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    Denver Mobile SEO: Goes better with Chocolate, says Yahoo

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    Yahoo’s “Search Assist” tool is a hoot. Search for “Denver Mobile SEO“. go ahead, I dare you. Now, I’m thinking Yahoo knows me a little better than I’d like. Is this behavioral targeting? Profiling? Something even more sinister? Or is it just that Mobile SEO always goes better when plenty of chocolate is at hand. Now look through the related queries for “Chocolate“. Go ahead – I’ll wait. It appears many of us are writing about chocolate and writing about mobile seo in the same places. I’m going to bet more people are writing about chocolate, and I don’t blame them: Mobile SEO is the (sometimes thankless) task of making sure websites look good on all sorts of mobile devices, including handhelds, cell phones, zunes, and the new ipod touch(which is probably a “no brainer”). Few mobile seo simulators are available online, which means field testing. And then page tweaking. It can be a time consuming and arduous task. It’s best accompanied with plenty of chocolate.

    Web Development Roles in Internet Marketing Projects

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    It takes many different web development / programming skill sets for a successful internet marketing project. For any website to be successful on the web, it requires a combination of stunning web design, usability, web conversion, bulletproof web development, search engine optimization, and project management. A failure at any of these points can destroy the potential of any internet marketing project. The roles each require very specialized skills: Web Design Web designers are popping up everywhere these days, but it is still very hard to find website designers who have stunning artistic and layout skills and just enough web knowledge to make it all work. Implementing some designs on the web can be impossible. It’s important to have a web designer who understands the limits and potential of each web technology. Web designers must also know enough CSS (Cascading Style Sheets) to create web friendly designs that will look great in any web browser. Usability Usability is very important to any website. Web site visitors must be able to understand the navigate the site. Most usability professionals are not great designers, but have a knack at understanding human behavior and expectations on web sites. Having a site that is highly usable encourages repeat visits – or “stickiness”. Conversion Web site conversion is a very important consideration: How do YOU want visitors to use the site? Web site visitors should be eased and encouraged to follow a “desired action” on your website. The action might be to purchase a product, send an email, sign up for a newsletter, or even pickup the phone. Having a great website is still pointless if it does not drive sales, lead capture, or some other desired action. Web Development Web developers are programmers. They create programs that allow interaction with human visitors, like shopping carts, RSS Feeds, image uploading and more. Web development requires a tremendous skill set that is always in need of expansion and updating. Web development languages like PHP, Perl, Flash Actionscript, and the many Java technologies require constant upkeep and training as they develop. Search Engine Optimization Search engine optimization is a set of guidelines, technologies and procedures for ranking well in search engines. The first step is determining which keywords can drive quality traffic to the website. What are prospective visitors searching for? Search engine optimization (SEO) specialists research keywords and optimize the pages to show how relevant the site is to visiting search engines. Denver SEO Specialists are skilled at showing the natural relevance of pages and securing better search rankings. Since many search engines also weigh the amount and quality of links to a website, SEO firms will often create and request links from other websites. Social Media Optimization With the creation of social media websites like myspace, digg, facebook and friendster, websites have an opportunity to capture amazing amounts of targeted web visitors. With millions of searches starting on myspace, it has become an important opportunity for certain niches. There is a social media website for nearly every niche, however. Finding the correct niche full of prospective buyers can drive tremendous amounts of sales. Project Management Project management allows all of the other skill sets to shine. By communicating between clients and the other roles, the project manager helps balance the many roles in the project with the client’s needs. They also serve as the point of contact for many the many questions and deadlines involved in the project. In sum, any great web development project requires a diverse skill set. A balance between the roles is equally important, never sacrificing usability for design, or design for search engine optimization.

    SMX Local & Mobile coming to Denver, October 1st & 2nd

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    Search Marketing Expo (SMX) is one of the USA’s best conferences. This year’s SMX Local and Mobile is being held right here in Denver, Colorado. The focus on local SEO and mobile SEO couldn’t come at a better time: local search is very hot with small and large businesses alike. Mobile SEO is becoming ever more important as consumers race to the internet via handheld devices. What will your website look like to them? Mobile SEO is important until companies respond to what consumers really want – a desktop experience via their phone! Visit the SMX website to register today!

