As of this writing, the current Google algorithm, “Page Experience”, will be rolling out in August 2021. Some of the updates are: 

• Core Web Vitals are used to measure user experience. There are three specific page speed and user interaction measurements that include: Largest Contentful Paint (LCP), visual stability with Cumulative Layout Shift (CLS), and interactivity with First Input Delay (FID). Here are some tools that can help you measure and monitor Core Web Vitals. 
• The page needs to be mobile-friendly. If you want to check to make sure your page is, use this Mobile-Friendly Test. 
• Making sure your page is set on safe browsing. This means the page doesn’t contain malicious (for example, malware) or deceptive (for example, embedded content to trick visitors) content. To check to make sure your site does not have safe-browsing issues use the Security Issues report. 
• The page is to be served over HTTPS. Make sure to check if your site’s connection is secure. If the page is not served over HTTPS, you can learn how to secure your site with HTTPS. 
• Consumers have easy access to the content on the page. Learn how interstitials can make content less accessible for the user. 

With this new algorithm rolling out, Google will begin to use page experience as a part of its ranking systems in August 2021. 

This is very important for your SEO, and web speed does hurt the user’s experience. With Google’s updated speed requirements going from three to four-second load to two seconds, the slower the page loads, the more user experience goes down. 

A study has also proven that 5 million desktop and mobile pages found that the average time it takes to load a web page for desktop entirely is 10.3 seconds and 27.3 seconds on mobile. Back in 2019, mobile minutes accounted for 77% of consumers’ time spent online in the United States. Mobile, as well, has more problems with loading pages than desktops do for consumers. 

With one of the new updates in Page Experience being mobile-friendly, optimizing your mobile website design is imperative as it is the preferred method by consumers. Your mobile speed time slower than desktop will have a negative effect on your Google rankings.  

Here are some reasons why your website speed might be high:

• Server delays, which are the response time on serves, should be under 200ms. Different potential factors could slow down the server response, but there are three main categories: slow application logic, insufficient hardware resources, and slow network connection. 
• Unnecessary redirects make your visitor face additional time waiting for an HTTP request-response cycle to be complete, which is the complete opposite you want for your customers. 
• Having any CSS, HTML, or JavaScript that are larger than 150 bytes will cause a slower response time for your website. 
• Having heavy images and fancy animated effects. The smaller amount of bytes a browser has to download, the faster that browser will download and render content on the screen. This is very crucial for mobile users because images can still cause delays on mobile devices. 

Improving your website’s speed will upgrade user experience and conversions. First, you will need to measure the website’s current pace, which there are other online site tolls like GTmetric and Pingdom, to name a few that will help measure. As mentioned above, slow or overloaded servers usually cannot load graphics and elements on a page quickly as consumers would expect. 

When it comes to assessing user experience, you will want to run a UX audit to see how well your site is performing as users click from page to page as well as asking these questions:

• Do desktop and mobile load the same? Is it easier or harder to navigate on mobile? 
• Does your navigation load quickly?
• Did enough content load in the first two seconds to get engagement from visitors?
• Can users interact with the page within 2 seconds of loading?
• Are interactions smooth and fast with no lag?

After asking these questions and running the audit, things you can do to improve the speed consist of reducing the number of landing page redirects, plugins, and link shorteners. Another thing is to reduce/compress the image sizes and optimize smaller file sizes to lessen the mobile rendering time without destroying visual quality. In addition, you can remove render-blocking JavaScript and redundant data that is taking up space. Lastly, using asynchronous scripts to streamline page render time can help, just like using a script to adjust the content to match slower connections and devices dynamically. 

If you are unsure how to fix some of these things and are interested in improving your website’s speed and SEO, contact Fisher Design and Advertising at info@fisherdesignandadvertising.com. 

The post Optimize Your Website’s Load Speed For Higher Google Ranking appeared first on Fisher Agency.

The post Website development for Jacksonville daycare company: Rattles To Tassels appeared first on Fisher Agency.

In December 2017, Google updated the number of characters (and spaces) in the meta description (an important piece of onsite search engine optimization) from 140 to 320. The meta description is the paragraph of copy you see when making a Google or Bing search. It should describe what that page is about. While there has been some debate on whether the keyword phrases in the description help the website actually rank, we do know that it help to get the viewer to click on your website. Once filled with keywords, the meta description can now be well crafted sentences with a call to action and even a phone number. But the meta description must accurately describe what the page is about. If your website copy is about marketing in Jacksonville but the meta description is about website design in Jacksonville, Google may choose not to show your meta description. Google may actually show the first paragraph of copy of the website on the search page. Also, Google may choose not to show your page title either.

With this in mind, we must craft our meta data carefully.

The page title which is approximately 50-75 characters and spaces is still very important. The first words of the page title, being even more important. If your business is regionally based, make sure you include city or state names. I actually prefer to have the keyword phrase together. For example: “sports medicine doctor Jacksonville FL“. I have polled a lot of people. Most put the city name in the search, and most put the city name at the end of the phrase.

Google actually shows 60 pixels. Yes you heard that right. So, if you are using a page title full of capital letters, especially wide ones, even fewer characters will be shown. If you use more characters and spaces, then google only shows ellipses at the end.

Remember each page has its own unique page title and meta description, that works in conjunction with the copy on that page.

Use keyword phrases in your pages title, not just keywords. For example: swimming pool costs Jacksonville FL

Make sure you do not repeat the same meta data on multiple pages

Keep your h1 headers short and include keyword phrases. Only one h1 header per page. (this is the main headline of the page) You can also have h2 and h3 headers (subheads) with good keywords.

