Madison Web Design and Development – KWD Blog

2012

2012 has been a great year for Krueger Web Design. I met a bunch of great new clients, and I can honestly say that all of my clients have been a pleasure to work with, that is a huge blessing for me. I enjoy what I do, but when you get to work with great people, it makes it 100x more enjoyable.  I’m always trying to progress my knowledge of SEO, Web Design, WordPress, and other web technologies, so this recap is a good way for me to gauge how effectively I am doing that. With that being said, here are a few of the highlights at KWD for 2012.

SEO Efforts

Personal SEO of Krueger Web Design

I continue to work on search engine optimization for the site, and as of today I am ranked 4th in organic search results for “Madison Web Design”. That is a huge step for me. I have been working for page 1 ranking for many of my keywords for quite some time and it feels very good to achieve that. There’s been a lot of inquiries as a result of that. As many of you know, SEO is never finished, but this is a big milestone. I am also ranking in the first couple pages for some of my blog posts such as Simple SQL Cursor Example and SEO Tips – Headings (as well as some of my other SEO posts, mostly centered around on-page optimization). I look forward to trying to stay on top of Google’s ever evolving ranking algorithms in 2013, especially with the likes of Panda and Penguin.

Clients moving up in Search Engine Results

A few of my clients have made great progress in their SEO efforts. Clean Planet Repair continues to rank page 1 for many of their targeted keywords. B and B Quality Building Restoration (did not do their website, only some SEO work) is now also ranked page 1 for several of their targeted keyword phrases around building restoration, and tuck pointing. They were previously not even in the top 10 pages.

Other Clients who are now ranking 1st page on Google for their targeted keywords/phrases

• Hope and a Future III Inc.
• American Community Medical Centers
• Rochester Shuttle Service

Clients of the Past/Present and Future

I’ve had the opportunity to work with quite a few existing clients this year, as well as doing a few complete sites.  Here is a quick list of brand new sites that came online through Krueger Web Design in 2012.

• www.cleanplanetrepair.com
  • Clean Planet Repair – Madison cell phone repair, smart phone repair, and tablet repair. If you need a quick, affordable fix for your broken iPhone screen, or you spill water on your Android or other smart phone, these guys will fix it very quickly and at an affordable price.  They even offer certain services with 4 hour turn around times, you can’t beat that speed.
  • 

• www.hopeandafutureinc.org
  • Charitable organization, serving seniors and young families at risk in and around the Madison area. This organization is for a great cause, and they really are making a big difference in the lives of their clients. It was a pleasure to work with them and I am looking forward to things to come with these guys.  They are getting more and more publicity.
    • They’ve already been featured in the Madison Journal twice!
      • Nonprofit group buys property for intergenerational housing
      • Madison foundation aims to bring generations together to help each other

• www.rochestershuttleservice.com
  • Offering shuttle service in Minnesota from Rochester to the Minneapolis Airport, the Mall of America, etc. They offer shuttle service to tons of locations as well as employee, group, and corporate discounts for many organizations in the Rochester area.

 

New Hosted Clients

I did not do the initial site designs for the Grand Forks Community Land Trust or the Grand Forks Housing Authority, but both of those sites on now being hosted with Krueger Web Design. Welcome aboard guys!

Upcoming Potential Clients

• Currently I am in the process of working out some details with a Madison Employees Association (that’s all I can say for now). I look forward to hopefully revamping their existing site in 2013. Stay tuned.
• I am also nearing the launch for Randall Cullen MD – Telepsychiatry, Counseling and Psychiatrist in Madison, WI (still a work in progress). Randall provides many counseling and psychiatry services for a diverse group of people. He also specializes in consultations regarding the Telepsychiatry field. This site should be finished in early 2013.

In summary, 2012 has been a great year for clients new and old. I am looking forward to what 2013 will bring for KWD! Wishing you a happy 2013!

I’m going to start this post off by saying… “I’m biased”, no surprise there, let’s just get it out there.

I believe that as a small business or organization, getting a website is the one of the first things you NEED to do, but yet I come across people all the time that run small businesses and have not done this for one or several different reasons. So I am going to attempt to hopefully shed some light on some of those and give you 5 reasons you need a website for your small business.

