| No Strategy. No Success.Whether you're planning the | | | | develop it, promote it to the SEs and optimize it over |
| launch of your first site, or wondering why your site | | | | time. Search engine promotion and site optimization |
| counter is actually moving backward, stop. You need | | | | aren't goals. They're part of the process.4. Plan Your |
| a strategy to promote your site to search engines | | | | Presentation Layer Once the technical aspects of the |
| and to visitors. A plan of action based on five key | | | | site have been incorporated into your promo |
| factors, all of which should be weighed carefully | | | | strategy, turn your attention to the presentation |
| before you take another step. Here are the five, | | | | layer. The presentation layer can make or break a |
| most important considerations in the development of | | | | site, regardless of how well-designed the technical |
| any search engine promotion.1. The Site's Objectives | | | | structure supporting the site's skin.Navigation should |
| What are your expectations for the website? These | | | | be simple. Buttons and links clearly labeled. The user |
| will usually point you to the site's objectives. In the | | | | should always be able to go 'Home' from any page. |
| case of commercial sites, the broad objective is | | | | Check-out should be clear, uncluttered and instill buyer |
| straightforward - to sell enough goods and/or | | | | confidence. A site map is useful to visitors and SE |
| services to become profitable.However, you might | | | | spiders. Anything less will hurt the bottom line.The |
| also want to educate, motivate, persuade and inform | | | | site skin also presents the look, feel and tone of |
| in addition to, or instead of, selling. A top-down | | | | your on-line enterprise. Stately and dignified, WiLd & |
| analysis of your site's objectives is the place to start | | | | KraZy, helpful and concerned - all determined by the |
| the development of your action plan. | | | | look of the site. Color combinations, type font and |
| Once you've determined the site's objectives, keep | | | | size, type placement and the tone of the content |
| them front and center during the entire development | | | | make up your public persona.And the skin is spidered |
| of an SE promo strategy. It's important that any | | | | right along with the back office so it should appeal to |
| search engine understand your site's objectives on | | | | eyeballs and make spiders happy, as well. Header |
| the very first spider visit.2. Market AnalyticsEssential. | | | | placement, number of headers above the fold, |
| Who are you trying to reach - your sales | | | | keyword density and other SE search parameters |
| demographic? What do the members of your | | | | must be fine-tuned for successful search engine |
| demographic need? How do they make purchase | | | | promotion.5. Promotion and OptimizationOnce you've |
| decisions? Are they computer savvy? Critical to the | | | | gone live with your site, you've only just begun. The |
| design and implementation of a search engine promo | | | | world of ecommerce is fast-paced and cutthroat. |
| strategy is to know your market.And the best place | | | | And if you don't promote your site to search engines |
| to learn is from the competition. Pull a Google on the | | | | and to potential buyers your chances for success |
| competition to see how the successful sites do it. | | | | diminish accordingly.Today, site success depends on |
| Perfectly ethical and a measurable, absolute guide to | | | | promotion - search engine promotion and eyeball |
| what works and what doesn't.But you can't stop | | | | promotion. You can promote on a shoestring or you |
| there. Market metrics are also a part of a successful | | | | can launch a pedal-to-the-metal campaign with banner |
| promo strategy. The development of | | | | ads, Google Adwords, links building and opt-in |
| multi-dimensional metrics will be useful in virtually | | | | cultivation. If you aren't SEO-experienced, you'll be |
| every step of the design, development and SE | | | | best served by professionals who can track site |
| optimization phases. There are plenty of metrics | | | | activity, develop useful metrics and devise and |
| software packs on the market. Some are even | | | | implement a strategy for improved site |
| free.The problem with these number crunchers is | | | | performance.The same goes for the process of |
| simple: all they do is provide the raw data. Number of | | | | optimization. Sites must be search engine optimized |
| hits. Average number of pages viewed. Ratio of | | | | and conversion optimized - two very different things. |
| visitors to buyers. Just stats, not strategy.Analytics | | | | Much of SEO takes place behind the scenes. That's |
| gathered using a variety of apps and tools must be | | | | why it's essential that you use SEO pros to actually |
| properly correlated and analyzed to develop an | | | | build your site. This is not where you can cut a few |
| effective search engine promotion. It's not enough to | | | | corners.Then there's conversion optimization - |
| have the data. You must interpret the numbers in | | | | converting visitors to buyers. Most of this takes place |
| order to take actionable steps.3. Techno-FactorsAn | | | | at the presentation level. Does the site meet or |
| over-achieving website doesn't just happen. It must | | | | exceed the visitor's expectations? You have 6.4 |
| be crafted. It requires highly-specialized knowledge of | | | | seconds to convince a visitor to explore your site. |
| everything from HTML, SEO and CSS to human | | | | That's how much time web users devote to site |
| nature and purchase motivators.Search engines spider | | | | evaluation.DYI or Go With The Pros? 94% of all |
| sites in a variety of ways. The simpler and clearer | | | | ecommerce ventures tank. Down in flames. Many of |
| your site is to an SE spider, the greater the likelihood | | | | these failures are based on poor business models, but |
| that your site will be assessed and ranked properly. | | | | just as many are due to poor site design, lack of SE |
| Conversely, if the technical design of your site isn't | | | | recognition, an off-putting presentation layer or a |
| dead on for search engine spiders, a site may be | | | | home page that looks like a carnival midway.If you're |
| mis-indexed or even banned from SEs altogether for | | | | a start-up and you don't know much about SEO and |
| what spiders perceive as black hat tactics, though it's | | | | SE promotion, do not let your teen-aged nephew |
| simply inept (and therefore costly) programming. You | | | | design your site. And if you're the owner of an |
| might as well hang out the 'Going Out Of Business" | | | | underperforming site and you can't figure out why, |
| sign.Techno-factors come into play during the design | | | | don't waste your time tweaking. You're losing sales |
| phase, the development and testing phases and after | | | | every day.If you know ecommerce, develop a |
| the site's launch when refinement, optimization, | | | | strategy that encompasses all five of these critical |
| content updates and routine site maintenance are | | | | facets. If you don't know ecommerce, hire |
| undertaken.Any well-considered strategy must | | | | somebody to do it for you.It's the best money you'll |
| provide the means to design (or redesign) the site, | | | | ever spend. |