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Loebig Ink is a small business consulting firm
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Tag: SEO

The Importance of the XML Sitemap for Blogs

Posted on by Philip Day

How to Submit an XML Sitemap to Google Search Console

What is the most important reason your business has a website?

Xml sitemap steps

It seems like a dumb question but we all know the answer: It is so that people will buy your products and services.

Now, if they can’t find your website, they can’t buy your products or services. This makes the elements of any strong website important: keyword phrases, search engine optimization, high-resolution images, alt tags, easy navigation, and mobile-readiness.

You then need to submit an XML sitemap to Google when changes have been made to a large number of website pages, such as when metatags have been updated in a comprehensive SEO improvement process. The XML Sitemap acts as a road map to your small business website.

As Yoast explains:

You want Google to crawl every important page of your website, but sometimes pages end up without any internal links pointing to them, making them hard to find. An XML sitemap lists a website’s important pages, making sure Google can find and crawl them all, and helping it understand your website structure.

Here is how you do it using Loebig Ink blogs as an example:

  1. First, log into Google Search Console

XML Sitemap Step 1

  1. Then, go to Sitemaps on the left side menu.
  2. Next, click on Sitemaps where it says “Add a new sitemap”

4.  Once you have clicked it on, then type in “sitemap.xml” in the form and hit “submit”:

 

        5. Once it has been submitted, you will get this report:

These steps show you how to submit the sitemap to Google Search Console. In WordPress, the blog is automatically added to the sitemap in the back end of the website. So, your website pages will be found by the search engines!

Google’s XML sitemap is crucial in helping search engines find your website content and also detecting any issues that could make your website unreachable.  Now, your pages are indexed and can be found much easier by search engines which will point the visitor to the link. Once they have clicked on the link, they will now be on your website! Thus, you have increased traffic to your website, educated and engaged the visitor and sold your products and services.  

If you would like for your small business website pages to be search engine optimized, contact Loebig Ink, LLC. We have search engine optimization specialists who can submit the XML Sitemap for your blogs every month. For more information, contact us at (301) 244-TECH or brian@loebigink.com.criminalthinking.net.  

Chamber of Commerce SEO

Posted on by Brian Loebig

Did You Know? Joining a Chamber of Commerce is Great for SEO!

Chamber of Commerce SEO

Consider joining a chamber near you and enjoy the benefits to business and online visibility.

Another great perk is that chamber of commerce membership gives you a business directory backlink to your website that has excellent SEO value. Chambers of commerce are strongly trusted on the internet and can lend that credibility to your site as well. Moz and Majestic measure this through Trust Flow and Citation Flow. According to majestic.com, “Trust Flow is one of the Majestic Flow Metrics, which is weighted by the number of clicks from a seed set of trusted sites to a given URL, or Domain.” Citation Flow, in comparison, “is weighted by the number of citations to a given URL, or Domain.” Essentially, the higher the Trust Flow and Citation Flow, provided that both are relatively in balance, the more reputable the website.

Gaining backlinks from high-quality sites helps to increase these positive metrics on your own site and increase your website’s visibility in Google searches.

Here is a useful list of regional chambers along with their Trust and Citation Flow metrics and annual fees. Even if you weren’t planning on taking advantage of all the other benefits, the positive impact on your SEO might be well worth the price.

Loebig Ink, LLC is a proud member of the Greater Silver Spring Chamber of Commerce and the Maryland Black Chamber of Commerce.

Maryland, DC and Northern Virginia
Chambers of Commerce
Fees and Trust Flow

Updated August 2025 by Samuel Loebig
Click the heading to sort the list by each column!

