Imagine you need to buy a last-minute gift for your friend at an online store. You’re trying to open the website, but it goes on loading and loading, and loading…like forever. What are you going to do? You will leave the website and go to another one, where you will make your order more quickly and without any interruptions. Consumers have no time to waste. And you have no consumers to “waste” too!

The simple truth is that speed matters. A faster loading website will bring you more traffic and higher conversion rates. Did you know that if your website does not load within 3 seconds, more than half of its visitors will leave it?

 

Why do you need to improve your website speed?

• Website speed is essential for Google ranking.
• Consumers prefer fast-loading pages.
• The better the speed of your website, the higher your user satisfaction.
• Speed affects Bounce rates (the percentage of users that leave a site without looking at a second page)
• The faster your page loads, the more people will visit it.
• And more.

So, it seems rather obvious that a fast website equals a successful website. And now what?

 

How can I check my website speed?

Here are a few platforms that can help you analyze and optimize your website speed:

• PageSpeed Insights
• Pingdom
• GTmetrix

How do I increase my website speed? Here are some of our suggestions:

 

1. A trusty web hosting provider

The very first (and most important) thing is choosing the right web hosting provider.  The server on which all your precious data will be stored must be reliable, not jam-packed and able to respond quickly to requests.  Speedflow offers high quality hosting with lightning-fast performance:

• SSL certificates
• Linux server environment
• Customization and scalability
• Connectivity all over the world
• 24/7 support
• And more

 

2. Gzip compression

The bigger a web page, the longer it takes to load. When a user clicks on a link, the server receives an automatic command to begin loading all page elements. If these items are too big, it will take a lot longer to visualize them in the user’s browser. Gzip compression solves this problem.

Gzip compresses the elements of your site into a zip file, thanks to which your web page information reaches the user’s browser much faster. Most servers provide this type of compression. To check if your website employs Gzip compression, try these tools here or just type in the search engine search bar “gzip compression checker” and check any of the first few results.

To enable Gzip compression on your server, use the following modules:

• For Apache: mod deflate
• For Nginx: HttpGzipModule
• For IIS: HttpCompression

 

3. Lazy Loading

Lazy loading is extremely useful because it allows your page elements to load at different times – only when the user actually needs to see them. Choose the parts of your website that have to be loaded with priority and those that can be loaded after the user scrolls down to them. Lazy Loading has many advantages. It:

• Reduces page loading time
• Saves bandwidth
• Improves user experience.

 

4. Image optimization

If you optimize the images on your page the right way, you can improve your website speed by 80%! Light images are mandatory for any site, and often is a neglected step in eCommerce website development where they play a very important role in sales. Try the following tips:

• Format your images before uploading them online.
• The best image format is the JPEG format.
• Avoid using BMP and TIFF formats.
• Your image size should match the width of your page. If your page width is 570 pixels, so should your image width too.
• Decrease color depth to a minimum, only if it does not distort the image.
• Eliminate all white spaces around your images.

 

5. Cache your browser

Caching allows browsers to remember your website after it has been loaded on them even only once. Consequently, the browser will not have to reload all the items from the server again. On the contrary, it will load the information directly from the user’s local computer. This is an extremely useful feature especially for regular users because the website will load much quicker with every subsequent visit.

So, how can you enable this feature? First, you need to adjust your HTTP headers and indicate the expiry times of specific file types. Thus, the browser will know whether to request information from the server or from the browser cache. Keep in mind that your CMS system may also have cache extensions or plugins. If not, you can enter cache parameters in your .htaccess file (in the root of the domain). This will help the browser know which files to cache. If all this seems like a foreign language to you, contact us or send us an e-mail at info@speedflow.bg. We will help you enable your browser cache.

How about your website? Is it fast enough? Do you need to increase its speed? We can show you how to turn on the “turbo” immediately.

 

Check also “How to improve your website speed? – Part 2“

We can optimize and improve our website in a number of ways. We can use A/B testing, install different plugins, tools and add-ons, Google Analytics, JS galleries, quick buttons to social networks, and a million other things … Our desire to be up-to-date and have everything on our website may turn into an actual limitation. We forget the most important thing – the first impression it has on visitors. Oh, the first impression is crucial. Even small details may send them off to the competition. So, how can your page make a great first impression?

