I probably should not be shocked, but as more and more people are becoming more confident about having their own sites, as a web designer and developer, the questions the things they say are a bit alarming. I fear they are not getting the information they need.
Often I refer them to Joost de Valk’s site Yoast because he is extremely knowledgeable about SEO as well as WordPress. Of course, I also refer clients and potential clients to SEO niche blogs like SEOmoz blog an SearchEngineJournal.
The problem is a lot of people get into a lot of hype on things like buying themes that are supposedly optimized for SEO, like Thesis. In the end, they waste either a developer’s fee or a single license fee when they can have a dynamic site and install recommended plugins by people that are top in their niche. Thesis is nice and allows a lot of things to be done, but design-wise, it does not really offer the flexibility that people need to brand themselves properly.
Of course, there are people who can write awesome content and get away with slinking by and not having a fantastically designed site to help with branding, but even people who are not as savvy in SEO should be taking the time to read up or watch videos. These days, people really do not have the time, but this is important.
As a site owner, it is important to try to be up-to-date in a lot of internet techniques. It is what leaves one site in the dust while its competition succeeds because they were open to keeping up. It is kind of like when I went to college for web design. The text books, even though they were informative, they were well behind for the time. Typically, by the time most internet related technology books are behind in information when it is put to print.
What sites do you think are huge resources for webmasters needing more information on search engine optimization?
Internet site Layout and Wp are heading a long way this present period, Im observing added site owners work with Cms and wordpress blogs alternatively of usual Html page. I wonder, will we be using touch screen to create web designs in the future instead of complicated coding?
that is a good question because right now touch screens still are quite limiting. It is a possiblity…imo.
Thanks for the resources you’ve pointed out here. They are indeed great ones about SEO.
Do you believe it is really waste of money to go for buying the themes like thesis?
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Personally, for myself… it is a waste. Others, it might not be, but I think if you want to brand yourself even with Thesis, you will have to learn the ins and outs of it to be able to design with it in a way that makes it not look like another WordPress site using Thesis. There are a lot of resources for webmasters of all types to learn WordPress and even customize it too.
I think the most important thing is creating great content and getting backlinks from authority sites in your niche. Not matter how well your onsite optimization is it won't get you to far without quality links pointing to your site.
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THESIS is a horrible theme. I heard its not really customizable at all. So, GIANT waste of money ;P
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Well said Nile! This is why I train people to take control of their own SEO – because they don't need to pay the big bucks to compete with big companies (that have big wallets).
It's all about understanding your customer/client/reader and using the tools already available to bring the relevant content to the right niche market. There's no need to pay for themes that promise it all.
A little wisdom goes a long way!
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