North Star Web Services LLC: 2011

Friday, July 29, 2011

Thursday, April 28, 2011

New Hampshire Website Design - Recent Projects

Monday, April 11, 2011

What Google's Farmer Update Means to Your Business

I, Laura Lynch from North Star Web Services, have been watching the outcome of Google's Farmer update to their algarithym for about a month now. Several of my clients have chosen to update their SEO while others have not. Some businesses took such a big hit that they had to reduce their workforce by 10% (Mahalo). I cannot stress how important taking this seriously is! Don't be cheap, pay for the optimization that will keep you in play. www.NorthStarWebServices can help you do just that.

I came across the following article and thought that it should be shared.

Google announced what may ultimately be one of the biggest changes to their algorithm yet.

From the Official Google Blog: "Many of the changes we make are so subtle that very few people notice them. But in the last day or so we launched a pretty big algorithmic improvement to our ranking—a change that noticeably impacts 11.8% of our queries—and we wanted to let people know what’s going on. This update is designed to reduce rankings for low-quality sites—sites which are low-value add for users, copy content from other websites or sites that are just not very useful."

Notice the language being used. Specifically, "...reduce rankings for low-quality sites..." That means it's not only individual posts or pieces of content will be penalized for being deemed "low-quality" but entire websites. The announcement also mentions "low-value add for users" and sites that "copy content from other websites." The target? Content farms, to start. These sites exist and profit based on volume. The more content produced (often for a pittance) the better they do – or did.

To most observers and users, this focus on volume resulted in millions of low-quality pieces of content cluttering the search engine results pages (SERPs). The writers producing content for these content farms are paid largely based on views. No indexing in Google, no views. No views, no pay. No pay, no writers ... and no content.

Sites such as Yahoo Contributor Network and those of Demand Media (including eHow) fit the bill, to be sure. But one must wonder if others sites such as Examiner.com or pure user-contributor sites such as Yahoo Answers will also be affected. (Read Website Magazine's in-depth review of Yahoo Contributor Network.)

The update will also impact Bing and every other search engine. Simply put, if Google's results get better in the eyes of users, Bing and the others cannot afford to be viewed as having inferior results.

Without question, the focus is now on producing original, quality content. So-called scraper sites are doomed. But even bloggers need to be careful about posting content that could be considered "low-quality" or that which could be viewed as being a simple re-publishing of existing content. In other words, if you don't have anything original to say about an existing story ... be careful. Now more than ever, the focus seems to be shifting toward quality, not necessarily quantity.

In all, this update should be a good thing for the Web – both for users and those who work tirelessly to produce quality content.

The first priority for every business is to keep a constant watch on your analytics. Are your numbers slipping for keywords of which your site previously ranked highly? Are overall numbers dropping? Hopefully not. But there are some things that can be done to ensure your traffic does not suffer.

Be aggressive about building your user base. Search is powerful but it’s not the only way to ensure visitors to your website. Build a strong following on social networks and work hard to increase email sign-ups and newsletter subscribers.

Solicit quality inbound links. High-quality links will remain a pivotal factor in search engine rankings. Be diligent about networking with like-minded content producers and work to get links – quality links, including those with keyword-rich anchor text. In no way is it recommended to purchase links.

Produce varied forms of content. Search engines like a little variety. In addition to a company blog, consider producing video for a YouTube channel, a photo log on Flickr, or a podcast on iTunes.

Hire a good writer. This public call for quality content might warrant the hiring of a skilled writer for some businesses. Well-written, compelling content tends to attract links, garner social mentions and spread through online communities. Remember that today's skilled writer also knows how to create SEO-friendly content.

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Posted Feb 25 2011, 02:10 PM by Mike Phillips | Remove post from favorites Add post to favorites... Filed under: google, search, yahoo answers, flickr, youtube, bing, itunes, Yahoo Contributor Network, content farms, quality content, Google algorithm, Examiner, eHow, Google Farmer Update, low-quality content