 

Name**Annual Fee*Trust Flow/ Citation Flow
Alexandria Chamber of Commerce$45023/29
Anne Arundel County Chamber of Commerce$54513/23
Arlington Chamber of Commerce$62525/36
Asian American Chamber of Commerce$28019/27
Calvert County Chamber of Commerce$25015/28
Central Fairfax Chamber of Commerce$40014/29
Central Maryland Chamber of Commerce$50015/24
Charles County Chamber of Commerce$28015/29
DC Chamber of Commerce$60519/33
Equality Chamber of Commerce$40034/22
Falls Church Chamber of Commerce$34418/27
Frederick County Chamber of Commerce$41025/33
Gaithersburg-Germantown Chamber of Commerce$52025/32
The Greater Bethesda Chamber of Commerce$49514/27
Greater Brunswick Area Chamber of Commerce$855/20
Greater Bowie Area Chamber of Commerce$3000/16
Greater Crofton Chamber of Commerce$24514/17
Greater McLean Chamber of Commerce$34014/16
Greater Reston Chamber of Commerce$85031/31
Greater Severna Park and Arnold Chamber of Commerce$2053/24
Greater Silver Spring Chamber of Commerce$47016/32
Greater Washington Hispanic Chamber of Commerce$25027/29
Hispanic Chamber of Commerce$50013/9
Howard County Chamber of Commerce$58017/23
The Maryland Black Chamber of Commerce$15013/26
Maryland Chamber of Commerce$75017/37
The Maryland LGBT Chamber of Commerce$25029/25
Middletown Area Chamber of Commerce$755/20
Montgomery County Chamber of Commerce$80022/29
National Black Chamber of Commerce$50046/34
Northern Anne Arundel County Chamber of Commerce$23041/34
Northern Virginia Chamber of Commerce$92519/19
Northwest Chamber of Commerce$3006/13
Olney Chamber of Commerce$35015/30
Potomac Chamber of Commerce$30015/25
Poolesville Chamber of Commerce$10514/12
Prince George’s Chamber of Commerce$50016/27
Prince William Chamber of Commerce$47025/29
Rockville Chamber of Commerce$40016/30
Southern Anne Arundel Chamber of Commerce$25014/24
St. Mary’s County Chamber of Commerce$25016/19
Eastern Montgomery County Chamber of Commerce$33513/15
Greater Mt. Airy Chamber of Commerce$1255/11
Tysons Regional Chamber of Commerce$42526/25
Wheaton & Kensington Chamber of Commerce$19514/11
Greater Baltimore Chamber of Commerce$3503/16
Northern Virginia Black Chamber of Commerce$20016/27
Loudon County Chamber of Commerce$65533/34

*Trust and citation flow is based on Majestic.com’s historic index.

**Annual fee is based on the lowest cost business membership category on the date of the list was updated.

Membership is Good for Business and Search Engine Optimization

Have you considered joining a chamber of commerce? Membership in a local chamber offers numerous benefits. The basic purpose of a chamber of commerce is to create a vibrant business environment in its area and/or for its target population. Each organization is different, but you can expect that each will offer programs, events, and growth opportunities for its members while serving as an advocate for business interests in the region. Here are a few of the reasons you should consider joining:

Networking: Joining a chamber of commerce is a great way to learn about others who are doing business in your area. The more other business owners know about the goods or services you offer, the more likely you will discover creative ways to collaborate. Interact with chamber members, potential members, and others at open events, and you are paving the way for opportunity.

Referrals: As you meet other members of a chamber and get acquainted with their businesses, when they hear of someone who needs a service that you provide, they are likely to pass it on to you. As such referrals are returned, it’s good for business all around.

Social Opportunities: It doesn’t always have to be about selling. Many chambers offer low-key social events for members and friends. Just getting to know new people in your community can be as helpful as it is enjoyable. Social connections and visibility matter a lot and can lead to business down the line.

Staying Up-To-Date: One of the functions of a chamber of commerce is maintaining an awareness of issues affecting the various businesses in the area. Your membership will ensure you stay aware, which will help you make good business decisions.

Public Perception: Businesses that belong to chambers of commerce tend to command greater trust than those that don’t. Banding together in a respected organization multiplies respectability and positive reputations for everyone.