A good example would be:

Page title:

Orthopedic Doctor, JOI Jacksonville, Dr. Stephen Lucie, sports medicine, Jacksonville FL

Meta description:

Dr. Stephen Lucie is an orthopedic doctor specializing in sports medicine at Jacksonville Orthopaedic Institute. Dr. Lucie has been an orthopedic surgeon in Jacksonville, FL for 35 years.

H1 header:

R. Stephen Lucie, M.D. Orthopedic Doctor at Jacksonville Orthopaedic Institute

Keywords:

Google no longer finds the keywords useful.

This is what you see in a Google search: 

Some professionals would argue that the page tile should include the name of the business. I would argue that if the name of the business is the URL (domain name), I would argue that it is not needed; and that it is actually taking up valuable real estate. If you feel compelled to use it, add it at the end.

But in my industry, we don’t always agree. SEO professionals do their own testing. And we test often. What used to work, may not work anymore.

Some people say Google will penalize you if your title is too long. I do not see this to be true. Now, Google will certainly not show it all and instead just show ellipses…

Did you know you can see your competitors’ meta data? You can view the source code of the page and see it there. You can also install MOZbar from MOZ on your Chrome browser. It will identify the page title, meta description and H1 header from each page

To download your MOZbar here:

http://moz.com/help/guides/research-tools/mozbar

If you prefer a professional to do this for you, call Fisher Design 904-398-3699, info@maryfisherdesign.com

The post Search engine optimization Jacksonville: meta data update appeared first on Fisher Agency.

Blog articles are a vital component to your internet marketing strategy and can help improve your Google rankings. A great blog article aligns with your search engine optimization (SEO) strategy and creates a “micro” moment on your website that encourages current and prospective customers to take action. This action could be to read an article, contact you, make a purchase or watch a video.

Writing a great blog post that includes SEO and micro moments is like driving. You can study the rules of the road, but you won’t get any benefits from studying or dreaming until you hit the pavement.

5 steps to writing an SEO friendly blog article:

Step 1 – Planning

The entire process of writing a blog post often takes more than a couple of hours, even if you type 90 words a minute and your writing skills are at the top of their game. From concept to publishing, you might spend a day or even a week “writing” a blog post. It’s important to spend those hours planning your post and thinking about your post before you sit down to write.

Choose topics that align with your SEO strategy

Some posts will feel like a chore, especially when trying to align content with your SEO strategy. Remember, if consumers are searching your keyword strings online, they are looking for a solution. Be there with content that engages them. The more excited you can get about the topic, the more excited your readers will be when they’re reading it.

Write an outline for your post

It is always easier to get somewhere, when you know where you’re going. Take the time to create an outline for your blog post. First, decide the format for your post:

• Educational article
• Event announcement/media advisory
• Photo with description
• Question and answer
• Video with description

Sample outline:

• Introduction
• Section 1
• Section 2
• Section 3
• Wrap-up (call to action)
• Company overview with SEO keywords

Do your research

Sometimes, you might need to research statistics or consult online experts to develop content for your article. Be sure you use credible sources. Get to the source, rather than blogs, friends and local media. Site your sources.

Step 2 Headlines

Since content writing helps improve your Google rankings, it is important to write a headline that is something your current and prospective consumers might search for in the search engines. Headlines are like billboards, less is more. 7-10 words work well. Questions are very common and effective, as well as “top” and “best of” features. Most people are driving 100 mph on the worldwide web. You have to grab their attention.

Step 3 Writing

By writing content in one session, you can stay focused on the topic. It also prevents from having to restart the research phase. To start, write at least 2-3 paragraphs and work your way up to 500 words. Be sure to have your SEO keywords on a sheet in front of you. Use them as much as possible without affecting readability.

Step 4 Use Images Effectively

You should include a graphic with any written content posted on the web. Use in-house photography or license stock photos. The image can be placed at the top of the article or used to break up the text. Be sure to include your SEO keywords when you name the image.

Step 5 Get Ready to Publish

Be sure to have someone else review your work. If you don’t have someone else to help, print out your document and carefully proofread it before posting it online. When editing, cut down your sentences as much as possible. Less is more. Industry jargon should be avoided and you should always write in simple words (8th grade reading level). After you publish your content on your website, be sure to share it to your social media profiles.

Fresh and relevant content can help your business get picked over your competition locally and nationally on the search engines. If you follow these steps, the content you generate will engage your customers, and your Google rankings will improve.

Fisher Design, Advertising and Public Relations develops local, regional and national internet marketing campaigns for small to mid size businesses looking to stay competitive on the web. From custom website design to SEO copywriting to blogs on writing blogs, we make sure our clients always have fresh bait on their hooks.

The post How to Write an SEO Friendly Blog Article appeared first on Fisher Agency.

Mary Romaine  is a Board Certified acupuncturist with 23 years of experience. She builds close relationships with her patients to help resolve chronic and acute conditions by using acupuncture and alternative medicine treatments.

The post Mary Romaine Acupuncture and Wellness – Healthcare Marketing and SEO appeared first on Fisher Agency.

The post The Jacksonville Online Marketing Meetup Board (JOMM) appeared first on Fisher Agency.

The Center for Health and Sports Medicine is a Family Practice and Sports Medicine Clinic for the Jacksonville Area. Dr. Ross Osborn, M.D., founded the Center as a source for families to get lifelong primary and preventative care through regular exams, exercise, nutrition and weight loss.

The post We just did SEO for The Center for Health and Sports Medicine appeared first on Fisher Agency.