David Martin Design

Category: Search Engine Optimization

This blog category is dedicated to exploring the world of search engine optimization (SEO). Here, we discuss tactics on how to increase website visibility, improve rankings, and optimize content for search engine algorithms. We also cover topics such as link building, content marketing, and other strategies for staying ahead of the competition in organic search.

My Custom GPTs: Elevating Workflows & Creativity

Welcome to a showcase of my custom-built GPTs! Each of these tools is designed to solve specific challenges, enhance productivity, and support creativity in web development, digital marketing, and beyond. Click on each link to explore further and see how these unique GPTs can help you or your business.

Custom GPT Tools by David Martin

Summary Scribe

Explore Summary Scribe
Summary: Summary Scribe is your go-to for casually summarizing meetings, particularly those involving marketing campaigns, strategies, and deliverables. It excels at extracting key points, action items, and decisions while ensuring campaign details and deadlines are clearly captured. It’s a valuable tool for maintaining clarity and keeping projects on track.

Invoice Snippet Scribe

Explore Invoice Snippet Scribe
Summary: Invoice Snippet Scribe distills detailed task lists into concise, under-300 character memos for invoices. This ensures that clients get clear and understandable descriptions of services rendered, enhancing transparency and making invoicing a breeze.

Web Growth Mentor

Explore Web Growth Mentor
Summary: Web Growth Mentor is a friendly, data-driven virtual business coach designed to help web design professionals scale their businesses. With expertise in web design, digital marketing, and entrepreneurship, this GPT offers valuable insights into emerging trends while fostering continuous learning and growth.

Web Proposal Planner

Explore Web Proposal Planner
Summary: Web Proposal Planner is an essential tool for crafting detailed, data-driven proposals for WordPress website development. By analyzing client input and conducting web scraping, this GPT helps you create structured project briefs that cover objectives, timelines, budgets, and deliverables with ease.

Website Outline Architect

Explore Website Outline Architect
Summary: Website Outline Architect works seamlessly with the Yoast SEO plugin for WordPress to ensure your website’s structure is optimized for both users and search engines. This GPT guides you through the best practices for creating intuitive, responsive, and SEO-friendly websites that rank well in search results.

Web Weaver Wizard

Explore Web Weaver Wizard
Summary: Web Weaver Wizard helps craft compelling project proposals tailored to your client’s business model and goals. It focuses on creating persuasive, benefits-driven proposals that resonate with clients while ensuring technical and digital marketing aspects are well addressed.

Bloomington Content Creator

Explore Bloomington Content Creator
Summary: Bloomington Content Creator is your dedicated assistant for producing engaging, SEO-optimized content about the vibrant local scene in Bloomington, Indiana. From restaurant reviews to cultural events, it helps you craft posts that highlight the unique offerings of the city while adhering to SEO best practices.

Bloomington Online Business Scout

Explore Bloomington Online Business Scout
Summary: Bloomington Online Business Scout generates detailed, organized business summaries based on comprehensive research. It helps users compile essential business information, from contact details to online presence, using a structured template that’s perfect for online directories and customer outreach.

Calendar Event Wizard

Explore Calendar Event Wizard
Summary: Calendar Event Wizard assists in scheduling and managing events by generating iCalendar-compatible text entries. Perfect for both technical and non-technical users, this GPT ensures accurate scheduling across time zones and provides clarity in event details.

A11y SEO Image Wizard

Explore A11y SEO Image Wizard
Summary: A11y SEO Image Wizard optimizes your media libraries with SEO-friendly and accessible metadata. From descriptive filenames to alt text and captions, this GPT ensures your images meet both accessibility standards and SEO best practices, enhancing both user experience and search visibility.

August 23, 2024
Coffee, Cupcakes, and Construction: A Sweet Success Story

Hey everyone, Dave Martin here, your friendly neighborhood Level 7 Google Maps Contributor. I’m always on the lookout for great local businesses and today, I want to share my experience with two fantastic spots in Plainfield, Indiana: Timber City Coffee and Joy’s Cakery.

This past week, I had a jam-packed day. I needed to squeeze in two online meetings before heading out to a consultation with Bobby Williams at BGW Construction. Bobby’s team is known for their exceptional home renovation, kitchen, and bathroom work, so this was a big meeting. I knew I needed to be sharp and fueled up, so I made a beeline for Timber City Coffee.

Timber City Coffee: A Fuel Stop for Success

A cozy corner of Timber City Coffee Co. in Plainfield, Indiana. This coffee shop is known for its delicious brews and friendly atmosphere. You can see the various coffee blends on display and a sign for their “Faith-Family-Friends-Coffee” initiative, showcasing their commitment to community and quality.

Timber City Coffee is such a cozy and welcoming spot. The moment you walk in, you feel that friendly, local vibe. I grabbed a delicious latte (they roast their own beans, which adds a special touch!) and set up shop at a comfy table in the back. The wifi was fast, so I was able to knock out my online meetings without any hiccups.

Joy’s Cakery: Sweetening the Deal

Delicious cupcakes from Joy’s Cakery, perfect for sharing with colleagues or clients.

