Internet Marketing For Small Business

How To Make Internet Marketing Work For You

Internet marketing is a powerful tool for small business owners to grow their company and reach new customers. In this blog post, we'll walk through the basics of what internet marketing entails and share some tips on using it to your advantage. The goal of internet marketing is to drive people who are interested in your products or services online so that they can contact you personally about them. The best way to do that? Create valuable content, take care with how you use social media, work with influencers, and promote yourself online! Small business owners are often faced with the dilemma of not having enough time to focus on marketing their company. The internet offers a huge opportunity for small businesses to reach out and connect with consumers in order to grow their client base. This article will explore the various ways that you can use the internet as your marketing tool. https://youtu.be/QPiaWEm0hpE  

What is Internet Marketing? Why should I do it? How do I get started?

The internet is the new frontier for business. It's where your customers are and it's how they want to be marketed to. As a savvy business owner, you know that not all marketing approaches are created equal; some cost more than others and some work better than others. But what is Internet Marketing? Internet Marketing involves using websites, social media sites, email campaigns, podcasts and other digital tools to reach potential customers. It can involve paid advertising or organic search results (depending on your goals) but the goal is always the same: generating leads for conversion. If you're ready to get started with Internet Marketing but aren't sure where to begin, this blog post will introduce you to the basics of how to get started making Internet Marketing work for your business.

Local SEO

The COVID-19 pandemic has changed the way we do business. Customers are looking for businesses in their area instead of just searching nationally, and they want to be able to find you when they search online. It’s never been more important than now to optimize your website for local searches with Local SEO best practices like GMB optimization or organic optimizations like on page content tweaks that make it easier for Google crawlers to understand what your site is about. The most important thing to remember when optimizing your GMB listing is that people are searching for local businesses on Google. If you have a brick and mortar store, it's helpful to use the street address in your title tag as well as at least one of the following keywords - "near me", "my city," or “local business." This will help searchers find your location faster. For online-only stores, or if you don't want to list out every single keyword phrase imaginable, make sure you include some variation of those phrases in both the description and title tags so that people know what they're getting into before clicking through. In addition, take advantage of using Schema markup (structured data) where appropriate.

GMB Optimization

One of the most important ways to boost your Google My Business ranking is by having a complete business profile. You can do this in two easy steps: make sure you have all relevant information about your business and upload high-quality, professional photos that will attract customers from outside of your city or state. This way, people searching for local businesses on Google will be able to find yours and not worry about driving into town only to learn they are closed for the day (or worse).

Technical SEO

Technical SEO is a part of Search Engine Optimization that focuses on website structure, content and coding for optimum speed. The goal of technical SEO (sometimes called "structured SEO") is to help search engines better crawl your site by avoiding efficiency issues such as redirect loops, rendering long URLs or resource in different languages. This way the crawler knows where to look for each piece of content, leading it closer to the required document in less time. There are a number of technical aspects which are critical for efficient crawling - these include things like Heading hierarchy, HTML sitemaps, robots meta tags and Schema markup.

Team 218 Can Help With Internet Marketing

For help with your Internet Marketing, SEO or full optimization of your GMB, contact Team 218 Web Services. We specialize in service excellence and offer quick, reliable service to help you improve your GMB page ranking with high quality SEO optimization, keyword research, and content marketing. Contact us today for a quote!

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Original post here: Internet Marketing For Small Business

How Do I Find Someone To Build My Website

Simple - Hire Team 218 To Build Your Website!

You deserve a website that is both functional and beautiful. Don’t settle for less than the best!

We eliminate all the confusion and headaches when you hire us to handle your web design and development. After all, we’ve been doing it for over 20 years. If you’d like to cut to the chase and get started on your website, go ahead and click the button and hire us.

Learn More About Working With Team 218

More than likely though you are here for some actual helpful information. If that’s the case, keep reading. Regardless of which path you choose, we wish you much success in your online endeavors. Thanks for stopping by our website.

How Do I Find Someone To Build My Website?

There are 2 main reasons you may be asking, “How do I find someone to build my website?”

Reason 1: You don’t have a website and you need to hire someone to build one.

Reason 2: You already have a website and you either A) lost track of the person who built your website or B) you’re not happy with the results you’re getting. This can present a two-fold problem for you. Not only do you need to hire someone – you also may need to FIRE someone and that’s never a pleasant experience.

Web Design Options for Small Businesses

The prospect of building a website for your small business can seem daunting. However, there are ways to simplify the process and still create a web design that showcases the best qualities of your business!