The eyes look, the mouse acts!

People can not do anything with your website except look through it and click with the mouse (we are not including those movie hackers who do not use any computer mouses). That’s the way they will experience your brand online. The eye simply scans the page and locates information within seconds. Does your website follow eye logic? Does it make it easy for users to find what they are looking for at first glance?

Overcrowded home pages, packed with a lot of information, do just the opposite. A user assesses a website in only a second. If you want to make sure that your website is attractive enough, we advise you to read our articles: “Good content – an essential element for website success” and “The psychology of colors in Web design”.

What do you have to offer?

This moment is critical. Even if your website guides the user smoothly and easily through the pages and all the information is arranged intuitively, if you do not state what you are offering loud and clear, you risk losing the client instantly. Don’t forget that your offer should be the right one for your visitor. It should satisfy his necessity for the specific product or services and solve his problem.

And now what?

All right. Let’s say you’ve covered the first two main requirements – users can easily navigate through the website and know exactly what you have to offer. Now you need to show them how to get it. Maybe it’s just information; maybe they have to buy something. Make it simple for them. Wandering around your menu and trying to figure it out by themselves is a big No. Don’t annoy your customers before they have even become real ones. Let them get what they what as quickly as possible. At the end of the day, you want the same. Time is equally valuable to both sides.

No room for mistakes

You may be thinking things like: “If someone has found us online, then he/she must be really intrigued by what we have to offer. So, they will take their time to find what they need. They will also grasp our complex industry terminology and read all the information we’ve provided.” Wrong! It is a possible scenario, but not at first sight. Needless to say, a single look leaves a powerful first impression and determines users’ subsequent actions. There is no room for mistakes or excuses. They work against you.

If you’re not sure how to do all of this, contact Speedflow team at info@speedflow.bg. We know how.

Today we present you the second article of our “How to improve your website speed” series.  A faster website leads to better UX. So, here is what you should do:

 

1. Reduce HTTP requests

HTTP is a protocol through which the browser requests a file to be loaded, and the server sends this file to the browser. Having fewer requests will considerably improve your website speed. To reduce them:

• Combine as many CSS/JS files as possible into one or at least into a few
• Try to reduce scripts and position them at the bottom of the page
• Remove any unnecessary images and reduce the size of the rest

 

2. Reduce (optimize) resources (CSS/HTML/JS files)

The next step of speeding up your site is to eliminate all unnecessary data. Why? Because it negatively affects the way in which browsers processes resources. Therefore:

• Eliminate empty spaces, redundant lines, comments and formatting, unused codes, etc.
• Use shorter variables and functions.

Thus both browsers and search engines will process HTML, CSS and JavaScript files much quicker.

 

3. Use fewer plugins

You want to optimize your website and enhance its features, you add plugins. But at one point it becomes slower. Having too many plugins can create technical problems such as bugs, system, crashes and even compromise your web security. So, you need to clean them up! Disable those you don’t use or don’t need anymore. Do the same for the ones that hinder the speed of your website the most after a check-up.

Tip: Do a speed test after every plugin deactivation. See how your speed has improved. Thus, you will optimize your website speed more effectively.

 

4. Load CSS files asynchronously

Typically, browsers block the rendering of a web page until all of its external CSS files have been downloaded completely.  They might even display a blank page until the download is finished.  This is also a possible reason for the low speed of your site.

While there are several well-known techniques for loading JavaScript and Images asynchronously when it comes to CSS files the question is often overlooked. We recommend you to try LoadCSS – a quite handy plugin with very good user reviews.

 

5. Remove all query strings

Query strings are those URLs that contain the “?” And “&” symbols. Unfortunately, CSS and JavaScript resources with such strings are not cached by most proxy servers. This also affects the speed of your website and you need to remove all of them.

