customer! Lets talk more about this.

Work smarter, not harder…

I love this age-old adage. If you’re blogging consistently, without a strategy in place, you might be in jeopardy of just working…harder. The illusion might be that you’re doing exactly what search engines ask. Build it (unique content) and they will come, right? Wrong. Unless that unique content has significant social signals, viral capabilities or major offline promotion, you could be in danger of writing for everybody BUT your customer. That’s a scary place to be…but you can fix it!

“If you aim at nothing, you will hit it every time” – Zig Ziglar

What are you trying to accomplish and who are you trying to please with this unique content? Are you trying to meet your “quota” for the week and/or give the higher-ups a warm fuzzy with all this great “unique content”? Are you simply bragging about the greatness of your company? Are you more worried about what your family/friends think than your customer?

Unique content becomes extremely valuable on a human level when you start thinking about who’s reading it. Hopefully, it’s your prospects, right? Target those prospects & speak to their problems. Only then does it become valuable on a robot level (search engines) because you’re simply pointing to the door & opening it for them. SEO acts as tunnel and the content inside should already be scripted as if you were sitting face-to-face with them.

Don’t simply make an online…

The really smart guys up at NewFangled.com have a great way of describing websites that have no content strategy. They simply call it a…brochure.

Think about that. A brochure.

When I think of brochures, I think of characteristics like “static” and “limited”. “Outdated” comes to mind because I’ve seen in my 12 years of marketing how quick this collateral becomes obsolete. But, “limited” is the key here. A potential customer could never get their hands on your company’s brochure (where they can learn about all the wonderful things you can provide them) without some effort on your part. Slow moving tradeshows, direct mailing & business development teams demand time, money, effort…

Imagine if those same potential customers that you targeted…came to you automatically. They walked into your office, knocked on your door, and asked directly “how can you help me solve my problem?”

This is what original content can do for you for when it’s aligned with a well constructed content & search engine optimization strategy. Your website becomes much more than a limited & static brochure. It becomes your most important communication tool. Your customers come to you, instead of you going to them. Don’t treat your website like a brochure, create something more!

Getting your unique content in front of those prospective customers

Start with finding the right keywords

After establishing your customer profile and determining the type of content you’ll be creating (blogs, newsletters, webinars, whitepapers, etc.) it’s onward to optimizing that content.

The biggest mistake I’ve seen customers make without SEO expertise is the blind attempt to optimize around phrases that don’t generate searches. How findable are the content’s of your website if no one is searching for it? Put yourself in the shoes of your prospect. If your cursor was blinking in Google’s search, what would you type? The answer is easier than you think.

Lets say you’re in the business of selling organic dog snacks. Sure, you maybe rank #1 in all three search engines for “organic dog snacks”. You spent hours writing unique content around the health advantages of organic dog snacks and how to purchase these organic dog snacks in the SHOP section of your site…

Guess what? Less than a dozen people in the US search for “organic dog snacks” every month. This search volume will drive little traffic, and even less sales.

Instead, wouldn’t you rather build & optimize some content around a keyword like “organic dog BISCUITS” that generates 2,400 searches/monthly? That’s 200 times more! It may make sense to also generate unique content around recipes and food (e.g. “Why our company sells the best organic dog food”)

Now we’re getting somewhere!

Google’s Free Keyword Tool is a great start to your research

Information Architecture can make or…

BREAK your unique content. After finding the right keywords, it’s imperative that your website places these keywords on the pages that make sense to search engines. The long-term goal is to establish rankings on more than JUST your homepage. Without proper architecture, you’ll pigeonhole your content faster than you can write it.

Above: Caxiam Group’s blog articles are indexed & targeted!

Backlinks are about quantity and…

QUALITY. Keep this in mind when developing your off-page optimization strategy. You’ll get fewer links from quality backlinks, and that’s just fine. Contrarily, you’ll get MORE backlinks with lower authority websites, but don’t get too hyped up on the numbers game.

On-page optimization is keyword rich but not…

SPAMMY. Remember who you’re writing to. People, not robots. Meta data such as Page Titles & Descriptions need to adhere to your SEO strategy. URL structure and keyword density are other factors to be cognizant about.

