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How To Choose a Website Platform Provider

pierce.denning@ybo.tech (Pierce Denning) — Mon, 04 Jan 2021 19:31:43 GMT

How to Choose a Website Platform Provider

Ultimately, there are three groups of people you need to keep in mind: customers, potential customers, and yourself. Supporting these groups doesn’t have to be hard. A good platform provider will take care of all of that for you.

What do You Want From Your Website?

The first thing you need to do is make a list of things you want to do with your website. What features do you want it to have? What will benefit your customers? You can then take this list to consultations or compare it to features offered to ensure that your provider can take care of everything you’re looking for.

Some of the most popular properties include:

Online stores: a way for your customers to purchase your products and services digitally
Blogs: these can help generate traffic to your website and establish yourself as an authority in your field
Podcasts: a podcast is a great way to get your voice heard and establish a closer relationship with your customer base
Contact forms: these allow your customers to get in touch with you and start a conversation about how you can meet their need
Reservation Systems: allow your customers to pick a date that works best for them, whether they’re booking a service, consultation, or meeting time
Biographies: tell your customers a little about yourself and why you do what you do -- it establishes trust and a more personal relationship
FAQ Sections: answer the most common questions and provide clear answers

Here is a list of 10 essential features every good business website has

Where do You Want to go?

Once you know where you are, the next thing to consider is where you want to go. What kind of growth do you expect your website and business to see? What features might you want to add in the future?

Can your website provider accommodate you? Making a smart, well-informed decision, in the beginning, can save you time, money, and a headache later on.

What Else is Important?

Once you know what you need now and what you’ll need in the future, the next thing to look at is the potential host.

A Fast Website is Essential

Google has taken website loading time (speed) into account for its page ranking on desktops since 2010 and adopted the same policy for mobile devices in 2018 ( source ). Slower speeds lead to lower search algorithm rankings, meaning that fewer people will see your website, and over time you will see less and less traffic.

Speed also plays a role in the user experience. The average user gives a website 15 seconds before clicking away. Loading time can and will eat into this. How many times have you clicked away from a website because it takes too long to load and is frustrating to use? Odds are, it’s almost every time you find yourself in that position.

Uptime Matters

Uptime plays a similar role in search algorithm ranking and user experience. When a search engine detects that your website is offline for large periods of time or experiences frequent outages, it takes a hit in the rankings.

This is why reputable platform providers offer an “ uptime guarantee ”. You cannot generate traffic if your website is not online for customers to find.

Your first impression often comes from your customer’s interactions with your website: if it is slow and not often available, they may think the same of you.

Ease of Use

You want a provider that’s built for those who aren’t experienced with web design. You shouldn’t have to struggle to create a professional, polished, and easy to use website. The best platform providers offer a drag and drop feature to make designing the site hassle-free. There should also be options for color, photo, text, and layout customization to ensure that your website is as unique as your business.

Data Ownership

Something that many people forget about is data ownership. You own your business, you should also own your website. Be sure to look at the terms of service -- you should remain the owner of any text, photos (assuming you took them), and visual design on your website.

Customer Support

You’re a customer as well, and your platform provider should treat you like one -- you are trusting part of your business with them. Ask lots of questions, critique their website (be sure it’s up to your standards), and ensure that they’re a good fit for you.

Before selecting a provider be sure that you like the company and they have fast response times. You wouldn’t pay for a service like plumbing from someone that takes days to reply -- keep your standards high for website providers too.

Mobile Readiness

Mobile internet usage overtook desktop in 2016. A large portion of people searching for your website or shopping around will be doing so on their phones and tablets. If your current and potential customers cannot access your site, you’ll lose traffic and business. This is why it’s essential to find a provider that will create a website that is friendly for all devices.

Extra Services

It’s one thing to have a website, it’s another to have a well-designed and optimized website. There are 1.8 billion websites live (as of right now) and the number will continue to climb. You want a provider that’s able to offer extra services to help you stand out. Some of these services might include:

Blogging : a team of writers well-versed in grammar, language, and SEO to produce original content for your website’s blog.
Website Statistics: you deserve to know how well your website is doing, statistics on click-through rates, browsing time, and ranking are important.
Guest Posting : this puts your blog posts onto other high-traffic websites to help drive organic traffic back to yours.
SEO ( Search Engine Optimization ): tracking keywords, clicks, and building back-links to boost your website’s ranking in various search engines.
Ad Campaign Optimization : using keywords, “landing pages”, optimized traffic, and ad design to create high-quality ads with a high click-through rate.
Link Building : creating links to other pages on your website by incorporating them into the natural flow of your text.

