Chris Giles is the owner of CGain Web Design & SEO and has been involved in the internet industry since the early 1990's. He has been the marketing manager of several multi-million turnover companies. He is a Fellow of The Chartered Institute of Marketing (FCIM) and a Fellow of The Institute of Data and Marketing (F IDM).
How does SEO work and what does it cost? We answer these questions here and help guide you in your choice of SEO Consultant. Hitting high ranking positions on Google Search for relevant keywords can be an absolute gold-mine for many businesses. We have many clients in this fortunate situation who can now pick and […]
Should you spend your time adding your website to the hundreds of business listing directories available? Well, our answer is yes and no. OK, we know that it is not like us to sit on the fence, but the evidence does speak for itself. We’ll start by making this clear – the vast majority of […]
A few of our clients have asked for advice on their spend at the moment, so we thought we’d put our thoughts down here to help out as best we can. Marketing has always been one of the first things that businesses tend to cut – we’re the colouring-in department: pretty pictures, a few nice […]
In the second of a series on Local SEO, we look at the Google performance of the Jewellery category in Manchester. However, this advice will apply to anywhere in the country – and if you’d like a similarly detailed analysis of your area, feel free to contact us. Further down this report we’ll be offering […]
In the first of what will be a series on Local SEO, we look at the Google performance of the restaurant category in Blackpool. Why Blackpool? We’re based there and our local expertise allows us to offer some context with our analysis. If you’d like a similarly detailed analysis of your business sector, feel free […]
Schema code on website pages is a much-overlooked aspect of best-practice SEO – or Search Engine Optimisation. SEO helps your website to be seen nearer the top of Google and Bing searches for relevant search keyphrases. Google & Bing advise the use of Schema code so that their algorithms can correctly and more easily process […]
When was the last time you checked your own business website? If you haven’t checked it for a while, you’re not alone! Most businesses don’t really have reason to regularly check their own website, being too busy dealing with new enquiries, quotes, orders and general business management. An Up-To-Date Website is Vital for your Business! […]
We are asked often about which tools we use to help improve and grow business websites. As one of the areas top-rated website designers, over the years we have tried and tested over 100 and now seem to have settled on some absolute belters. Of course, if you can recommend any belters of your own, […]
Schema code on website pages is a much-overlooked aspect of best-practice SEO – or Search Engine Optimisation. SEO helps your website to be seen nearer the top of Google and Bing searches for relevant search keyphrases. Google & Bing advise the use of Schema code so that their algorithms can correctly and more easily process […]
Google uses an increasingly intelligent algorithm to decide which web pages rank highest for particular search phrases. Upgrades and changes are made nearly every day, some of them announced by Google, some not. Google Search wants to deliver relevant and useful results. Much work is going on right now to demote poor-qualityand potentially fraudulent pages. […]
With the many sales platforms available, retailers often have the problem of synchronising their stock levels. With the same products being sold from the physical store, a website, Amazon and Ebay, issues can easily arise. The most common problem is that of a retailer taking an order online only to find that the item has […]
Over the last couple of years Google has been quietly working on ‘Project Beacon’. A Beacon is a small device that you physically place in your business which will allegedly increase your visibility in Google search. It’s basically a little Bluetooth device (2 inches long) which auto-connects to any nearby smartphones that have location services […]
Ask many business owners about ‘online reviews’ and they will shudder – some are even positively paranoid about receiving a less than favourable review from a disgruntled client. When we advise that it is good practice to publish and actively encourage online reviews there is usually a short silence, then a look of absolute shock! […]
For organic search results Google uses an increasingly complex algorithm to determine which sites appear where in the listings. The algorithm is constantly evolving and a big reason for this is to try and combat false results caused by SEO practitioners attempting to cheat the system. Spam Links Google’s latest raft of significant changes to […]
Many SEO Consultants use less than ethical tactics to increase search engine rankings for a client website. One such tactic is the use of PBN’s or ‘Private Blog Networks’. About Private Blog Networks A Private Blog Network scheme involves setting up a large number of low-quality websites, on which are placed links to target websites […]
Four Rooms is one of Blackpool’s only 5 Star Bed & Breakfast establishments. A Boutique B&B close to The Winter Gardens and the Town Centre, it is run by Michael Elt and Paul Sinnott – who have put heart and soul into the business since taking it on almost 2 years ago. From first meeting […]
“Have a website built” they say, “you’ll make a fortune! Give up your day job and retire early just spending a few hours a week building up your online business.” So, you have a wonderful new website, looking pretty – but why is the business not coming in? “This is very different from running a […]
Is Sending Unsolicited Email Marketing Unlawful? Our guide explains the UK law surrounding this issue. A superb article by one of our clients – Ian Randall of Owllegal.org – on email marketing law. A: INTRODUCTION Once a business has defined its product and identified the market place for that product it comes face to face […]
Search Engine Optimisation, or ‘SEO’, is a vast and varied discipline. SEO work is continually evolving in line with new research and the advancing ‘artificial intelligence’ of the major search engines. Here are some of the most common current types of SEO work. Check our post here on SEO and how it should work. Technical […]
