Here, you’ll find insights on programming languages, frameworks, and techniques that shape the web and software landscape. Whether you’re a developer looking to refine your skills or simply curious about how things work behind the scenes, this space offers practical knowledge and thoughtful perspectives.
Business owners and executives often come to us for Search Engine Optimization (SEO). What they almost always want is a number one position in Google’s rankings. But what if you could do better than that?
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Strange as it may seem, you can move in front of the first listing on Google for a given search party. Not only that, you can do it quickly. You only have to be familiar with search engine snippets and quick answers.
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You have seen and used these already. When Google is trying to help you answer a question, they give you the best match answers. Try searching for something like ‘chocolate cake recipe.’ Like magic, you’re presented with what you were looking for and ahead of the normal search results.
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As a marketer, you can see how having your own snippets showing up in Google’s search listings could help. It could generate lots of traffic to your website. But, how can you draw those visits to your pages? We want to give you some tips you can use to improve your visibility through snippets and quick answers.
Keep Working on Your Organic SEO Campaigns
Most snippet and quick answer traffic flows towards websites already at the top. In fact, these sites are usually in the top three of Google’s search listings. Are search spiders crawling your site often? Then there’s a good change your quick answer content is at a high ranking.
Dig Deep into Your Frequently Asked Questions and Customer Conversations
Knowing what your customers are thinking about and searching for is essential. It’s the key to generating snippets on your website. Then you can develop content with the right subheadings and brief answers. Paragraphs are popular, but there are other types of content you can use. Tables and mathematical formulas, for example, are great. Especially if they are useful to the user.
Emphasize Natural-Language Text on Your Website
You won’t get snippet or quick answer traffic by following SEO rules from a decade ago. Repeating generic keywords again and again won’t cut it. Answer questions with natural-language text. You’ll be far more likely to attract views and visits, both by Google and its users.
Use Citations and Supporting Links When Appropriate
Credibility is a hot topic in SEO. Google likes search results with verifiable information. Quoting a study, fact, or statistic? Consider adding a footnote, citation, or even an outbound link to support your data. That could give you more authority than your competitors. Even better, it could also bring you more snippet traffic.
Ready to Put This Advice to Use?
Stop thinking about what you could do with a strong SEO campaign and act on these ideas.  Contact the creative team at Atlantic BT. We can put our experience to work for you.
2017 presented many challenges to the digital marketing world. Manipulative advertising, fake news, black-hat marketing, and bot traffic have littered the web. The good news is that Google responded swiftly. They implemented quite a few regulation changes. Both the pay-per-click and organic search platforms fell under this umbrella. But, it’s not only Google that reinforced their policies. Most major search engines and social media platforms have updated their regulations. The hope was that this would prevent manipulative content and obstructive advertisements.
As marketers, it’s our job to adapt to these challenges. We must identify strategies that will maintain effectiveness in an ever-changing digital landscape. Google’s 2018 changes will affect marketing as we know it. Be ready and know how to avoid any negative impact on your ad campaigns.
Google Introduces Stricter Ad Regulations in 2018
In September of 2017, Google joined forces with the Coalition for Better Ads. Not long after, the search engine behemoth was ready for action. In February 2018, Google’s Chrome web browser had a new feature. A native ad blocker. It’s goal is simple. It will stop the display of any advertisement that features a non-compliant ad. Google has joined forces with many social media platforms to support this initiative. As a result, the impact could be drastic and far-reaching.
Google wants to change Chrome ads to make them better serve the user.
Google’s strategy is to rid the internet of low-quality advertisements. This achievement would create a user-friendly browsing environment. While this is a noble cause, there is a great deal of risk involved. Online businesses and advertisers dread the regulatory change. This should come as no surprise. They stand to lose millions of dollars on wasted ad spend. It’s estimated that ad blockers contribute to a loss of billion dollars
Google Chrome is the clear front runner as the world’s most used web browser. So, their introduction of a native ad blocker will cause that dollar amount to skyrocket. Here’s the added twist. Your advertisement could be compliant with Google’s standards. Yet, it will not show up on a website if there are any non-compliant ads there. And even if your ad gets blocked, you’ll still have to pay for the placement of that ad. Even worse, if your site features non-compliant ads, a warning could pop up. Your visitors would see this and sites will experience a significant drop in traffic.
How Can Your Ads Avoid Negative Impacts from Google?
