Category: Techies

Did you know that when Google likes you they do this?

4/1/2019

Sitelinks - and what people look at on your website

Sitelinks gives you a more prominent profile on Google.
Sitelinks also suggest your website is a trusted site.
They also mean you're attracting enough traffic to warrant highlighting your website - because you simply do not get any sitselinks until your website has been around for a bit, attracted a decent amount of traffic and gets updated regularly.

The links shown below some of Google's search results, called sitelinks, are meant to help users navigate your site. Our systems analyze the link structure of your site to find shortcuts that will save users time and allow them to quickly find the information they're looking for. Google Support - Sitelinks

The thing is you cannot determine which links get listed in Sitelinks. It's all totally animated and driven by an algorithm and the probability is that relates to traffic (this is Google after all!). That also means that if you cover topics which don't drive a lot of traffic that that topic will never get a site link - even if you are the #1 source on Google for that topic!

On the other hand, it's actually very interesting for me (and you) to know what other people want to know about in terms of search queries. I happen to know (for other reasons) that yesterday my website got a lot of hits for "selling art from home" and guess what's in the sitselinks for today! (see above!)

Google also gives you some tips - and I'll be making sure that I use these in future - including asking Weebly how come anchor text has still not made it into the feature list!

There are best practices you can follow, however, to improve the quality of your sitelinks. For example, for your site's internal links, make sure you use anchor text and alt text that's informative, compact, and avoids repetition.

REFERENCE:

Sitelinks | Google Support
Sitelinks | Wikipedia
Google Sitelinks: The Ultimate FAQ | Cristian Mezei (March 3, 2008),

Why you can't find an art business on Google

HOWEVER First you have to get your website to register with Google - which means you need to tell Google about it.

Google tells you some of the simple reasons why your art business might not be registering on Google eg

Your business isn't verified.
Your business appears on Google Maps, but doesn’t always appear in search results.
You recently added or edited your business information.
Your business information doesn’t comply with our guidelines.

Check out the explanations of what what do in

Can't find business on Google
Add a business before it opens for those not yet online....

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Knowledge Panel/Graph

Of course you've really made it with Google when you have a location based business and Google decided you need a knowledge panel. Or so you might think.

However you'd be wrong as Google's Knowledge Graph functionality tends to pick up the information from public information sources such as Wikipedia in order to create a Knowledge Panel!

So this is one for the famous artists, art galleries and art studios - but not for their websites!

Google's new Activity Card

Google turned 20 in 2018 and came up with a new trick for presenting search results.

It's called the Activity Card and this Trusted Reviews article (below) explains how it works - and why it's been designed - with the images indicating that it's very much oriented to fast search using a smartphone.

READ Google presents ‘Evolution of Search’ with Lens, Activity Cards, Collections and Discover

Writing all of this has made me think I really need to write up all the techie bits for Websites for Artists which haven't made it on to the website yet! That will join the "to do" list for 2019!

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What happens when your "tech guy" disappears?

24/8/2018

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What happens if your "tech guy"

stops communicating?
disappears?
unplugs for the last time - and dies suddenly?

I've been amazed over the years by the extent to which artists put their trust for the tech side of their whole online life - their website, their way of communicating online and for some major income streams from their art business - to one person - your "tech guy"

The sad truth

I was reminded of this when reading a post by Gail Sibley about 5 Lessons Learnt From The Loss Of My Tech Guy.

RECOMMENDED READING: I commend the post to those who are very dependent on A. N. Other for their online art business for an account of what can happen when it really happens - and your "tech guy" dies.

How to avoid being left in limbo

I've long been an advocate of the fact that people need to learn how to do as much as they can for themselves - just because it makes your business more robust (and less risky to tech guy disappearing) and because it costs a lot less money!

However I also recognise that as your art business builds you will need help - and that means employing experts to help you do things you need to do with your art business - including the tech side of being online. Whether it's building, maintaining and developing your website, making a video for your online classes or building a subscription based forum for your teaching online.

The thing is you ALWAYS need to remain in control if you want to be secure your art business and your art income.

That means:

YOU cannot allow another person to have total control over your website - you must manage the risks of them "falling under a bus"
YOU must ALWAYS own your own domain name - in your name - not the name of your tech guy. Otherwise the credibility that you build for that domain name is owned by him not you.
YOU must ALWAYS have access to your own website - as well as your tech guy. That means knowing ALL the relevant passwords. That means thinking very hard before building functionality for systems that he had a licence for but you don't
YOU must have access at all times to your email subscription database - otherwise you might have to build it all over again from scratch - but without being able to email them to tell them. Plus you MUST have a written agreement with your "tech guy" about the security of that data.
YOU run a major risk if your system is a one-off built by the tech. guy and not understood by anybody else. That could mean starting again from scratch if he disappears!

So if you need help to run the tech side of your art business life online think about the "what ifs"

what if he's not around any more - what do you not have access to, what parts of your online life are in jeopardy?
what if you argue and/or he holds you to ransom re. the increase in his fee. This has happened to people I know more times than I thought possible!
what if you want to move your website to another tech guy - do you have an agreement in places for how this happens - sensibly and efficiently?

Identify the risks - and manage them

IDENTIFY:

The specific RISKS of every aspect of the tech. side of your art business
The nature of the IMPACT on your art business life (time/effort) and income ($/£000) if your tech guy disappeared/was no longer available and/or no longer working for you
identify how to REDUCE YOUR RISKS and what action you need to take to reduce each specific risk eg agreements as to your access to the systems which support your business

Then TAKE ACTION to make your art business life more secure for the future.

