S.E.O.

Search Engine Optimization (S.E.O.) is quite literally what it implies. It is the practice of optimizing your website and its code for search engine visibility, specifically Google.

Optimizing your site for favorable Google search results requires knowledge of how Google algorithms choose which sites to display when a person performs a search. Once we complete an SEO project, we show the client exactly what was done, how to identify it on the back end, and how to manage their site content without disrupting the various optimizations. See our tier packages below.

Tier 1

Site Health

The first step of optimization for any website is to make sure that the site is healthy. What exactly makes a site healthy? Lots of things actually.

When a new website is built, or an existing site is edited heavily, there are certain components that must be formatted properly in order to avoid brokenness.

We often find that when people build their own websites instead of hiring a professional, things are not organized properly. When things are not organized properly, Google will have difficulty determining if your site should be displayed for a specific search or not. The site may outwardly appear fully functional, but the code is a mess underneath.

Your website can be compared to a collection of Legos that make up a grand mansion. When properly assembled, it is amazing, and I can tell you exactly where the master suite is. But when the Legos are simply poured out onto the table, it's more difficult to visualize their true purpose.

Like the collection of Legos, each component of a website has a specific designation. When assembled properly, its purpose becomes extremely clear.

Simply put, "Site Health" means that your website has been properly organized, the content has been marked with specific code designations, so that there are no extra undesignated or unformatted elements hanging around.

Tier 2

Meta Package

The first thing to know about our tier 2 SEO package is that everything on the tier 1 package is included. That is because you cannot implement more aggressive SEO on a site that is not healthy.

The Meta Package SEO tier is geared toward "In-Page" level optimization. In-page optimization simply means that the website code is able to identify and categorize each and every thing on your website in a way that can be reported to Google.

When someone initiates their search on Google, and your site is already recognized as healthy and not broken, then google looks to the meta data that defines your site elements, the written content, keyword meta scripts, Alt-Ref tags for images and vectors, content formatting such as columns and order, and a host of other in-page designations.

If the keyword meta scripts, the meta descriptions, page titles, and written content are not aligned with each other, Google may be confused and exclude your site from the search results. Therefore, it is vital to not only have all of these in-page components, but also to ensure that they all align with each other in a way that tells Google if your site is a good match or not for the search.

A site will always perform better in search results when all of the in-page elements are correctly aligned with each other and share the focus of the website's purpose.

Is SEO an unsolvable puzzle? No.

Tier 3

Schema Package

The first thing to know about our tier 3 SEO package is that everything on tier 1 and tier 2 is included. That is because you cannot implement aggressive next-level SEO on a site that is not already healthy with strong in-page meta.

The Schema Package SEO tier is geared toward enhancing your site in a way that not only prepares it for rich results, but also embeds your site elements with code that is specific to your site's focus and purpose.

For example, the previous tier utilizes in-page alternate description tags that allow the site code to define an object. But in tier 3, we also embed the object itself with metadata such as geo location, embedded alt-ref tags, and keyword meta tags directly into your images and site elements. This creates what is known as "Rich Results" and can aggressively move you up the Google ranking system when done correctly.

Another layer of achieving rich results is the use of JavaScripts called Schema Markup Scripting. Our tier 3 SEO includes this amazing feature. Each of your pages can be given an even deeper description when schema markup files are properly infused into your site code.

Schema Markup, also referred to as Structured Data, enables Google to take into consideration the various designations that you give to your pages and their unique purpose, instead of only focusing on the site's focus and purpose as a whole.

SEO Do's and Don'ts, and some truths about the marketing industry.

Buyer Beware: Before you invest in SEO from a marketing agency or website design firm, there are a few things you need to understand about marketing and SEO, and how to tell when you are being scammed.

SEO is everything that is done INTERNALLY to your site and its code. Marketing is everything that is done EXTERNALLY to drive traffic to your site. Marketing is not SEO, and SEO is not marketing.
Backlink networks are BAD. Legitimate backlinks are GOOD. Do not allow anyone to sell you backlinks in order to increase your google ranking. Many of these services get flagged by Google, and if you are on the list of recipients, you could be impacted negatively. Instead, partner with other organizations and affiliations to create legitimate backlinks between you both.
SEO should only cost a monthly fee if you are paying for intermittent internal site code changes such as keyword updates and Meta Script refreshes. Marketing agencies often sell their marketing packages as "SEO" when in fact it may not include any SEO features.
Marketing firms make their money from your dependency on their ad campaigns, having told you that it was SEO. Once their ads stop running, your website is nowhere to be found in the Google Search Index. This is why a healthy dose of SEO should always be included in marketing campaigns.
External marketing, social media campaigns, and Google ads are great, and we highly recommend integrating some type of marketing plan into your business development model, but solid organic SEO will eventually allow you to reduce your marketing campaign dollars.
Don't be afraid to ask questions when marketing agencies sell you an SEO package. If they do not have access to your website's dashboard and site code, but have claimed to implement SEO, then it's time to ask them some hard questions.
We tell all our clients that if a marketing agency wants to "throw in the website for free" then run the other way. This is their way of ensuring that your site will never rank in Google Search.
Implementing SEO into your site code, in a way that makes sense, is not for the faint at heart. We make it a point to educate our clients by SHOWING them the SEO that was implemented into their site so that they can manage their site without disrupting the optimization.