Just like a car engine, Google’s search engine or ‘algorithm’ is made up of many parts. It’s purpose of course is to deliver rapid, high quality, spam-free and relevant results to your search queries. In 2013 Google gave the current version of their search engine a name – ‘Hummingbird’. Just like car engine parts, Hummingbird […]
BEWARE of emails from the ‘European Company Network’ arriving in your mailbox inviting you to ‘update your company details for free’. You could unwittingly be signing up to 3 years of paying 995.00 Euros a year for a worthless directory listing! One such email managed to get through our Spam Filter this morning… There is […]
We look here at the importance of having quality content on your website to encourage high search engine rankings and enhance your users’ experience. SEO experts the world over will agree on the importance of having ‘quality content’ on your website to ensure a chance of higher rankings on search engine listings. Whilst there are […]
Your Business may have several Social Media Accounts. A Facebook Business Page, a Twitter account, a LinkedIn Page, and a Google+ Page are pretty much mandatory for every business, but depending on your business type you may also use Blogger, Delicious, Pinterest, SnapChat, Instagram or Tumblr too. Keeping all of these up to date can […]
Here we discuss the importance of regularly updating your website and how to come up with a method of making sure it gets done. How often do you update your website with fresh new content? No News is Bad News as far as modern search engines are concerned. Whilst Content is King with Google and […]
Common sense suggests that faster web pages are better for users. If your web page does not fully load within a few short seconds, research shows that a large percentage of users will leave your site. Back in the old days of web design almost everyone was on slow dial-up internet. As web developers we […]
Website security experts all agree on one thing at least – if your website is taking online payment or collecting sensitive information from users then it MUST be SSL enabled. Googe Ranks Secure Sites Higher Google, amongst other search engines, has now started to rank SSL enabled websites higher – as they are more trustworthy […]
Google has now started to give ranking favour to websites on mobile search that provide Accelerated Mobile Pages (AMP). Major online publishers are using AMP as well as Facebook Instant Articles to dramatically improve the service they offer to mobile users. Mobile users now make up a huge percentage of visitors to any website. As […]
Email Marketing is one of the most powerful ways to build your business. Here at CGain we manage professional email marketing campaigns for you, all you have to do is enjoy the extra business we bring your way. Just imagine if you had a database of EVERY one of your customers over the last few […]
Your website may look pretty to you, but is it search engine friendly? Google and Bing expect it to load quickly and have an ‘infrastructure’ in the coding behind your website’s ‘face’, this makes it easier for them to index and categorise your content – and thus present more relevant information to their users. Hence […]
Your website hosting package from CGain comes complete with a very powerful Email system. You can have unlimited email accounts, one for every person or department in your organisation – or just one – or even none (and have all mail redirected to your personal gmail or hotmail account). Webmail Access Webmail is like a […]
Anytime is always a good time to review and refresh your website. Web Guidelines from Google are constantly developing. Follow these tips and you will not go wrong! Check Everything! Check each page. Is all the crucial information correct, such as your address, phone number, services offered, opening hours and prices? Is all your product […]
Your website needs to be the central hub of your digital marketing strategy. Many businesses post regularly on social media platforms such as Facebook, but the problem is that these posts only ever reach a small percentage of the people ‘liking’ that page. Here’s how to get the most from your didgital marketing efforts… Your […]
Is your business operating it’s Facebook Page correctly? Follow our tips to make the most of this amazing and free social media marketing tool. Every business needs a Facebook Business Page. If you do not already have one, make one. It’s totally free. If you don’t know how, speak to us and we’ll help! Many […]
More people now access the internet though a mobile phone or a tablet device than by using a traditional desktop computer or laptop. Many business websites fail to look right on a small screen and can lack mobile functionality. This leads to lost sales opportunities. In 2015 Google rolled out ‘Mobilegeddon’ as an update to […]
As 2014 draws to a close, we catch up on the latest Guidelines from the major Search Engines and how they say they work out which websites come out on top in the listings. LATEST GOOGLE GUIDELINES The big-hitter of Search Engines, Google accounts for over 80% of internet searches in the UK. Google announced […]
We had an enquiry recently from a long-established local business. Well known in the town, they have been trading for over 30 years. With traditional marketing increasing in cost our client was beginning to look into digital marketing but did not know where to start. Following some keyword research and on completing an analysis of […]
Recently I was referred by a customer to a local Business Adviser who had a question from one of his clients. The client had signed up for a ‘Website Promotion SEO – Be No. 1 On Google’ package from another local company and the adviser and client were concerned that they were not seeing any […]
It might sound like simple common-sense – building a customer marketing database for your business – but in the real world very few businesses actually do this properly. At it’s most basic, your database should be used for communicating with your customers at least once a month. A monthly Newsletter can be an ideal starting […]
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