Need Suggestions for My Website?

Question

My website is www.caddraftingsolutions .com

I started a CAD Drafting service from my home and started to get the word out about a month ago. I've tried direct mail, will be doing a Home Show soon and got a website and have been trying to create some good content so that it hopefully moves me up the list in search engines. I'm still trying to understand the whole SEO and searching for ways to improve my website but I feel like I'm at a dead end. I am growing quite impatient with the lack of customers and growth of my business just after a month so please help.

I used DomainDirect.com to make my website so I chose from a database of templates. I can't change many of the border features and I have tried inserting an Ask.com form so that I can get search engine results but don't work. So other then the bordering (what I can't change) what do you think I need to do to improve on? Any suggestions would be great. Thank you from a worried business owner determined to grow.

Answer 1

Hi Janet -

OK let's be honest - do you think your website is the same quality as your drafting?

Of course it isn't. Unless you have a high quality website it will not appear in the search engines for the terms your potential clients might search for and if someone finds it by accident they will take one quick look and go somewhere else. Sad but true and I hope you don't mind me saying so - it will save you a lot of heartache in the future if you come to terms with it now.

If you really want to design your own website then read and study these excellent starter books:

Don’t Make Me Think by Steve Krug
Prioritizing Web Usability by Jakob Nielsen
Designing With Web Standards, 2nd edition by Jeffrey Zeldman
And for SEO look through http://www.seo-blog.com/

If you can't devote the time to learning about web design and what makes a high quality and successful website then employ a local web designer to do it for you.

Make sure that the web designer you choose has a portfolio of successful websites (call the site owners for a references) and also make sure they know all about search engine optimization.

Hope that helps and good luck with your business!

Answer 2

Your #1 reason for poor search results is due to the lack of control you have over the html code, the tags, attributes. You need to be able to change the html code to add keywords, meta tag descriptions and other things like the robot.txt file.

The best way to solve the problem is to buy your own domain name. Make your own webpages, Then you have complete control over all aspects of your html code. This can take some time. Implement all of them.

When your seo is done to the best of your ability and satisfaction, go to all the free directories, and online classified sites you can find and submit your url to them. The search engines will find you eventually. However you must have good content as well. You must target your website to all the local outlets. Look for websites based in your community, look up your city or town online, target your market using google adwords. Are there any services or products you have that you can sell globaly. Offer them on your site. If you don't. Find some products/services that compliment your line of work, and theme of your website, then promote them from your site. There are hundreds of places that will give you a commission for selling their stuff. It won't cost you anything either. You could offer cad drafting tools of the trade, offer free inforamtion and advice, use a blog, and get a free forum. Link it to your site, now you can have a forum all about drafting. People drop by leave comments, reply to questions and so on. Use an auto-responder on your site. Offer people something free, (info or advice, or free shareware) in exchange for their name and email address.

That way you can build a list over time. Read up more on this.
There's so many ways to market your site. You just need to be aware of them.
Here are several ways to maket your business online.
http://www.homeforwork.ws/training.html- updated site coming soon.

Answer 3

Hi there, I would take the advice of others in terms of the design of the website, but as an advertising agency professional of more than 11 years, I would also have a look at the copy you have on the front page of your site.
Before I start, I am more than happy to give you more pointers on copy if you need assistance just email.
The copy as it stands makes you appear as a very small one person operation, who will only focus on the market within your own backyard. You should think about refining it more, as with the internet you could do work for anyone in any state. I would give a brief outline of what sets you apart from others, experience doing this kind of work and the services you can offer. All this can still be expanded on in other sections of the site.
I would also reconsider the use of the word 'customers' in favour of clients...customers projects an image of purchasing in a supermarket. Also change 'locals' because there are so many more people out there who need such services than your local community.
With your advantages, dont just consider the advantages of the process, but also the advantages of using you/your company over others...anyone can do CAD design, but whats makes you special.
In turnaround times under FAQ, you mention added cost...never include reference to added costs, this immmediately conjurs up images of projects that suddenly have added costs. Perhaps give average turnaround times for projcts you have undertaken already and indicate somewhere that quotes will be furnishd prior to commencement of the project.
Under your privacy statement, I would remove the referral to analysis on marketing etc as I would think that my information may be used for further marketing you may be doing. You could use a box that they can tick if the do not wish to receive further correspondence from your company.
The industry you are working in is a technological type and your site should reflect this.
There is a myriad of ways you could market your company to get better responses, including small local newspaper advertisements, local telephone directory (yellowpages) however your web page will be the primary tool which will direct people to you.
One month is not a long time in the business world, so dont panic just yet, but I do recommend taking others advice on updating the look of your site. Have a think about the copy if you have the time, as it is not only pictures that people look at, if they are on your site, they want to read something that ill make them come to you, not go elsewhere. Perhaps have a look at some of your competitions sites for inspiration.
Good luck...but dont panic, it will happen.

Answer 4

Small Business Marketing Strategy: Target the up-and-coming search engines

While Google still rules the roost when it comes to Internet search engines, and Yahoo is firmly entrenched in second spot, a number of new start-ups are hoping to give them a run for their money. And a good small business marketing strategy would be to check them out and see how you can make them work for your site!

Some of the new up-and-comers include:

Powerset (www.powerset.com): A "natural language" search engine

Hakia (www.hakia.com): A "meaning-based" search engine

Wikia(www.wikia.com): A "community-based" search engine

ChaCha(www.chacha.com): A "social networking-based" search engine

Snap (www.snap.com): A search engine that offers visual previews

It's a smart small business marketing strategy to continue optimizing for the Google, Yahoo, and MSN search engines as they are by far and away the most popular -- but niche search engines could provide new opportunities to reach your market. Be sure to check them out!

Answer 5

I can understand what your feeling, I have visited your site,there are something to say. In your page, the left navigation are using images, it should be text better.And the HTML code is overstaffed and you use frame, all of this are not good to search engine..., the font is still not good...

And i think you should exchange your site to others, and submit your URL to the social networking(IE. digg.com) to make many people visit your site, and you still can advert on classified site like craigslist.org, it's free...

You should do anything that can advance your site's popularity.

If you have any obfuscation, you can mail to me [e-mail], i'm happy to answer your question.

Answer 6

-First (it very very important ) change your design framset did not work for you and I think you are new the best way is to build your templates you can learn:
here http://www.w3schools.com
image did not work just one per web page and use atl image
- posting in forum: seo forum to learn
- write articles and submit them into directory such as ezinearticles and go articles
- it is better to use (video) and submit it to youtube and others free video web sites,
- use squidoo Lens about your topic, it did not need any Html knowledge and can get traffic.
- build blog with wordpress
-lens and blog is more and more interested for you to get traffic but it is important to promote them (learn to change that web site because you will waste your time) and it is very hard even impossible to get traffic with this web site (sorry).
- visit forum: webproworld, v7n, digital point, google community,....you will get more information.
-why not build blog : Yahoo 360. There are many promote and search engines love blogs and lens
- ask your friends to bookmark your blog, web sites,...

Answer 7

look one thing always keep in mind that submission should be unique and never follow the copy so first of all u makes your site text based means to say image free website bcoz image create the error on page and after doing it u start the submission like classifieds, blogs, articles, and yahoo answers on particluar region where you belongs to .......for more query you can ask them whose url given below actually she organising the seminar recently about thi topic....

http://www.searchenginerankings.com.au

Answer 8

Go to http://www.montfortwebdesigndallas.com/