With so many risks involved, your ad placement and quality both need careful planning. Google now scrutinizes your advertisements more than ever before. They are taking into account content quality, format, and animation. Google’s actions will create a domino effect. More websites and web browsers will introduce ad blockers. So, marketers will kiss more dollars good-bye, wasting them on blocked ad-placements. Also, the wrong ads could result in your entire website landing on the blacklist. You would no longer be able to show advertisements on Google Chrome.
If you ignore Google’s new ad policies, you could end up wasting your advertising dollars.
The stakes are high. If you’re feeling concerned right now, worry not. There is a way forward. Your overarching goal should be a user-friendly web environment. This means high quality content and non-manipulative advertisements across your site. To clarify, let’s discuss what Google considers to be “user-friendly“.
What Makes Google Consider an Advertisement Bad?
Ads that Interrupt: Low-quality pop-up ads are so named for one main reason. They block content. Most pop-ups appear after the content on a page has loaded. So, the user has a brief preview before a large window blocks the page. These hellish ads are among the most commonly cited annoyances of web users. As a result, they will be the first type of advertisement to receive a block.
Ads that Distract: Weâve all been here. You open a web page and begin reading a few lines of text. And then WHAM! A loud advertisement begins to play, causing you to jump our of your chair. In other cases, youâll open a web page, and suddenly a large pop-up appears, flashing like a strobe light. Any sort of ad that has distracting audio or visual effects is cause for penalization.
Large Sticky Ads: Have you ever encountered a large, sticky advertisement? They usually lurk at the bottom or top of a webpage. These types of ads stay in the same position as you scroll through a website. To make them disappear, you have to click “exit”. Regardless of the position of these advertisements, they’re a high blocking risk.
High Density Mobile Advertisements: You’ve seen these sorts of ads. Most often while viewing full-page slideshows or lists. As you scroll through a slideshow, an advertisement will display between each slides. These ads? Blocked. If the advertisements on a website take up more than 30% of the vertical height of a page, they will not see the light of day.
Full Screen Advertisements: These advertisements often come accompanied by a 15 or 20 second countdown timer. Without a doubt, you have seen this before. We can all rejoice that Chrome will be blocking them out.
What Makes Google Consider an Advertisement Good?
Immediate Ads: Users are much more likely to engage with ads that load fast. Accelerated Mobile Pages (AMP) have much higher click-through-rates. They also have more eCPMs (effective cost per thousand impressions).
Immersive Ads: The design of an advertisement should mesh well with the design of your website. Your goal should be to create advertisements that readers seamlessly interact with.
Relevant Ads: This needs to be a consideration for both website owners and marketers. Are you a marketer who utilizes Google’s display network? Then your advertisements need to display throughout websites within your niche. And if you’re a website owner, you need to track the ads on your website to make sure they are relevant to your content. If there is a lack of relevance between the ad and the website, there’s a good chance Chrome will block it.
Follow these best practices and you will deliver advertising that Google and your customers will love.
While the new regulations from Google have the potential to derail countless marketing efforts, they also present an opportunity to step back and consider your overall digital strategy. Your keys to success in 2018 should be focused around two main objectives: high-quality content and a friendly user experience. If you craft and place digital ads that are accurate and non-obtrusive, youâll be able to avoid any wasted advertising dollars.
Feel free to reach out to me and my team, to discuss your approach to marketing. Be sure to read up on more of Google’s polices so you can be better prepared for the changes ahead.
Recently, one of our long-term clients asked me to review a job posting they were struggling to fill. The client wanted a senior software application engineer. But not just any senior software application engineer. A âtrue full-stack developerâ experienced in back-end development, front-end development, and architecting cloud environments and web infrastructure.
Before the client asked my thoughts on this potential hireâs compensation package or how to find them, he led with the most important question: âAre we looking for a unicorn?â Unfortunately for our client, I answered yes.
The Problem with Unicorns
For developers, the word âunicornâ refers to someone with such a diverse range of skills that theyâre incredibly rare. For example, an expert programmer who is also an ace visual designer. While such a person may be out there somewhere, they will be so hard to hire that they might as well be imaginary.
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Hereâs how a successful unicorn hunt would go. First, you have to find them and make sure that the skills they mentioned on their LinkedIn profile are more than just words. Second, youâd need to hire them away from wherever they were currently working. Unicorns are rare, so companies will work hard to keep them. Third, you need to be willing to pay the high salaries these experts can demand. The result is a long time spent on a hiring process to acquire one person at a very high price. This is assuming he or she is exactly what you need, will fit in with your team, and wonât be headhunted away at a critical time in your project.
