Metalfrog Studios, Search Engine Optimisation, Online Marketing and Web Blog

Don't Lose Sight of the Title!

2012-05-15T11:44:00.003+01:00

With all the hype about Google's latest algorithm (maths) updates, it is easy to forget about the basics that are needed to get high rankings. Before you work on the links to your website, your web page basics must be right.

For example, the title tag has a huge influence on the search engine positions of a web page. In addition, the title tag is very important because it is the first thing that people see in the search results. There are several things that you can do to optimize your web page titles.

Step 1: check the HTML code of your web pages

It is amazing how many pages have more than one title tag in the code. If your pages have more than one title tag, they will confuse search engine robots (spiders). The tags might not be read at all or, even worse, search engines might see this as a spamming attempt.

You can check the HTML code of your web pages normally by right clicking on the page itself.

Step 2: use your keywords in your web page titles.

Use the most appropriate and relevant keywords at the beginning of your web page titles. Many people only scan the beginning of the titles so make sure that the beginning of the title tag contains the right words.

Step 3: make the titles clear, predictable and irresistible.

Your viewer should know what your web page is about and therefore the title should lead to a page that meets their expectations.

The web page title is the first thing that people see in the search results. Make sure that the wording of your web page titles is appealing, emotional and irresistible.

Step 4: keep your titles short.

Although there is no official limit, you should now keep the length of your web page titles below 70 characters. The reason for that is that most search engines truncate the titles after 65-70 characters on the search result pages.

Step 5: remove unnecessary words.

Words such as "homepage", "Index" and your company name usually don't help your search engine rankings. Remove these words from the title tags of your web pages. Your title tags will become more relevant to the actual keywords then.

Step 6: use unique title tags.

Do not use the same title tags on more than one page. Every page should have a unique title tag that reflects the content of the web page. In general, optimise different pages of your website for different keywords. The more pages of your website you optimise the better.

Overriding Factors

Overriding all of this, remember that until you are on page 1 for any term or key word or phrase you want to be found on, understand that your title has to be in keeping with those on page 1. If not your title will not rank in a search engine score.

If you need any assistance then please contact Metalfrog Studios Limited, ask for me, Chris Wheeler. I will be happy to offer some advice and guidance.Call on 01603 861830 or email

Penguin Waddles in to Replace Panda!

2012-05-07T11:03:00.001+01:00

It appears that Google releases a new ranking algorithm, (maths to calculate ranking on search engines) update every week. A couple of weeks ago, Google announced yet another update (codename Penguin) that targets web spam.

What does this mean for your rankings and how must you react?

Google doesn't like web spam

Google's Cutts said:

“In the next few days, we’re launching an important algorithm change targeted at web spam. The change will decrease rankings for sites that we believe are violating Google’s existing quality guidelines.
We’ve always targeted web spam in our rankings, and this algorithm represents another improvement in our efforts to reduce web spam and promote high quality content.
While we can’t divulge specific signals because we don’t want to give people a way to game our search results and worsen the experience for users, our advice for webmasters is to focus on creating high quality sites that create a good user experience and employ white hat SEO methods instead of engaging in aggressive web spam tactics.”

Things that Google considers spam

The first example is a page that is stuffed with hundreds of keywords in a comma separated list.
Google doesn’t want that type of pages in the search results. The second example is a page that has normal text. However, the text contains keyword optimized links that are totally unrelated to the surrounding text.
Other things that Google considers spam are linking schemes, misleading redirects or purposeful duplicate content.
It will also crack down on cheap directories with paid for advertisements, with no categorisation.

Google says that the right kind of SEO is fine

A lot of people will confuse search engine optimisation with spamming. Spamming and SEO are two totally different things. Google’s latest announcement also contains a statement about “white hat” SEO:
"Effective search engine optimization (its the American spelling by the way!) can make a site more crawlable and make individual pages more accessible and easier to find.
'White hat' search engine optimizers often improve the usability of a site, help create great content, or make sites faster, which is good for both users and search engines."

How to react to Google's latest ranking algorithm

Google released two major Panda updates: one Panda update on April, 19th and the update explained above on April, 24th. If your web page rankings dropped on April, 19th, then you have to improve the quality of your web pages.
If your page rankings dropped on April, 24th, then you have to remove all spam elements from your web pages. If you think that your website was flagged by mistake, you can inform Google through a form which we can advise on if required.

Only use white-hat SEO methods if you want to be on the safe side
Use shady SEO methods and Google might penalize your website. If you want to be on the safe side, only use white-hat SEO methods.