Remember even the best of chums can fall out - or your "tech guy" can suddenly die. So even if your tech guy is the best tech guy ever, you MUST have a fail-safe plan that works in your back pocket.

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Google goes 'mobile first' indexing

29/3/2018

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If you are still on an old school fixed pixel width website and haven't as yet upgraded to a responsive template and become mobile friendly, you will want to know that Google is migrating to mobile-first indexing for its search engine.

(see Rolling out mobile-first indexing on the Official Google Webmaster blog) .

Mobile-first indexing means that Google will use the mobile version of the page for indexing and ranking.

This in part reflects that most people using search are now on a mobile device.

This means:

sites using responsive web design or dynamic serving are generally set for mobile-first indexing.
sites which have two versions of their site will continue to have the non-mobile version used for indexing.

In addition, starting in July 2018, web content that is slow-loading may perform less well for both desktop and mobile searchers.

You'll find out if your site is affected via the Google Search Console (new name for Google Webmaster)

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What happened to your traffic on Google Search Console?

2/2/2018

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I've been trying to work out for ages what was happening to my traffic stats on Google's Search Console (which used to be called Webmaster Tools)

The traffic was still there in Google Analytics and my other stats software - so why had it fallen off a cliff in Search Console?

This week Google has been rolling out the new version of Search Console to my websites and blogs this week and the problem had become even very perplexing.

Until I finally worked out what was happening.

Note how Search Console asks you to add the site in AGAIN if you use the https protocol

IF you have moved your blog and/or website from "http" to "https" - as required by Google if you still want your pages to be indexed - then you have to reverify your site WITH THE HTTPS PREFIX in Google Search Console.

In other words add in your site AGAIN, but this time with the https:// prefix

Otherwise Google ignores your site on the basis that all your pages are redirected i.e. to the https site!

For me it was a very concrete demonstration that Google is seriously not indexing pages which are insecure.

The clue to the explanation was the date when things started to go awry. October 2017 was the deadline to get sites transferred to the more secure https - and that's when Google started its sweeping and deindexing of sites which remain in http.

I'll be working out a "how to" for those who need handholding through the re-input of a site and verification within Search Console.

However - for the moment - I'm just so relieved when I did my verification update and refreshed Google Search Console - and there was my site with all its pages!
I've only done one so far so my immediate priority is getting the rest of my sites fixed which I'll be doing tomorrow.
In the meantime if you understand what I'm talking about you might want to start inputting your complete https://nameofyoursite.com to Search Console!

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6 great resources for writing for the web

14/10/2017

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This is a list of six articles which focus on effective writing for web and business writing which I think you'll find useful.

They provide great tips and techniques for effective writing for the web which makes life simple for your reader and creates engagement and come from from reputable sources.

I've previously written on this website about Writing for the Web - specifically in relation to the development of your website. I'll be adding these articles into this web page above if you just one bookmark for future reading and reference!

The articles below are generic - meaning they're not specifically written for artists who are developing websites and anywhere else where their text is read online. However the tips and techniques provided are BASIC to good writing for the web which create engagement.

Here are the six articles which all come from reputable sources. Some provide lists and checklists you'll want to make a note of or bookmark.

10 plain English principles for writing better web content | GatherContent - this is an ace list of absolute basics for effective writing for the web which gets engagement
Writing for the Web | BBC Journalism Academy - although this relates to generic news-writing, the guidance is still valuable in relation to basic tips and techniques for the basics of writing engaging news online, covering language, style, visual appeal - and how to avoid making mistakes.
Writing for the Web | NYU - New York University provides a very good and quick to read guide providing top tips covering readability and tone; scannability; length, links, search engine optimised writing and cultural sensitivities.
Web writing basics: frontloading | University of St. Andrews - 'Frontloading' is a technique which I employ all the time but don't always remember to highlight as a technique to study
The rules for clear, effective business writing | Financial Times - a bit 'heavy duty' but keep going, there's lots of excellent tips and things to make a note of in this article
Why you should make proofreading part of your content strategy | GatherContent - includes some great tips for eliminating mistakes within your text

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Art Business Info: NEWS

Did you know that when Google likes you they do this?

Sitelinks - and what people look at on your website

Why you can't find an art business on Google

Knowledge Panel/Graph

Google's new Activity Card

What happens when your "tech guy" disappears?

The sad truth

How to avoid being left in limbo

Identify the risks - and manage them

Google goes 'mobile first' indexing

What happened to your traffic on Google Search Console?

6 great resources for writing for the web

Art Business Info. News for Artists

Visitors so far

GET Art Business Info. NEWS by Email

Author

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Categories

Art Business Info: NEWS

Did you know that when Google likes you they do this?

Sitelinks - and what people look at on your website

Why you can't find an art business on Google​

Knowledge Panel/Graph​

Google's new Activity Card​

What happens when your "tech guy" disappears?

The sad truth​

How to avoid being left in limbo​

Identify the risks - and manage them​

Google goes 'mobile first' indexing

What happened to your traffic on Google Search Console?

6 great resources for writing for the web

Art Business Info. News for Artists

Visitors so far

GET Art Business Info. NEWS by Email

Author

Archives

Categories

Why you can't find an art business on Google

Knowledge Panel/Graph

Google's new Activity Card

The sad truth

How to avoid being left in limbo

Identify the risks - and manage them