Homepage Optimization 101

Homepage Optimization Checklist

Before working on the content for your new homepage, the number one message to deliver is TRUST.  People will do business with you if you have a unique selling position and they believe it will work.  There are secondary reasons which support building trust with users, so they feel like giving you their hard earned money.

To make this as effortless as possible remember the basic foundation of a homepage optimization checklist:

1. Minimize your time spent on writing and developing (Your time is valuable too!)
2. Maximize the number of customers staying on your site
3. Entice with an offer, or to take another action.

Include the most important key points at the top, so that people know they are on the right page and include a value proposition so they want to read more.
Make this content visible and you will gain their attention.

Once you’ve developed trust then they’ll follow your advice for everything else that comes after…

What your Website does

Explain from a consumers point of view why your product or service is unique and better than other imitations, and explain why that is valuable to your potential customers.

Where you are located

The physical location of your business or service area should be on the homepage. People like to know where businesses are located, before they buy.  As search becomes more local people want to know your accessible and have a physical location. This information is also important trust factor in the ranking for your Google Business Listing

All the best reasons people would buy from you

You have the best product or service because of a unique feature or other tie-in that is memorable and valuable to potential customers. You’ve developed trust with other clients and have a long history in the industry, area or community. ex. “Been in business for 10 years in Vancouver”or “Authentic real Italian pizza” .
Give your items/service the “spin” it deserves’ to differentiate from your competitors offering.

Make it easy to buy from you

They were interested enough in coming to your site (the SEO worked!) -  now make it way too simple to buy. We mean simple here.
Consider an ecommerce solution for multiple items or an easy solution (PayPal), always include contact details like email or telephone number.
If they can’t find out how to pay you – they are gone to the next search result.

Content for the “Drillers” and Skimmers” -

Have a balance between core message, and finer details. Some people will only read the headlines and skim the rest, while others will drill down to the details of the and history of your products and entire company history.

Short Paragraphs

Keep content short and simple. Key text in bold ; Bullet Points; Headings
Keywords and inbound links – All homepages should be optimized with on page seo and off-page link building strategies.

Make them interested in you

Call to action… There is a timed promotion or schedule and they must do something right away before they miss out on an amazing deal.

Understanding Process

People don’t have time or are uncomfortable asking questions that may seem obvious to others. People are afraid of asking questions because of a fear of the unknown. Make them feel at ease by telling them how to purchase and what to expect after they purchase too. Consider adding website text about the process of doing business with your company. ex. shipping and handling, turn around time and order processing.

Your Guarantee to them

List all the reasons users should trust your company (BBB, Guarantee Seal, Money Back Guarantee, Certified Qualifications, Customer Testimonials)

Have these in place and you’ll be a good position to convert new customers. People need to trust you on the internet. Once you’ve developed trust then they’ll follow your advice for everything else after. I hope this helps some of you and thanks for reading!

Facebook Places – Guess Where I am?

Facebook Places Screenshot

Facebook has announced the debut of a new feature called Places. Facebook Places is a location based tool, where you can check in and be visible to friends (or everyone) at a bar, restaurant or other venue.

As stated on Facebook the ” Who.What. When. And now Where“.  Tap the “Places” icon and check-in!

• Check in and your update will appear on the Place page, your friends’ News Feed and your Wall.
• Tag the friends you’re with so they can be part of your update.
• Appear in “Here Now” to friends and others nearby who are also checked in

Location sharing is enabled by logging  into mobile version of Facebook or an iPhone app. The service is only available in the United States and a roll out to Canada has not been announced yet.

Facebook Places will allow other third party based application like Gowalla to connect with them (Read API) and share their check-in data, badges and history. It’s really not clear how this will work, but we will all stayed tuned.  Since it is new, there have been features and bugs reported as well as privacy concerns regarding checking in and all Facebook users being able to see where you are.

For more information check out the Facebook Places page, and you might want to read the Privacy and Places FAQ pages too.
For more on Facebook Places see the links below and we welcome your comments on our blog:

http://www.facebook.com/places/

http://www.pcworld.com/article/203667/facebook_places_what_you_need_to_know.html?tk=hp_new

Google Places – Responding to Reviews as Owner

Finally merchants who have a local business listing on Google, also known as Google Places, can respond to reviews. Google Places has become the must have placement for business getting local traffic.