After wrapping up the meetings, I headed to the consultation with Bobby Williams at BGW Construction. I wanted to bring a little something special to show my appreciation for their expertise. Guess what? Joy’s Cakery is located right inside the same building as Timber City Coffee, making it a one-stop shop for both caffeine and sweetness!

I couldn’t resist picking up a box of their delicious cupcakes for Bobby and his team. The aroma of freshly baked goods was heavenly, and the variety of flavors was astounding. They had everything from classic Vanilla Cookie Dough and Triple Chocolate to more unique flavors like Lemon and Peanut Butter Dream.

Bobby and his team absolutely loved the cupcakes! They couldn’t get over the freshness and the deliciousness of each bite. The cupcakes were a delightful treat that made the consultation even more enjoyable.

Supporting Local Businesses

I love finding hidden gems like Timber City Coffee and Joy’s Cakery. They offer exceptional products and a personal touch that you don’t find everywhere. The fact that they share a space and create such a unique combo of coffee and cupcakes is a testament to their dedication to quality and customer experience.

So, if you’re in Plainfield, be sure to check out Timber City Coffee and Joy’s Cakery. You won’t be disappointed!

https://timbercitycoffee.com

https://maps.app.goo.gl/PU3XgZggozoXYXJb9

I hope you enjoyed this blog post. Let me know if you have any questions or want to share your experiences with these local gems!

August 18, 2024
WordPress SEO for the Busy Entrepreneur: Image Optimization
Are you trying to DIY your online presence but are struggling to understand all the search engine optimization (SEO) terms? Are you worried about causing more damage or harm than good, or overwhelmed with deciphering what practices are essential and what could be saved for a rainy day?

Hello and welcome to the first chapter of our WordPress SEO for the Busy Entrepreneur series where we help our clients, fellow entrepreneurs, and aspiring digital marketers better understand the foundational practices of SEO for their website’s organization.

We know the stress of trying to run a business on top of marketing it. That’s why people come to us and we have a business! (Talk about the circle of life!) But we also have many wonderful clients who aren’t at that stage of their entrepreneurial journey, who need a professional website with reliable hosting and can’t afford a marketing agency quite yet. Yet, many have a drive that knows no bounds and are more than willing to put in the work updating their website with edits and blog posts. They just don’t have the time to learn what’s important, what’s less so, what resources to trust and learn from.

It’s become clear to us that there needs to be a resource for entrepreneurs who are willing to put in the work, but can’t afford a single moment more. For those who need the pieces broken down and targeted specifically for their WordPress site. For those who aren’t technically savvy and have no desire to be, they just want things to work and for customers to go 📈. If any of these sounds like you, you’re in the right place.

Today, we’ll be talking about Image Optimization, why it’s important and how it plays into your institutions marketing success, and ranking each piece by what’s most important as well as the process we recommend you take for the most efficient use of your time.

What is Image Optimization?

Image optimization is the process of converting high quality photographs, artwork, and graphics from their original state into copies that are optimized for websites and social media platforms. This process involves two main procedures:
1. Cropping, resizing, and saving images into a compressed format while sacrificing minimal quality
2. Correctly categorizing and describing the images you’re using through image metadata
Just like you wouldn’t want to wear a t-shirt that’s 5 sizes too big and claims to be “wrinkle-free” when it’s clearly not, you wouldn’t want an image on your website that takes 2 minutes to load and ends up not being what the user was looking for. The process of image optimization is like tailoring that oversized t-shirt to fit just right.

Image Compression: Tailor Your Images to the Digital World

Image Compression is ultimately about carefully cropping, resizing, and compressing the image file so it loads quickly and looks great on screens – without sacrificing the quality or intent of the original image.

Image Compression can be broken down into 4 steps:
1. Crop: Crop the image so that the main focus is centered, if needed. Consider the platform(s) you’re uploading to and whether they use a square, rectangular, or circular aspect ratio. This not only reduces the file size, but also improves it’s impact.
2. Resize: Digital cameras today are capable of taking superb quality photographs in 4K resolution. But images on web pages or social media platforms are rarely displayed at this resolution, since most images are not displayed full screen and the majority of internet users are using devices lacking 4K output. When in doubt, a 1200px width is more than enough for the vast majority of images used on a web page.
3. Reformat: There are plenty of image formats out there nowadays. Each come with their own benefits and drawbacks, but to keep it simple: Use .jpg for images that have a background, and .png for images that have a transparent or no background. The default quality option should be sufficient.
4. Compress: Using a free image compressor like compressor.io can further reduce the file size of an image by up to 80% sometimes without making a noticeable impact on quality. Now would be a good time to rename your image for SEO purposes (more on that below.) If you follow nothing else in this guide, using these image compression tools are an extremely easy and straightforward way to reduce page load time.
Crop & Resize Images on Windows

Open File Explorer and find the image you want to edit.

Right-click on the image, hover over “Open with,” and select “Photos.”

Click the “Edit & Create” button in the top-right corner.

Select “Edit” from the dropdown menu.

Click the “Crop & rotate” button.

Adjust the cropping frame by clicking and dragging the corners or edges of the frame. Once satisfied, click the “Save a copy” button to save the cropped image.

Open the cropped image in Paint (right-click the image, hover over “Open with,” and select “Paint”).

