10 SEO issues

I included 10 questions involving SEO and search engines which might be issues that search engine optimizers might come across, that I wouldn’t expect most developers to have spent much time thinking about. I’ve written about most of these here, and I thought it might be fun to share them.

1. What impacts might Microsoft’s VIPS, Yahoo’s Template Extraction, and Google’s Segmentation of Visual Gaps have upon a search engine’s weighing of links, document representation, shingles based duplicate content detection, and categorization of topics on a page, and how might a search engine determine which segment is the most important?

2. What steps should one take to try to get a site to rank well for a query in Google Maps, and how might something like location prominence and location sensitivity of that query term impact the range and rankings of sites that appear in a Google Maps listing?

3. What are some of the potential flaws that a search engineer might make when using a discounted cumulative gain approach to evaluating the relevancy of search results at different positions?

4. How might image size, image resolution, image contrast, inclusion of a face in an image, use of images across multiple pages of a site, internal links on a site to images, and external links on a site to images impact the possible rankings of images in search results?

5. What should be contained in a video XML sitemap to make it more likely that the videos included are crawled and indexed by Google?

6. How might Google customize search results for a searcher based upon language and country preferences and past browsing history, even when a searcher isn’t even logged into their Google account and seeing personalized results?

7. What types of user behavior data might the search engines be using to reorder search results besides simple clickthrough rates, and how might those kinds of signals be used in determining sitelinks or quicklinks that Google, Yahoo, and Bing may show in search results?

8. How might a search engine determine which kinds of results besides web pages to blend into search results, and how might that approach change when named entities are involved?

9. What kinds of ranking signals might make it more likely that a news source ranks well in Google’s news search, and why might the search engine choose one article over others when the stories are substantially similar?

10. How are search suggestions (query refinements) chosen by a search engine to include in search results, and why might a search engine show one type of search suggestion at the top of search results, and another type at the bottom of the results.

SEO for Bing,Google and Yahoo

Ranking on one of these major search engines can be an intimidating task. Ranking on all three entails three different sets of rules and algorithms. It’s not impossible though, it just takes a little in-depth knowledge.

The end result of every search engine is the same. They all want their visitors to find the most relevant results they can by using their search mechanisms. How they get there however changes from search engine to search engine. Yet even these variations are limited.

To clarify the difference between Google, Bing and Yahoo, it is first necessary to understand each one individually, starting with Bing. It could be realistically said that it is easier to expect rankings on Bing first.

Bing for SEO
Bing demands a structured site that carries a distinct theme and provides many inbound links. Bing is fast to pick up and credits new content and incoming links. This is good news for SEO practitioners as it means with the right strategy it is possible to rank fairly quickly.
Bing requires a solid site that focuses on primary keywords, a good number of links and one that keeps their theme constant throughout. They don’t use aging delay methods and within a few months of concentrated SEO, one can start ranking highly for competitive keyword phrases.

Yahoo for SEO
Yahoo! also demands a solid size website along with unique content and a good amount of links. They have a type of page value factor which is similar to Google’s Page Rank. However Yahoo! do not say what the specifics of their page value is.
Yahoo! place importance on age links. Links don’t hold value for them until they are of a certain age. The time period is unknown. In order to rank on Yahoo! they require you have patience until your links age.

Google for SEO
It is the wish of most webmasters that they attain Google rankings. If you build a website that follows ethical practice, you will be ranked. But this will take longer than BING and Yahoo! rankings due to their link age policy or rule.

The longer your links, domain and pages have been online the better your rankings. Google require constant linking and updated content.

Apart from that Google rankings follow the same rules set by BING and Yahoo!

In conclusion
It follows logically that a new website should focus their SEO efforts on first Bing and on building good quality and relevant links. While you are gaining rankings on Bing it follows suit that your efforts will start attracting the attention both Yahoo! and Google.

Ranking well on all three search engines is not impossible. In fact it is possibly easier than you may think. It takes patience and time and analysis.

Researching what is required by each will help determine exactly what amount of weight should be focused on different areas. Tweaking your offerings as you go will ensure that your site is optimized for all three search engines.