References:

Demitropoulos, B. (May 4, 2012). Why Join Your Local Chamber of Commerce. The TJB American Business Magazine, Retrieved from http://www.americanbusinessmag.com/2012/05/why-join-your-local-chamber-of-commerce/

Larson, D. (May 5, 2015). “6 reasons why businesses should join a local chamber of commerce,” Daily Herald,

SEO Audits for Improved Visibility

Posted on by Brian Loebig

SEO Audits for Search Engine VisibilityThere is more to good Search Engine Optimization than simply adding helpful keywords to your web pages. On page SEO is important, but backlinks, efficiency, and a series of other elements all play a part in whether your site will be seen or if it will be lost in the internet abyss. One extremely useful exercise to help improve your visibility is an SEO audit. For best results, take a preliminary look at your website for these eight main factors, then enlist the support of a professional SEO for a comprehensive SEO Audit. Here are the questions you should ask to begin putting your website through its paces.

  1. Evaluate the overall User Experience (UX) and check the key functionalities that all business websites should have in order.
  • Is there a phone number in the header and footer?
  • Is there an address and contact info in footer?
  • Is the navigation understandable?
  • Are key calls to action clear?
  • Are the business purpose and services clear?
  • Is there a contact form on the website?
  • Is the site mobile friendly?
  1. Is the Content Management System (CMS) set up and working properly?

Take a look behind the scenes at the design and setup of the website content management system. Is it ready to accommodate changes you’ll be making as you move along the optimization process?

  • Is an SEO plugin installed and setup properly?
  • Has Google Analytics been installed?
  • Is the metadata accessible for pages and posts?
  1. Is your metadata in order?

Is your site using default metadata, or has it been crafted for best results? Take notice of the presence and quality of the title tags, description tags, H1, and ALT tags.

  • Have metatags been entered for all pages and posts?
  • Is there only one H1 on each page?
  • Are the title tags and meta descriptions unique for each page or post?
  1. Are your metatags and content optimized?

Simply having metadata and keywords on your site is important, but without these being optimized, they won’t be doing their full duty. Basic SEO questions to ask are

  • Have you chosen one focus keyword per page?
  • Have you used the keyword in the H1 (main article heading) and toward the beginning of the title tag and meta description?
  • Did you use the focus keyword at least two to three times in the page content?
  • If you’re working with a WordPress blog, did you select 2-4 “tags” and a “category” choice that are consistent with your keyword?
  • Have you included ALT tags on all your images?
  • Once your optimization has been completed, have you resubmitted the XML sitemap?
  1. How is the load time efficiency?

Measure the website’s mobile friendliness and page speed. Is the loading time ok? Try these tools to find out:

  1. Have you completed the website architecture?

This is a technical portion of the assessment during which you should review website elements including canonicalization, blocking factors such as flash and frames, and more. Other important factors to consider include

  • checking page URL construction
  • confirming or performing Authentication with Google Search Console
  • assessing the presence and completeness of an XML sitemap and robots.txt file
  1. What is the state of your Domain Authority, Traffic Rank, Trust Flow, and Citation Flow?

These measurements gauge and help determine a site’s ranking potential and overall authority as a trusted site on the web. We use Majestic to answer questions such as

  • What is the current Trust Flow?
  • What is the current Citation Flow?
  • Are the Trust and Citation Flow scores balanced?
  • Are backlinks to the site healthy or spammy?
  1. What is your backlink profile? Do you have broken links? Is there anywhere you have been blacklisted?

It is important to determine if there are any inbound links that could be causing harm to your Google rankings and if your site is being penalized by any Internet Service Providers.

Inevitably, questions will arise as you move through your website to discover what has been done, which elements need work, and where you need to start from the very beginning. During our comprehensive Web SEO Assessment Audit, we take a deep dive with these questions and beyond to determine the areas where your site can improve. We will provide you with recommendations and can even give you pointers on content strategy to help you make your overall presentation shine. Find out more about our SEO services, get found by the most important search engines, and increase your visibility on the web.

