Jumpstart

www.happyforachange.com

Tom HartmanHead of Operations (Uniseo)

Lead Web Developer (RedstoneX)

Today’s Agenda

• Starting Your Website

• Improving Your Website

• Useful Tools

• Questions and Answers

Starting Your WebsiteLook before you leap.

Is a Website a Good Idea?

• Is my audience mostly online or offline?

• Do I have the time, money and energy to

invest?

• Can I afford to fail?

• Am I willing to learn from others?

• Can I trust others to work on my behalf?

What is My Ultimate Goal?

• Do I want to make money?

• Do I want to spread information?

• Do I want to provide entertainment?

How Will I Know When I’ve Succeeded?

• How much money do I want to make? And

how often?

• Do I want to reach a large number of

people or just a certain group or type of

person?

• Is this an ongoing project or a short-term

one?

Objectives vs. Strategy vs. Tactics

Objective

Strategy

Tactics

Determine an Objective(What do I want to achieve?)

Define a Strategy(What is my plan of action?)

Decide on Tactics(How do I complete my strategy?)

This is the ultimate goal you’re trying to achieve.

All strategies and tactics you use must have this objective at their core.

Your strategy is a set of tactics and how they will be deployed in order to achieve your objective.

A strategy needs to be measurable in some way to keep track of your progress.

Tactics are mini-strategies. They are short-term methods that, performed according to a strategy, lead to the completion of that strategy.

Overseeing a Strategy

Objective

Strategy

Tactics

Can my objective be accomplished

reasonably?

Will I know when my

strategy has succeeded?

Is my strategy

moving me towards my

goal?

Are my tactics

helping to complete

my strategy?

Yes

Yes

Yes

Yes

No

Choose a new objective.

Define a strategy that’s measurable.

No

Get rid of any wasteful tactic.

No

Define a more focused strategy.

No

(start here)

Improving Your WebsiteNo such thing as a finished website.

Does my Website’s Design Need to be Revamped?

• Is the design of my website helping or

hindering my success?

• Is the text easy to read?

• Do all my images support my goal?

• Are my colors distracting or alluring?

• Is my layout intuitive?

Is my Website Properly Optimized?

• Can my website be found by search

engines (SEO)?

• Does my website take too long to load?

• How many clicks does it take to get from

my home page to the content people are

looking for?

Advantages of Search Engine Optimization

Visibility Targeting

Investment

• Can use programming and content methodologies to target multiple keyword groups

• Ability to segment users

• The higher you rank, the more credibility you have

• Much cheaper over time (and sometimes free)

• Cost is not measured per view or visit

Limitations of Search Engine Optimization

Management

Visibility

Targeting

Investment

• A lot more guesswork involved when SEOing a website

• Can be very difficult to find out what keywords to target

• Unpredictable ranking due to algorithm changes

• Competing with black hat SEO marketers

• SEO is not generally optional

• Sometimes requires a large budget to compete

• Competitors can drive up your costs by clicking on your ads

• Can be very time consuming to setup

• Can take months to a year before results are seen

Time

1. Page CrawlingSearch engines uses automated web crawlers called spiders or bots. They jump from a link to another following every link they find to a

new page.

2. IndexingOnce a bot lands on an indexable page, they store the information in

the search engine’s database.

3. Process QueriesThe search engine process all the pages the bots queried to figure

out what the page is about.

4. Provide Relevant ResultsThe search engine then determines how popular that page is, and for which keywords it should be shown using a complex and ever-

changing algorithm.

SEO

On-site Off-site(Linking & Social Signals)

The Foundation of an Overall SEO Plan

1. On-site Optimization– Keyword optimization– Structure optimization– HTML tag optimization– Content optimization– Strategic linking: Internal links & outbound

links

2. Off-site Optimization– Strategic linking: Link popularity– Social signals

Keyword AnalysisOr what people type when they search.

4 General Categoriesof Keyword Terms

1. Generic2. Primary3. Secondary4. Long Tail (or Tertiary)

Generic Keyword Terms

The term used for a category at its highest level. This is the widest possible range.

Examples:

• Single Words (Cars, Jobs)• Individual Terms (Real Estate)• Feelings (Love, Hate)• Locations (Montreal, Africa)

Primary Keyword Terms

The most direct phrases used in a search (query).

Examples:

• Nurse Jobs• Health Insurance• German Cars

Secondary Keyword Terms(a) Often use some form of modifier

Adjectives, phrases, verbs, and so on. Emphasis on manner, time, place, degree. Answers questions: How? When? Where? How much?

