In it’s most basic form, content strategy with regard to your website defines the way content is planned, created, shared, curated and archived.

Whether you are a small business writing a few blog posts a month or a large corporation making hundreds of posts per month, a solid content strategy will help to ensure your content team stays on track.

Below is an overview of the different components of content strategy. If you have any questions please don’t hesitate to contact us!

Web Content Strategy includes:

Current Analysis

• Compare your site’s content with the competition
• Objectively identify strengths/weaknesses
• Determine present message
• Explore needs of niche
• Information architecture investigation
• Set goals based on information obtained

Planning

• Clear vision of your brand and voice
• Budgeting
• Marketing methodologies
• Identify content sources
• Content production workflow
• Staffing
• Working within WordPress as a CMS
• Metadata organization
• Categorization, tagging, heirarchical structure of content
• Design/UX

Content Creation

• How will content be obtained
• Copywriting
• Syndication
• User created
• Other
• Graphic Design
• Visual – Video, Images
• - Social – FB, Twitter, LinkedIn, etc.
• Content QA
• SEO

Maintenance

• Re-Analysis as needed
• Periodic auditing of published content
• Analytics tracking and reporting

Web Content Strategy Basics is a post from: WordPress Websites SEO Marketing

One thing that the guide makes it a point to highlight, and which we also emphasize, is that it is important not to get lost in the minutia of the little tweaks and changes recommended by the search engines. At the end of the day you want to build websites for PEOPLE, because ultimately they are your consumers – not search engines.

Of course, if reading 30+ page document on the intricacies of search engines isn’t how you prefer to spend your Sunday, we are more than happy to offer our help.

Google’s SEO Starter Guide is a post from: WordPress Websites SEO Marketing

This change does not mean standards and best practices are out the window. It just means that simply doing “traditional SEO” is no longer enough – you have to broaden your scope. Having a website with a solid permalink structure, strong titles, the proper use of semantic markup and data organization is still very important, but isn’t enough to ensure your rankings.

The overall experience of the website, whether the site appears trustworthy, the quality of design, the ability of a visitor to navigate the site effectively, how long a visitor stays on your site – all of these metrics (and more) are now taken into account when your site is analyzed. Sites without any social media presence are more likely to appear as “spam”, and sites with unique, well-written content can be penalized if it appears to be written solely for the purposes of SEO.

Is Content Still King? is a post from: WordPress Websites SEO Marketing

In this article we will do a quick overview of the top 7 factors that can help strengthen your local search ranking.

7 Tips to Help Get You To The Top of Local Search

1. Name, Address, Phone Number (NAP)

Make sure that the name, address (physical address preferably if you have one) and phone number for your listing is shown on your website in a format that search engines can read (i.e. make sure it is NOT an image)

2. Pick The Proper Categories in Google Places and Other Indicies

Your small business ranking depends on whether or not you properly categorize what your business does. For example, if you are a doctor, list yourself as a doctor, not in the hospital section.

3. List Your Business on A Number of Sites

The number of times your company’s NAP information is listed on other sites plays an important role in your local ranking. Make sure when completing these other profiles that you use your NAP in the same format, but perform slight changes to the wording related to the description of your business to avoid too much content duplication.

4. Verify Your Google Places Page

This is the easiest one on the list. Make sure that you take the time to claim ownership of your Google Places page. Once you’ve claimed ownership add the pertinent data and complete the profile in its entirety.

5. Get Inbound Links

The internet is a popularity contest. The more websites that link to you, the better. This is the most difficult items to tackle on the list, and many internet marketers focus solely on nurturing relationships to obtain high quality links.

6. Page Rank

Find out your website’s Google Page Rank, and research your company’s general ranking on Google. These factors also play a role in local search. Learn the basics of SEO, and/or hire an SEO company to help you achieve higher rankings.

7. Use One Phone Number

Make sure that the phone number being used on your Google Places page (and other sites) is the same as the phone number being used on your website.

SEO Tips for Local Ranking is a post from: WordPress Websites SEO Marketing

Another great feature of WordPress is that it allows for seamless integration with social media including Facebook, Twitter and other social sites. WordPress is also optimized for SEO, which means more people will find your content on the web. By using WordPress you can choose how much control you want over the future updates and management of your site. We offer a variety of WordPress Website Support Packages. If you want a WordPress tutorial and individualized lesson on how to manage your WordPress site on your own after it is created, we’re ok with that too.

Why WordPress for SEO? is a post from: WordPress Websites SEO Marketing

At Design SEO Hosting, we include basic SEO services in all web development packages we offer. We believe that web development includes all parts of website creation – from design all the way to hosting. We design, construct, code and present your website so it is appealing to search engine spiders and web visitors. We specialize in SEO friendly web design utilizing WordPress as a Content Management System. We hold all the sites we create to a strict standard of aesthetics, visibility, readability and function.