Offshore Outsourcing Tips

Offshore Outsourcing unless managed efficiently will not yield reliable results. The following are some tips for successful offshore outsourcing.

1. Government regulations - Foreign governments has their own rules for labor regulation, taxes and economic development. Failing to comply with these rules can result in stiff penalties and lengthy delays. Make sure your supplier understands the rules and will keep you in compliance, and make sure your service agreement spells out your suppliers responsibilities.

2. Time zone constraints - The time differences between locations in the U.S. and Europe, Africa and Asia can range from seven to 14 hours. Your offshore resources may be going home when your workday is starting. To avoid unnecessary delays, your service agreement must spell out times of availability, including contingencies for matters that require immediate attention.

3. Control - A perceived lack of control is the single largest detractor in outsourcing decisions. Outsourcing often leads to improved control and performance because you can clearly spell out your expectations in the service agreement and include penalties if they are not met. Much of the anxiety around control issues can be addressed with well-defined business metrics, periodic performance inspections, clear escalation processes and sound communication practices.

4. Political stability - Political instability is one of the biggest unknowns in dealing with offshore suppliers. Civil insurrection or war can shut down your offshore operation indefinitely. An effective way to mitigate this risk is to work with a U.S.-based company with access to offshore operations in several countries. In times of crisis, it can be the suppliers responsibility to minimize disruption by shifting the work to another location.

5. Industry knowledge - Offshore suppliers generally have good technical skills, but they often lack relevant business-related experience and may not understand the business practices of your specific region. Choose a supplier who can incorporate industry-specific business knowledge, effective business models and experience specific to the regions in which you operate.

6. Project management - When your company choose to partner directly with an offshore supplier, choose someone who has already learned the lessons of working with offshore resources and can assign certified project management professionals to work with your firm. Most of the project management problems occur in the early stages, but these problems can throw an entire project behind schedule.

7. Business continuity - Business continuity planning and disaster recovery planning are fundamental to the well-being of any organization. Make sure your offshore supplier has a disaster recovery plan that will support your minimum service levels. The best approach is to plan carefully and make sure you have strong infrastructure support that can easily redistribute workloads to alternative locations, minimizing the chance of an interruption to your business.

8. Infrastructure - Your relationship with your offshore supplier is only as good as the communication and network infrastructure that separates your two countries. Your suppliers local infrastructure may be too primitive or unreliable for you to count on 24x7 connectivity. Make sure to factor in the cost of setting up a separate infrastructure that meets your organizations needs, or at least make sure you build in redundancies to your network.

9. Cost savings - The primary reason for companies to outsource is their quest for lower cost. However, lower hourly labor rates do not necessarily translate into lower costs. Factors like suppliers transition processes, productivity rates, service delivery capabilities and quality commitment can impact the overall project cost and the value gained from the offshore engagement.

10. Publicity - Even if shifting work offshore makes good business sense, it can create public relations issues for your company. Your decision to outsource will be watched closely by the employees and the media. Negative publicity could alienate your customers. Choosing an outsourcing supplier with both on-shore and offshore operations can minimize the potential for negative press.

Internet marketing research for ROI of your new websites

A new website doesn't come cheap nowadays. In fact, a professional web site can set you back thousands of dollars, and when you take into consideration just how much work is required in terms of design, planning, programming, and even content, it becomes apparent why it's so essential to see a return on your investment. Internet marketing, particularly SEO, can help.

Of course, it's hardly a secret that a successful website can see you earning astronomical amounts of money day in and day out and of course you can end up with thousands of customers from all over the world. In this respect, it simply cannot be denied that a professional website can by all accounts end up being one of the biggest and most lucrative business investments you'll ever make.

Unfortunately however, there are millions of people out there who end up becoming despondent when their new website doesn't live up to their expectations, in that it fails to generate the amount of money they were hoping for. When this happens, it is safe to say that their website is a failure, and as such, the efforts of the web development company were in vain as well.

