FACTORS TO CONSIDER BEFORE HIRING A SEO PROFESSIONAL
You've heard about search engine optimization, but you're not entirely sure if it's for you. Luckily for you, we took the time to break down the factors to consider before hiring an SEO professional. Download our white paper for all the information you'll need. In addition to the white paper, you'll receive emails from us periodically on all things digital marketing.
In April of 2015 Google unveiled a mobile-friendly ranking algorithm. It was announced that next month Google will be giving this algorithm a ranking signal boost. This will help increase search engine rankings for sites that have mobile-friendly pages and responsive layouts.
The good news is if your sites are already mobile-friendly then you will not be affected by this update. It is unknown at this point if this algorithm will further boost your Google rankings if you are mobile-friendly or if you will stay as is. Another bit of information is that if you have great, relevant content but do not have a mobile-friendly site, you can still rank well on Google.
This update is not the nail in the coffin if you do not yet have a mobile-friendly site; just make sure that your content is awesome. However, if you want to optimize your site for mobile, contact us today!
ForeSee found that satisfaction scores for social media sites dropped a point from 69 to 68 in 2013. Specific Social Media Sites like Twitter, Facebook and Pinterest saw gains in their satisfaction scores, while Google+ showed a dramatic decline. Full results are in the table below.
Source: ForSee Results/ACSI (2013)
When asked to pinpoint areas of decreased satisfaction, most users pointed to the presence of ads. Social Sites must continue to balance the equation between advertising and user satisfaction.
Google Recruits “City Experts” to Write Google+ Reviews
To qualify as a City Expert you have to be an active reviewer on Google+ — defined as 50 reviews total, 5 reviews per month average. Incentives to join are as follows:
Free swag
Online recognition
Access to exclusive events in their local areas
Google is struggling to get local reviews and the company is trying a number of things. Only time will tell if this tactic will work.
Google Launches New Ad Unit For Responsive Sites
Google has launched a new beta test for a responsive AdSense unit that is specifically designed to run on sites featuring responsive design.
Developers can use the same kind of CSS media queries used in building their responsive sites to build these responsive ad units. This, Google says, gives advertisers the ability to “now dynamically specify the size of the ad that will be served, adapting it to fit the way your site renders a page on a particular device.” The only thing developers need to ensure is that the size of the ad unit they specify for each screen size matches one of Google’s standard ad sizes.
Google continues to encourage the use of responsive design techniques wherever possible.
Bottom Line: Google is busy with updates and trying to ensure that they remain the leader in search. Consumers have spoken on the subject of too many online ads or ads that do not fit within the context of the content being viewed. Now the question becomes how social sites will continue to deliver ads, and generate revenues, without losing their audience.
Eric Van Cleave is a Partner in Zenergy Works, A Santa Rosa, California based Website Development, SEO and Online Marketing Firm.
Over 100 Million tablets (ie. iPad) will sell in 2012. PC sales are projected to decrease in 2013, an almost unprecedented event. According to a study by Nielsen, the majority of mobile subscribers in the United States own smartphones. The problem for website designers and business owners becomes how do you make sure that your web presence displays properly in all of these competing environments? The only sure answer is to create a Responsive Web Design.
A responsive web design uses code called “media queries” to determine the screen resolution of device that is displaying the website. The images and grids of the website are designed in a fashion that allows them to resize themselves to fit the screen. One version of the site morphs to display on the screen that the website visitor is using.
Many have been discouraged by the cost of responsive web design due to the fact that it is somewhat labor intensive for the web developer. In the long run, I firmly believe that responsive web design will be the most cost effective method of addressing the explosion in tablets, smartphones and even larger monitors that web users are using to view websites. From a marketing standpoint, Google itself has recommended responsive web design as the best practice in creating a site that is compatible with the new proliferation of web browsing environments. There is a proven protocol to optimize mobile sites and avoid duplicate content issues with the conventional site. But if you subtract the cost of time and effort required to create mobile sites and implement the correct strategy for mobile SEO from the additional cost of the responsive design, and factor in that the responsive web design is a long-term solution, the responsive design option becomes much more affordable, even for a small to medium sized business.
Bottom Line: Responsive web design is the best solution we have to effectively reach and provide a positive experience for the website visitors that use the ever-growing number of portable internet-enabled devices, such as smartphones, in the marketplace.
Eric Van Cleave is a Partner in Zenergy Works, A Responsive Website Design Firm in Santa Rosa, California Zenergy Works also works with SEO, SMO, and Ecommerce Website Development.
We use cookies on this site. Cookies are small text files that are stored on your computer by websites. Cookies are widely used and help to optimize the pages that you view. By using this site, you agree to their use. Cookie settingsACCEPT
Privacy & Cookies Policy
Privacy Overview
This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these cookies, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may have an effect on your browsing experience.
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.
The good news is if your sites are already mobile-friendly then you will not be affected by this update. It is unknown at this point if this algorithm will further boost your Google rankings if you are mobile-friendly or if you will stay as is. Another bit of information is that if you have great, relevant content but do not have a mobile-friendly site, you can still rank well on Google.
