How often should you be updating your website:

So, how often should you be updating your website? There aren’t any set expectations for how often a website should be updated. However it is suggested that you perform updates as frequently as possible in order to prevent your website from looking dated and losing your valuable web traffic. It is recommended that you try to update your website at least 1 to 2 times a month. These weekly or monthly updates should be designed for only adding or refreshing content unless the entire website’s design is fatigued. As long as you develop a site that is both visually appealing and easily accessible then your primary updates should focus solely on your content.

When asked, most webmasters and search engine marketers agree that the more you update your content the more impact it will have on your Search Engine Optimization. Updating is especially helpful when it comes to blog content. Continuously adding new blog posts leads to more of your pages being indexed and draws in more visitors and potential customers.

Reasons for Updating Your Website:

• Updating provides your visitors with a visually appealing user experience.
• Updating your website establishes fresh and relevant content.
• Updating helps your website get indexed more often.
• Updating attracts new traffic.
• Updating increases rank and influences other websites to link to your website.

Tips for Updating Your Website’s Design:

• Move to a popular CMS like Joomla!, WordPress. or Drupal
• Link your website to your blog.
• Use share widgets for social media sites like Facebook, Digg, and Twitter.
• Get rid of barriers

… Read the rest

RSS feeds allow users to stay informed by receiving the latest news and website updates. In order to access RSS content, a user must first subscribe to a websites RSS feed. Most websites will have an RSS feed subscription button displayed prominently on their home page or blog. To subscribe, simply click on the RSS icon and select the RSS reader that you wish to use (If using Firefox you can also open the bookmarks menu and click “Subscribe to this page”). After subscribing to a feed, the reader will routinely check for new content. The RSS reader provides an interface where users can view the latest content from their favorite websites, all in one location.

The Benefits of an RSS Feed:

RSS feeds can be beneficial for both web publishers as well as web visitors. The following are some of the benefits for each.

Publishers:

• Improves Search Engine Optimization
• Enables Faster Web Crawling and Indexing
• Publicizes your new content automatically
• Helps Reach New Audiences
• Free Marketing and Easier to market than sending out email campaigns

Visitors:

• Provides the latest content and updates all in one place
• Saves time because the content is delivered to you
• Easy to subscribe and unsubscribe

How to use it to help your Internet Marketing:

One of the benefits of an RSS feed is that it helps with SEO. The following are a few examples for how an RSS feed can be used to assist your Internet Marketing efforts.

• Stay in tune with the latest industry trends by subscribing to competitors and industry experts.

• Subscribe

… Read the rest

Keyword Cloud

Having accurate and descriptive keywords however is only the first part of the equation. Once you establish a list of relevant keywords they then need to be strategically placed throughout the website in order to increase traffic. Each individual page of your website should be optimized for one to three unique keywords. Selecting keywords along with the placement of these keywords is crucial in order to increase your website’s visibility and guide targeted traffic directly to your website. Below are the 10 most important positions to consider when performing keyword placement.

Where to Use Keywords:

• Title Tag

It is recommended that you always place your keywords near the beginning of the title tag. Not using your keywords in the website’s title tag can make it extremely difficult to rank for your targeted keywords. Keyword placement in the title tag is thought to be the most important search engine ranking factors, each page title should be unique to that page and optimized for that specific keyword.

• Meta Description Tag

Although the Meta Description Tag seems to play a very little role in the actual search engine ranking it can still be used to influence potential customers to visit your website. Any keywords that your description tag has in common with the search query will appear bolded in the Search engine results page (SERP). Similar to the title tag each page should also have a unique description tag that targets only 1-2 keywords.

• URL

Having your keywords in the URL will further identify your target audience. A URL that includes your keyword can increase… Read the rest

 

from http://googlewebmastercentral.blogspot.com/2011/08/submit-urls-to-google-with-fetch-as.html, August 2011

In order for Google to crawl and index a page it first needs to know that the site exists. The fetch as Googlebot feature may be a new and convenient method to submit a URL to Google but it’s not the only option. The process of discovery and can take place in a couple of different ways. Traditionally discovery occurs through links which is why it is extremely important to make sure that all your web pages are linked internally. Pages don’t always have external links connecting them, making internal links necessary for bots to travel from page to page.

