Forums: Discussions for entrepreneurs and small business.

I would love any advice or tips you can give on search engine optimization. I`m not sure if I have all the correct components in place for the major engines to pick up the site.

Thanks in advance for your time,

Tami Gomez

www.tamigomez.com

Hi Tami,

Very inspirational music. What song is that? I would like to get it from iTunes.

As far as the site would go, the two things I would change are:

1. Your picture - I would probably use a more formal pic.
2. More information - I realize the site is new but for motivational speakers site, information is key. For example, a topics listing is appropriate, free articles about topics you speak on, that kind of thing. Also, I would include a list of clients and any testimonials you have.

Hope this helps.

Mark

Thank you so much for the feedback.

I will take your advice and make some changes.

Thanks again!

Oh yeah...and the song is called Stephan Carroll Virtual Symphony Prelude No. 3

You can get it here:

http://music.download.com/stephancarrollvirtualsymphony/3600 -8324_32-100618671.html

you forgot to add your profile tag back to startupnation :).

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He who gets greedy like a pig, gets slaughtered like a hog!

From an SEO point of view ....

The program you used to create the site has added a lot of extra page coding, which is often unnecessary.

The "style/css" tags are in the middle of your meta tags; all css and javascript codes should be placed within an external stylesheet.

Image "alt" areas should have your site name, keywords, etc.

H1 and H2 tags, and bold text for keywords are helpful.

Your main page is probably 95% code, and 5% actual content. You need to increase the amount of actual text, describing and talking about what your site is about, 200-250 words, with your sites main keywords and phrases added into the content. Search engines don`t read images, so they really do little in SEO.

You need other websites to link to yours.

Just some basics, but they go a long way.

I have a small webdesign business, let me know if we can be of assistance.




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M Hall
Website Critique Community
International Society of Curmudgeons

Thank you so much for the info.  I am a beginner at website building, thus the additional useless code.  I would love it if you could clean it up for me.  Would you send me a quote to info@tamigomez.com?

Thank you!!!

Just sent an email, please let me know if I can be of help.

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M Hall
Website Critique Community
International Society of Curmudgeons

Hi Tami :-)
Two problems I`m seeing. I`m using Firefox, and your home page requires a download for a plug-in. I use Explorer for all the extra "crap" people want me to install or add in or download, and keep Firefox as clean as I can. Even so, I had to put in a version of Flash! for it, and that apparently wasn`t what was needed. (Looks like some iteration of Windows Media player?)

Talk with a Web developer who can help you validate your site across as many browsers as possible.

The other problem is the content, already mentioned above. You say you`re a motivational speak of some kind. Your brief reference to background indicates sports or athletics. That`s all you have. The word "BOOK" is all capitalized, but that makes it look as if you have a published written work in book form.

I clicked the link, and only then did I find a set of tabs that explain "About Tami," "Links," "Services," etc. That`s no good. You must have those links on the main page *before* people choose whether or not to hire you for a speaking engagement. Otherwise, why would they want to even think about it?

I`d take the first paragraph from the "About Tami" page and move it as your introductory lead-in to the home page, for now. I`d then move all these forms about how to contact you, how to hire you, etc., and put them under a single "Contact" tab, on their own page. People get tired of being asked to fill in a form every time they click somewhere.

The "Photo Gallery" is cute, but contradicts the effect you want of a professional motivational speaker. I`d have a professional photographer do some portfolio pictures, and if you can do it (or stage it), include a couple of pictures that seemingly show you on stage in front of an audience. We don`t much need to see your family and friends.

Services should be services---not Products. Tee shirts are nice, but they`re not services. I expected to see block descriptions of topics you speak about, a synopsis, length to speech, Q&A session, and cost. Do you have a basic fee plus expenses? Who pays for hotel bills? And so forth.

"Links" are nice, but they go to other sites. I`d suggest that you write your own articles, and "link" to those on this page, making it a sort of Table of Contents for articles *by* Tami, about relevant topics. Then you can have other links to off-site locations about belly-flattening at the bottom of the page.

"Quotes" in the context of your site, means (to me) getting a quote for a contract price for a speaking engagement. Not quotes someone else said, which doesn`t much help. I`d sprinkle those quotes into the content you`ll be adding to the site, to make a related point.

"Tami Speaks" presumably is a streamed or downloadable example of one of your lectures. But again, in Firefox the media player or streaming technology didn`t work, and I got a blank box.

All in all, it`s a nice looking site in terms of colors. But I`d get a key focus for the overall site, then start to relate all the pages to that key focus---the "site premise."

Who is Tami, why should I care, what specifically is she selling, and how much is it going to cost me? Those are the basic questions that aren`t yet developed on the site. :-)

Hi Tami,

Here is my opinion for your site.

Strictly from the point of view from a potential prospect (myself included), I think there is a lot missing. When a prospect first hits your site, there is nothing there to indicate you are the person who could help them. It seems as if the `authoritative` look is missing (a combination of content & appropriate layout/graphics).

Who is Tami Gomez and is she qualified to help me -- looking at the site, one could conclude that Tami Gomez probably isn`t the coach for `them` because they don`t have enough information to make an educated decision.

I`m not clear on what you do exactly, on one page, it looks like you`re looking to get booked for doing speaking engagments, and on another, it looks like you do offer coaching services -- so I`m not real clear on what`s going on.

I would replace the video with something more `relevant` to the visitor coming to the site. When I clicked on the video, I expected to hear some type of personal message, instead, there was a slide show with some music.

That space should be used for more important information -- such as "What Could the Visitor Expect to Achieve By Using Your Services (or Speaking Services)".

Here is a site that clearly communicates to the visitor coming to the site:

http://www.mindfullifecoach.com/

From the beginning, she tells me "How I Would Benefit from Her Services" with phrases and headlines such as:

"Success On Your Own Terms", "Transform Your Life"

You deserve a personal and professional life of unlimited possibility. Mindful Life Coaching will help you know your life purpose, take action toward your goals, stay focused on your life vision, manage your time, live a balanced life, and achieve the success, inner peace, joy and fulfillment you deserve.

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Her site clearly indicates that she is the authority and after reviewing the content on the site, I walk away knowing that she clearly could help me.

Prospects for the type of service you`re offering will want a lot more information than what`s currently there now. You`ll have to educate them about `why they need you` and that you are indeed the person that can help them.

You also have a link to your profile at SUN --- but when I get there, there isn`t much information about you. Also, consider not allowing people to spill off your site to go elsewhere because once they`re at "SUN", they could easily get distracted with all of the wonderful resources and not return to your site.

I noticed you had a newsletter option for them to sign-up "Achieve Greater Success" -- even though the newsletter is free, you technically still must `SELL" them on why they would sign-up to receive it. Talk benefits, benefits, and more benefits.

This is simply my observations -- to many people get the impression that by having a site, they`ll get a ton of business. Truth of the matter is, you must work your butt off to get that site in tip top condition so it`ll convert for you 24-7.

One key purpose of a web site is to provide prospects with information about your products/services in an effort to get them to use you. But, that information must be presented in a way that will motivate the potential client to take action --- this is where many web sites lose focus.

I hope this helps, and this review was totally meant to help you improve your site.

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Website Startup Coach: Step-by-Step Coaching to Help You Build a Profitable Business Online!