If you’re in business today, you need a great website. A website should give prospects a clear picture of who you are. And it should facilitate productive interaction between you and your customers. Depending on your business, you may also need an online store.

One of the most important factors in making all that happen is web hosting. And the truth is, a great website is not a great website without the right hosting services behind it. That’s a fact that’s commonly overlooked. Don’t make that mistake.

What is Web Hosting?

Web hosting is a service that provides space for all of the files included in your website, and access online to your site. All the files associated with your site are stored on powerful computers called “servers.” These servers are connected to the internet on a high-speed network.

One way to explain this is to think of your website as an internet version of your company. Your company needs a place to operate, to keep all your inventory, have meetings, etc. So you have an office, a store, or a building. Your web hosting is the internet version of that office, store, or building. It’s where your website actually “lives.”

Why is the Right Web Hosting Important?

All web hosting is not the same. The available space and processing power of the servers along with network speed and bandwidth are important factors. Depending on how large your site is, you may need more or less space. And depending on the function of your site and the amount of traffic, some web hosting services may not provide sufficient processing power, bandwidth or network speed.

In addition, while the smallest and simplest websites may do fine with basic services, larger and more involved sites require expert management. As your business grows and evolves, so does your website. It’s crucial that your hosting services grow and evolve as well. You need expert guidance to keep your site in sync with your business and your goals.

Digital Media Services

At McWilliams Media in Broken Arrow, Oklahoma, we are experts in all aspects of digital media. We can help you create your brand and communicate to your customers and prospects. We can produce great videos and design powerful social media marketing strategies. And we can design and build a great website for your business.

But at the end of the day, we know that one of our most important jobs is helping you choose the right hosting package for your website. So we’ve taken time below to explain our primary hosting packages. Remember, you may need a different package now than you will down the road. So we are always here to answer your questions and help you know when to adjust your hosting to fit your needs.

Choosing the Right Hosting Package

1. Silver

If your website includes videos or multiple images, you may need more storage space and more network speed and bandwidth. Especially if your site includes a simple online store or shopping cart, you may need our Silver package. As your business grows, your website will grow as well. You may need the additional speed and power of our Silver package:

• Hosted on DV Server
• Faster Speed and more Bandwidth
• Ideal for sites with images, videos, shopping carts and multiple functions
• Software Updates
• Costs only $40 per month

 2. Gold

If your website is an important part of your business, you want to make sure it is managed properly. With additional services like security monitoring and monthly backups, the Gold package gives you peace of mind. In addition, your site will need periodic maintenance and software updating. With the Gold package, you know that as you run your business, we’re taking care of these basic functions for you. What you get with our Gold package:

• Hosted on DV Server
• Faster Speed and more Bandwidth
• Ideal for sites with images, videos, shopping carts and websites with various functions
• Monthly Backups
• Security Monitoring
• Software Updates
• Basic Maintenance
• Costs only $55 per month

3. Platinum

At McWilliams Media, we are passionate about making our entrepreneurs successful. So we designed the Platinum package with that passion for success in mind. In addition to security and maintenance services, but we include some of our most valuable services as well. Graphics, content changes, page modifications, blog posting, and more. With our highest bandwidth and speed and hosting on a DV server, you know you’re getting the best of the best. And for the security of your customers’ data, financial information, etc., we’ve included a FREE SSL certificate. The Platinum package includes:

• 1 Hour of Site Work Every Month including graphics, content changes, page modifications, blog posting, etc.
• Website hosted on DV Server
• Faster Speed and Higher Bandwidth
• Ideal for sites with images, videos, shopping carts and websites with various functions
• Monthly Backups
• Security Monitoring
• Software Updates
• Basic Maintenance
• Free SSL certificate
• Costs only $75 per month

Digital Media in Tulsa and Broken Arrow

In today’s digital commerce climate, your website is often the heartbeat of your business. At McWilliams Media in Broken Arrow, we want to help you get the most out of your digital marketing dollars. From branding and web design to social media and video production, we are here for you. And that includes helping you choose the right hosting package for your needs. Contact us today and let us partner with you on your journey to success!

The post Web Hosting: How to Get What You Really Need first appeared on Website Design | McWilliams Media |Broken Arrow, OK.

1. What is SEO?

SEO stands for Search Engine Optimization. No, that doesn’t mean making the search engines on your computer work better (that’s not really a thing). But it does mean making search engines work to your advantage.

Search engines, like Google or Bing, are web functionalities that help people find things on the internet. If you’re in business, this is really important. You want people to find you.

What search engines do

When a customer searches for businesses like yours, they see a list of choices. Search engines direct people to websites. But they also rank these results. They use hundreds of factors to perform these functions. However, they can be distilled into two ideas; relevance and popularity.

How relevant your site is to a search will affect your site’s query ranking. But popularity is also important. Search engines work on the idea that popularity corresponds to accuracy. So if a site is more popular, it is more likely to be of a higher quality.

What SEO does

So SEO helps you make sure your site appears in the correct search queries (relevance). Then it helps you push your site to the top of those queries (relevance & popularity). In short, SEO is how you get seen online. If Google is a field of billboards, SEO makes your billboard taller than anyone else’s.

2. How does SEO work?

But how is this accomplished? Well, for starters, keywords. These are the words that are most relevant to your business.You need the right keywords on your site. And you need them to occur often. This is the simplest function of SEO.

Search engine bots accomplish this by scanning your sites content. They make sure your keywords match your business. They make sure your keywords match your market. And they make sure your site follows the rules of the search engines.

Beyond keywords

But keywords are just the beginning. In the old days, search engines only looked for words. Therefore, search results were often of little value. But now search engines are much better and much smarter. But this also makes them much, much more complex.

