Darn right it is!

How, you might ask?  How in the world can content be king when page-after-page of most e-commerce sites is loaded with products and generic product descriptions?

Well, there’s the problem right there.

First, the generic product description.  You know, the one that the manufacturer provides with their products.

Well, a lot of e-commerce sites have this generic, bland and boring description cut and paste right onto the sight.  So first, there’s no differentiation going on in the consumer’s eyes between sites.

And second, Google won’t index those pages because the content is not original.  Relying on these canned, unappealing descriptions kill your SEO before it even has a chance.

I know it’s a lot of tedious work to write original, pithy product descriptions but the hard work will pay off in higher search engine rankings and higher sales.

Now another area where content can really help an e-commerce site is “buying guides.”

If you sell shoes…why not have buying guides for ladies shoes, boots, kids shoes, athletic shoes and so on?  That way you give the visitor a reason to hit your site, you can include links to pages within your site and you give others a good reason to link to your site (backlinks, yea!).

Get the point?  Better content, SEO!

So if you have an e-commerce site, remember, content really is king…with customers and search engines.

Evy Schwartz
SEO Expert
San Antonio, Texas

I’ve been working with a local client on getting their website properly SEOd.  So the other day, I’m asked to sit in on an interview.  The company has another completely different product line and they needed someone to handle the SEO for the other site.

So anyway, I’m listening to this person talk and talk about how great she is.  So I asked her how she would get the website ranking on the first page of Google.

She looked me straight in the eye and said, “Oh, I’ve got this fantastic method of putting the keywords in the HTML code.  It doesn’t show up on the page but the robots can see them in the code.”

HOLD ON…STOP EVERYTHING!!!  OMG…

I couldn’t believe it.  So I said to her that her “fantastic” technique is black hat and Google will deliver a smackdown to any site that does this.

She actually had no clue.  She told me she thought as long as the 20 keywords were put in a sentence, it was okay.

And of course, when I searched for the local restaurant who paid this woman $2000 to SEO the site…the restaurant was no where to be found.

Why am I telling you this?

I just want you to be careful.  This woman talked a good game.  She really did sound like she knows what she’s talking about.  And she’s currently here in San Antonio working with poor, unsuspecting companies who are relying on her expertise.

So beware…your next SEO expert just may bury your site so well that no one could find it even if they tried.

Evy Schwartz
SEO Guru
San Antonio, Texas

Okay, I have to admit, I’ve been watching this Kanye West story.  Shocked, disgusted and hooked.

Until today.

But let me back up and explain how Kanye West has anything remotely to do with your copy.

So the other night at the VMA awards, Taylor Swift won an award.  As she was beginning her acceptance speech, Kanye grabbed the mike from her and started jabbering on about how Beyonce (a competitor for the award) had one of the best videos ever.

Absolutely rude and ridiculous, in my opinion.  But…Kanye’s behavior was just like the attention-grabbing headlines a lot of copywriters and internet marketers love to write.

Sure, you’ll grab attention but you better have some substance to back up that hype or people will turn against you.

Which is what happened in the case of Kanye West.  He’s been all over the television apologizing for his senseless act and proclaiming his desire to apologize directly to Taylor Swift.

Now bear with me for a minute because I happen to be a softy.  I know Kanye’s Mom died recently and maybe he lost his mind for a minute that night.  I took him to heart…I believed him

Just like your readers trust what you write.  They believe in your testimonials and stories (if the copy is good, that is).  They get drawn in by the emotion of your copy.

But if your content is just hype…beware.

So back to Kanye.  I saw Taylor Swift on The View this morning.  This was after Kanye’s tearful apologies yesterday and vow to talk to Swift personally and apologize directly.

Someone asked Swift if she had heard from West.  An email, a phone call…

“Nope,”  Swift said.

Wow.  All hype and no substance.

My heartstrings are back into shape and I turned my back on Kanye West (I’m sure he’s in tears!).

Just like your prospects and customers will do if there’s not substance behind the hype of your copy.

Don’t get all Kanye West the next time you have to promote a product.  Remember that substance sells.  And a good copywriter can add a little hype to the mix to get attention and increase your bottom-line.

But make sure you’ve got a solid product or service to back up your claims and you’ll be golden!