Digital Marketing by Patrick LaJuett

Responsive menus, adapative columns, and 100% width images One of the biggest benefits of a Google Site is it's built-in RWD (responsive web design) feature. Be sure to enable the general settings... mobile checkbox: "Automatically adjust site to mobile phones". The adaptive rendering maybe not as elegant as some WordPress themes, but the ease of set-up and rapid development is a benefit to small business owners with modest budgets. Update: I forgot to mention a feature that I haven't seen with other platforms.  Google Sites allows you to "Preview page as viewer" and toggle between mobile | desktop views.  Very cool UI tool. Google Sites pass the "mobile-friendly test" Patrick LaJuett manages a website design agency : + LaJuett.com , where he supports clients as a Web technology consultant and search marketing strategy adviser.

10 Questions Your Web Designer Should Ask You Here are ten questions I ask as part of the initial sales call and web design project kickoff meeting: Who is your target audience? (b2b, b2c, etc.) Where is your target audience located? (local, regional, national, global) Description of your 'typical' client? (general public, professional, hobbyist, etc.) What is the primary goal of your website? (sell, acquire, inform, etc.) Who are your main competitors? What marketing are you currently doing? (tv, radio, web, print ads, etc.) What are your branding guidelines? (logo, colors, typeface, etc.) What types of graphic files can you provide? (photos, graphics, icons, etc.) Do you have a content author available? (text, articles, social media, etc.) Do you have access to your current website analytics data? Each project is different, but this helps get us on the same page. For more etailed info, here is my " 6D Development Process " for Website Design Proj...

Make Sure Your Website is Mobile Friendly. Earlier this year, Google Search expanded its use of mobile-friendliness as a "ranking signal". This change affected mobile searches worldwide and had a significant impact on Google Search results. Google's Mobile-Friendly Test Tool How to get the“mobile-friendly” label from Google. Avoid software that is not common on mobile devices, like Flash Use text that is readable without zooming Size content to the screen so users don't have to scroll horizontally or zoom Place links far enough apart so that the correct one can be easily tapped If you want to make sure that your page meets the mobile-friendly criteria: Check your pages with the Mobile-Friendly Test . Read Google's updated documentation, " Webmasters Mobile Guide " on how to create and improve your mobile site...

Recommended WordPress SEO Steps These are the baseline steps I take when optimizing a WordPress website for search: Backup Plugin- Install  BackWPup : **Run backup job before installing plugins** Security Plugin - Install  Wordfence : Keep WordPress core and plugins up-to-date Organic SEO Plugin: Install WordPress SEO by Yoast Customize all Page Titles & Meta Tags Utilize Google Webmaster Tools Utilize Bing Webmaster Tools Tracking Plugin: Install Google Analytics -  Google Analytics by Yoast Performance Plugin: Install PageSpeed -  GZip Ninja Speed Note: The plugins listed are my recommendations only.  Many alternatives are available, just make sure they are compatible with your version of WP. Patrick LaJuett manages a website design agency : + LaJuett.com , where he supports clients as a Web technology consultant and search marketing strategy adviser.

Three's Company -  3 Custom Google Sites Launched This Week We've been working on these Google Sites websites for a while.  Finally received the green light to launch them.  The first two (Sarkis and Diplomat) are redesigns for existing html sites.  They are sister sites, so we linked them together using similar navigation systems and layout grids.  For the ATP site, we worked with their design team to put together visually distinct home page which links to a contact page and a Google Sites micro blog. Sarkis Caterers   Diplomat Banquet Center and Hotel   ATP Marketing Patrick LaJuett manages a website design agency : + LaJuett.com , where he supports clients as a Web technology consultant and search marketing strategy adviser.

We are helping Monroe Framing with a "social media spring".  We'll be integrating social links and sharing tools directly into their website.  We will also establish a consistent brand identity across their social networking sites (Facebook, G+, and Pinterest). Most clients understand that social media can help their business, but they just don't have time. LaJuett offers a solution that encompasses strategy, content creation, monitoring, and social media administration. Visit client website:  http://monroeframing.com Patrick LaJuett manages a website design agency : + LaJuett.com , where he supports clients as a Web technology consultant and search marketing strategy adviser.

