August 2009

Thinking Outside the Web Site: External SEO

Submitted by Steve Maxey on Wednesday, August 26, 2009
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"If you build it, they will come" was a beautiful hook to a sentimental movie, but it’s a terrible approach to online marketing.

Yes, most businesses need a website that knows who its target audience is and provides useful content to that audience in clear language, easily navigated structure and attractive design. But you can have all that and still completely fail to get site visitors, readers and customers, because a lot of what makes your site successful happens outside your website itself.

Hungry for better restaurant websites

Submitted by Steve Maxey on Tuesday, August 04, 2009
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Why are there so many bad restaurant websites?

I recently had to plan a lunch meeting with a client in a part of the city I don’t normally go to, so I had a chance to try to find and then look at a number of restaurant websites. I was traveling at the time, so this searching was being done with my iPhone.

Several sites had a Flash frontpage with no bypass—meaning I couldn’t find out anything at all about them. Others didn’t give hours or days of operation, so I couldn’t tell if they were open for lunch. Few had easy-to-review menus—or menus at all.