Before embarking on the creation of new website or giving a boost to current one, UWS will first define the companies the goal(s) of the companies website.

Company Goal: What is It?

• Increase Sales?
• Strengthen Brand Reputation?
• Become an Expert on a Subject?

Why Umbrella Web Solutions?

1. UWS enlists a team of talented graphic artists and professional website coders.
2. UWS works with our customers from start to finish to ensure we have created something, which reflects their business and its goal(s).
3. UWS can create customized forms, site structure and navigation.
4. UWS provides hosting and domain support if needed.

Website Redesign

If the website is out of date, needs an aesthetic lift or the content and structure is not conducive for search engines, a redesign might be a great investment. A careful review of the sites structure can determine if an entire overhaul is necessary or simple SEO strategies need to be employed. UWS will look at the following to make improvements:

• Website HTML code – is it search engine friendly.
• Navigation – can customers quickly navigate to find the info they are looking for.
• Graphics – are the graphics visually engaging and serve a purpose.
• Content – is the content informative and provide purpose.
• Call to Action – does the site achieve a desired result.

Website Creation

UWS recognizes every business is completely unique and serves different niches across industries. This is why every website is individualized to fit the needs of the business and its customers. UWS works to strike a balance between visual engagement, site functionality and search engine optimization. Each website begins with a skeletal template, then the site is customized and finally the site is filled with rich content.

Step 1: Preliminary Research

• Select a domain name
• Initiate hosting plan

Step 2: Choose a Template

• select from thousands of templates or build one from scratch

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Step 3: Customize the Template

• configure the color scheme
• create the site navigability
• add a logo / graphic designs / photos

Step 4: Add Content

• write useful and informative copy for your customers
• let customers know why your business is unique
• include a contact page for contact information and a map to show where your business is located

Please let us know how we can assist you with your web design or creation needs. Contact UWS.

• Why doesn’t my site rank higher in search results?
• My website doesn’t rank for any of the keywords I am targeting. What is the problem?
• My competitor just launched their site and it already ranks higher than mine. Why?

Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is a very powerful tool in achieving increased online visibility, traffic and hits. Why is this important? Because it can be a cost effective solution in obtaining a desired marketing result, including more phone calls, emails, newsletter subscriptions and sales; all contributing to your businesses bottom line.

What is Search Engine Optimization (SEO)?

SEO is the process of improving a websites online presence by the means of volume or quality of traffic. Typically, the earlier a website appears in a search engine, the more visitors it will receive. SEO is also commonly referred to as “organic search results”, which is the opposite of paid search. Organic search results occur when a website ranks naturally for subject or keyword being searched. The web results or web ranking of sites is contingent on the search engine algorithm looking at your site. The algorithm decides which website is better optimized for a particular keyword being searched. An SEO marketing strategy considers many factors.  These factors can largely be broken into two categories: on-site optimization and off-site optimization.

• On-Site Optimization – includes all internal website factors. This includes website structure, navigation and content.

• Off-Site Optimization – includes all external factors pointing to a website. This includes in-bound links, local search, directories, testimonials and social media.

Why does a Business need SEO?

There are several reasons why a business would incorporate search engine optimization into their marketing budget.

• Natural Organic Growth – statistics show a person is more likely to click on a “organic result” versus a “paid result” because customers know and appreciate websites which are grown organically because these websites tend to offer more than just a one time service or product, they are offering a perceived value in addition to the service/product.

• Long Term Results – while running paid search advertisements are great way to get short-term results and recommended at all stages, it should not be completely relied upon, especially as the price per click goes up. SEO focuses on long term results, which when compared to paid results, can save a business thousands of dollars over the course of a year.

• More Customers – as a company grows its natural online presence; it begins appearing in more places than just search results. They begin appearing in blogs, forums, newspapers editorials, social media sites, search directories and other web sources. These internet vehicles are important because they funnel customers to your website. Over time, a business owner will find new customers reaching their website through online marketing channels they never knew existed.

SEO Methodology

Each SEO campaign is different because every business is unique. However, the methodology behind achieving desired search results is the same. Because there are always ways to increase visibility and gain more customers, the SEO process is both cyclical and on-going. The five step process is as follows:

1. Keywords – research the most popular key words in your industry to determine what terms people are searching for
2. Optimize – incorporate these popular search terms into the website structure and content
3. Submit – get inbound links from other sources on the internet making your website more relevant for targeted terms
4. View Reports – look at data showing your website’s position in relationship to those targeted terms
5. Analyze – use the reports and data to determine how to better improve your placement and increase traffic

Please let us know how we can assist you grow your online presence. Contact UWS.

• Plumber in San Francisco?
• Italian restaurant in Miami?
• Massage Therapist in Phoenix?
• Lawyer in Atlanta?

Many of the search queries result in local search results. People are looking local for services and products in their city or region. In the past, when a patron was looking for a local business, they would consult the yellow pages. This is not the case anymore. As conventional print, like directories become more antiquated and time consuming, people are opting for quicker search results and ones with reviews. Reviews tell the customer what others think of that particular business establishment.

Example 1: Google Local

Search Results for “San Francisco CA Plumber”

Example 2: Yahoo Local

Search Results for “San Francisco CA Plumber”

Example 3: MSN Local

Search Results for “San Francisco CA Plumber”

Why is Local Search important to Businesses?

