Search Engine Optimization
There’s a lot of confusion and uncertainty surrounding the search engine optimization world. Some people don’t see the value in investing in internet marketing and a strong web presence, but it mainly boils down to the fact that people are not exactly sure what SEO consultants actually do and what they can offer you or your business.
So, to keep it simple, I’m a Halifax SEO and I can help make you or your business more money. Send me an email to arrange a call or meeting to find out how.
We are currently accepting new clients.
Search Engine Optimization Packages
We understand that every business is unique and will require a different approach to Internet marketing and the way their sites are optimized for search engines. That said, there are some things that all websites and businesses will benefit from. Our SEO plan can be broken down into two phases that includes an initial assessment and an ongoing promotion and optimization strategy.
Phase 1 – SEO Assessment
The SEO Assessment starts with competitive and keyword research where we will dive into finding out how people are searching for your products and services online. We will compile a recommended keyword list based on our findings and your recommendations. Based on our findings, this phase includes both onsite and initial offsite work.
On-site work:
Meta title and description tag optimization
XML sitemap creation and submission
RSS feed creation
Increasing keyword density within existing content
Adding internal links within content
Optimizing permalinks and site structure if necessary
Robots.txt creation and optimization
Fixing broken links
Installing Google Analytics
Off-site work:
Directory Submissions – We will submit your website to over 1000 general and free web directories.
Article Marketing and Web 2.0 Properties – We will create 20 original and unique articles and submit them to the top Web 2.0 properties, article directories, or industry-related blogs as guest posts. These articles will link back to your website.
Article and Web 2.0 Property Backlinking – We will then backlink each of these articles using mass article syndication and the top social bookmarking sites.
Google Places Submission – Listing with Google Places will be created if necessary. Optimization and best practice tips will be provided.
Google Base Submission – Submission of up to 10 products feeds to Google Base.
Press Release Distribution – Creation and submission of a unique press release, or syndication of an existing press release written by your company.
Total Cost: $1000 one time
Phase 2 – Ongoing Search Engine Optimization
This phase of our Halifax SEO strategy focuses around Web 2.0 and Article marketing, while performing a variety of other link building strategies when needed. We provide all of the content creation, writing, and articles that are required for this part of the link building strategy. All content is written in house and is created from scratch. We build in-content links from the following sources:
Web 2.0 Marketing – We create and distribute content to the top Web 2.0 websites that include links back to your website.
Article Marketing – We create and distribute content to the top article directories.
Industry-based Guest Posting – We contact bloggers and website owners within your industry and submit unique content in exchange for a link back to your website.
Backlinking the backlinks – We send additional links to your existing backlinks in order to increase their effectiveness and to give you the most amount of “link juice” possible.
During phase 2, we provide a minimum of 25 new and permanent backlinks every month from the above sources. When necessary, we also build links from additional sources.
Total Cost: $250 per month
We offer this specific monthly SEO package at $250 / month because it is our most popular plan. We have other monthly plans available and we are able to customize any ongoing SEO package to the needs of your website and business.
What you need to know about SEO
There are a lot of people that claim to be SEO consultants or experts and will gladly take your money. The industry can sometimes have a bad name and SEOs are often labelled as snake oil salesmen. Here are a few pieces of advice I have for anyone thinking about hiring a SEO consultant in Halifax (or anywhere for that matter).
Make sure you are told exactly what will happen
If you have a meeting with an SEO and they are very vague about what they will be doing for you, get out before it’s too late. Many Halifax search engine optimization consultants will tell you what needs to be done, and will use terms to describe their efforts such as keyword research, link building, optimization, etc. Get them to explain their processes for you in more detail and find out exactly what it is that they will be doing each step of the way.
There is a lot of unknown when it comes to the search engines. The algorithms that govern the search results are very closely guarded for the most part, and there are constant changes and updates that will happen on an ongoing process. It is important to understand that some of these are beyond the control of you or your SEO.
On the other hand, there are some constants that are important when it comes to SEO that you should be familiar with before starting any project:
Proper keyword and competitive research is crucial
Everything else dealing with search engine optimization is built upon a foundation that includes choosing the best and most relevant keywords that will generate targeted traffic likely to convert. There is no point to target a keyword that does not get searched for, or a keyword that is not relevant to your business.
Competition is also important to look at – there are some industries and keywords out there that are extremely saturated with optimized websites. Not all keywords are created equal, nor is their competition. It may make more sense financially to target several lower volume keywords than one higher volume but very competitive keyword.
On site content and optimization is important
The term content is king comes to mind here. Great content on your website, whether it’s persuasive sales copy or well written blog posts are extremely important for the search engines. The more content, the more opportunity to draw in visitors.
It is also very important to consider the programming structure of your website to make sure search engines are able to quickly find your content without getting lost in the code. There are other on site techniques such as using proper keywords within your content, title tags and permalinks that are all very important.
Social media signals are important
Social media is an increasingly important factor to consider when dealing with your rankings in the search engine. For any SEOs out there that disagree or tell you otherwise, they are behind on the times. Social factors have been influencing search rankings for over a year, according to an interview done with Google and Bing.
This is not as important as some factors, but it will only continue to increase. Your authority as a person online shown through social media, will lend itself to your website’s authority and rankings.
Link building is extremely important
If you aren’t actively link building, then you are not doing search engine optimization. We believe that 80% of time should be spent on site promotion in order to increase rankings in the search engines. Link building and site promotion can come in a variety of shapes, sizes, techniques, and methods, but it basically boils down to getting other websites to link to yours.
The more sites that link the better. The more authority those sites have the better. The more your keywords are used as anchor text the better.
There is a lot of unknowns in this industry
This is a reiteration of what was already mentioned above, but I felt it was important to say again. Understand that no SEO has seen the programming for the Google Search Result algorithm, and because of that no one can be 100% sure of anything, except to know what has historically worked and didn’t work through testing and case studies.
Our Search Engine Optimization Process:
Keyword, Industry, and Competitive Research
I like to start by getting to know your industry and what people are searching for when they are looking for your products and services. This helps me identify with the searcher and find out how your website compares to others in your industry. I investigate the tactics of your competitors, both local and global, to find out what you are up against.
After completely this step, I typically have an ordered list of potential keywords to target based on potential traffic and competition. This step is the most important step in determining expectations for the Internet marketing initiative.
Site Assessment and Goal Setting
After I understand your industry, I’ll begin to dissect your website and see how it is performing. We look at things like keyword placement, hierarchy of pages and content, loading speed of your website, and your existing traffic analytics if any exist. We even visit conversion rates and how well your website makes your business money. After all, there is no point in sending more traffic to a page that isn’t converting.
Knowing where you are will help us plan out where you want to be, and how long we can expect it to take. We will set goals and expectations of the plan here so everyone is on the same page.
On-site Optimization and Content Strategy
On site work such as optimizing code and making sure keywords appear where they are suppose to will be completed. We make sure your website is easily accessible for both people and search engines so they can both find exactly what they are looking for.
Most of the simple changes can be completely fairly quickly and help to build a foundation for the link building initiative. However, we will often recommend some sort of on-site content strategy including weekly blog posts and articles on topics in your industry. This helps your website build authority and adds additional potential for search visitors.
Off-site Optimization Strategy and Execution
This is where the magic happens, and what separates great search engine optimization consultants from the rest. Without giving out too much information on here (we need to keep some things semi-private, right?), we provide a detailed plan on our multi-layer link building initiative that is built specifically for your website, industry, and keywords.
We show you step by step what we’ll be doing on a daily basis to help promote your website and gain high authority incoming links. We work very closely with you during this step and keep you updated every step of the way.