Whether or not you choose to partake in any extra services is at your discretion -- but it’s crucial to select a provider that has the capability to expand.

Ultimately…

Whether you’re providing a service or selling a good, your business is an extension of you. It’s important to find a platform provider who will take that into consideration.

Remember to reflect on not only your customer and potential customer’s needs but also your own. Start with “what do I need?” and continue with “what will I need?”.

At YBO, your customers are also ours. It’s our business to make sure that you AND your clients are happy with the website .

SEO: How to Boost Your Website’s Organic Traffic

pierce.denning@ybo.tech (Pierce Denning) — Mon, 07 Dec 2020 18:00:02 GMT

SEO: How to Boost Your Website’s Organic Traffic

Customers and business owners face a similar problem -- an overwhelming amount of choice.

So how can you fight through a search engine’s algorithm to gain one of the front-page spots and increase your sales?

Make Your Website Device Friendly

If your website hasn’t been updated recently , it’s probably time to think about doing so. Mobile internet usage has increased steadily over the past decade while we have seen desktop usage decline. These trends will continue -- phones are becoming faster, smarter, and more user-friendly every year. It’s essential to have a website that’s accessible on smartphones, tablets, and computers to keep your audience engaged. Our professionals can help you optimize your brand’s website for all devices and break out of the traditional computer bubble.

Build an Online Presence Through Social Media

Using location-based social media like Yelp or Angie’s List is essential in generating new organic traffic. Establishing a page on these websites can generate high-value links to your own website. This makes it easier to find and can boost your SEO ranking. Consumers tend to prefer “tried and true” services and products. The science of familiarity extends into the realm of business. If you have a service or a product that works, make it easier for your customers to get the word out. New patrons will follow previous ones -- they tend to trust what other clients like themselves say more than they trust the business owner.

Make Your Website Easy to Share

Adding buttons to make your website shareable can boost engagement rates and increase traffic to your site. Although sharing does not play a direct role in SEO rankings, it has a lot of correlated benefits. The use of an email, message, or a copy link button helps current users send your website to others -- it can act as a digital word of mouth and can follow the “ripple effect” . Social shares also work to improve user engagement on the website. When more people see it, more people interact.

Design for the User -- Know your Audience

When designing your website ask yourself:

Who is visiting?

Why?

From where?

The answer to these questions can inform your color scheme, word choice, and images to make it more appealing to the user. A website for a Florida-based landscaping company should look very different from a website for a New York clothing boutique.

Be Concise

Think back to the stereotyped long-winded story-blog that comes before a recipe. The user is on the page for the ingredients and the directions, not 5 pages on the inspiration, motivation, and dreams of its creator.

As Michael Scott once said: keep it simple, stupid. Many people attempt to fit too much into their websites. Inundating your customers with information irrelevant to their search and wordy language can push your site further down in Google’s rankings. Take your business back to the essentials by asking yourself “what does a customer need to know?”. The rest can go in a FAQ section. Keep it relevant and readable .

Know Your Keywords and How to Use Them

Keywords are what a user types into a search engine.

An important step in boosting your search engine optimization is to identify what keywords are relevant to your customers -- what are they looking for? Identifying a collection of keywords is essential to boosting your SEO; you want them to be varied and applicable to your business. Because search engine algorithms will punish overuse and unnatural phrasing, you need them to work with the natural flow of your website. Keyword placement should be on high-attention areas, some of the most common placements are:

The website’s URL and title
The website’s meta description
Headings
Image captions, descriptions, and files
Body content

Remember that these work best with moderate usage -- unnatural verbiage or keyword stuffing can do more harm than good.

User Experience is Vital

Is your website slow? Glitchy? Difficult to navigate? All of these and more can drive away potential traffic and lower your ranking. Users and the way they interact with your page play a huge role in determining how well your site performs. The amount of time they spend on your page, what they click on, shares, and returns to the site are important factors in generating future organic traffic. If a search engine’s algorithm detects that a user seems to enjoy a site, it’s reflected in the rankings.

Create a Website Blog

Building a blog can help to establish you as an authority in your field and demonstrate your expertise. By anticipating and answering your customer’s questions, comments, and general interests you can often convert online queries into sales. Through a blog, current customers stay engaged with your business by reading about what you have to offer; potential customers can benefit from your knowledge and gain confidence in your brand. Sharing what you do and why you do it through a blog helps to build trust between your business and customers (and in turn, often generates more sales).