In our clientâs case, itâs not that itâs impossible to hire someone who knows back-end development, front-end development, and cloud environments. Itâs just practically impossible to hire someone who is good at all these things. The challenge is that historically in our industry, these roles have been very segmented.
A Short History of Web Development
How did this segmentation happen? The answer requires a little walk through web development history.
The front-end of a website is comprised of HTML, CSS, and JavaScript. All three have matured over the decades. But JavaScript in particular has seen a recent explosion of libraries and frameworks built on top of it. These technologies have introduced back-end programming concepts to the language that cause the work between front- and back-end development to overlap.
Web development today offers a lot of frameworks. This makes it easier to imagine a full-stack developer who can do everything.
For example, languages like TypeScript have introduced class-based object-oriented programming fundamentals to JavaScript. This makes JavaScript feel more like a back-end language. Frameworks like AngularJS, Backbone.js, etc. have introduced MVC and similar patterns into JavaScript. And technologies like Node.js have introduced server-side JavaScript.
The result is a traditional front-end developer now having skills and knowledge relevant to back-end programming. And conversely, a strong back-end developer will find some familiar concepts in current JavaScript libraries and frameworks. These multi-disciplinary programmers often refer to themselves as full-stack developers.
Why Finding a Good Full-Stack Developer Is Hard
So if these two divergent worlds are now more similar, then why is it difficult to find a “full stack” developer? There are two reasons. First, development is a constantly evolving and expanding field that makes dual mastery really tough. Secondly, that the âstackâ now includes more than just front- and back-end programming.
Deceptive Duality
Despite the newfound overlap between back- and front-end programming, both sides of the spectrum are constantly evolving. In short, just because someone can do both doesn’t mean that they will be good at both. It also doesn’t mean that they will be able to stay current in both. With the recent explosion of JavaScript related languages, libraries, and frameworks, there is more to learn than ever. Keeping up with that while also staying current in back-end languages, libraries, and frameworks can be time-consuming and difficult.
Too Many Hats to Wear
The “stack” is more than just front- and back-end programming. Hosting infrastructure and cloud architecture is a different area altogether. A true full-stack developer also needs to know another set of programming in order to architect a cloud environment to host new applications. Essentially, a network hosting engineer. This means writing scripts to set up servers, ensuring the code is secure, and handling other aspects of deployment for every update. And don’t forget about QA. The full stack developer also needs to be able to design and run their own automated tests to ensure their code works well in the designated environment.
In short, I told our client their job posting needed major revisions. Sure, they were likely to find applicants who consider themselves “full stack” developers. But their skills would severely lack in the hosting/infrastructure/cloud architecture department. Our client would also find people who say they have a background in both front and back end technologies, only to discover that they’re significantly more skilled in one because theyâve done it longer than the other.
Why a Good Team Is Better than Hunting for Unicorns
You can probably guess what I advised our client to do nextâsplit this role into two separate positions. The first would be someone who knows back-end and front-end programming. They would also ideally know something about testing automation. The second would be someone who knows the hosting/infrastructure/cloud side.
A strong team of developers will always have advantages over one full-stack unicorn. Assuming you can even find one.
This clientâs big goal should be to foster a DevOps culture where these two people are working together, instead of hoping for one person to do everything. By relying on a smart team who knows how to share workloads and collaborate, our client would be able to tackle all the tasks they wanted this unicorn to do. They’d enjoy more flexibility in how they respond to changing project needs.
Building a team also means you can hire and nurture true experts who are working on mastering the skills you need. Letting your programmers focus on the latest tools, frameworks, and techniques in their chosen field means they wonât dilute their skills by having to divide their attention across programming disciplines. This also protects your programmers from getting burnt out from extra pressure to perform completely different tasks on a project.
If youâd like our input on how to find the right team for a development project, or if you’re looking for a partner to ramp up development resources, feel free to contact us anytime.
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In the last 50 years, Propper had perfected their product. As a result, they were now a worldwide leader of tactical gear. The high quality of their work spoke for itself. They had earned impressive government contracts. Also, a robust civilian market had grown as a result of Propper’s dedication to their vision. They didn’t need any help with what they were selling.
Yet, their eCommerce site hadnât kept up with their business. It felt outdated. Its interface confused shoppers, making it hard to navigate. Also its infrastructure frustrated its back-end managers.
If Propperâs website was a soldier in the field, it was facing heavy fire.
