Most homestagers I have come to know over the past couple of years are way too busy running their business to spend a lot of time learning how to take charge of their business web sites. It’s a shame, but I have come to understand and accept the reality of this fact.
Most use a third party computer person to make changes to their site, or worse yet let it sit there “as is” pretty much as it was on day one.
The net result is that these people are far less likely to have their web sites appear at the top of the search engines and thereby get an occasional client as a result of their site.
Many conclude that the internet doesn’t work for home staging and I for one don’t buy that.
If you can take the time to spend a few hours learning how to access and make changes to your web site, you will discover that it’s not all that difficult. In fact it can be a lot of fun.
I could teach you how to use the C-panel that is used by most web hosting companies, but that would require my trying to do a better job than is done by Chris Morris and Bob Jenkins whose course on C-panel is top notch. It was a key part of my education, and remains the premier how to do C-panel course out there.
One caveat, not every web hosting company uses C-panel. In my book, that’s a good reason to switch to another web host. (If that’s your case – email me and I will give you my top two recommendations for an alternate service(s) that does.)
To determine if your web host does use C-panel – type in your url and add /cpanel at the end. A log in will appear if you do have cpanel. You will need to have your Log in name and password. If you don’t know it ask your computer guy. It’s your site and your service so they should give it to you gladly. (If not – it’s a sign that you really do need to make a change.)
Below is a video offering a free lesson on Cpanel as a promo for the course. I encourage you to watch the free lesson and then make a decision to take charge of your web site, or at least learn how to do it, even if you decide it wiser to leave the day to day operations in the hands of your computer people.
PS: Allegra Dioguardi tells me she has room for one or two more students for her HomeStaging Training By Design course that starts on the 13th and the 14th. She offers both a day and evening sessions to accommodate more peoples schedules.
Setting up a web page is only the beginning to online marketing. Now you need to get it seen by potential customers. This used to be challenging in many markets, but there has been a big change in what matters. Today, what matters is being seen on the Google Places Page, and you don't even need to have a web site to do that. (although you should.)
The good news is that its free, and if you know what you are doing, you can maneuver yourself to the top listing in many markets.
That's one of the skill sets I bring to the table. If you would like to get your Google Places Page properly set up send me an email at enetwal@gmail.com and put "Free Initial Evaluation" or something similar in the subject line.
Be sure to include your current web site and contact info.
When you setup a business website and are looking to get it listed
quickly on search engines, there really is no easier and quicker way
than to also put a blog on the site.
It is a known fact that search engine spiders from sites like Google
and Altavista list new blogs much faster than they list new sites.
However, it’s not as simple as just creating a blog and letting it
sit there. You have to also use tactics like pinging, linking and
the use of keywords. We’ll go over each so that you are able to
effectively use your blog for a quick site listing. We’ll also
briefly go over how to host your own blog on your site.
So how do I host my own blog, anyway?
The easiest way to do this is to install and run a blogging
software from another company on your web site’s server. One
such software that is popular is WordPress. It’s fairly easy to
install and works pretty good on your site. It’s particularly easy if your
webhost offers a C-Panel interface.
Whatever one you choose, be sure to follow the instructions
provided by the company so that the installation goes smoothly.
Where should I put my blog on my site?
Most people who host their blog to help their site get listed
quickly don’t put the blog on the main page of the site, because
the site isn’t all about the blog. Instead they put it in its
own folder at mysite.com/blog/. But you can really put your blog
anywhere on your site, so it’s your call. What is pinging?
It’s a question that many ask, so don’t feel silly if you don’t
know what pinging is. Pinging is essentially a tracking program
installed on your blog that will notify the site which it is
from whenever your blog is updated. Search engine spiders
usually visit newly pinged sites most often, which is why
pinging is such a crucial part of the equation to get your site
listed quickly. Sites that are newly “pinged” will be visited by
search engine spiders. A visit from the spider equals a listing
on the search engine. How do I get pinging on my blog?
You’ll have to register with a site that offers weblog pinging.
The most popular pinging program around is weblogs.com. Other
programs offered include Yahoo’s Blo.gs, BlogRolling, and
Technorati. Once you’ve decided on a pinging service, you’ll
have to follow the instructions to install it on your blog. When
you’ve done that, your blog will start getting pinged and
visited by search engine spiders. We will touch on these again in a
future lesson. What is linking?