SEMRush SERP Feature Definitions

Posted on by Brian Loebig

What do all those little SERP Feature icons mean?

If you work with or receive organic research reports from the competitive research service SEMRush, you may have noticed the recent appearance of a series of new icons.  Located just to the right of your keywords, the SERP Features symbols are there to give you information about the types of results that come up for the keyword on a Google Search Engine Results Page (SERP) which are different from traditional organic results. If you see one of these symbols next to a keyword, it means a special type of result appears in a search for that keyword. Let’s take a look at what these various symbols represent.

First, what is an organic result? The simplest way to describe an organic search result is that it is a “regular”, non-paid, result that is returned by a search engine because of its relevance to the search terms. An organic result is a general listing and does not appear as a result of paid advertising. SERP Features are organic or paid results that appear in newer, increasingly important ways that can help drive traffic to your site.

Here are the SEMRush SERP Features icons currently in use and what they mean:

SEM Rush SERP Icons

Featured Snippet – A Featured Snippet provides a brief answer to a question asked within Google. SERP Feature Featured Snippet Example…

Local Pack – The Local Pack is a distinctly presented group of results referring to businesses or other points of interest near the location where the search was performed. SERP Feature Local Pack Example…

Reviews – If you operate a commercial business, the Reviews SERP Feature may be available to you. This type of listing includes your star rating and number of reviews displayed beneath your link. SERP Feature Reviews Example…

Site Links – This feature provides targeted internal links as well as link to the main page of the domain. SERP Feature Site Links Example…

Featured Video – A Featured Video will show up on a SERP at the top of the page. SERP Feature Featured Video Example…

Video – A Video may also show up not at the top of the page, but elsewhere farther down in the search results. SERP Feature Video Example…

Top Stories – Keywords related to current news may show up in the display called Top Stories, which is gathered from news sources worldwide and then tailored to individual readers’ interests. SERP Feature Top Stories Example…

People Also Ask – The People Also Ask expandable grid box offers a list of questions relating to your keyword along with additional search results. SERP Feature People Also Ask Example…

Images – A series of images relating to the keyword are available on the SERP. SERP Feature Featured Images Example…

Tweet – Links from Twitter are included on the SERP. SERP Feature Tweet Example…

Instant Answer – The Instant Answer SERP Feature appears when Google has a clear and definitive answer for the question being asked. SERP Feature Instant Answer Example…

Knowledge Panel – Using information gathered from a Google database of trusted sources, a Knowledge Panel offers an extensive answer to a question. SERP Feature Knowledge Panel Example…

Showcase Shopping Ads – Shown above any paid search ads, Showcase Shopping Ads show search results for non-branded search terms and present a collection of relevant products. SERP Feature Showcase Shopping Ads Example…

AdWords Top – This means that AdWords ads have been purchased that relate to your keyword and appear at the top of the SERP above organic results. SERP Feature AdWords Top Example…

AdWords Bottom – This means that AdWords ads have been purchased that relate to your keyword and appear at the bottom of the SERP below organic results. SERP Feature AdWords Bottom Example…

Keep in mind that if you see a SERP Feature icon next to your keyword, it doesn’t mean that your keyword is already featured on SERPs in that way. An SEMRush SERP Feature icon means the keyword has been featured in that form somewhere on the Internet! Consider taking that information as your inspiration to explore new and more effective ways to be seen online. If you’re ready to step up your marketing strategy and want to learn more about structuring your content for SERP Features, reach out to the Loebig Ink SEO Team for a personalized strategy session.

Benefits of Claiming and Optimizing Your Google Business Profile

Posted on by Brian Loebig

Benefits of Claiming and Optimizing Your Google Business ProfileFor SEO purposes, claiming and optimizing the Google Business Profile listing creates a strong signal to Google that your business is active and allows you to rank higher in local Google searches for your industry. Google has a strong preference for local searches which allows small businesses to compete with national brands when someone is searching for a business or services from your community. Prominently featured Google Local Pack results are populated by businesses that have Google Business Profile listings. The more accurate and active your listing, the more likely you will appear on page one for your industry locally!

