Facebook Timeline for Pages

Posted on March 26, 2012 by Cheryl

Introducing Facebook Timeline for Pages

It seems like everyone is talking about Facebook’s new Timeline for Pages. This is all brand new and different from the Facebook business pages you are used to. It seems that Facebook is striving to showcase a more personal way of seeing your business or brand. I’ve found that many people are pretty anxious about the changes that will occur in their Facebook business accounts on March 30, 2012. I’m sure you’ve heard that with the start of  March 30, Facebook will be automatically converting your existing business page to the new Timeline for Pages. Don’t panic, though, because you can preview your new look before it takes place.

If you want to preview your new Timeline for Pages , just log in to your existing business account as you normally would. Then click on the “Turn on Preview” box. This preview box allows you to see what your existing page would look like in the new style.   Take a few minutes to preview your pages.  Don’t just stop at one…look at them all.  This will help you get an idea of how you want to build your new look for the Timeline.

Facebook has set up tours that you can take that will help you in learning what Timeline is about and the different features it offers. You can use this tour to plan the new look  of your page.  Or, if you think you are ready now, you can just push “publish” and your page will instantly convert to the new version. If you choose to do that, you can make any changes you desire at any time.

The basic principal of the new Timeline for Pages is to offer a more personal approach. Your Cover image is big and bold and should let people know up front something important about your business. This photo makes a statement, so you will  want to consider what you are trying to convey before you choose an image for it. The biggest change is the timeline feature itself. Facebook now allows you to place milestones within your timeline that showcase the highlights of your business. The first milestone should show when your business was founded and you can choose as many others as you like to bring attention to important events in your business history. The timeline should provide a story about your business. It allows everyone to know when you started and how you have progressed through the years. You will want to  add photographs of your business or logos to enhance your timeline and add more interest. Once people learn the new timeline, they are happy with the changes.

Facebook is also providing for you to send and receive private messages and to use your new Activity Log to view insights data.

One big change is that Facebook is not allowing any contact information or calls-to-action, but they are allowing you to pin posts up on top of the feed for a week at a time. This will be very helpful when you are trying to draw attention to something important going on with your business.

One of the biggest changes I’ve found is  that Facebook is no longer allowing you to use an app for your landing page.  It is going to take some time to see what new features are most popular and what old features will be missed, but one thing is for sure… Facebook has taken some great strides into the future with Timeline for Pages.

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On and Off Page Search Engine Optimization Tips

Posted on March 9, 2012 by Cheryl

Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is increasingly important these days, as more businesses struggle to secure the highest ranking possible on Internet search engine results.  Internet marketing is a fiercely competitive world, and if your business’s website is not optimized for maximum web exposure, it will, literally, fall behind the many websites that are.  If you want to land your webpage on the coveted first page of search engine results, there are some things you can do to improve your chances by optimizing the site itself (on page), and the off-site direct links (off page).  Follow these on and off page search engine optimization tips:

On page:

Create a unique, content-rich title for each page.  The title and its description are perhaps the most important part of your site when it comes to SEO.  Your title should contain your most important keyword phrase and the title description should be less than seventy words.

Prioritize your heading keywords.  Use keywords in your headers in order of priority (H1 – H3).  Crawlers use header keywords to identify important content.

Optimize your URLs.  Your site’s URLs should have targeted keywords, and each page of your site should have a short, static URL of its own.

Beware of overusing keywords.  Keyword density should only be between two and five percent.  If you load your content with unnecessary keywords, your site could be ranked lower by search engines, or kicked off altogether.

Off page:

Distribute articles to other sites.  Articles that you submit to outside sites for publication should have a link back to your site, and are a great and free way to optimize your site’s search engine presence.

Build an Internet presence outside of your site.  This involves creating pages on social networking sites and bookmarking sites in order to drive more traffic to your site.  Facebook, Linkedin, Youtube, Digg, Delicious and StumbleUpon are good places to start.

Have your site listed on applicable directories.  Providing a back link on as many directories as possible is an important part of a link building campaign.

Post comments on blogs.  Commenting on blogs that somehow pertain to your business’s service or product is a great way to speak to online users who are specifically interested in your trade or industry.  Be sure to add quality comments and include a back link to your site.

As you can see, there are many things you can do to improve the efficacy of your site’s web presence.  Many times, the steps themselves are just overwhelming to a business owner.  If you need help with more on and off page search engine optimization tips, or you would like to have someone handle the process for you, CrackerJack Consulting has packages for almost every budget.  Email today for your website analysis.

