Proliferation

Jul 22
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Reasons Why Social Media Is Important to SEO

By | SEO, Utah, Utah SEO | No Comments

If your SEO strategy doesn’t involve social media, then please, fire your SEO team. Social media and SEO go together like cookies and milk. If you want your company’s reach to go beyond the borders of Utah, you’ll need to integrate an SEO strategy that involves social media.

Social Media Boosts Your Link Building Like Crazy

In its simplest definition, SEO is about building links to your website, and social media is about engaging with people and promoting the things you care about. Let’s say your company that’s based in Utah has 500 followers on Twitter. If you post a link to an article or a page from your website on Twitter, that post has a chance of being shared by at least a quarter of your followers. Every time that link is shared, it will go to a whole new audience outside of Utah that you couldn’t reach.

Twitter handles 19 billion search queries a month (that’s five times more than Bing), and if your tweet is shared enough, it could be prominently displayed as a search result on Twitter. If your tweet comes across the eyes of an influential site, they could feature it on their site, and that would boost your SEO on Google immensely. People from outside of Utah will take notice of your company.

Having an Active Social Media Presence Builds Traffic to Your Website

SEO will boost your website’s presence on search results, but that doesn’t mean you get a large returning audience. Social Media builds a real audience that brings real traffic to your website — but that’s only if you have an active social media presence. Interact with your followers and post links to your site, and you’ll see your web traffic go up.

Social Media Works as Quality Control for Your Site

Social media can be brutal sometimes. If your followers don’t like what you wrote, they’ll be sure to tell you. Or maybe you post a link to an article that gets no likes or shares. That probably means the post wasn’t interesting to your audience. Your audience knows what they want and don’t want, and if you respond to how they interact, you’ll be able to make more content that your followers want to see, which boosts your traffic and your presence online. This comes back to the idea of having quality over quantity. You need a lot of links to build up your SEO potential, but don’t let your quality slip in the process.

Jul 15
0

What Is SEO?

By | SEO | No Comments

SEO stands for search engine optimization. Search engine optimization refers to the process of procuring increased organic (non-paid) traffic to your webpage from major search engines such as Google, Bing and Yahoo!

The more effort is put into optimizing a webpage for search engines, the more likely that webpage is to rank among the first page of search results for a particular set of search terms. For digital marketing companies, this is the end goal — a high-ranking, authoritative webpage that brings in traffic from all corners of the internet, whether consumers are searching from their homes in Utah or European coffee shops.

So How Does SEO Work, Exactly?

Let’s start with search engines. Search engines have two major functions: crawling the internet for information and indexing said information, and providing search users with the most relevant webpages according to their chosen search terms.

Search engine crawlers (or “spiders”) accomplish this by first gathering a backlog of information on the world’s websites. Search engine crawlers will take into account a site’s written content, overall site organization, URL structure, site elements, ALT attributes, rich media and more. All of this information helps search engines better understand what a webpage is about.

Search engine crawlers also gather information by way of links; if a number of webpages related to a particular topic all link to one external webpage that’s related, the webpage that is the destination of those links is determined to be the most authoritative of them all — and therefore the most likely to show up on the search results for that topic.

Say for example someone performs a search for “restaurants in Utah,” the search engine crawlers would go through millions of webpages and mazes of links related to “restaurants” and “Utah” until they come up with the most relevant and authoritative results for that search query. Getting your webpage into one of those top results is the purpose of SEO.

SEO Is for Humans and Search Engines Alike

Despite its name, SEO isn’t only important for search engines. Often, optimizing a webpage for search engines and optimizing a webpage for human visitors are one and the same.

A well-optimized webpage will do one of three things: provide a transaction, such as purchasing a particular product, provide information, such as the best restaurants in Utah, or simply exist as a destination to which people are trying to navigate. Not only that, a webpage that employs good SEO will accomplish one of these three things well, making the experience as smooth as possible for the consumer.

In the end, the webpage that accomplishes the searcher’s goal in the best and most efficient way will be the webpage that sits on the iron throne of the search rankings.