You can do this, using plugins such as:

• Remove Query Strings From Static Resources
• W3 Total Cache
• Query Strings Remover

or manually:

• Insert the following code into the functions.php file of your WordPress theme:

// * TN – Remove Query String from Static Resources

function remove_css_js_ver ($ src) {

if (strpos ($ src, ‘? ver =’)

$ src = remove_query_arg (‘ver’, $ src);

return $ src;

}

add_filter (‘style_loader_src’, ‘remove_css_js_ver’, 10, 2);

add_filter (‘script_loader_src’, ‘remove_css_js_ver’, 10, 2);

 

6. Specify the character set

“Character set” is the set of symbols used by a website. When someone visits a site, the first thing the browser does is to determine which character set it uses. Thus, browsers are able to successfully display web content to the user. If you don’t specify your character set in advance, the browser has to figure it out alone. And eventually, it will. However, if you want your content to be displayed immediately, you have to have a character set specified.

Where: The HTTP response headers

Example: Content-Type: text / html; charset = utf-8

 

7. Try a CDN

CDN is a content delivery network which helps users located in different parts of the world retrieve web content (usually images and Javascript) in a fast and efficient way.  If your website is international – try a CDN. If not, we don’t recommend you to use one, as it may worsen your website speed.

 

We hope to have helped you improve your website speed with these tricks. Stay tuned as “How to improve your website speed? – Part 3“ is a fact!

You have certainly heard of UX and UI design. These two abbreviations are used quite often in one and the same sentence. And this is by no means any coincidence.  The two terms go hand by hand when it comes to digital product/mobile apps/website development. Both of them are actively being involved at various stages of the development process. What is UX, what is UI, and what are the differences between them? That is what we will discuss today.

What is UX Design?

UX (User Experience) is the process of crafting as well as improving the user’s interaction with a product. It aims at providing great product usability, enhancing customer satisfaction and brand loyalty in general. UX is the very basis and skeleton for any product that is being developed across multiple industries, not only digital ones.
Or in other words, this is the process of designing and improving user interaction with a web/digital product like eCommerce website, a simple one-pager, a sophisticated web platform, or a mobile application – defines any type of interaction that occurs between potential or active customers and a company.

Here are some of the main product development processes UX design is responsible for:

1. Analyzing target audiences
2. Analyzing competitors
3. Development of product structure and strategy
4. Content creation
5. Prototyping
6. Testing and Iterating
7. Planning
8. Coordinating with UI
9. Coordinating with developers
10. Tracking goals and integration
11. Final analysis and Iterating

What is UI Design?

UI (User Interface) design transforms and translates what has been done by UX into a complete, attractive and intuitively guided product layout. UI provides the actual real contact between a user and a product. It guides the user and directs him/her on how to use it. UI most powerful tools are the visual ones.

Here are some of the main product development processes UI design is responsible for:

1. Analyzing target audiences
2. Researching designs
3. Creating branding and graphic designs
4. Preparing Storylines and User Guides
5. Prototyping
6. Interactivity
7. Animation
8. Developing responsive designs
9. Coordinating with UX
10. Coordinating with a developer

Differences between UX and UI design?

We can basically conclude that there are no differences between UX and UI because these are two completely different things. Therefore, they can not be compared to any criteria. However, here is some food for thought:

• The main purpose of UX design is to help the user find a solution to a problem. The main purpose of UI is to create the look and feel of the product that is solving the user’s problem.
• UX focuses on the conceptual design elements of a product, while UI deals with elements that trigger the user’s senses.
• UI is usually associated with the on-screen product design, while UX creates the overall user experience, often having nothing to do with “on-screen” design.
• UX develops a useful interface. UI develops an attractive interface.
• UX helps users achieve a goal. UI creates emotional connections between products and consumers.

 

And you? Do you think we should always differentiate between UX and UI design? Should a UX designer be a UI specialist too? While pondering over this, take a look at our article about the successful web design tendencies of 2017.

What do you think are the key elements of a successful online store? Promotions page? Search options and categories? Contact form? Mobile version? Yes, you are right! All these functionalities must be part of your e-shop infrastructure.