Google also uses RSS feeds, XML Sitemaps, and Public URL Request to discover URLs that are not yet indexed. An XML Sitemap is a complete list of URL’s that you want Google to crawl for your website. The public URL request is an “Add URL” form that is available for anyone who wants to request that a URL be added to the index. Recently the add URL form has been renamed to the Crawl URL Request Form and to use this feature you must be signed into a Google account. Similar to the… Read the rest

Does code validation really matter and if so to whom does it matter to, a website visitor, a search engine, both? Not everyone thinks that code validations are all that important and feel that search engines do not consider validation when ranking a website. Regardless of the impact that code validation has on a websites ranking, both sides of this discussion can agree that code validation is useful for a number of other reasons.

 

http://validator.w3.org/

Code validation is the process of inspecting and amending the code or your web documents. This is done by comparing the code to formal standards like those established by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C). The W3C is the main international standards organization for the Internet. This organization offers a markup validation service to check HTML documents for errors and ensures that they are in accordance with their standards. To fully validate a websites code two separate assessments need to be performed, one for the HTML or XHTML and another for the Cascading Style Sheets (CSS). Although a number of programs like XHTML-CSS offer code validation services that are based on the standards set forth by the W3C it might be best to use the actual html validator and css validator provided by the World Wide Web Consortium.

Getting back to why it is important to validate your code regardless of how it impacts the page rank, of the many reasons for validation there are 6 fundamental reasons why it should be done.

Debugging and Maintenance:

HTML and CSS validation works similarly to a spell checker by locating errors found throughout your web documents. During the validation process errors are identified and documented so that a user can easily fix them.

Learning and Prevention:

As the validation process identifies common errors you can learn from your mistake and therefore prevent the errors from reoccurring in your other web documents. At the very least you will gain the knowledge and experience from previously solving that certain error.

 … Read the rest

Search Engines recognize that if all the sites on the Internet knew the characteristics that they use, then every site would be able to rank higher. Providing this information would make it too easy for website and go against their main goal which is to provide users with the most relevant and useful search results. Clearly expressing the measurements that are used to rank a website would prevent a relevant site from standing out amongst the other results and could potentially place a higher rank on a page that is worst or is less relevant to a user.

Search Engines use both on-the page as well as off-page elements to assign a rank. On-page factors usually focus on internal site structure including keyword use and internal linking where as an off-page aspect considers who you link to, how you link to them, and the popularity or relevance of your links. Some of the factors that are known or thought to be important to ranking well in search engines include:

• Keyword in the pages Title Tag.
• Appropriate and descriptive anchor text of Inbound Links.
• Global Link Popularity of Site.
• Age of domain.
• Link Popularity or equity within the internal link Structure.
• Relevance of an inbound link to the site and the text surrounding that link.
• Keyword use throughout the body copy.
• The popularity or authority of the website providing an inbound link.

With that being said, one of the major factors that search engines do directly distinguish as being harmful to a Websites rank is Duplicate Content. Duplicate Content is best described as a portion or a complete copy of text that is found in multiple locations either within your own site or shared between your site and another site entirely.

So,… Read the rest

Although the applications would not have access to your contact information unless you provide them with authorization, this concept has caused concern for users.  After announcing the news, Facebook Privacy Settings were faced with much criticism and the debacle eventually caused them to briefly abandon the idea.  However, recently Facebook has announced that they are continuing as planned with contact information based applications.  Facebook has stated that they only delayed this feature in an attempt to construct a better prompt screen that would inform the individuals accessing the application that their contact information is needed in order to continue.

Given the sensitive nature of personal contact information it is understandable that people are weary of this idea.  It is important to remember that Facebook will still maintain their promise regarding not giving out any of your personal information unless you allow them to.  If users do not want an application to access their phone number or address then they  have the option of not using these programs.

Facebook is currently home to more than 550,000 applications.  A number of applications have a legitimate reason for accessing your phone and address, but if you are unsure about sharing your information there are still plenty of other applications to enjoy where the contact information is not needed.  Due to the buzz around this issue people have began to automatically assume that Facebook is going to give out their information, but that’s not completely true.  If a user fully and accurately reads the permission request… Read the rest

Why should our Online Business Activity be any different?

