Web Consultancy UK

I’m going to let you in on a naughty little secret that most developers don’t want you to know about.  It’s called rentacoder.com, and it’s been a lifesaver for many an overworked UK coder over the past few years.

Rentacoder is essentially a middleman between UK developers and coders/designers in developing countries.  It provides a safe, easy to use, and above all cheap, means of outsourcing work to countries where the dollar is still strong enough to hold sway.

Now, if I were to tell you that by using Rentacoder UK developers are able to get quality work done at a fraction of the price it would cost in this country, you might reasonably ask why you too shouldn’t give it a try?  Well, the simple answer is, that actually, you probabaly should.

Rentacoder is a fantastic means of getting a project completed to a  high quality, whilst at the same time actively helping coders in disadvantaged areas generate some much needed income.  I see it very much like Comic relief, but without Lenny Henry in a garish red jacket.  Coder Relief in fact.

But it does come with some pit falls…

1.  To really work on a low budget you have to be prepared to take a chance on a low scoring coder.  This is someone new to Rentacoder who has yet to build up a reputation score (much like Ebay’s Power seller scoring system, based on client feedback) or a network of clients.  This doesn’t work out everytime, so avoid projects with a tight deadline.  If the coder isn’t up to the task, don’t worry.  So long as you’ve set a rigid brief that hasn’t been met, Rentacoder will mediate in your favour and return all escrowed funds.  If however you haven’t briefed the coder correctly with your requirements, or have renaged on your side of the bargain, beware, as you are likely to lose your deposit.  Either way, just re-submit your job, and try another coder.

2.  Using a coder whose first language isn’t English can at times be very tricky.  Using Rentacoder is harder work than using a UK coder, as you will often have to micro-manage the project via email.  This isn’t a problem if you’re technically minded, and know exactly what you require - however, for those that don’t know their HTML from their CSS it can be very tricky.  There are of course Rentacoders on the site that have an excellent understanding of English, and will be every bit as savvy as their UK counterparts, but these are generally the coders than have high reputation score,a nd you will therefore find yourself paying a  premium (it will still be far cheaper than a UK agency however).

3.  There are of course dubious characters on rentacoder, as there are in real lige.  with some 1/2  million coders on the site this is inescapable.  However, Rentacoder.com are very wise to this, and so long as you follow their advice to the letter, you can’t really go wrong.

So go on, give it a go.  I can assure you that once you get the bug you’ll never want to do your coding any other way

It’s about time too.  A recurring theme at yesterday’s TFM&A show (well, apart from recession marketing) was how the big agencies are finally cottoning onto the fact that online copy writing is a marketable (read sellable) tool to have in their box.  In the past, it’s always been Design, SEO, PPC and usability that floated the big boys boats.  Copy writing was never seen as all that glamourous (and let’s be honest, it actually really isn’t) - but the move towards content led SEO has meant they have to play ball.

But how easy is it for a big agency to write online copy.  Actually, how easy is it for any of us?

Well, here are a few tips that you, gallant reader, might find useful if you want to write your own web copy.

• How you speak, isn’t necesserily how your customers speak.  Perfect example.  In my industry, we regularly use the term ‘banqueting’.  the number of customers outside of the industry who use that term?  Zero.  They prefer the term ‘eating out’, or ‘going for a meal’.  Make sure you use language that your customers use and you’re 90% of the way there.
• CSS.  Not just just the name of a successful pop band (Brazilian I think), but also stands for Cascading Style Sheets.  This is a powerful tool that your coders use to make their lives easier when making changes to your site.  They’re a series of rules that, when applied to text, images etc. format them in a particular way, or style, creating a tiered hierarchy to your content.  Change the rule, and all the associated content throughout the site will also change.  They’re a great way for Google to understand what content is important on your site, by reading header tags (H1, H2 etc.) and suchlike.  If you’re really keen on learning CSS, I recommend Dave Raggett, from 3WC’s page.  Alternatively, do what I do, and cheat by using Styliser.
• Use Google’s free tools.  By an amazing coincidence, the tools Google gives you for free for your PPC campaigns are also a great way of understanding your users search trends and behaviour.  Use Google insights to get up to the minute user behaviour on key terms you think people are searching for (also really good for understanding seasonal user behaviour), or use Google adwords key word tool to generate key word ideas for your site,  If you use this version, you don’t even need to have a keywords account!
• Compromise.  Having keyword heavy text is no use if it affects the readability of your page and drives away customers.  There’s been a cultural shift that means your readers will cut you a lot more slack regarding key word placement in your content than they would have five years ago, but remember, the real trick is balancing the demands from Google, with your customers own experiences of the site.