However, today we will be talking about some other elements. The ones that are being quite overlooked, but at the same time are no less important for the truly successful online store. The ones that improve your customer experiences and bring in profit at the same time. Here they are:

 

1. SEO modulе

If you want your website to rank higher in Google, it must be optimized for search engines (SEO). The same goes for online shops. If your website offers hundreds or thousands of items, optimizing every single page will take you too much time and effort. Manually entering meta titles, meta descriptions, and tags, which are an essential part of every on-page optimization, will most probably strike damp over your enthusiasm to have an online shop at all! That’s why we recommend you to use some sort of SEO module. It is extremely helpful as it automatically generates the SEO texts for each product. Depending on the eCommerce platform your e-shop was built on (like WordPress + WooCommerce), there are various optimization plug-ins and extensions you can use. Here we have listed some of the most popular ones:

• For WordPress – Yoast SEO Premium*
• For Magento – ReloadSEO
• For OpenCart – SEO Pack Pro (paid); SEO modules (free)
• For Joomla – Jsitemap or SEO Boss

* Yoast also offers a free version, which is in fact not quite basic and is extremely functional.

 

2. Automatically generated bills of lading (shipment documents)

Integrate into your successful online store with the modules of the courier companies you are working with. Thus, you will be able to automatically generate product shipment numbers.  It will save hours of your time. Imagine if you were to manually fill them in for each individual order. Modernizing such processes enables your customers (if they needed it) to use the generated number and contact the courier personally. Another convenience for users that also indirectly increases the number of your website visits.

 

3. Shipment tracking

A small detail one would say, but in fact, it’s a huge bonus for those who have already purchased something from your online shop. When a client logs in, he/she will be able to track the exact location of their order at any given moment. And you? You will get a satisfied and loyal customer that has no further questions…and again more traffic to your site.

 

 

4. Customized landing pages for different client groups

Is this possible? Yes, you can use Cookies information to target products and customize the homepage of each visitor based on their history as a potential client or a regular customer. For example, you can display new products, promotions or most purchased items to new visitors. And to those who have purchased from you before – favorite brands and products they have searched for before.

 

 

5. Different prices per customer groups

An extremely useful feature, especially when your online store targets several customer segments at once:

• End users
• Retail customers
• Wholesale customers

To have this feature enabled you must create separate customer groups in your back end. Upon registration, the client will choose the group to which he/she belongs. This will determine the prices and products that will be visible to them in the future.

 

6. Automatic customer notification for products in stock

We suggest that you implement a module for product notification on your website. It will send an automatic message to customers (via email or in their personal profiles) when a product they were interested in is back in stock. First, you will make them visit your website again. Second, you will increase their chances of repurchasing.

 

7. A single page for making order and payment

Many studies (and our personal experience) recommend having a single page for placing an order. You will save your clients time – fewer clicks, fewer pages to go through, less information to fill in. Otherwise, the chances of finalizing a purchase are reduced. The less effort your customers make, the more satisfied they will be, and the faster they will buy your products. You will hit the spot!

 

8. Auction

We must say that auctions are not for every business. However, if it’s not your primary focus, but rather an additional functionality, it can be used as a way to increase your website traffic. Many users will visit your online shop numerous times for one particular item! Moreover, an auction may even increase its purchase price considerably.

 

 

 

If you have more questions or are thinking about creating a successful online store, you can read our recommendations on how to launch your first online store.

Keep in mind that this is a process that requires a wide range of knowledge – from programming, web design and having experience with the CMS itself, to SEO, digital marketing, online/offline sales, etc. Or, in short, many years of experience in the industry.

Our advice is to “do your homework”, then choose the safe and more optimized way and trust the Speedflow professionals for your eCommerce website development so you don’t lose focus on your business! Do not hesitate to contact us here or drop us an Email at info@speedflow.bg.

Our short summer break is over, we wiped the sand off our feet and we are ready to reach new heights with You – the readers!