A word of Cautionary Note

Once more, although this is from Google, we do not always take things at face value and the marketing aspect of their commentary always has to be viewed with some pragmatism. However, whit hat SEO has always been key to success and what this writer can tell you categorically is that since the change on May 1 (Codename Penguin), all our client sites have either not been impacted or there has been a positive outcome.

Google always said it did not delist websites, rather it ranked others above yours. In the statements made last week it appears that this is contradictory?

We wait with baited breath for the next update as we ppp..pick up a Penguin!

Developing Opportunities at Metalfrog Studios Limited

2012-05-04T07:26:00.000+01:00

In light of the expansion currently taking place at our web design company, I am pleased to announce that we have the current vacancy for a Junior Web Developer to join our family-run business. More details here:

http://www.gumtree.com/p/jobs/junior-web-developer-required-for-rapidly-growing-marketing-agency/101650031

If you want to email a CV, then do so to jobs@metalfrog.co.uk

Thanks

Building Links for Success

2012-05-01T11:52:00.000+01:00

A lot of people are unsure about the best way to get back-links to their website. There are one-way links, reciprocal links, no-follow links, paid links and more. I have written this to try to demystify the "art" of link building.

Stage 1 Ask the right questions

If back-links did not affect your rankings in any way, which type of back-links would you build?

It's an easy answer: You'd focus on the links that deliver visitors to your website. If you get back-links that deliver targeted visitors, you will make money/get enquiries with these links and you will increase your search engine rankings at the same time.

Stage 2 Reconsider no-follow links

If a no-follow link drives visitors to your site then it is always a good link. Added to that, no-follow links contribute to the natural link profile of your website.

When you find a website that could be a good link partner, don't worry about the no-follow attribute.

Stage 3 Reconsider your anchor texts

Providing the anchor text is related to your website, everything is fine. Don't try to get the perfect anchor text from every linking page.

The content around the link is often much more important for the click-through rate that a link gets. If it's in the right context, a simple "Click here" link might drive more visitors to your site than a link with an over-optimised anchor text.

Stage 4 Tell the other site why they should link to your site

Give the other site a tangible reason to link to your site. Some websites request money, others simply want a back-link or content that they can use on their pages (for example an article).

Some websites will link to you if you correct an error on their pages (a typo, a broken link, etc.).

Build links as if search engines did not exist. If you manage to get back-links that drive targeted visitors to your website, you will get additional sales and higher rankings on search engines.

Chris Wheeler
Metalfrog Studios Limited
http://www.metalfrog.co.uk and http://www.metalfrogstudios.com

The Dragon and The MetalFrog!

2012-04-03T07:58:00.002+01:00

OFFICIAL RYMAN PRESS RELEASE

TV DRAGON and Ryman boss Theo Paphitis has launched a new website for his Twitter-boosting Small Business Sunday.

The retail entrepreneur selects six small businesses each week to mention on the social media site. After analysing their pitches, he decides who to re-tweet to his 230,000 followers.

Hundreds of businesses have benefited from the Theo touch since the service was launched in October 2010.

Now to support the scheme, where Theo rewards small businesses that tweet to @TheoPaphitis and describe their business in one 140-character message, he has launched a new website - Theopaphitissbs.com - designed & developed by one of his weekly winners.

Mr Paphitis explained that Small Business Sunday - hashtag #SBS - has captured the imagination of entrepreneurs throughout Britain. "It has created a tremendous buzz among entrepreneurs and the small business community and is fast developing as an exciting new networking initiative," he said.

When Mr. Paphitis decided to launch a website for the service he turned to social media professional Chris Wheeler who runs Marketing Agency and web design company Metalfrog Studios Limited, from offices in Norwich.

The 43-year-old website designer, developer and search engine marketing professional had almost given up on his Small Business Sunday tweet after failing to get recognised by the business guru, who is chairman of the Ryman stationery group and owner of the lingerie company Boux Avenue. He also jointly owns Red Letter Days with fellow TV Dragon Peter Jones and has interests in a variety of other businesses in which he has invested through the hit television series.

Mr Wheeler, who employs eight staff staff including his wife, Julie, who is the company's finance director, said: "In July last year I decided to have one more attempt at grabbing Theo's attention. I resubmitted my tweet which explained how we offer a legal contract which guarantees success on search engines for UK businesses.

"The next morning I went in to work and realised that Metalfrog Studios had been one of Theo's chosen businesses and we had had 20,000 visitors to our website. It was my Eureka moment. Absolutely incredible. It has given the business a phenomenal boost."

Earlier this year, Mr Paphitis invited developers to pitch for the work of designing a website for Small Business Sunday and Metalfrog was awarded the contract.

Mr Wheeler added: "It has been an incredible journey since we won the pitch and I first met Theo and his team who run Ryman. I am very proud of the website we have produced and I am sure it will offer a focal point for these businesses."