    AOL’s new advertising platform

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    AOL could become another internet marketing powerhouse. The company has recently announced it’s new “Platform A”, a mixture of the technological successes of Advertising.com, TACODA, Third Screen Media, Lightningcast, and ADTECH’s global ad serving platform. Platform A is poised to be a powerhouse of ad distribution through tightly defined niches like mobile advertising, video ads, behavioral targeting, and more. AOL has noticed CPM advertising is requiring more than just selling a bundle of clicks. Internet Advertisers and search marketers are requiring more demographic information before purchasing CPM these days. Without the right targeting, return on investment for CPM can be difficult to track(or realize!). But Platform A also has the breadth of distribution to compete with Google: Platform A already reaches more than 90% of the domestic online audience, according to comScore. It will be interesting to test the two internet ad networks side by side: Each will likely have their own flavor, but one is going to clearly emerge as the leader. The competition will be good, but I doubt Google will be toppled just yet.

    Social Media Optimization: Important Real Estate

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    If you haven’t setup profiles for your organization on the larger social media websites, you might be missing out on an important opportunity for branding and online reputation management. 1. Branding URLs exist on many social media websites Major companies are increasingly spreading URLs like http://myspace.com/microsoft in their marketing campaigns, and these destinations have become important virtual real estate. Losing control of such a visible page location could damage a company’s online reputation and negatively influence branding campaigns. 2. Social Media destinations may be difficult to reclaim Myspace urges users to choose their profile destination wisely, saying it can NEVER be changed. That’s right – NEVER. If you are the first Corey Ryder or David Soard on a social media site, then you are the first. I think that’s more of a function of customer service than technology, but expect it to be a lengthy process possibly involving lawyers if you ever want to change your name. It’s much better now to spend an hour creating profiles on social media websites. And while you’re there, take a look around. Did your competitors think to create their profiles? 3. Think carefully about your brand before adding content As important as it is to claim your profiles, be careful of the message your profile may send. A local telecommunications company had “Does not want children” in their myspace profile. Not only is this harmful to the brand, but also detracts from the main message. And remember: archive.org makes anything posted on the internet live FOREVER. With new social media websites popping up everyday, where should you focus? Make a list of social media websites where your branding is most important. What sites would your potential customers and partners visit? What sites have the most visibility? Now that you have your list, spend that Friday afternoon staking your claims – your online reputation will thank you!

    Mobile Search Optimization: About to become obsolete?

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    Mobile Search Optimization has been a bit of a buzzword this last twelve months. Web sites have long ignored the cellphone-based web surfer, but lately there has been much interest. There may be huge opportunities for websites optimized for cellphones, PDAs, toasters, and all of the other crazy devices visitors might be using to surf the web. More and more consumers are requiring email and even web access on their cellphones. Initiatives are merging local search, coupons, and even GPS. Mobile search optimization surely is the next huge possibility for traffic. Is your website ready? It may not matter. With Apple’s impending introduction of the iPhone, everything may change. Again. Consider: 1. There will be a whole new set of expectations for how a phone should browse. With the iPod, Apple defined the niche. Competitors were weighed against Apple’s offering. With the introduction of full-featured browsing via the iPhone, consumers are about to demand more from their phones. They won’t demand a better mobile experience. They are demanding the full desktop experience in a mobile phone. 2. Who would visit a .mobi site, when the full featured experience of a .com is available? In most cases, I would be too lazy to attempt a .mobi surf – since I KNOW the .com is available. We all just want to get our data and get on our way. Only hobbyist surfers would want to go check out the .mobi sites. Who wants to look at a dumbed-down webpage? Was mobile search optimization a waste of time? Having a few major companies optimize their websites for cellphones probably didn’t make much of a blip on the radar. It’s hard to say what the ROI was for their efforts, but it was likely more of a bet for the future. What do you think – Is mobile search optimization worthwhile for your company or clients?