Click the “Resize” button in the Home tab.

Ensure the “Maintain aspect ratio” checkbox is checked.

In the “Horizontal” box, enter “1200” (the vertical dimension will adjust automatically). Click “OK” to resize the image.

Click “File” in the top menu bar and select “Save as.” Choose the desired location and format, and click “Save.”
Crop & Resize Images on Mac

Locate your image in Finder

Open the image in Preview (double click on the image)

Press and drag your selection

Hover on Tools in the top menu bar, select Crop

Hover on Tools again, select Resize Image

In the width box, put 1200px & confirm

Save the image by hovering on File in the top menu bar and selecting save (or press ⌘ S)
Image Metadata: The Catalogue Card for Your Photos

Before we delve into Image Metadata, let’s back up and ask the question: “What is Metadata?”

Metadata defined for the laymen

To define it simply: Metadata is data about data. It’s information that categorizes and summarizes what something is.

To use an analogy: In the 80’s you needed to find a book (website) at the library (web). You would use the library catalogue (Google, Bing, Yahoo, etc.) to search for the book either by it’s name or author. When you found the right card (search result), it would tell you the call number or location. You would then go through the shelves or ask a librarian for help (click) and eventually find and check out your book (website).

In our case, we use metadata describing your website to help the robots that search engines use to rank search results better understand who your organization is, what you do, when you’re open, how to contact you, etc. and ultimately rank as high as possible.

What do I need to know about image metadata?

Image metadata is important not only because it helps these robots understand images they can’t actually see (yet) and determine if they’re relevant or not, but also ensures your website remains accessible for those with sight disabilities or a painfully slow internet connection by providing descriptions of what they’re viewing.

Image metadata can feel complex to understand considering all the various elements that go into it, and even harder to know what to prioritize. But luckily, the elements that have the greatest visibility impact are also some of the simplest to incorporate. Here are the three most important elements concerning image metadata:
1. Alt Text: Alt text, short for Alternative Text, is the most important part of image metadata. This is really just a brief description of what the image is. It’s used for people who rely on screen readers, when the image fails to load to give context (common for those with slow internet connections), and for showing search engines that this image is relevant in relation to your organization.
2. File Name: An images name before uploading it plays a huge factor in helping search engines better understand the image content and increase it’s visibility. This is a great place to tie your images with your company and it’s specific services or people. Instead of “mark.jpg”, something like “Mark-Scott-Sales-Manager-Generica-Inc.jpg” helps search engines recognize that Mark Scott is the Sales Manager at Generica Inc, this is his picture, and that this image is relevant to the blurb describing him below it.
3. Title: The title tag is used as a tooltip description, providing supplemental information when the user hovers over an image. However, the this only applies to users on desktop. This is a good place to add keywords if warranted.
Let’s get to work: An actionable Image Optimization checklist

Now that we’ve explained the abstract concepts behind Image Optimization and it’s two major components: Image Compression and Image Metadata, let’s go through a step by step process on how to actually incorporate these pieces efficiently:
1. Gather your images into a folder called something like [subject]-originals
2. Decide where you’re uploading these images and crop each one as needed
3. Resize the width of each image to 1200px
4. Reformat each image. Are they photographs? Go with .JPG. Are they graphics or use transparent backgrounds? .PNG is the way to go
5. Create a folder called [subject]-optimized and upload your edited images to compressor.io
6. Download each image, saving it into the [subject]-optimized folder and rename each image to relate to your organization and the relevent service or person
7. If you want a break, now’s a good time
8. Login to your WordPress website, and navigate to the Media tab in the admin panel
9. Upload your optimized images
10. Return to the media library, click on the first image thumbnail in the upper left. This will open the image metadata panel. In the alt field, write a brief description of the image in question either manually or use AI to assist you. If you have a premium ChatGPT plan, use our A11y SEO Image Wizard.
11. Fill out the alt text (and optionally the title) for the remaining images. Congratulations! You’ve now optimized the images on your website. Your images can be now be added to the posts or pages of your choosing.
If you followed this checklist, you can rest easy that the most important standards concerning image optimization are being met. Your web page will now appear more attractive to search engines, as well as improve the page load times and accessibility for your visitors.
July 18, 2024
Building 67 Storage: A Branding Case Study

Transforming Ideas into Virtual Reality: The Genesis of 67storage.com

The creation of 67 Storage was a branding project that challenged our creativity and technical expertise but also strengthened our belief in the power of one-on-one collaboration.

Our partnership with Roman, the business owner behind 67 Storage, started with a mission to craft a digital web presence and branding that mirrors the efficiency, security, and user-friendliness of their recently built storage units on Highway 67.

Our branding project began with making a pivotal decision. Roman initially sought to name his venture after his last name, “Manley Enterprises”. However, after sitting down with Roman and getting a better understanding of his marketing goals, we found an opportunity for a more intuitive connection with potential clients.

We brainstormed and design a brand that wasn’t only a name, but also a literal signpost. A logo that encapsulated the business’s essence and its geographical significance. Drawing from its strategic location off of Highway 67, “67 Storage” was born.

This decision wasn’t just about picking a name—it was about crafting a scalable, recognizable, memorable, and easily searchable brand identity across both digital platforms and physical mediums for future customers. ’67 Storage’ was more than a choice; it was a strategic decision that streamlined the discovery process for potential clients.