Internal linking is one of the…

EASIEST ways to make search engines aware of your new & original content. When publishing a new blog post, link to it from your homepage. New Press Release? Find a spot for it in the About Us section. New Whitepaper? Drop it in the “Downloads” or “Free Resources” section and announce it through a blog post or press release.

Summarizing

It’s time to start working smarter people. Shift your paradigm from “brochure” to “most important communication tool” – your content is worth it!

• Target the right customer
• Understand the problems they’re having & address it
• Have a plan
• Optimize

That’s all there is to it, seriously! If you’re interested in hearing more about our Search Engine Optimization services, please take 20 seconds to contact us. We love this stuff…and would love to help your business today!

GOOD.is may be one of the best organizations when it comes to infographic design. There’s some top notch stuff there, and I could spend hours browsing through their archive.

Recently, I found some fantastic SEO infographics on Elliance’s website. Whether you’re an SEO expert, an ameatur looking to boost your knowledge, or know nothing about how Search Engine Optimization works – I think you’ll find the below infographics helpful and/or interesting.

Also, check out this blog post on SEOmoz. This “4 Essential SEO Infographics” is a good read.

SEO Factors contributing to optimal rankings

Long Tail SEO

(Long Tail – what’s that?)

The Algorithm

Organic vs. Paid

Ecommerce SEO tips

Search Engine Click-Thru Behavior

Our Internet Marketing team would love to educate you further on SEO importance and how it can benefit your business. Learn about Caxiam’s Search Engine Optimization services.

Thanks Elliance – very inspirational stuff guys! View more infographics from Elliance

Now what?

Releasing a new or revamped website can be a thrilling moment in your company’s marketing initiatives, but are you maximizing the moment’s potential? How do you create a website launch announcement to existing and potential customers? Will you have set aside an internet marketing budget for post-launch activities? Will your website launch be anti-climatic, or will it create buzz, generate traffic & build opportunity for your business?

There are numerous tactics from an Internet Marketing perspective when it comes to announcing a website release. Depending on your services/products and the industry you play in, strategy will vary. As with all things Internet Marketing related, it’s not an exact science. Embracing social media, communicating with employees, writing press releases, and good old-fashioned word-of-mouth are just a few ways to get the news out.

At Caxiam, we like to simplify the assortment of tactics and break down our approach into two distinct paths for our customers:

1. “Fast, Easy & Cheap”
2. “Other” way (aka Time, Expertise & Money)

“Fast, Easy & Cheap Tips”

Here are a handful of ideas for those with low budgets and limited resources needing quick results:

1. Post a Press Release on the website itself (assure there’s a prominent link to the article on the homepage somewhere)
2. Ask your employees to include a message about the new site in their voice mail message
3. Ask your employees to update their e-mail signatures with a message and URL (e.g. Visit our NEW website – http://www.newwebsite.com)
4. Send out a company wide e-mail (take it a step further by communicating internally the business objectives, vision of the project & credit team members who have dedicated time to the initiative)
5. Post a Link to the press release on your Facebook page
6. Tweet the news on Twitter
7. Update the status on your company’s LinkedIn page (don’t forget the link – and make sure it’s correct!)
8. Submit your company & website to directories (Google, Yahoo) and see how your local listings stack up: Getlisted.org

“The Other Way”

Have some time and a budget? Here are a handful of ideas for those looking for more strategic solutions:

1. Submit a press release to a PR website (PRWEb.com is a good one)
2. Reach out to your database of customers through E-mail Marketing (we love Mail Chimp) announcing the launch & its new features (and why exactly they should visit!)
3. Design a creative handout. Provide these handouts where opportunity arrises (e.g. Tradeshows, client/vendor meetings, PR events) Moo.com has these nifty MiniCards – just the right size for a web address & very low cost
4. Build a section on the website (e.g. www.yourbusiness.com/newfeatures) providing users with a tour of “What’s new?” Highlight key areas, provide FAQ’s & don’t forget feedback forms!
5. Provide incentive to visit the site. If you’re launching an ecommerce website, provide things like coupons and free shipping deals in your announcements. If you’re offering a service, give something away in exchange for a user’s information (White Papers, Free Website Analysis, Trial Account, etc.) People like free stuff, and the more incentive you provide to visit your new website, the more viral activity will be generated
6. If you have a corporate blog, make sure you have an article queued up before launch so you can publish it in parallel to the site going live. Be ready to monitor those comments!