Something had to change. Propper needed backup. Thatâs when they called Atlantic BT.
âHelmuth Karl Bernhard Graf von Moltke was a Prussian tactician who adapted war theory for bigger armies and better firepower. In many ways, the work our user experience departments did for Propperâs customer workflow and server load balancing, is what Moltke did for the battlefields of the Victorian age.â  âStewart Arthur Pelto, Atlantic BT Senior Business Development Manager
Any military aim requires two things: strategy and tactics.
The Strategy – The Plan
Before we could give Propperâs website an overhaul, we needed to gather some intel. We engaged in our reliable discovery process and we learned a lot. We figured out their long-term goals and the nature of their site traffic. Especially relevant was discovering customer habits and buying patterns. We needed to know why so many customers were abandoning their shopping carts. Rather than completing their sale, users were leaving their desired products behind. They wanted to buy from Propper but they weren’t making it to the finish line.
Propperâs store wasnât connecting with its customers the way it could. The UX was difficult. The B2B and B2C websites were not communicating, and there were too many top-level domains. Also, there was little room for growth. This wouldn’t work for a company that was, without a doubt, on the up and up.Â
We weaponized this information and developed a multi-phased plan of attack:
Develop a user-friendly website that would grow with the company
Move to a stronger eCommerce platform such as Magento and Amazon Web Services. Such an update would support the increased traffic.
The Tactics – The Execution
Prepared to the max, we strapped on our bulletproof vests and jumped into the trenches. We:
Rebuilt the siteâs interface, creating a beautiful, modern, and simplified user experience. This included improved mobile capabilities.
Moved Propperâs online store to a Magento 1 platform. This provided customized plug-ins and themes to fit their needs.
Found a partner vendor skilled in M3 technology and with Magento experience. It was now easier for Propper to manage the inner workings of their new platform.
Combined their ERP systems with their eCommerce store, syncing store and online inventory.
Created an ongoing marketing plan, using display ads and Googleâs shopping listings. We also incorporated coordinating email marketing campaigns.
Developed stronger site analytics and security. Room for company growth was provided through Amazon Web Services.
We stayed in constant contact with Propperâs team to offer insight, as well as fix any technical issues.
The Results
We saw results almost immediately after rolling out Propperâs slick new website. Within a year, we had proof that Propperâs customers were measurably happier:
An 80% increase in monthly site revenue
A nearly doubled conversion rate
A strengthened partnership between Propper and ABT. We continue to track the siteâs upward progress. We also assist with marketing, analytics, security, and complete site improvement
By designing a strong and flexible solution to a very common problem, we gave Propper a leg-up. We couldnât be happier with the revamped Propper.com, and we know that they agree. Â
We are proud to announce that ABT’s Magento developers have succeeded with a new update. Propper’s eCommerce store is now running on the Magento 2 platform. This provides Propper’s store with even more power and flexibility. With increased stability, functionality, and data-gathering, this is an eCommerce win. This new technology will reinforce Propper’s eCommerce campaigns for years to come. With team coordination and development ownership, ABT has empowered Propper. They can continue to focus on their strategic goals and grow their business with the right tools to do the job.
Google currently estimates that voice search traffic accounts for more than 20% of its queries. This amounts to at least one billion voice searches per day. Some experts think that number will double or even triple in the next two years.
Either way, it’s clear that voice-assisted search is not only a big part of online marketing now. It is also a growing trend for the future. Consider the increasing technological options we have. We have voice search functionality through home devices and on our smart phones. And as Google recently demonstrated, this is nothing but the beginning.
Unfortunately, many organizations are not taking voice search into consideration. They are still approaching search engine optimization (SEO) the way they were 5 or 10 years ago. Now is the time to start thinking about ways to stay ahead of the search visibility curve. Let’s look at a few things you can do to optimize your website for voice search.
Learn to Think and Speak Like Your Best Customers
When optimizing your site for voice search, it isnât enough to know what your best customers want to learn or find. Â You actually have to think like them, so you can use the same words and terminology as they would.
A lot of business and industry insiders use jargon or brand names that the public hasnât quite latched on to. That can be problematic if you want to attract buyers who are using voice search, looking for answers.
Emphasize Spoken Phrases Over Traditional Search Keywords
This goes hand-in-hand with our first point, but it’s worth mentioning. You’ll still want to have text on your website optimized for traditional queries. And yes, by traditional we mean typed. But you’ll also want conversational content that matches voice search strings.