Brand Identity Creation – Forging the 67 Storage Identity Inspired by the Open Road

With the name “67 Storage” setting the stage, the journey towards creating a cohesive brand identity began.

Color Scheme

A Palette Born from the Road

The color scheme transitioned from concept to palette, drawing from the distinctive colors of highway road signs. This choice was intentional, aiming to evoke a sense of reliability and guidance, much like the road signs that navigate travelers to their destinations. The colors chosen were more than just visually appealing; they were a narrative in themselves, telling a story of trust, direction, and safety.

Typography

Typography plays a pivotal role in bridging 67 Storage’s brand identity with its digital presence. Research into the typography of highway signs—specifically Highway Gothic and Clearview—revealed the practical challenges of licensing and digital optimization. Thus, for the logo, we chose Interstate, a font inspired by highway signage yet suitable for digital use, found on Adobe Fonts. For the website, Overpass from Google Fonts was selected for its web optimized design and open source license, ensuring a consistent, readable online experience. This thoughtful selection allowed us to maintain a connection to the brand’s roots while adapting to the digital landscape.

ClearviewHwy font single computer license purchase page indicating the cost of $795, which informed the decision to select Overpass for the 67 Storage website.

Screenshot highlighting Overpass, a versatile typeface from Google Fonts, chosen for its compatibility with 67 Storage’s branding and logo.

Logo Design

Drawing inspiration from the very roots of the name, the brand’s visual identity took cues from highway signs—a nod to the name’s origin and a brilliant play on familiarity and visibility. The logo was fashioned to mirror the clarity and straightforwardness of highway signage, ensuring instant recognition and connection.

Business Card Design

For the business card, we compressed 67 Storage’s brand identity into a readable, impactful design. The layout and iconography is intentionally minimalist to focus on clearly displaying key contact information. To balance the white space of the card, we crafted a background that aligns with the shield logo on the right. This enhances the card’s visual appeal and brand recognition. Moreover, a QR code links to the 67 Storage website for ease of customer access. Our design approach makes the business card an efficient networking tool and extension of the 67 Storage brand identity.

Picking 67storage.com: Securing a Strong Online Presence

Selecting the right domain name for 67 Storage was a crucial decision to make. Picking an overly complicated or hard to remember domain name could considerably impact it’s ability for customers to find and remember. To avoid this, we decided on 67storage.com, a short, straightforward domain name that both reinforces the brand identity and simplifies the customer’s journey to finding the business online online.

WordPress Website & Design: Crafting a User-Centric Online Space

The website for 67 Storage was intentionally designed to radiate its unique identity while focusing on two primary objectives: attracting new customers and enabling online payment for storage unit rentals. Using WordPress, we customized the latest 2024 Theme and enriched it with hand-coded Custom CSS. This approach added a layer of interactivity to navigation elements, buttons, and links, improving the overall user experience. For style, significant customization was made on the page template to echo the brand’s signature shield motif, ensuring a visual consistency across the digital and physical aspects of the brand.

Key features of the site include detailed information about available storage units, a comprehensive FAQ section, and integration with a payment processor, facilitating easy rent payments for customers. Additionally, the website is equipped with contact forms designed to cater to prospective customers, simplifying the process of inquiring about rentals. This strategic combination of form and function embodies 67 Storage’s commitment to service accessibility and customer convenience, ensuring the website not only serves as a digital storefront but also as a tool for operational efficiency.

Key Takeaway

Working closely together with Roman, we took the initial seeds of a business idea, patiently nurturing them through a collaborative journey to fruition. It was our personal approach to this collaboration—taking the time to understand Roman’s vision, marketing goals, and the core values he wanted to portray—that let us create more than just a name or logo; we built an identity that truly embodied the key principles of efficiency, security, and customer focus.

This project was more than a branding initiative; it was a testament to the power of personalized collaboration. By establishing a strong sense of trust with Roman and understanding his vision, we were able to ensure the branding truly reflected the essence of his business. This synergy created a robust, impactful brand that held a distinct logo and strong digital presence.

67 Storage is no longer only an idea, but a living representation of Roman’s vision, bringing a tangible impact to the marketplace. It stands as the embodiment of thorough deliberation, cooperative work, and perseverance, and we’re immensely proud to be part of this evolving journey of 67 Storage. Our collaboration with Roman underscores the incredible outcomes that can be achieved through an individualized, insight-driven approach to business development.

April 16, 2024
Elevate Your Business Visibility with Local Business Listings on Google, Bing, & Yahoo
In today’s fast-paced digital world, having your business information accurately listed on various online platforms is not just a necessity; it’s a game-changer. At David Martin Design, we’re excited to announce our latest offering – Local Business Listing Management. This service is tailored to help business owners like you gain better visibility and ensure your business details are always up-to-date across key platforms, including Google, Bing, and more.

The Importance of Accurate Business Listings: Accurate business listings are critical for two main reasons. First, they ensure that your potential customers can find you easily. Second, they provide reliable information, building trust and credibility in your brand. Inaccurate or outdated information can lead to lost opportunities and a negative impression.

