How Google finds your website

However, what most people don’t realize is that it typically takes three to six months for Google’s software programs called “Googlebots” to crawl through the billions of pages on their search engine and index everything. As Website Muscle puts it, “ranking on Google is a process, not a magic trick.” Once Googlebots (also called spiders) get to your web pages, they need to be able to read the information in order to index your site. Where your pages get ranked is based on several factors, which we’ll touch on a little later in this blog. But the important thing to keep in mind right now is to be patient after your website gets launched. Your marketing agency or SEO specialist hasn’t done anything wrong -- it’s just the spiders doing their thing.

Where will your website get ranked?

Now on to what business owners are equally worried about -- how to get ranked in the first few pages of a search. We all know that most users don’t click through more than a couple of pages to find what they need, so it’s crucial to break down content for better user experience and include relevant keywords. As a rule of thumb, people often refer to trying to rank well as “search engine optimization,” but this actually has many facets, including:

Quality and credibility of the website
Usability of website (UX design)
Amount of pages and relevancy of content
Internal and external linking
Variety and frequency of keywords
Website speed and URL errors
Title tags and meta descriptions on back end
And more!

We could talk all day about what goes into optimizing a website for Google, and we have many blogs with SEO tips. However, the crucial thing to remember is that it takes approximately three to six months to start ranking on Google in the first place. Moral of the story: If you’ve just launched a website or added a new page, patience is key. Spiders are just making their way to your content, so don’t worry -- your turn will come. If you’d like more information about ranking on Google or would like to know about our SEO plans, don’t hesitate to reach out! SEO is kind of our thing, so we’d love to chat with you more! [post_title] => How Long Does It Take to Rank on Google? [post_excerpt] => [post_status] => publish [comment_status] => open [ping_status] => open [post_password] => [post_name] => how-long-does-it-take-to-rank-on-google [to_ping] => [pinged] => [post_modified] => 2020-10-02 18:28:30 [post_modified_gmt] => 2020-10-02 18:28:30 [post_content_filtered] => [post_parent] => 0 [guid] => https://keyweb31.com/stagekwc/?p=6895 [menu_order] => 0 [post_type] => post [post_mime_type] => [comment_count] => 0 [filter] => raw ) [1] => WP_Post Object ( [ID] => 6859 [post_author] => 1 [post_date] => 2018-06-12 09:24:02 [post_date_gmt] => 2018-06-12 14:24:02 [post_content] => Whether you have a small or large company, neglecting company morale can be detrimental to your business’s success. If your employees are not happy with their day-to-day jobs, they will look elsewhere -- meaning the talent you have taken the time to hire and cultivate, may be moving on to your competition. Company morale doesn’t have to be overwhelming or challenging -- there are a lot of ways you can boost your company's morale every day, keeping your employees happy and your company thriving.

Recognize Individual's Accomplishments

There are many ways to recognize your employees without breaking the bank. A simple birthday shout out in a company meeting, a thank you card, or recognition of their accomplishments (professional and personal) can make your employees feel valued and appreciated. Whether it’s a wedding, work anniversary, new baby, or maybe they received a promotion -- as a business owner, or manager, you want to take time to appreciate your employees’ life events with your team.

Plan a Company Outing

Company outings are a great way to bring the whole team together and engage in more than work-related conversations. A company outing can be simple, like a company lunch out or a trip to the brewery after work. Our company recently did an outing to Hardywood West Creek Brewery and we all had a great time. We felt valued and more motivated the coming days (and clearly it inspired us to write this blog!) which definitely boosted company morale for us.

Surprise and Delight

If a company outing is out of the budget, never underestimate the power of a coffee run. Any kind of treat you can afford to give your staff is guaranteed to make them smile and feel appreciated. It doesn’t have to be very often either -- the occasional surprise and delight is just as powerful at boosting office morale as an outing is.

Share How Your Company Helps Others

Employees feel happiest in their career when their jobs feel more than a job. If your business gets positive feedback from a client, be sure to share that with your employees. Positive reviews and the celebration of your company’s success will help employees feel excited, worthy, and confident, which in turn will help employees feel more satisfied with their role at your company.

