5 Reasons to Keep Your Website Current and Fresh

5 Reasons to Keep Your Website Current and Fresh

If you’re a small business owner, you know that having an up-to-date website is essential for success in the digital age. But did you know that your website’s search engine rank can be affected by how frequently you are adding new content?
Here are five ways adding new content and blog articles to your website can help your search engine rank.

 

1. It Improves User Experience – As technology has advanced, so too have user expectations. People expect websites to be fast, easy to use, and filled with relevant information. Adding new content helps keep users engaged and shows them that your website is actively maintained. This improves the user experience, which in turn will lead to more people visiting your site and staying longer.

2. It Boosts Your Authority – Websites with fresh content tend to appear higher on search engine results pages (SERPs). This means that when potential customers search for something related to your business, they will see your website first! Additionally, by regularly providing valuable information on topics related to your industry, you’ll establish yourself as an authority in the field—which adds even more credibility!

3. It Helps You Connect With Your Audience – By creating content tailored specifically for your audience, you can start a conversation and build relationships with potential customers who are interested in what you have to offer. Plus, it’s a great way of staying up-to-date on what’s happening in the industry so you can adjust your strategy accordingly.

4. It Drives Traffic To Your Site – Search engines reward websites that consistently produce quality content because it means they’re doing their part in helping people find what they’re looking for online! By regularly creating new blog posts or articles, you’ll drive more traffic to your site which could result in more leads and sales further down the line!

5. It Gives You More Opportunities To Promote Yourself – Every time you create a piece of content or publish a blog post, it gives you another opportunity to promote yourself on social media or other channels such as email newsletters or targeted ads campaigns. This helps increase brand awareness and reach more people who may not have heard about your business before!

 

Adding new content and blog articles to your website isn’t just about keeping things fresh; it also provides tangible benefits such as boosting SEO rankings and increasing traffic. So if you’re serious about growing your business online, make sure that updating your website with fresh content is top priority! Doing so will help ensure that potential customers find exactly what they’re looking for—and maybe even discover something unexpected along the way!

As you have read, adding content to your website will greatly improve your website rank and thus, drive more business. However, You may not have the time to invest to make this happen…You’re in luck! If you require SEO services in Vancouver, SEO services in Squamish, SEO services in Victoria or SEO services in Canada, we offer a content packages just for that purpose.

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How to Reach the Top of the Search Results

How to Reach the Top of the Search Results

As a small business owner, you know how important your online presence is. You’re probably already aware that search engine optimization (SEO) is key to making sure that potential customers can find you online. But do you know what it takes to get your website to the top of the search results? Here are five techniques to help boost your SEO rankings.

1. Research Keywords – The first step in improving your SEO ranking is to identify which keywords your target audience is searching for when looking for services like yours. Once you know what those keywords are, make sure they are featured prominently on your website by including them in page titles, meta descriptions, and throughout your content. This will ensure that search engines recognize how relevant and useful your website is for users looking for products or services like yours.

2. Optimize Your Content – Quality content is essential to improving your search engine rank. Your content should be well-written, organized, and free from typos and grammatical errors. Additionally, make sure all images have correct alt tags and include internal links within each piece of content so that readers can easily navigate around your website and learn more about what you offer.

3. Build Links – Link building is one of the most important aspects of SEO, as it helps search engines understand how relevant and useful your website is for users looking for information related to their queries. Make sure you link back to other reputable websites in order to show search engines that you’re an authority in the industry. Additionally, use social media platforms such as Twitter and LinkedIn to build relationships with influencers in the industry who can help spread awareness of your brand through their own networks as well as share content from your website with their followers or fans.

4. Monitor Your Progress – To ensure that all these efforts are paying off, keep track of how effective they are using analytics tools such as Google Analytics or KISSmetrics. These tools allow you to monitor traffic levels over time so you can measure progress towards achieving higher rankings on major search engines like Google or Bing! Additionally, monitor changes in keyword rankings so that if any adjustments need to be made based on new algorithms implemented by search engines, then adjustments can be made accordingly in order remain competitive against other businesses offering similar services or selling similar products online.

5 . Utilize Local SEO – If you’re a local business targeting customers within a particular geographic area such as a city or state then utilizing local SEO tactics will benefit greatly by appearing at the top of localized searches related to keywords associated with businesses in a certain area . This includes claiming listings on local directory sites such as Yelp , creating profiles on Google My Business , optimizing titles & descriptions for local searches etc . All these tactics work together harmoniously to help boost visibility among potential customers who may be located nearby .