1. Without a website your small business is virtually invisible these days.

As a consumer, what’s the first thing you do when you want to research a product or find a local business? Right…you go on the Internet, you bring up Google and you search. Without a website you’re most likely not going to be showing up in anyone’s searches with a few exceptions. Geek Business published “Are You Really Invisible Without a Website” and then listed some bear-minimum steps to take if you are bent on absolutely not having a site. I would 100% agree with the author, if you own a business you should absolutely have a website, but if you do not…at least make sure you’re listed with Google Places, Facebook, etc. It’s 2012, people find things with the Internet! Sorry to offend you if you’re one of those few people who still use a phone book as your first means of search.

2. Gives you a chance to make a great first impression.

Your website is many times your customer’s first impression. What does yours say about you? Customers who find a site visually appealing, easy to navigate, and trustworthy are going to be more likely to want to purchase your products/services.  The effort/resources you put into a professional site design will pay off down the road. A company without a website doesn’t have a brand or image and those go a long way in establishing customer loyalty. If you walk into a clean,tidy, professional storefront you’re going to be more likely to feel good about that business versus an unkempt,dirty, run-down storefront. The same goes for a website. As Entrepreneur.com’s article “Why You Need a Website”  points out

“That said, it’s not enough that you just have a website. You must have a professional-looking site if you want to be taken seriously. Since many consumers now search for information online prior to making a purchase at a brick-and-mortar store, your site may be the first chance you have at making a good impression on a potential buyer. If your site looks like it was designed by a barrel of colorblind monkeys, your chance at making a good first impression will be lost.”

3. It’s “Free” Advertising.

Plain and simple, Google does not charge you one penny to list your site with them. The sooner you get your site created and listed/indexed with Google, the sooner people can start finding you. The same cannot be said for newspaper ads, radio ads, tv ads, you name it. The Internet is a vast, largely free resource, you should use it.  Google Places is a must, must, must for any small business. I only put “Free” in quotes because there are a few costs that go along with operating a website.

4. Gives you a chance to become a “voice” in your industry or community.

If you are an expert in your field and have knowledge to share, your website is the perfect place to do that. Blogging will bring in more traffic and over time hopefully more customers too. You’re likely an expert at what you do and have knowledge to share, get out there and blog! Blogging can also lead to higher search engine placement. If you’re seen as an expert in your industry or field that is a good thing! Smallbusinessesem.com published a useful article on “4 Reasons Small Businesses Should Have a Blog” . Quickly summarized, Blogs can show your human side, and be used to demonstrate your expertise at what you do, both of those are good things in the eyes of the consumer and can ultimately lead to more traffic and clients.

5. It’s not as expensive as you might think.

At a bare minimum you’re looking to pay around $10-15/year for a domain name and $5-20 /month for hosting. So for around $70-250 a year you can operate a website. I am willing to guess that most small businesses make at LEAST that much in one-two days of work, invest some of that back into your company. I know, I know, “what about the cost for design?”. Well professional design costs can really run the gamut. For a full custom design and eCommerce functionality you might be looking at anywhere from $2000-20,000 or up from an established web design firm. That is a lot more than most small businesses can afford and that is understandable. But there can be well designed, functional, professional sites had for much less these days (shameless plug for myself here). Web design firms do great work, there is no doubt about that, but they’re not right for everyone. The average small business or mom and pop type shop should also have the chance at a professional website.

Conclusion

Bottom line is, if you’re looking to be serious about your business and you want more customers, a website is a must. Over the course of your businesses’ life what is $500-2000?  Investing that money in your company is going to pay off huge! It’s absolutely worth it. If you can legitimately say “I have too many clients, and I need to get rid of some of them”, then a website is not for you, but if you are looking for more clients, more awareness, and getting your name out there, a website for your business is a must.

Hello,

This is going to be one of those “quick plug for a utility I like” posts, nothing too substantial.

If you’re like me and forget the syntax used for generating Robots.txt exclusions this is a handy website to use: http://phpweby.com/services/robots , simply plugin a URL and it will tell you if it’s excluded or not per your Robots.txt file. So now you won’t wonder “Does Google think this page should be indexed?”

That’s all! …. oh, and I have to throw in the usual disclaimer of “there is no obligation for search engines to obey your robots.txt file”