For a small business in Bloomington, Indiana, beyond the major search engines like Google, Bing, and Yahoo, there are several other platforms where you can submit your business listing to increase visibility and reach potential customers:
1. Local Directories and Review Sites:
  - TripAdvisor: Ideal if your business is related to hospitality, tourism, or dining.
  - Angie’s List: Great for service-oriented businesses.
2. Social Media Platforms:
  - Facebook: Creating a business page on Facebook can help you reach a wide audience.
  - Instagram: This is especially useful if your business can showcase visually appealing products or services.
  - LinkedIn: Ideal for B2B businesses and professional networking.
3. Local Bloomington, Indiana Resources:
  - Bloomington Chamber of Commerce: Listing your business here can increase local business-to-business connections.
  - Visit Bloomington: If your business caters to tourists or is part of the hospitality industry, this is a great place to be listed.
  - BloomingtonOnline: Shop Local isn’t just a trendy slogan. It’s a call to action.
  - Local Bloomington Newspapers and Magazines: Many local publications have business directories.
4. Industry-Specific Directories:
  - If your business falls into a specific niche (like healthcare, legal services, or home improvement), look for directories specific to that industry.
5. Better Business Bureau (BBB):
  - Listing your business here can add credibility, as consumers often check BBB ratings.
6. Google Business and Bing Places:
  - Businesses can verify and edit their business information, respond to reviews, post photos and offers, and see insights on how customers are interacting with their business.
7. Community Bulletin Boards and Forums:
  - Local community centers, libraries, or online community forums specific to Bloomington can be valuable for word-of-mouth referrals.
How Our Service Works: Our Local Business Listing Management service is designed to be simple yet effective. We take the burden off your shoulders by:
1. Claiming Your Listings: We ensure your business is accurately listed on platforms like Google, Bing, & other important local platforms.
2. Regular Updates: From changing business hours, and updating posts, to updating contact information, we keep your listings current.
In a world where online presence is crucial, let David Martin Design be your partner in ensuring that your business stands out. Claim your listing today with our Local Business Listing Management service and take the first step towards enhanced visibility and success.

Ready to enhance your business’s online presence? Contact David Martin Design today to learn more about our Local Business Listing Management service and how we can help your business grow.
December 1, 2023
Manage Important Business Information with Google Business

Most business owners will find that it’s quite easy to jump into the Google Business platform and get started connecting your important business information with potential valuable customers. Keep reading below for a breakdown of what you can do with the updated Google My Business platform.

The Basics of Google Business

Start with the name of your business, determine the categories your business falls under, where your service location is, what your hours (& special hours) are, your business phone #, add a link to your website, and add interesting business photos (Interior, Exterior, At Work, Your Team, & Identity).

Completely filling out the basics of your Google Business profile is very important and will help potential customers searching at various times of day, in different locations, and for various reasons to reach your business if it matches what they are expecting.

I’d recommend starting with the basics and you will be ahead of most of your competition. Once you have that complete, then you can focus on some of the more advanced features that Google offers.

Create a post on Google Business

Visiting the Posts link on the side of your Google Business will bring up a news-feed status update input box where you can post important updates. I have not posted anything yet, but as soon as I am done writing this on my blog, I will post a link. I clicked on the LEARN MORE link and got an overview of what I should be doing:

Posting through Google Business lets you publish your events, products, and services directly to Google Search and Maps. By creating posts, you can place your timely content in front of customers when they find your business listing on Google.

This is great that Google is now allowing business owners to post directly through this business portal. As long as the business owner has claimed their profile and linked everything together including Google Search Console, Google Analytics, Google Adwords, and other properties, they should all play very well together.

Understand Import Insights About Your Business

Where do your customers come from? Do they find your local listing on the right side of the page, do they find your organic listing? Perhaps you are paying for traffic by using Google Adwords? With the Insights tab in Google My Business you can discover how your customers search for your business. You will understand if they have viewed your information directly through Search of via Maps. Important business information including whether a customer visited your website, asked for directions, viewed your photos, and how many customers called are all available at a quick glance.

Manage Your Google Business Reviews

“Digital Word of Mouth” is one of the most important local search ranking factors and will likely influence whether a potential customer will contact you or your competition. Google makes it easy for business owners to discover what their customers have written about them.

Your customers will rate your business on a 1-5 star scale and they may also leave written comments. You will receive a notification when a customer writes a review and the Google My Business platform makes it very easy to respond.

Google reviews are increasingly important and it’s very important for you to incorporate a strategy that includes asking your customers for feedback and providing an easy means to do so.

Message with Your Customers

Directly communicate with potential customers. Providing real-time access to the business owner will likely allow the business owners who are able to respond quickly an advantage over those who haven’t activated this feature and must use traditional methods.

I’m excited to be able to manage my Google business information in one easy place. Google Business has evolved in the past few years into a platform for businesses to easily manage their vital business information and understand key performance indicators that will help them succeed.

December 16, 2022
Introducing Michael Dopp’s Transformed Website: Powered by Jarod Maxwell & WordPress

Welcome to the new and improved website of artist Michael Dopp! We are excited to show off the new redesign created by Jarod Maxwell, a senior at Indiana University.