Jul 15
0

Keyword Research 101

By | SEO | No Comments

Keywords are the single most important aspect of SEO. As such, keyword research takes on an equal importance in the world of SEO; without keyword research, marketing companies cannot know what terms their target audience is using to find relevant products on search engines — something that can cost you dearly.

Get Inside the Customer’s Head

Keyword research begins with an in-depth analysis of your business itself. What kinds of products or services do you sell? What keywords do you want your website to rank highly for? Most importantly, what terms might a potential buyer use to look up something related to your product or service? When it comes to keyword research, the more you can get inside your customer’s head, the better.

Before you decide on a specific keyword or keywords for your SEO strategy, you need to figure out the relative value of that keyword for your business. First, pick a keyword that is immediately relevant to your business. If your business is a marketing agency in Utah, then your keyword might be “marketing agency Utah.”

Perform a Search for Your Chosen Terms

Plug that keyword into Google, Yahoo or Bing and see what results come up. Does that keyword pull up 15 million results or 150 million? For SEO beginners, the more specific your keyword, the better — keywords that target a niche market (such as “marketing agencies Utah”) tend to have fewer competitors, making it easier for your business to rank higher among them. Only once you’ve conquered the niche market you should expand to more generic keywords.

Utilize Keyword Research Tools

Once you’ve done enough of your own keyword research, it’s time to enlist the help of a keyword research tool. The Google Adwords Keyword Planner is the most popular option for this; Google Adwords can tell you how much traffic one of your chosen keywords is likely to bring in. Purchase a sample ad campaign and see how well one of your sample keywords performs; if it doesn’t look like it’ll bring in enough traffic, move on to the next keyword until you find one that works.

Find the Sweet Spot Between Search Volume and Buyer Intent

The best keywords are ones that not only bring in a decent amount of traffic, but are immediately relevant to your product or service — no matter to what point in the buying process they relate.

Whether you’re selling outdoor adventure products in Utah or nautical instruments on the East Coast, your keywords need to be relevant, searchable and not too difficult to rank highly for. Once you’ve got those keywords singled out, you’re well on your way to a highly successful SEO strategy.

Jul 15
0

Just the Basics: SEO FAQs

By | SEO | No Comments

The more effort put into optimizing a webpage for search engines, the more likely that webpage is to rank among the first page of search results for a particular set of search terms. For digital marketing companies, this is the end goal — a high-ranking, authoritative webpage that brings in traffic from all corners of the internet, whether consumers are searching from their homes in Utah or European coffee shops.

FSEO-FAQ

Jul 15
0

What Do Beacons Mean for SEO?

By | SEO | No Comments

The world of SEO is always changing, but SEO experts are predicting an unprecedented change is coming — that change is called a Beacon.

What Is a Beacon?

The word beacon conjures up images of lighthouses and shining cities on a hill, but in this case, a Beacon is a small, Bluetooth-enabled device. While most aspects of the SEO world are digital, Beacons are placed in physical locations. Using an app, consumers can select to have alerts sent from a Beacon directly to their phones.

How Does It Work?

For example, a couple could choose to receive alerts from their favorite restaurant in Park City, Utah. The next time the couple is enjoying an evening stroll downtown and walks past the restaurant, the Beacon will broadcast a notification with the latest dinner deal for two. The notification will pop up on the couples’ cell phones, and what do you know, they think, “Maybe we will eat out tonight.”

Obviously Beacons aren’t exclusive to Utah. They aren’t even exclusive to restaurants. Small businesses, large businesses, retail stores, non-profit organizations, major corporations, events, airports and even entire cities could use Beacons at their physical locations to advertise to consumers. To top it all off, Beacons are small enough to place on a desk and inexpensive, costing an average of $30.

Beacons and SEO

So what do Beacons mean for SEO? Beacon technology is still growing and developing, but its immediate SEO effects include ratings and website traffic.

Initial consumer groups give Beacons positive reviews. As a business’ Beacon draws consumers in, many of them use corresponding apps to give the business positive reviews. This, of course, contributes positively to search engine rankings.

