August 2015 - Page 2 of 2 - Saba Digital Marketing

SEO Practices That Don’t Bring Visitors

Posted on August 14, 2015 by admin@saba4321

SEO should bring visitors to your website, but some common strategies don’t bring visitors at all. Instead of spending time on these tactics, spend time on practices that actually work. Here are a handful of search engine optimization practices to avoid.

Keyword Spamming

Repeating keywords too many times on a web page can keep your page buried in search engine results. This practice might have mattered in the past, when search engines were in their early stages of evolution, now search engines look for quality content and will downgrade web pages that appear to have unnatural keyword repetitions.

Link Building

Search engines used to count the number of inbound links to a page to determine page value. Now, search engines evaluate the quality and relevance of incoming links to a page when determining page rank. San Diego internet marketing companies recommend concentrating on building high-quality links that add value for visitors. By doing so, you will also make your page more valuable to search engines.

Website Submission

Spending a lot of time manually submitting web page URLs to the major search engines does not bring visitors. Popular search engines have virtual spiders that crawl the web, indexing every nook and cranny, so they will find your web pages almost as fast as you could manually submit them.

Page Creation

Website owners often create myriad pages, hoping search engines will be impressed with a large number of pages with recurring themes and keywords. In the modern SEO world, quality matters more than quantity, so take your time and create high-quality content that people want to read.

Keyword Meta Tag Usage

These tags might have worked for SEO in the past, but since abuse of the keyword meta tag rose, Google now overlooks it. That’s not to say Google ignores all meta tags, so spend your time on the others, like the description meta tag.

Interested in learning more about SEO? Reach out to Saba, Inc. today and speak with an internet marketing professional. We offer PPC, SEO, social media, and website design and development. Give us a call at (858) 277-1717. We look forward to hearing from you!

Strategies and Best Practices for Effective Link Building

Posted on August 12, 2015 by admin@saba4321

Link building is one of the pillars of the search engine optimization (SEO) industry. Along with keywords and website structure, link building is a major ranking factor in the search engine results page (SERP). When done properly, San Diego internet marketing experts believe link building can give a website a tremendous SEO boost.

Strategies

There are two basic strategies for link building: adequate content and networking. In this case, adequate content means great content. If you feature information on your website that is informative and useful, you will increase the likelihood of attracting website editors and others who want to use your content as a reference.

Once you’ve created some great content, you have to promote it in the right places. Social media is a solid start, but you’ll want to reach out to influencers in a similar industry who often share content, consider content syndication networks, and might even try paid advertising on social media platforms.

Best Practices

To a certain extent, modern link building can be thought of as a gauge of a website’s reputation. Inbound links have value, and it can either be positive or negative. External links that are both popular and relevant pack the most punch, for obvious reasons. Some other metrics search engines consider when determining external link value include:

Trustworthiness of source domain
Anchor text used
Variations of anchor text used
Number of domains linking to target page
Number of links to target page from source page

If you need help with your SEO efforts, call Saba, Inc. at (858) 277-1717. We provide SEO San Diego companies trust and would be happy to provide you with a complimentary website audit and consultation.

1. Brainstorm

Gather the entire content creation team and analyze your strategy. Determine what you want to achieve on each channel, whether website content, blogs, social media posts or webinars. Everyone should share ideas and visions. Any ideas that are not utilized now should be saved for the future and brought out for discussion at a later time.

2. Write it Out

Get out the big markers and create a poster-sized three-month calendar. Next, fill in important dates and holidays relevant to your business and region. This is also the time to include pertinent international observances that are universally marked with hashtags on social media, such as International IoT Day or Cupcake Day. This poster should be maintained and prominently displayed on a wall where the content team meets.

3. Color Code

Use different colored sticky notes for each contributor task. Sticky notes are handy as they can be moved around if there is a delay or a strategy change. You can even take this a step further by using different marker colors over the sticky notes, identifying different subtopics. By color coordinating, anyone on the team that looks at the main calendar can identify production patterns and subject topics.

4. Select the Right Writers

Don’t just randomly assign topics to writers. Choose writers who are both topic experts, as well as independent workers. They must be organized and able meet deadlines. They should possess writing and editing skills and the ability to take direction if the writing does not meet publication standards.

5. Manage

This taskmaster should keep in touch with individual writers and check on the progress of content. They will confirm that everything is on schedule, authorization to publish, and photo availability. They should also have the skills to coordinate an adjustment to the schedule. Ideally, they should also have some basic editing skills and the talent to prepare the blog prior to publication.

6. Follow Up

Google Analytics is an easy way to determine if your content is meeting your goals. Evaluate your content regularly and don’t be afraid to make adjustments to the calendar to improve statistics.

Need help creating and managing content? Look no further than Saba, Inc. We’re a full-service SEO company in San Diego, helping businesses improve visibility and connect with their targeted audience. Give us a call today at (858) 277-1717 and schedule a free consultation.