    Link Connector Contribution Released For Zen Cart

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    We just developed a free contribution for Zen Cart, allowing the easy integration of LinkConnector’s affiliate code. Zen Cart and LinkConnector are an excellent match: 1. Both help eCommerce store owners avoid the sizable fees associated with opening and operating a store. 2. LinkConnector offers a two month grace period for setup and recruiting affiliates before they charge their low ($50/mo for self managed) fee. 3. Their “Naked Link” technology helps INCREASE your search engine rankings. Get Setup: Signup for a LinkConnector Merchant Account Download the Zen Cart LinkConnector Contribution 11-21-2007 UPDATE:  Changed Link Connector Fees

    4 essential questions when planning a web design

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    Successful web development projects require a tremendous amount of planning, and planning starts with asking the right questions. Any web design benefits from extra planning, but 4 questions should define the entire project from the start: 1. Who is my target audience? Too many websites try to be all things to all people. Instead, think of your most important visitors and design according to their tastes. They may or may not appreciate animation. They may be on dialup connections or they may be visiting the site via a cell phone. Knowing your website’s target audience is vital to the project, even before a web site design has been created. 2. What do I want them to do? If the purpose of your website is to get prospective customers to call, be sure your phone number is prominently displayed. A link to the “Contact Us” page should also be prominently displayed. Other websites may want to capture email addresses or newsletter signups. Ecommerce websites want to make a sale. Whatever the objective, make it as easy as possible for your customers. 3. How will they get to my site? With competition among websites growing daily, it’s important to plan how you will increase the visibility of your website. Will you blog? Or participate in forums? You might even use pay-per-click advertising on Google AdWords. There are many ways to bring targeted visitors to your website, but they won’t come just because you’ve launched a new website design. Plan ahead, and watch your website bring you new business! 4. How can I measure the project’s success? Many smaller website owners do not measure their web site metrics or statistics. Without an idea of traffic patterns and popular keywords, it is difficult to tell if a new web site design is effective. Are web site visitors converting to leads? Is the web site generating sales? Only by measuring can you know for sure.

    6 PPC Secrets from a $100k campaign

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    There was an excellent story in the San Francisco Gate in May about Lake Champlain Chocolates, and the lessons they’ve learned with Pay Per Click Advertising. The story title is “PAY-PER-CLICK PROBLEMS: Emeryville gourmet chocolate company has a rough go of it“, but the real value of the article is the PPC secrets it gives away. The article discusses two chocolate retailers: Lake Champlain Chocolates and Charles Chocolates. Lake Champlain Chocolates has experienced successful growth due to their PPC campaign, but Charles Chocolates did see any measurable growth from theirs. 1. Use negative keywords In the article, words like “cheap” and “free” were used as negative keywords to avoid showing ads to less affluent searchers. Every time you show an ad it’s like holding out a dollar bill for your searcher to snatch away. Be sure to get a prospective customer in return! 2. Refrain from using the content network Google AdWords users expect that the content network will show ads in all the right places. In a perfect world, new customers would see your ad and keep you in mind for their next purchase. But it isn’t a perfect world(Don’t even get me started!). Consider: – Visitors probably will not click. Content ads are like billboard ads. How often do you see a billboard and pull off of the highway to make an immediate purchase? It’s highly unlikely. Like the company in the article learned, “The return was never there.” – Visitors who click your ad won’t buy that day. They were reading, not shopping. At best, they will signup for your newsletter or bookmark your page. Is the landing page converting them into bookmarking or signing up? Probably not. Either fix that, or turn off the content network for now. – Clickfraudsters will click your ad and keep half. Click fraud is a plague of the content network. Last June, Outsell estimated that click fraud could be as high as 14 percent. The real estimate is probably a little lower, but click fraud does exist. 3. Use large sets of focused keywords The successful Lake Champlain Chocolate seller had a keyword set as high as 70k at one time, and now has it trimmed down to 30k. That’s  a big keyword set! 4. Use advanced keyword features One of the issues Internet Marketing Consultant Lael Sturm found with the struggling Emerville Chocolate Retailer Charles Chocolates was that they “hadn’t modified the ad text to match each specific keyword.” Be sure to use the advanced keyword options that PPC engines like Google AdWords provide. In Google AdWords, the code is {keyword: your keyword}. This option shows the keyphrase your user was searching for in the text of your ad. 5. Measure and adjust Is money being wasted in your campaign? You won’t know unless you are measuring. Lake Champlain saw they spent money attracting a searcher for “Chocolate covered scorpions,” something they didn’t sell, and decided not to let that happen again. Along with measuring what ads are the most effective, be sure to measure what you are paying for and remove/adjust the ads lacking good ROI. 6. Outsource your campaign to professionals to dramatically increase your sales Even with Lake Champlain Chocolate’s success inhouse, they were able to DOUBLE their sales by outsourcing their PPC management to professionals. You just can’t beat having the right help. Get to your friendly neighborhood search marketing agency today!