Well this thread has moved on since my last visit.
Ref the photos, here are 2 examples:
http://www.fen-acreholidaylet.com/media ... bridge.jpg
http://www.fen-acreholidaylet.com/media ... utland.jpg
your feedback please
This thread comes up on page 5 on Google for 'self catering fens'- your site isn't in the first 10 pages.
This is a list of some of the sites SEO problems (you can ignore some of the twitter/blog aspects, but it's a decent guide)
.http://websitegrader.com/site/www.fen-a ... daylet.com. You also might want to try analysing your site with the Sen SEO add-on for Firefox.
There are also some other issues, not mentioned in that grader. Your are using text within images as your navigation menu. You're using alt image tags to compensate, but it's still not how it should be done.
If it's possible, you should change your url structure from http://www.fen-acreholidaylet.com/552.html to something like http://www.fen-acreholidaylet.com/accommodation.html
Your on page text should also be broken up with heading tags like <h2><h/2> that include keywords.
You should be using alt attributes on all of your photographs.
From looking through your source code, this is a template from cm4all.com. There are better, free alternatives out there. Not including simple things like a doctype declaration by default, in a template you're selling, is pretty poor.
Wordpress (.org) is free, you can choose from a variety of themes for free,and use SEO plugins for free. Architecturally from an SEO standpoint, it'd be far superior to your current site.
You should start a Google Analytics account. It would enable you to see a breakdown of how people got to your site - what percentage came from Google, what words they entered into a search engine, if they were referred to your site by a directory listing or a signature in a forum etc.
This is a list of some of the sites SEO problems (you can ignore some of the twitter/blog aspects, but it's a decent guide)
.http://websitegrader.com/site/www.fen-a ... daylet.com. You also might want to try analysing your site with the Sen SEO add-on for Firefox.
There are also some other issues, not mentioned in that grader. Your are using text within images as your navigation menu. You're using alt image tags to compensate, but it's still not how it should be done.
If it's possible, you should change your url structure from http://www.fen-acreholidaylet.com/552.html to something like http://www.fen-acreholidaylet.com/accommodation.html
Your on page text should also be broken up with heading tags like <h2><h/2> that include keywords.
You should be using alt attributes on all of your photographs.
From looking through your source code, this is a template from cm4all.com. There are better, free alternatives out there. Not including simple things like a doctype declaration by default, in a template you're selling, is pretty poor.
Wordpress (.org) is free, you can choose from a variety of themes for free,and use SEO plugins for free. Architecturally from an SEO standpoint, it'd be far superior to your current site.
This would suggest a good conversion rate (which is a good sign), rather than an SEO friendly site. Search engines are not the only method of finding a site. People could be referred from a link on another website such as a directory listing. You have incoming links from sites like visitthefens, crowland-links, facepaintingchat and downthelane.Mind you I've taken 2 bookings today so they are finding me somehow!
You should start a Google Analytics account. It would enable you to see a breakdown of how people got to your site - what percentage came from Google, what words they entered into a search engine, if they were referred to your site by a directory listing or a signature in a forum etc.
-
barbersdrove
- Posts: 985
- Joined: Thu Mar 18, 2010 7:48 pm
- Location: crowland south lincolnshire
I'm obviously not as computer savy as i thought as a lot of this is gobbledegook to me. As i use a site that provides templates I don't put in the code, rather I upload images and text and choose the colours backgrounds layout etc from a design board. It does cost me and is not the only site they host for me. I also have another business and have my website for it with the same provider. I expect if you had a look at it it will have the same problems.
www.chickadeefaces.co.uk
Re alternative providers; This is helpful info, thanks for that. Maybe it would be easier to just change provider rather than try to learn how to do my own site. I just don't have the time at the moment.
I am on a lot of directory and listing sites plus VB, visit Lincolnshire, Enjoy England etc and the online booking facility i use is with Eviivo and they have my site on a raft of listing sites too.
I think I have a lot to learn, not only about the computer but about where to best have my site listed. However, as I am getting regular bookings (I only have 20 days free between now and 2nd week in July) I won't let it worry me too much in the short term but rather make it a longer term aim to get some technical knowledge under my belt.
www.chickadeefaces.co.uk
Re alternative providers; This is helpful info, thanks for that. Maybe it would be easier to just change provider rather than try to learn how to do my own site. I just don't have the time at the moment.
I am on a lot of directory and listing sites plus VB, visit Lincolnshire, Enjoy England etc and the online booking facility i use is with Eviivo and they have my site on a raft of listing sites too.
I think I have a lot to learn, not only about the computer but about where to best have my site listed. However, as I am getting regular bookings (I only have 20 days free between now and 2nd week in July) I won't let it worry me too much in the short term but rather make it a longer term aim to get some technical knowledge under my belt.
If both businesses are your main sources of income, and the sites are your primary advertising method, then you would benefit from taking a bit of time to fix them up. Although if you're happy with how they are currently performing, there is no reason to switch to a cms or publishing platform like WordPress.
You should at least be monitoring where your traffic is coming from though.
As a former SEO consultant, I can't count the number of times people who use a provider like cm4all or Mr.Site end up complaining that they are not ranking on Google.
WordPress is completley free, and miles better.
You should at least be monitoring where your traffic is coming from though.
As a former SEO consultant, I can't count the number of times people who use a provider like cm4all or Mr.Site end up complaining that they are not ranking on Google.