Mr Paphitis said: "I admire people who have passion and energy. If you cannot bore your friends to death about your own small business then something is seriously wrong. I was struck by the number of business owners on Twitter who wanted to tell me about their new products and services.

"Small Business Sunday was born so that people have a specific time slot and can pitch their 'sell' directly to me.

"My vision is that everyone who has ever won an #SBS retweet from me becomes part of a friendly club. Like–minded individuals can share successes and learn.

"The website will give a valuable profile to the winners chosen to date and should help those who have not yet won but want some tips on how to do so. You will find news about the latest winners plus events and activities of interest.

"I know I have been lucky in business and I am keen now to spread goodwill to others, of course not forgetting that very often, you make your own luck by making use of every opportunity."

+To take part in Small Business Sunday describe your business in a tweet of 140 characters or less and direct it to @TheoPaphitis not forgetting the hashtag #SBS on a Sunday between 5pm and 7.30pm.

To contact Mr Wheeler at his office in Norwich please either view his website: http://www.metalfrog.co.uk or call 01603 861830

Laurie Stone Communications

07836 335 637

Can You Dig It?

2012-03-28T15:46:00.003+01:00

We are thrilled to announce that we have just put a new website live for existing client Meo Landscapes.

Greg had built a reputation for excellence, much the same as the one which follows Metalfrog Studios Limited. The business has expanded greatly thanks to its presence on page 1 of Google for major search terms related to the industry. Metalfrog began seo (search engine optimisation) and the site rose very quickly due to a program of link building and article writing.

Meo Landscapes has branched out (forgive the pun) to form a niche in playground landscaping and playground equipment logistics, in addition to its core business.

Metalfrog Studios Limited looks forward to a long and mutually beneficial relationship with Greg and his team, and we are sure that there will be more business as a result of the newly redesigned and developed site, and on-going marketing activity.

SEO: Are You a Leader or a Follower?

2012-03-26T16:21:00.002+01:00

In the past week or so there has been an awful lot of talk about the future of SEO, Google's changing algorithm and the possibilities that you may not actually need SEO at all on your site.

Many SEO "experts" are following Google's lead on this subject, but we are not. Why not? Surely Google cannot be wrong? Surely we should do as they say?

Not necessarily. Let us explain.

Google may be the panacea when it comes to search engine optimisation, but the fact remains that they are not always right. Sure, content is king and the need to constantly refresh and review the onsite text in your web pages is apparent and valid, but surely there is more to SEO than this?

For years we have been told that the Google maths (algorithm) for ranking a site has involved many different factors from link building to website code validation, readability to speed of server on which your website sits. Are we really to believe that this is just pushed out of the window and the "content is king" principal overtakes everything? We think not.

Instead of following the prescribed, pre-determined route, we are going to take our own path (as we have done many times over the years). We will see where this takes us, and ultimately see what effects this has on our own, and our client's, search engine ranking.

Followers are everywhere on the internet. Leaders are less easy to spot. So what are you, a leader or a follower? Are you going to simply take everything which Google has to preach at face value or are you going to choose your own destiny?

Clearly, there is a risk element here, as with most things in life. We have proven that Google is not always accurate, and certainly have seen that its analytics or its adwords keywords tools are either misleading or inaccurate or both.
However, this said, we are sure that the majority of "experts" choose to belive everything Google tells them, without even giving a thought to real world practicalities such as commercial realisation where Google is concerned.

Google is a money making venture, not a charity. It exists not to help you, but to make money from you. There are many arguments for and against. We'll leave you to decide who to believe, who to trust, and who to partner to ensure your site gets the return it deserves.

Just Walking the Dog!

2012-03-26T15:23:00.000+01:00

We are pleased to announce the arrival of a new website for Lancashire based startup business, K9-Walking.

Founded by new entrepreneur, Sandra Crawshaw, K9 is a business which has grown rapidly since its launch 6 months ago. It has gone from strength to strength in the past few months, and Sandra has gained business simply with the website holding page we built for her.

Sandra has built up not only a local following, but also a thriving Facebook and Twitter page. As a result of this the business has evolved into a dog sitting service, as well as a dog walking one.

If you think you could benefit from Sandra's service and have little or no time to walk your pet pooch, or you need a reliable, trustworthy person to look after your dog in the comfort of your own home during a holiday, then contact Sandra now through her website: http://www.k9-walking.co.uk

Metalfrog Studios Limited are going to begin search engine optimisation (SEO) on the site in the coming days, so you can be sure it won't be hard to track down K9-Walking!