Grow a Network of Backlinks

One of the best ways to establish and steadily grow your search engine optimization efforts is to create a large network of sites with backlinks to your site under relevant keyword anchors. Backlinks act as a vote from one site to another, which shows search engines that your site is recommended for the anchor that your do-follow link is under. Using services, such as our link building service , help your site rank by creating websites on top level domains that seamlessly link back to your own site’s relevant pages. Through your growing portfolio of site backlinks, you will steadily climb the rankings for valuable keywords that bring value to your business.

Increase Your Authority

Domain authority ( DA ) and page authority ( PA ) are two ways of ranking your website’s “reputation”. They predict how well your domain or a certain page on your domain will rank compared to other similar sites. Your site’s authority is determined, in part, by how many backlinks it has and the value of those backlinks. Some of the most valuable backlinks come from high-value DA’s such as .edu and .gov.

For example:

You published a blog on natural pesticides to boost your fumigation companies SEO. A page with a high DA links to your blog on their website. Because this website linked back to yours, they lent some of their reputation to you -- boosting your authority in the eyes of the search algorithms.

Our guest post service can help you obtain naturally embedded links on high-traffic or high DA websites. Our team reaches out to enterprise-level sites and partners to obtain high-quality links which can boost visitors to your website.

Overall...

It’s important to remember that your website is not only a reflection of your business, but also a reflection of you. When considering your online presence, it’s vital to represent your values, goals, and standards. A well-built website that reflects these will see a boost in rankings and valuable traffic. Customers value their online experience with you as much as they value their in-person interactions.

To stand out amongst the competition and increase sales, you need a well-designed website. If you’re ready to offer the best online experience for your customers and make the best digital first-impression possible, contact us and we can build something that works for you and your customers.

Websites to Impress: Avoid These 5 Pitfalls to Keep Your Site Neat and Professional

pierce.denning@ybo.tech (Pierce Denning) — Mon, 17 Jun 2019 07:25:02 GMT

Websites to Impress: Reasons Why People Don't Like Certain Websites

You know your business is incredible, and your services are something people will love. However, your target audience is hopping off your site like a trampoline instead of sticking around to explore.

But don't worry! Here are 5 pitfalls to avoid so you can keep their attention and create websites to impress:

1. It Looks Spammy

Your website has excellent content, so make sure it has the opportunity to stand out .

Too many advertisements can overshadow your posts, causing your website to look spammy and annoying , instead of helpful.

Make websites to impress by limiting the number of advertisements to keep your site looking credible and impressive.

Also, if your site displays ads, tailoring your ads to be relevant to your niche will make them fit more naturally into your site's landscape.

2. It Loads Super Slow

If you're in an area with a strong connection, but your website won't load, it may be time for a tune-up. After 3 seconds of loading time , people start leaving the page before it can fully appear.

On the contrary, if your website has a fast load, it can positively affect SEO and keep your customers from leaving too early.

3. Unfiltered Comments Section

Feedback is awesome because it can show you what works well and what needs to be improved on your site.

However, spammy comments do not promote a positive customer experience or benefit your business in any way.

Consider moderating comments at the end of blog posts so you can make sure all conversation stays both professional and relevant .

This can help you provide a better user experience for people who stick around on your site, making them more likely to return in the future.

4. Wrong Color Scheme

Have you ever tried to read light yellow font on a white background or dark gray font on a black background? If so, you'll notice the content is hard to read because the color scheme isn't working.

Make your content easy to see by balancing out colors . Also, pay attention to your target audience's design preferences. Men and women tend to prefer different colors.

If you're marketing to both, make sure to find a common color scheme everyone will enjoy.

(Don't have time to redesign? We can help you create websites to impress!)

5. Information is Hard to Find

If you can't find what you're looking for on a website, how long will you stay? 15 seconds? 2 minutes? The odds are you won't stay very long.

And if your customers can't find the info they're looking for, they won't stay long either.

Great content makes blogs more credible , and websites more appealing to customers. Make helpful info easy to find by creating your website with user-friendly design in mind.

Pretend to be a customer for a second. If you can find what you are looking for on your site. If you discover it quickly, your customers should be able too also.

Final Thoughts on Making Websites to Impress

Keeping your target audience on your site is not an impossible task.

And by avoiding these 5 pitfalls, you can make websites to impress and set your business up for success!

Need any help? Check out our website packages on this page !

8 Key Traits that Your Website Homepage Should Have

pierce.denning@ybo.tech (Pierce Denning) — Mon, 10 Jun 2019 07:29:40 GMT

8 Key Traits that Your Website Homepage Should Have

The average person has an 8-second attention span when visiting a website. Does your company’s web page have what it takes to reel a customer in and keep them engaged and interested in your site?