 

To start you off we have prepared some easy read that will get you more acquainted with the similarities and differences between Internet and Intranet. Yes, you read correctly, there is no typo. Even though probably all of you have some interpretation of the question “What is Internet?”, not many people are aware of Intranet. So let’s make things a little clearer…

 

Definition

 

Internet (or the World Wide Web) is a system of interconnected computer networks all around the globe. This is supported by the so-called protocols and more specifically – TCP/IP. Every single link in this chain is connected to the others via a complicated combination of hardware and software. Every computer is identified by a unique set of numbers called an IP address. In order to avoid the tedious task of remembering all these numbers, the addresses can also be represented by names. This is done via DNS (domain name system) addresses.

 

Intranet is also a network of interconnected computers but it serves the internal purposes of various organizations – companies, government departments, administrative authorities, schools, and universities etc. It works just like a net-within-a-net. Intranet connected computers also have their unique IP address but they don’t need an Internet connection to maintain interaction.

 

Similarities

 

In terms of how each network is built, Internet and Intranet have a lot in common. Both use a combination of routers, data cables, servers and other hardware components to ensure connectivity. The protocols they adopt for sharing information are also the same – TCP/IP and FTP (file transfer protocol).

 

What else? Intranet freely uses the same browsers as Internet, all the various messenger apps are fully functional in both cases too. The same goes for security measures, firewalls and the methods of encrypting/decrypting information.

 

Differences

 

As we already mentioned Internet is a global network that is free for anyone to use. On the other hand, Intranet is restricted and offers limited access to selected people. Having that in mind we can define Intranet as the more secure from the two.

 

In terms of the users and traffic they generate, Internet offers full access to an unlimited number of visitors. Intranet, as mentioned, is set for a limited number of people, each of whom gets a defined traffic limit.

 

Needless to say, Internet is a much wider network, an inexhaustible source of information, but also useful for commercial purposes. In Intranet you get access to specific information that supports a common goal.

 

If you are a company or organization, you will need both Internet and Intranet. The first will ensure your employees get access to endless information, networking opportunities and new sales and marketing channels. Intranet, on the other hand, will help optimize the internal communication and processes, which will lead to a more stable and secure working environment.

 

Speedflow.bg is a long-time “user” of both systems and we are sure we can lend you a helping hand in building your new Internet and Intranet solutions from scratch.

Just stop for a second and look around. What do you see? Your office space maybe? Are you traveling on the bus or simply lying on the couch at home? Whatever the case, you are constantly being surrounded by content and the information overload urges you to make one choice after another. Online content acts the same. Where you click next depends on your personal decision and the information you are exposed to.

 

Online content creates relations; it is a conversation that takes different paths:

 

• It can start spontaneously
• It can also end spontaneously
• It may not even start
• It can benefit both sides – you and your users

 

As a business owner, which one of these scenarios do you prefer? I think we both know the answer…

 

Good content? You already have that!

But how? Whether you want to create your corporate website, start a personal blog, or develop an online store, you have already accumulated some good content in the form of experiences, ideas, knowledge, goals, work papers, brochures, and other materials without even knowing it. Take all the information you are passionate about and share it online. You are the one that best knows your products and services. Use that to your advantage. If you have an excellent product, good content practically writes itself.

 

The face of your business

Your website is your business card no matter if it’s a company website, online shop or just a blog. So, be very careful with the selection of words, images, and articles. They must represent your values and interests, be directly related to the offered products and services. Keep in mind that people visit your website for a reason. Whatever the case, they should leave your page feeling informed and satisfied, and, most importantly – have the desire to come back. If you’re not exactly sure how to do all that you can always count on the Speedflow Team for helpful advice.

 

The fateful choice

You basically have two options:

 

1. Quality content for profit and traffic
2. Filler content for loss and unpopularity

 

Do not do anything just because everyone else is doing it. The Internet is an infinite virtual universe filled with temptations that are just one click away. Do not forget – online competition is fierce and is everywhere!  So, your web content must be flawless. Not only will it be accessible to absolutely everyone, but more importantly – they will know who the author is. And it’s you! Your reputation is at stake! Stand out from the crowd for your originality, dedication and hard work. That’s a rule of life, isn’t it?