Invest in Training and Development

Cultivating your employees’ talent not only helps your employees feel more confident in their roles, but it also keeps your business competitive. If you fail to provide training and/or development to your team, then your employees may fall behind in your industry, which could cause your business to fall behind as well. Take the time to conduct research to find conferences, trainings, and other kinds of learning experiences that will challenge and cultivate your employees further so that you can stay ahead in your industry.

Eat Lunch Together

This is a simple idea that goes a long way. Even if you, as the owner, don’t have time to sit down and eat lunch (as many entrepreneurs don’t) encouraging your employees to take breaks and engage in conversation with each other builds a better working environment. Each day, our team takes a break together and watch an episode of The Office. It’s a great way to relax and rejuvenate in the middle of the work day, while also bonding and sharing with each other as a team.

Complete Community Service Together

Volunteering is a great way to not only boost morale, but also give back to your community. Your employees will enjoy the break from the day-to-day office life and will be able to come together as a team to help others. Plus, community service is a great way to get your company’s name out in the community in a positive way. Check out some local events you and your team could volunteer at and make it happen!

Ask for Feedback

As a business owner or manager, it is important that you are always open to change and growth. Giving your employees a chance to speak their opinions (whether it’s about your company’s process or work environment) helps them feel heard. When employees are heard, they are happier. Change can be intimidating, but in order to give your employees the best working environment you can, they should always feel comfortable expressing their feelings and opinions to you. Of course, company morale goes farther than gifting your employees things. Appreciating their everyday contribution to your company is far more valuable than any treat. While these ideas are great to add to your company’s morale, it’s important to remember that creating a positive work environment is the foundation for a positive work life. What other company morale boosters do you recommend? We’d love to hear more ideas! Send us a message today. [post_title] => 8 Ways to Boost Company Morale [post_excerpt] => [post_status] => publish [comment_status] => open [ping_status] => open [post_password] => [post_name] => 8-ways-to-boost-company-morale [to_ping] => [pinged] => [post_modified] => 2020-08-07 19:19:04 [post_modified_gmt] => 2020-08-07 19:19:04 [post_content_filtered] => [post_parent] => 0 [guid] => https://keyweb31.com/stagekwc/?p=6859 [menu_order] => 0 [post_type] => post [post_mime_type] => [comment_count] => 0 [filter] => raw ) [2] => WP_Post Object ( [ID] => 6746 [post_author] => 1 [post_date] => 2018-05-09 09:53:57 [post_date_gmt] => 2018-05-09 14:53:57 [post_content] => If a picture speaks a thousand words then a logo must speak a million. The importance of branding for your company is something you, as a business owner, already know. Your logo, your slogan, and even your company’s name all play into your brand and are a crucial part of your company’s identity. But what if you saw another business using that identity? They have your company’s name, similar logo, or even use the same catchy slogan that your customers relate to your company. Now, your audience and clients will be confusing this other company with you, which could cause you to lose business. Well, is your logo trademarked? If not, then you might have trouble shutting down this identity theft. Getting your logo trademarked will help keep you safe from a variety of different branding issues, but it can help you avoid legal issues as well. We’ve compiled a simple 5-step process that will not only show you how to get your logo trademarked, but will also help you see if trademarking is the right decision for your company.

Do your research

Researching your brand options before deciding on a company name, logo, or slogan is ideal and will increase the likelihood that your brand will be trademarked. To conduct your research, go to the United States Patent and Trademark Office’s database to search for your company’s name, logo, and/or slogan. If you don’t find anything similar to what you’re hoping your company’s branding will be, then great! But your research isn’t over yet. You should continue to do research outside of the USPTO’s site to see if other companies are using similar names, logos, or slogans as what you’re looking for. If there is another company using the same brand identity as yours, they could have rights to that name, logo, and/or slogan, even if it’s not trademarked yet. The USPTO will favor whichever company was in commerce first, even if this other company doesn’t have anything trademarked. And if you don’t do your research, you could be liable for damages if you accidentally infringe on another company’s trademarked (or not trademarked) brand. Even worse, if you are sued by another company for trademark violations and lose, you could have to change your company’s name which would be detrimental to the brand you’ve built—especially if you’ve been in business for a while. So we highly recommend doing research early on to cover your bases and protect your branding.