Michael Dopp’s website now features a modern WordPress platform, making it easier and more efficient for Michael to showcase his artwork and share his stories with the world. The WordPress platform makes it easy for Michael to quickly and easily make changes to his website. With the power of WordPress, he can easily update images, add new blog posts, and manage any new information.

Visit MichaelDopp.com

December 11, 2022
A Fresh New Design, Email, & Web Hosting Platform for IUStudentApts.com

We are proud to announce the launch of their newly redesigned website. In a few short weeks of work with David Martin, IUStudentApts.com has developed a website that offers a modern, intuitive, and streamlined user experience.

Newly Redesigned Website Powered by WordPress

The newly redesigned website is now powered by WordPress, a feature-rich and secure content management system, allowing for a seamless transition to the optimal online rental experience. The website’s intuitive user interface and optimized search functions make it easy to find the perfect rental for students at Indiana University. In addition, the website has been optimized for SEO, ensuring high rankings in search results and easy access to IUStudentApts.com’s rental offerings.

Enhanced Productivity with Email, Forms, & a Google Workspace For Their Domain Name

In addition to the website redesign, IUStudentApts.com is now using Google Workspace for its email accounts. This lets users securely access their emails from any device without needing to install any software.

Using Google Forms for their website contact forms allows users to provide their information quickly and securely. This ensures that all inquiries are answered in a timely manner and customers see a swift response from the IUStudentApts.com team.

IUStudentApts.com can enjoy a stress-free technology experience with advanced security, collaboration, and productivity features with Google Workspace.

Google Analytics to Track Website Performance

Google Analytics allows IUStudentApts.com to track and analyze website performance. This allows the team to better understand how customers are interacting with the site and make adjustments as needed for improved website usability. They can now see the metrics that matter most, such as page views, average time spent on site, and conversions.

Visit the IUStudentApts.com Website

December 11, 2022
3 Basic Steps to Optimizing Your Website for Search Engines
This article provides an overview of the three steps necessary for successful SEO: basic on-page optimization, basic link building, and basic social media marketing.

Learn about the basics of keyword research, creating effective titles and meta descriptions, building your profile on external websites, and implementing effective social media strategies. Find out how you can use the right tools to measure your efforts and tie them back to your website. Start getting more website traffic and higher-quality leads with these three essential steps.

SEO, when done correctly, takes a ton of effort and it is a very time-consuming process, but for this, you may need professional help from a search engine optimization company. A well structured, planned out website is going to be much more successful in the long run and will result in more relevant traffic and better quality leads. To begin, we need to focus on three basic activities related to your presence including Basic On-page Optimization, Basic Link Building, and Basic Social Media Marketing.

Basic On-Page Optimization for SEO Success

Basic On-Page optimization is the lowest hanging fruit and is the first place we start when trying to optimize our website for search engines. We begin with brainstorming and researching keywords that your target audience is using to locate your products and services. If a client is trying to rank locally for keywords, we make sure to include keywords (such as Bloomington) in the copy and structure of the HTML. Title tags are then written to evoke the highest emotional response using keywords that are relevant to your audience. High-quality meta descriptions that include one to two sentences about your business with calls to action are crafted. Your information on your page should be structured into an outline like form including headings, paragraphs, bulleted lists, etc. Images all have titles, descriptions, and when it makes sense, captions. These images should have ALT descriptions not only for search engines but for accessibility. David Martin Design can provide you with assistance on the appropriate layout.

Basic Link Building for Increased Rankings

After the overall structure has been built and your information is well organized, it’s time to build some links to your website. Basic Link Building is important as a link reference from another reputable source on the internet is worth a TON in the search engine ranking factors. It’s important to create quality content and submit press releases that link back to your website for newsworthy items. Building your business profile on websites like Google+, Facebook, LinkedIn, Manta, Instagram, Google My Business (for better efficiency should be managed using tools only from this site), Snapchat, Yelp, Yahoo, Foursquare, Bing Local, and a plethora of other directory-based websites is vital to your search engine ranking. It’s important to not just claim your listing, but include your business hours, images of your product and location, and other important signals that show you are active in your business marketing. Your customers will reward you with high-quality reviews if your customer service aligns and your performance exceeds their expectations. Make it easy for them to write reviews by promoting your business on social media and in as many online places as possible.

Social Media Marketing: Optimizing Your Channels

Social Media Marketing is a challenge as most people don’t initially gravitate towards social networks to interact with businesses or to hear about your latest gadget or gizmo, usually, it takes help from companies to get people into using social media. It’s important for link-building to optimize your business information on social media profiles. It’s also important that a key person in your business is assigned to monitor these channels for customer communication. This responsibility most likely falls into the hands of most business owners and they install apps on their phones to keep in touch with their customers. It’s important to claim your profiles, optimize them, and use helpful tools to help manage your social media. Using the right tools, you can effectively measure your efforts on social media and tie them back to your website.

As you can see, it can get pretty complicated to market your business in today’s world. Start with these 3 basic steps:
1. On-Page Optimization of your website pages
2. Build High-Quality Links to your website and webpages
3. Basic social media marketing
and you will begin to see positive results in the search engines and reach highly qualified leads.
December 5, 2022
Blogging for Business: What You Need to Know About WordPress and Content Management
Blogging is rapidly becoming an integral part of running an online business. While some business owners are quick to dismiss blogging as a waste of time and energy, the statistics are suggesting otherwise. As more and more websites start maintaining a blog, there’s an increased demand for a more blog-friendly content management system (CMS).

