Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
Google assigns points to different website elements and the more points a page has the better its chances of being seen, indexed and recommended by Google Search Engines. IM Solutions pays special attention to these elements and optimizes when possible.
- URL
- Page title
- Page description
- Page responsiveness
- Precise front page content
- Relevance of cncoming and outgoing links
- Regulary updated content across website
- Verification with Google Webmaster Tools
- Submission of robot.txt and sitemap.txt to Google Webmaster Tools
- Google Local Business Submission & Webmaster Tools
What can you do to get visitors (including Google) to your site:
- Ask friends, family and aquaintances to visit your website
- Freely handout business cards and brochures that feature your website
- Ask affiliates to link to your website
- Add a Post on Facebook that directs to your website
- Add a Tweet on Twitter that directs to your website
- Create an e-newsletter that leads to your website
- Using a different IP address (not your computer) visit your website
- Using a different IP address (not your computer), google your website
Software
IM Solutions is currently building websites in WordPress. WordPress is a user-friendly content management system (CMS) that is free and well supported. This gives clients the freedom to do their own updates or to have IM Solutions do them. There are a variety of free and premium templates and plugins available to fit the needs of any job. WordPress offers nice integration of blog capabilities while allowing for the easy integration of social media, galleries, videos, audio, forms and much more.
Hosting & Domain
To ensure that clients are always in control of their site, IM Solutions gets clients to deal directly with their hosting company when ordering service. This cuts down on administration fees and ensures that the owner is tied to the account rather than the webmaster.
IM Solutions recommends GoDaddy as a domain name provider and hosting company. They offer a robust backend that provides “easy to admin” email, statistic reports and much more.
IM Solutions will assist clients to login to the host server giving immediate access to source files as well as walking through the C-Panel features including email, reporting and other options.
E-Newsletters
MailChimp is a smooth and “easy to edit” software program available online that helps you to collect and manage contacts, set up professional emails campaigns and distribute your information to your contacts via e-newsletter. A MailChimp collector can be integrated into your new WordPress site using a free plugin.
When looking for a robust email client that will sync your email, calendar and contacts on all your computers and handheld devices, IM Solutions recommends Microsoft Office 365. It is easy to set up and works well with all server side email. You can even access your account online.
There are a lot of printers out there and they all send back products of varying qualities. Through experience, IM Solutions has found that printers are not all created equal. If you are going to go to the expense of having a business card, brochure or poster designed, why not go the extra mile and have it printed with a quality printer? A printer who takes paper, bleeds, design, graphics and turn around time all into consideration.
In Edmonton, we like to use the downtown office of Rayacom. The offer a superior product at a good price point and the customer service is great!
For fancy business card papers and funky sizes, IM Solutions recommends MOO.com
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