Search engine optimization for photography websites.
Google is becoming more human. Make it your friend.
I was fortunate to be recently invited to the WordPress Photography Podcast for a 30-minute chat with Scott Wyden Kivowitz, and we cover a few topics that I care about.
Read articleIs it's difficult to include a target keyphrase into your content? Learn some strategies you can use when natural language fails you: use variations/inversions, use the words separately, or only show them to Google.
Read articleAnswering your questions about updating old blog posts & broken links, what to do after launching a site, image download prices & fixing 301 redirects.
Read articleIs your website ranking for completely unrelated keywords because of a rogue post? Should you delete it or try to update it to promote your more important pages or services?
Read articleDon't try to jam keywords into your SEO tags, into the page templates on your website, or into the image ALT tags. Take some time to eliminate any existing "spammy" SEO attempts and to write unique SEO tags (or image ALT tags).
Read articleIf you're a photographer looking to improve your portfolio website and your Google rankings, should you be using "photographer" or "photography" in your content? Is it the same thing to Google? Let's find out.
Read articleAnswering your questions about including text on the homepage, whether pages rank better than posts, image ALT tags & sharing buttons.
Read articleMany photographers are still following old SEO tips, some of which no longer work or are even hurting their chances to rank well. Learn what SEO strategies to avoid and what to do instead to make Google happy.
Read articleThe fact that all major social media and video platforms allow turning the autoplay feature on (or off), is a clear sign of how wide-spread and popular autoplay videos are. Here are 10 strong reasons to add auto-playing music or videos to your website. Or not.
Read articleA step-by-step process for changing your site's URL while maintaining search engine rankings and avoiding indexing problems. Especially important when rebranding your business or when switching to a shorter domain name.
Read articleAnswering your questions about keeping old portfolio images on your site, using dashes in domain names, transitioning from Blogger to WP, Yoast media redirection settings & more.
Read articleI've been working as a web-designer on photography websites since 2010 and I noticed a few patterns in my work. Here are some common photographer "blind spots" or things they're struggling with.
Read articleFocusing on SEO can help you grow your business, but not at the expense of huge user-experience mistakes. Let's define your website priorities and set the in the right order.
Read articleBrowsing habits, in particular, are changing over time; and without revamping your photography website based on recent industry standards, you're leaving money on the table (low traffic, poor conversion rates, fewer leads and sales)
Read articleI'm back on the PhotoBizX podcast with a really long and detailed conversation (with host Andrew Hellmich) about user experience in photography websites. Andrew and I cover (almost) everything you need to know for building a great photography website.
Read articleCollection of recommended WordPress plugins (that I'm often using when building photography websites). Almost all plugins below have excellent reviews & a rating of at least 4 out of 5 stars, and have been thoroughly revised and tested.
Read articleHow do you decide what platform to build your photography website on? WordPress has become very popular, but photographer-specific tools have their own strong features. This article will help you decide which best fits your needs.
Read articleSEO procrastination is too common among photographers, often times actually damaging their business. There's a time for SEO work, of course, but other website changes should be taken care of first. Make sure your website completely nails these issues before worrying about traffic and SEO.
Read articleAnswering your questions about filtering your own visits in Google Analytics, the balance between retina image quality and website performance, selling high-res images while still protecting them, using Yoast's focus keyword feature.
Read articleI was recently invited for a live Facebook event (hosted by Julie Christie from Togs in Business) where I shared some insights into what photographers like you should be thinking about when it comes to photography website user experience.
Read articleGoogle now displays longer description snippets in their search results. Learn what means for SEO, how to take advantage of the longer SEO meta-descriptions, and how to track your results in Google Search Console.
Read articleThe Google Search Console SEO tool has been redesigned from scratch, with indexing and search performance reports will provide even more insights into how you can improve your website (both in Google's eyes and for your human visitors). Here's what new and how to get useful insights from it.
Read articleSEO is not something you can crank out in a few weeks or months, and then just expect a traffic deluge to come. Better rankings require patience, dedication, and, of course, a commitment to quality content.
Read articleMake your photography business more easily discoverable on Google Search and Maps by creating a free Google My Business listing and getting reviews.
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