Although WordPress started out as a meager blogging engine, it is now considered the preeminent content management platform. As the largest CMS in the world, WordPress powers roughly 39% of websites. Its flexibility, reliability, and customizability attract web designers over other CMS competitors.

Here, we’ll explore why it’s important for businesses to understand WordPress and why publishing fresh content is a must.

WordPress JetPack Plugin – Artist Wall at the 2019 WordCamp US in St. Louis

Why Businesses Need to Know About WordPress

Whether you’ve heard about WordPress in your research about website development or this is your first exposure to it, you might be wondering what makes it so different. With dozens of other reputable platforms from which to choose, what makes WordPress so unique?

That’s a great question and one which has no shortage of answers. However, we’ll only stick to a few of the most compelling to help small business owners understand what they’re missing out on. Here are a few reasons why businesses need to know about WordPress.
1. It’s completely free.
Free…it’s music to any business owner’s ears. Unlike other content management systems, WordPress operates under what’s known as a GNU General Public License which essentially means it’s free for anyone to download, edit, and customize. When compared to other, more costly CMSs, WordPress has risen through the ranks as one of the most popular among small businesses that are trying to keep costs down. While you’ll eventually need to spend money on web hosting and domain names to get your website up and running, WordPress saves you on costs other platforms wouldn’t spare you.
1. WordPress is totally customizable.
As a business owner, you know just how vital it is to set yourself apart from competitors. A common complaint among web developers about more rigid CMSs is their lack of customizability. Due to WordPress’s open-source design, anyone is free to upload add-ons, plug-ins, and other features that maximize customizability and flexibility. If you can think it up for your website, there’s a good chance somebody has already contributed the functionality to WordPress. With a single click, you have access to tens-of-thousands of unique features. As the needs of your online business change, WordPress can easily keep up with its unmatched flexibility.
1. It’s SEO-optimized by default.
Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is the method through which your website is primed for optimal exposure on search engines like Google to increase your chances of reaching your target audience. Without an SEO-optimized site, your content can easily get lost in the shuffle. WordPress takes the stress away by ensuring all sites made on the platform are SEO-optimized by default since their structure is recognized by most search engines. However, your website SEO can further be maximized by downloading SEO-focused plug-ins that are available to everyone.

Business Blogging Statistics

As a small business owner, it’s understandable why you might be hesitant to dedicate valuable resources to developing and maintaining a blog. You can’t afford to waste time and energy on areas of your business that won’t offer a return. Fortunately, there’s a wealth of data underscoring the positive impact that blogging can have on businesses.

Here are a few of the most impressive statistics:
- Blogs can lead to a 97% boost in indexed links and a 434% boost in indexed pages. (Demand Metric)
- 8 out of 10 internet users engage with both blogs and social media sites. (Demand Metric)
- Businesses with blogs generate 67% more monthly leads on average than their counterparts that don’t have blogs. (Demand Metric)
- Blogging businesses see 55% more online visitors than companies that don’t blog. (HubSpot)
- In 2019, marketers prioritizing blogging saw 13X more return on their investments than those who didn’t. (HubSpot)
The Importance of Publishing Fresh Content

Of course, having a blog doesn’t do small businesses any benefit if they’re not regularly updating it. Although there are several advantages of maintaining a constant stream of fresh content, there are two primary reasons:
1. Search engines prefer newer content.
2. It’ll be easier to keep your audience engaged.
When forced to choose between ranking an older site that regularly posts new content and a site of the same age that hasn’t posted in months or years, Google will rank the former website higher even if the content is relatively similar. Reflecting the demand for new and updated content, Google wants to present its users with the freshest content. Most search engines work in the same manner. In order to prime your website for higher rankings in search engines, you need to post new content regularly.

Another critical reason to keep your site updated with fresh content is to keep your audience engaged. Whether you’re wanting to catch the attention of new users or keep regular visitors coming back, you need to make sure your site is providing something worthwhile. While the content you put out matters, the rate at which it’s produced also plays a role in the overall success of your site.

If you’re a small business owner who’s ready to reap the benefits of having an optimized blog, feel free to reach out to David Martin Design. With decades of experience building and managing websites for small businesses, David knows how to maximize the return on your website investment.
March 1, 2021
5 Informative (And Free!) Web Design Tools That Can Teach You More About Your Site
Above all, websites are vehicles designed to help you achieve larger goals. For example, a restaurant’s site might be created to increase awareness and encourage patrons to visit (or order takeout). An entrepreneur might rely on a website to inform potential clients about his or her services.

While a website is an ideal tool for online marketing in the 21st century, there’s no guarantee it’ll work the way you intended. Website design requires constant monitoring, updating, and adjusting in order to ensure a site is optimized for performance.

In order to be able to make the right adjustments, you have to first gather accurate information about your site’s functionality. Fortunately, there are a plethora of online web design tools that provide insightful and in-depth data about a site’s performance. Let’s take a look at a few you should know about.
1. SEMRush
Touted by many online marketers as the premier and most comprehensive online marketing tools, SEMRush offers users an in-depth analysis of their site’s advertising information.