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What is the Big Deal About Search Engine Optimization?

Posted on March 2, 2012 by Cheryl

You’ve no doubt heard all the buzz about search engine optimization, or SEO.  As a matter of fact, this recent craze seems to make businesses crazy in their efforts to achieve it.  But, is SEO just a craze?  A passing trend?  And, more importantly, is it really that important that you devote your time and energy to learning more about it?  In this fast-paced, technology-driven consumer market, it’s no wonder many business owners are left in the dark when it comes to things like Internet optimization.  If you are one of the countless business owners who is still scratching your head when it comes to SEO, you owe it to yourself to read this and learn for yourself, “What is the big deal about search engine optimization?”

What is search engine optimization?  SEO is the process of maximizing a website’s potential to be seen by Internet users.  A website that utilizes SEO is naturally ranked higher on search engine return lists and, therefore, gets noticed more often and clicked on more often than websites with no SEO.

How does SEO work?  First off, it is important to understand what spiders are.  Spiders are the programs Internet search engines use to assess web content and determine how websites should rank on search results, according to the search terms used.  SEO takes into account how search engine spiders work and what they are looking for, then customizes web content so that it is most likely to be seen and ranked highly by spiders.

In what way does SEO customize your website to optimize it?  One of the most important aspects of SEO is the use of keyword phrases.  Keyword phrases are terms that Internet users type in when searching for your product or service, and if you don’t have the most ideal keyword phrases in your web content, your site will receive a low ranking.  Good SEO also emphasizes proper keyword phrase placement, optimizing graphics and in-text links for spider recognition, procuring off-page back links, and creating rich and relevant web content.

How important is SEO to your site’s success?  Well, how important is it to you that people visit your site?

There you have it: the what, how and why of search engine optimization.  It’s no question that SEO is both relevant and necessary to your business’s Internet marketing success because, as long as there are search engines, there will be a need to be ranked on them.  The only question now is how you can optimize your own site.  You can choose to do it yourself, or go to a specialist in search engine optimization.  Give us a call today and we’ll do an evaluation of your website to see what can get you the best results.

Shana Albert, Brandy Wood - Big Water Photo Event | SMX East 2008
by BrentDPayne under CC-SA
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What Your SEO Company Should Know

Posted on February 23, 2012 by Cheryl

Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is the practice of customizing your web content to search engine protocol in order to maximize your ranking in search engine returns.  The better your SEO, the more people will see your website and the more subsequent traffic.  Therefore, it is important to understand how SEO works.  The process of SEO lies somewhere in the gray area between art and science, and is somewhat of a mystery to many.  For that reason, many businesses are springing up, claiming to be able to make the most of your website’s SEO.  If you are interested in assigning your business’s web marketing needs to a company that specializes in SEO, you need to be sure you are putting that responsibility into capable hands.  Here’s what your SEO company should know:

How spiders work.  Search engine spiders are programs that are designed to scan the information on a webpage and determine the page’s relevance.  Spiders use your site’s content to rank it in importance among other, similar/competing websites.  Therefore, it is important that your SEO company know what spiders are looking for and how they rank what they find.

How to optimize your site’s images for spider recognition.  While programs like Java and Flash are great for web design and graphics, they are completely useless when it comes to getting your website recognized and ranked by search engine spiders.  That is because, in essence, spiders only recognize text.  Your SEO company should understand how to optimize your graphics with text so that they contribute to your website’s online efficacy.

How to create useable (spider-worthy) hyperlinks.  Again, Java-based hyperlinks aren’t acknowledged or ranked by spiders.  Any company you hire for your SEO work should know of alternate programs to use for hyperlinks in site applications like blog comments and posts.

Search engines change their ranking protocol often.  Google is known for updating its search engine algorithms on a regular basis, keeping those interested in SEO on their toes.  Your chosen SEO company should be aware of this fact and should make it an expressed point to stay on top of SEO updates.