The How Search Works website gives us an inside look at how Google continuously works on improving the results of their search engine. http://www.google.com/insidesearch/ "Search. It happens billions of times a day in the blink of an eye. Explore the art and science that makes it possible." I have looked at the How Search Works site before.  But a recent video (below) from Google's Matt Cutts, prompted me to revisit, as he revealed some interesting nuggets. Matt Cutts  is the head of Google’s Webspam team. So it seems appropriate that he would be most excited about the Fighting Spam page. Here are a couple of interesting points he touches on. 1. Quality Raters:  People, not robots, determine which changes are implemented (1:48) When talking about search algorithms, he also mentions "quality raters".  These are folks who look at results pages side-by-side, and rate them based on the usefulness of the results for a given search. 2. The s...

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year 1959 Jeep FC-150 rendering done in Google Drawing. GooglePlus auto-awesome snow effect applied. One of the real joys of the Holiday Season is the opportunity to say Thank You for our acquaintance and to wish you the very best for the New Year! Patrick LaJuett manages a website design agency : + LaJuett.com , where he supports clients as a Web technology consultant and search marketing strategy advisor.

Social Media for Small Business - Don't Over Complicate Things! I get a lot of questions from customers regarding social networking. The majority of them feel it is something they should be doing.  But many have a fear of taking the plunge... due in part to concerns with not having enough time. Being active on social media doesn't have to be overly complex.  A few minutes a day can get the job done for 99% of the small businesses out there.  Here are some thoughts on how a small business can benefit from being "social". What Is Social Media? According to Wikipedia, "social media refers to interaction among people in which they create, share, and/or exchange information and ideas in virtual communities and networks. It introduces substantial and pervasive changes to communication between organizations, communities, and individuals." Why Small Business Should Incorporate Social Into their Marketing Efforts Audience Reach + Relationship...

New Website: Fastball-U.com – Classes now in-session Local business gets new Google Sites powered website The Brief: Use the website as a means of attracting new pitching students Create a website that is easy to find via search   The Method: Focus on optimization for search and responsive mobile device rendering Light-weight and modern styling Utilize  Google Sites platform  to enable content maintenance via a web browser   The Result: Website features custom logo design, which ties into the business's educational theme Visit the FASTBALL-U website     Patrick LaJuett manages a website design agency : + LaJuett.com , where he supports clients as a Web technology consultant and search marketing strategy advisor.

Marketing Materials Designed for Valle Baseball We recently completed a glove tag design for Valle Eagle Training Gloves.  The tag will be attached to gloves being sold via storefront as well as their network of Online retailers. Specifications: Size: 3"x3.5" Paper: Double-sided glossy card stock Design Software: Adobe Fireworks CS3, Corel Draw X6, Adobe Acrobat Fonts: Twenty Eight Days Later, Franklin Gothic Output: PDF @ 600dpi For more info about Valle Eagle Training Gloves, visit their Website . Valle training gloves tag Patrick LaJuett operates a website design and marketing agency where he supports his clients as a Web technology consultant and search marketing strategy advisor.

National search marketing campaign initiated for New York State based business, Hunting and Shooting Related Consultants, LLC . http://www.huntsrc.com Let's Take a Walk The Analysis Website architecture audit Keyword research Local listing inventory The Good Client has an existing html website and a WordPress blog Site is aesthetically pleasing and well coded Client reputation is well known internationally The Bad The underlying search engine optimization is lacking National web search yields low ranking for related keyword phrases A couple of blog posts exist, but nothing substantive The Fixes Added Google Analytics code Modified page titles and descriptions Generated XML sitemap Submitted to Webmaster Tools Created a new G+ page Directory submission The Next Steps Establish an authorship schedule for relevant blog posts relating to hunting and shooting safety, accidents and incident investigation Attract quality incoming li...

We recently launched two new web sites for local companies.  Here is a summary of the projects and links to completed work: Lozier Environmental Lozier had an existing web site but wanted to update the look and feel to integrate the new branding (logos, colors, images) we designed a while back. Here's a "before" shot: Here's an "after" shot: Note, we incorporated SEO friendly navigation as well as clean XHTML code with CSS3. Visit Lozier's new web site

Another great resource from the GetListed.org Learning Center... Numerous articles in the learning center will help give you a better understanding of how the local search engines work, and how to use them to promote your business effectively. Local Search Glossary – Jargon Definitions and Explanations SEO   Trying to understand how the search engines work can be tough--especially if some of the terminology is new to you. We hope this alphabetized glossary helps you sort through Local Search jargon.   http://getlisted.org/resources/glossary.aspx