 

Web content checklist

Text – Words are a powerful and vital tool for creating web content. You have lots of options here depending on the nature and needs of your business.  These are but not limited to product descriptions, web page titles, tags, ads, blog articles, news, brochures, online magazines, guides, how-to and more.

 

Images – When talking about web content, we do not imply text only. As the renowned American editor Arthur Brisbane once said, “Use a picture. It’s worth a thousand words.” Images are an extremely effective way of expressing both qualitative and quantitative information – graphics, charts, photos, etc. Numerous studies have shown that in some situations people react better to images than to text. Images are perceived better and faster and are much more easily stored in our long-term memory.

 

Video – This is a very powerful but often underestimated web instrument. It’s true that not all websites and businesses can make use of it in the best possible way. But still, you can consider trying out some of these ideas – a virtual tour, a promo, slideshow, interview, product reviews, product testing, and more. It’s much easier to show how something works in a short video than to write a five-page manual about it.

 

Design – Web design is the tool that combines all the elements of your web content and presents them in a visually appealing and comprehensive form. It is the framework for all your hard work that will help you distinguish yourself and your products from the competition in an original and individual way. Web design is the first thing that catches your visitor’s attention, so make sure it is captivating enough. You can also take a look at our article about the latest design trends in 2017 for more clarity and new ideas.

 

Well, after reading all of this, do you think your website has all the elements of good content? If the answer is YES, your work does not end here. Regularly update your content (actually this is a positive SEO signal for the search engines and a factor for better ranking), maintain a never-ending dialogue with your visitors, and they will reward your time and effort with trust in your products and services.

 

If you need help or consultation regarding your project, contact us or send us an e-mail at info@speedflow.bg

The ways people interact with each other have changed dramatically over the last few years since online media became a big part of our daily lives. That brought a need for fresh business strategies and customer relations. Meet the solution for those needs – Digital Marketing!

 

What is digital marketing?

 

The emergence and development of the Internet forced the business to evolve, digitize, and adapt to the new conditions. This phenomenon also affected marketing and advertising, as standard advertising channels. Strategies and tactics were no longer efficient enough to promote a particular type of business brand.

 

But what exactly does digital marketing mean?

 

This is a specific set of techniques that use digital channels for advertising or in other words – the Internet. It reaches the widest possible audience online, using different advertising methods and channels for this purpose.

 

At the beginning of the millennium, WEB 2.0 appeared, with concepts such as search engines, bots, artificial intelligence, process automation, virtual reality, and many others. Now the Internet continues to evolve in a clear direction – a collaboration with users. The digital marketing fundamentals also went through several metamorphoses, which continue rolling to this day.

 

Then came the uprising of Social Media. And the online audience formed a contingent of potential clients. Business was quick to navigate this situation and adopt new ways of advertising – paid and organic. When a digital marketing specialist hears the words “Advertising Campaign“, he immediately thinks of a few things: Product, target audience, budget/cost, result, and optimization.

 

Optimization and design

 

Attracting targeted traffic to a particular website, whether it’s an online store, an information site or a personal blog, must be accompanied by well-optimized content and intriguing design. This applies to both landing pages and all other product and info pages. After all, who would like to be caught in the following situation:

 

You are running a successful ad campaign. The incoming traffic is increasing, but your site is slow and difficult to navigate. Users do not spend time on it. As a result, the advertising campaign becomes completely ineffective. Your costs are not justified, and you miss the possibility of new sales.

 

No one likes to stumble right at the finish line, right?

 

Targeting and Retargeting

 

As technology evolves, various tools are made available for gathering comprehensive information from consumers, helping us to segment them more appropriately through their tastes and interests.

 

Through the so-called “Cookies” we can understand more about the behavior of our visitors. This online information consists of extensive data such as viewed sites, searches, follow-up ads, and more.

 

In retargeting we use the information about the users’ tastes and needs to remind our potential clients about our services.

 

When you target and advertise, your goal is clear – to satisfy the needs of a particular group of people for a particular product or service. So let the message be individual and personal. This way your offer has a greater chance of being seen and considered.

