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  1. Increasing web traffic

    5 Social Media Sharing Guidelines for Doubling Your Web Traffic

    Have you jumped into the world of content marketing or blogging? Small business owners who have been hanging around us for awhile have likely heard about the benefits of posting new content regularly on their websites, with blogging being one way to accomplish this. Last year, we published an introduction to content marketing and its importance for small businesses as well as follow up posts on strategy and tips for busy business owners.

    If you’re publishing regular content on your site, then you want to get as much mileage as possible from that content. (We know the time and effort it takes!)  We recently found a KISSmetrics post that addresses this subject, providing advice on using social media to do just that, and we dedicate this post to sharing their insights.

  2. SEO Optimize Search Results

    SEO: 6 New “Rules of the Game”

    When thinking about SEO (Search Engine Optimization), many people immediately think of keywords – using certain designated words frequently throughout a website in order to be picked up in searches for those words. Several years ago, this practice was a primary way to optimize a website – but search has changed (led primarily by Google, the largest and most frequently used search engine). Keywords still play an important role but in a different way.

    Staying up-to-date on SEO is essential for  increasing, even maintaining, traffic to a website – but it can be a challenge as the “rules of the game” are continuously changing. Here’s a look at 6 current factors for optimizing a site.

  3. Create Custom Visual Content with Free Online Tools

    Need ideas for visual content? Want to create custom visuals for your blog or website without breaking the bank?

    If you’re looking to increase your visual content after reading our last post, we have good news! There are lots of free tools available online for finding and customizing visual content. We have compiled the list of free resources featured here for your information and convenience.

  4. Visual Web Content: Is Seeing Really Believing?

    Reading recent statistics about the value of visual content on a website brings to mind this centuries-old adage: “Seeing is believing.” Consider these stats reported on wishpond.com, for example:

    • Sites that use infographics get 12 percent more traffic than sites that do not.
    • 67 percent of consumers consider clear, detailed images to carry more weight than product information or customer ratings.
    • 60 percent of consumers are more likely to click on a business with images appearing in search results.
    • 90 percent of the information transmitted to the brain is visual. Visuals are processed by the brain 60,000x faster than text.
    • Posts with visuals receive 94 percent more page visits and engagement than those without images.

  5. Google Places Helps Customers Find Your Business

    Where do you turn when you’re looking for a local business? Chances are you pull up Google and search either by business name or service. Gone are the days when you turn to the big Yellow Pages phone book stored on a shelf.

    Google Places is the new ”Yellow Pages.” This is particularly good news if you are a small business owner (especially one with a brick-and-mortar location) because Google Places listings are free. By simply claiming your listing and keeping it updated, you help customers and prospects find your business – both virtually and physically.

  6. Online Security: Are Your Passwords Working for You?

    Word about the Heartbleed bug spread widely and quickly, prompting many of us to change our passwords on numerous log-in sites. Have a tough time remembering all your passwords? Begrudge the time and effort it took to make the changes?

    Protecting online data is an ongoing concern, and changing passwords routinely is a practice that would serve us all well. There has been talk of instituting an annual Change Your Passwords day, but a once-a-year change is probably not enough to alleviate the concern. Hackers, leaks, security fails and program vulnerabilities are part of our wired landscape.

  7. Use the Google Analytics Goals Tool To Improve Your Bottom Line

    Is your website working for you? How do you know? Setting and measuring specific goals are essential for tracking and improving your site’s success. While page ranking on search engines is one basic element for success, it is not the only one. A high ranking boosts visibility, exposure and traffic — but what happens once visitors find your site? Do they become customers or share your site with new prospects?

  8. Goodbye Keyword Tool, Hello Keyword Planner

    Looking for Google’s Keyword Tool? You won’t find it. The search giant has replaced the well-known, frequently used search engine optimization (SEO) research tool with its new Keyword Planner.

    The Planner combines features of the previous Keyword Tool with the AdWords Traffic Estimator — both of which were general purpose tools. The primary focus of the Keyword Planner is making it easier for advertisers to create Pay-Per-Click (PPC) campaigns. With its “wizard” type interface, one article on SearchEngineLand calls it “an ultimate AdWords campaign building workshop.”

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