WordPress is completley free, and miles better.
-
barbersdrove
- Posts: 985
- Joined: Thu Mar 18, 2010 7:48 pm
- Location: crowland south lincolnshire
I will definitely look at that. I suppose I'm a bit reluctant to change anything that until now I thought had been working well for me! Just shows how much I need to learn.
I do keep track of where all my enquiries come from by asking people how they found me rather than by tracking. I keep the results on a spreadsheet colour coded so I can see at a glance where the most bookings have come from. Looking at it now it's a real mix with the overall winner being repeat booking, but only just.
One thing, both enquiries I had yesterday had found me on Google earth. I have a listing with Google and if they go to the 'find business' tab and key in accommodation I come up. (I'm in theprocess of getting a little video done to upload too) . What I can't workout is how to get the little red bed symbol to appear over my place.
I do keep track of where all my enquiries come from by asking people how they found me rather than by tracking. I keep the results on a spreadsheet colour coded so I can see at a glance where the most bookings have come from. Looking at it now it's a real mix with the overall winner being repeat booking, but only just.
One thing, both enquiries I had yesterday had found me on Google earth. I have a listing with Google and if they go to the 'find business' tab and key in accommodation I come up. (I'm in theprocess of getting a little video done to upload too) . What I can't workout is how to get the little red bed symbol to appear over my place.
If you're happy, don't make any changes.
If you're not ranking on the first 10 pages of Google (normal search results) for your chosen key terms, your site has 'issues'.
It will be difficult to rank for the term 'self catering fens' since 'self catering' isn't mentioned anywhere on your front page, title or meta description. Google isn't psychic
In fact, the phrase 'self catering' only appears once throughout your entire site, and that's in a testimonial on this page http://www.fen-acreholidaylet.com/573.html
or twice if you include the duplicate content problems regarding session ids, http://www.fen-acreholidaylet.com/573.h ... ion*id*val*
Google has its own (very basic) seo guide at http://www.google.com/webmasters/docs/s ... -guide.pdf
If you're not ranking on the first 10 pages of Google (normal search results) for your chosen key terms, your site has 'issues'.
It will be difficult to rank for the term 'self catering fens' since 'self catering' isn't mentioned anywhere on your front page, title or meta description. Google isn't psychic
In fact, the phrase 'self catering' only appears once throughout your entire site, and that's in a testimonial on this page http://www.fen-acreholidaylet.com/573.html
or twice if you include the duplicate content problems regarding session ids, http://www.fen-acreholidaylet.com/573.h ... ion*id*val*
Google has its own (very basic) seo guide at http://www.google.com/webmasters/docs/s ... -guide.pdf
-
barbersdrove
- Posts: 985
- Joined: Thu Mar 18, 2010 7:48 pm
- Location: crowland south lincolnshire
Do you know, I hadn't noticed that! 
I am beginning to get a list together of things to amend that are within my control. The actual text and text size, the pictures, the links, the size of the floor layout (which I know is small and I haven't been able yet to figure out how to enlarge it) and the website host. I'm going away for a few days tomorrow but it looks like I've got a big project to do on my return
I am beginning to get a list together of things to amend that are within my control. The actual text and text size, the pictures, the links, the size of the floor layout (which I know is small and I haven't been able yet to figure out how to enlarge it) and the website host. I'm going away for a few days tomorrow but it looks like I've got a big project to do on my return
-
CatGirl
- Posts: 19
- Joined: Tue Mar 23, 2010 11:28 am
- Location: Roda, Nr Los Alcazares, Murcia, Spain
- Contact:
Regarding floor plan - if you can edit the html all you have to do is change the height and width in this bit of code
IMG width="450" src="./mediac/450_0/media/fen-acre$20floor$20plan.jpg" height="281" border="0" alt="" align="left"
If you change the width=600 and height=375 it is much better. However, the quality of the graphic then lets you down as it is very blurred!
IMG width="450" src="./mediac/450_0/media/fen-acre$20floor$20plan.jpg" height="281" border="0" alt="" align="left"
If you change the width=600 and height=375 it is much better. However, the quality of the graphic then lets you down as it is very blurred!
-
barbersdrove
- Posts: 985
- Joined: Thu Mar 18, 2010 7:48 pm
- Location: crowland south lincolnshire
Since getting all the feedback I have been away and then very busy since our return so have not yet made any changes. I intend to do so this week, but I am also thinking of starting again doing my own rather than using a template provider. Wordpress has been recommended and I have looked at this but the blurb says it's primarily for blogging purposes. I really don't have the time to write a blog so do I have to do one if I use Wordpress or can I just use it to design a website?
WordPress gives you the option of creating either blog posts or standard web pages.
If you want to have a page (rather than a typical list of blog posts) as your homepage, go to your admin and click:
Settings > Reading > front page displays > click 'a static page (select below)', then pick the page you want to appear as your home page.
Most of the technical SEO stuff can be done by using one or two plugins. http://yoast.com/articles/wordpress-seo/
If you want to have a page (rather than a typical list of blog posts) as your homepage, go to your admin and click:
Settings > Reading > front page displays > click 'a static page (select below)', then pick the page you want to appear as your home page.
Most of the technical SEO stuff can be done by using one or two plugins. http://yoast.com/articles/wordpress-seo/