I’ve included instructions on how to respond to a review on Google Places.

1. Login to your Google account with the email address you used for Google Places (a.k.a. Local Business Listing)
2. Go to Google Maps http://maps.google.com/
3. Enter your [business name]
4. Click on your business listing (or click on “reviews” or “more info”)
5. Scroll down to Reviews
6. Select “Respond Publicly as Owner“
7. Write your response in the text area. (Be nice feedback is helpful!)

For more detailed information and guidelines refer to responding to a business review on Google Places on Google help site.

Standard Marketing is Hiring and We’re Looking For an Experienced SEO Consultant

Are you looking for a challenging, fulfilling and rewarding opportunity? Have you dreamt of building a career where you can focus your energy on SEO, become part of a growing and evolving organization and be rewarded for your creativity, ideas and efforts?

At Standard Marketing, we respect our team members for their individuality and appreciate the value that they bring to building a positive working environment. We believe in freedom – our goal is for every team member to be able to work autonomously. Learning never stops here, we make sure all of our team are kept up to date with the latest trends and developments in SEO, SEM and marketing. Our team members have a say because we believe everyone wants to contribute their best as long as they are valued, recognized, and rewarded appropriately. We want to empower our team members to accomplish something meaningful and to ultimately become very successful and highly paid.

All of these elements give Standard Marketing the edge when it comes to helping our clients achieve their internet marketing goals, and the experienced SEO/ SEM Consultant we are looking for will form an integral part of this vision.

The person we are looking for must have a strong grasp of the following:

• Experience in planning and implementing SEO/SEM strategies for a wide range of clients. 
• Ability to communicate well with and provide complete service to existing clients.
• Can work well both independently and as a part of our team. 
• Organized, thorough, and detail oriented. 
• Conscientious and reliable.
• Google AdWords Individual Certification.
• Web Design, CMS and programming knowledge is an asset.

Standard Marketing has been in business for 10 years and we have built up an impressive list of clients and receive a steady stream of referrals.

We offer a competitive compensation package, a great work environment and profit sharing opportunities for team members who demonstrate their commitment and value to the company. To learn more about our company, please visit us at http://www.standardmarketing.ca.

This is a full time permanent position; Candidates must be eligible to work in Canada with either Canadian citizenship or permanent resident status.

Please email your resume to ken@standardmarketing.ca.

No phone calls please.

How To Create a Local Business Listing in Google Local Places

Recently, we blogged about deleting duplicate listings from Google Local Places which sparked off a frenzy of emails from small business owners asking how to create a listing in Google Local Places if their business was not featured in it already. So here is a very quick and easy guide to help small businesses to put themselves on the map… literally.

Step #1 – Go to www.google.com and click on Maps to check if there already is a listing for your business by typing in your business name and address. If there is a listing you will need to click on the “More Info” link next to your business name, which will take you to a new window. In the new window, click on “Business Owner?”, if your listing is not there proceed to www.google.com/places.

Step #2 – If you have an existing Google or Google AdWords account, use that account to log in, if not create a new Google account.

Step #3 – Once you’re signed up, click on “Add New Business” on the Google Places Homepage.

Step #4 – You will be prompted to enter information regarding your business, make sure you fill out the required fields, once you have entered all of the information, click on “Next”.

Step #5 – You will be prompted to fill out more information regarding your business such as categories, hours of operation, payment options, photos, video and additional details. The more information and photos you add the better.

Step #6 – As you progress through creating your listing, your listing will appear as it is shown on the map on the right. Once you are satisfied with the way it looks click “Submit”.

Step #7 – And finally choose how you would like to verify your listing, the phone method is immediate as opposed to the postcard method which can take up to 3 weeks and click “Finish”.

Once all the above steps are completed the listing will go live once it has been verified. The above information is also available at www.google.com, for more information regarding setting up your Google Local Places Listing, please visit Google support at http://www.google.com/support/places/bin/static.py?page=guide.cs&guide=28247.