Jamieson Property Search Choose Metalfrog Studios Limited

2012-03-26T14:49:00.003+01:00

Jamieson Property Search is delighted to confirm that it has engaged the services of Metalfrog Studios Limited to design and implement a client e-news campaign and redesign its Website.

Said Jamie Jamieson, owner: “The team at Metalfrog Studios really pulled out all the stops to get our first e-news out on time and I’ve been thrilled with the results. One of my competitors rang me up the same day to congratulate me on both the content and the design – and to say it was better than theirs! Most importantly, the e-news has achieved what it set out to – it’s reminded my clients that I’m here, while reflecting the Jamieson Property Search brand in an engaging and wholly professional manner. I am looking forward to working with Chris and his team on the re-design of my website.”

Google: Is it the Best Search Engine?

2012-03-15T08:26:00.001Z

Some of the search engine optimisation team members at Metalfrog Studios have been optimising websites since before Google ever came into existence and have done many bench tests on analytics, stats, user experience etc. What I can tell you from what I have found is that Google is actually not a very good search engine at all (shock horror, the man's mad I hear you cry!).

The results you get for terms searched are wide and varied, especially outside the top 10. Yahoo! is the best search engine algorithmically (their maths to ascertain your ranking), and Bing is taking Google market share daily.

Microsoft have never had a great search engine or algorithm (see MSN Live). This is why they bid something in the region of $15bn for Yahoo! 3 years or so ago, and this is why it was rejected, but they formed an alliance which produced Bing.

Equally, note that Yahoo! is still the favoured choice of BT. This means that every router which leaves BT comes with BT Yahoo! as its preferred engine.

Having said all this, you don't Yahoo! something, do you, you Google it!

A Year in the Life of Panda

2012-03-03T15:21:00.003Z

We thought it might be quite a nice idea to try to cover the past year's activity with regards to Google's Panda algorithm (maths to decide ranking).

Panda 1.0 : 24th February 2011

Google begins to focus on content farm websites which contain thousands of poor quality, user created pages.

Panda 2.0 : 11th April 2011

Initially the rollout of Panda was in the United States of America, however now they roll this out around the world. At the time of this update Google, for the first time, publicly admitted that they had used data on blocked sites to influence rankings. In reality this update only affected about 2% of all search queries.

Panda 2.1 and Panda 2.2 : 10th May 2011 and June 16th 2011

Very minor adjustments were made. These affected even less searches than the previous one. 2.2 was particularly concerned with scraper sites (sites lifting content from other sites) outranking the original content sites it loves.

Panda 2.3 : July 26th 2011

Google said that this update was to incorporate new maths (or signals as they call them) which differentiated between high and low quality sites.

Panda 2.4 : August 2011

The main aim of this update was to improve search results across multiple languages.

Panda 2.5 : September 30th 2011

This latest result bought some major sites higher up the rankings. These included foxnews.com and android.com. SEO professionals continue to express the relevance and importance of quality links - non paid for content. Concern expressed over directories/blogs/forums charging for links on their site. Google starts to police this in US, but rest of world is going to see more of this over the coming months and years. Be warned!

Panda 3.1 : 18th November 2011

This is a minor update and only affects around 1% of the total number of worldwide searches.

January 30-Pack : 5th January 2012

This is a roll-up pack of 30 different updates. Within this there is a package called Megasitelinks. This can show site links specific to your region.Image searches are updated to search not only by relevancy but also by the quality of the image source.
The SPAM detection algorithm is also applied to this update.

Search + Your World : 10th January 2012

Google begin to push personalisation in search with more emphasis obviously placed upon Google +1 being a factor in the search engine ranking position of your site.

Social personalisation in the search can also now be toggled on and off in advanced search settings on Google.

Metalfrog and The Apprentice

2012-02-27T12:49:00.001Z

We are delighted to announce the launch of the new website for our client Claire Young - http://www.claireyoung.co.uk.

Claire was a finalist in the 2008 series of BBC1's popular The Apprentice program, and has subsequently gone on to become a successful businesswoman and entrepreneur in her own right.
She currently has two main projects - School Speakers: a business offering motivational speaking to schools, colleges and universities, and Teenbiz: a scheme which offers children aged 13-18 a mentor, a bursary, and an insight into life in the business world.

Claire was referred to Metalfrog Studios Limited by Dragon Theo Paphitis in 2011, and we have built three websites for her, created new logo designs for both Teenbiz and School Speakers, and designed mail outs for School Speakers too.

Recently Claire visited us here in Norfolk and spoke at The Reepham Business Group and also paid a visit to Aylsham High School. They won Claire for a day in a competition!

To find out more please visit her site.

