Categories
Creative Geek

It Starts at the Top…

I can’t tell you how often I’m reading a blog or a website, and I glance up at the title bar on my web browser only to see a completely pointless title like “Home” or “Blog” even worse, the name of the company that mad the template you’re using for your portfolio.

Stop what you’re doing right now and go look at your sites. What is your title? What is it saying to people?

Titles are used in countless ways — first and foremost, it is the information that Google pulls when it is displaying your site among their lists. It is also what the people that read your site, your potential clients, see if they are using tabs in their browsers, when they bookmark your page, and so much more!

If your title isn’t clear, how will they ever find you again? If your title says something like Bl*d*main or Templates for Photographers, does that help you? Or the company that made your template?

To change your blog’s title in WordPress, log in and go to Settings (it is the last item on the column on the left). Under General Settings, right there, you will see “Blog Title” as an option – make it something that helps people and computers! Start with your business name, and then maybe include where you are located at. People always want to know that!

Be sure to change the Tagline as well while you’re there. I noticed yesterday that even if you don’t have that showing up on your blog’s template, it does get pulled by Facebook. Looks a little silly if it still says something about you being just another WordPress blog, because we know you’re not just another anything. You’re FABULOUS! Now help the world see that!

Categories
Geek Love

What Does Your Title Say About You?

Stop what you’re doing and open a new browser window and pull up your website. Now look up there in the window’s title – where it says “Christine aka Big Pink Cookie” as you read this site.

What does it say?

If it says something that you think people search for in Google and is a way to identify you, excellent! That is exactly what we want! (I want to be the #1 Christine again, so that is the first word in my site’s title. I know, I’m aiming pretty high.)

But if it says something like what I saw earlier today – “Home” or “About” or even worse the name of the company that designed your Flash template for your photography portfolio, you’ve got a BIG problem. Search engines consider you just another one in the crowd. One of a zillion “Home” pages out there, or one of thousands of templates with that same name.

Make sure your site is set up to display unique, meaningful titles. Your search engine results will improve, and when people go to bookmark your site it will actually have a name that is your own show up in their list so they can find you later!