Contact an attorney

Contacting an attorney before you complete your branding process is optimal, because a trademark lawyer will help you determine what the USPTO may or may not approve. By performing a risk assessment beforehand, your attorney will help you apply for a trademark with confidence. As a logo design company, our clients are often interested in the trademarking process. We recommend that our clients who want their logo trademarked work with an attorney throughout the logo design process to ensure our clients are not wasting money on a design that could be rejected by the USPTO. Having an attorney in the logo design process will help protect your logo from being deemed too similar to another company’s trademarked brand.

Submit an application

Your trademark attorney will help you submit your applications to the USTPO, which can get complicated as you do have to submit an application for each part of your brand you are hoping to trademark (company name, logo, or slogan). The application process does take 4-6 months on average which is why it could be hard to shut down a company who is infringing on your company name or logo if you don’t trademark it early on. It’s also important to note that capitalization and spacing of a company name does not matter. You are also able to submit applications for branding that you intend to use. This is especially important for those companies that have not made a commerce sale yet -- the USPTO will use your application filing date as your “first date of commerce.” So if you are building a brand but don’t have proof of commerce yet, submitting a trademark application is one way to protect your logo and company name.

What to do if you get rejected

If your trademark application is rejected, your attorney will be able to help you create a counter argument. You only have 30 days to challenge a rejection, which is another reason why we recommend hiring an attorney before applying so that you have their legal assistance on standby and can act quickly. Trademark applications can be rejected for a number of reasons. Ultimately, the USPTO will compare your brand to other brands like it to see if there is a chance of confusing consumers. Industry and fame of a logo do matter. For example, there could never be an “Oreos Photography” trademarked, because Oreos are too famous on their own. The average consumer will associated Oreos with a chocolate cookie, not photography. However companies like “Smith Family Gardens” and “Smith Family Computers,” could coexist in the USPTO's eyes because neither is a famous brand and they aren’t in similar industries.

After your logo is trademarked

Once your brand receives the trademark you applied for, it’s important to continue to protect your company’s identity. You will need to renew your trademarks every 5 years, but it is not as hard of a process as the initial trademarking is. You should continue to research your company name to be on the lookout for similar companies who may be crossing the trademark line. Because your brand is now protected by the US government, you will have the upperhand if you ever find a company who may be mimicking your branding success. And while you will be able to feel more comfortable with your logo trademarked, you should definitely continue to monitor and protect it.

⋅ ⋅ ⋅

Hopefully, this 5-step process helped answer any questions you have about trademarking your brand! Again, here at Key Web Concepts, we do work with trademark lawyers for those of our clients who are interested in having their logo trademarked. Send us a message if we can help you today! [post_title] => How to Trademark Your Company’s Logo [post_excerpt] => [post_status] => publish [comment_status] => open [ping_status] => open [post_password] => [post_name] => how-to-trademark-your-companys-logo [to_ping] => [pinged] => [post_modified] => 2020-08-07 14:52:57 [post_modified_gmt] => 2020-08-07 14:52:57 [post_content_filtered] => [post_parent] => 0 [guid] => https://keyweb31.com/stagekwc/?p=6746 [menu_order] => 0 [post_type] => post [post_mime_type] => [comment_count] => 0 [filter] => raw ) [3] => WP_Post Object ( [ID] => 6698 [post_author] => 1 [post_date] => 2018-04-09 09:27:34 [post_date_gmt] => 2018-04-09 09:27:34 [post_content] => As a business owner, you know that you want to put your best foot forward when it comes to a website. You’re willing to invest in a great design with great features, but then you get discouraged when your fresh new website doesn’t show up on the first pages of Google. Then, you decide that you’re going to hire an SEO specialist to boost your rankings. But they don’t know how to tie SEO boosting features into your website’s design. And your web designer knows nothing about SEO … Now you’re stuck with a great website that does below average on Google. Isn’t that frustrating? Well, it doesn’t have to be. There is an easy answer to your frustrations: find a company that does web design and SEO together. And when I say company, I mean just that. For example, here at Key Web Concepts, we have a design team and a content/SEO specialists team. They collaborate together in order to produce high-quality websites that also rank well. The two work together to ensure that all of the site’s content is optimized.