Tricks to Creating Evergreen Content

Posted on August 9, 2015 by admin@saba4321

If you’ve been working to increase the search engine rank of your website, you may have heard of evergreen content. This term refers to the kind of web content that is timeless and will not lose its relevancy in the near future and can be very supportive of your search engine optimization efforts. By writing high-quality evergreen content, you can develop and maintain a consistent flow of traffic that may improve your website’s conversion rate. Before you can benefit from using evergreen content, though, you need to know how to create it.

Avoid Stats and News

While stats and news may have a place on your blog or website, forget about them when you are writing evergreen content. News stories and stats are frequently updated and become irrelevant over time, meaning your blog post will become irrelevant too.

Be Specific

Evergreen content doesn’t necessarily have to be the most shared or most liked content. Your evergreen content should be geared toward a very specific audience who will connect with whatever it is your offering. Analyze your key customer base and brainstorm timeless topics that will grab and hold their attention.

Go Seasonal

Although using ambiguous dates in content is problematic (The restaurant opened last summer), using seasonal topics can keep your content at the top of search results year after year. Topics like holiday safety, DIY decorations, and gift ideas never go out of style.

Work Lists

Readers love a good list (you know you do). When written well and filled with valuable info, a list will stick with people because it’s easy to skim and makes for a very shareable piece of content across social media platforms.

Answer Questions

Ultimately, this comes down to creating truly informative content. Think about specific questions people ask in, about, or relating to your industry. Then, create a relevant piece of content providing an insightful answer. Using Google’s suggested queries is a great place to start by adding what, why, or how to your search term.

Learn more about creating strong content or find help developing and managing a content marketing strategy by calling (858) 277-1717 and speaking with a marketing expert at Saba, Inc. We are a full-service San Diego internet marketing company with a content-is-king approach and commitment to helping our customers grow their business.

Get Started With AdWords Bidding

Posted on August 7, 2015 by admin@saba4321

You’ve set up your PPC campaign and are ready to start bidding. Now what? Here’s some basic info to get you started.

Assumption:

The goals you’ve set for the ad are clearly defined. Most goals fall into one of these broad categories:
– Clicks
– Impressions
– Conversions

The Least You Need to Know About AdWord Auctions

– An auction is run every time an ad space is available (search result, web site, etc.)
– An auction determines which ads will appear in that space at that moment.
– Your bid gets you into an auction.

Clicks

Goal: More people visiting your website.
Strategy: Cost-Per-Click (CPC).

You pay only when someone clicks through to your site.

Choices

– Automatic bidding. You set your daily budget and AdWords automatically makes adjustments so you get the most clicks to meet your budget limit. This is easiest because it’s automated.
– Manual bidding. You take full control so you can get the clicks that mean the most to you. This approach assumes you know how to do that. You can set bids at the ad group level, for individual keywords, or for individual ad placements.

Impressions

Goal: More people seeing your ad.
Strategy: Cost-Per-Thousand-Impressions (CPM).

You pay for every 1000 ad displays. Good for getting your name or logo seen by a lot of people. Similar to CPC, you can also bid at the ad group level, or for individual ad placements.

This strategy is “display only” so it is available only for these campaign types:
– Display Network only – All features
– Display Network only – Remarketing

Conversions

Goal: Positive response to a particular call to action
Strategy: Cost-Per-Acquisition (CPA).

This is part of Conversion Optimizer. You still pay for each click, but the optimizer will automatically set your bids to help you get the most conversions.
You must have conversion-tracking set-up and Conversion Optimizer must be turned on for your campaign.

If you need help managing your paid search efforts, Saba, Inc. can help. We’re a local San Diego SEO agency, helping clients reach their target audience and increase business. Give us a call at (858) 277-1717 today! We look forward to hearing from you!

Instagram Marketing Just Got Real

Posted on August 5, 2015 by admin@saba4321

Instagram, the photo-sharing giant acquired by Facebook in 2012, recently opened its advertising platform to all brands. This development represents a staggering opportunity for brands positioned to take advantage and increase social media marketing efforts.

It should come as no surprise that Instagram would attempt to capitalize on its captive audience. In fact, Facebook predicts that ad revenues from the social network could reach $5 billion by 2020. The company has been working with premium brands to date, manually approving all ads. A wise approach as it ensures the company doesn’t alienate its user base. So far, ads have appeared as “buy” links at the bottom of sponsored images. These ads are quite unobtrusive and have been well received. However, it remains to be seen how followers will react to ads from brands they’re not familiar with, and Instagram risks sacrificing quality control and alienating users.

Previously, the only option open to other brands was to place links in each photo’s “description” area. These links tend to perform poorly unless seen by a highly engaged audience. However, the network recently unveiled a new advertising format: Carousel Ads. These ads will allow any brand to create an ad set consisting of multiple images. According to Instagram, Carousel Ads will empower marketers to tell “sequenced stories.”