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In reality, it’s not usually difficult to find a balance. Also, using natural language content is a solid strategy for any marketer now. Google has made significant advancements with artificial intelligence. It can now understand things, like context and meaning, through a website. Keeping this in mind is a win for marketing.
Use Lots of Content to Make Your Website Into an Authoritative Resource
Google isn’t sending voice search users to random corners of the internet. Instead, it’s tweaking its existing algorithm to make better matches. So, websites with lots of existing content are benefiting from new voice capabilities. And these sites are the ones already receiving the most search traffic.
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The more there is to your website, the more authoritative you can appear to searches. Search spiders, too! It will be easier for you to draw in traffic from apps and devices processing spoken queries.
Is Your Online Strategy Forward-Thinking?
At Atlantic BT, we use a unique blend of experience and innovation to help businesses of all sizes. If you need large-scale web development or a new way to bring in customers, our creative team is ready. We can find the answers you need.
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Contact us today! We can schedule a free consultation and give personalized recommendations. Come on in to learn more about our capabilities.
Modern web development is a wonderful thing. Almost anything you can envision about a website can now come to life. Custom programming provides a wealth of opportunities. With the right development team, you can create exactly what you need. Amazing layouts, new features and apps, and interactive tools make for a great website.
The bad news about having this many opportunities is that it comes with a cost. Projects can become so large and complex that they are difficult to explain and outline. There are concerns about schedules and financial resources. And that actual first step? Knowing when to begin and how can be overwhelming.
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Business owners and executives can feel paralyzed. These realities can leave them feeling unsure on how to move forward. This blog provides a concept that can help you overcome these worries. You’ll be ready to take the first steps with your large web development project in no time.
Introducing the MVP Development
In the world of web development, MVP refers to Minimum Viable Product. What does that mean? It’s a scaled-down version of your finished website. It includes all the basics and essentials.
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The MVP version of your website might include basic content and core features. It may not include custom plug-ins or videos added in later. Your MVP site could incorporate some automation and data-collection features. But it might not integrate real-time inventory or shipping logistics.
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These are only examples, of course. But they help to illustrate how you can launch a new website without worrying so much. You don’t have to stress about including each different feature or idea at once. That doesn’t mean they won’t be a part of the final product. The concept of beginning with MVP development allows you to prioritize each piece.
Why MVP Development First Pays Off in a Big Way
Why bother having your web development team create a scaled-down version of your website? What you really want is more features and functionality, right? There are a lot of practical reasons to do things one step at a time.
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First of all, your MVP website is going to be easier to plan and manage. It won’t need as large of an investment like a bigger job would. Creating an institutional website takes a lot of time and money. Is this a concern for you? Then the MVP development first strategy is the ideal path for your project. It generates movement without dipping too much into your schedule or budget.
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Another plus is that an MVP website gives you the chance to test out concepts. You can find out what is essential to meeting your organizational goals. You can also see what users will respond to. This helps you make informed decisions before you commit to a larger effort. If you want to test the viability of certain apps or ideas, you can do so without risking too much in the process.
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Finally, it’s worth reiterating this point. A smaller version of your website can serve as a launching point for future growth. You’re in a hurry to get a new web presence online? Why not build an MVP? It gets you on the web and then allows you to expand over the coming months and years.
One of the biggest benefits to an MVP approach is reducing the size and scope of deployed changes and increasing the deployment frequency. It allows for smaller learning curves, and signals to users that the site is regularly updated and cared for. – Jon Karnofsky, Director of Operations
Want to Learn More about Complex Web Development?
We’ve been there. We implemented the MVP development strategy for one of our clients. It served their needs well. We planned and developed a full rebuild of their existing web application. The primary goal was twofold. We needed to keep the existing functionality while creating a more resilient application. The project took a year and a half of documentation and development. It involved brand new hosting services, networking aspects, and visual design. Yet, the tasks the users performed were effectively the same.
It may not sound like it, but this project was a successful MVP. The entire team had plenty of ideas for improvement. Together, we decided to keep the initial changes in features limited. This allowed for three helpful things:
Shorter development before the initial deployment
Less changes to the end users
Easier migration of data
Once that application was deployed, we had a large backlog of features to add or improve. This work still continues today. We’re proud of what we were able to accomplish, using MVP.
The design and programming team at Atlantic BT are your website experts. We’ve designed sites for large groups and institutions on many occasions. Contact us today to schedule a complimentary consultation.
