The Power of Forums in the Online World

SEO Services - The Power of Forums

A forum represents an online community; a collection of thoughts, views and ideas. Online forums are often overlooked in favour of its trendy counterpart: social media. The forum is a powerful business tool and is definitely here to stay.

Forums are everywhere and for everyone. Even the most specialised niches will be represented on a forum somewhere.

To really get the most out of forums I would first advise getting a basic plan in place.

• Research your target market

• Formulate a list of all relevant forums

• Whittle down your list, leaving the forums with either the higher page rank or the best following


A small amount of market research will have you ready to get posting in no time at all. Start off by targeting five forums from the top of your list.
Time and effort are the required input to reap the benefits of your chosen forums.

Long gone are the days where you could just sign up to any forum and start posting links back to your online resources. Most forums these days will require you to make a minimum of posts before you can add a linked signature or use URL links within your posts.

The first stage is to build up a reputation on all the forums. Be polite, friendly, amusing and helpful. Try to make regular posts to help establish your position within the forum. This process will help you gain the trust of the other forum users.

Remember that you have chosen your list of top forums on the premise that this is your area of expertise. Play to your strong points and always try and go that little bit further to help the online community. Forums are a great place to not only spread the word about your online wares but also to learn the latest news within your specific sector.

Share Your Knowledge

If you have some gems of wisdom about your subject, share it. The age of guarding the ingredients for that secret sauce are over. If you don’t speak up and take credit for the knowledge you’ve required it won’t be long before someone else does.
Share links, tutorials and most of all personal stories. A personal story is a much more human way of transferring information. If you are able to reach the people on your chosen forum on a more emotional level this will definitely play to your favour.

Final Note

One word..Perseverance, stick at it at all costs. Set aside an hour a day, an hour a week whatever you can afford but for that period of time try and help and guide people. Get involved in all sorts of conversations just as long as you have something relevant to say.

The 3 R’s – Remember Relevancy Rules

Google Body Maps - Cruise around the lower intestines, surf the stomach acid waves or follow the neurone pathway!

Enter the Google Body Browser:

 

The latest innovation bubbling away in the Google Laboratory is the Google Body Browser. You will be able to take us on a journey inside our bodies.

Cruise around the lower intestines, surf the stomach acid waves or follow the neurone pathway!




The current Google beta version is still a work in progress and will currently only work with Chrome.

This will certainly bring to life biology lessons and may come as a relief to many medical students who currently rely on diagrams or sketches.
Definitely One to watch for the future
 



The Life of Links through the Eyes of the Search Engines

Link Building SEO Services

The deciding factors that come into play when a search engine judges a link from, or to your website are the following:

• Authority
• Relevance
• Trust
• Anchor Text


From these deciding factors the search engine algorithm will work out how important it will classify the link. The more important a link is, the better for the receiving website’s reputation and rank. Links from independent sources of high page rank, carry sizable weight. This is especially so if both sites share relevant content.

Finding Different Link Sources

If you have various different domain names, blogs and social media sites that all link to one another this will be spotted by the search engines. This process is known as ‘cross-linking’ and may result in all your closely linked sites being classified as one. The search engine spider will just see one large cluster of links.

A wide variation of links from different sources is the basis of a strong link building campaign. 

If you can acquire links from a multitude of sources, the search engines will read this as your site holding a broad appeal. As a result your website will be assigned more value. Steer clear of relying on just one source for all your links. The search engine algorithms are constantly changing and if your source of link reliance is suddenly given less prominence your whole SEO campaign will suffer.

The Great Link Quantity Misconception

Which is better? (Links from the same domain)
1 link OR 20 links?

Well there is NO difference, as search engines do not count multiple links from a domain as additional links. One or Two Hundred, there is no difference!

More links from a domain is good but the value of each link diminishes as the number of links increases.

Lifetime of a Link – Tell tale Signs

Search engines not only are interested when you add a new link but also when one disappears. Data is stored on the lifetime of links. Factors include:

• First appearance – and relation to other new links added around that time
• Link disappeared – replaced by a new web section or perhaps a blog post moved to the archive automatically.
• Link lifetime – older links can lose reputation over time.
• Rate of Link additions – a quick surge of inlinks may be flagged up by the search engines as inconsistent behaviour.

Where you Links Live?

The anchor text link is major tell regarding a links purpose and destination but not the whole story.

Another few factors to consider:

• Link Neighbours – If the link that points back to your website is sat on a page with some highly reputable links next door, this is good news. More weight will be attributed to this link. Beware of the opposite though, a link from a spam ridden site can do great harm.

• Like Minded Neighbours – It is a good sign if the content next to your link is relevant to that of your site. Remember Relevancy Rules (RRR).

• Location, location, location – If your link forms part of a heading or is high up in the body content then great. A worse location like a sidebar of a hundred links will notably lessen your link power.

The SEO Build - Key Positioning for a new SEO Campaign

SEO Services: Laying the foundations

The secret of launching or re-launching a website that will rank high in the search engine results comes down to good planning. You must first endeavour to lay the correct foundations for your website.


The first and most important rule that should never be overlooked is the domain name.

Your domain name holds the most SEO weighting. Your domain name will be included on all your web pages, links, contacts, articles, blog posts and much more. Choose a keyword rich and descriptive domain name. See this as the keystone, it will lock all the other stones in position and without a strong, correctly shaped stone the whole structure will collapse.

Page Titles / Title Tags

The second most important element of a website should be your page titles. A search engine will look to this title as a description of a webpage. The title of your homepage should act as a description for your website as a whole. Use keyword rich language but ensure your title is relevant.
A few key pointers to take on board:

• The optimal character length of a page title should not exceed 70 characters. This includes spaces. Since November 2010, Google now allow 70 characters, previously this was 66. If you want to ere on the side of caution limit yourself to 65.

