Posts Tagged 'website'

I Love my Website … Why Doesn’t Google?

Posted in: Increase Traffic to your Website

Posted by Jocelyn Mozak on May 7, 2013

If only Google could appreciate the graphic design of a website.

Alas, all it sees is the code behind the scenes and the content written on the page. Google could care less about a perfect image or words that are able to dance on the screen. Yet, with that said, us humans do care about a web site’s appearance. We like pictures and art.

So what is a business owner to do?
As with most things striking a balance is key. Too much text and your customers will leave; too little and Google will ignore you.

My advice:

Add a BLOG to your site
The addition of a BLOG allows you to share information with the public. Google loves this. The more you say, the more of an encyclopedia you become. Share tips and tricks with you clients, or blog about upcoming local events. Share what matters to you. Visitors to your website will read what you share and connect with you. These are the relationships that allow businesses to flourish.

Partner with a Web Designer you TRUST
A quality Web Designer can strike the balance between art and technology. In fact the great ones are masters of both. They create graphically unique sites with cutting edge code behind the scenes.

Does your site strike that balance or is there a website that you’re in love with? Do share!

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Good Copy Tip #1: It’s not about you

Posted in: Connecting with Your Customers

Posted by Jocelyn Mozak on April 30, 2013

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I often see website homepage text that reads more like an “About Us” page. While the history of your business and all the services you provide have their place; make sure the homepage is engaging to your viewer. Speak to them. Why have they sought out your business? What needs do they have? What solutions do you offer?

By writing content that speaks to clients on an emotional level you can connect with them. If they feel understood then they will think … Wow, this business gets me – I’d like to work with them.

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Finding Blog Topic Inspirations

Posted in: Blogging Tips

Posted by Jocelyn Mozak on April 16, 2013

I know my website needs a blog. But what to write about?

This question is repeated to me time and again by clients. I even asked the same question when I began blogging. Then one day it hit me … I spend several hours a week answering clients questions over the phone and via email why not leverage this work?

This approach has proved invaluable to me as a blogger. By posting blogs inspired by client questions I accomplish many things.

First, I know my posts are relevant to my readers. As the saying goes, “If you have a question ask it. You are not the only person in the room who is wondering the same thing”.
Second, my posts are related to my work and thus on topic with the rest of my website. This translates into an increase in relevant content for my website, a powerful component of SEO.
Third, it gives me an opportunity to extend conversations beyond one person. Where an e-mail only connects me with one person, a blog opens up the conversation to the world.

So that is where I find my inspiration. Where do you find yours?

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Jackie’s story in her own words

Posted in: Client Stories

Posted by Jocelyn Mozak on April 9, 2013

Born and raised in Portland, Oregon Jackie Hooper is a public speaker, author and creator of www.wouldhavesaid.com, a place where she posts letters written from anyone to anyone and portray a variety of emotions. She released a collection of those letters in book-form called, “The Things You Would Have Said”.

Jackie loves to help people find their voice. She’s drawn to those who feel unsure about where they stand or what they have to offer, helping them recognize and believe that they matter, discovering their strengths, and believing in themselves, especially when it comes to their role in relationships.

WordPress.COM: Great for personal blogs, not for business

Jackie’s WordPress Story, in her own words.
I tried to make a website on my own using the free WordPress.com blogging service. Unfortunately, after spending a lot of time trying to figure it out I realized that what I actually needed for my business was a website with an integrated blog, not just a free blog. I needed the ability to customize the look of my site, to optimize it for SEO, and to be able to integrate any plugins I needed; WordPress.com was just not going to cut it.

I started looking around for a website designer and found Jocelyn’s website. I contacted her, and immediately knew that she was a really good fit for me.

Mozak Design: Empowering the client

Jocelyn is a wonderful teacher. At some points I was frustrated, but in a good way. I would ask her a question and in addition to answering my question she would make me a video or send me a link on how to do it. She said to me once that she wants to empower her clients to do this on their own. This was huge – to learn how to do all these things myself. It’s great that she’s excited to teach others how to do these things for themselves. She even made a page with all the video tutorials so I can go back to them if I do ever forget something she said. Especially with the kind of learner I am, her walking me through the process on video was a huge help. I now feel that I really am able to manage and update my site when I need to.

Coaching and looking at the big picture

What I really loved about Jocelyn was that she helped me with my website. She was a really great sounding board and coach. I came to her saying that I wanted her to replicate the site I had created on WordPress.com but on my own hosting where I could completely control the SEO and design. If I had just gone to someone else and said “Please just replicate this site”, they would have done it without question and then I wouldn’t have been happy with the end result. Jocelyn guided me through the process pointing out where my initial design would and would not serve me in the search engines. To me, website coaching she did was as important, if not more important than the actual website design work she did.

The website I had made was a picture of me in the center with a little tab at the top. I had seen a website like this and I was trying to be artsy with it. When we talked on our first call, the insight she provided was invaluable. The homepage, she explained, is key to search engine optimization and to visitor engagement. While a graphic might be nice, if you make your visitor have to click just to be able to get to a page with information you run the risk of losing them because you are making them work too hard to learn about your services.

She started asking me big picture questions like, “what’s your goal with this, what do you want clients to see right away?” I think just talking through it all made me realize I didn’t just want a giant picture of me on the front but I needed to provide some content. So in a really subtle way, she said the way I was doing it was ok and then did a great job leading me in the direction I wanted to go. I feel that every question I had, she really gave me great answers and guidance.

Throughout the process, we joked because we both emailed each other tons of times back and forth and that was exactly what I needed. She gave such great attention to me and she would respond so quickly either with an email or gave me a call. In moments where I felt frazzled she would work right there with me and didn’t make me wait around.-

Would I recommend Mozak Design?

Absolutely!

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Squidoo – It’s Truly Amazing!

Posted in: Increase Traffic to your Website

Posted by Jocelyn Mozak on April 1, 2013

Increase web traffic

There are numerous websites that allow you to create a web-page for any topic under the sun. One among them is Squidoo.com. It is a fairly recent site, created by Seth Godin, a marketing expert. The site is greatly popular among internet users for driving traffic to their own sites; in other words, it is a great marketing tool.

Squidoo web pages are known as ‘lenses’. Anyone can create a Squidoo lense. For this, you need not be a technical wizard, as you can have a lense of your own in three easy steps. The best part is that you can include all kinds of modules to make a site that is interactive and keeps your visitors involved.

Here are some examples of what you can include in your lense to SEO your small business:

Creating Text Blocks enables you to make blog entries or post your articles.
Setting up an interactive poll will keep your visitors involved in your business.
You can keep your lense updated and active by allowing the visitors to give their comments. You may ask them to link their own lense to yours.

The best part of Squidoo is that it has the capability to drive appropriate traffic to your website, which in turn translates to large volume sales. Besides, you can also provide links to products sold on eBay, Amazon and other product vending sites. What’s more, you earn a commission for any sale that has taken place from these links! And mind you, Squidoo.com is completely free!

Search engines like Google usually top rank long tail keyword phrases at Squidoo. You can thus create a network of lenses on Squidoo to target keyword phrases that will direct the search engines to your site. It is always a good practice to include some readable and informative content in the lense in order to target the visitors to your main site.

However, if the lense for your particular keyword is already in existence, you may need to get it transferred or purchase it. This is an ideal situation for you because you are getting a readymade lense without making any effort.

The early bird small businesses users of Squidoo.com are already earning the benefits. You can do it too. Since search engine optimization or SEO is the backbone of internet businesses, each relevant keyword phrase can have a squidoo lense devoted to it.

Have specific internet marketing questions?
Post your question below or email us.

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