If there’s one thing every small business owner should take away from this blog post it’s this: mastering the art of SEO takes time and hard work but it’s worth it if done right! By researching keywords, optimizing content, building links, monitoring progress regularly and utilizing local SEO tactics where applicable – any small business has the potential reach new heights with their digital marketing strategy! So don’t wait any longer – start boosting up those rankings today! That said – when used correctly – these five techniques will help improve your ranking on major search engines like Google & Bing! It’s important though not just rely on these techniques alone but also implementing other strategies such as social media marketing & paid advertising campaigns too! With an effective mix of both organic & non-organic methods – good luck reaching those top spots!

Website Design Services in Vancouver, BC

Website Design Services in Vancouver, BC

Are you looking for a reliable and experienced web design company in Vancouver, BC? Look no further than our team of experts at Black Tusk Web Design Vancouver. We offer a wide range of website design and development services, as well as search engine optimization (SEO) services that will help your business rank higher on Google and other major search engines. We have years of experience working with businesses in Vancouver and across Canada, and we are confident that we can help you create a website that not only looks great, but also generates more leads and sales for your business.

We wanted to take a moment to answer some of the more common questions when it comes to website design.

What is Search Engine Optimization?

Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is the process of optimizing a website for Google and other major search engines. The goal of SEO is to improve the visibility of a website in the search engine results pages (SERPs), with the ultimate goal of generating more traffic and leads for the business.

In addition to our web design services, we also offer SEO services that are designed to help your website rank higher on Google and other major search engines. Our team of SEO experts will work with you to identify the best keywords for your business and then help you optimize your website around those keywords.

What are some common features of a successful website?

A successful website must be designed with your target audience in mind. It should be easy to navigate, visually appealing, and contain relevant and well-written content that addresses the needs of your target customers. In addition, a successful website must be properly optimized for search engines in order to rank higher in the SERPs.

What Makes a good website design?

A good website design must take into account many factors such as the target audience, the purpose of the website, the products or services being offered, and the overall branding of the business. At Black Tusk Web Design Vancouver, we have years of experience designing and developing websites for businesses in Vancouver and across Canada. We will work with you to understand your specific needs and then create a custom website design that meets those needs.

What is UX (user experience)?

UX is short for user experience, and it refers to the overall experience that a person has when using a website or app. A good UX must take into account many factors such as ease of use, navigation, and overall design. At Black Tusk Web Design Vancouver, we focus on creating a positive UX for all of our clients.

user experience design vancouver

What is responsive design?

Responsive design is an approach to web design that allows websites to be viewed on multiple devices with different screen sizes. In order to create a responsive website design, developers must use HTML, CSS, and JavaScript to create websites that adapt to the different screen sizes.

What is a content management system (CMS)?

A content management system (CMS) is a software application that allows users to create, edit, and publish content on the web. WordPress is one of the most popular CMS platforms, and it powers millions of websites around the world.

What are some common website design mistakes?

Some common website design mistakes include using too much text, having a cluttered layout, and using low-quality images. At Black Tusk Web Design Vancouver, we avoid these mistakes by carefully planning out each website design before we start designing.

web design vancouver bc

How much does a website cost?

The cost of a website depends on many factors such as the size of the website, the number of pages, the level of customization, and the services being used.

In general, a basic website can start as low as $500, while a more complex website can cost upwards of $5,000+.

What are the benefits of having a website?

Some of the benefits of having a website include increased visibility for your business, the ability to reach new customers, and improved brand awareness. A website can also help you generate leads and sales for your business.

When it comes to website design, there is no one-size-fits-all solution. The best website design for your business will depend on many factors such as your target audience, the purpose of the website, the products or services being offered, and the overall branding of the business. At Black Tusk Web Design Vancouver, we have years of experience designing and developing websites for businesses in Vancouver and across Canada. We will work with you to understand your specific needs and then create a custom website design that meets those needs.

Why Choose Black Tusk Web Design Vancouver?

There are many web design companies in Vancouver, but not all of them are created equal. When you choose Black Tusk Web Design Vancouver, you can rest assured knowing that you are working with a team of experienced and professional web designers who are dedicated to helping your business succeed online. We offer a wide range of services, including web design, web development, and SEO, and we are confident that we can help you achieve your online goals.

 

If you are interested in learning more about our web design services or if you would like to get started on your new website, contact us today. We would be happy to discuss your project with you and provide you with a free quote. Just click the ‘Get a Quote’ button in the header of this page to book your free consultation today.