Hiring an experienced web design professional takes the pressure off of you and guarantees a custom website that functions on a variety of devices. When you choose a website vendor to build my website, you will still have some homework to do if you’re going to reap the benefits of “doing it right” versus “getting it done”.

The website vendor you choose should have a vested interest in who you are and what you do. And this is BEFORE you have made a final decision or have spent any money.

Look for a vendor who, after you’ve requested a proposal to build, fix, or redesign an existing site, exhibits an understanding of what you need and offers clear cut solutions to meet those needs. They should be asking you questions and gathering information. If they can’t meet your needs, they should be making suggestions of where you might be better served.

If you want to build a website yourself, there are plenty of resources online that can provide you with the tools you need to get started. After all, nobody knows you better than you do. But please do your homework here as well. You can build it but will they come?

There is more to building a website than a pretty face and no one knows that better than an experienced, qualified, and diligent web designer. If building your own site suits your business perfectly though, and it does in some instances, we’ll share some pitfalls we’ve learned to avoid for the DIYs out there whom we truly admire and tip our hats to!

Whether you are a local small business owner, an entrepreneur, or a nonprofit organization, keep reading to learn about your options. The first step to a new and improved public face for your business through website solutions is choosing your path to success.

Hiring a Web Design Company To Build My Website

Do you want a unique custom website that represents your local business but don’t know where to start? If so, hiring a web designer is the right option for you.

Team 218 Web Services has been involved in web design and development since 2004. We’ve built valued relationships with our clients and truly enjoy our continued endeavors with our diverse portfolio. We work with small businesses all over the state of Iowa.

We’ve created a wide variety of websites over the years, so we know how to keep your viewers engaged while providing a design that stands out from the rest. Our websites are optimized for usability, meaning that your website will be simple to navigate on laptops, phones, and tablets. This is more important now than ever since most people own more than one device in their homes.

We know the importance of using search engine optimization tactics to increase the traffic of your targeted audience. By implementing SEO and having easily accessible content, your website has an increased ranking in search results which means more business for you. And as you’re most likely already aware, advancements in technology have trained a large percentage of people to explore a business online first to ensure it meets their particular needs.

Your website, and its’ associated online presence, is the primary means by which information is sought out about you and about what you do. Your first impression – the users experience in your web design elements, the site functionality, and inclusion of relevant page content mapping – means that one chance to wow them at your first official meet and greet. And excellent first meetings often lead to many more!

Having a well-designed web page will give you a competitive advantage in your industry and enhance your credibility as a business.

All across the Hawkeye state, we’ve provided custom web design options for local small businesses that generate more in-person customers as well as online traffic.

What is our process for designing and creating a website?

At Team 218, we strive to create unique websites that help local small businesses grow. Our process to get you the website of your dreams is simple. We gather information from you over the phone or online and then form your website utilizing Organic SEO copywriting techniques. The overall process from start to finish takes about four to six weeks, and then you can expect your custom website to be online and ready to use!

We also help with existing websites that need updating or debugging. We are very responsive to customers every step of the way to ensure that you’re satisfied with the finished product.

Building a Website Yourself

If you’ve decided to create your website yourself, here are some tips to get started and things to avoid!

There are a lot of factors to consider when building a website from scratch, such as choosing a domain name, deciding how to customize your website, and what content to include. Luckily, there are plenty of resources online that make the process easier, regardless of technical skill level. Most of them have varying features based on your budget, knowledge of web design, and the amount of time you’re able to dedicate to your project.

Some available DIY website builders include:

• Wix
• Weebly
• WebStarts
• Squarespace
• Ucraft

There are countless other website builders to choose from depending on your preferences and budget. Most of these sites produce quick results and usually require minimal technical and design knowledge on your part.

However, there are disadvantages that novices should be aware of when considering using web builders. For example, the webpage templates might look generic and not be accessible on all devices. This could prevent a potential customer from navigating your website easily and persuade them to opt for a competitor instead. Some DIY website builders have limited SEO options. Investigate and choose wisely.

A good tip when creating a web design is to know your targeted audience. What are customers looking for when they visit your website? What type of imagery embodies your company values and personality? What can I do to set myself apart from similar businesses a customer might encounter? Considering these questions will give you insight into your viewers expectations when they click on your website.

What are some things to avoid when designing a website?

As you go through the process of creating your website, there are certain things you want to keep in mind to avoid driving your customers away.

Here are 4 common mistakes beginners make:

1. Your webpage is too cluttered. ​Having too many elements on one page can be overwhelming and distract from the main focus of your business.
2. You don’t have a clear call to action. ​Your viewers should immediately be informed of the purpose of your website and what you offer.
3. Poor usability. ​A website that has a confusing layout and can’t be viewed on all devices could deter customers from returning.
4. Not using Organic SEO. ​This can have a major impact on the visibility of your website in search engine results.