Friday, March 25, 2011

20 User Review Websites Critical to Small Business - Website Magazine - Website Magazine

Friday, March 11, 2011

Saturday, March 5, 2011

Dealing with Findability Disaster

As Business owners, it is rare to completely satisfy every client, every time.
However, these days if one customer gets upset they have myriad Internet sites to express their discontent. One of the worst cases I have seen was a disgruntled former employee who blasted a company after they were fired. Imagine searching for your company name and finding a scathing Yelp review from an employee you just let go. Your next thought might be, where else?
Now with some free time, that ex-employee makes it their life’s work to “stick it to the man.” I can tell you, you have not experienced panic until your website is ranking next to RipOffReport.com or a similar site loaded with brutal reviews. I have spent my entire career helping people be found on the Internet, and now I want to address the topic of how not to be found. The question is, When ugly content is posted, what can you do as a business owner?
My response is to strike back, but with an attack of “goodness” and happy customers! Yes, use sugar, not vinegar to push them off the page. (My mom would be so proud.)
Problem:

Someone on the Internet does not like your company. You are seeing a rise in negative reviews on Yelp, Google Local and RipoffReport.com. How do you plan a counter attack to push them off the search results page?

Action Plan:

Start by looking rationally at this problem with a plan of attack that does not include calling in a “favor” or hiring an expensive lawyer who specializes in lawsuits. There is a much faster and safer way to address the problem.
Displace the disgruntled with positive, happy customers — therefore knocking the naysayers off the results page. Most companies have tons of happy customers; it’s always the one percent of unhappy customers on which we tend to focus.
As the old adage goes, “A happy customer tells one friend, an unhappy customer tells ten.”
1) Secure your company profiles on review sites.
2) Optimize your profiles, making sure data is accurate and up-to-date.

3) Actively request positive feedback from happy customers.

4) Setup and capture all brand names in social media portals.

5) Watch the negative reviews drop down and surround profiles with happy customer reviews.
STEP 1: GRAB YOUR COMPANY’S BRAND PROFILES AND SECURE THEM

Find your company on major review sites that actively rank in search engines like Yelp.com, Places.Google.com, Local.Yahoo.com, Citysearch.com, etc.

Secure the account on record with the review site and identify yourself as the official business owner. Lock it down with your correct information. It is never pretty when a competitor or disgruntled customer takes the account before you get around to capturing it.

Complete the profiles as much as possible, paying particular attention to detailing your customer service policies and disputing resolution records. Link to your Better Business Bureau rating, if possible. Make sure to add your customer service hotline or link to a page that addresses customer issues.

STEP 2: OPTIMIZE YOUR REVIEW SITE PROFILES FOR FINDABILITY

Include your target keyword phrases in the following areas for a good user experience: Title, Company Description, Promotions and “Other”.

Make sure to use keywords in your profile like “Television Repair Denver” or “Family Medicine Brea, CA.” This elevates your profiles inside the review site, when searchers are really digging to validate their purchasing decision. They want the real skinny on your services, your products and past customer experiences. Ranking highly inside the review sites helps validate buying decisions when customers are in the final shopping stages.

STEP 3: ACTIVELY FILL REVIEWS WITH POSITIVE FEEDBACK FROM HAPPY CUSTOMERS

Initially, reach out to your most loyal customers, explain the circumstances and politely request they help you combat this very negative review. You will get many customers who will immediately jump at the chance to help you.

Next, if you have a physical store location, instruct your employees to ask customers to write a review on Yelp.com or Places.Google.com. Then, tell them that if they provide proof of the review, you will have a small gift for them. Coupons for discounts or $5 Starbucks Gift Cards make great thank-yous.

Record an extra message on your business voicemail to actively campaign for reviews. This may sound something like, “Please post a review on Yelp.com or Citysearch.com and receive a little gift for your appreciation! Thank you for your business and helping us to serve you and the community better.”

STEP 4: SET UP, CAPTURE AND MONITOR YOUR COMPANY’S BRAND ON SOCIAL MEDIA

Companies often forget where their happy and unhappy customers communicate. Social media sites are a great place to commiserate with others about good and bad experiences.

Make sure to set up, actively monitor and participate in your company’s presence on Twitter, Facebook and YouTube.

Use free tools such as Alerts.Google.com and Tweetbeep.com to keep track of what people are saying about your company and brand so you can respond accordingly. If you have the budget to monitor your reputation online, consider sources like Radian6 (pictured), Buzzlogic and Nielsen.

