Newsletter : September 2011
Written by Steph Kendall
Welcome to the New Zealand Tourism Guide www.tourism.net.nz September 2011 issue. If you have news or comments, please email us news@tourism.net.nz.
In this September newsletter:
Create Search Engine Success With a Google-Friendly Website
Written by Steph Kendall
Google is in the business of providing search results to people using its search engines to find information, products and services on the Internet. Whilst Google does not exactly reveal how to achieve high rankings saying, "Sites' positions in our search results are determined based on a number of factors..." Google does, however, provide Webmaster guidelines for website owners (and search engine optimisers).
Google's Webmaster guidelines are summarised below in three main categories: content, technical and quality.
Content Guidelines
By thinking of your website as a printed publication, it's very easy to memorise these guidelines. That's because many of the elements required by Google in a website are those of a book: an attractive, readable cover, copyright, introduction, contents page with meaningful chapter headings, chapters of clear, well-written text, glossary and index.
- Make a site with a clear hierarchy and text links
- Offer a site map to your users
- Create a useful, information-rich web site and write clear accurate pages
- Use text instead of images wherever possible as the Google crawler doesn't recognise text contained in images
- Check your website with a text browser.
Technical Guidelines
- If you use dynamic pages (i.e. the URL contains a "?" character), be aware that not every search engine spider crawls dynamic pages as well as static pages
- Allow search bots to crawl your sites without session IDs or arguments that track their path through the site
- Make use of the robots.txt file on your web server
- If you use a content management system, make sure that the system creates pages and links that search engines can crawl
- Use robots.txt to prevent crawling of search results pages or other auto-generated pages
- Test your site to make sure that it appears correctly in different browsers
- Monitor your site's performance and optimise load times.
Quality Guidelines
- Make pages primarily for users, not for search engines
- Avoid tricks intended to improve search engine rankings
- Avoid hidden text or hidden links
- Don't use cloaking or sneaky redirects
- Don't send automated queries to Google
- Don't create pages, sub-domains or domains with substantially duplicate content
- Avoid "doorway" pages created just for search engines, or "cookie cutter" approaches publishing little or no original content
- Provide unique and relevant content that gives users a reason to visit your site first.
Search engine optimisers help website owners (and web designers) create 'search engine friendly websites' through their knowledge of Webmaster guidelines, SEO techniques and publishing, and also their skills in editing and writing. If you would rather focus on your business rather than the business of publishing, a good website designer and SEO can create a Google-friendly/search engine-friendly website for you. But if nothing else, keep the above guidelines in mind when you commission, or do, any work on your website.
Tourism Headlines
- Rugby World Cup 2011 Social Media Marketing – Tourism New Zealand will use a mobile app and mobile site called 'Capture the Flag', a location based photo-sharing game to help visitors find great places to go in New Zealand, meet with friends and share their experiences from their mobile phones. TNZ are also creating a Facebook contest. The mobile app goes live on 5th September.
- Key Message at Inbound Tour Operators Council Conference (ITOC) - Tourism New Zealand's key message to inbound tour operators at ITOC's 40th anniversary annual conference in Tauranga highlighted the need to adapt and grab opportunities in challenging times, especially those in the emerging Asian markets.
- Tourism Awards on Hold - In August, Tourism Industry Association New Zealand (TIA) announced that the Tourism Industry Awards have been put on hold for 2011. This was due to members not having the resources available to focus on creating comprehensive award entries, wishing to focus on Rugby World Cup 2011 preparations and Christchurch earthquakes mean a significant number of operators are not operational or are concentrating on keeping their businesses going.
Website Search Engine Optimisation For Specific Countries
Written by Steph Kendall
The wonderful thing about the World Wide Web is exactly that of course: its 'worldwide-ness'. However, going for the global market invariably brings with it some challenges. For example, your target audience may not be English speakers and will most likely be using the local language and geographic version of the major search engines (e.g. in Germany, users will be using google.de using German search terms).
