Search Engine Optimisation

Effective SEO depends on a range of factors, all of which need to work in harmony to get the best results. These include:

Server issues
Coding
Site architecture
Content
Meta-content
Navigation and internal linking
External Linking

Before deciding on the best strategy for a site we'll look at all these aspects in detail, identifying the priorities and the essential properties of the site. This allows us to make the maximum difference in the shortest time. Sometimes a site will be largely in good order but may have a one or two factors which are holding it back. In other cases it may require substantial remodelling in order to become search engine friendly before it can be properly optimised. For this reason it is often impossible to give a reliable estimate of price before we've undertaken our investigations and know what strategy will be required. In such cases we will usually recommend an SEO Audit as the first step. Please appreciate that for this reason we often can't provide you with a price for your project on the first phone call or after a brief inspection of the site; the nature of SEO simply doesn't make that realistic.

How important are Search Rankings?

Quite simply, if you aren't on the first page of results for the sort of search phrases that your customers use to find your products or services then you won't get much traffic. We'll check to see where your rankings are at the beginning of the project. Some SEO companies now suggest that ranking reports are pointless; we take a middle view on this, recognising that clients need some indication of progress and that rankings provide this, and also that only by studying ranking changes can you get an idea of how the site is being seen by the search engines. Rankings can be deceiving though - being number one is only useful if that search phrase is actually being searched for, otherwise it's just vanity rankings. For that reason it's important to identify the best phrases to concentrate on, and it's also vital to remember that rankings are only a step on the way to increased traffic and conversions.

Keyword Research

What you think people are searching for isn't always what they are! The buzz words in your industry are sometimes unknown to your target audience. Some words may be used in one geographical location and not in others. Knowing what search terms are being used, how often, and what the level of competition is for each of them is a prerequisit for a search engine optimisation campaign. We'll conduct a thorough search for the right keywords in cooperation with you to make sure we're aiming for the right targets.