If you own a business there are certain basic recommendations for daily online activity that could help generate more clients.  The Internet is a powerful resource for any business and neglecting to utilize all that it offers is silly.  Every business can be conducting some kind of daily activity online.  Not sure how to fully utilize the Internet for your business? The following are minimal suggestions for your company’s daily Internet practices.

1. Visit Some Social Networking Websites:

Submit some postings to multiple sites and gain a following in the online community.  Use this online activity to share some knowledge and build a reputation for your business.  By improving the brand of your business on Facebook, you’re able to market your company and have the opportunity to acquire profitable insights from others. It’s free, except for your time, so take advantage of the free advertising that websites like Facebook and Twitter offer.  In addition using these social networking sites gives you another medium to allow you to be more accessible to your customers and gain valuable feedback. See more information about how Twitter Can Benefit Your Business.

2. Write a Blog:

Establishing a blog for your business is a great way to branch out and grow your web presence.  A blog is another way to obtain customer interaction as well as communicating important messages to your clients.  Additionally, mention your blog articles on Social Media websites like Twitter and Facebook and have more potential clients visit your website. For more on how blogs can help a business check out Having a Blog Helps!

3. Check The Analytics Of Your Website:

It is important to understand how visitors use your website.  Before you can successfully solve any problems and market your site. You should have a good understanding of what’s going on, who is visiting it, how often, how they are getting there, as well as the tons of other website statistics

… Read the rest

Blogging has been around for sometime now but it was only recently that people had noticed the level of importance and beneficial properties that it offers.   Blogs are basically online interactive journals that span any number of topics.   Some blogs are personal, detailing the actions of an individual and some are organization blogs which usually cover topics and events associated with that organization.   Disregarding whether it is used as a personal or professional outlet, a blog is a handy instrument that can be used to gain momentum and popularity over the Internet.   So a Blog can be a channel for you to express your ideas as well as drive up the success of your business!

So what are the Benefits Of Having A Blog?

Web Presence!

1. A blog is an excellent way to reach out to your existing clients and gain more along the way.
2. A quick way to supply news, promotions, ideas, or other information to your audience!
3. Offers an effective way to provide customer service and support to your customers!
4. A blog helps establish you as a professional.
5. Help you build a following and gain respect within your industry and blogging community!
6. Efficiently increases traffic to your site!   Search engines like, actually love blogs and the keywords found in your blog entries attract more customers to your site looking for information about those keywords.
7. Allows for you to obtain rapid feedback from blog participants.
8. Writing a blog also makes your company more approachable! People will have an easier time communicating with you because you are on a more personal level.

Are you convinced that you should have a blog?

These tips might Help with Creating and Managing a Blog.

• Choose a time to

… Read the rest

-Josh

Getting in touch with your user base is vital to any business looking to prosper. You want to make sure that you are meeting the needs and desires of your users, and that means getting their feedback. Now, there are several ways to get in touch with your users.

As with getting feedback from employees, polls are a valuable tool in gathering data. People are usually pretty open with polls, especially when the results are anonymous. They can feel free to express their opinions, and you should be glad to get them. This information will be valuable in making important choices in the future.

Giveaways are a great way to drive up traffic and boost interest in your site. People love free stuff, and so entering for a chance to win draws people in. You can start small, say with discounts off of work/services provided by your site and go up from there.

Forums are a powerful tool for creating community interaction. Giving people a place to engage in meaningful conversation about a topic that interests them is always a winner. By setting up a place to discuss your product or services with other users, people will be much more likely to get involved.

Example Online Polling Resources:
ITLpoll.com (open source), MicroPoll.com, QuestionPro.com, SurveyMonkey.com, Zoomerang.com

-Josh

Internet Beacon

There’s no denying that Google is the most powerful search engine in the market right now. There are several other places you can go to find content on the Web, but at this moment, Google stands above them.  Because of this, Google is a great tool for promoting your business. One tool that they offer, specifically targeted at business owners, is Google Places.

Google Places allows you to create a home for your business within Google. This then gets linked to  Google Maps, as well as everywhere else in Google’s kingdom. The benefit here is, I believe, that you are one step closer to Google when it comes time for searches. Local results, which are probably what you want if you are a small business, are almost always returned first via Google Maps in a Web search. By having a Google Places listing, you increase your chance of being seen dramatically.