Ready to set your business on the path to success?

Now that you know some of the options for small business web development, you’re on your way to having a great website. We hope you have a better idea of how to answer the question of

How Do I Find Someone To Build My Website?

Whether you decide to create your website from scratch or hire our professional team, we are here to offer our services to you! Contact Team 218 with any website design or development needs at our number (309) 912-5139 or use our contact form. You can learn more about the process we use on our Web Design page. You can also find a lot of good information in our Knowledge Base.

Better yet, why not schedule a Free 30 minute Zoom Meeting to discuss your website needs. We’ll help you clear up any questions you may have and you’ll be better prepared to get a great website.

We look forward to learning about you!

Original post here: How Do I Find Someone To Build My Website

SEO Trends

SEO Trends in 2021

Keeping Up With Trends in SEO

#seo #google #webdesign #Team218 An understanding of the current and upcoming technologies in SEO Trends is key to success, as they are constantly changing. As an example, websites can only be indexed by Google crawlers if they have a functional robots.txt file that lets them know how deep their crawl should go or what pages not to index so it doesn't look like duplicate content on your site. The state of technology changes rapidly with new inventions happening every day; much more quickly than we humans could ever keep up with! This makes creating products for search engine optimization (SEO) difficult because you need specialized knowledge about all aspects related to internet marketing: web design, coding languages such as HTML5 & CSS3+, PHP and link building strategies. In today's competitive digital marketing landscape, it is important for small business owners to know what the latest SEO trends are. With a little research on emerging SEO trends and strategies, you will be more knowledgeable on tactics needed to improve your search engine rankings and increase traffic to your site - something everyone wants.

Google's BERT

Technology evolves, more so in the past decade than ever before. SEO as we know it is constantly changing. Google has introduced new algorithms to provide better search results and protect users from low-quality websites that scrape content and link spamming tactics. Google's newest algorithm update is here: BERT (or Google's Bidirectional Encoding Representations Theory). Google's latest update will not only affect Google search results, but all other Google platforms such as Google Assistant and Google Maps. If you don't know what BERT is, it is Google’s new algorithm that Google’s CEO, Sundar Pichai stated “captures the full diversity of human language and Google's understanding of it”. Google has claimed that BERT can understand text better than humans on Google Assistant. Google claims that BERT allows them to capture the meaning behind words and phrases instead of just individual words. Google is learning not just the terms you search for but your intent. Google

Determining Intent

Google is able to use machine learning, statistical techniques and pure maths to train computers to spot patterns without having explicit rules programmed into them. Google will be able to answer more complex questions such as “what is the weather like in Canada on Christmas Eve”. Google is currently using BERT to improve Google Assistant’s ability to understand user intent behind Google searches. Google also uses BERT for their Google Translate, Google News and Google Search in general. So how does this affect SEO? Well quite simply, we need our websites and content to be understood by Google. Google BERT is Google’s best attempt at improving Google search so they can create a better user experience. Google has claimed that Google searches are more natural than ever before, and from the looks of it BERT will continue to improve Google search results over time. Websites with great content and structure should see improvements in ranking as Google adjusts Google’s search results based on Google BERT. Google has also stated that Google BERT will be able to improve the Google Assistant experience.

BERT's Three Major Components

Topicality, coherence and confidence are three major components of Google BERT, so SEO experts should focus on creating content with a strong grasp of all three. Google wants their users to get the most relevant information with Google BERT, so Google is going to promote and rank websites that give them the best answer to user intent. Google wants their users to get quick results when searching Google with Google Assistant. So creating content that gives Google what it needs without giving a website an advantage over another should be key. When writing SEO content, Google wants to know what is the most relevant information for Google users, based on Google BERT. Google will soon be using Google BERT to better understand user intent behind Google searches. So Google wants SEO experts to use Google BERT as well when creating content, in order to give Google what it needs so Google users can get the best answer to Google queries. With Google BERT, Google will be able to better understand Google queries and give Google users the best answer to their queries. Google has claimed Google BERT will be able to improve Google search results over time, so it should increase Google traffic. Google In order to rank well, SEO experts need their website or webpage content to be understood by Google so they can provide information for Google’s artificial intelligence Google BERT. Google wants Google users to get a better Google search experience, so Google will promote and rank content that gives Google users the best answer to their Google queries.