Now, what are you still reading for?  Get out there and write something!

So, I’m not the kind to plagarise anothers analogy (lol - blatently this isn’t true.  I’m in marketing after all!), but  just yesterday I read a rather neat one from Tanya Goodwin (Chief Exec at Tamar.com).  She compared PPC and SEO to the difference between a Volvo and a Bugatti Veyron.  One being fast, results driven, and expensive, the other being a slower, but more reliable long term investment.

Now, in a time of economic crisis - which would you rather invest in?

If you answered “Bugatti”, then I’d recomend you flip straight through to my Pay Per Click page.  But if you’re thinking in the same way as most of the other businesses I met at last weeks TFM&A show, you’re thinking that the smart money’s heading down to your local Volvo dealer.

So what is it about SEO that is so appealing to budget marketers?  Well, obviously, it can be a lot cheaper, but this isn’t a golden rule.  If your business serves a niche market, or has a reasonably unique product, you can sponsor relevant key terms at a relatively low cost.  However, the moment you stop paying the piper, the music dies, and you’re left wondering what the long term effects are (hopefully you’ve capitalised on your investment to build on a regular customer base though, so it might not all be bad).

SEO doesn’t work like that.  Initial investment in a well optimised website will pay dividends well beyond the pipers final notes play out.  Admittedly, Google changes it’s algorithms regularly, and a well optimised website is a regularly updated website - but, in the SME world where competition generally isn’t that high, your initial 2k - 5k investment (I give this figure as an example of what you might expect to pay a medium sized agency, not as an example of what I charge for the service) in a considered, content rich and well structured website should see you through a good couple of years.

Also, and this is where I find the anaology starts to run dry, SEO is fun.  No, seriously, this isn’t just my inner geek speaking.  I’m going to talk about quite a few tips for SEO in this blog, and I’m going to suggest as many as possible that can be done either on a low budget, or for free.  And oddly enough, this isn’t just extremely satisfying.  it really can be quite enjoyable too!

For those really looking to capitalise on SEO within a tight budget, one of the most effective ways to achieve a high page ranking is to create yourself a profile within those SEO holy of holys - A social network.

Wow - “what’s a social network?” I hear you say  (If you did really say that then at this point I’m afraid I’m going to have to politely ask you to leave through the back door).  Seriously though, a more sensible question might be “How can I use a social network to leverage my SEO?”.  This would be a good question!

Social networks such as Facebook or Myspace have very high page rankings due to their enormous popularity.  However, you can’t levarage that popularity until you build yourself a profile, and populate it with relevant and interesting content that will appeal to your customers.  Now, this is easy to do if you’re selling an exciting product with lots of advocates (think Nike or the Olympics), but how do you drum up interest if you’re selling car parts, or soap?

Here’s the cincher - be interesting.  And be yourself.  People don’t go onto a social network to build relationships with products, they want to build relationships with other people.  Be a person, update your profile regularly with interesting stories, articles and opinions, and make sure you sign up all your friends.  The more relationships you build, the more people you’ll have linking into your profile sending you valuable link equity.  And so long as you have plenty of outgoing links to your own website built into your profile, this equity is only heading to one place - your product!

Oh, and did I mention that you can do all this for free?

There’s going to be plenty more top credit crunching SEO tips from me in the next few weeks - so stay tuned.

Andrew

P.S.  For a more indepth view on SEO and social networks, click here