Content is just as important as design

Of course you want your website to be user-friendly, designed well, and appeal to your potential customer’s eye … but the content, titles, keywords, and links all play a part in how your website performs on a search engine. So while the design is crucial, the content and the initial SEO are just as important. When your design team collaborates with your copywriting/SEO team, the outcome is a fully optimized website that looks great, reads well, and performs its best on Google. If you provide poor content, don’t focus enough or too much on keywords, or just ignore SEO practices altogether -- your site will not be as optimized as it could be. AKA, it’s not going to perform its best.

Design also plays into SEO

It’s not just the copywriters and SEO specialists that have all the SEO tips and tricks -- there’s a lot that web designers do to a site that can enhance a site’s SERP rankings. Things like making a site mobile friendly, ensuring the page load isn’t too long, and presenting a clear and user-friendly navigation are all things that Google considers when ranking a website. Hiring an SEO specialist alone could cause you to miss out on the SEO assistance that an experienced web designer could give your site. The two -- SEO and web design -- really go hand in hand.

SEO maintenance is crucial

In an ideal world, the company that designs your website and optimizes it for search engines would also be the company that maintains your SEO monthly so that you can keep up with the new trends and changes. Because SEO is forever changing and Google is constantly updating its algorithm, a well-performing site won’t maintain their rankings on its own. Consistent updating, monitoring, and tracking your optimized site are important to see how and why your ranking may change. At Key Web Concepts, we offer multiple monthly SEO maintenance plans so that we can check in on your site and make updates to the keywords, title tags, content, and more to ensure that your site is optimized effectively. Even if we didn’t build your website, we can help improve your SEO and give recommendations for updates. So if you’ve been frustrated or confused by a web design company who doesn’t know SEO or an SEO specialist who can’t update your site’s design -- worry no more. Give us a call so we can deliver you a modern, updated website that is optimized and ready to rank well. [post_title] => Why SEO and Web Design Should Be Done Together [post_excerpt] => [post_status] => publish [comment_status] => closed [ping_status] => open [post_password] => [post_name] => why-seo-and-web-design-should-be-done-together [to_ping] => [pinged] => [post_modified] => 2020-10-20 20:31:16 [post_modified_gmt] => 2020-10-20 20:31:16 [post_content_filtered] => [post_parent] => 0 [guid] => https://keyweb31.com/stagekwc/?p=6698 [menu_order] => 0 [post_type] => post [post_mime_type] => [comment_count] => 0 [filter] => raw ) ) [post_count] => 4 [current_post] => -1 [before_loop] => 1 [in_the_loop] => [post] => WP_Post Object ( [ID] => 6895 [post_author] => 1 [post_date] => 2018-06-26 15:55:10 [post_date_gmt] => 2018-06-26 20:55:10 [post_content] => As a web design company, this is a question we get. A lot. Since we offer SEO plans, we get many aspiring entrepreneurs and business owners wondering how long it will take for their website to pop up on Google’s pages, and as everyone drools for -- having it pop up on the first page.

How Google finds your website

Where will your website get ranked?

Quality and credibility of the website
Usability of website (UX design)
Amount of pages and relevancy of content
Internal and external linking
Variety and frequency of keywords
Website speed and URL errors
Title tags and meta descriptions on back end
And more!

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We know our industry can have its complications. Between editing metadata and analyzing backlinks, we like to spend a little time writing posts on this section of our website. It’s our platform for explaining the specifics of what we do, what’s changing and why it matters to you.

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How Long Does It Take to Rank on Google?