How Search Engine Crawlers (Bots) Work 

How Search Engine Crawlers (Bots) Work 

How Search Engine Crawlers (Bots) Work 

(And What They Look For In A Good Website)

You probably might have asked how Google search results are determined or how the search engines work. With over 1.8 billion websites on the web, one would wonder how Google, Bing, Baidu, and the other search engines manage to rank all of the billions of web pages emanating from these websites. 

Search engines deploy crawlers (bots) to scour the internet for web pages and rank them accordingly to generate search results. While this is not as simple as it seems,  in this post, we’ll shed some light on how these search engine crawlers (bots) work behind the scenes to generate search results for users.

 

How Search Engines Work

There are three key steps involved in how search engines work – crawling, indexing, and ranking/serving. The first step involves the search engines deploying bots referred to as crawlers or spiders to scour the internet for new and updated web pages via URLs. 

These spiders/crawlers then try to analyze each of the pages crawled to discover what each page is all about as well as determine how relevant the pages are to online searches. The results are then indexed based on relevancy, using a set of ranking factors that are dependent on the algorithm of the search engine in question, and then served up to users searching online.

how search engine crawlers work - black tusk web

How search engines work.

Image Credit: Black Tusk Web, Instagram

 

What Search Engine Crawlers Look For On Websites

Google doesn’t accept payments to rank your websites high on search engine results pages (SERPs). So, how do you get your website pages to rank high on SERPs? 

The answer, in this case, is knowing how to optimize your website for high ranking. 

This in turn can only be successful when you have a good grasp of what search engine crawlers want to see on your web pages. Here are some of the most important things crawlers want to see on your web pages;

1. HTML

Google wants to see your website’s HTML codes properly formatted. And aside from the fact that building your website on HTML helps you avoid slow website rendering and better experience for visitors, Google, as one of the most prominent search engines, finds it easier to crawl HTML, compared to other protocols like JavaScript, Flash, DHTML, Ajax, etc. 

2. Internal links

Internal links on website pages make them easily navigable and crawlable for search engine crawlers. 

3. Content structure

Site and content structure plays a role in how search engines crawl your website. Content on your website should therefore be organized in a way that should make it easy for both human users and search engines. 

Along with these three (3) things, others such as the actual content quality as well as the searcher’s location, search history, search medium (desktop or mobile), can also influence what content they are served as well as how the content is ranked.

 

Conclusion

Now that you know how search engines work, it’s important to translate this knowledge into creating an easily crawlable and indexable website. 

From getting your site structure right to properly formatting your website’s HTML codes, proper use of internal links, and a commitment to high content quality, it will become much easier to get your web pages to rank well on searches that are relevant to your brand and business. 

In doing this, your website’s lead generation and conversion will also get a significant boost. 

 

Top Reasons Your Website Is Too Slow

Top Reasons Your Website Is Too Slow

No one can stand a slow website. Not me or any of the 90% of other internet users with attention spans shorter than that of a goldfish who are more likely to bounce if your website pages don’t load up within the first five (5) seconds. (Google)

Slow website loading speed decreases your chances of generating leads and making sales from your share of web traffic. In this post, we’ll uncover five of the common culprits responsible for the reasons why your website loads at a snail pace. We’ll also shed the light on how you can turn up the speed so it loads as fast as possible. 

 

1. Low-quality hosting 

hosting quality affects website speed

Instagram: Black Tusk Web

The problem with hosting is that it can doom your website to perpetually slow loading times even before you have an actual website.

So, before writing the first line of code, you want to make sure your website is hosted on a high-quality hosting service provider. Doing this will help you avoid slow loading, low SEO ranking chances, and the poor user experience that comes with browsing on slow websites.

 

2. Heavy and unclean codes

Are the source codes on your website absurdly heavy, messy, or unclear? All of these can significantly impact how fast your website loads. So, you know your website deserves better than some poorly written codes.

Any web design or development expert worth their weight will appreciate the importance of having clean and user-focused codes on a website’s speed and performance.

 

3. Not using good caching techniques

Caching techniques help make content readily and easily available to read for users. 

The key basis of this involves storing the data on the computer that needs to read the information rather than having to read such information directly from the original source. Caching, when done right, will significantly help boost your website speed. 

 

4. Unoptimized images and media content

Unoptimized media content can take a toll on your website speed, especially if you own an image-heavy website. 

While it makes sense to complement your written content with enough images, audio, video, etc, not properly optimizing these media files as far as sizes are concerned can slow down your website loading speed. 

5. Not using a content delivery network (CDN)

CDN helps cache content in multiple locations around the world.

By storing these caches closer to website users, the time it takes to render on their device is significantly cut short. While having this set up can help supercharge your website speed, not having one in place can mean slow loading times. 