Naturally, an individual company’s results will depend on the quality of its images. Instagram users don’t engage with the platform to consume advertisements. All ads must be visually engaging—a challenge that isn’t present to such a degree on any other social network. On the other hand, the carousel format has the potential to engage users in a way that single-image advertisements cannot.

When it comes to managing any form of social media marketing, making sure you have the time to devote to managing each platform is critical. If you need help getting your new campaign up and running or could just use an extra hand overseeing your marketing efforts, reach out to Saba, Inc, a leading San Diego online marketing company. Give us a call today at (858) 277-1717 to request a free website audit and consultation!

When is the Best Time to Post Content?

Posted on August 3, 2015 by admin@saba4321

For most online marketers, it’s a given that certain types of websites will receive varying amounts of traffic depending on the target audience and the time of day. However, not everyone knows just what time is best for their marketing goals. For your content to have the most impact and draw visitors to your site, you should have a strategy concerning when you will create new posts.

Mornings

Generally, people are in better moods and more receptive to information during the hours immediately after they wake up. You can take advantage of this by posting content to your website or blog between 5am and 10am. It may be difficult for you to find time to post content during these hours, so you might consider getting in the habit of writing content in advance and scheduling it for the morning.

Early Evening

When people are at home after a day of work, they are likely to check out social media, blogs, and search about topics of interest. Immediately before this time, post quality content to take advantage of the increased web traffic in the early evenings. It’s also a good idea to share your content on all social media platforms during this time.

Late Evening

After household chores are completed and dinner is over, people tend to check their phones, browse social media, or peruse the internet for a short while before bed. This period is a good opportunity for you to get some views before the day ends, but because this window of opportunity is much smaller than other high-traffic times, you should avoid posting substantial articles and content of great importance.

Fridays and Weekends

By publishing and sharing your posts on Saturdays and Sundays, your readers will have more time to engage your content. On weekends, people tend to leave more comments and share content that they believe is interesting or useful. Facebook sharing is also at its highest during weekends. On Fridays, people tend to be more engaged with Twitter. Posting during this time will increase the impact of your posts and your readership overtime.

When to Avoid Posting Content

Between 10am and 4pm, many people are at work and do not have the time or resources to view content. Be sure to avoid posting any interesting or relevant content during this period. Instead, use this as an opportunity to write articles for later, work on SEO for your website, or think of new content ideas.

For more information on creating high-quality content and a content marketing strategy for your business, contact Saba, Inc. at (858) 277-1717. We are a full-service San Diego SEM company with a commitment to help our clients achieve success in every way we can.

The Power of Negative Keywords in Your AdWords Campaign

Posted on August 2, 2015 by admin@saba4321

If you’re new to AdWords campaign management, you might not be too familiar with negative keywords yet. As you become more comfortable with your campaigns and your ads begin to gain impressions, San Diego AdWords managers recommend taking your marketing efforts up a notch with negative keywords.

Why Do I Need Negative Keywords and What Will They Do For Me?

One of the primary keys to success in an AdWords campaign is to find the proper search keywords. You want to make sure that you’re reaching your intended audience, but spending part of your advertising budget on people not in your target market can wreak havoc on both your funds and campaign.

That’s where negative keywords come into play. Negative keywords are a way to keep AdWords from displaying your ad to audiences you know aren’t going to be interested, boosting your overall search engine marketing efforts. Like your regular keywords, they are also in list form.

How Do I Find Them?

Identifying potential negative keywords may seem impossible because the AdWords Keyword Planner was designed to enable you to discover keywords to bid on, not to find terms to exclude. But there is a relatively simple and straightforward approach you can use to get ideas for negative keywords.

Within the tool, when you search on a specific term (like “bookstore”), the tool will present a list of related keyword searches. It also includes information for each about search volume and competition.

If there are terms in this list that don’t apply specifically to your business (like “free” and “online”), they are candidates for your negative keyword list.

That Made Sense. What More Can I Do?

You can also identify underperforming terms in your campaign using the Search Terms Report. It shows the actual search terms people typed into Google that triggered your AdWords ads.

Sort by the highest number of impressions. This will tell you which terms did well enough to be seen by potential customers. Of those, which of them had higher click-through and conversion rates? These you want to keep. However, you might want to consider adding terms to your negative keyword list if they are have good click-through rates (you’re paying for these) and bad conversion rates (lost ad budget).

These are a couple of relatively simple steps you can take to significantly improve your AdWords campaign. If you could use a little help getting your campaigns up and running, reach out to Saba, Inc. We are a full-service online marketing company in San Diego, offering PPC, SEO, social media management, and web development and design. Give us a call today at (858) 277-1717 for more information!

Month: August 2015