I think the title says it all. I am not very computer or internet savvy. I have grown a lot in my computer skills but still have a ways to go. Creating my own website or doing my own SEO I don’t know if it is realistic for me. That said I don’t want to pay someone to do it either. So I am trying to set up some easy ways to help maintain my ranking that I can do myself. I understand blogging can increase ranking. So how do I do that?
Does the blog need to be on my website or on a separate blog site? Does the content have to be window related or am I just trying to get traffic to the site so the content can very? What aspect of the blog increases rank? Is it the traffic or the fresh content with key words changing regularly? How often do you need to blog? Does a video blog work just as well or does it have to be written content?
IS there anything else that I have not asked that I need to consider? Thanks for any answers and time in advance. Any help is appreciated. Is there any other easy ways to increase or maintain rank that I can manage myself?
The easiest way to get started is with a wordpress site. You want a paid wordpress site not the free one. Basically, you need to buy your own domain and hosting and then just use wordpresses platform.
Wordpress is totally free and is designed for blogging. You could probably have one set up for you very inexpensively or do it all yourself.
The other thing I should mention, is that it’s usually easiest to have your domain name and hosting from the same company. I use webhostinghub, which i have had no issues with.
As far as blogging, you just need to use the right keywords when you are writing (striking an appropriate balance between overuse of the keywords and underuse is important).
The simplest way to get started blogging is to simply write about the jobs you are doing. Use the words “window cleaning” or “gutter cleaning” etc along with the geographic area you are in.
Then you need to tag your photos and article appropriately to help the search engines find you. It is also helpful to categorize your blog by subject.
If all of that is over your head right now (I can’t learn, myself, until I actually do the task) it won’t seem so complex once you get started. And, again, you can pay someone a few bucks to set it all up and explain how to use it. But the important thing is that you can log in from any computer and work on your blog at any time.
Being cloud-based, you never have to worry about your personal computer crashing and not being able to work on your site.
The fact that I am typing this right now from an Applebee’s bathroom is proof of it’s ease of use and versatility.
Here’s an example if you’d like. Type in “Rochester MA Gutter Cleaning.” On my computer, I am listed as the top 3 results on Google.
I just recently started blogging about these jobs and now I am at the top. If I can be at the top of Google for all the smaller surrounding cities and towns (worth servicing) in my area, I will stay busy without spending a dime on marketing.
Don’t waste your time going after the big keywords at first. Pick the low hanging fruit… by that, I mean start with the smaller more neglected geographic keywords.
Thanks for the reply. I actually currently have a website. It was on the front page of Google but has slowly slipped to the second page as I have not done anything to it in about a year or two. I want to learn some easy things I can keep track of myself to increase and maintain my rank. I had heard blogging is good for that. Does the blog need to be a page on my site? I am thinking of having the site redone and having a blog added and I would just keep up with the blog. How often do you need to blog for it to be effective?
You need to have a blog on your website which you update at least weekly. A good idea is to have your last three posts’ titles and short excerpts appear on the index page of your website (your homepage) with the titles linking to the actual posts.
The best thing to do is to have someone build you a wordpress based website with a static home page. Then you can have a widget/custom menu with your last posts and excerpts appear on the side or at the bottom. Wordpress is very easy to learn but it is quicker to ask someone familiar with it to do it for you.
Your site have slipped down because Google could not find any fresh content on it (2 year old content is now considered old and not relevant by Google) therefore a way has been given to websites with fresher content. There are about 200 factors that Google takes into account before ranking websites. It looks like fresh content is within the top 10 = very important to update your website regularly.
If you want to dominate Google join PWRA and save 30% with Ambidextrous Services. Or at least come to the convention in Nashville and attend her classes.
I feel the best way to create a blog is to have a link to your blog inside your website but have your blog set up with a different domain. So the blog has to look identical to your website but shows up differently then your main website on search engines.
I just gave up on it. I don’t have the time or knowledge to do it myself and I can’t afford someone who knows what their doing. I tried a couple of different guys who ended up not knowing what they are doing.
I’m still here lurking - - I’ve been really busy though so not had much time to join in conversations.
My busy time starts December 26th. Everyone starts thinking about their websites & marketing once the holiday rush is over, so I’m working crazy hours for a couple of months!
