How Often Should You Upgrade Your Website? Part 6 of 6

Search Engine Optimization (SEO) used to just concentrate on a few key words and how they were utilized in your website. Today there is much more involved in developing your SEO strategy. For instance, social media is now a major component of search engine algorithms, or a simpler was to say it – it pays to be popular.

Search engines are looking for key words, key phrases, how many times your website is visited, how many cross links do you have from other websites, and where do you rank from a social media perspective. You also need to ask yourself what geographic areas you want your website optimized within. Locally, statewide, regionally, nationally, or globally? Typically the smaller the area, the easier it is to optimize your website and improve your search engine ranking.

We have seen a trend lately of companies not paying attention to SEO due to the degrees of difficulties being added to the algorithms. We cannot caution enough against this practice as search engines are still the No. 1 method of seeking info on the web. We know it can be a daunting task to keep up, which is why we offer a monthly, quarterly, semi-annual, or annual SEO of your site for very reasonable costs.

Contact TCG today for a no obligation review of how we can help with your SEO strategy.

How Often Should You Upgrade Your Website? Part 5 of 6

Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn are just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to social media.  There are hundreds of other social media programs that can be very target specific.  Every website should have a social media component.  Think through your web strategy and determine how social media can integrate with that strategy.
 
Today, more and more contacts come to your website from a social media experience such as Facebook or Twitter.  People are seeking the advice of their friends of where to find goods and services and those social connections are invaluable.   With your social media presence, you become of member of the community.

As your social media base grows, you have the ability to directly connect with individuals who have selected to be a part of your network.  In other words, they want to hear from you!

Contact TCG today for a no obligation review of how we can help you be heard.

How Often Should You Upgrade Your Website? Part 4 of 6

E-commerce and on-line retail sales are projected to reach $197 billion in 2011, an increase of 12% over 2010.  If you are selling via your website, you need to ensure that your customers have an easy and fun experience.  Your ordering and checkout process needs to flow smoothly, knowing that every delayed step offers the customer a chance to change their mind and opt out of the transaction.  In addition, new requirements on e-commerce come into play more and more.  Do you need to collect sales tax?  What are the shipping limitations?

Kentico CMS offers an excellent ready to use e-commerce module which is fully customizable for any special needs.  In addition, we have teamed up with FirstData and SunTrust to offer our clients Preferred Merchant Services which includes discounted rates and marketing support.

If you are not involved with e-commerce our advice is to keep an eye on the future, you never know where opportunities lie.

Contact TCG today for a no obligation review of your e-commerce program.

How Often Should You Upgrade Your Website? Part 3 of 6

91% of Americans use a cell phone daily.  That’s 9 out of every 10 people in America!  If you are thinking on a global basis, 61% of all the people in the world have a cell phone.  That’s 4.6 BILLION people!  Need we say more - your website needs to be optimized to display efficiently and effectively on a mobile device.

This being said there is a big difference in both the methodology and cost between a mobile app and optimizing your website to display on a mobile device.  A mobile app is typically designed with a sole purpose in mind, needs to be downloaded onto the device, and can be quite expensive. 
On the other hand, optimizing a website for mobile display typically involves selecting the most frequented pages of your website and making them display on a mobile device in a manner that is easily utilized.  Large icons, minimal graphics, and one or two links are the key to a properly mobile optimized website.

Good examples of properly mobile optimized websites are: www.charlestonwv.com and www.kchdwv.org

Contact us today for a no obligation review of how we can optimize your website for a mobile deployment.