• Bear in mind the importance of the page title and therefore use your most effective and relevant keywords.

H1, H2, H3 tags


H1, H2 & H3 title tags will be used where necessary in order to demonstrate to Search Engines which parts of the code relate to product titles.

All these tags should be put to good use by including keyword rich headings. The heading tags are an important Search Engine Optimisation on-page feature, apart from the domain and title tag this is the third most important feature. Endeavour to make the best use of these key features within your website. Once again make good use of header tags. They should help search engines acquire a measure of content importance from your page.

Meta Descriptions

The Meta-description tag will be placed between the tags in your HTML page.

Some website directories and certain search engines may use this meta description as a little bit of descriptive blurb when showing a link to your website. The Meta Descriptions should adhere to appropriate length of no more than 160 characters.

• Sell yourself within this description as this may well appear below your listing in the search engine results pages.

• Once again, make sure your description is relevant to the page it describes.

The final stage foundation laying is the main body content. As with the points made earlier for title tags make sure you use keyword rich content and it is relevant to the descriptions with prominent call to actions at the end of each section or paragraph. Try not to exceed 400 words of content per page.

Write For Our Blog - Write for Our Website - Get in Contact with Web Branding



 If you would like to write about any topics on either Search Engine Optimisation, Company Branding or Web Design and Development we'd love to hear from you.
We'll post all Relevant Content.

If you would like to write for our blog please  

Link Building by Guest Blogging - 4 Steps to Success

Guest Blogging to Increase Links


Can you create original quality content that will be of value to other internet users?
Do you have a blog or website that you want to make more popular?


If you can answer yes to both preceding questions then you will be able to start taking advantage of the art of guest blogging.


There are many blogs and websites out there that avidly search for outside content contributors. If the area of your expertise matches with their content, there is a good chance that they will accept your articles. In return for your content, you will receive links pointing back at your URL of choice.

Stage 1 – Credibility


To convince someone you are worthy to guest blog for them you will have to demonstrate, not only that you can create quality content but also that it is of relevance to their site. First you need to build up an archive of well written articles specific to that genre. Once this is in place you are ready to move to the next stage.

Stage 2 – Research

Know exactly what areas you are going to focus on. The focus of your article archive should demonstrate this. Take advantage of applying category tags to all work you write. Create a list of the keywords that will benefit your site most. These will be used as anchor text links in the content that you submit for consideration. Take time to research using the Google Keyword Tool. This will help you find which are the most popular phrases being used.

Stage 3 – Locating Suitable Blogs/ Websites

By using Google to search using query variations you will be able to locate suitable blogs or websites that are on the lookout for your specific genre of writing.

“submit post” + “your specific keyword”
“write for us” + “another relevant keyword”
“write for our website” + “another keyword”


Continue this searching process until you have a list of potential blogs or websites to approach.

Now search through your potential list and narrow your search down further by looking for the following:

• Do they allow links?
• Check whether the links are ‘rel= “nofollow” is they are take them off your list.
• Is the content relevant to your site? If not remove.

Another great way to find blogs willing to post guest blogs or vise versa, then look no further than:
My Blog Guest this is a community to aid both bloggers and blog owners, definitely worth checking out.

Stage 4 – Creating Quality Content


Now is the time to create some unique, relevant and interesting posts. Remember the following points:

• Ensure good grammar and spelling. Write a first draft in a word processing program.
• Well structured articles look better and read better. Make use of font styles.
• Use images if possible. They will add more interest and better explain certain points.
• Use a single keyword rich anchor link pointing at your URL of choice, add other links if beneficial to your article.

Finally submit your articles and await a response. Have patience during this process, especially with popular sites. Keep a record of what and where you have submitted. If you’ve heard nothing a polite email may remind the site owner about your article. Best of luck with Guest Posting and remember getting your first article published is always the hardest, but do persevere.

Quality Content Creation: Finding Article Ideas and Creating Popular Internet Content through Article writing

Quality Content Creation


Quality content creation is a great method of improving search engine optimisation. Keywords are an important tool and will help search engines identify your market needs quicker. If you can regularly add unique articles to your website about your specific niche, this will be looked upon favourably by search engines.

The key to creating original and relevant content is to find out what is of most interest to people at that specific time. If lots of people are inquiring about a certain topic or asking how to complete a certain task, then you have found a good subject to write about. Your content will not only be up to date but also has the potential to be very popular.

When trying to find article ideas to ensure you can provide popular internet content you may want to consider some of the following pointers:


• Emails or Blog Posts – If any visitor has asked a question via email or on your blog you can use this as the basis of an article. Of course respond on your blog with an answer but then perhaps follow it up later with a link to a more in depth answer. This will look good towards other visitors, as it is clear you have gone to the extra effort.

• Other Blogs – Take a look at some popular blogs within your niche and find a topic that’s got everyone talking. The popularity of a subject is a dead giveaway for a great article choice. Consider what responses people are giving and work out how you could add to the dialogue.

• Forums
– These online communities are a breeding ground for new ideas, thoughts and information. Once again, be on the lookout for popular threads and queries and if you feel that you can successfully help on a particular topic, get writing an article then link to it.

• Google Alerts – If you haven’t come across this tool before it is extremely useful. This will send up to date information straight to your inbox. Simply set up an account and the specigy a search criteria for each alert. Something like ‘SEO Services News’, now whenever any news or blog post matches these words you will be sent an alert via email.

• Yahoo Answers – Why not check this out and find out the kind of questions that people are asking within categories relating to your market.


Once you have a healthy amount of potential titles you may want to consider doing some keyword research for you title. This is an important step as it will determine how many people will get to read your article. Quality Content Creation relies on great article writing put also the title choice is just as important as it will receive more traffic.

Google’s Keyword Tool is useful for finding which words are frequently being searched for. By combining popular and relevant keyword phrases you will have foundations for a populular article that will Boost your SEO Services.