After all, there's not much point in having a great looking website if you're the only one who even knows it exists. No, people will not simply start arriving at your website just because it's such a great looking site. Remember, there are an estimated 3 billion websites out there and the number is growing daily. Furthermore, there's no such thing as a gentleman's agreement between competitors, in that your competitors are hungry for your traffic and your visitors. Also, if it's easier for internet users to find the websites of your competitors, then you can bet your bottom dollar that that's where they'll be going. The main thing to remember is, if your website is not performing the way you want it to, and you're not getting as many visitors as you had hoped for, then you simply don't have the luxury of time to sit back and do nothing.

You could of course go and spend hundreds or thousands of dollars on printed advertising, just as you could spend a fortune on advertising your website on TV. But let's face it; this type of advertising is beyond most people's means, particularly when you consider that it will at most only be able to grab people's attention for a few minutes. Even if you decide to give your website a makeover in terms of appearance, that's still not going to achieve anything in terms of making people aware that your web site exists.

If you're serious about exposing your website to the general population then you need to acknowledge the fact that SEO (search engine optimization) is the most powerful tool you have, in that it can effectively see your website appearing on the front page of search results when surfers type in certain search criteria. No, SEO is by no means rocket science but it will require a considerable amount of time in terms of website analysis and keyword research. Remember, Even though your website may currently rank high on Google search results for one particular keyword or keyword phrase, that doesn't necessarily mean that your website will show up when internet surfers type in other related keywords or keyword phrases.

Generally speaking, a website owner can experience as much as a 50% increase in the number of enquiries they receive simply because their website is showing on the first page of Google search results based on a specific keyword or keyword phrase. However, what happens if this doesn't happen for you even though your website is always on the first page?

You need to bear in mind that there are several factors which make it possible for you to get a ROI for your website, and SEO is just one of them. In other words, if you're confident that your website's appearance is as good as it should be, and your site is ranking highly in search results, and yet you're still not getting the amount of business you had anticipated, then perhaps it's time for you to take a look at your site's content. By this I mean that you should try to see your website from a visitor's point of view. Is your site easy to navigate around? Is it clear to visitors that they can easily send in enquiries, and is your copy well written and informative? Lastly, you need to re-evaluate what it is that you're hoping will persuade customers to purchase your product or service. Furthermore, you need to understand your target audience because unless you can understand the type of people who will be visiting your site, you cannot tailor your content accordingly.

At the end of the day, you need to be willing to perform enough research and analysis. Providing you do, you can be virtually guaranteed you'll notice an improvement in your website, and this of course will result in more traffic and higher conversion rates.

Benefits of outsourcing at tough economic times

The benefits of outsourcing for web & software companies in tough economic times

Did you ever wonder how offshore/outsourcing can help you through the current economic downturn? Did you ever consider the major benefits offshoring can bring to your company?
If you run a web or software development company, you probably might come across it. With the current economic situation, it might be a good idea to consider the growth & profit it can bring to your company.

Flexibility
The past years, it was hard to find appropriate people to run your IT projects. Right now, it is probably harder to find enough projects to fill your IT department. With the labor laws in Western Europe it’s not easy to simply hire and fire people. Outsourcing your IT needs to a partner, saves you the headache that comes with hiring and firing people. You simply hire the exact amount of hours you need and you don’t run the risk of long term labor contracts.

Cost savings
For cost saving, it is important to compare the correct options. Often web & software companies tell me ‘it is cheaper to hire a programmer in my own office’. Taken into consideration the high tax levels, holidays, sick leaves, overhead, training, productivity, etc, it is usually still cheaper to hire an offshore developer. But the correct comparison is: offshoring or outsourcing to a local partner. And if you compare those options, the cost savings are substantial.

Focus & a lean organization
The biggest added value of you as a web or software companies is the ‘intelligence’. You create solutions for problems. You develop applications that help a customer solve his problems. In order to deliver this solution, you need to develop it. If you focus your attention completely on this intelligence instead of managing a team of software programmers, your added value towards your customers increases. Outsourcing the development process to a partner, keeps your organization lean at the same time.

Capacity & specialization
Even now the labor markets have become less tense it is still a challenge to find enough people and especially the right people. Cooperating with an offshore or outsource partner, gives you access to a vast pool of developers. This will ensure that you can always attract the capacity you need and makes it easier to find the ‘perfect match’ with the skills you need.