 

6. Too many plugins

Plugins help improve the functionality of websites. 

But like every good thing, too much of it can impact your website speed. Along with slow website loading speeds, having too many plugins installed on your website can put your website at risk of website crashes, and security breaches, among others. So, it’s always better to stick to the few you really need.

 

7. Code bloated WordPress themes

One of the best things about WordPress is how easy it can be set up. There are thousands of both free and paid themes that you can consider when building your website. The problem with some of these themes, however, is that they might be poorly built. WordPress themes with bloated codes can mean slow-loading pages and poor user experience for your users, among other things. 

 

Conclusion

There are a million and one reasons why you need to take your website loading speed more seriously. Aside from the obvious poor user experience on your website that could significantly impact your website’s lead generation and sales conversion chances, website speed is also a key SEO ranking factor that could impact your website’s visibility on search engines. 

From choosing the right hosting provider to ensuring clean and clear codes, among other things, getting your website to load as fast as possible (great if it loads under 3 seconds!) can help make a world of difference on how well your website can support your business’s strategic digital goals. 

 

3 Reasons Your Website is Loading Too Slowly & How It’s Destroying SEO & UX

3 Reasons Your Website is Loading Too Slowly & How It’s Destroying SEO & UX

Slow websites loading speed kills conversion.

And this is not just an assertion. It’s a statement backed by enough stats and evidence. According to KissMetrics, the average website visitor expects your website to load in less than two seconds. If it’s taking more than three, as much as 40% may abandon the process!

You’ve not spent all of that money on building a website to let prospective customers leave even before they’ve transacted with your business. Here are three reasons your website is loading too slowly, with recommendations for tremendous improvements;

 

Web hosting plan or provider may affect site speed

Everything from the type of hard drive your hosting provider offers (SSD or HDD) to the available RAM and bandwidth can impact how fast your website loads. GoDaddy website hosting, for instance, has a reputation for being slow. SiteGround, on the other hand, is believed to be much faster, as well.

The same also plays out with the type of hosting plan your website uses. Shared web hosting plans are known for their low-cost prices. But since you have to share server resources with a lot of other websites, your website may experience occasional slowdowns at times.

A dedicated server, on the other hand, gives you better control of resource allocation. If you’re committed to genuinely improving your website speed, this type of hosting plan guarantees the best balance between performance and affordability.

 

Image sizing and page speed

Images are a double-edged sword. They can make or break your website.

If served properly, they could help convey your idea, support your story, and even make your brand more relatable. But serving up improperly sized images may have less desirable results.

Reducing image file sizes to fit the space where the picture will be on your website can help immensely. Light images, compared to heavy image file sizes, will take up less space on your website. Consequently, this will reduce the amount of data that needs to be transferred when customers visit your website.

The benefits extend beyond just making your website lighter. This guarantees better website speed performance and better user experience, all while still improving SEO.

 

Plugins and website loading speed

Plugins help enhance the functionality of WordPress websites.

While too many plugins might end up slowing down your website speed, some of the best plugins are well-built enough that you won’t experience any significant lag in speed. Still, there are some plugins purposely designed to help websites boost their page loading speeds.

WordPress plugins like SG optimizer, WP Rocket, and more are some of the best WordPress caching plugins you might want to consider for speed optimization.

 

Why improve website speed?

Wondering why you need to improve your website speed?

More visitors will keep on abandoning your website if it’s taking forever before they can find what they need or do what they want. This will end up reducing the average time spent on your website while significantly increasing your bounce rate.

For Google, as well as your users, a seamless website user experience is non-negotiable. The more users leave your site, the stronger the signal this sends to Google that your website does not offer enough value and relevance to visitors. This will consequently, send your website page rankings further down the Search Engine Results Pages (SERPs).

If you want to build a wicked fast website, your website hosting and design processes need to tick all of the boxes at the right places. And if there’s anyone you can trust to help you achieve this, the professionals here at Black Tusk Web are more than capable.

 

Black Tusk Web website design

Black Tusk Web offer website design services for businesses in Squamish, Whistler, Vancouver, and beyond. We use SiteGround dedicated hosting services to ensure your website has all it needs to maintain functioning at incredible speed. We also use reliable plugins from reputable outlets, such as the SG optimizer plugin, among other things.

The expert web design professionals at Black Tusk Web will help you build a high-speed, high-converting business website. With our services, you can easily avoid the pain of slow loading website pages while being sure that your website won’t constantly be crashing down.

Contact Black Tusk Web today to get started!