FAQ

Below is a directory of frequently asked questions from our customers about SEO. Here you can find the answers. If you want more, let us know.

1. Can you guarantee top positions for my keyword phrases?

No. There is no such guarantee unless your search phrase is obscure term with virtually no competition online. Generally, if the coveted keyword phrase is popular, such as "small business internet tutorial", it’ll take us years to achieve for WebSite101.

For businesses in highly competitive markets, such as auto sales, digital cameras, computers or retail sales of generic products competing against internationally known retailers, they will need complex SEO strategies to rank high. And those strategies take more time and patience.

We can dramatically improve your visibility, yet no SEO firm can guarantee top positions. "No one can guarantee a #1 ranking on Google," listed in Google’s Information for Webmaster. Firms which claim to offer guarantees are unethical and should be reported.

2. Why my site cannot be found in Google for my major keyword phrases while it is showing up in Yahoo and MSN? Or am I penalized, so its rankings have suddenly dropped?

One thing you need to realize is that rankings (and the traffic they may bring) are not static. Never assume you site will remain there forever even it once ranked high for the desired keyword phrases. Don’t worry, sites do not get penalized or banned unless you are trying to deceive the search engines by hiding stuff or artificially boosting link popularity. Your site is suddenly gone probably because of a constant algorithm change. The search engines will shift their algorithms from time to time, and there are new sites coming out every day, so ranking fluctuation is normal.

That’s why you need to optimize your site for related phrases as many as possible in your SEO campaign. When some phrases go AWOL because of the algorithm shift, the others will take up their roles. Don’t just stick to any 1 or 2 specific phrases. Or you think ranking high is really that important to you, then, you should purchase PPC ads that will trigger the most desired keyword phrases.

3. What is a ‘Site Map’ and why is it important to SEO?

Site map is the core of a Search Engine Friendly Design. By putting links to every page in one spot, search engines can quickly and easily find and index every page on your site. A site map enables the search engines to clearly understand what your site is about and provide unique opportunities in optimization. The site map should try to make full use of your most relevant and important keywords. It should also contribute to your ‘keyword density’, a term often used to describe the no. of times a particular search phrase appears in your site, within the link text on the page. All links should be in plain text and clearly relate to every page within your site with description, so both browsers and search engine spiders can understand what they will find on each page linked to from the site map page. Therefore, site map is important as an optimization technique. Make sure the site map is always linked to from your index page or home page.

4. How long does it take to see the results of an SEO campaign?

Each search engine or directory takes the indexing process for the sites at its own pace. It is hard to say exactly when you will see the results. Some sites will provide inclusion within just a week, while most others have to take 6-8 weeks to first visit the site and extra time to index. Generally, it will take up to 12 weeks to get your sites fully indexed upon completion of the optimization.

5. Is Pay-Per-Click a cost-effective method of advertising?

Pay-per-click (PPC) model is also provided by some search engines to allow you to bid for top placement. You pay when a user actually clicks on your ads or links. The more you bid, the higher your position is. The highest bidder for a selected term would rank the highest in the "sponsored" search engine results for this term, the next highest appears the second. It often results in bidding wars boosting the cost of some keywords to US$5 per click or even more. The effectiveness of PPC depends on the profit you make per item sold and what your conversion ratio is. If you are a small business owner, it is often difficult to compete with big businesses in the bidding wars. Search Engine Optimization (SEO) service is a cost-effective alternative to Pay-Per-Click programs. We offer the most effective way to reach a large customer base at a relatively low cost. And one thing for sure, we do not charge you per click.

6. How do I choose good keywords?

Targeting the right keywords is important to your search engine optimization. We will undergo extensive discussion and brainstorming; help you find the right keywords using professional keyword research tools. When you are ready to get started, simply fill out the form in our contact page. We will reply you within one business day to discuss details of your SEO program.

7. Where should I place my keyword phrases? Do I need to bold or italicize them in my copy?

The most important places to utilize your researched keyword phrases include 1) the Title tags; 2) the visible copy where people read; and 3) onsite and offsite links (or referred to "anchor text").

It doesn’t really that matter whether the keywords are in the first paragraph, first words, last words, or whatever. You do not have to worry about specific places or coding, simply place the phrases where they make sense from a reader's perspective. However, it doesn’t mean they can be in "ALL the right places". If it makes sense to use a keyword phrase in a headline, then go for it, but don't feel that you have to create a headline where it’s not necessary. If it makes sense to use a keyword phrase to describe a graphic, then you should do it. One thing you should bear in mind is that not to do anything only because you think you “have to”, in order for the search engines to like you.

8. Can I find out how much traffic my competitor's site receives and how?

It's impossible to find out the exact amount of traffic your competitors receive unless they have their log file statistics out in the open. You may obtain some comparative data from sites such as Alexa.com, but you will never know exactly how much traffic that your competitors get. Unless you have log file access or install tracking code to the sites you want to get the info from, otherwise, you would not know their exact amount. However, nobody can just install this kind of thing on the competitors' sites, as you need server access to do so.

You can get competitive analysis with tools such as Comscore, KeywordDiscovery Competitive Intelligence, and Hitwise.

9. Where can I place keyword phrases for the search engines on a graphical page?

For a flash-base website, I'm afraid that using keyword phrases in any of those places won't get your homepage found in the search engines. ‘Alt tags’ are ignored on images that are not clickable. Comment tags have nothing to do with SEO, and are not indexed by the spiders. Both of them won't help. Hidden layers may help, but would probably be recognized as spam by the search engines unless the hidden content is exactly the same as those on the graphical layer. However, it would not be the best way.

Alternatively, you can make use of the ‘Title tag’ and links pointing to your homepage. You can also concentrate more on the html pages (assume your pages are not all graphical) and optimize them for the coveted keyword phrases. Of course, you can just use PPC ads regardless of the organic results.

10. Will my search engine rankings be affected if I switch my old server hosts?

No, it won't affect much of your rankings. However, it would be better to leave your site up on the old server for a month making sure the DNS (Domain Name Server) propagates across the Web and the spiders are indexing the pages at the new host.