To see how our web design company may be able to help you in your online marketing strategy, then please get in touch

Social Media Experts - There's One on Every Street Corner

2012-02-15T16:08:00.000Z

Don't believe that there are social media experts. In fact in Internet Land there are a lot of self proclamation statements by people who have no real substance an who re-hash (no Twitter pun intended) someone else's information and often get paid for it!

I have been on the Internet since the first commercial Internet was started in 1993. I actually worked in internal communication division at ICL in Stevenage in 1988 and we evolved a social network internally. I joined Twitter when formed in 2006 - and promptly left as there was no search engine ranking benefit and I had no real need for it. I have recently come back to it (2009). Ditto FB, but different timeline. Always Digg and Delicious.

Am I an expert? No.
Do I understand social media management? Yes, but it is unique for each case.
Am I still learning? Of course.

I run 3 groups under the "for the bewildered" on LinkedIn . Started Jan 2010 as an antidote to experts, gurus, wizards, warlocks and other such individuals proclaiming expertise.

If you are serious about social media, most of it is about common sense, reputation management, life experiences, empathy, pathos, coming from you, not others.

Where this new breed of social media entrepreneurs comes from is beyond me. But what I can tell you is that as with all things Internet, time served professionals with proven track records are the only sure way of getting a hope of success.

Social Media Management: Created by demand. Required by Many. Delivered by few.

Chris Wheeler

Metalfrog Studios Limited Win Major Charity Marketing Contract

2012-02-13T12:52:00.000Z

We are delighted to announce that Metalfrog Studios Limited has won a pitch to re-market and re-brand National Child Protection Charity - Freedom.

Until now, the main aim of the charity has been to support victims of honour killings (which it regards as dis-honour killings), child abuse and kidnap involving predominantly Asian families. However the charity, with our marketing help, is going to be focusing on child safety and child abuse protection across all creeds and colours.
The charity is headed by Lord Harris of Haringey.

As part of this our web design company will be carrying out digital photography, new website design and web development, search engine optimisation, as well as creating iPhone, Android and Blackberry compatible application for smart phones. There are going to be some innovative features in this app - more soon.

Chris Wheeler, Managing Director of award winning Metalfrog, said "We were asked to pitch for this project against several major agencies, many of whom had more experience in this sector. However, we were able to prove that we could come up with an all round strategy which was acceptable, meaningful, shifted the focus of the charity, and raised awareness.

Aneeta Prem, Trustee of the Charity, says:
"Freedom chose to work with Chris and his team at Metalfrog as they are a friendly dynamic and professional company, who had wide range of experience and expertise in web development. Metalfrog offered a competitive price and could deliver all our needs under one roof with our web design and App development as well as guaranteeing us page one on search engines."

Aneeta has published a very successful new book called "but it's not fair" which has been widely acclaimed and well received by people of all ages and races.

More soon on this project as it develops.

E-Commerce Websites Special Offer for February

2012-02-02T17:55:00.001Z

During the month of February we are offering 10 companies the opportunity to have a newly designed online shopping cart* from which to launch a business online. The cost is an amazingly special offer of £1500 plus VAT. The first 10 companies which apply will be offered a custom designed website with a year's free website hosting on a shared server, and an initial submission to the search engines. The site will be search engine friendly in any case.

*winners will be notified. You should contact us by email at eshopoffer@metalfrog.co.uk and we will notify the first ten companies who send an email to us by the end of February. Client will be required to supply copy and images and populate the site with product data in addition to the initial build.

Experienced Commercial Web Designers Wanted for Award Winning Agency in Norwich | Web Design & Web Developers Jobs | Gumtree.com

2012-01-28T21:20:00.000Z

Experienced Commercial Web Designers Wanted for Award Winning Agency in Norwich | Web Design & Web Developers Jobs | Gumtree.com

Metalfrog Studios: Growth, Business, Thanks and Thoughts

2011-12-15T14:49:00.000Z

Metalfrog Studios Growth:

This year has been yet another record breaking year here at Metalfrog Studios Limited. Our business continues to flourish through multiple channels of influence – namely word of mouth, search engine positioning and, of course, social media exposure.
It has been a challenging year for a lot of businesses, both locally and nationally. Finances have been tight for a lot and cash flow is always a major consideration. I am pleased to say that Metalfrog Studios and its client's appear to be weathering the storm well. In fact this year we have really gone from being a local web design company to a national full service marketing agency. We have managed to grow at an average rate of 80% month on month for the past year, which obviously has many implications on the business - Not least of which is staffing and accommodation.
Equally, we have managed to take a lot of local businesses and place them on a national stage – exposing them to wider business opportunities.

We are looking to expand the number of offices we have here to enable us to have more space. We are in negotiation with our landlord regarding taking more units in this business park, and will advise when this happens.