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    [post_date] => 2017-01-19 13:52:05
    [post_date_gmt] => 2017-01-19 18:52:05
    [post_content] => We published a blog post entitled “The Importance of Your Site’s Homepage” back in 2010, and while we’ve noticed it still gets a ton of hits, we’re also here to admit that a lot has changed since then. So, as the saying goes, out with the old and in with the new: here’s a 2017 guide to your homepage.
THE BIG THREE
We’re into making things a little simpler and more streamlined these days, so we’ve cut that 2010 mega-list of 8 homepage “must-haves” down to 3:

 	      Establish an identity and make a good impression with a clean design that utilizes your brand colors, typeface, logo, photography style, and any other elements that showcase your company’s personality.


 	      Be user-friendly—highlight main attractions or pockets of information on the homepage and offer a clear navigation system. Take into consideration which pages users are likely to visit most often, and those which are necessary, but can be tucked away in a more inconspicuous location.


 	      Supply relevant content. Ask yourself what visitors (both new and returning) are coming to your site to see, and provide them with the useful information they’re seeking.

So what did we cut out? We decided a site-wide search tool is not necessary on all websites, fresh content doesn’t always trump relevant content, and—while we always want site visitors to read more—gimmicky “teasers” on the homepage are never a good idea.
GONE ARE THE DAYS OF “ABOVE THE FOLD”
In our 2010 post, we emphasized the notion that everything you want visitors to see on your site should be located “above the fold,” or above the 600 px mark (whatever is visible without scrolling). This concept is outdated, largely thanks to the pervasiveness of social media—in 2017, users’ first instinct upon arriving at a new website is to scroll, so the pressure to fit all content of importance within a screen-sized page is off.

There’s no doubt that you should certainly still seek to secure your users’ attention with that first screen, but there’s no need to cram in all of your relevant content. Ask yourself what you want your visitors to know about you first and also what your visitors most likely want to know: are you an architecture firm who seeks to grab new visitors with a stunning image of your most recent building? Or do you need to let your large population of returning visitors know about an event that’s just around the corner?

Our own recent redesign really showcases how a longer homepage can work for you. Our “above the fold” content has few words but lots of color, and what’s there gives our users our identity in a nutshell: we “help businesses build better digital identities,” and the services we offer include web design, branding, graphic design, and SEO. Upon scrolling, visitors find examples of our featured work, a brief description of our process, and an invitation to meet us for a free consultation. Each full-width section has its own visual identity, which gets the reader excited to continue scrolling and find out what’s next.


NEW VS. RETURNING VISITORS
It’s not necessary to prioritize one group of visitors over the other. A clean, comprehensive homepage should allow new visitors to explore and learn more about your company, and it’s safe to assume returning visitors will go directly to the page they need upon landing at your site.
FUNNELING YOUR USERS
This sounds much more manipulative than it really is. In theory, you shouldn’t have a lot of information on your website that isn’t important in some capacity, but there are still certain things you want your user to see, read, or interact with earlier or more often than other entities. Strategic design and calls-to-action can help you guide your users’ experience through your website and get the return you desire.

Design best practices, like using blank space to provide visual breaks or presenting essential information in a way that attracts the eye, capitalize on users’ natural tendencies to control their journey through the site. Using contrasting color, exaggerated sizing, or interesting shapes can also draw attention to specific pieces of information or calls-to-action.

Calls-to-action use graphics and/or words to compel users to complete a specific action: to sign up for a newsletter, join a program, enter an email address to receive a free trial, etc. They are often attention-grabbing buttons or full-width sections that are nearly impossible to ignore, and their verbiage should be enticing and specific to the action they are asking users to take (“sign up here” for a newsletter or membership). Stating up front the benefits to the user can also be helpful (“to receive 25% off your next order, enter your email address”).
THE BOTTOM LINE
We ended our 2010 post by emphasizing the necessity of making your purpose clear to your visitors within a few seconds of viewing. While it’s true that your website should be honest and straightforward in presenting your purpose, we know now that most users are web savvy, smart, and willing to scroll. Rather than cramming lots of information “above the fold,” try for a clean, visually-pleasing design that won’t intimidate or turn users off, then let your content unfold naturally down your homepage.

Is your homepage cluttered, outdated, or just plain ugly? We can help with that. (See what we did there? This is a call-to-action—one that hopefully entices you to check out our services!)
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