Future Online Video for UK Business: Online Multimedia, Content Creation and Fast Distribution

Future Onlie Video UK

Companies streaming videos online are showing an exponential increase in usage. Year on year the figures keep rising. Two key contributing factors are:

• Better broadband speeds
• Development of efficient backbone networks that speed delivery of content by providers

The future of online video for business will surely continue to increase. This market is truly lucrative and has been compared by some to the dot com boom of 2000.

Within the UK, our digital industries pull in around 10% of the country’s GDP, which equates to the princely sum of approximately £130 billion. With the digital economy employing near to 2 million people, this represents nearly 6% of total UK employment. The UK also has the largest creative sector within the EU and is a real force within the global market. The demand for creative content is also a growing industry, in particular, content in English.

The Prime Minister just announced his ambitions to make the UK have Europe’s best superfast broadband by 2015 and also, to turn a corner of east London into a Tech City. The UK’s answer to Silicon Valley.

Some Interesting and Relavant Stats from The Oxford Research Agency:

• 85% of the UK is now online
• A Third have uploaded to a Video Sharing Site
• 85% watch Video Clips Online
• A Quarter write Blogs
• In the Past Year the number of people watching TV Online has grown by 600%
• 78 of UK user look online before making a purchase

All these contributing factors make the future of creative online content creation a veritable gold mine. Figures show that this growth is set to continue by an estimated 4% each year.

The future of the internet will mean that every user can become a multimedia producer. It has never been easier to produce a whole variety of media from publishing pictures, video recordings, slideshows and podcasts. It is also just as easy when it comes to uploading content and of course sharing which is inherently what makes online communities so popular.

Content distribution will be available over a whole host of networks; this streamed content will be available on everything from mobile smart phones to high-definition home theatres.

A full integration of all our online media is just around the corner with everyone wanting everything in one location, storage and distribution will be effortless.

Many businesses are slowly coming round to the fact, that they may be better, to move with the times rather than hold off any more. We can expect to see a vast increase in video streaming suppliers and content creators. TV as we know is slowly making way for a more interactive and connected internet TV platform. Television advertising revenues in the UK are showing a continued decline. The rate of revenue in 2009 was down to £3.54bn, to put this in context this was lower than the market in 2003.

As the UK technology industry continues to grow this can hopefully act as a catalyst to help other UK businesses take advantage of a highly skilled local workforce and reap the benefits of this digital revolution.


Rob Playford, Web Branding, 08/12/2010

SEO Sustainability: Monitoring and Fine tuning

Stage 1 - Initial Research

The previous article within this collection focused on how the implementation of a Search Engine Marketing Campaign will help improve traffic levels and increase web reputation.


When starting an SEO campaign it is very important to get in the habit of recording all possible starting data. This will help provide an initial benchmark to work from. Without this primary data it will be difficult to measure your progress.

• First off, you will need to decide what are going to be your key measuring factors. These should definitely include monthly traffic rates, number of unique visitors and number of page views, amongst others.

• Set out realistic and achievable goals at periodic times throughout the year.

• Out of the readings you decide to measure make sure an appropriate amount of weight is given to each variable. For instance your total number of visitors will be more important than how many times a specific page has been seen.

• At each decided monthly interval you should take stock of the analytic data for that period and if the set goal has been met successfully, raise the bar accordingly for the next period.

Keeping a consistent measure of your SEO work will help you grow our campaigns. The collection of data will allow you to predict future trends and also learn from past results. The world of SEO is continually changing and to ensure you say top of the game you must grow and evolve in response to changes.

Include the following measuring factors when taking a more in depth look at your SEO campaign:

• Organic Search Traffic from various search engines. Focus on the top few keywords.

• By using tools such as Google Adwords you will be able to work out which keywords are performing best and search out any new words of interest.

• Check which parts of your website are most popular by checking your analytic reports. Also make a note of parts of the site that are not getting visited. Make changes accordingly.

• Conversion rates can be monitored within the analytics reports. This service is good for tracking any goals that may have been set.

• Check how often your website is being crawled. This will help give you an idea of how much attention search engines are paying your website.


The key point of this article is to drive home the point that is you don’t have any valuable data you will have nothing to make comparisons and no way to improve upon the past. Without past records of measurement to draw from, SEO improvements cannot be made.

Search Engine Marketing and Online Promotion

Stage 1 - Initial Research

The previous article within this collection focused on how you should try and increase the amount of quality links pointing back to your website to help improve your website reputation.


This article will look at the benefits of implementing a Search Engine Marketing Campaign, otherwise known as SEM. This can take the form of keyword and location relevant adverts on search engines, social media sites or adverts on industry specific websites.

A successful SEM campaign will boost the amount of traffic your website receives. SEM is inherently a more focused form of internet marketing that will increase websites’ visibility within the SERP (Search Engine Results Pages).


To carry out a successful SEM campaign it is important to consider the following points:

Advert Creation – Use good grammar and avoid excessive punctuation. Be sure to create a stand out and catchy advert that also uses your top keywords. Google Adwords is a good place to start, and there is plenty of help sections available to get you started. Google often offer a free £50 voucher for new businesses to get you up and running.

• Landing Pages – It is common practice to see search engine adverts linking to just a company’s home website. Be sure you create a specific landing page that directly links to what the advert stated. Leave the customer with no doubt in their mind as to what you are selling.

• Customer Incentive – Free downloads for say graphics, tutorials or whitepapers are a great way of collecting customer data. Consider offering a newsletter or vouchers in return for customer details.

• Budget – It is important that you decide upon specific goals and a strict budget.

• Conversion Tracking – Every SEM campaign needs conversion tracking. Your website should aim to provide sales or leads so it’s imperative to measure the data available. Do not end up in the situation where you just end up paying for traffic. Conversions Count

SEO – A well optimised site will increase impressions and provide better conversion rates.
Organic search results outperform sponsored adverts so put your time and effort into making sure your website is high as possible in the search engine results pages.

