SiteBeat: May 2014

Greetings. In the last several months HEROweb has received a bevy of questions about linkbuilding and how Google and Bing have changed the way they value links. We hope you will check out our Marketing Bites series on this topic. Also, please join us in welcoming our new Tech Support Specialist, Jared Skye, to the HEROweb team. As always, we have some useful site management tips for you.

Our Link Building Series

If you follow our Marketing Bites (and if you don't you should!), you may already be aware that we recently posted a series of Bites on creating an effective link building strategy.

Having a strong link profile is still an important part of ranking well on search engines like Google and Bing. However, it can be a tricky process to navigate, as a misstep could end up hurting more than helping your rankings. So check out our series for some tips on how to safely and effectively attract incoming links to your website.

Backing Up & Archiving Your Site

Customers sometimes ask about how they can get a copy of their site. There are several reasons you might need a copy or backup of your site or your site's data. And, there are several types of archives you can utilize.

• archive.org is a site that provides a snapshot of what your site has looked like over the years. While not a true "backup," it will store an archive of many, if not all, of your site's pages and give you an historical record of how your site looked over the years.
• www.httrack.com is a free tool that allows you to download a copy of your site to your desktop.
• Data Download - if you are on MightyMerchant v4.8 or later, you can request a free CSV (comma separated value) file of all your data from HEROweb at any time.
• Flattened Site - HEROweb can also create a fully-functional "flattened" version of your site that can be run offline, making it great for use at trade shows or used as a resource if you are moving to another platform. This version still lets you navigate the site but shopping features, forms, and account features will not work. We charge between $150-$250 for this service, depending on the complexity of your site.
• Custom backup or archive - If you have a need for a custom archive or scheduled backup, let us know what your needs are and we can inform you what costs would be associated with creating such an archive and how best to move forward.

Your site is backed up daily with our three-tiered backup system. While we are fully confident in our own backup system, if you have any questions about how to obtain your own backup, don't hesitate to contact us.

Quick Tip: Hiding Items from Search

Sometimes you may want to keep certain product categories hidden from your on-site search results. For example, you may have a slideshow category and you don’t want slides returned in search results. MightyMerchant gives you the power to do this for any category with just the click of a button.

To hide a category from being searchable on your site, simply edit the category and select 'Yes' next to 'Hide items in this category from search.'

It's that simple!

Running a Sale: Please Talk with Us Before You Start Advertising

On-site sales can be a great way to increase order volume, offload excess inventory, and generate excitement. We have detailed documentation on how to use our Sale and Coupon Manager to help guide you. Sometimes businesses come up with creative sale ideas that might be challenging in MightyMerchant. 

If you have an idea for an out-of-the-box sale, beyond simple pricing discounts or free shipping, we recommend you take the following steps.

• Define the exact parameters of the sale. What products do you want it to apply to and what exactly triggers it?
• Set up the sale in the site manager using our documentation as a guide.
• Test the sale yourself by placing multiple test orders to make sure the sale is triggering only when and how you want it.

If you find you are unable to set up the sale you want by following these steps, please contact us. We're happy to work with you to set up creative sale ideas, just make sure to check in before you start advertising the sale, to ensure we have enough time to come up with the best solution for a successful sale and that the MightyMerchant Site Manager can facilitate the type of sale you have envisioned.

Welcome, Jared Skye!

This April HEROweb was excited to welcome our newest HERO, Jared Skye, to the HEROweb family. Jared comes to HEROweb with a diverse background in web design and development as well as video production. 

Read Jared's full Bio on the HEROweb staff page.

Welcoming New HEROweb Customers

Garlic Press is an independent publishing company focusing on educational books and materials for use at home or in the classroom.

AJS Publications is another educational vendor. AJS Publications provides concise, yet thorough, educational materials focusing on federal and state constitutions and the workings of the US government.

SF Kanko is a brand new Japanese-focused San Francisco walking tour company. A great niche business ... with a fun website. As with all of our newly-designed HEROweb sites, this site has a responsive design, optimized for mobile devices.

Mark Steel Jewelry is a wholesaler of unique, artisan earrings, rings and bracelets crafted from high quality precious metals.

Eugene Movement Center is an excellent sports massage therapy and restorative exercise center located in Eugene, Oregon.

Oregon Aquatics is a pond supply wholesaler and one of the largest aquatic plant growers and pond accessory distributors in the Pacific Northwest.