The paradox is the more info you give away, the more people will buy what you have to give. – @brianclark

SEO Copywriting Since 2004

If you are a freelancer or self-employed person, you may have flashback dreams about the economic downturn in the U.S. that peaked in 2009. It wasn’t fun.  If you have a salaried job, you may have had sleepless nights about layoffs, cutbacks in benefits or increased job responsibilities. That wasn’t fun either. At Chris Jones & Associates, we used that time period to diversify our services and step up our involvement in SEO copywriting and the creation of websites that work. Chris Jones has been writing SEO copy since 2004 and during that time there have been significant changes. Here are a few lessons learned:

Organic Search Engine Optimization (SEO) Works

Chris Jones & Associates did the SEO work on Nice Bike and the design/build was a separate vendor.  A search for “Nice Bike Mark” (because nobody other than immediate family can spell Mark Sharenbroich’s last name) went from page 12 in a Google search to page one in a Google search after the SEO was added. The SEO was created five years ago, and it is still working. Today’s Google search: About 68,400,000 results (0.27 seconds) with virtually all of the page one search results pointing to www.nicebike.com. ECCO International’s traffic has increased steadily since the site’s re-release in January 2014.  On this particular site, Chris Jones & Associates was responsible for the design/build, SEO content and blog. Check out www.eccointernational.com. As an independent contractor, Chris wrote about 150 legal websites for FindLaw, beginning in 2004. During that time, the SEO work changed several times because SEO is a moving target. Google and the other search engines won’t divulge their secrets, although it seems clear that content is the key.

Content is the reason search began in the first place. – @leeodden

Content is Still King

Have you been to a website, only to discover that there was no ‘there’ there?  Maybe it has pages of pictures without details. Or it’s asking the visitor to ‘look at me’, without offering any meaningful content.  Content is still the king. Provide content, update it regularly, and the visitors will come.  Here’s proof (thanks to Inbound Writer).

• The number of web searches on the term “Content Marketing” is up 400% since January 2011. (Google Trends)
• B2B marketers cite lack of time (69%), producing enough content (55%) and producing the kind of content that engages (47%) as their top three content marketing challenges. (CMI)
• Content Marketing is the top priority for 36% of marketers in 2014. (Adobe)
• 60% to 70% of B2B content created is never used. Most cited reason why B2B content goes unused is that the topic is irrelevant to the buyer audience. (CMI)
• Only 10-20% of a company’s website content drives 90% of its web traffic, and only 0.5% of a website’s content drive more than 50% of its traffic. (Inbound Writer)
• Conversion rates for brands using content marketing are six to seven times higher than those that don’t.  (Aberdeen)
• The three biggest complaints B2B buyers have about vendor content are too many requirements for downloading; blatantly promotional, self-serving content; and non-substantive, uninformed content.  (Social Media Today)
• Content marketing costs 62% less than traditional marketing and generates about three times as many leads.  (Demand Metric)

Custom Websites Created in WordPress

Although large sites are still custom-designed from scratch, creating a website from scratch using WordPress is a very affordable option for those ‘in-between’ businesses. Not big enough for a wall to wall custom build, but larger than something that the office manager can pull off, while looking professional. Here are a few examples of custom websites created in WordPress by CJ&A:

• ECCO International
• Robert Durland Director of Photography
• Human Perspectives International
• Chris Jones & Associates
• Chaska Valley Vet Clinic
• Pams Pepper Jam

Before & After Images

Pam’s Pepper Jams’ new website is now up and I am very happy! Please check it out; I would love to hear your thoughts. Many thanks to Chris (www.chrisjonesassociates.com)! If you need help with your website, I highly recommend her. Chris has years of experience, knows what works and what doesn’t, and is so easy to work with. And she’s very patient. ~ Pam of Pam’s Pepper Jam

Contact Us for SEO Copywriting and Website Creation

Chris Jones & Associates would be happy to provide you with a free initial consultation or proposal. Please either call us at (612) 272-0547 or contact us via email. We look forward to working with you.