 

Think big!

 

Nowadays it’s almost unthinkable not to be online! How else would someone from another city understand that you have a business? That you are providing a particular type of product or service? “Mouth-to-mouth” advertising is really useful, but it’s often not enough.

So think big! Plan your online marketing strategy and prepare a long-term action plan. Start with building a corporate website and optimizing it. Start collecting and create an email list for email campaigns. Participate in social networks. Positive results will certainly come faster than you think after knowing what is digital marketing!

Positive results will certainly come faster than you think, after knowing what is digital marketing and how to do it!

In the era of computer technologies, the online presence of your business is something you cannot neglect. Regardless if you are offering tourist services, selling clothes or managing your own restaurant – you want to be where your potential clients are!
That’s why you hire a company to develop a website for you, and then you just wait, expecting many orders and queries from it. But it doesn’t happen… It’s not working..! What is the problem?!?

The problem is that your new website is not visible because it’s not optimized for the search engines. Just having a website, blog or Facebook page won’t do the trick if you want your message to reach your audience…

The answer is SEO!

A lot is said about SEO in the last few years and, although people are becoming more and more educated on the subject, there is still a veil of mystery around its essence, how it works and most importantly – how can it work in our favor? These are some of the things we will try to reveal today.

 

What is SEO?

SEO comes from Search Engine Optimization and it is exactly what you might assume – optimizing your website for search engines. But, as everything else, the search engines also evolve, their algorithms become more and more developed and “learn” to understand the intent behind each search, not just the keywords involved. This is why search engine optimization morphed more into optimization for people.

 

Optimization for search engines is not a one-time process. The real results show when the good practices are combined and applied continuously over time.

We can divide SEO optimization into two main categories – on-page and off-page.

 

On-page SEO

In general on-page, SEO encompasses all processes and factors related to the website and its elements.

This can include:

• Site content
• Inbound and outbound links,
• Metadata,
• URL structure
• Sitemap
• Site architecture
• and many more

Excluding the first two, the other elements are added just once. Site content and links, however, need to be refreshed and renewed constantly so they can lead to the end goals – good ranking and exposure. The keyword here is “Relevance”! If you are looking for clients for your florist business, you will not impress anyone with articles about cars and links to related web pages. Even worse – the search engines algorithms are so evolved nowadays that your pages might be punished for irrelevant content/links.

 

Off-page SEO

Off-page SEO covers all the processes that help our business gain popularity using outside resources as well as creating external links to your website called “Link building“.

We are talkinga about include social networks, business catalogs, forums, directories, news sites, eCommerce websites, even alternative search engines. Remember the keyword? Yes, relevance holds a fundamental importance in off-page optimization too. The outside resources aim to add to your online image and help you gain a positive reputation. This is easily achieved by simply giving people what they need – entertaining and useful articles, in-depth analysis, captivating games, and special promotions. Put yourself in the shoes of your target audience and think about what content YOU like to see, what ads raise your interest and trigger your curiosity. At the end of the day, YOU are one of your best sources for information!

 

SEO vs  PPC

In order to fully understand what is SEO, we need to make a comparison with the other popular way of getting exposure online. Incorporating Pay-per-click (PPC) means that you are paying the search engine for a top spot in the rankings. Every click from paid ads reduces your PPC budget. Let’s take a look now at the main differences between the two techniques:

 

• SEO methods are organic and PPC targets paid traffic;
• SEO is a continuous process. PPC leads to immediate results but only as long as you keep paying;
• Paid search targets exposure and top rankings. Organic traffic builds reputation and authority;
• The buying cycle is shorter in PPC, compared to SEO;
• Organic traffic makes up to 90% of the overall Internet traffic.

 

So, can we now summarize what is SEO and what it does? Optimization for search engines, but for people too. It encompasses processes on and off the website. It’s a continuous and (mostly) free methodology with long-term results.

 

How about you? How well do you incorporate SEO into your overall business strategy? Contact us today and we will find a way to boost your business!