If you’re a Twitterer that loves Tweeting (also called a Twit by Andrew, our CEO), one useful free SEO tool you can download is TweetDeck.

It’s easy to gain followers on Twitter if you post regular Tweets on topics that people are interested in. However, if you can engage in exchanges with other Twitterers it makes them take a closer interest in what you have to offer and is a more effective SEO tactic.

TweetDeck allows you to keep track of what is being Tweeted about. Once you’ve downloaded and installed the application and then uploaded your Twitter login details, you can view a panel of real time information on your followers. This allows you to respond right away to anything they may tweet about. You can use the panel to submit your own Tweets, make searches, upload a photo and even record 12 second videos to share with your followers. You can also synchronise the panel with your Facebook profile to keep track of your friends’ statuses and post updates to your own Facebook profile, although so far this doesn’t work with your Facebook business page .

One really useful tool on TweetDeck is the ability to shorten urls. If you’re Tweeting a link, you can often find that the limited Tweet space of 140 characters is even more restricted if the url link is quite long. TweetDeck will shorten those urls to make your Tweet more meaningful.

You can install TweetDeck on your PC or, if you’re really techo-savvy, your iPhone. Here at Suncoast Internet we’ve found that Twittering every now again as part of our SEO process led to Twitter being our 3rd highest referral site. So what are you waiting for? Start building your own Twitter network and get Tweeting today!
 

by Suncoast Internet Team1 Comment »

Go Maroons!! Give the cockroaches a hammering and make it 3-zip. This office is right behind you (except we have one poor ex-NSW body who is ducking for cover). A big Boo and Hiss to Trent Barrett and whoever the video referee may be (they always stand on the side of NSW). Bring back the BIFF.

by Suncoast Internet Team2 Comments »

Unsuspecting website owners are falling prey to the scams of so-called SEO (Search Engine Optimisation) companies promising unrealistic traffic and search engine results. Suncoast Internet spoke to one such SEO company this week that had been targeting one of their clients.

The scenario: The client had been contacted by an alleged SEO company offering to promote a search term, or keyword phrase, that potential customers might use when looking for the client’s business on internet search engines. For a fee of $1000, the company were promising to have the client’s website at the top of the search engine listings for this keyword phrase. (more…)

by Suncoast Internet TeamNo Comments »

How much does it take to destroy a reputation? What does it take to drastically shake up the career of a powerful person? In Prime Minister Kevin Rudd’s case, it was a 46 word email that was sent to a mid-ranking Treasury official that has resulted in ute-gate; allegations of inappropriate financial conduct with a car dealer by the name of John Grant. Whether the allegations are true or not, Rudd’s reputation is being called into question and, if you run a website that is important to you, you should take care to make sure that the horrors of ute-gate do not happen to you!

(more…)

by Suncoast Internet TeamNo Comments »

Suncoast Internet is getting back to nature with Australian Off Road Campers as the newest website development project to get under way.

Steve and Rhonda came to us about the possibility of having search engine optimisation (SEO) on their website in order to get their site placed higher than their competitors in search engine results.

Having been suitably impressed by the quality and workmanship of the hand built campers that were in the showroom and being constructed in the onsite factory, we realised that, although their existing website was reasonably functional, it did not reflect the superior quality of these campers.

In collaboration with Steve and Rhonda, we are working out a comprehensive web development plan and SEO strategy to get a sparkling new, professional looking website up and running for their exciting business. Watch this space or, better still, watch the search engine rankings!

by Suncoast Internet TeamNo Comments »

Have you started Bing-ing yet?

You may have noticed Microsoft’s new search engine which has replaced Live Search and is curiously named Bing. Available in Australia only in beta form at the moment, apparently, the choice of name is down to the desire to ‘verb up’ the word ‘bing’ much as we do already  with Google. The idea being that instead of searching for a website, we will Bing it!