This is why your website homepage is so important when making a great first impression. It’s the first thing people see when they visit your site, so it has to be the best you can offer when it comes to delivering what your customers need.

Let’s look at 8 Key Traits that Your Website Homepage needs to turn that 8-second visit into a paying customer.

1. Headline

You need to let visitors know the answer to their immediate question: "What does your company do?” By answering this question, it lets your audience know what your company has to offer.

Keep it clear and simple by using one sentence (two at the most!). And make sure it’s at the top of the page, so visitors know what you’re all about from the get-go.

2. Sub-Headline

After your headline grabs their attention, a sub-headline will help to explain your goods or services in a bit more detail.

In a brief description, explain what you can do for your ideal customer or how you can help them solve a problem.

3. Call-To-Action

Decide what you ultimately want your website homepage visitor to do to take the next step. Do you want them to sign up for your newsletter? How about contacting you for a free rate quote?

Whatever that next step may be, create a call-to-action to compel them to go further down the buying cycle.

4. Navigation Bar

When designing your website , at the top of your homepage, you want your visitors to be able to find the information they want or need instantly. A navigation bar is like the road map of your website.

Display the webpages you think most customers will be looking for, such as services or your blog. Keep it simple and uncluttered.

5. Benefits List

While your headline and sub-headline gave your website homepage visitor an idea of what you do, a benefits list will explain to them why it matters to them. As they say, “Features tell, benefits sell.”

Explain to your audience what’s in it for them, what sets you apart from the competition, and why they should buy from you.

6. Testimonials and Recognition

Let your rewards and past clients sing your praises! Display customer testimonials and company recognition to showcase your superior service.

When 84% of people trust online reviews, you’ll be sure to make a great first impression and establish yourself as trustworthy in potential customers’ eyes.

7. Images and Video

Most people are visual creatures. Help them connect to your website by displaying high-quality photos or videos.

Try to avoid stock photos if you can. Instead, use pictures of your company and team to help potential customers relate to you and get an idea of what to expect.

8. Contact Information

You want to make it as easy as possible for your customers to get a hold of you. You can implement this by displaying your contact info on your website homepage.

In the website footer, display your mailing address, phone number, and email address. If applicable, show your business hours so people know when they can (and can’t) get a hold of you.

Make a Great First Impression with Your Website Homepage

You only get one chance to make a great first impression. By using these key traits on your website homepage, you’ll be more likely to turn more of your site visitors into your next loyal customers.

Need help with your website design? Check out our website packages ! We have something to offer any budget and any need.

Out of Date: How Old, Poorly Designed Websites Hurt Your Business

pierce.denning@ybo.tech (Pierce Denning) — Mon, 03 Jun 2019 08:05:56 GMT

Out of Date: How Old, Poorly Designed Websites Hurt Your Business

You have an online presence, but it doesn't seem to be thriving, and the few customers who find your site don't spend a lot of time there.

Having an online presence is essential, but if your website is outdated or unattractive, it could be harming your business instead of helping it.

But what are the characteristics of poorly designed websites? How do you know if you have one? Here's everything you need to know about outdated websites.

How Poorly Designed Websites Hurt Your Business

Your website is a reflection of your business, so ineffective website design may be perceived as negligence and a lack of care to your customers. How do they know you're keeping everything up-to-date and working on bettering your own business and what you can provide them if your design is outdated ? This will discourage them from visiting your site in favor of finding a more professional web page.

Search Engine Optimization

If your website is outdated, Google will punish you by not ranking your website as high in their search results. This keeps potential customers and readers from discovering your website and ultimately hurts your business.

Not Responsive

Responsive design ensures that websites render well on devices other than computers. People can access these websites from other mobile devices, and a responsive website will resize accordingly to fit the screen.

In 2018, 52.2 percent of internet traffic worldwide took place on mobile phones. Each year, this number increases. If your website doesn't look attractive on phones, you're potentially going to miss out on a lot of new customers.

Difficult to Navigate

If your visitors can't find what they're looking for in a few clicks, they are going to leave your site and find something better. It's imperative to have an organized website with a navigation bar that includes main pages and categories.

Unattractive

If your website has a font that is hard to read, pixelated images, or a color scheme that does not look appealing, you are going to lose visitors.

All your competition has to do to gain your customers is to organize themselves and add big banners across their pages and place infographics that advertise their name and services. These are simple things that you could do to improve your own site.