• User Reviews – it is important to people to read what others have said about your business. It builds credibility and trust. When there are 5 businesses advertising the same product or service, how is a prospective buyer going to decide between your company and a competitor? Reviews is one of them.

• Easy to Find – if a customer has to call your business to ask for directions or get your address, over the course of a month, the amount of wasted time could be better spent in other areas. With prominent local placement, a customer simply looks up your information without having to place a phone call.

• Promotions – your profile under the local results offers you the opportunity to promote your business with specials, coupons and discounts. This yet another way to separate your business from the competition and entice new or current customers to frequent your establishment.

Please let us know how we can assist you grow your online presence. Contact UWS.

When crafting a post or writing a new page, there should always be a goal in mind or rather the copy should be “a means to an end”. With every piece of copy written material, the question UWS seeks to answer before writing copy is:

“What is the desired action I wish the reader to achieve?”

The answer to this question will shape the type of copy written, the flow, the structure and the end result.

Goals of Website Copy Writing

1. Target keywords / phrases – every post or article should target a keyword or target phrase. These keywords and phrases should be carefully embedded in the text early and often.
2. Create content that ranks well in search engines – the content should be “search engine friendly”. This means allowing the search engines to easily crawl your site, store information and think positively of your original content
3. Write content which is informative to your readers – while it is important to target certain terms, it is equally important for your readers to deem the information useful. The readers are your customers. Quality, well-written and informative articles begs your readers to come back for more.
4. Craft content which compels others to link to you – writing content which gets you referenced in your particular industry is invaluable. Not only do you become an expert in the field, other websites, blogs and social network sites begin linking to your content.

Why Umbrella Web Solutions?

• UWS works closely with the client to ensure copy writing is inline with the industry.
• UWS researches the most commonly searched phrases and keywords.
• UWS strategically embeds keywords to leverage search engine ranking possibilities.
• UWS revisits the written article to see if the copy is responding well in search engines.

Please let us know how we can assist you with your copy writing needs. Contact UWS.

Social Media Forms

1. Blog – “just blog, blog, blog”. You may have heard this before but did not actually know what it means. A blog is a great way to post fresh content on your site and update customers with new information. It is important to search engines and blog directories.  New content is posted regularly because it demonstrates your businesses continued activity in the industry. I strongly suggest a WordPress blog platform.
2. Social Media Sites – you have heard of Facebook, Myspace and Twitter but did you know about Stumbleupon, Digg and Delicious? Each social media website caters to a different type of audience and can be especially effective in gaining traffic, in bound links and increased sales.
3. Online Videos – internet online videos are quickly gaining popularity on the internet, like YouTube. Videos are not only appearing in search results but also on social media sites and 3rd party blogs. How to, comical and industry expert videos can create huge upswings in traffic.
4. Discussion Groups – online discussion forums are a great way to find where your customers are hanging out. There’s a chance your customers are congregating in online groups like Google Groups and Yahoo Groups. These groups narrowly focus on a particular product and service. And being able to help them answer a question can be a great marketing tool.

Please let us know how we can assist you with your Social Media needs. Contact UWS.

What is Pay per Click Advertising (PPC)?

PPC is a form of internet advertising used on search engines and content networks. Each time the advertisement is clicked on, the host charges the account a click amount. The click amount can either be fixed or variable depending on internet site. Most search engines charge a variable rate, which is based on a competitive bidding system where advertisers compete on keyword phrases. Content networks normally charge a flat rate for each time an ad is clicked on.

The largest search engine Pay per Click Advertisers are Google, Yahoo and Microsoft. Content networks will place banner ads at the top of their sites or in sections labeled as “Sponsored Results”.

Example 1:  Search Engine Advertising

You are looking for a flight on Google and you type “flights” into the search field and the following results come up. Google will showcase the PPC ads first on both the top left side and the right side.

Example 2: Content Network Advertising

You are looking for a flight and you find yourself on a website which offers flight information, you will see the following paid advertisement search results.

Why would a business use PPC?

PPC has many advantages:

• Short Term Solution – before launching an Organic SEO strategy, many businesses will set up a PPC campaign to determine which keywords their clients are searching for so they can better maximize their target keywords in the future
• Full Control – PPC gives the user full control over which keywords or phrases they wish to advertise for. By narrowly focusing your efforts on keywords which lead to conversions, like a phone call, email or purchase, the business can boost their Online Marketing Return on Investment (ROI).

Why UWS?

Umbrella Web Solutions has extensive experience in marketing clients sites through the major search engines and its affiliates sites – Google Adwords, Yahoo Marketing, Microsoft Ad. UWS caters to all size PPC marketing budgets. The goal of UWS is to maximize your Return on Investment by focusing on specific keywords and phrases, which demonstrate results and avoid those that do not lead to a particular goal.

PPC Methodology

Step 1: Set Up

• account is created
• keywords are selected
• conversion tracking code is installed in the website

Step 2: Campaign Creation

• campaigns are separated according to keywords
• targeted ad content is written for each keyword

Step 3: Refine Campaign

• continued testing for ad copy – recycling for optimal copy
• reduction of cost per click
• improve quality score

Please let us know how we can assist you grow your online presence. Contact UWS.