It offers data regarding paid and organic search traffic, domain referrals, backlinks, and more. This is all available in SEMRush’s free report, although you can unlock an even more extensive review for the paid version.

Despite being advertised as an all-in-one platform, SEMRush probably won’t eliminate the need to use other online web tools. Still, it’s a great place to start your advertising research.
1. ScanWP
If you know a site is running WordPress but aren’t sure which theme, that’s where ScanWP comes in handy. Simply plug in the URL of the site, hit “search”, and you’ll be provided with a host of helpful information such as the theme version, price, associated tags, and where the theme can be purchased.

ScanWP even comes with Plugin detection so you can get a better idea of what’s been added to the site. Compared to other online web design tools, ScanWP is rather minimal but that’s one of its advantages too! It’s a great option for WordPress fans and can even be downloaded as an extension for Chrome browser for integrated use.
1. Nibbler
Nibbler isn’t as well known as some other online web design tools, but it still earns a spot on the list. With the free version, you can put five different pages through the Nibbler tests which analyzes your site based on more than a dozen factors and offers an overall score.

The total score (out of 100%) is an aggregate rating of your site’s accessibility, experience, technology, marketing, and more. In addition to this composite score, you’ll get a deeper breakdown of each factor, giving you a better look at your site’s strengths and weaknesses.

Nibbler even offers a handy list of top priorities for improving your site.
1. GTmetrix
GTmetrix is an informative online web design tool that analyzes a site’s page performance. Whether you’re trying to improve search engine optimization (SEO) or implementing a new theme, it’s always important to know how site changes are impacting overall functionality.

In its “speed visualization” section – pictured above – GTmetrix provides an insightful breakdown of how quickly (or slowly) your site loads by second. This gives you a better idea of how users interact with your site.

This online web design tool’s report page acts as an analytics dashboard where key indicators of site load speed are neatly organized and summarized. Similar to Nibbler, you’ll also get actionable tips for improving your site page speed.
1. Pagelocity
Customer experience is an integral component of website design. If you’re looking for a web design tool that’s geared towards analyzing your site’s optimization in this area, Pagelocity is an excellent choice. Its analysis focuses on three different categories: on-page SEO, performance, and code insights.

On-page SEO offers insights into various factors on your site that are critical to SEO such as headings, keywords, and links (both internal and external). Performance analyzes your site’s composition including scripts, style files, and images to determine its overall functionality. Lastly, Code Insights goes a little more in-depth to look at a site’s markup which refers to tags, classes, and page speed.

Your Local Web Design Expert

If you’re not sure how your website is performing, David Martin Design can help. With decades of experiencing building, designing, and optimizing sites, David knows what it takes to keep websites up and running efficiently to meet your goals. Feel free to contact David to learn more.
February 15, 2021
Instant SEO Boost: How Compressor.io Can Drastically Improve Your Site’s Exposure
This search engine optimization tip goes way back to the early 90s – back when I first started building websites. In the 90s, it was essential to build websites that were quick and optimized because people still had dial-up internet connections. In order to build a fast loading website, you had to be very careful not to use too many large images. If you did include bigger image files, then it would take forever for the website to load, and we all know that we only have a fleeting amount of time to capture somebody’s attention.

What does Compressor.io do?

With Compressor.io, you can easily upload your images in a variety of formats – including PNG, GIF, & JPEG – and this program will try to condense them without losing too much quality. As you can see from the featured image of this post, I was able to capture an image of myself taking a picture in my car’s rearview mirror that was over 8 megabytes and compress it down to a much smaller size. The image has maintained it’s quality without causing my site’s load speed to slow down every time a visitor clicks on this page.
Whenever you upload your images to Facebook, Instagram, and other sites, they automatically apply compression to your images to make them load faster for a better user experience. When you run your own website though, WordPress doesn’t automatically include compression functionality out of the box. There are different plugins that you can use to help compress your images when you upload them to the media library, however, I like to compress the images before I upload them by using Compressor.io.

How do you use Compressor.io to condense images?

It starts out with you getting your original image from your camera. Then, once you have it downloaded on your device, you can upload it to your website. Then, after Compressor.io compresses your image, you can download it onto your local machine again. Once it is on your local machine, then you go into your WordPress media library and upload it. It’s as simple as that!

How does this application impact my website’s SEO?

Compressor.io works to condense your website images to help them load faster. In turn, this ends up increasing the load speed of your entire website. With no bulky image files eating up bandwidth, your pages can refresh quickly for visitors, greatly increasing user experience. Perhaps most importantly, it will improve your website’s SEO. Because page speed is such an important factor for the algorithms that rank your web pages, your site will reach closer to the top search result when load time is optimized Using Compressor.io is a simple change that can work wonders for your website’s performance.

Whether you’re looking for ways to improve your site’s exposure or you want to build a site from scratch, David Martin Design can help. I’ve spent decades building, editing, and optimizing websites, and I’d be more than happy to support you in your business ventures. Feel free to reach out to me to learn more about what I offer.
February 10, 2021