Too Simple

Website design is continuously evolving. What may have been trendy a few short years ago may no longer be acceptable in the world of web design today.

Add-ons and small applications that allow your visitors to perform functions make websites more interactive and fun to use. If your site only has basic content and only a few pictures, you're missing out on opportunities to connect with your customers.

Consider adding social media feeds, high quality and well-constructed videos, and the option to sign up for email updates. This will keep your customers in the know while giving your site a modern look that visitors will love.

Fixing Bad Website Design

The whole point of having a website is to advertise your business and have a place where your customers can learn about your products. Poorly designed websites that suffer from any of the shortcomings, as mentioned above, need to be updated. You are potentially losing customers with these problems, and with the loss of visitors, potential profit may be lost.

If you want to update your website but don't know where to start, contact a professional to help you today.

Most Interesting Websites: How You Could Make Your Site Pop Out

pierce.denning@ybo.tech (Pierce Denning) — Mon, 27 May 2019 07:35:17 GMT

Most Interesting Websites: How You Could Make Your Site Pop Out

Does your website stand out from your crowd of competition?

If not, it is time to re-evaluate your website design and see what you can do to improve and truly make your site "pop." One of the best things to do when planning a redesign is to take a look at web pages that personally interest and engage you. These might be your competitor's websites or just some businesses with pages that you find to be the most interesting.

While you do not want to copy someone else's design, you want to make sure it is attractive to potential customers. Thirty-eight percent of visitors will leave a web page simply if the content or layout is unattractive and even more will leave if it is also hard to use or navigate.

Keep reading to learn more about what you can take from the most exciting websites and apply these aspects, patterns, and techniques to your own website redesign .

Five of The Best Things To Learn From The Most Interesting Websites

The most interesting websites have a great design, and they're also easy to use and are helpful to consumers.

If you're not sure how to get started with your site, here are five ways to make your website more enjoyable and stand out from your competitors:

1. Keep Branding Consistent

Make sure your site's branding is consistent in every way. Your branding consists of your logo, color choices and schemes, font selections, and every other design element that is associated with your business. Make sure the design is consistent on every page.

For example, don't use fonts in your blog posts that aren't used anywhere else on your website. Using the same fonts across your entire site will make your site look well put together and well thought out.

With the use of too many different fonts, your site will look scattered, and it will not look like one clear and coherent message to your visitors. These anomalies will catch the eye of visitors and will make them remember the disjointed look of your website, which will make your site much less appealing.

2. Make It Easy To Navigate

Even if your website looks beautiful, users will get frustrated if they can't find what they are looking for. Make sure your navigation bar doesn't get lost in your design and don't use popups and designs that block essential parts of your site.

This is key to making sure that you are the owner of the most interesting website in your respective industry. Not only do you want the most usable and user-friendly site, but you also want to have the most beautiful web page that your customers have visited.

3. Use Video Content

Video content is a great way to make your website more engaging. Viewers retain 95% of a message when they watch it in a video, compared to only retaining 10% of the information presented when reading it in text format.

Replace large chunks of written content with visually appealing videos. An intro video on your homepage is a good idea to catch a visitor's attention quickly and introduce visitors to your business.

4. Always Use Original Content

Attractive websites use original content. This rule goes for video content, written content, and images as well. No matter what material you choose for your site, make sure it's high quality and matches the message that you want to convey.

5. Give Your Customers What They Want

Create your website design and your content with your customer's needs and wants in mind. Give them a site they would want to see and deliver your services in a way that resonates with them. Most websites make it all about themselves. You can beat this by showcasing customer success stories and reviews. Make your site different by focusing on the customer and think of ways on how they would want your web page to look.

It is important to remember that different customers will want the sites they visit to look and function differently. For example, if you are providing high-end handbag repairs, they will want to visit a website that looks much different than customers of a business that provides raw materials for manufacturing purposes.

Learn More About Designing A Beautiful Website

The most intriguing websites follow a lot of the tips we have listed above but do not overdo it on your own site, making it look unnatural. Keep things simple and focus on a few elements that represent your brand best.

Customers don't want to visit your website and feel overwhelmed by design. It is more important to integrate each aspect of your site naturally than to check off a list of helpful design tips. The best way to incorporate each of these items is to ensure that none of them become too noticeable or stick out to your visitors. The more natural and seamless your website looks, the better your website will look to its visitors.

If you're looking for professional help with redesigning your personal or your business' website, don't hesitate to contact us and get started on your project today. Our expert designers will help you create a website design that will create a lasting impact on your clients.