Here are some of the top benefits and reasons to claim your Google Business Profile listing:

  1. Claiming and optimizing your listing allows you to manage the information that Google users see when they search for your business or the products and services that you offer. When you verify your information with Google Business Profile, you are *twice as likely to be considered reputable by consumers (source: Google).” Also, when people find your business on Google Maps and Google Search, you can make sure they see the right information including hours of operation, website, and street address.
    1. NOTE: If you are a home-based business or if you serve customers at their location, users will just see a red line encompassing your chosen service area.
  2. Claiming the Google Business Profile listing will allow you to read and reply to reviews from your customers and post photos related to your business such as the logo, business owner, office building, ad graphics, products, etc.
    1. NOTE: *Businesses that add photos to their listings receive 42% more requests for driving directions on Google Maps and 35% more clicks through to their websites than businesses that don’t. (Source: Google)
  3. You will also be able to see detailed insights on how visitors have searched for your business and where those customers searched from. You will see information including how many people have called your business from the phone number listed on local search results in Search results and Google Maps.
  4. Many people use the Google Maps app for driving directions. Ensuring that your address is correct will allow them to easily navigate to your location from their mobile device.
  5. Making sure the phone number is available and valid will also allow customers to call your business directly from the Google Search results page. If they are searching from a mobile device, they can tap directly on the phone number and call.
  6. Your Google business listing is considered a primary data source by many data aggregators and directory listing services such as Moz.com and Yext. Ensuring your listing is accurate and up to date will help improve and validate your other directory listings.

CHECK OUT: How to Optimize your Google Business Profile Listing!

Alt Tags and the Importance of Labeling Your Website Images

Posted on by Brian Loebig

Alt tags explained Loenig Ink When a client contracts with my business to do the search engine optimization (SEO) on their website, we discuss several aspects: titles, title tags and meta-descriptions. But there is one part that is a definite factor if I am to do my job as an SEO Specialist: adding alt tags (also known as “alt text”) to their photos in the website.

Alt tags are taken for granted and sometimes even skipped over by some SEO types. However, if your website is going to be truly “optimized”, then assuring that your images are tagged, is as important as copy and titles.

But, before we continue, let’s explain what an “alt tag” is: It is alternative text tagged to an image as a brief text-only description. It is usually applied to all the images embedded in a website.

Alt tags usually look like this: “chocolate blizzard Shake Shop Bethesda”.

Tags are very simply a brief description of what is seen in the photo (image). It does not need to be verbose or overly technical.

So, alt tags are simple search engine optimization techniques, yet they are crucial for any small business website for the following reasons:

  1. Alt tags are used by search engines to generate results. Those results may include photos which are tagged with the client’s business name on it. Google Images may include those tagged images at the top of its results.
  2. Alt tagged images that are linked are treated the same by most search engines the same way they treat anchor text. They are considered relevant content.
  3. Alt tags are an efficient way to use your website keywords, such as identifying products and services offered by your business. Your tagged images will appear in the search engine results with your company name on it.
  4. Gives you a leg up on your competitors who may not have tagged their images.

Now you know the benefits, here is how you need to use them properly:

  1. Use accurate keywords for the photo.
  2. Make them short. No keyword stuffing.
  3. Describe the photo first before tagging it with your company name.
  4. Don’t tag photos that are generic or that have no real value on your website such as question mark graphics or others that can be seen on any website. Tag images that are relevant from your website.

If you’re not sure about how to add the alt text, consult a search engine specialist. They can do an audit of your website and determine the best tags to use for each image.

Alt tags are crucial and should be a part of any website search engine optimization.

For more information on how you can optimize your website, contact us.  Loebig Ink specializes in SEO (Search Engine Optimization), copy writing and web design.

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