Frequently Asked Questions

Website Strategic Plan – Search Engine Optimization – Web Analytics

Website Strategic Plan

 

What is a website strategic plan?

A website strategic plan is a document that is used as a blueprint for your website. This plan starts from the overall goals of the business and explains how the website can help meet these goals. Specifically, the website strategic plan includes suggested keywords for search engine optimization, measures for Google Analytics, and the suggested website structure needed to support these functions.

Why is a website strategic plan important?

The website strategic plan is the foundation of your website. Creating and maintaining a website requires a significant investment, either in time or money, or both. You have to be confident that the end result is going to help your business; otherwise it is a waste of resources that would be better placed elsewhere. Without a proper plan and analytics regime, developing and maintaining your website becomes a guessing game. The plan is the basis for making intelligent, fact-based decisions about your website.

Why is your price for a website strategic plan separate from the development price?

We do not provide quotes for websites based on hunches, on a feeling, on other customers’ requirements, or on what we can sell to you. We believe that it is irresponsible to quote you a price for a website unless a website strategic plan has been completed. Without doing this critical piece of work first, it is impossible to determine what you need to fulfill your business goals. We charge first for creating the website strategic plan as a separate product, and then we provide a quote for building the full website.

What stops me from taking the plan you create and going to someone else?

There is nothing to stop you from finding a different company for implementing the strategic web plan. However, we believe that we will have built a strong working relationship with you and your business and you will be confident that we are best placed to implement the plan we have created. Whatever path you choose, you can move forward with confidence using this written document based on your business needs and our research and analysis.

I have quotes from other companies that promise a website for a set amount. Will you give me a quote for designing my website?

We do not respond to requests for quotes for website design unless we are confident that the client has developed their own website strategic plan. We would rather pass on a project than provide a product that does not serve the needs of a potential client. We include in our strategic web plan a detailed quote for implementation of the recommendations within the plan.

Do I have to compromise the look and feel of my site for SEO and Analytics?

The visual and textual content is only one of five important aspects of an effective website. The five aspects are:

• Navigation. Web sites must be easy to navigate and permit users to quickly and efficiently find information.
• Content. Web design must communicate the desired messages with dynamic and engaging copy, visual appeal, and a consistent brand image.
• Search Engine Friendly. Web sites must be designed to be found by your potential customers.
• Call to Action. Web designs must make it easy for users to users to complete desired action.
• Analytics. Web sites must harness the power of information to improve decisions and maximize return on investment.

These five aspects are critical to make your website effective. Planning out your site properly, including making allowance for SEO and Analytics, actually makes a better website. Your desired look and feel can be incorporated into the final product by our talented graphic design partners.

I am a non-profit or charitable organization, not a business. Do I still need a strategic web plan, optimization or analytics?

Absolutely. If you have a reason for having a website, you can benefit from maximizing its effectiveness. Whether you are fundraising, providing information, services or products you can benefit from a website which is designed to meet your organization’s strategic goals. Even for a non-profit or charitable organization a website is an investment. Getting the most out of that investment just makes sense.

Search Engine Optimization (SEO)

 

What is search engine optimization?

Search engine optimization is the process of optimizing the structure and content of your website so that potential customers can find you through search engines such as Google, Yahoo and Bing.

Why is search engine optimization important?

Simply put, your potential customers and clients cannot find you if you don’t tell them where you are. SEO is how you tell the search engines where you are and what you provide. The more clearly you can express to search engines what it is that you provide, the higher your ranking will be in the search engine results. But search engine optimization is not just about being found. It is about being found by people who are looking for the information, services or products you provide.

Other companies advertise that SEO is included in their websites. What makes you different?

The world of search engine optimization is an area where the maxim of ‘buyer beware” applies. Many companies claim they offer SEO, but only provide minimal (and sometimes counter-productive) service. Ask questions about their qualifications and the exact SEO actions they are taking on your site. If they cannot explain what they will do and the reasons why, then you should be suspicious of what you are receiving.

I have meta keywords on my site. Does this mean my site is optimized for search engines?

No. The search engines have all said that they do not use the meta keywords at all in their rankings. In fact, if you have put meta keywords in your source code, not only are you not helping yourself, but you’re telling your competitors what you think is important. There are a lot of “SEO plug-ins” that add this to your code. They are a total waste of time. Using keywords properly involves researching which words or phrases are important, and incorporating them into your website copy. There is no short cut to proper keyword research and usage.

My website is not selling anything. Do I still need SEO?

What is the purpose of your website? Will everyone looking for your product or service know you exist and know the address of your website? It is rare when a company cannot enhance their performance by having an easily-found and targeted website. Even if you don’t sell on-line, you put your web site up for a reason. Search engine optimization helps you meet your website goals, whether or not you are selling anything on-line.

Web Analytics

 

What is web analytics?

Web analytics is the collection, monitoring, and analysis of web site usage in order to improve the effectiveness of a web site. Simply put, it is the science of harnessing the power of information to improve your website performance.

What is Google Analytics?

Google Analytics is a free analytics tool supplied by Google.

Why is web analytics important?

You invested in your website, and it exists for a reason. Can you say with confidence whether or not it is successful, and how successful it has been? Do you know whether there are some parts of your website that are more successful than others? When the time comes to update your website, do you know what parts you should keep and what parts you should change? Web analytics gives you the hard data to draw intelligent conclusions about your website, to improve your internet performance, and thereby improve your business.

What is a Key Effectiveness Indicator?

A Key Effectiveness Indicator (KEI) is a specific item that measures the impact your website is having on your business. Your KEIs are unique to your business and your website. They will indicate the level of success you are enjoying with your website.

I know how many hits my website is getting. Isn’t that enough?

Measuring hits on a website would be like a restaurant counting the number of people who walked by the door rather than the food and beverages they served. Hits or site visitors alone are not sufficient measures of how many people are using your service, buying your product or receiving the information you are providing. Key effectiveness indicators are a more realistic measure of the success of your site in meeting your goals.

My website already has Google Analytics or another analytics tool, so I’m covered, right?

That depends. Has your analytics been customized to measure your own individual business performance? If all you are monitoring is the default measures provided by Google Analytics (or other tool), then you are not using analytics to measure the impact your web is having on your business. Google Analytics is a very powerful tool that can provide incredible insights on your website, but only if it is used properly.

I use social media. Can web analytics tell me how effective I am with facebook and twitter or other social media?

If your social media efforts are designed to drive traffic and potential leads to your website, then absolutely. Web analytics will identify any traffic that has originated from your social media efforts, and tell you how they interact with your website. You can then use this information, along with your Key Effectiveness Indicators, to measure your effectiveness. And more importantly, you can use this information to improve your campaigns.

I use e-mail blasts and newsletters. Can I track their effectiveness?

Yes. In the same way as with social media, web analytics can tell you how effective your campaigns are, and can help you improve your return on the investment of time and money you put into your campaigns.

I use Pay-Per-Click to advertise. How can analytics help?

If you use pay-per-click, you need to know which of your keywords actually produce better results. Using analytics, you can clearly show what kind of return and activity you generate from each keyword. This can then be used to adjust your paid campaign, with the result being a more focussed investment in advertising and a better return.

I have Google Analytics on my site, but what do all these numbers mean?

Making sense of all the data your website provides can be challenging to the average user. The first step is to make sure your analytics is customized to measure what is important to your business. Depending on the complexity of your site, Analytic-OR provides both one-on-one coaching or ongoing monitoring and analysis reports to assist you in turning that data into information which can better inform your business decisions.

How do I maximize my website’s effectiveness?

Contact Analytic-OR today to get started.