How to Add Keywords to a Website and Boost Your SEO

pierce.denning@ybo.tech (Pierce Denning) — Mon, 20 May 2019 07:43:58 GMT

How to Add Keywords to a Website and Boost Your SEO

Are you looking to boost your website's ranking?

Search engine optimization (SEO) is a critical part for businesses. Ninety-three percent of all online experiences begin with a search engine, so you're missing out on a lot of potential business if your website doesn't show up on the first page of search results.

One of the basic principles of SEO is using relevant keywords to help Google (or any other search engine) recognize that your website will be the most helpful to the person who is searching.

Adding keywords might sound intimidating, but it's easy to do if you follow some simple rules. Keep reading to learn more about keywords and how to add keywords to a website.

How To Add Keywords To A Website

Relevant keywords are crucial to getting a high ranking website. You want your website to rank high up on the first page of results, as most people won't bother even going to the second page of search results.

If you're not sure how to get started, here are five easy to implement steps to optimizing your website with the best keywords to help improve your website's ranking:

1. Start With Keyword Research

Make a list of keywords that people would search to find your business. Think critically about your target audience and what their needs are. You should also include synonyms and related words, as different people will all search for slightly different words.

2. Add Keywords In The Right Places

Randomly adding keywords around your site won't get you the results you are looking for. Make sure that keywords are placed strategically throughout your page. It used to be back in the early 2000s that you would put as many keywords as possible on as many pages of your website as possible in an attempt to gain favor with search algorithms. Now, it is not only ugly looking on your website and seems unnatural, but search engines, like Google , may punish such actions.

An example of unnatural placement of keywords would be something like:

"Our handmade knives are handmade by our team who creates handmade knives. Contact our handmade knife makers today to receive your very own handmade knife."

Instead, search engines favor a more natural and subtle approach to keyword placement. More natural and subtle additions of keywords that help instead of hurt your Search Engine Optimization (SEO) can be found in each of our blog posts . We use blog posts to answer relevant questions that our clients will search for online. Which not only helps them find the answers that they need but helps our SEO as well. Blog posts allow more SEO keywords to be used and can help to reach a broader audience that is genuinely interested in your site's content.

Useful places to include keywords for your site to help boost Search Engine Optimization are:

Your website domain
Website title
Headings
File names for images
Body content
Titles and captions for images
Blog Posts

3. Keep Tabs On Your Competitors

Make sure you check out your competition's website to see what keywords they're using and the quality of their content. You'll be competing with other businesses in your area to rank higher in results. Keywords for your local area are essential because they give you a higher chance to rank higher in your local area. You want to make sure your website has better SEO than your competitors. If your competitor's SEO is better, you can lose clicks and organic traffic to them, potentially losing business.

4. Track Your Results

Make sure you track your results carefully so you can see which keywords are the most successful for your website. Google Analytics is a free tool provided by Google and can help you track your top referral keywords. This article gives a full explanation of how to get started. The more information that you have on what is making your site successful, the more likely you are to grow off of that information and continue to expand.

5. Don't "Stuff" Your Website

Keyword "stuffing" isn't a good idea, and your website can be punished for including too many keywords on one page. This is a result of Search Engines preferring more genuine and more readable pages. Too many keywords on a single page can indicate either harder to read and unnatural writing, or signal that someone is trying to take advantage of the algorithm to try and rank higher in search results.

One easy way to make sure you're not inadvertently "stuffing" your pages with keywords is to calculate your keyword's density on a given page. For example, if your blog post has 300 words, and the keyword you are trying to incorporate appears 30 times, you have a keyword density of ten percent. You should reduce the amount and frequency of your keyword since the optimal percentage is between two and three percent.

Learn More About SEO

Now that you know how to add keywords to your website, you might be ready to move forward towards some more complex SEO concepts.

Check out the rest of our blog for more helpful tips that will help to boost your ranking and make your website the best possible experience for your visitors. This article on how to tell if you need a website redesign is a great place to get started. If you're ready to redesign your website completely, check out our Website Design page for more information.

How Often Should You Redesign Your Website? A Guide for Businesses

pierce.denning@ybo.tech (Pierce Denning) — Mon, 06 May 2019 07:51:55 GMT

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Do you know that Bob Dylan line from one of his classics? The times they are a-changin'. Well, with website design, the times are a-changin' faster than you can blink and change your desktop screensaver.

You and your business need to keep up. This means keeping your website current with modern visuals and focusing on customer satisfaction and experience. In fact, a mistake that a lot of people make when they develop a website for their new business is to launch it and then ignore it for the next three years.

