This area of our FAQ's is dedicated to answering the most common questions from our clients or potential clients. If you have a question regarding our consulting services or advertising you are likely to find the answers below. Questions regarding pricing or billing should be directed to Tracey

WhyZoom Media - Frequently Asked Questions (Members)

 Why doesn't my Web site rank very well in the search engines?

Having your website rank high in the search engines is a science and the rules for search engine optimization (SEO) are always changing. Here are some reasons why you may be having poor ranking:

• Incorrect usage of the TITLE tag or no TITLE tag content.
• Too many occurences of the same word in a page (spamming).
• Missing H1 and H2 heading tag content.
• Missing ALT tag content in your graphic links.
• No meaningful content in the first 250 characters on each page.
• Less than 200 words per page.
• Very few pages on your website.
• Poorly structured pages
• No links from other websites to your website (link popularity).

How long does it take for SEO results to kick in?

The amount of time required to see results of an organic search engine strategy can range anywhere from 30 days for existing sites in local or niche markets to 24 months for new websites in a competitive of national/global market. Please remember however that No search engine optimization company can guarantee where your site will appear in the natural search engine results; they can guarantee placement in the Sponsored Listings using Google's Adwords or Yahoo's Search Marketing products because you are paying for placement. This is not search engine marketing where your site earns high organic rankings by having good, keyword-rich content, properly structured pages and a targeted link building campaign.

Does every page of my website really need to be optimized?

Yes and yes and yes again. Every page of a website can be a potential entry point for visitors. You can't predict which page or pages will be ranked the best for specific keywords. Therefore, each page must be individually optimized for optimal organic rankings. Collectively, all pages of your website should reinforce the common theme of the site, which also can help boost ranking. Don't assume that your home page is the most important page on your site.

Why are SEO services so expensive?

SEO is a highly-specialized art and science requiring much research, forethought and skill. Building a lasting SEO strategy can be extremely time-consuming to implement correctly. However, compared to offline, print and even paid search advertising, SEO is quite innexpensive.

Why does Google hate my site?

This is a common question and usually goes something like this: My site is showing up for my major keyword phrases in Yahoo and MSN but I'm nowhere to be found in Google. Why does Google hate me? (Or alternatively, my site was doing well on Google but its rankings have suddenly plummeted. Am I penalized?)

If you're going to be in the SEO biz, or even if you're just trying to get your own personal business site more exposure in the search engines, you need to realize that rankings (and the traffic they may bring) are not static. You may get comfortable seeing your site rank highly for your most coveted keyword phrases, but don't ever assume it will remain there forever. Sites do not get penalized or banned unless something has been done which deceives the search engines.

Deception can involve hidden text, keyword stuffing artificial linking campaigns, cloaking etc. If you're not playing games with the engines, then you don't ever have to worry about penalties. If your site is suddenly gone, it's most likely because of a major algorithm shift. The search engines are constantly modifying their algorithms, and new sites are always coming online, so ranking fluctuations are part of the normal course of business.

Because of this, it is crucial to optimize your site for multiple, relevant, keyword phrases. This will help to ensure that when some phrases go AWOL, others may continue to perform. Never be married to any 1 or 2 specific phrases. Our belief is that companies need to change their mindset from "rankings" to "targeted traffic and conversions."

Can search engines index dynamic sites with query strings in the URL?

Yes, for the most part. Search engines have become much more sophisticted  and no longer choke on query strings (those question marks and equal signs) in URLs. You should however try to make sure that your content management system (CMS) doesn't insert more than 3 variables and you should be ok. When adressing this common question, we will check the client's site in Google and Yahoo. More often than not just about all of their pages are indexed. In those cases, there are not typically any technical issues. They simply have to do a better job of optimizing their pages and structuring their SEO strategy.

The most important thing to do with a dynamic site is to create an organized "link flow" to each of the pages in the site. Sometimes the only way to find certain information on one of these sites is to fill out a form which then conducts a search of the site. A page that has what you're looking for is then created for you and displayed in your browser. Unfortunately, that type of page is not accessible by the search engines because it doesn't actually exist on the server.

You'll also want to make sure that your CMS is capable of generating unique title tags for every page of the site. If not, you'll have to fix this in the system because this is actually one of the variables that is critical to your search engine success.

How much does WhyZoom charge for SEO consulting and what do you offer?

WhyZoom believes it should start with understanding your business and marketing goals prior to developing a strategy and approach for a sustainable, organic SEO campaign. Ideally, we would like to understand things like: Business Objectives, Marketing Strategies, Demographics of Target Audience, Creative Considerations, and Prior Successes or Challenges. Then, the SEO Consultant starts the process of building a strategy that will successfully leverage the client’s content offerings. Below are the typical steps in our process:

1) Understanding Client’s Business Objectives & Strategic Marketing Plan

2) Comprehensive Website Analysis

3) Keyword Research and Analysis.

4) Baseline report

5) Competitive analysis for main keywords/keyword phrases in Search Engines.

6) Content Analysis & SEO Copywriting

7) Analysis of information architecture and linking structure.

8) Analysis of HTML and page layout.

9) Recommendations for necessary modifications to essential page text elements for achieving satisfactory search engine placement.

10) Recommendations to optimize source code including the URL, filenames, page titles, descriptions, javascript, etc.

11) Link Relevancy & Co-Citation Analysis

12) Internal & External Linking Strategy & Recommendation.

13) Ongoing Monthly monitoring, reporting and recommendations.

Pricing for WhyZoom's Consulting Services: Most Search Engine Optimization firms charge a hourly rate. While we certainly understand their resoning, WhyZoom charges on a per project basis. We are not interrested in becoming a permanent expense to our clients. Rather we desire to train our clients ahow to structure, implement and manage their own search engine strategies. After an initial consultation we will provide you with a written quote which will include an estimated completion date. 25% of the quote will be due up front and the remainder will be due in equal installments through the estimated completion date.

Please See Our Search Engine Strategies Area for More Information

  How much does it cost to advertise on the websites owned by WhyZoom?

Our advertising rates range from as little as $50.00 per month to $2000.00 per month depending on a websites traffic volume, size of the advertisement, location of the advertisement and frequency of the placement. We do not hold our advertisers hostage or make it difficult to cancel a campaign. You decide the length of time an advertisement should run. We do not automatically rebill you for successive periods of time unless you specifically instruct us to do so.

Please See Our Online Advertising Area for More Information

I have additional questions. Who should I contact?

While FAQ areas are a terrific tool for answering commonly asked questions, they are woefully inadequate for handling the typically involved questions most of our clients and potential clients have regarding Search Engine Strategies and Advertising Opportunities. If you have a question that was not covered here we invite you to contact us directly.

Additionally, If you can't find the answer to your question here please feel free to email us.

......

If you would like to speak with us voice to voice please free to call our office between 10am and 7pm est at 919-749--0624

You may also reach us at our North Carolina offices:

WhyZoom Media
3621 Bastion Line Suite 101
Raleigh, NC 27604