There are a variety of ways you can use the Site Builder to improve your website's performance in search engines like Google.

What are keywords?

Keywords help some search engines to classify and rank your web pages. The code is hidden in the top of your website and is not visible to the naked eye.

Keywords are important words or phrases that describe the content found on your site. Use words that you would expect people to enter into a search engine to find your site. They should not include adjectives such as ‘fantastic' or ‘brilliant' - people will rarely search the web for ‘fantastic products' or ‘brilliant services'.

The most effective keywords utilize ‘keyword strings' (keywords made up of more than one word). 

When visitors search they try to narrow down their search results by typing multiple words into a search engine so try to emulate what they would type to find your product, service or information. 

For example it would be better to use "florist shop melbourne delivery" rather than just "florist".

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What is the description?

The description is used by some search engines to classify and rank your web pages.  It is added to the code at the top of your website and is not visible when visitors are viewing your website.

The description may appear in search engine results under the name of your website. It should describe the content of the website and try to ‘sell' your site so that visitors choose to click on the link.

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Create a compelling home page

Update your home page for better results

The home page is the most important  page on your website.  Why? Because it is often the first page a visitor will see when they come to your site. 

Some visitors will see your home page once and some will see it fifty times (or more) so it's essential to update this page when making updates to content on your website to show that your website is active.

List new products or information updates on the home page as you add them. Include a link to the relevant pages to drive your visitors straight to the content that you want them to see most.  One way to do this effectively is to divide your home page into two sections: One for the ‘static' introduction and one for the latest updates.

Introduction

Your introduction is an important part of your home page because it helps search engines find your site and encourages visitors to stay on your site once they have reached it. Your first paragraph needs to outline clearly what you do, who you are and where you are.

Provide a detailed list of the specific services or products you offer. Here's an example:

    We specialise in financial planning, wealth management, superannuation and retirement planning in the Newcastle area.

Latest Updates

The latest updates part of your home page should be dedicated to informing visitors about updates or edits on the rest of your site.  Draw visitors' attention to the latest edits and updates on your website, or they will not know about them.  The most effective way to do this is to add a short explanation and a link to the updated page. Here's an example:

    This week, we completed a new office block in North Sydney. To see the before and after photos, visit our Office Fit-Out Gallery.

Your home page is a spring-board!

Use your home page to spring-board users toward your site goals.  Point out any important information that you would really like them to see and make the point of your website clear. 

If the goal of your website is to receive online orders, use a heading such as "Buy Online Now" on your home page.  Include a short paragraph that quickly explains the products you have for sale and the benefits of ordering with you (rather than a competitor).  Add in a link to the shop front page of your website to take the visitor directly to your online store quickly.  Here's an example:

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Why doesn't my site appear in Google or other search engines yet?

Google sends crawlers out to scout the Internet for new websites every few months so it is likely that your website may not be listed by Google or other search engines until 2-3 months after your website is live.

You can help to speed up the process by:

1. Manually submitting your website to Google (see the Google website for more information).
2. Proactively seeking referrers to link from their website to yours.   You can offer links back to their website from your website, this is called creating reciprocal links.
3. Start an advertising campaign with Google such as AdWords (see the Google website for more information).

How can I add Google Analytics code to my website?

Google provides a service called Google Analytics.  It enables you to create an account for your website so that you can track statistics pertaining to visitors movements from the Internet to and around your website.  It can be very helpful for website marketing.

1. Copy the Google Analytics code from your Google Analytics account.
2. Go to Statistics > Custom Statistics Codes.
3. Paste the code into a Tracking code box .
4. Select which parts of your website you would like the code to be added to:

• The entire website including the shop and checkout:  The code will be added to every single page that is generated by the SiteBuilder.  Your Google Analytics account will contain tracking information for all pages.
  
• Just the shop: The code will only be added to category and product pages.  This enables you to use a separate code to track visitors activity as they explore your products and categories.
  
• Just the checkout: The code will only be added to pages that the visitor sees as they proceed to make a purchase.  You can add separate code to these pages to track specific ‘conversions' of clicks into sales.

5. Click Save Preferences. Publish your website to update all pages with the Google Analytics code.

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