But, here's a simple fact about websites. What your website looks like and how it performs significantly reflects on you and your business. An out-of-date and quickly aging website can keep potential customers away from ultimately choosing your business' product(s) or service(s). Keep reading to learn how often you should redesign your website .

Novelty vs. Upgrades

Although some websites continue to work for their owners after a few years, this is not the case for most. When you develop a website and add content to the page, you need to make sure that it is impressive and works well for at least an entire year. It should at the very minimum look clean and be easy to digest for your site visitors. If it doesn't convey your message to your customers, then it is not doing its job. Your website should be the best representation of your company that you have to offer.

You should also stay away from outdated technologies and practices. Don't set up a lot of video streaming windows or slideshows if they're going to make your page crash. Make sure your website is running full steam with updated standards and practices. Check your website's page speed , and make sure it does not take too long to load, as roughly 53% of mobile users will leave your site if it takes longer than three seconds to load.

When Should You Redesign Your Website?

It's not an exaggeration and sounds like it is an easy way out to say that you should redesign your website as often as you need to. Though, this is the best truthful answer for a broad audience, as website redesign times and how quickly a website becomes outdated varies so much by industry. It depends on what is expected from your website and what tasks and functions it needs to perform.

Although there is no definitive time on when and how you should make the move. The good news is that there are many factors to this question that can give you a better idea of when it is a good idea. These factors can include:

competition
audience
goals
appeal
business goals
purpose

Redesigning a website is not a simple task. And of course, it's not something you want to do every single day. But if you don't do it often enough, your site will look outdated and out of touch with modern technology. Letting your site become too dated, can actually end up hurting your business .

These are essential factors to take into account. Online trends move fast and the evolution of the Internet in the last few years has been noticeable and dramatic. So it's no surprise that keeping up with user-friendly technology and navigation should be one of your business priorities.

Listed below are some key questions you should ask yourself regardless of the age of your site. They'll help you figure out if you need a redesign or should be close to considering one.

Is my website mobile friendly?
Does my website look modern?
Is my website better than the competition?
Is there steady growth on my website?
Have I invested in Marketing Automation?

Never Stop Updating Your Site

Consider having a creative brief with your key team members to cover where you started with your website and where you want your website to go in the future. This conversation can include your logo, what your color schemes are, and what tag lines your company uses. It is no longer good enough just to have a website for your business. You need to have the best possible website for your business to attract and promote future business.

Remember that you have to plan to attract eyeballs to your website, and ultimately your service.

The web is always evolving; you need to keep up with trends. So if you feel like the time has come, and you need to redesign your website, Your Brand Online can help. Check out our website design packages and see how we can help you stand out from your competition.

A New Look: Benefits of a Website Update for Your Business

pierce.denning@ybo.tech (Pierce Denning) — Mon, 29 Apr 2019 07:58:31 GMT

A New Look: Benefits of a Website Update for Your Business

With only half of new businesses lasting more than five years and 30% surviving more than 10, small business owners must do everything in their power to generate revenue and keep their business afloat.

This is why an excellent website interface has become so important. E-commerce sales online in the US rose by over 15% last year, and the trend is set to continue.

A high-quality website will allow your business to take advantage of this evolving landscape. Generating vital revenue and leads that will set you up for long-term gains.

If your website is in need of an update, please read on to understand the full benefits of a website update.

Project Professionalism - The Key Benefits of a Website

Over the past decade, website interfaces have rapidly evolved. This means that you are at risk of alienating potential clients with outdated website design.

It can be challenging to decide when it is right to upgrade your website . It may have been a significant investment when your site was originally designed, but it may cost more, in the long run, to not update your website due to a loss of sales.

However, you should see your site as an upgrade and as a business necessity, rather than a luxury. Think of your website as your virtual storefront. You don't want to be in an old building that is falling apart and is uninviting to your customers, just like you don't want to have an old site that is uninviting and turns away new visitors.

No matter how high the quality of your goods or services, customers will judge you and your business based on your website. They expect your site to be you putting your best foot forward. If they see an outdated site, that they expect to be the best first impression that you can offer, then they are less likely to go with your company. Why would they do business with someone who is content with mediocre for themselves? Customers want the best and therefore expect the best from who they buy from.

7 out of 10 clients will experience a brand or service through their website first . This first impression can be vital to winning you thousands of dollars of business.

As a small business, you simply cannot afford to risk losing buyers who are pushed away from your company by an outdated and potentially slow website.

On the other hand, a slick website that runs quickly and allows clients to get to the pages they require easily will pull in business.

