OPTIMISING AND PROMOTING YOUR WEBSITE Michael Heraghty, Heraghty Internet Consultants .
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Transcript of OPTIMISING AND PROMOTING YOUR WEBSITE Michael Heraghty, Heraghty Internet Consultants .
OPTIMISING AND PROMOTING YOUR WEBSITE
Michael Heraghty, Heraghty Internet Consultants
www.heraghty.net
www.mediajunk.com
WHY HAVE A WEBSITE?
Number of People Using the Internet:
1996: 30 Million
2000: 330 Million
2003: 616 Million
2005: 938 Million
2006: 1.04 Billion
InternetUsers
1996
2000
2003
2005
2006
HOW MANY PAGES ON THE WEB?
Number of Pages Indexed by Google:
1996: 24 Million
2000: 1 Billion
2003: 3.3 Billion
2005: 24 Billion
2006: Aiming for 100 Billion
WebPages
1996
2000
2003
2005
2006
VISITORS PER DAY
Q: The typical website gets [?] unique visitors per day?
a) 0 – 10 visitors a day
b) 10 – 50 visitors a day
c) 50 – 200 visitors a day
d) 200 + visitors a day
EXPECTING VISITORS?
JAWS = Just Another Web Site
Most websites look like one another.
Most people judge websites within one-twentieth of a second - the blink of an eye.
Don’t be Just Another Web Site!
LET YOUR WEBSITE EVOLVE
1. Specify Your Website’s Objectives
2. Optimise for Users (Usability)
3. Optimise for Search Engines (SEO)
4. Measure Your Website’s Performance (Analytics)
5. Repeat Steps 1 – 4
SPECIFY YOUR OBJECTIVES
What do you want the website to achieve?
- direct sales? - generate enquiries?
- provide timely information to customers?- etc.
What do you want website visitors to do?
- become members?- return regularly?- fill out a certain form?- click on advertisements?- etc.
IDENTIFY YOUR TARGET AUDIENCE
Who is Your Website For?
- Those already aware of you?
- People in Ireland only?
- Those searching a certain product or service?
- Those planning to visit a certain destination?
You & Your Web Designers = Your Website Visitors
/
Everyone involved in designing and creating a website inevitably becomes too close to it.
Website developers may actively resist usability suggestions, especially when they are made just before launch!
GET OUTSIDE HELP
Usability testing with one user early in the project is better than testing 50 near the end.
Even a makeshift test with one user will reveal things you wouldn't have known about your site.
TESTING, TESTING
USABILITY REVIEWS
Expert ReviewsCarried out by usability specialists.
Can be an audit of an existing website, or a review of a proposed design.
A Good Usability Audit Will
• Identify potential difficulties for users
• Explain each issue clearly, using screenshots
• Give each issue a severity ranking
• Propose a solution for each issue
Users once “surfed” the web… today, they search the web.
Home PageUser enters search query
Search Results1. AAA.com2. BBB.com3. CCC.com
AAAUser visits Result 1 … and stays
ORUser visits Result 1, quickly leaves, visits Result 2 …
OR … 3, 4, 5 …… OR User refines search query
HOW WE USE THE WEB TODAY
1. Identify Target Keyphrases
2. Include the Keyphrases in the Page
3. Get Quality, Relevant Links to Your Site
OPTIMISING FOR SEARCH ENGINES: THE BASICS
1. Identify Target Keyphrases
- What phrases would potential customers type in?
- What queries have already been conducted?
- How strong is the competition?
KEYPHRASE RESEARCH
MOST POPULAR QUERY TYPES
1-word phrases 19%
2-word phrases 33%
3-word phrases 26%
4-word phrases 13%
5-word phrases 6%
6-word phrases 2%
7-word phrases 1%
2. Include Keyphrases in Page Text
KEYWORD OPTIMISATION
• Once in the Page Title
• Once in a Heading on the page
• Once in Regular Text on the page
Ensure keywords blend in – write for users, not
search engines!
3. Get Links to the Site
- Get links to many pages – not just the homepage
- Get links from reputable sites with similar themes to
yours
- Link exchanges are good but one-way links are better
LINK STRATEGY
AVOID SEARCH ENGINE SPAM
• Hidden or Invisible Text
• Keyword Stuffing (in Alt Tags, Below Footer, etc.)
• Bounce Pages or other Cloaking Techniques
• Plagiarised Content
• Links from Poor-Quality Sites
• Links from Sites with Unrelated Content
OTHER PROMOTION TECHNIQUES
• Offer a useful free tool or service • get a quotation online• download the free industry report we’ve written• useful timetables• free fonts• etc.
• Include a link to your site at the bottom of your
emails
• Include your URL in all stationery, printed
advertising and other traditional media
• Create an industry-related weblog and update
regularly
• Create an online/email newsletter and update
semi-regularly
• Viral Marketing (games, jokes, video clips, etc.)