Whatever path you choose, don’t underestimate the opportunity here. A wise man once said, “Success always comes when preparation meets opportunity”. Embrace your opportunity by committing at least a few hours to do some cheapo activities, and for those with further resources take it a step further and hire an Internet Marketing company!

However, often our clients wish to provide their own content. In such situations, I thought it may be helpful to briefly outline a few guidelines to follow when developing content for the Web.

By now, most of you are undoubtedly familiar with the saying, “Content is King.” I touched on this briefly in my last post, and no doubt it is true. However, knowing the phrase is one thing, but knowing what it actually means (and how it applies to your unique content strategy) is another.

More than once I’ve seen this saying kicked around as an excuse to dump a laundry list of Word or PDF documents on a page, or to fill your site’s content with jargon that your visitors may not understand. “Content is King” does not mean more content, or trying to impress your potential customers with all the technical terms you know. It means more effective content – writing and tailoring the information in your site specifically to the needs and desires of your customers. Here are some helpful guidelines:

1. Focus only on what is relevant to your typical visitor. For example, most users don’t care so much about your “about us” section as much as they do the products and services you offer. Focus on these most important aspects, determine which are most in demand and emphasize those.
2. Divide and conquer. Although the data is beginning to trend away from this, most visitors still do not like to read long passages of text. Divide your content into small, digestible chunks and organize into clear headers and subheaders.
3. Optimize for scanning. When possible, opt for bullet-pointed lists as opposed to paragraphs to help accommodate a user’s tendency to scan instead of read.
4. Edit. As a general rule, you want to include about 40-50% less content on a Website than you would for a printed piece. Likewise, try to avoid empty chatter like welcome messages or introductory text. Get straight to the point.
5. Be clear. Avoid overuse of clever headings and catchy taglines. Avoid industry jargon or technical terms that your users may not understand.
6. Be consistent and logical. Place your content in logical, hierarchical sections with consistent headers and subheaders. Often times you will find that how you organize your content helps determine how your site’s pages and subpages should be built. Thus, developing your content first can sometimes be an effective way to organize your thoughts and steer site design.
7. Don’t overdo the formatting. Sometimes when a content document is received, it is riddled overdone formatting. This is not effective Web communication, so please don’t make the following mistakes:
   1. Multiple fonts, colors, and styles. Your designer will help determine the appropriate typeface, font size, color, and styles for your headings and content. Once approved, it is important that these styles are consistent and adhered to on all pages of the site. Inconsistent font use, formatting, colors, etc. makes your site appear unprofessional in the eyes of your potential customers.
   2. Overemphasis. It is a common pitfall to make type overly large or emphasize large passages of text. A little bit of emphasis goes a long way. It is important to keep your site looking professional and not undermine the overall hierarchy of elements on your pages. It can also have the opposite effect – when everything is emphasized, nothing is emphasized.
   3. Overuse of bold text, italicized text, underlined text, colored text, or text in all capital letters. This is another common pitfall. Overuse of these elements disrupts the flow of your content and makes it harder to read or scan. Additionally, colored or underlined text inside of paragraphs is often mistaken for clickable links, and text in all caps is often interpreted as shouting.
   4. Unnecessary formatting like centered text or text inside a colored box. If you have certain elements you wish to give special treatment to, work with the designer to present it in a way that is professional and consistent with the overall look and feel of your site. In all other instances, basic formatting such as bold and italics (when not overused), lists, paragraphs, and basic headings are acceptable and even encouraged. Avoid using tables to provide spacing or formatting. Keep in mind, a content document is intended for providing content only and should avoid implying any design. Including these superfluous elements makes your content harder to integrate into your Website.
   5. Have a voice (and stick to it). Your writing style is very important when conveying a personality about your company. Decide how you want your company, product or service to “feel” to visitors. Formal? Friendly? Young? Tailor the style to match, and use this style consistently. If you use “I” or “you”, use it consistently.  But regardless of the voice you choose, always maintain a feeling of professionalism throughout.

I hope you find this article interesting and helpful. Thank you for taking the time to read it, and I look forward to any feedback you may have.

Photo by bruckerrlb.