New personnel:

I am delighted with the integration of new staff at Metalfrog Studios. The combination of design, development , marketing, search engine marketing and creative skills is, I believe, unparalleled in this region. Even more remarkable is that we have a highly professional team who all understand the need for our clients to achieve a return on investment, not just something pretty on the eye. We have a great balance including our latest apprentice from the University of East Anglia, whom we took on under the Project Evolve program, and then gave him a job at the end of it.
We are looking to recruit at least 2 more people (probably designers rather than coders in the new year, so if you know anyone who might fit the bill?).

New sites:

Some of you may be aware that we re-built and relaunched our website: http://www.metalfrog.co.uk in mid November. The response to this has been phenomenal, and we are now seeing more enquiries. The previous site was nearly 4 years old and looked dated. Equally, we could not easily add to the site with new areas such as digital photography, search engine training etc, so the new site is built in a modular way which allows us to not only expand it in the future, but also ensure its friendliness on the search engines. This morning we are on page 4 on Google across the web for the term "web design company" and the likelihood is that we shall be page 1 for this term by the end of Spring 2012.

Our new http://www.metalfrogstudios.com site will be launched over Xmas, and this will be a complete departure from traditional sites.
We have looked at this site from the point of view of advice, free information and agency relationships (we now have nearly 20 agencies reselling Metalfrog Studios SEO services countrywide). This is a really exciting and bold site, and I am sure that you will see how unique
it is , and how engaging too.

New clients:

in July this year we had a commendation from Theo Paphitis , through social media. Theo referred us to Claire Young (former finalist in the BBC Apprentice Series). We have been delighted to work with Claire , and her team, on several projects including http://www.teenbiz.org.uk, http://www.schoolspeakers.co.uk and we are currently finalising the new Claire Young personal site. This should be live in the coming days and again will be a very interactive experience. in turn, Claire has kindly referred us on to several companies for more business.

Locally, we have new clients in all sectors of commerce and industry. Latest websites to go live include:

http://www.britanniablinds.co.uk
http://www.flatroofnorfolk.co.uk
http://www.morgan-bishop.co.uk
http://www.westlandswow.co.uk

Nationally, our latest site went live yesterday:

Gas Blowback Guns   A site from which to buy Gas Blowback Airsoft Guns and Accessories

This site is already page 1 Google for major search terms and enquiry has already come through!

New sites on the horizon:

http://www.pukkatents.co.uk
A online community/shopping experience for people who have a passion for camping outdoors, or simply setting up a tent in their garden on a summer's day

http://www.totally-av.co.uk
An online shop offering all things audi visual at incredible prices.

Both of these sites have already begun to be optimised, and have a bright future for their respective owners.

New sites in early new year for :

MEO Landscapes
Abbey Products
LIfeMatters Group
K9 Walking
Metalfrog Studios
New site for Carpet Fitting Business
New bathroom and bathroom accessories website
A new site for homemade fabrics and cushions

And many more..

On average we are building 8-10 sites a week at present, and we have site projects currently in development until May 2012. Added to this we have some rather exciting projects about to drop. One is for an online bathroom shop. the other involved in the legal services sector (I can say no more about this as we are bound by a confidentiality agreement), but suffice to say, this could make the owners of the site an awful lot of money.

New Avenues:

In the coming 12 months we are going to be pushing SEO training courses. Unlike our so-called competitors in this area, our offering will be on a 1 to 1 basis, and will not be simple sweeping statements about how to get your website to page 1 on search engines. It will be a planned, methodical series of courses (clearly beginner, intermediate and expert), which will enable web masters/site owners to be able to manage their own online marketing, but with Metalfrog Studios as ongoing backup for SEO services should they need us. I think that this is a unique service, but one which is needed. We shall also be offering these training courses to our agents for their clients to attend, or for them to learn more.

Agency Agreements:

In addition, we have three new reseller agents this year who are offering our services to their clients. We are in negotiations with 2 local agencies and three national ones to do the same next year.

2012:

Next year sees the 5th anniversary of Metalfrog Studios in its current guise. This has been a roller coaster of a journey, both for me and for the business. Those of you who know me well will know that I had a very bad business partnership upon arriving in Norfolk, and this left me virtually penniless. But I sold my house, put the money into the business and started again. With the help of local companies, and friends, the business started to make waves in Norfolk, and our reputation started to grow. We went to Drayton old Lodge in 2006 and spent just over 3 years there. Unbelievably, we are now into our second year in Beech Avenue (where does time go?). We have had only a couple of minor personnel changes in this time, but I am pleased to say that the core of Julie, Jenny and I has remained solid. As mentioned, we now have some great people working for us, and hopefully more to come.

