Using Flash on your Web site is a great way to offer visitors an enhanced experience. It is also very useful to convey a complex or multi layered idea using a simple straightforward video or sequence of images. The problem that most Webmasters encounter when using Flash is that search engine bots and spiders, those little entities that survey Web pages and pick the most relevant ones for top results on major search engines, rely heavily on text to understand what your site is all about. They ignore Flash. Most bots can’t handle Flash, so if your Web site is made up primarily of videos, it may fail at being visible to search engines even if it is relevant and well constructed.
It is important to note that certain Internet browsers also prevent Flash from running properly for your visitors. Ever see that little pop-up tool tip asking you to “Click to activate and use this control”? It’s annoying to you, and it’s annoying to them. This is why understanding Flash is key to making your website attractive to your traffic as well as the bots you need to rank your site. Excellent Flash animation with proper text descriptions can make or break your ranking.
There are ways to bypass both problems, but most Content Management Systems (CMS), even Search Engine Optimization (SEO) friendly ones, have a hard time fixing them properly. In order to do that, you need some serious HTML knowledge or expertise. Fortunately, we’re full of that here at Creative Systems. Our web-savvy programmers will have you running SEO friendly Flash in no time, and will even teach you how to do it yourself.
In a nutshell, you’ll need to embed your Flash additions with HTML. This allows users to see your Flash content while allowing bots and spiders to read your text. This can be a bit tricky, because if your text isn’t a faithful rendition of your Flash content, the little search engine bugs might decide that your Web site’s core content is some sort of cloaking device. This, of course, puts you at the bottom of the search results list, and then all your hard work was for naught. That's why companies like McDonald's and AOL use us, to save money and increase traffic. Hope these tips help, but for assured performance, contact us and we'll handle all your outsourcing needs.
Take my advice: if you’re not confident that you can do this one right, ask for help. We’ll be more than happy to oblige.
Until next time,
This is the Outsourcing Guru signing off. |
This week’s article is for all you Internet based business people. Anyone looking to sell services or merchandise via the Internet needs to offer their customers a way to pick whatever they want off their virtual shelves and toss it in their cart. You’ll also need a checkout counter, unless you’re planning on letting your goods go for free. Here is where E-Commerce Shopping Carts come into play.
A lot of people think that E-Commerce shopping cart software is all they need to complete any transaction from start to finish. To a shopper's eyes, the process is simple – and it should be. No one wants hassles and headaches to make them lose a sale. In reality, things work a bit differently in the Cpanel or behind closed doors. Your E-Commerce shopping cart allows site visitors to grab items or services; when your online customers move to the checkout counter, the software communicates with a payment gateway through a secure connection. A payment gateway is a different service entirely. It will channel the request and transfer funds through the relevant financial networks, and send confirmation or denial of the purchase back to your E-Commerce shopping cart.
There are hundreds of E-Commerce shopping cart services available out there. This is a big advantage, allowing you to find one that fits your needs, but it’s also a bit of a disadvantage if you’re not sure what you’re looking for, or what would work best for you.
As a general rule, E-Commerce shopping cart programs come in various packages. Some of them offer free service for basic packages and will offer upgrades, bells and whistles for a price. Most middle packages will cost you between $200 and $300 and usually offer most of what average Internet based businesses need. If you choose to go with a free service, don’t expect too much, and remember that free rarely means what it should – research your product and the services offered thoroughly before signing up.
Certain E-Commerce shopping carts offer interesting features. Some of them are designed to BE your website, with integrated Content Management Systems and Search Engine Optimization software. Some can display coupons, suggest to your customers similar products or products that complement what they’ve put in their shopping cart.
With so many options available, you may find yourself unsure of how much or how little you need. It's important to not only estimate your current needs but also anticipate what you’ll need in the future. As your E-Business grows, the E-Commerce shopping cart software you selected at first may no longer be enough.
If you need help figuring out what options would work for you, or if you’d like more information on E-Commerce Shopping carts, don’t hesitate to email Creative Works’ team of experts. They know enough to answer all your questions and lay out all the options you can choose from.
Until next time,
This is the Outsourcing Guru, signing off. |
A Content Management System, or CMS, is a collection of tools used to create, modify, organize and remove information from a Web site. There are many options in CMS software out there. In most cases, a CMS allows users who are not familiar with HTML to create and maintain their Web pages, making it a very useful tool for those Webmasters who do not have the time or inclination to learn HTML coding.
Choosing the right CMS outsourcing firm for your Web project is the first step to making your Web page successful. Not just any old CMS will do as far as creating layout, adding text and pictures and embedding links and titles go. These things are all integral to your page ranking. Choosing the right CMS for your Web site is directly related to the content of your site and the options you will make available to those who visit your Web page.
To help make your Web page visible however, you will need to choose a firm that understands that CMS is Search Engine Optimization (SEO) friendly. Doing so will take the headache out of inserting key words and special fonts into your text, over and over again. The CMS will do all of that for you, so all you have to do is set your parameters and build your text. Your SEO friendly CMS will optimize it to make your content appealing to those ever searching bots.
SEO friendly CMS applications do several things for you. They will ensure your HTML content work with a variety of browsers, create an easy to navigate site map for your Web site and add search engine friendly URLs. Some of them even create word driven URLs for your main content while allowing you to tweak any other information by hand. Remember that SEO is as much about special tags as it is about page layout and cohesive text – the CMS won’t do all your work for you, but choosing one that is SEO friendly will definitely help you get there faster, and make your website more visible, thus more popular. Outsourcing this work to a competent firm jettisons your page to the top of the search engines rankings.
If you want an SEO friendly CMS that works for you, Creative Works will be happy to oblige. Our team of software developers will work with you to build an engine that suits your every need. It can be tricky to find a CMS software that will build what you want to see and make it SEO friendly. Leave your project in the hands of experts, and you’ll get the customized, professional tool you need to make your Web site one of the top listed on major search engines.
Until next time,
This is the Outsourcing Guru signing off. |
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