Use Analytics
Use Google SEO To Your Advantage
SEO means Search Engine Optimization. It is the way that you are found and ranked on Google. Companies that allow you to design your website such as Squarespace and Wix, allows you to optimize your rankings. It hasn’t yet made a huge difference as I have only gained one visitor from Google, but I am constantly adding content to my website, which improves the rankings.
Analytics
Analytics was something I didn’t take seriously until a few months ago. I didn’t notice or even think to check how many people were visiting my site. While increasing my Social Media presence, I didn’t realise that people were not visiting my website. I hadn’t optimized my site for Google. On Social Media I hadn’t given a valid reason for people to click the link and come check out my website. I was originally on Wix, which encourages you to improve your SEO. It is very easy to do as they have a checklist and help you through the process. This is what changed everything for me. I checked my analytics and saw very few people had visited my website. Now, I had a reason for why I wasn’t receiving sales, because no one knew I existed. I went back to the SEO checklist and the last thing to check of, was to start a blog. After learning about blogging, I left Wix to build a site on SquareSpace, though bloggers say it doesn’t matter how a blog looks, I prefered the look of SquareSpace blogs. How it is looks and reads does effect whether people want to read your blog. With everything else, we will choose a product that looks well packaged and looks great. For instance Apple laptops are favoured over better perfoming laptops. But in blogging we don’t prefer aesthetics? It isn’t coincidence that the most well known Youtubers usually have polished camera and editing skills. I liked Squarespace’s look and vibe. If you are not averse to learning simple coding, Wordpress is reportedly great.
Numbers Tell You The Story
This photo is from last month’s visitors. It isn’t many people, but with a new focus on my website, this is the most visitors I have had. This is the beginning of a journey of learning how to make a business grow. At the same time I am looking out for a new Instagram style platform and working on my Pinterest account. As you can see one person visited from Pinterest because it breaks down where most of my traffic is coming from. I am just starting out, this is Blog number nine. Every time I post that I have finished a blog on Twitter, there is a spike in the visitor numbers. Though I only have around seven hundred and fifty followers on Twitter, it helps bring visitors to my site. I have finished an artwork and showed it on Twitter. That didn’t translate into visitors. Analytics gives me data and allows me to see what I am doing correctly or wrong. If you are not making sales, you have multiple avenues you can try, instead of feeling dispirited. In the end Art is a business and here you have immediate data showing you what is working. It gave me a boost to see that I received a visitor from Pinterest, so what I am working towards there is paying off. Don’t try one thing only, diversify and you may be surprised what works.
Coauthored with Francesca Darcy who has more technological expertise then I possess and helps me with the technological aspects of my business. Twitter @francesca_darcy