There are some great SEO Services available today.

By adhering to the advice in this collection of six articles you will have the firm foundations for a long lasting and successful SEO Campaign.


The following stage will demonstrate that SEO is an ongoing process that needs constant analysis and appropriate fine tuning. Performance monitoring will help ensure SEO sustainability.

Link Building is an Important Part of SEO Development

Stage 1 - Initial Research

The previous article within this collection focused upon the elements that should be covered to ensure excellent on page optimisation including online assets.The stages that have been covered so far have explained the importance of laying down the correct structure and content. This stage involves the art of building links back to your website to increase online exposure.


Already now we have the key ingredients to go after decent and relevant links. Within the Keyword research the words with the most potential have been found, and it is these keywords that will help drive high quality links back to your website.

The following advice will set you on the right track to grow your sites’ inlinks. The process of link building is an integral part of SEO (Search Engine Optimisation).

The more links you build the more highly regarded your website will be by the search engines.

A website with a good reputation will feature high in the SERP (Search Engine Results Pages).

Consider the following:

• Article writing: The basic premise of writing articles for submission to article directories such as Ezines is that you trade your knowledge and expertise for links back to your site. Most high ranking article directories will allow you to have 2 links in return for an article of approximately 250+ words.
It is important you articles are relevant to your industry and this will also allow you to make the most of your most effective keywords.

• Forums: The first key to making the most of forum participation is to find industry specific forums where you are able to help and advice other members. Most forums will allow you to set up a signature box which will appear below each post that you make. The more you contribute the more inlinks you will receive. Not only will you build your reputation in the eyes of the search engines but you will also gain the respect of other forum contributors helping raise your business profile.

• Blog Comments: Many blogs encourage readers to comment on posts. As with forums try and be as relevant and informative as possible and be sure to make use of keyword anchor links pointing back to your website where appropriate.

• Testimonials: Perhaps a recent product you have bought or a holiday you went on. By giving your two pence worth you will be able to link back to your website. Once again the same applies as the two entries above; appealing and worthy content will ensure your link gets more exposure.

When carrying out these activities keep an eye out for high ranking article directories, forums and blogs. Remember that the quality of links far out performs quantity, so be on the lookout to post on high ranking sites.


The following stage will look at the various options available online or paying for a higher position within the results pages. This includes elements of Search Engine Marketing and online promotion.

Managing Website Content and Asset Optimisation

Stage 1 - Initial Research

The previous article within this collection focused upon the importance of creating a simple site structure to ensure the website is successfully crawled and many pages are indexed.


Stage 3 of this collection of articles will focus on the power of managing your website content correctly for the SEO world and the major benefits of optimising your online assets such as images, graphics and videos.

On Page Optimisation

This includes any changes you make to your website, anything from a title to the code structure.
Manage your web content correctly to rank well with the search engines. The following areas should be focused on to enhance SEO.

1) Page Title

The page title will often be used within the Search Engine Results Page (SERP) The page title holds the most weight because search engines will use this as a description.

2) Meta Description and Keywords
Website directories and certain search engines are known to use this Metadata as descriptive blurb when showing a link to your website.
The importance of the Meta keyword data is a grey area and classed by some as unimportant.
There are still benefits of listing your keywords within the Metadata. It makes it easier to create other external digital assets that share keywords, link to the page and therefore boost its online importance.

3) Breadcrumb trail + heading tags
The breadcrumb trail is a useful tool for SEO and improves user navigation. Heading tags are good for laying out information dependant on importance and help spiders make sense of page content hierarchy.

4) Body text + Alt tags
The body text makes up the majority of any website. Un-surprisingly this is where keywords come into play. Well structured prose will allow for a healthy amount of important keywords to be used. Alt tags are image descriptions and the text will get crawled so it’s a perfect place to use keywords.

5) Links – internal and outbound
Links are what makes the internet so accessible. Internal links include all connections within a website. The more keyword rich internal links there are, the better for SEO.


Optimising Website Assets

This section pretty much covers all elements excluding the html pages that make up a website. These include Microsoft office documents, pdf documents, images and videos. All these elements can be made SEO friendly by simply adding meta data. It is possible to create your own custom meta data panel within various Adobe and Microsoft software.

Images and Videos are slightly different, as mentioned in the previous section it is important to add Alt tags to images. Videos should be named with hyphens in between words and keyword rich titles can be added to the summary fields.

The following stage within this SEO Development collection will look at preparing link building techniques to increase online reputation and PageRank.

Web Crawling, Site Structure & Page Indexing provide Stage 2 in SEO Development

Stage 1 - Initial Research

The previous article within this collection focused upon the importance of laying the correct foundations for a successful SEO Campaign. The backbone of any SEO campaign takes the form of keyword selection and deployment.


To fully understand the workings of a Search Engine Optimisation campaign, one must focus on the working processes all the major search engines implement.
To cache all the information available, search engines use what are known as ‘spiders‘or ‘bots’, these crawl the internet and record all websites and links.

Website Crawling and Site Structure

The more simple your site structure, the easier spiders will navigate your site and as a result, catalogue more of your content and links. By insuring the correct implementation of site structure, file names and file extensions you will make sure your website is looked upon favourably by the search engines.

There are a number of useful SEO tools available free online that will determine how accessible your site structure is for spiders. Lemonwords will give a view of each webpage from the eyes of a robotic spider.
This is useful for determining if your site is too complex to be crawled properly.

The following issues should be flagged up as they may affect how efficiently your website is crawled:

• Avoid tabular format websites
• Steer clear of using JavaScript for Links
• Spiders still have difficulty crawling flash sites. The situation is slowly improving but best to show caution for the time being.
• Links within PDF and PowerPoint documents are regularly missed and carry less weight.
• Pages with too many links will not get crawled properly. No more than 100 per page.
• Links within forms can be hard to crawl.

