After more than 9 years as a full time Web Design Consultant to get the #1 position in the natural results on Yahoo for the phrase is very gratifying. We are going into a redesign phase during the next week and this will stoke our furnace moving forward.

We are Web Design Consultants, but we are also SEO Search Engine Optimization Experts as well. Can you be #1 for a category on Yahoo where they report 500 MILLION results without being an SEO expert? No way – no how.

Sometimes being #1 on Yahoo or Google is short lived. We are going to enjoy it while it lasts though. There is a never ending battle to be the king of the hill and in SEO to be on the top of a hugely competitive phrase like this makes us the targets of thousands of other I.T. firms. Honestly we don’t care that much because our focus is working for the best customers in the world providing the best web designs in the business. Whether it’s WordPress web design or HTML.

Web Design Consultants have more fun.

Web Design Workplace has always been just a bunch of consultants who have worked together for years. We all worked together for one company or another and as independent consultants now, we work on each other’s projects as requested or needed. Do we have more fun now – you betcha. Working for a big box company has some advantages and some big disadvantages. For one thing, as a group of world class consultants, we never ever have to lay down a corporate lie to a customer. It’s not in our play book and never will be. You always get a straight shot with us and we sleep like babies at night knowing we did the best job for our clients that could possibly be done. Down to the last pixel in design and ranking in SEO.

Web Design Consultant Test

How do you know the self proclaimed “web design expert” you are talking with has real skills? Give them this test:

1. Ask to see their best 3 pieces of website design work and then check their Google ranking for their top phrase. The most beautiful website in the world that does not rank well on Google might as well be under a rock because it’s not going to bring you in new business. Web designers that don’t understand the design has to be integrated with SEO on every page should work for your competitors – not for you.  I’ve talked with many web designers that told me they were a “real graphic artist” and their artistic vision was more important than visibility on Google. Wow, that’s from the stone ages of the internet and they just don’t understand clients in competitive industries want more business from their websites, you are not interested in “supporting the arts”.
2. Ask to see their top 3 most competitive Google #1 rankings. If they tell you that Google ranking has nothing to do with web design tell them they are right, don’t waste another minute of your life with them, and hope they work for your competitor. I want to rank top 10 for my most competitive phrases on Google so I can get more business. I really want to rank #1 for several phrases but I’m realistic and I know just getting on Google Page One in the top 10 rankings is outstanding.
3. Ask your web design consultant how they built “relevance” into each page of the website. If they can tell you that the page name, the page title, the page headings, the page text, and links to that page from other interior pages of the website all more or less have a relevant match on the primary and secondary keyword phrases for that page… you got yourself a web designer that knows SEO. That’s vital to bring in more internet shoppers. If you just want to look at art you can always go to a museum. I want a beautiful website that ranks well on Google so I can make more money.
4. Ask your prospective web design consultant to show you the meta title for your “About” page and the meta title for your “homepage”. If they are identical, it means the so called “expert” was either lazy or really did not know what they were doing in terms of integrating their design with search. That’s not going to get you any new business. Send them to work for your competitors.

Old School Web Design Has Nothing to do with Search Engine Optimization SEO

• 9 out of 10 web design consultants don’t know the first thing about SEO (search engine optimization) and that can cost you millions in new business.
• The same 9 out of 10 web consultants will tell you how design and SEO are 2 different things and you don’t need SEO for a website.
• I can tell you from experience 9 out of 10 web design consultants will tell customers they are an “expert” on SEO when they don’t even know the basics.

First of all, no matter how beautiful a website looks, if it does not rank well on Google… it’s nearly worthless in terms of attracting new prospects for your business. A website that does not rank well on Google might as well be invisible. Why bother?

Is it Important to Rank Well on Yahoo and Bing?

85% of all searches are done with Google. Many Professional SEO’s don’t bother doing anything for Bing or Yahoo. So the short answer is: No. I do a few things for Bing and Yahoo including verifying websites in Bing Webmaster Tools and Yahoo Site Explorer… but in terms of on page optimization Google is like the 800 pound Gorilla these days and you don’t get much in return when you score big on Bing or Yahoo anyway.

Web Design for business goes hand in hand with SEO for business, they can’t be looked at as different entities anymore. Web design and SEO are intertwined. They compliment each other. If your web design consultant tells you any differently, get a better one and send yours right to your toughest business competitor because you will be able to outrank them and gain an advantage using internet marketing.