RankBrain - Not a New SEO Trend But Still Important

Google RankBrain is an algorithm update with Google’s goal of making its search engine more intelligent by processing searches in different ways. Google RankBrain was introduced in October 2015 and Google says it has made Google’s search results more useful by processing searches in different ways. Google RankBrain is Google’s third most important ranking signal, Google claims that Google RankBrain is not a penalty or a boost, but simply an additional signal to make Google search more intelligent.

Meaning & Context

It’s the first Google algorithm to process searches in a non-English language. Google RankBrain is designed with the goal of Google users getting better Google search results. Google RankBrain helps Google find meaning and context behind words, phrases and queries by using machine learning to understand user behavior when searching Google. Google RankBrain has been able to help Google refine searches by improving Google search results. Google RankBrain is able to help Google understand more words and phrases, including technical terms in Google search. Google’s RankBrain has also helped Google give users the most accurate auto-complete results by better understanding searches with spelling errors or typos. Google RankBrain helps Google learn from every query that a user enters into Google search. Google RankBrain is also able to examine the quality of every website that a user searches within Google. In order for SEO experts to have their websites's content rank well in Google, SEO experts need their content to be understood by Google as well so that SEO experts can provide information for Google’s artificial intelligence. It’s important for SEO experts to write SEO copy that Google can understand so SEO content can be processed by Google RankBrain. Despite Google RankBrain being the third most important ranking signal within Google search, it’s easily over-rated. Google RankBrain is not a penalty or a boost for websites and it only affects searches that have typos in them or searches with spelling errors. If users do not have any spelling mistakes in their query when they search Google then the algorithm is not going to affect their Google search results. Users need to understand that they need spelling mistakes for the RankBrain algorithm to impact on their search results. There are some SEO experts who have been able to use the RankBrain algorithm in order to improve their website’s SEO ranking by creating more useful pages or adding new keywords into their content. There are some SEO experts who have been criticized for using the RankBrain algorithm because Google is able to understand the text on the webpage better, so it can be used for keyword stuffing which is seen as a negative practice. Some websites claim they have seen an increase in their traffic due to the use of RankBrain.  One claimed that he added keywords into his content and within a month the RankBrain had moved him up 13 positions, but it is impossible to know this for sure. If there is an algorithm tweak or update to Google then SEO experts will be able to see how their website’s rankings have changed by using the MozCast tool as well as any other tools to check ranking.

Voice Search

Google Voice Search is a Voice Search function that allows users to speak directly into their phone to make Voice Search queries. Voice Search was first launched in 2010 on the Apple iPhone 4S and has been available on other platforms since then. Google Voice searches can be performed without typing anything, so Voice Search queries are seen as mobile-friendly because users can speak directly into their devices rather than having to type text. Voice Search is performed by just speaking and then Google's Voice Recognition feature will convert the spoken words into searchable information, so there is no need for users to type anything when they want to use Voice Search. Voice Search queries can be done without Voice Recognition but Voice Recognition allows Voice Search users to use Voice Search on a wider range of devices. Voice searches are very useful for mobile or desktop devices because you do not have to touch your computer or phone with dirty hands, so Voice Searches can help people who need clean hands to perform certain tasks . In order to complete Voice Searches users usually just say what they want and it is then processed by Google Voice Search. One of the uses for Voice Searches is for customers who are looking for local information about nearby restaurants, shops and businesses. When searching on Google Maps with their Voice Search function enabled, a user will be able to speak out loud where they would like to go for their meal and Voice Search will allow them to find the local restaurants, shops and businesses. Voice Searches can also be used for finding out specific information about a business such as opening hours or how far away it is from a user's location. Voice searches are so useful because they conserve time for users but Voice Searches have limitations when it comes to making queries on certain topics such as music where there may not be any perfect answers. In Voice Search it is important for the words that a user says to Google Voice Search to be exactly what they want in order for Google Voice Search to return results with that same exact wording. A new feature was launched recently by Google called “Googlespell” which allows people using Voice Searches who spell something incorrectly to Voice Search to get the correct results. Voice Searches can be useful for people who have a Voice Search function on their device because it means they do not always need to type in their Voice Searches as spell check is now available, but there are still limitations with Voice Searches due to how Voice Recognition works. Voice Searches are an important part of our lives nowadays and we use these Voice Search functions every day when we speak into our devices such as mobile phones or Google Home appliances which act as Voice-activated assistants. Voice Searches will continue becoming more popular and accessible in the future because natural language processing is improving so users can have better experiences using them. Google's main aim is to provide users with great Voice Search results and Voice Searches can provide users with Voice-activated assistants that can tell you the weather forecast, your daily schedule and traffic reports. Voice Searches are becoming more commonly used as Voice-activated assistant devices such as Google Home become available in more households. Voice Search will continue to be improved over time to meet user's needs so Voice Search queries will become easier to perform . Voice Searches can also be used by advertisers for marketing purposes because they have unique capabilities when it comes to advertising. People using Voice Interface technology will expect information that is accurate and relevant which allows advertisers to give people better information for their products or services. Voice Search queries have many benefits, but there are still some disadvantages of using Voice Searches including a lack of Voice Search results. Voice Searches are useful for a wide range of topics but Voice Searches can still be limited in Voice-activated assistant devices such as Google Home. Voice Searches may not be able to perform Voice Searches for Voice-activated assistant devices which are difficult to find answers for. Voice Searches from Voice-activated assistant devices such as Google Home have also been criticized for having less accuracy than Voice Searches on a computer or mobile Voice Searches. Voice Searches will continue to improve over time so Voice-activated assistant devices such as Google Home may be able to perform Voice Searches with better accuracy in the future. Voice Searches were first available in the 1980s but Voice Searches didn't become popular until around 2011 when Voice-activated assistant devices such as Google Home became available. Voice Search queries are becoming more commonly used as Voice-activated assistant devices are able to perform Voice Searches at a faster rate and Voice Search queries can be made hands free.