Page Indexing


The more pages a search engine indexes from a website the better. More pages mean more chances that your website will appear within the SERP (Search Engine Results Pages). The key to ensuring a healthy index rate is to take advantage sitemaps and robot.txt. These make it easier for your website to be crawled and therefore indexed. Try using the Google Sitemap Generator which works on both Linux and Windows servers. This will automatically update your sitemap after you have made any changes to your website; ensuring new content is cached by the search engines.

The next stage within this SEO Development collection will look at preparing your webpages for keyword rich content. This stage will look at the benefits of great copywriting and correctly managing all your online assets.

First Stage of the SEO Development Programme - Initial Research

Stage 1 - Initial Research

Welcome to this collection of six articles focusing on SEO Development. This article looks at the first stages of preparation for an SEO campaign.

SEO or Search Engine Optimisation is the process of increasing traffic to a specific website. There are many different methods of acquiring more traffic to a website which will be covered within this collection of articles.

Search Engines can be seen as vast and efficient databases with records of millions and millions of websites. A search engine will receive a query from a user and within seconds will display the most relevant results according to the search phrase. These search phrases are made up of keywords which act like a filing system.

The most important element of an SEO campaign is undoubtedly keywords. A well planned out SEO campaign should always begin with keywords. You should see keywords as the foundations for your future campaign. If corners are cut within this initial stage, the project will never get properly off the ground and the potential of SEO will never be reached.

Factors of Importance to be attended to within these early stages are as follows:


Your Market Sector

It is imperative that a major part of the initial research focuses upon who your customers and audience are. It’s important to think about what your specific customers online habits will be. What types of sites would be of interest and what types of services and information would they require. This process requires you to adjust your mindset to that of your customer. If you can achieve this you will be able to accurately predict the type of language, design and branding to win over customers.

Market Specific Keywords


As with the previous process, you must keep your research focused on that of your ideal customer. Try to think of the kind of keywords and phrases that they would be likely to use. Which online services would they use to find what they’re looking for? Look at your key demographics and adjust possible search processes accordingly. If, for instance your target market is teenagers, it would be wise to focus on popular social media forums.

Compile a large list of all different possibilities. A good source of inspiration can be found by looking at what the competitors are doing. Check out competing websites and find out which keywords they are focusing on. This will give you a better idea of the current market situation.

Keyword Analysis


Now this stage gets more scientific and will require an in depth research into your current keyword list. By using online tools such as the ‘Google AdWords Keyword Tool’ you will be able to plug in your data and get back some constructive feedback. This keyword tool will help you determine which phrases are the most popular and what the levels of competition are like. This part of the research is very important and once complete, will leave you with a comprehensive list of the most viable words to use within your website.

Keyword Deployment

This final part of this SEO Development programme is the deployment of keywords. The best words from the keyword research should be sprinkled liberally throughout the website. Main areas of focus should include Meta data, page titles, alt tags, H1 tags and the main body content.

The next stage within this SEO Development collection will look at building the more technical foundations and structure of the website.

What a New Starter/ Small Business should expect from an SEO Package

If you’ve recently set up your own business or are looking to expand your current small business you have probably considered the benefits of getting your company online. These days all businesses should have an online presence. The longer you leave it the more work will be required at a later date to enhance your online reputation and make sure that your business is showing up frequently within the search engine results.

Setting up yourself online is a relatively cheap practice and within only a couple of months you can have your initial investment back due to the increased business a website is able to bring.

A modest monthly investment with a decent SEO company will ensure you get your money’s worth and improve your name online and off. An SEO package for a new business or a small company should cost you around £70 per month. A common misconception for new businesses starting out is that they cannot compete with established firms. This is definitely not the case.

The potential of a simple and efficient search engine optimisation campaign must not be underestimated. Your business will be able to rival and beat well established and large companies online by taking advantage of the search engine optimisation market.

Your business will receive the exposure you deserve and as a result will get noticed by a new customer base. An investment in brand design, web development and Search Engine Optimisation services will make sure of business longevity.

From an SEO New Business Starter Package you should expect the following:

Keyword Research - Your chosen SEO Company should carry out an in depth analysis into which keywords will be most beneficial for your specific market. Keywords are the foundations of every SEO campaign and a thorough research programme is essential for online success.
• Once the best keywords have been discovered, the next stage is the deployment of unique, keyword rich page titles, H1 tags and page descriptions. Keywords should be distributed throughout all your online media using the best seo systems to ensure maximum coverage for your business.
Social Media Introduction – business generation and social media go hand in hand, your SEO company should be able to teach you the many benefits of social media.
Article section of website created – Content is King and industry focused articles, press releases and product & service updates are an integral part of creating a reputable and trusted brand online.

SEO Services are crucial for success online. For a new business this is a great alternative to spending money on the old type of advertising in the yellow pages, business directories or mail shots.

Outsourcing your Search Engine Optimisation: Home or Away?

SEO Outsourcing is becoming much more common. Business integration from one side of the world to the other has never been easier. Technology has given way to a great variety of communication methods, everything from live text chat to multi-use video conferences.
The main reason for SEO Outsourcing is unsurprisingly because of time and money. This article will look at the implications of taking your business abroad and paying less or sticking with a local company for better management.

What does SEO Outsourcing Normally Involve?

Many companies will choose to outsource the time consuming and repetitive jobs.

These can involve:
• Submitting articles to many different directories to build up in links.
• Writing keyword rich content for the web such as press releases or articles
• Process of registering a website to many different online search directories is also another familiar practice.

First we will look at both sides of the argument regarding the practice of Outsourcing certain SEO Services.

SEO Outsourcing Abroad?