Open Up New Revenue Streams

Like a billboard ad or flyer, you should view your website as a crucial marketing tool. It will promote your products and services, and open you up to new customers.

Depending on your business, you can link your new company website to social media. Facebook, in particular, has extremely effective advertising services, which can drive traffic to your website.

Many older websites do not have the facilities to link to social media. And if the website is outdated, you may not want to send them there anyway.

This is not the only way to help your business. With a blog section on your website, you can improve your ranking on Google searches. By writing blogs about relevant questions that your clients will search for online, you answer their questions and become the go-to authority in your respective industry. This usually improves website traffic that is genuinely interested in what you have to offer them — which tends to lead to a positive correlation in sales conversions. Companies who regularly blogged made almost five times more revenue than those who didn't. This highlights the power of an effective website.

You may be saying "I'm a business owner, I don't have the time to write a blog post for my site." Your Brand Online knows that you're busy running a business, you don't have time to write a blog post for your site. That's why we offer our Blogging Service , to allow you to essentially automate your website's blog.

Make Your Website Work For You

The reality is that a modern website with a slick interface can be the difference between thousands of dollars of additional business for your company, and missing out on business completely.

The benefits of a website that is sleek and new far outweigh any business costs.

If you invest the capital to make sure it is fast, accurate, and intuitive to use, you can expect it to pay for itself. However, an outdated site can lose money for your business just as quickly.

We offer a range of packages to suit the needs of your business. If you are interested in learning more about our services , contact us today!

Time for a Redesign? 5 Signs of Outdated Websites

pierce.denning@ybo.tech (Pierce Denning) — Mon, 29 Apr 2019 07:14:54 GMT

Time for a Redesign? 5 Signs of Outdated Websites

Your company's website is one of the most important aspects of your entire business. It tells potential customers what you do, what your products and services are, and how they can find you.

There are over 28 million small businesses in the US alone, which means there is a lot of competition out there. This can make it hard for your company to stand out from the crowd. Efforts to stand out can be hindered and sometimes even halted by an outdated website. If your website is outdated or runs poorly, you will fall behind your competitors.

Outdated websites deter users from using them. Customers will turn to competitors with better websites instead. You don't want to miss out on business because of your website. Read on for 5 signs that you might have an outdated website.

1. Slow Loading

Did you know that 53% of people will leave a website if the page takes longer than 3 seconds to load? We are so used to fast and responsive pages that anything that doesn't load fast will fall behind.

If yours takes longer to load, that means most people won't stick around waiting for it to load. This will result in a higher bounce rate , which you can check by monitoring your website analytics .

Redesigning your website will ensure that you have faster loading speeds and will encourage people to stay on your site.

2. Not Mobile-Friendly

A whopping 52.2% of all website traffic comes from mobile phones. This means that it's essential for your website to be mobile friendly.

If your site isn't optimized for mobile phones , people on their smartphones will bounce. Think about it - when you're on a website on your phone, you don't want to have to pinch and zoom to read it.

Redesigning your website to run smoothly on mobile devices will ensure you get more web traffic and encourage customers to stay.

3. It Looks Old

Remember websites from the 90s and 00s? They were basic, and you probably remember how slow and bland they looked. If your website looks anything like this today, it's outdated.

People like to use well-designed and modern websites, which is how yours should look. If your website becomes too old, people might not even think that you are in business anymore.

An update will make it much more attractive and eye-catching, meaning users will want to keep using it.

4. Difficult to Navigate

Even if your website looks great and is quick to load if it's hard to navigate it won't make a difference. There's nothing more annoying than trying to use a website where nothing works properly.

If your website has too many links or contains confusing or even worse - conflicting information, it will discourage users. They will leave and seek out a competitor who has a website that works and appeals to them.

Updating your website so that navigation is smooth and intuitive will encourage users to look around and stay on your website. If they can find valuable information with only a click, you'll keep them around much longer.

5. The Competition Has a Better Website

If your competitors have better websites, why should customers choose you? Customers tend to look around before making a final decision, and your website should stand out in their mind as the best.

Make it stand out from the competition in a good way. If they only remember your site for looking old or running slow, they won't be likely to buy from you.

Updating your website to look better than your competitor's is a must. In a massive sea of competition, a website redesign could be the thing that your company needs to stand out from your competition.

It's Time to Ditch Outdated Websites and Redesign Yours Now

If any of these issues describe your website, it's time for a website redesign. Outdated websites will only harm your business, and the fix is very simple.

Need a website redesign? We can help, check out our website design service and see how we can help you stand out from your competition to get better results.