The Value of Metalfrog to Your Business:

Clients have come to realise the value in the services we deliver and understand (or are beginning to) , that time equals money, and that if you want something to be perfect then you have to trust your marketing partner, listen to their advice and be prepared to pay for the time and expertise you are being offered. Over the years we have shown that those who work with us or partner us in this way reap the highest rewards when it comes to marketing.

So the future is looking healthy, but I am never complacent. We still have to maintain the highest of standards, and still have to try to innovate and ensure that our work stands out for all to see. We are not afraid to take criticism, and we are also not perfect. We try to accommodate all needs, and we strive for excellence. Sometimes we have situations which are out of our control, normally based around local broadband speed, but in the main the ship is pretty steady. I hope that you have all seen how we positively affect business profiles. Those of you whom I have copied into this who are not yet customers, we hope you will become so in 2012, and look forward to opening new avenues of income for you. Those of you whose SEO Projects finished in 2011, then we wish you well with your sites for the future.

Finally:

It just remains for me to wish you a very Merry Christmas and a Happy and Health New Year. I am reminded (mostly by Julie) that work is not everything, and recent tragedies have gone to strengthen that argument.
Sometimes, I lose sight of what is important, but try to get a balance between home and work life which doesn't always succeed. If I am going to make a resolution in 2012 ( and I never do) , then it will be to try to manage time better and look at what is important in life – not just work.

I hope that you all have a prosperous 2012 and look forward to a long and mutually beneficial working relationships with you all. I thank you sincerely for all the business you have given and, if you are a supplier, for the products/services you have supplied to Metalfrog Studios Limited over 2011.

Kind regards and best wishes.

Chris Wheeler
Managing Director
Metalfrog Studios Limited

New Site for Metalfrog Studios Limited

2011-11-15T08:27:00.001Z

We are delighted to announce the arrival of our new website: http://www.metalfrog.co.uk. Features included in the new site:

Web Design and Web Development Overviews
Small Business Website Starter Packs
SEO Services
SEO Advice
Tips
Graphic Design Capabilities
Marketing Services
Business Web Hosting
Live Chat and Assistance
Iphone, Android and Blackberry Application Development
Case Studies

We hope you enjoy the new site and look forward to your comments. Whether you want to use our company for a one off service, or as a full time marketing partner, there are the skills, experience and dedication to ensure success for your business online of offline.

Remember: Our clients are country-wide, not just in Norwich or Norfolk, and all receive the same attention to detail, responsiveness and customer care. Equally, the only service we outsource is physical printing - keeping control of the process on all media. We have relationships with offline PR Agencies, should you need to spread the word offline too!

Why not call us on 01603 861830 for a free no-obligation chat?

Recommended Tools to Assist Web Masters

2011-11-10T12:08:00.000Z

If you want to try to get your website to page 1 on major search engines on major terms then there are a range of software packages out there to assist.

Some of the better ones include :

WEB CEO
SEO MOZ
SEO Quake
IBP
SEO Powersuite

And there are many more online.

However, take heed that these tools are not the be all and end all and they will assist you, but are not the overall solution. Also, some are free , some are paid for. You need to be able to understand code to get the best out of your SEO and also you need to more than aware that with the ever-changing nature of the Google mathematics (algorithm), that this is going to be a very time intensive and laborious process.

If you don't have the time it is probably better to outsource to a professional seo services agency and therefore concentrate on other aspects of your business or your marketing.

But if you do have time and understanding, then these will aid you iin your quest for website page 1 status in the search engines.

New Sites for Dog Walking and Roofing!

2011-11-08T07:31:00.001Z

This morning we are delighted to announce the arrival of two new projects:

K9 Walking is a dog walking and dog sitting service based in Lancashire, UK. The service allows you to have your dog walked by professionals, who are also great animal lovers. Metalfrog Studios Limited was commissioned to build a new website for the business and is going to be ensuring its success on the search engines with our seo services being employed. We were asked to create a new name, a new brand identity and a new web design.

At present there is a holding page up with a new website coming soon.

Please checkout: http://www.k9-walking.co.uk

Secondly, our web design company was asked to build a website for local flat roofing specialists , Freedom Fibreglass Roofing.

They actually had a Yellow Pages website, but it was not generating any business for them. Metalfrog Studios Limited was asked to build a functional website which would show the products and services in their best light, while offering case studies and testimonials.

The audience being slightly older, we also paid special attention to the font size and have tried to ensure that the site is as readable and ease to navigate as possible. Our SEO Services team are now in the process of getting the site to page 1 on Google for search terms related to the business.

