While there are billions of searches on Google and other search engines each year, there are millions of websites competing for the first page of results. If you run a business in Oakville, you need to have a presence on the internet. It is important to reach local customers who turn to online search more often than the yellow pages or other offline directories. If you sell your goods and services outside of Oakville, or even outside of Ontario, then a web presence can be your most cost effective way to reach customers in distant markets. But how do you get your website found and served up by the search engines, and how do you reach customers online?
WebMAD – Web Design and Marketing – in Oakville helps business do just that. Their marketing director explains the mystery of how
the search engines decide what to serve up: “There are 2 things you can do to get your website noticed – on page optimization and off page optimization. On page means your website itself. If there are no keywords, titles, meta-tags, or language that the search engines can understand, then they won’t get a clear picture of what your site has to offer. Old table based sites, flash sites, and several other types of code do not give the search engines the cues they need. Google bots or other web crawlers go through all the millions of websites every few days. If your site is regularly updated, has clear code and keywords, then the engines will know what you offer and you will have a better chance of being served up. Things like slow loading speed, errors in code, duplicate content and other things can weaken your site. If you haven’t updated or developed your website in the last 4 years, chances are it is outdated. Also, web design is not web marketing. Just because it looks good doesn’t mean it is optimized.”
The other important factor is your off-page optimization. This means the strength of your site in cyber universe. The search engines want you to update your site regularly with fresh new content, and they want cyber community and interaction. “You should promote your site using many of the online tools and sites available. List your site in appropriate directories, do press releases, blogs, articles, videos and use social media, including Facebook, twitter, Linkedin and more. Join relevant on-line groups, participate in forums and search for any online conversation about your brand or company. If you don’t have the time or internet savvy to do internet marketing yourself, then have someone else do it for you.”
Wondering if your website makes the grade? Call WebMAD for a free 1/2 hour website analysis at (905) 582-4357.