So you’ve decided to use an SEO Company abroad because you feel by saving time and money here you will be able to focus on more important issues.
It is absolutely vital to carry out extensive research before choosing your company. Due to the fact that they’re probably based the other side of the world if something goes wrong, it’s not like you can pay them a visit. Issues you will have to face will include language barriers, timezones, SEO knowledge and intellectual rights. Normally these companies have only a couple of fluent speaking reps so make sure you provide an in depth SEO strategy from the offset with clear goals and targets.

Beware of companies that seem to think that the only key to SEO is building links. It’s not the 90’s anymore and search engines these days are much savvier. Look for a full package of article marketing, social media integration, video marketing, search engine marketing and more.

SEO Outsourcing just beyond your Doorstep?


The defining factor between these two options is clearly the financial implications. If you Outsource some of your SEO work locally you will keep much more control.
It is important to keep a close eye on a campaign’s progress and to be able to give advice and feedback, quickly and decisively. Local sourcing will definitely benefit the SEO Services you are able to provide.

If any problems arise it is going to be so much easier to rectify the situation. Likewise, if you need to make tweaks to a campaign, this can be carried out extremely easily.

Both? Is that even possible?

With some clever ‘outside the box’ thinking you should be able to take advantage of the positive points for each side of the argument. Within your local area there will be plenty of people that would be capable of most SEO tasks with only a little training. Students and kids looking for some extra cash over the holidays are a perfect outlet. Obviously depending on the size and the amount of projects you are overseeing this may not be a viable option but worth consideration.

There are no-doubt some excellent SEO Outsourcing Companies available but the key is trying to find the best one for your SEO needs.

The Best Questions to Ask when Starting a Business

When starting a business it is advisable to research your target market. It’s important and also completely free to ask questions, so ask a lot of them. It is often the case that fledgling business owners will overlook some of the most obvious ways of researching their new market.

The following questions will help give you an idea about the kind of thing that you should be asking. The answers you receive will act as useful feedback to help you make a more informed decision as to the best way to move your business idea forward.

Your Product/ Service

Would you buy your own product? What would you be willing to pay for it and where would you seek out this product or service? Would you come back for more? All these are valuable questions and will help you understand your potential customers. After considering whether you would buy it, ask whether they will buy it? This is where a good bit of market research will come in handy, approach the type of people who would be interested in your goods and gauge their reaction.

Your Competitors


Crucial questions to ask are that of your competitors. Who else offers what you intend to provide? For how much? Look at their current business model and see how they trade, advertise and where are they located in what premises. It is best to investigate who is the top dog within your market. Workout why they are so successful? Decide whether you could provide a better service, if you think you can then it looks a promising business to move into.

No Competitors?


If you cannot find any competition, move forward cautiously. Unless you’ve just created a brand new invention and are aware why there is no competition, that’s fine. A word of warning, no competitors can often mean that there is no market.

On the ground

Get out on foot and visit many different locations where you think your new business could perhaps prosper. Pretend to be a potential customer and ask about the market within the area. There is nothing wrong with checking out your competitors by posing as a customer. This will give you an insight into the current service standard being provided. Also ask how you would improve upon the current methods out there. The more questions you can ask strangers the better.
A good amount of feedback is great for making sure you make the right decision.

One final point to consider is to trust your instinct. Does your business idea feel right? If you have some doubts, return to drawing board and work around any issues until you are completely happy with your business plan.

The Secret of Web Development is Usability

Usability, in terms of Web Development is all about providing a service that is simple to understand and use. A powerful similarity that crosses many different sectors is that of simplicity. Whether you dealing with web design, programming, copywriting or site architecture, the art of keeping it all simple is vital.

Finely worked Web Development can be likened to that of a clear and informative map. A map like the London Underground ticks all the boxes; its usability levels are second to none. A combination of clear design and intuitive information ensures that a tourist to the capital of the UK, can quickly work out how to get to their destination.

With the previous example in mind we will turn our attention to that of web development and discover why usability is so important. The subsequent information will also illustrate how usability can be improved upon within a website.

Web Development is a broad term that covers all aspects that are involved during the development of a website. Web Development will cover everything from initial design, content management to ecommerce integration. The main aim of any website is to be navigated by humans, so it stands to reason that the most important aspect of a successful website has to be that of usability.

How to achieve Great Usability

Layout: A well balanced and uncluttered website will help spread out your information in an aesthetically pleasing and easily understood format.

Colour Scheme: It is imperative to use complementary colours and make sure that he colour of your font type is always clear.

User Navigation: As mentioned earlier, Simplicity is the Key. Imagine yourself in the eyes of someone new to the internet and try and make everything as obvious as possible.

Font Type and Size: Nice and clear is important when it comes to your content. Less is more. If you can use a diagram or picture instead of content then this is advisable. Keep your font at an easily readable size.

Use of Language: Avoid the use of technical and complex language. Once again the concept of simplicity is important as ever.

Call to Action: These should be included at every step of the way to ensure your user knows what to do next whether its receiving a free quote or advancing to the checkout, make sure it’s clear and visible.

Informative: It’s advised to keep your pages uncluttered but that’s not to say you can’t provide as many pages as possible. Be informative as possible, try to predict what your ideal visitor would need to know.

Interactive: The more engaging a website is the longer your user will spend on your site and also the higher the chances of you receiving your end goal. Perhaps this is to fill out a form or call a number, but remember the more your user feels part of the experience the more likely they’ll trust you and perhaps make that call.

One final point, during the whole Web Development process is to remember to ask yourself: ‘Is this Clear enough?’ If there is ever any doubt in your mind, usability may be hampered. Go back to the drawing board and come up with a solution of clarity.

How to Research for Business Online

These days there is an unimaginable amount of information available out there. It is becoming more and more necessary to become proficient at sifting through all this data to find exactly what you’re looking for. Research is hugely important for a vast array of options.
Perhaps you need to arrange a holiday, join a new gym or buy a new car. Research allows you to make an informed decision on a topic you may not be familiar with.