SEO Trends Conclusion

 

SEO Trends Are Not Always New

Whether you’re an owner of a small business or nonprofit, it is always important to stay up-to-date with the latest SEO trends. As Google continues to evolve and we see more changes in search behavior (Google BERT), voice search technology becomes more popular with Siri on Apple devices and Alexa on Amazon Echo speakers) and Rankbrain impacting how pages are ranked for certain keywords or phrases, there has never been a better time than now to learn about these emerging trends that will impact your digital marketing strategies going forward. Learn more about our SEO services on our SEO webpage.

Original post here: SEO Trends

Make Your Website Work For You

It's Your Website - Make It Work For You!

#makeyourwebsiteworkforyou #webdesign #bestemployee #team218

Make your website work for you! It's generally understood that a website is an important piece of your business arsenal. It's a website after all. However, many businesses are still not getting the most out of their website. If you're not using your website as an effective sales tool - then it's time to make some changes and start driving traffic (and revenue) your way.

If you're planning on building a website, the first thing to do is take time out of your busy schedule and brainstorm all of the ways that you can make your website work for you. If you already have a website, spend some time doing a deep dive on your layout and content. Exercise that brain and get creative.

Will you have an online store? Will you offer a blog where customers and prospects can leave comments and ask questions? These are just two examples of things that could be on the list - the key is to think about all of the ways that your website could be used as a tool for building your business.

Make a list of all website features that you could use to your advantage. Be creative and think outside the box! Don't limit yourself by thinking "I need to have a website so it has to look like every other website." You do NOT  have to have a website that looks like every other website.

What are your website visitors looking for? What kind of website is going to keep them interested and coming back for more? You are going to have to do a little market research here. Don't just rely on your customers and website visitors - talk to friends, the people who work at the grocery store. Ask everyone that you can how they feel about website and what they are looking for.

Once you have your brainstorming list of website features - you can start to prioritize which website features you want to work on first. It's not a good idea to try and tackle them all at once. Start with one website feature and get your site working for you as quickly as possible.

No Limits!

There are no limitations on what you can accomplish with your website, but you have to take specific steps in order for it to function as the powerful sales tool that it should be.

Once you've spent some time thinking about all of the ways that your website could work for you, it's time to put action behind those thoughts.

Once you've made a list of all the ways that your website could work for you, get to work implementing those ideas!

You might need some website design help if you're feeling overwhelmed by all of this website talk. There are plenty of web designers out there who will be happy to help, so don't hesitate to ask for what you need.

Take some time to make sure that the website is easy to navigate from top to bottom, and that it offers ease of use in each section that it contains.  Don't just think about the website as a whole - think about each individual page, and how you can make these pages work for you.

Think of your website like a tool chest that you've stocked with all of the tools that you could need to get ahead in business. The website is only going to work if it's being used properly. You have to use those website tools if you want them to work!

If your website is getting a lot of traffic but not very many sales, then it might simply be time to add some website content that is designed specifically to convert visitors into paying customers.

Nobody wants to go through a website and feel like they have to work just to find information. Nobody is going to buy your product if they feel like you've made it difficult for them, so focus on making it as easy as possible for website visitors to find exactly what they are looking for.

Remember the goal is to make your website work for you. 

Need a few more tips? Take a look at our Blog.

Original post here: Make Your Website Work For You