Posts

For Small and Medium Sized Business Owners and Agencies.

With only two months left in 2018, it’s crunch time for many businesses. There are also many major Google, WordPress and other Digital Marketing announcements that have recently been made that may directly impact your business. In this edition of Dashboard Interactive News, we’ll delve into news and announcements that may be affecting your Digital Marketing, Website and Social Media initiatives or may impact them in the future. We’ll also overview an exciting Google offering that you may or may not be aware of.

Google Mobile First Indexing – Why You Should Care

If you use your website to generate new sales leads, sell products online or build brand awareness, Mobile First Indexing is important. In the past, Google’s crawling, indexing, and ranking systems have typically used the desktop version of a page’s content for search engine rankings.
Mobile-first indexing means that Google now uses the mobile version of the page for indexing and ranking. This means that Mobile First pages achieve ranking priority over non-Mobile First pages.
Learn More

Have you noticed a drop in your website traffic or website leads or sales over the past three months?

If so, the issue could be SSL related.
Its been three months since Google flipped the switch and required that all websites shift over to HTTPS encryption or be identified as “Not Secure” in their Chrome URL browser bar. Given that Chrome dominates search with 68% market share, not having an SSL certificate can significantly impact your rankings.
This change was over two years in the making, and if this is new information, you may want to contact your web developer. Hopefully, they were aware and shared this information as not converting to HTTPS, can impact website visitors, website leads and revenue. You are also a target for hackers without SSL in place.
Learn More

Using Social Media to Help Drive Google Rankings

You may have heard that Social Media can help improve your Google rankings. That’s true, but it’s also true that the Social Media properties that you use and how you use them are essential in the eyes of Google as well. Not all major Social Media properties carry the same weight. Click to learn more on the list of Social Media properties that provide the biggest bang for the buck with Google, when utilized effectively and consistently.
Learn More

WordPress Gutenberg Update

WordPress websites currently account for over 30% of all sites on the internet and WordPress has developed a reputation for ease of use and efficiency. It’s dashboard editor; however, (the place where you put the words and images and other items that go in your website pages and posts), will be undergoing a major upgrade soon. This upgrade will provide plugin users with more flexibility over their layouts and create additional website possibilities without extensive knowledge of HTML or CSS code.
 
This upgrade, called Gutenberg, has been in development for some time. There had been no official release date, or clear path for developers to test (with certainty) how it will affect their themes, plugins or websites. This changed about a week ago when WordPress announced that mid-late November Gutenberg would be going live and integrated directly as part of the new version of WordPress.
Learn More

Changing Dissatisfied Customers into Fans

Dashboard Interactive has a Home Services client who provides excellent customer service. These individuals are skilled at what they do and are recognized as experts in their field. They are honest, hardworking people who do business with integrity. Until recently, all of their Google reviews were 5-stars. Then, the unthinkable happened: one dissatisfied customer gave them a 1-star rating.

A little background: Our client was contacted by the homeowner behind the 1-star rating. They completed the project and found additional issues that they addressed before the customers warranty expired. This saved the customer over $1,400. It’s not often that you save more money than the actual cost of the project.

A few months later, another company visited the same homeowner and completed additional work. Problems surfaced after the other company finished their project. The homeowner blamed our client and left a one-star review on Google even though our client was not responsible for the homeowner’s dissatisfaction. That’s when our Home Services client called us.

After talking with our customer, we realized the one-star review was not warranted. The client had attempted to resolve the issue with their customer directly and was blamed for a problem that they did not cause. We spoke with the employee who actually did the work and then developed a response.

We were successful in presenting a clear, logical response to the comments that were made on Google. It was important for others who might see the review to understand that our client was not at fault. We were successful in crafting a bullet proof message that didn’t embarrass the reviewer, yet also stated the facts.

A few months went by and we’d moved onto other things. We monitor reviews for all of our clients and my social media person noticed that the review had been changed to five stars and we shared the news with the client. It was a very good meeting and now each of their over 20 Google reviews is once again five stars.

In summary, it pays to do excellent work and provide great service while treating others with respect. It also pays to respond to unwarranted negative reviews in a way that states the facts yet doesn’t embarrass the reviewer. In the end, this turned out to be a win/win for both parties.

A Cloud-Based Software Company found itself in a bit of a dilemma when their website was hacked. The company needed extensive website cleanup, a hardened website security infrastructure, and consulting to ensure that their IT department could handle any future problems on their own. Dashboard Interactive ensured that the site’s code was clean and provided direction so that the customer could move forward.

The Problem: Inexperience Puts Company at Risk

The client company offers excellent software and service to its customers. But when it came to their own website, there was much room for improvement. They worked with a design firm and a website developer, who had little website cybersecurity knowledge. The developer copied and pasted open source code from GitHub, providing an opening for hackers. If it’s open source code, a knowledgeable hacker can find, use, and potentially exploit it.

Other problems with their website, listed below, were an opening for a breach.

• Outdated PHP
• Outdated server configuration
• Modules required by the web platform that are not in use or updated
• Lack of manual monitoring
• Unsecured open port on the Server
• Server was out of date
• Poor website hosting
• Hosting subdomain on a completely separate server and hosting system than the domain. This opened another door, which created another server connection that could be compromised.

And of course, the hack occurred.

Hackers accessed the site using a remote server on a mobile Apple device. The result was a mess that cost the company many sleepless nights, as their customers may have been exposed as well.

The Solution: Extensive Website Cleanup, Security Review, and Training

Dashboard Interactive’s cybersecurity expert recommend several steps to rectify the situation. First, we identified the intrusions and then completed a thorough cleanup of the compromised code on the site. We then rebuilt the website database, making sure it used the most current security protocols possible.

Lastly, we provided extensive consulting services for key members of the IT department. This ensured that they were knowledgeable about the issues that lead to the breach, and also helped them learn what to look for in the future.

Between the clean code, refreshed website, and consulting help, the Cloud-Based Software Company was well on their way to a secure, safe website.

Summary

Think your business is immune to a cyber attack? Hackers attack a business every 39 seconds. Among those companies attacked, 43 percent of attacks target small businesses.

Outdated plugins and codes are a signal to potential hackers that your site is vulnerable. It’s like leaving your car doors unlocked or sharing that you just bought an expensive stereo system for your house – you’re advertising your vulnerabilities. Close the gaps, protect your business, and make sure that the security protecting your website is strong.

Let’s talk about website cybersecurity. Call us today at 763-242-2454.