One very common mistake with first time web site owners is the thought that once a site is up and running that is all that is needed. In the past that was pretty much all you needed for a web presence. Still today you can have a very basic web presence like this; however, your competition will pass you buy.

To have a great website you want to keep you content fresh and updated as well as regularly add new content. Each time a search engine visits your site it remembers how everything was before. If you have made no changes to a page it is marked with a 'Not Modified' flag. After several visits to your site if the majority of your site never changes the site will look stagnant to the search engine.

 The search engines mission is to provide quality sites for their users. They do not want...

stagnant sites that have never been updated from the first day they were opened. If someone searches their directory the user doesn't want to necessarily see sites at the top that are not fresh and reliable content. The longer your site sits without any updates to the content the more likely your website will slide down the rankings.

Case in point. My website. Yes I fell victim to stagnant content as well. During the first year of my website I was found within the first page or two of most major search engines. Then I got busy designing and working with other websites that I didn't have time to work with mine. After about 3 years I went to the search engines to see if I could find my site. (ps you may want to check more often than 3 years!)

 I found that I had slipped down 4 pages in all of the search engines I used to be in. Now I update my content as regularly as possible. My site is found on the first page of most all search engines for my keywords terms. Keeping your content updated and fresh will help to make your website GREAT!

If you do not have a current way to update your content please contact me and I can help you create a content plan for your website. Even a little is better than nothing at all.

Visit my Contact page and send me an email. I will be happy to call you or email you back as soon as humanly possible.

 Thank you for your time!

 - American Web Developer for Hire