You can see the results of our work here:

http://www.flatroofnorfolk.co.uk

New site Launch for School Speakers

2011-11-02T11:16:00.000Z

Following on from the successful launch yesterday of teenbiz.org.uk, for serial entrepreneurs, Claire Young and Peter Jones, we are delighted to announce the arrival of the new School Speakers website.

The project was to completely re-brand School Speakers with a new graphic design for the logo. Our web design company then set about creating a functional but visually stunning website for them. In addition we have created a series of marketing materials and leaflets from which to launch the new brand.

We have used our own custom content management system, built our own unique events calendar, and have integrated social media into the site.

School Speakers has years of experience in providing expert speakers in all manner of areas of interest, to schools, colleges and universities, offering motivational speaking and coaching.

We look forward to a long relationship with School Speakers.

New Site Launch for Apprentice Claire and Dragon Jones

2011-11-01T17:36:00.000Z

Metalfrog Studios Limited was delighted to have been referred to Claire Young, finalist of the 2008 season of BBC1's hit show, The Apprentice, by none other than Theo Paphitis - Entrepreneur and Dragon.

We were commissioned to create a new jazzy logo for Teenbiz and create a website: http://www.teenbiz.org.uk

Our web design company set about putting together a structure which was both business like and funky at the same time and one which, like Claire and Peter Jones ( a fellow Dragon and Teenbiz Board member) was very dynamic, modern and would engage and inspire.

The results are there for all to see and we are now working on new logo's, websites and other marketing for Claire covering her School Speakers project, as well as a new site for http://www.claireyoung.co.uk.

Watch this space

Chris Wheeler

An Insight into Anchor Links!

2011-10-19T09:36:00.000+01:00

Microsoft has published an application patent which offers more insight into how search engines use anchor text to rank a website.

A recently published patent application of Microsoft gives further insight on how search engines use the anchor text in links to rank web pages. Not all links are created equally even if they use the same anchor text.

What is the anchor text?

The anchor text is the text that is used in the link on your site which goes to another web page. It is an highly prestigious factor in the ranking maths (technically known as algorithms) of Google, Bing, Yahoo! and other search engines.

The greater the number of pages which link to another web page, the more probability there is of the website ranking higher in the search listings.

How do search engines use the anchor text in ranking algorithms?

A lot of people believe that links with the same anchor text are equally important. The new patent indicates that this is not, in fact, true.

Bing wants to understand the relationships between websites that link to the same page with the same anchor text, and the relationship between pages that link to another page.|

If a number of pages link to the same page with the same anchor text, Bing examines these pages to check if they link to many pages which are the same in content.If there is a measurable increase in the overlap between the two, then Bing is likely to discount the link as spammy.

Bing monitors the level of dependence between the linked page and the linking page. If the linking site links to many pages of the linked site, the pages are probably dependent and the influence of the links will be reduced.

Bing tries to detect several different dependency situations:
Copied pages or mirror sites.
Source sites that have a duplicate destination site and where the source sites are owned and designed by the same users - who execute SEO Services - In our business known as "black hat" linking.
Links which are artificially added to a site by a source such as a hacker or spammer, or by an automated program. Often these highly misleading links are hard to find as they are added to the web page via invisible blocks.
The relevance of an anchor text seems to depend on many different factors, including the relation of the linking pages to the linked page.

Even though this is a patent which is filed by Microsoft (under the Bing umbrella), It appears likely to this author that the same methods and practices are employed by Google, Yahoo! and other engines.

Chris Wheeler
Metalfrog Studios Limited

Google Launches Another Panda Update

2011-10-13T08:22:00.001+01:00

Last week Google launched another update to its Panda Algorithm (the mathematics it uses to ascertain your search engine ranking position).

This update concerns itself with extending the new Google quality standards Google has imposed on web site owners.

A lot of people believe that the increase in quality standards is multi-reasoned. Google say that they are trying to get rid of sites which are home made, of poor quality, on slow servers, and not correctly coded (to name but a few things).

This is just one of the 500 or so changes Google makes to its algorithm every year, but watch this space as things will continue on this track.

Amongst areas now being looked at are:

Spelling and grammatical errors.
Reasoned content.
Links to backup statements made on your site.
IP address location - If your site is hosted in India and you are a UK business your rank will be affected.
Content repetition.

If you want to find out more then please contact our SEO services team at Metalfrog Studios Limited. We are offering a free web page analysis report which will determine how likely your Web Design Companyis to get to page 1 on Google.

Chris Wheeler

My Tribute to Steve Jobs

2011-10-08T18:52:00.002+01:00

Stylish
Tablet
Entrepreneur
Visionary
Enterprising
Jovial
Objective
Brilliant
Sadlymissed

RIP Steve Jobs.Genius
1955-2011
Chris Wheeler