As Beacons reach out to consumers, they provide another opportunity for more individuals to visit Beacon owners’ websites. This creates higher numbers of new site visitors, in turn improving Google rankings.

The ultimate impact of Beacons on SEO is yet to be seen, but whether you’re a small business in Utah or a major city on the East Coast, now is the time embrace the Beacon.

Jul 15
0

The Holy Trinity of SEO

By | SEO, Utah SEO | No Comments

While most marketers and other internet-savvy people have a general knowledge of search engine optimization, as known as SEO, fewer people understand the key elements of SEO. SEO is used from the East Coast to Utah, by businesses both large and small — but how does it all fit together?

So what are the various processes that make SEO work? There are arguably three main aspects of SEO: on-site optimization, off-site optimization and analytics, or measuring those key SEO metrics to make sure your website is performing as well as it should. Take a closer look at the three main elements of SEO: the holy trinity.

FSEO-Holy-trinity-full

Jul 11
0

Why you Should Hire an Actual Agency to do Your SEO

By | SEO, Utah SEO | No Comments

If you have a small business in Utah you may feel that your SEO needs are covered easily by yourself or whoever runs your company website. If your business starts to grow, your SEO needs are going to change, and hiring an actual SEO agency is going to be your next step to stay ahead of the game.

The Touch of Professionalism

No matter how nice your website or blog may look, at one point you’re going to want a professional writer who understands how to boost your personal SEO to be part of your company. At Fusion 360 for example, every writer has either an English degree or a Communications degree. With those credentials you know you’re hiring people who know what they’re doing and will do their best to represent you.

Secrets of the Trade

As a Utah business owner, you probably have more to deal with than where your placement on Google is. While you make the perfect cupcakes, find the best wedding dress or serve the best burger in the state, let someone who has studied the interstices of SEO standings and are positioned to help drive traffic to your business. There’s plenty you don’t know about how SEO moves, and keeping up to date is just one more thing between you and your business goals. Why waste the time when you can hire someone else to do it?

Worth the Cost

You wouldn’t have become a successful business owner if you weren’t smart about money, so value vs. cost is always on your mind when hiring out. Think of this though: How much more could you be making if you were at the top of Google listing for your Utah business? When you have the crowds flocking to your business, the more you’ll have to do to get done, so free up some hands with an SEO agency.

Jun 20
0

Finding Keywords That Fit

By | SEO, Utah, Utah SEO | No Comments

Keywords are the driving force behind effective SEO. In order to increase your rankings online — and in turn increase your business’s success — you must first select relevant keywords. These keywords, when properly selected, have the potential to propel the rest of your SEO strategy to the top.

With the help of a widely experienced professional SEO firm and time spent performing extensive research, your company has the potential to take its SEO strategy to the next level.

Start With What You Know

When you begin the process of selecting keywords, it is important to gather a team and start brainstorming. Scooby Doo and Shaggy didn’t solve a single mystery without the rest of their team — and neither will you.

By allowing members from multiple facets of your company to join in on your SEO brainstorming session, you set your company up for success. The first part of brainstorming requires you to start where you are and with what you know. Make a list of words that are relevantly associated with your company. If you sell shoes in Utah, maybe the keywords “shoes” and “Utah” will show up on your initial list.

From your initial list, fine-tune the possible keyword options. Once you and your team have assembled a list of relevant topics and possible keywords, the true research begins.

Research Brings the Best Results

The easiest way to start your research process is to head to Google. Google some of your possible topics and see what comes up. If you Google the phrase “Utah Shoes” and companies with a vastly different image than your own appear, consider tweaking your keywords.

Perhaps through your research you discover that the phrase “Utah Sandals” pulls up sites similar to your own. Through trial and error, you have discovered a possible keyword.

Your research continues as you experiment with variations on possible keywords. As part of research, select a few competitors and study the keywords used by those companies. This exercise will give you a good idea of what works for keywords and what does not.

Though this phase can be long and difficult, the research pays off when you select keywords that greatly increase SEO — and ipso facto, business.