Now one of these factors alone might not be enough reason for you to change your current situation. But consider the fact that you can achieve ALL the benefits simultaneously. It is not only about cost savings, but about a strategic decision that brings your company long term growth and profitability. It creates a stable basis on which to build your company.

Offshore PHP developers at one third of the cost

Are you in need of immediate PHP enabled website? Or do you need a dedicated offshore PHP programmer for your website development with cost effectiveness too? Your destination for all your needs is at Softlogic Inc.

When it is Softlogic, you would get comprehensive range of web development solutions for your all your business needs. We ensure that you get customized, reliable and quality oriented PHP development service that matches your requirements.

Some of the other qualitative benefits of hiring dedicated Offshore PHP developers from Softlogic are:
• Low Cost PHP Website Development that would gel perfectly with your business.
• Customized and Optimized Open Source Customization and PHP Web Development.
• Reduced Overhead costs, as the result of outsourcing.
• Dedicated programmer which will work in your facility along with your employees for fast completion of the project.
• Round the clock technical support available to you.
• You can make instant changes in your website design or its database, as you can directly approach our dedicated PHP Programmer.
• Our dedicated PHP Programmer would be flexible with your business requirements and work according to that.
• One Project to One Dedicated PHP Programmer which is our allocation criteria for all projects.
• Weekly Reporting on the status and development of the project.

At Softlogic we offer affordable web services, which include:
Customized Web based Application Development
SEO and Internet Marketing
Open Source Customization
E-commerce Development

When you hire a dedicated offshore PHP programmer through Softlogic, you get
Complete reliability in work
Enhanced Interaction with your and your partner clients
Schedule meetings according to your privileged time
Hard working and dedicated programmer
Interact Online at anytime

Hiring a dedicated PHP developer from Softlogic Inc. is truly a matter of privilege, as we can give real definition to your web based projects in a fast, cost effective and efficient manner.

Tips to promote your web design business

As businesses wake up to realize the potential of having an online presence, they are turning to professional website design and development companies to establish a sound web presence. This has led to a boom in the website design & development industry and many design companies are mushrooming across the nation.

If you are one of the web design companies and want your business to succeed in cyberspace, you need to make efforts to establish yourself as the best out of the lot. You must explain to your audience information about your company and why it is unique. Inform them crisp details about your products and services and how they can help them to enhance their businesses. Here are some tips to promote your web design business online.

Create a Portfolio Page

Add an exclusive Portfolio Page to your website where you can showcase all the websites that you have worked on. Include a screen shots of the website along with a link to the same so that visitors can visit the website and check out the design in detail. Along with this, also include brief information about what you have done for the website. Was it the development work, the design or redesign process or some other maintenance task? This lets the visitors know about your approach towards working for a website.

Include High Quality Content

Content is an integral part of a website. People judge the credibility and reliability of a website by reading through its contents. Your content should give a extremely clear idea about your company and business to the audience. Explain them about the products and service that you offer and how it would benefit their businesses. Use simple sentences and language so that visitors can understand well. Avoid using complex industry jargons.

Create a Blog

Blogs are an excellent medium to update regular content and to carry out and informal dialogue with your audiences. You can have a informal discussion with your audience about the industry and gather in their comments as well. This will also give your a chance to understand the needs and requirements of your target audience.

Social Networking

Social networking websites are a great platform to promote your business to Internet users. Create an account and establish your presence on major social networking websites like Facebook, MySpace etc. and connect with your industry audience. Communicating with them on a social and informal level would give you valuable knowledge about your niche industry and audience.

Include Client Testimonials

Ask your clients to write testimonials for you mentioning your work and their experiences with you. When potential customers visit your website and read the testimonials, they are more likely to trust you and further invest their money in you.

Powerful Marketing Strategies

Marketing your business is very important to increase its online visibility and give it exposure in the industry. While starting out you may do some email marketing and then move on to more powerful strategic marketing and advertising as you gain momentum.

Search Engine Optimization

Make use of effective search engine optimization processes to make sure that your website is well optimized so that it ranks well in search engine results. This further increases your online visibility and attracts heavy traffic inflow.