Another great feature of Google Places is the ability to show your area of service. This is incredibly handy for those companies offering services and products to a very specific area. Restaurants who deliver are the first to come to mind. Customers can see your delivery area, so that cuts down on wasted calls and wasted time. In addition to this, Google Places supports QR codes. They look like square barcodes, of a sort. Customers can scan the tag with their smart phone and get data on your establishment.

Google Places is a great tool for small businesses looking to start a presence online or extend their current reach. In addition to your website, your Google Place can be another source of contact in a world constantly built on making connections. I recommend at least checking it out.

-Josh

Internet Beacon
SEO Maryland

The Internet Beacon is a Search Engine Optimization (SEO) firm located in Maryland. What we do, SEO, is a form of Internet Marketing. Much like traditional advertising, SEO is all about getting your name out there. In this case, we’re working to get your website in front of customers through search engines like Google and Yahoo. For more information, check out our SEO Answers page,  SEO Glossary, and our blog posts on SEO.

Internet Media

Getting to media online is a bit of a tricky matter. Sure, you can find it anywhere, but that isn’t the problem. The problem is the legality of the source. Today, I’m going to give you some links to websites that offer access to your favorite television programs and music that are 100% legal and mostly free.

LaLa

LaLa is a music service that offers cloud (Internet only) storage of music from your favorite artists. They have a large online selection. You can stream the music to your computer, so that means no hard drive space taken up. All you need is a solid internet connection. You can purchase songs for about $0.10 each, provided you can’t download them. MP3 versions costs a bit more, between $0.80 and $1.30. I’ve used this service for about two months now and am very pleased with it.

Hulu

Lots of people are getting to know about Hulu.  Hulu is similar to Lala in that you can stream media to your computer over an Internet connection. In this case, Hulu offers television programs and some movies. All of this is free. This may not be true in a year, but for now, just about every TV show from the major networks is on offer. You can use their service without making a free account, but if you choose to register, you can sign up for notifications about shows you like and when new episodes are available. I’ve used this for over 2 years now and am quite pleased with the service. I wholeheartedly recommend it

That’s all for this week! Now you know a little more about where to get your favorite entertainment WITHIN the bounds of the law.

-Josh
Internet Beacon

We all like to think we’ve been especially careful when putting our information online. We take steps to ensure that we don’t put information like our credit card numbers, home address, etc where everyone can see. However, there are other ways for people to get a hold of your information.

Since Facebook is all about connecting with other people, usually friends and family, information gets shared with them. They have access to whatever you post. And why shouldn’t they? You’ve given them the okay.  What you haven’t allowed, however, is the applications they use.We are going to prevent whatever goofy program your relative installed in their Facebook from accessing your name and address. This is incredibly easy to do.

First, login to Facebook. Then, go to the top right portion of the window. Click “Account” and then “Privacy Settings.” From here, you’ll see a link called “Applications and Websites”, click it. Of the several options here, you want to locate “What your friends can share about you” and then click on Edit Settings.

Welcome to your application privacy settings, at least concerning your friends. This screen will have a list of checkboxes detailing different facets of your account information. From here, you can now determine what exactly you want to share with your friends’ and family’s applications. Just make sure to save your changes!

That’s all for this week’s post. Be sure to check back for more every Friday.

-Josh

Internet Beacon

Baltimore SEO

Maryland SEO

This week I’d like to talk about Passwords. We all have them for various areas of our electronic lives. We all need them, and too often we are not as careful as we should be when choosing them. In choosing a password there are several things to consider.

An important part of choosing a password is the length. Certainly a lot of website give us guidelines when setting the password length, but they are often the minimum requirements. A good thing to keep in mind for password length is making them longer than 8 characters.  This is because of the way that different operating systems interpret them. Without getting too technical, passwords are harder to break them if they are over 8 characters.

Another “best practice” is to include special characters and number in your passwords. This can turn something like “baseball” into b4s3ba!!”. Someone could easily guess your password if they know you well or your interests.  However, simply knowing you like baseball will not be enough if you add in these steps. Someone could spend days trying to figure out the combination, and more often then not, they would be locked out before actually cracking your password.

Well, that’s all for this week. Hopefully, you now have a better idea of how to keep your personal accounts a little safer online. If you have any questions, feel free to email me!

-Josh
Internet Beacon

Baltimore SEO
Maryland SEO