You don’t have to be an SEO expert to maximize your website’s potency, but you may have to call an expert in.  Make sure the company you choose for your business’s SEO needs is well-informed and intent on staying that way.  If you want the services of a reliable SEO company, contact http://www.crackerjack-consulting.com.  We can be reached by email at cheryl@crackerjack-consulting.com

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Top 3 Most Common Website Design Mistakes

Posted on February 19, 2012 by Cheryl

Website design is not an exact science.  There is a lot that goes into building a website, and designers should have a feel for aesthetics, an understanding of how people prefer to browse web pages, a thorough working knowledge about the technical aspects of web functions, and some insight into search engine optimization.  Not all web designers are created equally and, therefore, neither are all websites.  Set your website apart from the mediocre by avoiding these top three most common website design mistakes:

Inefficient navigation features.  It is not enough to know that your website looks good.  It must also be easy for people to use.  There are many common issues pertaining to website navigation that can be avoided with a little effort.  Search bars that are too literal won’t offer returns if any mistakes are made in the search (and you have to assume your site visitors are going to make mistakes, at least every once in a while).  Additionally, links that are too small to click on, unorganized content (you need clear headers and clean, concise text), links that open into new windows, and links that do not change color once a user has clicked on them are all examples of poor website navigation features that will have your visitors checking out and heading to another site.

Lack of instruction.  While it is true that your website should be there to inform visitors of the products and/or services your business offers, it is also true that your site should instruct them on what to do next.  Your website should have a clear call to action, and should detail the next steps your visitors should take in order to do business with you.  Sure, it’s great you happen to carry the software your customers are looking for.  Now, how do they order it?  And why should they order from you?  Make those answers clear and compelling.

Putting SEO on the backburner.  Search engine optimization is the fuel that speeds your website along the Internet raceway.  If you are going to spend the money, time and effort on creating a website, than it only makes sense that you ensure its likelihood of being seen by web surfers.  If you can’t hire an SEO specialist, then there are some things that you can do to maximize your website’s search engine viability.  Make sure your content is keyword-rich (but don’t overdo it).  Pay special attention to your page titles and headings.  They play a weighty role in search engine rankings, and should contain keywords that are relevant to your site’s content and purpose.

If you search the web, you will find that these web design mistakes are more common than you might think.  Do your best to avoid unnecessary web design pitfalls by putting your website in the hands of professionals.

By the way…we don’t do web design here at CrackerJack…but we will help you find the right person to do just what you need.  Just give us a call!

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5 Ways to Get to the Top of Search Engines

Posted on February 10, 2012 by Cheryl

Search Engine Optimization, or SEO, is probably the single most important factor to take into consideration when developing your business’s Internet marketing strategy.  After all, if your site is not optimized to its fullest potential, it will rank lower than those sites that are.  Can you afford to be the tenth, twentieth, or thirtieth on a list of search engine returns?  How likely is it that your link will even be noticed if you’re not on the first page of search engine results?  These are questions that you, the modern business owner, must consider if you want to keep up in the fast-paced, highly competitive world  of web marketing.

These days, it is not enough to hire a marketing guru to design a flashy, user-friendly website.  Now you must worry about how you will drive traffic to your site as well, and that means employing SEO.  Move your site up the ranks by following these five tips for how to get to the top of search engines:

Develop the best, most accurate list of keyword phrases.  Use keyword research programs like Wordtracker and Google’s Keyword Tool to compile a list of relevant keywords.  Only use keywords and phrases that are directly associated with the content on your website.

Use keyword phrases wisely.  Be sure to have the most important keyword phrase in your page’s header, then randomly place the rest of your keyword phrases in the content of the webpage in a way that is natural to the reader.

Organize your website according to your keyword research.  When you use keyword research tools to identify appropriate keywords, you will also be able to get a good idea of related words and phrases Internet surfers use to locate your specific product or service.  For example, if you sell sports equipment, you may find that people tend to either search by sport or by brand, and you can use that information to categorize your inventory accordingly.

Design your site so that spiders can read it.  Spiders are the programs that assess your site’s search engine return value.  Because spiders can only read HTML, you need to make sure each page, category and menu item on your site has HTML links.  Additionally, your graphics should be wrapped in standard HTML tags if you want spiders to notice them.

Label your site’s text links and alt tags in a way that is descriptive of their associated landing page.  Don’t make Internet browsers (and search engines) guess as to where your site’s in-page links will lead them by using generic terms like, “click here.”  Instead, use a keyword phrase that indicates the content of the landing page.

