Most small business owners accept two types of payment: check or credit card. Some businesses still take cash and the occasional customer likes to set up an ACH or wire transfer. These are all standard types of payment that are easy to understand and account for. But they are no longer the only options. With…
Ranking on Google, otherwise known as search engine optimization (SEO) is about more than using the right keywords. In fact Google has more than 200 factors that can influence how your website shows up in search results. This means there’s a lot more going on than keywords. In this episode of 5 Business Rules,…
The average website visit is 8 seconds long. Think about how long that is and how much information you can communicate in that time. It’s not much. If you want to keep people on your website, you must make a strong first impression with your homepage. That starts with a strong visual impact. In this…
I talk a lot about how websites are one of the best way to bring credibility to a small business. But all websites are not equal, and first impressions count for a lot. So I thought it would be worth covering what makes a website (and business) credible. Appearance is everything Depending on the study…
For a small business keeping your website up to date is tough. I get it. In fact, I know it’s a win for a small business to have a website at all, since nearly 50% of business don’t even have a website! So if you are a small business owner and you’ve got a website,…
Having a top spot in Google’s search results can make a huge difference to your business, yet so many people go about it the wrong way. It’s not your fault, SEO is hard work, but if you’ve committed any of these faux paus, it may be time to call in reinforcements. 1. Your site lacks deep…
Keywords are the cornerstone to an SEO strategy. Yes I know you can show me articles that say keywords don’t matter anymore. People argue that the trend toward natural SEO means that we should use similar words and phrases instead of keyword stuffing. All true. BUT. When you rank on Google, you rank for a…
We all know that going through a websites redesign is a major process that takes both time and money. If you’re not ready to make that investment, but you’re sick of seeing your homepage – and more importantly you think your customers are too – you can make some quick and easy changes to freshen…
Let’s talk about websites. Many of us have them, and most small businesses owners recognize how important they are to business, but not everyone actually understands website structure and the different components. You may be thinking to yourself, “I have someone to manage my website so I don’t have to worry about this.” If you do…
As small business owners trying to survive in the digital world, many of us seem to dance to whatever tune Google is humming. Because of that there has been a lot of discussion lately around whether or not at add SSL security certificates to websites. (Need to get up to speed? Google announced a while…
Just like fashion, website trends evolve every year. Though you may not be able to put your finger on the trends as they’re happening, you can definitely spot an outdated website. As I took a look around at the trends that were rising to the top as we move toward 2016, to me it all…
I read a crazy stat today: only 53% of small businesses have websites. Despite the availability of technologies like WordPress, SquareSpace and Weebly, the number of small business websites has not risen much since 2009 when the count was 45%. This came from the Census Bureau, so say what you want about the government, but…