Bing and Google have different algorithms for crawling websites which is why you can get different search results. But since Microsoft have confirmed that there have been no major changes to the MSNBot crawler, SEO professionals don’t have to go and work out what it likes. The bottom line for SEO is still all about quality content and good, relevant links.

The biggest difference between Google and Bing, is the presentation. Users will be impressed by the widlife photography currently on offer when they first view the site, plus some results are categorised in the full blown non-beta version. The categories facility is leading some SEO commentators to sugggest that maximising the appropriate categories on your site would be good SEO practice for Bing in order to show up in the relevant categories in search results.

The jury’s still out on how long it will take for Australia to get the full blown version of Bing but meanwhile, try it yourself and let us know what you think.

Read more about what makes good SEO.

by Suncoast Internet Team2 Comments »

Also known as associate, referral and bounty programs, an affiliate program is a partnership with an online merchant in which the affiliate earns a commission for referring sales and/or leads to the merchant’s online store. Simply put, affiliate marketing is commission selling on the Internet. Commissions may be based on the purchase amount (Pay per Sale), a set value for each visit (Pay-per-click), or action such as registration or download (Pay per Lead).

Tens of thousands of merchants from sole proprietors and Mum and Pop operations to major corporations such as Sony and Dell have their own affiliate programs. From a merchant’s perspective, partnering with affiliates is an inexpensive marketing strategy to increase sales, drive traffic, generate qualified leads and extend brand reach. From an affiliate’s perspective, few other businesses online or off are as relatively inexpensive and simple to start and maintain.

1. You join an affiliate program and you are given a unique affiliate identification and access to your special links and marketing materials.
2. You place your affiliate links on your web site, or in your newsletter.
3. A visitor on your site clicks that link and buys a product, service or fills out a form at the merchant’s site.
4. You earn a commission for sales and/or leads generated through your links.

Read more about Affiliate Marketing

by Suncoast Internet Team1 Comment »

Being found on page one of the major search engines is one of the number one marketing techniques you can use.

It’s all about bringing targeted traffic and visitors to your site for your niche. Not only that but it is often one of the least costly kinds of advertising even if you hire an expert to do it for you.

For example a Sunshine Coast search engine optimisation company may charge a few hundred dollars a month for their services. In comparison you would easily spend upwards of a thousand dollars trying to get similar results from paper ads. And optimising your site can give it much a broader exposure.

Before you even begin to optimize your site you need to think about which keywords you wish to rank for.
 

by Suncoast Internet Team1 Comment »

Understandably many people don’t understand the money making potential of the Internet! Whilst there are literally billions of websites online, a very large percentage of them are below par and consequently sit idle, this being the case it’s not as competitive as you might think. Building a business online can be very rewarding and a great way to create an income. This being the case seek advice and learn how to do it right the first time.

There are many online tutorials and good quality information available relevant to developing a successful business online. Alternatively find a local web development company with some runs on the board and seek their advice. We also have a number of articles that you might find beneficial.

by Suncoast Internet TeamNo Comments »

The name’s Google… Google the poodle. I’m the chief meeter and greeter at Suncoast Internet. I take my role as guardian of the reception desk very seriously and I ensure each visitor is given a thorough welcome…whether they like it or not.

My job description includes spotting visitors before the rest of the staff, jumping up and down with excitement and running from room to room in a display of total and utter (workplace appropriate) joy. Visitors can also expect additional welcome apparatus in the form of a Winnie the Pooh or, if they are really well behaved, a piece of paper from a waste paper bin, as this will help them in their meeting.

I prefer to be included in important meetings as there are key contributions that I can make. If people have forgotten to invite me into the meeting room, I always make it my business to remind them about it by making the relevant "what about me" noises outside as, currently, I can’t quite reach the door handle.

I also help keep the staff in check as sometimes they can become unruly. See photo for an illustration of my HR techniques.

If you need advice about how to conduct yourself, your visitors or your staff in the workplace, just ask Google.

Woof woof for now.

by Suncoast Internet Team4 Comments »