Why is Google important when talking about search results?
Google has a 94.93% market share in Australia by the most recent report http://gs.statcounter.com/#search_engine-AU-monthly-200910-200912-bar. For this reason it is understood that the majority of consumers and potential clients will be using Google as their first contact point to find information or businesses they require.
When can I expect to be on page 1?
There are a lot of variables which can affect the timeframe needed to reach page 1 on Google. Some of these factors include:
- The age of your website – Google ranks sites based on various things, they rate older domains and businesses higher because the ‘spider programs’ which crawl the internet and determine rankings are programmed to rate older domain names and businesses as being more experienced in their respective field.
- Keyphrase competitiveness – If the phrases you are targeting have a lot of competition then it means there is more work and time involved in climbing the ladder of web success. This also means though that once you have achieved a ranking in the first page you can expect a larger volume of enquiries than the less competitive phrases will bring. See the question regarding keyphrase selection below.
- Interference – In another web designer or developer removes the work done by our SEO team, which in turn has cause Google to drop the clients rankings significantly.
- Algorithm updates – Google periodically makes changes to the algorithm it uses to determine rankings. When this happens you can expect some shifting to occur in your rankings, up and down, for a period of approximately 4-6 weeks before the rankings settle again. This is because Google is deciding where to rank your site on a more permanent basis.
With all of these variables in mind we monitor your rankings regularly and will allocate extra resources if needed to ensure your campaign continues to build momentum and climb steadily. Our aim is to establish our clients as the market leaders in their industry, as most people understand this is not an overnight process. From small beginnings come big successes!
The average timeframe for reaching page 1 results is between 2 months to 5 months depending on the competitiveness of the keyphrases, which leads to:
How do I select which keyphrases to optimise for my website?
- The first determining factor in selecting keyphrases is to ensure they are relevant to your business, products and services. For example if you are an online paint store, there is no point in targeting a phrase like ‘printing’ as this is not going to bring you customers who are looking for you, and will increase your ‘bounce rate’ (the number of visitors to your site who leave without following any links or purchasing) and this has a negative effect on your Google rankings.
- Secondly you need to ensure you utilise phrases your customers will use when searching for you. If your business is selling ‘photo-voltaic cell solar hot water systems’ then chances are that a vast majority of your potential customers will be searching for ‘solar hot water systems’ or ‘solar hot water’. Unless someone has knowledge of your products they will use generic common terms instead of industry specific jargon. Within your final list we recommend combining open-ended phrases with specifics so you capture both the educated and uneducated sections of your market.
- Finally you need to think about your budget. The higher the competition is for a phrase, the more costs are involved in the offsite optimisation of your website. Search Engine Optimisation is an ongoing process and can take time. If you have limited funding you may wish to begin focussing on ‘long tail keyphrases’ (phrases with more words or that are location specific) as these are easier to optimise and will rise in the rankings quicker, which means you will get more leads in a shorter timeframe. The best way to achieve tis is by posting daily or weekly blog entires. In which case it is recommended that your website includes and integrated Wordpress Blog. Once your business revenue grows from converting these leads into sales, then you can opt to expand the campaign or to focus on more competitive phrases.
It is always our goal to ensure your business. We have no start up fee and guarantee our performance to share some of the risk with you, but please bear in mind that this is an investment in your future success, not an overnight solution to financial worries. Always discuss your expectations with our SEO consultants when establishing your goals so they can advise on phrase choices that will suit your business needs.
What other services do you offer, and how can these services help me?
- PPC/Adwords campaign set up and management – Pay Per Click is Google’s quick answer to getting your business noticed. These are the ‘sponsored links’ at the top, and right hand column, of a search results page. You pay a nominated amount to Google for each person who clicks on your ad. Depending on the phrases and position you target the costs can become quite high. For example some companies are paying up to $25 for every person who clicks on their ad, whether that person becomes a sale or not! You pay a monthly management fee for us to monitor the results and alter the campaign and ad wording if necessary, plus deciding how much you would like to use as a ‘click budget’ (how much per day/month you wish to spend on people clicking your ad and visiting your site). Once your budget is used up, your ad disappears from the results. You will get quicker increases in traffic, but this is a more costly solution than good SEO.
- Google Maps – Google allows up to 10 listings on a Google Map that appears on the first page of search results. These listings show businesses near you that offer what you are looking for. With a large number of businesses competing for these top spots we recommend having an expert optimise your map listing. WME offers this service for an affordable annual fee. We ensure your listing is optimised for the full 12 months you have paid for.
- Social Media – The rapid growth in these networks has seen millions of users sign up in just months. With Facebook, Twitter, Myspace, LinkedIn, Digg, Flickr, Youtube, Vimeo and more, the industry you work in will determine which networking sites will best represent your business so discuss the options with one of our consultants to decide which network will benefit you. All of the above can be a great way to notify customers of new products, press releases, industry news and also to gain honest feedback from your most important asset – your customers.
- Video Editing – We can either send a digital producer to your business if you are local, or use video footage you shoot yourself (this needs to be sent to WME – contact us for format information) to edit and optimise videos either for your website, or for Youtube and Vimeo. A well edited video will portray a professional image and can include product information, highlights of your work, or even client testimonials. A video will hold people’s attention on your website, and if you update videos to Youtube regularly, can bring in repeat business and further your market exposure.
For further questions please Katie Larking 9010 5764 or info@small-business-web-design.net.au or fill in our online enquiry form.
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