About Me
Returning to computer programming was an accident. I was sat in Prague during the deepest winter, (-10 outside), well not quite sat - more on my back. After a recent hernia operation I was not able to do the things I wanted. I woke one cold February morning and decided that I should know how to build a web site.
During the eighties and nineties I had been employed on database construction, fairly basic by today’s standards, also I had some programming skills. So off I went and started learning HTML and then Dreamweaver, (then CSS, then php and it goes on). My first web site is the Santiago de Compostela which I had walked a couple of times and loved.
I built my web site, I thought it was great, but no one came - some friends and that was about it. Not only did Google ignore me so did Yahoo! and MSN. I could not have this, my great site and no one comes to visit. I started to do some research, finding out why other sites listed on the front page of Google and I was no-where. This was my introduction to online marketing.
I loved SEO, and still do. However it can be very dull, tedious, and hard work though it is logical, (and sometimes imaginative), and the results can be fantastic. I learned my SEO skills first on my Camino site, then built more web sites - during this time I was a mature student at NUI Maynooth, English and Philosophy for my sins. After a while my Camino site listed at number one on Google - no. 1 out of 2,460,000 (this figure fluctuates). It has stayed at no. 1 and has held that position since 2006, the site has around 25,000 visitors per month serving over 100,000 pages.
Having a small business web site need not be hugely expensive, ongoing yearly costs are low compared to traditional media. Upfront costs for a blog or small site are normally in the €800 - €1200 range. Marketing costs, in my experience, are more than web design costs, it simply takes longer and it is the money end. Without marketing people will be able for find you by typing in your company name, but usually for little else.
I listened to a wedding photographer recently tell me how search engine optimisation works. It was an interesting lecture. When he first put up his web site he could not be found - he told me he wrote to Google - email. Now he can be found. He tells me he is no 1 on Google for Joe Blogs Photography, and he is delighted. So I let him be delighted. He can’t be found on the internet for “wedding photographer Dublin” or “wedding photographer Ireland” - he can’t be found for anything apart from his company name.
That is not for me - I will leave no money on the table unless the return on investment is negative. I will use every key word or phrase I can think of then get more of them from all the tools I use. I have not come across any site that cannot be optimised for more than one phrase.
From a business perspective the internet is great. Targeted advertising is what you get. Customers come looking for you, make sure they find you.