about search engine optimization

Search engine optimization (SEO) is not included with my design services.

When redesigning an existing site with established Google Page Rank, I work towards preserving any elements of the original site that contributed to the site's ranking.

The primary purpose of my design work is is to keep prospective clients at your site once they get there by making your site look professional and engaging and to generate leads. And it works: during my thirteen years of Web site design, I've repeatedly been told by my clients that their new customers have told them that they were chosen because they had the best Web site. My real estate clients' sites, some of which had never generated a lead prior to a redesign, have been known to generate more leads than the poor site owners had time to follow up on (the best kind of problem to have!).

Naturally, one key to getting leads from your site is to get visitors to your site in the first place. This is where search engine optimzation and search engine marketing play an essential role. Because the search engines constantly refine themselves, maintaining a professional level of SEO expertise requires constant study and involvement in the field. While I know a good amount about SEO, I don't pretend to be an expert: I simply do not have time to stay on top of latest developments.

If you do not have time to learn about and do your own SEO, consider contracting with Jay Thompson for search engine optimzation and search engine marketing.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

the halo effect of clean, professional design

Studies of how fast people formed first impressions of Web sites report that "The speed at which users form value judgments of web pages precludes much cognitive thought. The users tested had an emotional reaction to home pages that they could not control... - a gut reaction. This carry-over of first impressions to other attributes of products is sometimes called the 'halo effect,' ... where users search for confirming evidence and ignore evidence contrary to their initial impression.

'...the strong impact of the visual appeal of the site seemed to draw attention away from usability problems. This suggests that aesthetics, or visual appeal, factors may be detected first and that these could influence how users judge subsequent experience.... Hence, even if a website is highly usable and provides very useful information presented in a logical arrangement, this may fail to impress a user whose first impression of the site was negative.' - (Lindgaard 2006)"

"... So that feeling you evoke in users through a 'clean, professional design' can have a halo effect on their buying judgments (Fogg 2003)."

"First Impressions Count in Web Design"
WebSiteOptimization.com

© 2006 suzanne stephens