Polish Up

After you finish research, whittle down your potential keyword list. It is important that you focus on increasing SEO through only a few keywords. Focusing on too many keywords at once decreases the quality and the effectiveness of your SEO strategy.

Consult a SEO firm for a little extra help in selecting the final keywords. Once the keywords have been selected, get to work on creating great content.

Jun 16
0

When Link Spam Hurts SEO

By | Google, SEO, Utah, Utah SEO | No Comments

In an effort to increase SEO, companies often make simple link spam mistakes. Link spam consists of links setup between specific pages that are put in place to capitalize on Googles link-centric algorithms. Though several types of link spam are helpful for SEO, there are just as many types that can hurt.

Knowing the difference between helpful and harmful link spam can save a company’s SEO. Though it can be difficult to discern, professional SEO agencies have the expertise required to help a company get the most out of their link spam.

Blogging Blunders

There several benefits offered by the blogging world, and though SEO specialist often explore the boundaries, individuals must exercise caution. Google has a low tolerance for fake blogs on which anyone can pay for a spot. These guest posts are often low quality and are generally flagged by Google.

If you are featured on one of these sites, make sure your posts are high quality and that you do not over-link. When considering where to place your articles, search out several options. Sites with a low reputation have the potential to damage your SEO.

The Directory Downfall

Google is fairly vocal about how low it ranks links from online directories. Since Google controls your rankings, it is smart to avoid the low-quality directories it so ardently warns against.

Link spam is often placed in directories — and while some of these directories are helpful, others can be detrimental. Make sure your company takes the time to evaluate each directory its links are listed in. This tactic will improve positive SEO and help individuals avoid negative repercussions of poorly placed link spam.

Keyword Catastrophe

Keywords are great way to increase SEO — but when used wrong, keywords can be harmful.

Using unrelated keywords to draw readers in is a dangerous trap, even though it may be tempting to try and increase your readership. If you run a small Utah coffee shop, use “Utah” or “coffee” as a keyword – not smoothies or Washington. Using “Utah” keeps your keywords relevant and your readers happy. Similarly, do not use the keyword “Utah” a million times throughout your article. Keyword stuffing is bad for SEO and incredibly annoying.

Google’s algorithms look for keyword discrepancies — and if you improperly use keywords, your SEO will greatly suffer.

Jun 09
0

What UX Means for Your SEO Strategy

By | Google, SEO, Utah, Utah SEO | No Comments

There’s a problem with the way many companies are approaching SEO. We’re not talking about a problem at a few agencies in Utah. We’re talking about an industry-wide issue, and the issue is this: In an industry where SEO rules supreme, professionals are starting to treat SEO as war for keywords — when in reality SEO is a war for the consumer. You win that war through UX.

What Is UX?

UX is the standard abbreviation for “user experience.” Let’s be frank — it doesn’t matter how many customers end up on your website if they don’t stay. You could effectively use keywords all day long and have the worst UX on the World Wide Web — if your UX stinks, say goodbye to your customers.

How Does UX Work With SEO?

UX and SEO may seem like awkward stepsiblings at first, each on one end of the spectrum professionals have created in their minds of what makes up a successful Web approach. That’s simply not true. UX and SEO actually together work in beautiful harmony.

Think about it. The whole point of SEO is to get visitors onto your website and turn them into customers. In order to do that, you need to create an experience that attracts people, grabs hold of their interest and helps them accomplish what they came to do. It doesn’t matter if they came to book a trip to Moab, Utah or to buy a new DVD player as long as your website helps them do that in the easiest way possible.

Is UX Really That Important?

Don’t sacrifice UX to try and satisfy a Google algorithm. Amazing UX will naturally create an increase as happy customers share and distribute information about their experiences. Sally in Utah will be more than happy to tell her friend Peggy a thousand miles away about the awesome website she just found. She’ll probably tell all her blog followers too.

Keywords will always be important, but they’re a baseline that Google assumes you are already doing. UX is the new frontier of SEO, and as Google’s algorithms become more sophisticated, you can bet that UX will have a dramatic impact on rankings.