Examples of modifiers Manner: Slowly, quickly, fast Place: In Boston, in Massachusetts, in the hospital, in space Time: Yesterday Degree: Affordable, discount, cheap, luxury, free, best, a lot Brand Names: Canon, Sony, Pepsi

Examples: Boston Health Insurance Affordable Web Design Used Digital Cameras Best Nursing Jobs

Secondary Keyword Terms

(b) Addition of a noun or verb Examples

Affordable Web Design FirmBoston Health Insurance Company

(c) Variations / synonyms Examples

Boston Health Insurance CompanyBoston Medical Insurance Company

Long Tail Keyword Terms

• Mix of terms that may or may not have been actively targeted.

• Think of them more as bystanders who attract attention.

• A good reason to have a lot of text on the page.

Examples:

• “Where can I find a photographer in Chicago?”• “Device to test diamonds for authenticity”• “Insurance for people with asthma and poor

health”• “Some sort of device to cut cakes and serve it”

The Long Tail Itself

SEO & The Long Tail• Long-tail terms are extremely important• Visitors often arrive on keyword terms that you may not

have considered or conceived of• Broad to specific searches• Searches begin on the left and end on the right• “Long-tail visits” lead to higher conversions

Social Media MarketingThe new kid on the block.

Advantages of Social Media Marketing

Awareness

Authority

Reach

Community

Feedback

Conversions

• Enhances brand awareness• Generates positive UGC

advertising• Increases ranking in search

engines

• Unites consumers• Improves customer

service quality

• Establishes subject matter expertise

• Validates your business• Provides additional value

• Assesses brand reach• Increases visitor traffic

• Allows conversations monitoring

• Encourages conversation

• Improves product, service or message

• Generates new leads• Produces more sales• Reduce marketing costs

Limitations of Social Media Marketing

Awareness

Conflict

Time

Backlash

Feedback

Infringement

• Can create negative brand awareness

• Can generate unwanted UGC advertising

• Bad news can go viral quickly

• Can damage reputation• Easy to look foolish

• Can’t use standard advertising copy (message needs to be tailored)

• ROI and attribution can be difficult to justify to superiors

• Requires on-going efforts• Can be very time-

consuming• Most content will only be

relevant for a short time

• Negative comments are more visible

• Mismanagement of negative feedback can lead to more of it

• Can’t control conversation

• Trademark and copyright issues may arise

• Consumers feel they have the liberty to use your property

Highly Effective Habits of a Kickass Social Media Page

Because great ideas are sort of stolen.

1. Profiles MatterYour profile is just as important as any post you publish, sometimes even more so. Spend time making it all it can be and don’t be afraid

to change it over time.

2. Keep it FocusedDon’t try to please everyone. Appeal to one or a select few of your personas. Feel free to have multiple accounts on the same platform

to target different groups of people.

3. Impress YourselfIf you’re not impressed with what your sharing then it’s probably not

good enough. Every piece of content should be worthy of a new follower.

4. Visual WinsWe’re in a world of pictures and videos now, so keep the text to a

minimum. Every sentence you use should have a point and be associated with a piece of media.

5. Steady Flow You don’t want to overwhelm your visitors with content, but you

don’t want a social graveyard either. Keep the pace of content you publish steady and people will come to expect and look forward to it.

6. Content SpecificFor each type of platform, dedicate at least one type of content for it

so that people have a reason to visit your various accounts.

7. Worthwhile ConversationsAs much as possible, respond to people in a timely manner and make your reply relevant. Your reply should also compel further

discussion.

8. Share Follower ContentYou are the first member of your community, so act like you would like others to by sharing content and participating on other pages.

9. Work With YourselfIf you’re on multiple platforms, try to get traffic from one onto

another. One successful account can help a lesser one.

10. Salvage Content FlotsamSome of your content won’t be award-worthy. Go back over old

content once in a while and rescue it by publishing it elsewhere or revamping it. Don’t let your efforts be wasted.

11. Measure EverythingActionable metrics lead to better insights. Better insights lead to

more effective content and content distribution.

Money Making Models

• Sell individual physical

and digital products

• Advertising (contextual,

native advertising,

advertorials, data sale,

affiliate)

• Direct or indirect service

offerings

• Subscriptions

• Website flipping

• Donations

• Investors

Useful Tools

• WordPress (Free)

• Google Analytics (Free)

• Google Keyword Planner (Free)

• CrazyEgg (Paid)

• Facebook Insights (Free)

• Site Explorer – ahrefs.com (Paid)

• Excel Spreadsheets (Free)

Questions and Answers