If you already have a WordPress website, we also provide hourly SEO consulting and auditing for existing websites. We are able to tackle issues related to SEO myths, optimization strategies and address reasons why you may be seeing a decline in traffic. An audit is typically our first step in assessing and improving your site’s SEO. During an audit we will perform keyword research, examine the websites of your direct competition, review your site’s code, file-naming, structure, layout, user experience, content and other metrics. Once the research is completed, we will compile a report which will outline the best approach for improving your organic search rankings. From there you can determine how much (if any) assistance you need from us in implementing the suggested changes.

What Good Is A Website No One Can Find? is a post from: WordPress Websites SEO Marketing

The information provided in the questionnaire will be strictly used to analyze your website and will be kept confidential.

SEO/SEM Inquiry and Data Collection is a post from: WordPress Websites SEO Marketing

Organic search ranking is usually due to SEO, and paid ranking is usually due to SEM. If your site ranks highly in the organic rankings on Google, then you have most likely gotten there because you have a solid SEO structure backed by well written content that others find valuable. In contrast, those ranking among the paid rankings on Google have usually gotten there due to paying for placement for particular keywords using Google Adwords.

Another way to think of organic rank vs. paid rank is to compare them to magazine advertisements. If someone is said to be organically ranking high within a magazine, they would be the entity receiving a writeup, whereas someone with a high paid ranking has paid for an advertising spot within the pages of that magazine. It is much harder to get a free mention in a magazine than it is to pay for an advertisement, but the benefits can be similar. Ultimately you want to strive for high organic placement, but well executed paid placements also serve a purpose.

Which is better – a high organic search ranking or a paid ranking?

Each have their benefits, but only a paid ranking has a drawback (the money you spend to be listed within the paid search results).  Everyone should always be working to be listed higher within the organic rankings, but not everyone is going to see a major benefit to using paid placement advertising to drive traffic to their website.

At the end of the day, both a a high organic search ranking or a paid ranking will get you hits.  The only question that remains is – once those visitors arrive at your website, will they stick around long enough to complete the call for action you have laid out for them?  Is your site structured well enough for them to see the ad you want them to click, buy the product you’re promoting, or join the cause you want them to be a part of?

Organic Ranking and Paid Ranking is a post from: WordPress Websites SEO Marketing

SEO, or Search Engine Optimization, deals with improving the volume and quality of traffic to your website using techniques which focus on natural or organic search engine rankings.  SEO needs to be the primary area addressed for anyone wishing to establish themselves on the internet. The goal of SEO is to make sure you can be found by both search engines and human beings interested in your information. Good SEO is the foundation of any website, and many aspects of SEM can be rendered useless without a sturdy base of SEO to support your website.

Creating a website for your business is a very similar to building a brick and mortar storefront. There are going to be other people out there that are already focusing in on the same niche as you; you need to do what you can to set yourself apart. The best way to do this on the web is to employ the use of strong SEO practices, coupled with a user friendly website. Using well written and unique content, properly structuring titles, making sure all titles are placed at the optimal location within your website, utilizing headers, making use of meta tags, employing alt tags for images, intelligently using internal and external links, and proper sitemap creation go a long way in creating a strong, search engine optimized web presence – this is true even in markets with stiff competition.

Once the supporting walls, flooring and roof have been constructed for your site through solid SEO practices, you then need to focus on completing the job. This would include focused keyword building, creating unique content, building links and ensuring the site is friendly for both robots and people through testing.  Within a few days of getting your site on the web the search engine spiders will drop by to check on the quality and relevance of your site.  If the search engine spiders like what they see, you will notice your website moving up in the rankings, as well as your page rank and traffic statistics.  Be patient, as with all good things, the results of solid SEO can take time.

What EXACTLY is SEO? is a post from: WordPress Websites SEO Marketing

SEO:  Search Engine Optimization

SEM:  Search Engine Marketing

SEO and SEM are two distinct terms referring to interrelated methodologies for making your business, product and/or information visbile on the web.  In a general sense, SEO focuses on the framework of your website, while SEM works to expose as many people as possible to your website through marketing.

In short, SEO deals with improving the volume and quality of traffic to your website using techniques which focus on natural or organic search engine rankings.  Optimizing your site through SEO will focus on creating a user and search engine friendly architecture, unique content, frequently updated content, the use of highly searchable images/video/other media, manipulating your site html for maximum visibility, among other techniques.

SEM refers to internet marketing itself, as a whole, and may also include SEO in a broad sense.  SEM another way to establish a web presence, and it is generally done through SEO, social networking, paid inclusions within directories and other sites, various forms of advertising including AdWords and other types of paid placement.

How do I know if I need SEO or SEM?

Through a detailed analysis of your website and current analytics we can determine what your site, company and/or brand can benefit best from.  We’re all about results, and can consult with you on what strategies will show you the greatest improvement in the rank, visits, page rank and other benchmarks based on your target market and goals.

SEO vs. SEM – What’s the Difference? is a post from: WordPress Websites SEO Marketing