Search engine optimization may be complex in theory, but it can be quite simple in application if you follow some simple guidelines.  If you want to learn more about ways to get to the top of search engines, please feel free to email cheryl@crackerjack-consulting.com

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5 Reasons Why SEO is a Great Long Term Investment for Your Business

Posted on February 3, 2012 by Cheryl

Search Engine Optimization (SEO) involves customizing your business’s website in order to get the highest possible ranking on search engine returns.  In today’s technology-centered consumer market, there is such an importance placed on SEO that many businesses fork out the big bucks for SEO specialists that can secure for them a spot on the highly coveted first page of search engine return results.  If you are interested in learning about SEO and what it can do for your business, and are wondering whether or not SEO is important to your Internet marketing plan, keep reading.  Here are five reasons why SEO is a great long term investment for your business:

You want people to visit your website.  After all, you did spend money and time developing your site.  Now you need to make sure it is seen by as many potential customers as possible, and SEO is the best way to do that.  The more optimized your site is, the more traffic it will receive, plain and simple.

A website that is optimized will attract new links on a regular basis.  As your site becomes more and more popular, other sites will link back to it.  That equates to even more traffic to your site – traffic that you did not have to make any additional effort to solicit.  Not only will SEO improve your site’s internet presence, but it will, in essence, put your site to work for you.

The Internet is consistently the number one sales channel for businesses.  Any way you cut it, you simply cannot afford to not have an internet marketing plan, especially considering the fact that you are no doubt competing against industry rivals that put a high priority on their online presence.  SEO is of utmost importance here, as every dollar you spend on SEO will contribute to your success in the most potent sales market there is.

Getting on board with an SEO firm is your fast track to being in the know when it comes to Internet marketing.  A good SEO company must stay on top of the rapidly changing Internet marketing regulations, and can be your inner circle when it comes to staying atop the latest online trends.

SEO content that you add to your website is yours forever.  It will stay on your site and continue to work for you as long as you want it to and, moreover, you are free to reuse the content as often and in as many capacities as you like.

When you consider the myriad of advantages SEO affords you, there really is no question as to its value for your business.  If you have questions about the value of optimizing your site, or would like a site evaluation, please email cheryl@crackerjack-consulting.com.

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Why Use Video Marketing to Boost Sales?

Posted on January 23, 2012 by Cheryl

3 Tips on Using Video Marketing to Boost Your Sales

Technology has become the leading advertising medium in today’s consumer market.  The advent of wireless Internet service and high-speed connections allows businesses to connect with consumers on a real-time basis.  Moreover, statistics show that most people now have daily access to the Internet, in some form or another.  Direct mail and print media marketing is falling by the wayside in favor of technology-based mass communication, and the latest trend to hit the ground running is video marketing.  Video marketing enables businesses to reach their website visitors on a more personable level.  It puts a face to the name, so to speak.  If you are interested in bringing your business’s Internet marketing to the next level and edging out the competition, you should be looking into video marketing and what it can do for you.  Here are three ways in which video marketing can boost your sales:

Having videos on your site increases your search engine rankings.  As a matter of fact, video has been shown to increase Google rankings by as much as fifty percent!  This is an impressive number, and a very important factoid, considering search engine ranking is quickly becoming one of the most important aspects of effective web design.  After all, your website just isn’t working for you the way it should if people aren’t seeing it.

Video marketing enables you to speak directly to potential customers.  That means you get to decide what you want to say.  Rather than just leave it to your web’s text and graphics, you get to impart your business’s message in a way that you feel is relevant to what your customers are looking for.  Video marketing is your chance to demonstrate a new product, explain the philosophy behind your service, and/or simply greet customers on a personal level.

You can link your videos to social media sites in order to rapidly expand your customer base.  YouTube is currently the second most used search engine in the world!  When you put your videos on your business’s YouTube page and link it back to your business’s website, you are literally adding millions of potential viewers to your site’s traffic.  Link your videos to Facebook and Twitter and the possibilities are endless.

As you can see, video marketing has staked its claim in the world of business Internet advertising.  In this fast-paced, technology-driven market, you simply cannot afford to get left behind.  Contact us, CrackerJack Consulting, for more about why use video marketing to boost sales.  Our specialty is implementing effective video marketing that will boost your business’s sales.  We can be reached by phone, at 888-840-6414 or email: cheryl@crackerjack-consulting.com .

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What On and Off Page Search Engine Optimization Tips Will Increase My Business?

Posted on January 2, 2012 by Cheryl

Curious about on and off page search engine optimization tips?  What really works?  What doesn’t?