The following tips will help improve your researching ability:

Google: Probably the most obvious first port of call but this wouldn’t be a complete list without mentioning the world’s largest search engine. It is also advisable to check out Bing and Yahoo as these different engines will often throw up different information. Take advantage of the many advanced search options to help you gain a much more specific search. Take a look at the ‘Google Cheat Sheet’ this is full of some great services, shortcuts and search tips to help you master research. Finally remember to ask the obvious, a definition is only a click away.

Competitors: In checking out what competition is out there, it will really help you get a handle on your specific industry. Right click on competitor’s website and select ‘View Page Source’ to find out what specific keywords they are targeting. Consider signing up to newsletters or downloading any brochures or whitepapers available. Also search for the web for the people who are running these firms, perhaps find them on LinkedIn or Facebook to reveal details about their involvement in trade specific networks.

Freedom of Information: You’ll be surprised the amount of information that is available to members of the public through the freedom of information act. Research what’s available within your niche. Many public organisations will publish their business meeting minutes online. Have a read through these documents to get up to date information within your industry.

Newsfeeds: This is a great way to keep up to date with the most recent news specific to your needs. Simply select keywords or phrases about the topics you are interested in and you will receive all the latest information. A popular newsfeed host is ‘Google Alerts’, you will need a google account but it’s free to sign up. Twitter search is also a great source to find the most up to date information within your area of expertise.

Online Books: There is an ever increasing amount of free online books available. A good method of finding this information is to search for your desired topic followed by ‘pdf’. With the recent popularity of amazons’ kindle more and more great content will be available online.

SEO Points to Consider when Starting a Search Engine Optimisation Campaign

SEO or ‘Search Engine Optimisation’ is the process of improving the volume and quality of traffic to a website from search engines.
Search Engine Optimisation will ensure your business growth and prosperity. When preparing your SEO campaign you may want to consider the following guidelines:

Carry out initial SEO measurements. Without these you will have nothing to measure progress by.

It is important to set out clear and measurable statistics at the start of any campaign.


• Look at current traffic amounts over past months to draw an average. This rate of traffic will form a clear starting point to build future goals upon.
• Analyse how the website in question is currently performing for the most popular keywords and phrases. Take stock of all performers good and bad; this will help provide insight to work out the best strategy moving forward. Try to include all major search engine results, as these will invariably show different search engine positions.

Spend time researching which keywords are most effective and take a close look at your competitors

An in-depth analysis of all potential keywords will take time but is essential. The more time spent during this research stage the better. The more information acquired during this primary stage will prove fruitful in the coming months.

Keyword analysis and Keyword Discovery should be seen as the backbone to any SEO campaign and will help lay the foundations to a successful campaign.
• Study who holds the top spots within the SERP (Search Engine Results Pages) and find out which keywords and Meta data they are using. This research will help highlight potential niche areas that your competitors may have overlooked.

Setup the tools necessary for ongoing analysis of the website such as Google Analytics

• Gain monthly reports highlighting your traffic flow, amount of unique visitors, number of average page views and much more. Analytics will allow you to create custom reports to ensure you focus on the most important data.
• Ensure you have submitted an up to date sitemap to all the top search engines. Each will require a slightly different format but this can be added by using the providers web master tools.
• Ongoing analysis is essential to measure your SEO progress and to report back to you client.

Other SEO Services startertips to get you up and running:


• There are numerous free and paid directories that you should register with to help establish your website. It is worth also considering the paid options as this will help create some useful links back to your site which will boost your online reputation.
• Ensure all your titles, headings and Meta data are keyword rich so you will appear high in the SERP
• Submission of Articles to the many available Article Directories is a good method of gaining valuable links back to your site and earning your respect within your industry.

Helping You find the Time to Blog

Blogging is a worthwhile activity and can help improve your business reputation and will promote your main website. Blog posts are a great way of staying up to date within your sector. Regular writing looks good and will also help increase your knowledge of important and relevant topics.

Blog posts can serve a double benefit. Many posts can be turned into articles and submitted to article directories. Article directories love to receive original content and in exchange for your writing will trade you high ranking links back to your site. This is Great for SEO Services.

Now, the only minor stumbling block of taking advantage of the benefit of submitting regular blog posts, is finding the time to write.

Consider the points below to make the most of your time:

• Keep a List of blog post ideas. Make sure your list is visible from your desk. This will always keep you thinking about future posts. When you sit down to write a post you’ll find the process to be much quicker. Give an idea time to stew within your sub-conscious.

• Make sure you reward yourself after each significant goal met. This may be a small reward for each blog post or perhaps a larger treat for say a blog post written consistently for x amount of days.

• Write about topics that really interest you. Your enthusiasm will shine through in the content that you produce and will help in motivating you. Try to also find blogs that share a similar topic. Offer to write a guest post or trade articles.

• Make sure you minimise the amount of distractions around when you decide to write. Close Outlook, have the phone off the hook, get rid of Twitter and facebook from your desktop. Sometimes it is easy to forget jus how many distractions are about when trying to find time to write. Fewer distractions will improve your productivity no end.

Clear you’re working space. A cluttered desk will not encourage focused working but act as yet another distraction.

• Make sure you give yourself time to think. Perhaps this would be a walk round the block, sitting in the park or a visit to the coffee shop. Time to think is necessary when trying to come up with inspiration for original writing.

• Set yourself an agenda with specific goals and targets. Share these with friends or family, this will make you feel more obliged to complete the specific writing goal.

Five Points to Consider before Choosing Your Business Name

The business name is arguably one of the most important elements of a business. It’s the word that will be spoken on customer’s lips, the phrase that it typed into a search engine and the name used when answering the phone. As humans we all have subconscious feelings towards certain words of the English language.
Certain words can inspire confidence whereas others can be seen as weak and lack lustre.