STEP 5: WATCH NEGATIVE REVIEWS FALL AND HAPPY CUSTOMERS SPEAK FORYOUR COMPANY

As you capture your social media accounts under your company name and fill review sites with happy customers, the negative review will be surrounded by positive commentary. You have killed the negativity with kindness!

As you optimize your profiles with your company name and keyword phrases, you will start to fill the search results pages under your company name. You now “own” every search result when someone searches for your business. If a negative review is posted on RipOffReport.com or another review site and ranks under your name, it is surrounded by a resounding number of happy customer reviews.

As business owners, we will probably never think its okay to have an unhappy customer. But it’s important to always be prepared for them. In today’s social Internet community, the voice of an individual can have long-term, detrimental effects on your company’s brand and profitability. Be prepared to fight back by asking for help from your loyal customers who know the truth about your company. It has been my experience that loyal customers will jump through hoops to help you.

About the Author: Heather Lutze has spent the last 10 years helping business owners get their enterprises noticed on the Web by their target audiences. She is the author of “The Findability Formula: The Easy, Non-Technical Approach to Search Engine Marketing.” Visit FindabilityFormula.com for tools and resources to increase your site’s findability.
Posted Dec 28 2010, 01:22 PM by Administrator

Filed under: 2011-02

Friday, January 7, 2011

Are Google’s local results costing your site traffic?

Google now integrates local results (Google Places) into ‘standard’ organic results and it’s going to push your site down and off the page. That means less traffic and response unless you do something about it. Mark Nunney investigates and shows you how to fight back.
In the following image you’ll see a Google search engine result page (SERP) for the keyword quality shoes. Only the top two ‘standard’ organic results (highlighted with a yellow border) will be seen without a scroll down the page.

After that top two, the results are ‘integrated local’ results (see these ’Place’ pages inside the red border below).

Google has decided that I (as the searcher) am based in Paddington, UK (part of central London). Google thinks I might want ‘local’ results – real world shops I can leave my house and go buy quality shoes in.

(By the way, I live in Cornwall, 260 miles away from London, but we’ll put that bit of lame geolocating to the side whilst acknowledging that Google will let me ‘Change Location’.)

There’s a ‘Places’ (local) map in the top right too.

Google has decided that my Keyword Deserves Local (KDL) results (or Query Deserves Local - QDL).

I’m not going to argue about whether or not my keyword does deserve local results. Nor shall we spend any time looking at the sometimes seemingly random choices of keywords that G decides do. Not here, anyway ;-)

I’m interested in what’s happening, how it will affect your sites’ traffic and response and what you might do about it.

Below is another Google SERP for which keyword deserves local (KDL). This time for debt advice and the local (Places) results are presented with a subheading (‘Places for debt advice near ...’).

But there are just three standard organic results showing above the fold. (Notice how hard it’s getting to distinguish the ads from the organic too?)

Keyword Deserves Local could cost you visits and response
. So Google is delivering more and more local results.
If your target keywords are deemed to ‘deserve local’ results then if:

• your site can’t appear in local (Google Places) results for every location in your target market (and whose can?); or

• you aren’t ranking top two or three

... then you’re going to be losing visitors in 2011.

Even the standard organic results (including those top two or three positions that might remain your last shot at getting any decent traffic from some searches) are influenced by the searchers’ location.

Searches made on mobile phones (increasingly important, of course) are even more likely to see local results.
You get the idea – your hard-worked-for organic results are getting squeezed of the first page of Google’s results pages. That means less traffic and response.

So what can you do about?
How to fight back against Keyword Deserves Local results

Unless you have an office or a shop in every town in every country you’re selling to, this is not going to be easy. Here is a list of actions you can take ...

• Get a Google Places listing for every office and shop you have.

• Find affected keywords. Monitor Google SERPs results to find out which of your prioritized target keywords Google deems deserve local. For those affected keywords ...

• Make the top two. Work like never before to get into those precious top two or three positions.

• Target other integrated results. Is Google also integrating results for Images, Videos, News, Products, Real Time or any other non-standard organic results? If so, target those results.

• Consider PPC.

• Hit the long tail. A major target keyword might get local results, eg debt advice and quality shoes in our examples. But their long tails might not eg, the many thousands of other keywords that contain debt advice and quality shoes.

An ironic example of this is that a search for local debt advice does not show integrated local results. Work that one out.

by Mark Nunney, 7 January 2011

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