Answers to some frequently asked questions we’ve received about SEO:

1. What is the relationship between Search Engine Optimization (SEO) and Content Management Systems (CMS)?

This is a good question.  It’s an SEO FAQ more concerned website owners should ask. Content Management and SEO (Search Engine Optimization) are very related.  A good Content Management System (CMS) such as WordPress will enable you to easily update your website with fresh content, and to do this frequently. Search Engine robots can see if you are using a CMS, and they will rank your CMS higher for two reasons.

Firstly, the presence of a CMS in your website infers a higher likelihood that your site will be regularly updated, because CMS are built to be used by people without any coding skills. (Imagine being able to write and publish your own articles, pictures, videos, songs, etc., on your own website, without  technical challenges).

Secondly, the presence of that new content is attractive to people, so therefore it is attractive to search engines, especially Google and Bing. It’s common knowledge in SEO circles that Google’s robot algorithms are constantly being refined to more closely reflect human preferences. And that’s really good for the quality of the Internet.

2. You mean, adding new content more frequently actually helps boost our website’s position in Google search page results?

Yes. This is because of importance factors in Google’s algorithms. Updated content is considered by search engines (Google and Bing, especially) to be more important than stale content. 

The search engine robots that visit websites on a regular basis use algorithms that can track for and discover new, original relevant content on your website; such discovery will increase the SERP (Search Engine Results Page) ranking of your website. Content Management is therefore a major SEO strategy, because CMS / blog sites (like WordPress ) are easy for an end user to manage for posting new content on a regular basis.  That new content, especially if it is interesting, viewer-pulling and engaging, really does make your website’s information appear more important to Google, Bing and Yahoo, so your reward is higher search page rankings. This strategy doesn’t take care of all your SEO, but it’s a big factor.

3. How often should I log in to my CMS and upload some fresh content, and what do you suggest as good website content to add?

Update your website once weekly, ideally, with something such as a new blog post and new pictures, case studies, lifestyle tips — as relating to your blog’s area of interest. Once a month or so, try to add some new video(s) or new song files if you’re into music.  Add and update whatever is relevant to your company offerings or blog subject areas. Also, be sure to edit your site’s content for ease of readability.

4. What exactly do you mean by “relevant content” for boosting our site rankings?

The key in this respect is high quality articles, graphics or videos that are relevant to what your targeted searchers are seeking. This means, simply, that your content should be helpful. It could mean additions or improvements to your detailed text information,your service listings,  infographics, price lists, or new products in a shopping cart, etc. It should be original content. It should not be plagiarized or re-spun from existing articles or publications.

5. What is the cost of your SEO services?

If we are developing a WordPress site for you, most of the SEO is included. In some instances, especially in Scenario 1, which we have described in our Philosophy page, there may be ongoing analytics you will need us to oversee. In those cases, a consultation provides the opportunity to arrive at a cost that fits your budget and needs.

For more information, contact us at 604.787.0750, or by email from our Contact page.

6. What key factor does the best SEO plan or program include in respect to web design?

High quality website design and construction, aimed at a good User Experience (UX, as we say in the industry) is the principle factor, with many aspects to it:

• Ample white space and some design elements for separation

• Avoidance of clutter so that your relevant information is more easy to find

• In-page links, which should lead to logical subsequent locations in your website, to reinforce your website’s purpose and assist browsing visitors to find key information

• Use of webpage Title tags, and appropriate use of Meta Description tags and key phrases, according to updated standards of SEO

• Natural language – Write with clarity in natural language for a good User Experience, and use proper spelling and grammar

• Avoidance of keyword-stuffing; never overload titles and pages with meta keywords. This will reduce readability and actually hurt your website’s search result rankings.

• Natural links: Your site should link to genuine, original information on other websites. Do not use any contrived, unnatural, spammy links — the kind that bad SEO practitioners sell. That type of link-building is ultimately a waste of money and can cost you dearly in Google penalties, especially due to the Panda and Penguin Google algorithms which have changed acceptable Search Engine Optimization considerably since April 2012.

• User-friendly site navigation without dead-ends; menus with drop downs should be well coded and easy to use, and sitemaps easy to find

• Sensible Calls to Action that are well placed and move site visitors forward to the logical next steps for services they are seeking.

• A Content Management System (CMS) that is easy to use for adding text content, images, song files and videos;  WordPress is the most popular CMS because it is relatively easy to use in relation to the tremendous flexibility it offers.

• Responsive web design and responsive / mobile first coding are a great help, because of the way people are using the Internet for retail shopping these days. Google is most aware of this, and released study findings recently, indicating that approximately 70% of mobile phone users will start their searches for products and information on mobile phones, then continue their related searches on larger screen devices, respectively: tablets, laptops or desktop computers. E-Commerce purchases that complete on a large-screen device may have started on an iPhone, for example. Google and Bing are aware of this, so they reward well coded Responsive, mobile-first websites with higher search engine rankings.