The business name is the one constant feature that will always be associated with your company. Branding can change and new services can be offered but the name will remain.

With this in mind it is worth considering the following key tips when choosing a successful and strong name for your business.

Be Specific: There is a lot to be said for a business name that clearly describes what it is that you do. If you sell toy trains make sure this clear. It is also worth checking whether your chosen domain name is available online. A specific business domain name will rank highly in the search fields. By including what it is you provide within your name this will transpire in more relavant search results being pointed in your direction.

Positive & Memorable: As mentioned in the introduction, a wise choice of business name will be the use of a word or words that have positive associations linked to it.
A common association will work best as you are assured the fact that nearly everyone will think of you in a positive light.
A memorable name is a great benefit for maximising the chances that potential customers think of your company at the critical time.

Benefits: Be sure to mention where possible the benefits your business can supply. This can be via the medium of a strong description. For example ‘Delia’s Delicious Dishes’ The more the name can allude to a benefit the better.

Check Originality
: You may have come up with a real gem of a name only to find a few months or even years down the line that someone else is also trading with that name. This can be a source of great anguish. Make sure you check which business names are already in use via Google and Companies House.

Avoid: Try to avoid the use of numbers unless it is essential to your business. This kind of thing goes in and out of fashion and is best to avoid. Also it is advised to steer clear of using your name for your business name. It won’t tell your customer what it is you do, it is not the best SEO business practice and it shows a clear lack of imagination.

One final point of note that will come in handy: Always seek out a second opinion and gauge feedback before finally agreeing upon a name.

How to Decide the Perfect Domain Name for your Business

The power of a good domain name shouldn’t be underestimated. The most common conclusions people draw from a domain name is that it must be memorable.
A domain name that is easier to remember is important, although it is not the most important aspect to consider when choosing a domain name.

If you take anything away from this article, let it be this:
Your Domain name should directly link to what it is that you do. Relevancy Rules.

The importance of the above statement is due to the fact that you are going to gain more visitors through search engines than just having a catchy domain name.

Let’s highlight this theory via our made up character, Bob. He owns a shop that sells tropical fish and is looking to expand. Bob understands the importance of having an online shop front so intelligently decides to setup a website. First job; to chose and purchase a domain name.

Here are two examples with explanations: One will highlight how not to choose a domain and the second will highlight how to find the perfect domain name

How NOT to Choose a Name


Bob wants a catchy and quirky name, and after much deliberation settles on:

orangefins dot co dot uk
Now this is all very well and the name he decided on is pretty memorable but you must bear in mind he is setting up a website to find new customers and to expand. His current customers that enter his shop may check out the website as the name stuck in their mind but that’s about it. No one online would search for ‘orange fins’ is they wanted to buy tropical fish.

How to Choose the Perfect Domain Name


Now after consulting with his friend who is savvy to the world of SEO and understands the importance of a strong domain name, he learns the correct method of choice.
You should choose a domain name that contains the most popular search phrases that are being used for your target market. With a little research using the Google Keyword Tool, Bob soon learns of the most beneficial words he needs to include within his domain name.
After checking availability with a domain name provider he sensibly settles upon:

ukTropicalfishsaleshop dot co dot uk


His new domain name is now much more likely to appear within the search results for any potential customer who is on the lookout to buy some fish.

Without spending any extra money on Search Engine Optimisation he has successfully increased his online popularity ten fold.

All Change - What we can expect from Internet TV

Google, Yahoo and Apple TV have been launched for some time now but haven’t really made the intended headlines just yet. A simple box will plug into your current TV and then you’ll have the huge multimedia choice the internet can provide. No longer will you be restricted by a limited number of channels or timetabled listings but the ability to watch what you want when you want.

Google TV: Brings together the tv, the web browser and the internet with their obligatory search.
Apple TV: Main aim is to stream videos from the Apple Store, YouTube or other online video sources
Yahoo TV: Have partnered with various big name tv manufacturers to have their box inbuilt into specific models. Their TV service will not provide a browser but they want to incorporate video streaming with the best bits of the web like facebook and twitter.

Predictions forecast that within three years time, an impressive 90% of all bandwidth used will be for the use of online video media.

Up until recently it has been games consoles such as the xbox & ps3 leading the way in connecting the internet to our tv’s. This all looks set to change within the coming years with the introduction of a much more interactive hub in our lounges.

Korea lead the way when it comes to the world of Internet TV
. So for an accurate prediction of what we can expect to see in the future it’s the best example to learn from. This article will look at the features currently available within the Korean marketplace and will also look at likely future advancements within this field.

Most of the South Korean population enjoy super fast broad band with speeds reaching 100 megabits per second. With these types of speeds, internet tv comes into its own.

Present and Future Services include:

• Well over 100 regular channels which include many High Definition and 3D channels.
• An enormous amount of Video On demand and a wide selection of bolt on services at a cost.

• Interactivity is a key part of the internet experience and provides a great platform for learning. Students can learn the national curriculum or improve their English. A wide variety of intuitive and engaging services are available.

• You can get hold of the daily newspaper via your tv or subscribe to your favourite magazine from the comfort of your lounge.

• Karaoke and other interactive games are also proving popular

• Internet tv is a great platform for open source features. Amateur content is proving a big hit with examples of sports, news reports and low budget shows

• Tv shopping is set to be big business. The theory will be based around being able to interact with all elements of the viewed content. Films for example will be fully integrated with a selection of shopping options. Perhaps you would like to download the theme tune, order the wallpaper in a scene, get yourself the same clothes as an on screen actor or even order a takeaway specific to the food featured on tv!

One certainty is assured that the world of tv as we know it is set for one of the biggest shake ups ever.
Copyright © 2010 Web Branding All rights reserved.
Wp Theme by Templatesnext . Blogger Template by Anshul