Did your website get ‘Fresh’ with Google?

On Wednesday 2nd November, Google got ‘Fresh’. Yet another algorithm update commonly known as ‘Fresh’ is one of ten updates that have been implemented within the last 2 weeks.

Since this search has impacted upon 35% of all searches, it’s significance is worth talking about!

This update is a tweak to Google’s earlier ‘Caffeine’ algorithm.  The Caffeine update provided 50% fresher results for searches than the previous Google index. This symbolise that individuals now have higher expectations for search engines than in the past as they expect to have access to relevant instantaneous content.

In other words, for your rankings to stay consistent or to increase, you will need to update your content on a regular basis. This can include social media content, blogging and news articles.

So, if you were to do a search on Google at present for ‘Olympics’ the chances  are that you are after information relating to the 2012 Olympics and not the 1900 Olympics. This ‘Fresh’ algorithm update will take this into account (think for you!) and provide you with the results relating to the latest information available.

Google+ For Business

In June this year Google launched its social media offering Google+ which went head to head with other social media platforms like Facebook. Google+ boasts a whole host of features and specifically promotes its privacy features on who its users share their information with, an issue that Facebook are yet to resolve!

Google have trialled Google+ for a few months and have now introduced Google+ for businesses. These pages will allow brands and organisations a presence on this latest growing social media network.

The business pages are similar to the personal profiles and allow photos/videos and content to be posted and shared.

To Subscribe to our newsletter click here and keep up to date with the latest in social media and read a more detailed post on how Google+ can work for your business.

Click here to view our Google+ business page and look our for the below button to add other organisations to your Google+ circles.

HOW TO MAKE THE HUNT FOR YOUR BUSINESS MORE EFFECTIVE

Why is search engine optimisation so important..?

Imagine what may happen if your clients couldn’t easily find your telephone number or even your address.

Yep, bet you couldn’t survive for very long in that situation could you?

Well, the same thing can be said for your website. If it cannot be easily located (ie at the top/front of any search engine) then it will be overlooked in favour of competitor’s sites that get there first!!

If your website can’t be found easily then it will not get visited, which means that ‘traffic’ numbers will fall, which in turn lowers your sites rating on the search engine algorithm – Catch 22! The more people visit your website - the more the more people will see it in the first place.

It is therefore essential that you make the hunt for your website as simple and as straight forward as possible. You may say ‘I have a URL, so people can find us that way’, well yes that may be so, but that only applies to your current customers or to those who can remember exactly what you company URL is.

If your customer's want to find your website then they will.  Other potential customers are lost unless you rank effectively within a search engine. Effective SEO could put you in front of the competition.

For more information on how we can enhance your SEO or for a free online marketing appraisal click here.

MAKE AN IMPACT

Keeping in touch with your customers is essential if you want  your marketing strategy to keep you ahead of your competitors. If you don’t communicate with them then there is a good chance that when they are considering buying a product or service they won’t just contact you and you may lose out!

In marketing terms it costs more to attract new customers than it does to retain existing ones. It is therefore logical that during the economic times we are currently experiencing organisations should not only focus on increasing business but also target businesses and referrals from existing customers. This is easily achieved through regular communication, ensuring that your company and its offerings are not forgotten at the time when clients may be looking to buy. Email marketing provides one of the easiest, most proactive and effective ways of keeping in touch!
 
Here are a few key points to consider with email marketing campaigns:

1.    Regular communication is key to growing your business.
2.    Permission based marketing is one of the easiest ways of communicating.
3.    Make sure the content of your email is relevant to the recipient.
4.    Ensure content is interesting and stimulating, provoking a positive reaction.
5.    Encourage people to subscribe to your mailing list (if they want to read your communications they will already be receptive to your ideas).
6.    Interesting or informative content that proves useful to the reader is less likely to get regarded as spam and ignored.

7.    Send your emails at the most appropriate time of day and week to maximise uptake.
See the below info-graphic for our nutty hints and tips! 

 

A Rod or a Net...?

What would a wise fisherman do? Use a rod which only allows him to catch individual fish in one specific area? Or use a net which will allow him to expand his trawl and capture a varied range of fish over a large area and even fish travelling in different directions?
The same principal applies with online marketing.

It is important to understand that search engines are evolving and that social media is now a huge part of that process. The use of social media within an integrated inbound marketing strategy can give your company website an adrenalin rush making it increasingly visible to your target audience. 

Recently both Bing and Google admitted in interviews that their search results are ‘positively affected by social signals such as tweets, Facebook likes and Google +1’s’. This is evidence that there are significant benefits from combining social media marketing with a search engine optimisation (SEO) strategy. The benefits range from increased social network discovery via search to the ability to attract and develop links for advanced SEO.

“The links that you build through social media, the references, the authority — all can have an impact in various ways on how you are ranked and listed even in ‘regular’ search results,” says Danny Sullivan, Editor-in-chief of Search Engine Land. “Social media allows for people to provide more trusted signals.” (source: Mashable 2011)

Below are a few examples of how SEO and social media complement each other:

1. Social media content can be optimised based on an organisation's keyword analysis.

2. Media sharing through social interactions creates content that improves a brand's visibility within search results.

Both Google and Bing have added real time results to their searches. This means that Twitter and Google+ results show up prominently above other content.

For more hints and tips on how to increase your online presence through the use of social media give us a call today or visit our portfolio.

WELCOME TO THE TEAM

Nutcracker would like to give a warm welcome to the newest member of our team Mark!


Mark is an experienced digital designer and brings a wealth of knowledge and creativity to our team. He has particular expertise in Mobile and Application design, user experience and user interface design.


During his career Mark has worked with a multitude of Blue chip clients including Orange, T Mobile, Virgin Media, Tesco, Arsenal FC, Man Utd, Liverpool FC, Everything Everywhere,  Chorion (Mr Men) Carte Blanche and Cummins to name a few.


Here at Nutcracker Mark will be working predominantly in the digital realm as well as on a variety of print projects.


So lets get cracking!