Search Engine Optimization

Since Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is the most important step in reaching a target audience on the Internet, you should select a web designer who has a proven track record in search engine placement. To place within the top 10 for any key word search can seem like mission impossible. Being successful in using search engines to bring traffic to your site requires working towards that goal at the very beginning of the website development process.

What are the steps to creating an impressive website that ranks with the search engines and sells to a target audience? There are several questions to answer, even before contacting a website designer:

1st - Identify your website objectives.

• Who are your target audience and potential customers?
• Do you have more than one target audience?
• What are the needs of your perspective clients?
• What is the message you want to convey?
• Who is your web competition?
• What is your pricing compared to that of your competition?

In other words, what are your strengths and abilities to be presented in the website? The bottom line is, "What do you want to sell or achieve with this website?"

2nd - Identify the key words for your site.

• Use a thesaurus to find synonyms that could also be used in a web search.
• Ask friends what words they would use in searching for you or your company.
• Be creative in generating as many word variations and combinations as possible.
• Remember to include your geographic area in the various formats that may be submitted, i.e. Los Angeles, California; LA CA; and Southern California.

If your goal is to maximize your website's ranking with the search engines, it is worth your time to answer these questions and work with a website designer who has the SEO knowledge needed to reach that goal. Contact me and I'll work with you to create a site that is both visually effective and search engine savvy in reaching your target web audience.

Finding a starting point for your website aesthetics -

Take a close look at your corporate identity and print graphics -

• Do you want to use your existing logo and/or photographs?
• Do you want something new?
• Do you want to revitalize your old graphics?

If you are an individual who doesn't have a corporate identity -

• Do you have a starting point for a website logo in mind?
• Would you prefer to use photographs instead of a logo?
• What colors do you find most appealing in other websites?

If you have an existing website and want to revamp it -

• What is the new look and message you want to achieve?
• What are the text changes you want to make?
• What doesn't work as well as you'd like in your existing site?

I strive to create a web design that represents the individual style or corporate identity of each customer. Having this visual starting point is very helpful in achieving that objective.