Search engines now look at hundreds of factors to determine the rank and relevance of your site. Knowing which of these factors is most important to your business is a major function of good SEO. This helps keep your site from blending into the noise of the internet.

SEO experts

The algorithms used to do this are complex and constantly changing. For that reason, SEO has become an industry in itself. SEO experts work hard to keep up with the changing metrics of the major engines. They analyze search engine rules and site content. Then they make them work well together.

3. Why do you need SEO?

I think we sometimes have the idea that putting a website online suddenly gives us an online presence. But it doesn’t always work that way. The internet is huge. After all, it’s called the “world-wide-web” for a reason. So when someone searches for “Mufflers Tulsa, Oklahoma,” they might not find your Tulsa muffler shop at all.

Avoid Search failure

Who’s had an experience like this? You’re looking for–say–ok, mufflers. You type in “Mufflers Tulsa Oklahoma” and you see several that look familiar. Scrolling down a bit, you see one that catches your eye, Tony’s Muffler Shop.

You click on the website. You chat online with an expert. Nice site! Great experience! You might even book an appointment. Then you find out they’re in Munsey, Indiana! (or some other random location) How did this happen!?

The top few on the list were most likely local. But you, like many others, rarely choose the top result unless it’s the specific name you were searching for. So you scrolled past the obvious choices. And not far down the list, you found your Munsey muffler shop with the great site.

Why was he there? Well, there are a lot of possible reasons. But more importantly, why did so many Tulsa, Oklahoma muffler shops not get seen in that search? SEO. Or rather, the lack of good quality SEO.

Get seen.

Without good SEO, you have no idea who will see your site, or if anyone ever will!  You work hard to make your business the best. And you probably paid good money for your site. So you need to make sure that site doesn’t get lost in the shuffle.

SEO helps you make sure your site meets the complex criteria for search engine rankings. You need to know that when someone searches for a business like yours, you at least have a chance! SEO gives you the peace of mind to know you’re not invisible.

Get seen by the right people.

Expert SEO not only makes you visible online but also makes you visible to the right people. You need to know that you’re showing up in search queries. But you also need to know you’re showing up in the right search queries.

By fine-tuning keywords, link structure, and other key elements, professional SEO targets your customers. You wouldn’t spend your money on a magazine advertisement in a place you can’t do business, would you? Well, without good SEO, you might be doing just that. The internet is huge, and good SEO helps shrink it down to size.

Tulsa & Broken Arrow SEO

At McWilliams Media in Broken Arrow and Tulsa, Oklahoma, we specialize in professional, customized SEO for your business. Call us today to see how we can maximize your website’s impact! We will work with you to make sure your business gets seen–and that it gets seen by the right people!

Our team are experts in all phases of digital marketing. From web design and branding to videography and social media, we are here to help you succeed! We are passionate about helping our entrepreneurs build their dreams! Call us for a free consultation today!

Photo by Alex Knight on Unsplash

The post SEO-What it is and Why you need it first appeared on Website Design | McWilliams Media |Broken Arrow, OK.

“Social media is the ultimate equalizer. It gives a voice and a platform to anyone willing to engage.”
-Amy Jo Martin

“Technology and social media have brought power back to the people.”
-Mark McKinnon

As business people in Tulsa, we want to use social media to our advantage, but there is such a thing as social media overload. Post too much for our clients, or spend too much of our valuable time posting, and suddenly this powerful tool is hurting and not helping our business.

Here are 3 strategies to avoid “Social Media Overload.”

1. CHOOSE YOUR WEAPON

Focus on one platform at a time. If you have a massive social media team, maybe you can ignore this one, but for most of us, time is precious. Use the following questions to choose the best social media platform to focus your attention on.

Which platform fits your business best?

Where can you best represent yourself and your business?

Which platform does your target audience spend most of their time on?

This might take some effort to find out, but if you don’t know, you might end up wasting time posting to the wrong people.

Which platform can you afford to spend time on?

Especially if you’re a one-person show, you may need to choose the platform that is quickest and easiest for you! Do one thing and do it well!

 2. POST BETTER, NOT MORE

Here’s a liberating idea: You don’t have to post new content every day! In fact, doing that may actually hurt you. Too many posts can become white noise. Here are some tips to help you focus on quality rather than quantity.

Post only the best of the best!

Don’t just post to post. Instead, write something really impactful and post it across all the platforms you use to get the most mileage out of it.

Don’t spend ONE MINUTE looking for material to post!

If you happen to come across something great, post it! But especially if you’re a small team or you’re doing this all yourself, it’s a waste of time to sit and search just to have something to post.

Figure out what works.

Watch what kind of things perform well in likes, shares, re-tweets, etc., and let that guide you. Then you can more easily decide what kinds of posts are worth spending your time on. Which brings me to the next strategy…

 3. SPEND YOUR TIME ON WHAT REALLY MATTERS

You’re probably not in the social media business, and even if you are, posting on social media still isn’t what your business is about. You have clients to see and projects to complete and sales to make. Don’t let social media become a time-suck. Use this simple strategy to manage its impact on your time.

• Decide how much time to spend on social media each day, and when that will be.
• Plan your attack—decide what you’ll do ahead of time.
• Set a timer, and follow your plan as closely as possible.
• Stop—When the timer goes off, GET BACK TO WORK!

Social media overload can affect you, your clients, and your business. Be the master of this powerful tool! Let us put together a strategy that fits your goals, your business, and your team, and help you get the most out of social media! Call McWilliams Media today!

The post 3 Strategies for avoiding SOCIAL MEDIA OVERLOAD first appeared on Website Design | McWilliams Media |Broken Arrow, OK.