What On and Off Page Search Engine Optimization Tips Will Increase My Business?Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is increasingly important these days, as more businesses struggle to secure the highest ranking possible on Internet search engine results.  Internet marketing is a fiercely competitive world, and if your business’s website is not optimized for maximum web exposure, it will, literally, fall behind the many websites that are.  If you want to land your webpage on the coveted first page of search engine results, there are some things you can do to improve your chances by optimizing the site itself (on page), and the off-site direct links (off page).  Follow these on and off page search engine optimization tips:

On page:

Create a unique, content-rich title for each page.  The title and its description are perhaps the most important part of your site when it comes to SEO.  Your title should contain your most important keyword phrase and the title description should be less than seventy words.

Prioritize your heading keywords.  Use keywords in your headers in order of priority (H1 – H3).  Crawlers use header keywords to identify important content.

Optimize your URLs.  Your site’s URLs should have targeted keywords, and each page of your site should have a short, static URL of its own.  This is one of the reasons adding a blog is a good way to optimize your site.  The title of each blog page can always include your targeted keywords in the url.

Beware of overusing keywords.  Keyword density should only be between two and five percent.  If you load your content with unnecessary keywords, your site could be ranked lower by search engines, or kicked off altogether.

Off page:

Distribute articles to other sites.  Articles that you submit to outside sites for publication should have a link back to your site, and are a great and free way to optimize your site’s search engine presence.

Build an Internet presence outside of your site.  This involves creating pages on social networking sites and bookmarking sites in order to drive more traffic to your site.  Facebook, Linkedin, Youtube, Digg, Delicious and StumbleUpon are good places to start.

Have your site listed on applicable directories.  Providing a back link on as many directories as possible is an important part of a link building campaign.

Post comments on blogs.  Commenting on blogs that somehow pertain to your business’s service or product is a great way to speak to online users who are specifically interested in your trade or industry.  Be sure to add quality comments and include a back link to your site.

As you can see, there are many things you can do to improve the efficacy of your site’s web presence.  On and Off Page Search Engine Optimization Tips are only part of it.   If you want to get the most out our your website, email cheryl@crackerjack-consulting where SEO is a specialty.  I’d love to hear your comments…what type of Search Engine Optimization Tips do you recommend?

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What Should Your Google Places Listing Include?

Posted on December 13, 2011 by Cheryl

I had a couple of questions after my last post about Google places, so I thought I would discuss it a bit more.

OK…So you’ve done your research and decided that a Google Places listing is the next obvious step in modernizing your business’s marketing scheme.  Now it’s time to set up your Places page and optimize it so you can get the best results for your efforts.  There are a number of ways you can create a Places page for your business that will get noticed and that will yield customer return.  Your Google Places listing should include these five things:

Your business name, exactly as it appears on your business license.  Do not attempt to add keywords, taglines, or URLs to your business name in order to get more hits, as Google is smart to this practice and will boot you off for it.  That means that if your business’s name is “Speedy Recovery,” you must list it as such, even if you know a title like “Speedy Document Recovery and Retrieval” might get more hits.

Your business’s location.  You must use a physical address.  Post office box listings will be removed by Google.  List the exact address, rather than street intersections, and avoid including anything in the address lines that does not pertain to your address, such as keywords, URLs, or taglines.  If you have more than one location, create a Google Places listing for each location rather than attempt to include more than one address in the listing.  If you are mobile and have a service area rather than a business location, then use the address of the central office or business headquarters.

Contact information.  Provide a working telephone number for your business, where someone can be reached during business hours.  Additionally, include your company’s website and email address.

Business Categories.  Google will allow you to choose up to five categories for your business, but you are required to choose at least one.  Choose simple, general categories that will return the most hits.  Customized category names are less likely to be included in searches.

Compelling business description.  Take care in writing up your business’s description.  Include keywords, but only in a way that will flow naturally for readers.  Be sure to impart your business’s purpose, as well as what makes you stand out amongst others in your industry.  Upload photos and videos to support the business description.  Remember that the way you present your business on your Google Places page is what will either drive customers to your business or away from your business and to the competition.

Congratulations on making the smart decision to claim your Google Places page.  Now you need to make the most of it.  Contact us, businessname, where optimizing your Google listing is our specialty.  We can be reached by phone, at 888-840-6414, or email: cheryl@crackerjack-consulting.com.

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