You can still target a specific overseas, non-English speaking market through your website optimisation (as opposed to search engine advertising). However, before you publish or edit anything, consider: domain, hosting and website content.
Domains
Google recognises global positioning and serves up results to searchers based on their location. One factor in explaining where you are is your domain extension (.com for US/generically based global markets, .de for Germany, .fr for France and so on). Although your .co.nz or .com domain name will fare reasonably well overseas (especially if the search phrase includes 'nz' or ' new zealand'), the local domain extension may have more power (and better search results) in that country.
Hosting
Current opinion suggests the hosting of your website should be based in the target market you want to focus on as the IP address of the server will be recognised providing search engines with further information and 'proof' that you are based in that area.
Language
If your target market is France, then it is likely that a search query will be made in French on a search engine such as http://www.google.fr/ (Google France). Although search results appear with an option to translate, French speakers are more likely to view sites whose results display in French. Therefore it would be wise to write your website copy in French (including of course the Meta Data used in the search engine results pages).
Of these three, you may find that creating a new domain extension and hosting plan is not viable or worth the extra spend. However, publishing pages on your existing website in the primary language of your target market seems to be a good tactic, as pages will get picked up by search queries made in that language. (Do make sure that you include all the basic information in any second language pages: Product/service information, booking engine, booking confirmation and any relevant small print.)
Promote Your Business via NZTG
By providing a competition prize for NZTG newsletter subscribers, you gain additional exposure for your business and website with minimal outlay.
- Gain online recognition for your brand
- Promote your business – accommodation, attractions, tours - to already interested viewers
- Get your website seen by up to 15,000 new visitors*
- Capitalise on the desire to win a competition prize
- Increase business when the 'losers' book with you to win.
Ideas for Prizes
Offer a prize from within your business and you'll barely notice the cost. Any of the following make great competition prizes and almost inevitably lead onto extra spending within your business from the prize winners themselves. (Entrants must visit your website to find the answer to the competition question):
- 1 night's free accommodation
- Free entry to your attraction for an individual, couple or family
- Complimentary bottle of wine and dinner
- Free car rentals
- Adventure prizes (free jetboat ride, bungy jump, etc)
- Free tour tickets
- Vouchers worth $100+ (to be spent in your business)
Contact the NZTG team via news@tourism.net.nz for more information.
Top Tourism Site of the Month
This month's Top Tourism Site Award goes to Bearsden Bed & Breakfast in Queenstown
The superior quality of the photography really helps this website stand out in a busy B&B market. It has a wonderful clarity, easy to use navigation, well-written and well-thought out content – a worthy winner of this month's Top Tourism Site Award. For nitpickers perhaps a slightly larger body text and more use of search engine optimisation techniques such as textual H1s (rather than images) and unique Meta Data for every page would take it up a notch.
Bearsden Bed and Breakfast is located in a tranquil, rural setting between Queenstown Airport and Arrowtown. It offers guests a choice of two bedrooms both with ensuite, use of private guest lounge and five-person spa pool. Queenstown is a 15-minute drive away.
Nominate a Site
If you think a New Zealand travel or tourism website deserves a 'Top Tourism Site Award', let us know about it. (View further information about the award criteria.)
About the Top Tourism Site Award
The New Zealand Tourism Guide confers a Top Tourism Site Award to websites that:
- Enhance New Zealand as a travel destination
- Publish useful and informative content
- Are laid out in a professional and aesthetically-pleasing manner
- Are designed effectively for the World Wide Web
- May demonstrate easy functionality, interactivity, originality, outstanding graphic quality and marketing reach.
We welcome any feedback — send your comments to: news@tourism.net.nz
Kind regards,
The Team
Ph 0800 14 65 49
www.tourism.net.nz
New Zealand Tourism Guide
Head Office: Level One, 534 Colombo Street, Christchurch