Linking is basically having another blog or site link to your
blog. When search engine spiders visit that site and see a link
to your site, they’ll visit your site. Linking is effective both
for sites with blogs and those without it. How do I get linking?
You get it by visiting sites/blogs that are relevant to what
your site is about. Then you contact the owners of those
sites/blogs, asking them to post a link to your site on their
site. In return, you will probably have to link to their site on
your site. That way, both of you are able to benefit from the
linking. Why is the use of keywords important to my blog?
Keywords are search terms people might type into Google to find you.
A person in the home staging industry would probably use the keywords
Home Staging and their city as key words. A Optician might use
eyeglasses, or contact lens in theirs. Keywords are usually pretty
straightforward.
Spiders love to visit sites with a good amount of keywords.
People who read your site won’t mind the use of keywords if they
are lightly spread throughout the content of your pages. The key
to this is to make a list of keywords relevant to your blog
posting and then to try to use those keywords throughout your
content. It is important to make sure, however, not to overuse
keywords. Spiders have been trained to ignore sites with
excessive amounts of keywords, so if you use a whole lot of
keywords in the hopes of getting spiders to visit your site,
it’s not going to do you any good. Generally speaking, using
between 2-6 keywords per 200 word piece of content is a good
ratio. It’s pleasing to both readers and search engine spiders.
That’s really all there is to it. Apply the above techniques to
your blog and you will net your site a quick search engine
listing.
To your success,
Earl Netwal
Micro Business Specialist
P.S. There is no quicker way to get your site listed than to use
a blog.
P.P.S. For business purposes, I recommend using WordPress rather
than a free blog site. WordPress is free but you do have to pay for
web hosting. I use host gator as my web host because I am able to
host multiple websites and it uses the C-Panel interface thus it doesn’t cost anything
extra to use the better tool.
I recommend a free report if you don’t know everything you should
about web hosting. Get it Here:
Setting up a web page is only the beginning to online marketing. Now you need to get it seen by potential customers. This used to be challenging in many markets, but there has been a big change in what matters. Today, what matters is being seen on the Google Places Page, and you don't even need to have a web site to do that. (although you should.)
The good news is that its free, and if you know what you are doing, you can maneuver yourself to the top listing in many markets.
That's one of the skill sets I bring to the table. If you would like to get your Google Places Page properly set up send me an email at enetwal@gmail.com and put "Free Initial Evaluation" or something similar in the subject line.
Be sure to include your current web site and contact info.
Many but not all web hosting services utilize C-Panel for their user interface.
You can find out if your hosting service does by typing in your URL in your browser and adding /cpanel to the end. Example: http://www.yoururl.com/cpanel
If your web hosting service uses cpanel, it will pop up. That’s good. It means you have control of your web site. With a little knowledge can take charge of it. But you need to know how.
Discovering how to control my C-panel was the most significant bit of learning I’ve done to date on the internet.
Controlling your own internet presence is critical. Even if you decide to let someone else have the keys to your internet presence, it’s wise to understand what’s involved. (Particularly, how easy it is.)
I took a video course from Bob the Teacher called Discover C Panel. In a series of short videos I learned in just over an hour how to take control of my internet destiny.
Having a Cpanel interface makes it easy to set up a WordPress Blog, to upload files to your web site without needed an FTP Program and much more.
Setting up a web page is only the beginning to online marketing. Now you need to get it seen by potential customers. This used to be challenging in many markets, but there has been a big change in what matters. Today, what matters is being seen on the Google Places Page, and you don't even need to have a web site to do that. (although you should.)
The good news is that its free, and if you know what you are doing, you can maneuver yourself to the top listing in many markets.
That's one of the skill sets I bring to the table. If you would like to get your Google Places Page properly set up send me an email at enetwal@gmail.com and put "Free Initial Evaluation" or something similar in the subject line.
Be sure to include your current web site and contact info.
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Marketing Tip
Setting up a web page is only the beginning to online marketing for a home stager or any other local based business.
Now you need to get it seen by potential customers. This used to be challenging in many markets, but there has been a big change in what matters. Today, what matters is being seen on the Google Places Page, and you don't even need to have a web site to do that. (although you should.)
The good news is that its free, and if you know what you are doing, you can maneuver yourself to the top listing in many markets.
That's one of the skill sets I bring to the table. If you would like to get your Google Places Page properly set up send me an email at enetwal@gmail.com" and put "Free Initial Evaluation" or something similar in the subject line.
Be sure to include your current web site and contact info.
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September 9, 2010 
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