Over optimization is one of the most common SEO mistakes I see daily. I’m talking about all the new web-designers or ambitious business owners that try to take SEO matters into their own hands. They’ll read a few articles, find some free SEO tools online and go wild on their websites. They’ll get excited about learning new information and stuff their website full of keywords. They’ll wait anxiously a few weeks and then miserably wonder why they’re not ranking any higher in Google despite all the work put in.

The problem is simple – “over optimization“.

Over optimization basically means you are trying too hard to rank your website for a particular keyword. Over-optimization hurts your website in two ways:

1. Keyword density is too high
2. Keyword weight distribution is spread across too many keywords

Over-optimization doesn’t work because Google’s search engine is algorithmically intelligent enough to know that your website’s content isn’t natural. Google’s search engine can tell that you’re trying too hard by forcing your keywords into the content. If your target keyword or keyphrase (example: Los Angeles Brand Marketing) is repeated across a single web page so much that it makes up over 10% of the web copy, Google is going to know the word usage probably isn’t natural and you probably won’t get ranked higher for using the keyword so many times. If anything, Google might even dock points from your website for that search term.

The other thing new webmasters need to understand about the SEO process is that Google distributes weight across all your keywords. If you put too many keywords into a single page (example:  “luxury brand marketing”, “premium brand marketing”, “fancy brand marketing”), Google might be confused about what your website is really about. What ends up happening is that instead of scoring that whole page 100% for one keyword, Google now treats it as one web page scored weakly across the multiple keywords.

So how do you fix over-optimization? Easy, just optimize each page for no more than ONE KEYPHRASE. If you have other target keywords, use a separate page of your website to optimize for each one.

First Pizza of the Season: Tasty Margherita. Only three-minutes and molto buono!

The saying, “the kitchen is the heart and soul of every house,” is one of those adages you can’t really appreciate until you see it in action. But of course, it makes perfect sense. The kitchen – whether indoors or out – is a natural focal point for nearly every facet of a home’s activity.(After all, I’ve been preaching about this for years to our clientele.) It is so true that no longer is it the cook’s domain – simply an appliance haven of fridge-oven-sink.   The kitchen has become the nucleus of the house – the hot spot for socializing, eating, or just hanging out. It’s where you pop in for a snack and a chat with the kids, where you sit with your laptop and read the morning’s headlines, and where you spend hours crafting a holiday meal (or at least opening take-out containers) with those you love. Call it the family room with food – the kitchen is undeniably the it locale.

Can't think of a better way to enjoy an evening with friends. Who needs a table! (Nat's taking the photo)

This weekend, my wife and I spent Saturday evening ensconced in the most basic of home-entertaining practices: we had friends over for dinner. It was a beautiful Southern California evening, the outdoor pizza oven was hot and ready for everyone’s make-your-own creations (mind you, after 4-hours of prep, feeding it aged almond-wood to get the refractory clay surface to 650 degrees Fahrenheit – no Domino’s one hour or less delivery here!) After transforming our backyard dining table and furniture into an al fresco oasis – all we needed was hungry diners. As the evening progressed – our guests assembling their pies, me standing guard at the pizza oven – I realized that although everyone was well fed, we hadn’t actually touched our outdoor table. All the eating, cooking, and socializing hovered around our outdoor kitchen and never budged. We all seemed to bring the chairs over and line them up in front of the kitchen. It was oven-to-mouth… oven-to-mouth…times ten pies. Even later, when the night cooled off and dessert rolled around, our ambition to gather in our indoor dining room (around a table custom-designed for its space, no less, and one that we like to use as often as I can) was thwarted as we found ourselves perfectly cozy in the kitchen, draped over counter-tops and stools, casually sipping coffee, eating sweets; definitely not missing chairs-with-backs for even an instant.

Home design is an ever-evolving art, one that’s always shifted with our culture to reflect new priorities. Now, it’s apparent more than ever that our homes crave centralization – a hub from which we can extend all the reaches of our lives: family, work, entertainment, technology. And of all the rooms to assume this role, the kitchen has emerged as the overwhelming victor. It has morphed from “utilitarian” to “meta-functional,” and now requires a specific toolkit of products and design elements to support its new part in our home life.

Note to homeowners: When considering the kitchen, think beyond food, beyond dishes and glassware, beyond size and ease of cooking spaces. Instead, embrace the kitchen as the new horizon of home-lifestyle composition and acknowledge the infinite possibilities it brings with it.

And note to designers, dealers and manufacturers: Don’t underestimate the importance of developing and creating products that truly make a difference in the way the end-user lives and experiences day-to-day activities. Designing spaces and creating environments where our clientele can appreciate the things in life that really matter such as enjoying friends and family – while creating memorable experiences as often as possible – long after their remodel or new home is complete. In doing this, our livelihood becomes more than a point of sale for our products or services, rather it becomes one of the most rewarding parts of our professional lives.

Christopher Robin, David Schlocker, and Neil Greenwood of DRS soaking up the fun on the Dwell on Design exhibition floor

LAUFEN, a leader in bathroom design for over 100 years, was at the event showing off the Swiss perspective on bathroom culture. The mimo collection caught many eyes with its uniquely retro white and black vanities. Visitors to the booth couldn’t resist reaching out and touching the ILBAGNOALESSI dOt Collection, with its sleek shape and leather-inspired black matte finish. LAUFEN was sure to leave members of the design community with plenty to *dwell* on this year.

LAUFEN exhibition at Dwell on Design

LAUFEN mimo collection at Dwell on Design

Bardelli Wall Tile through Hastings Tile & Bath (Fornasetti ceramic Vase available at Barney's)

If ICFF is the equivalent of contemporary eye-candy, two our clients were the cherries on top of that delicious Sundae.  Hastings Tile & Bath was a part of the Ceramic Tiles of Italy Pavilion – specifically the Bardelli Fornasettiana exhibit.    As the exclusive importer and distributor of this popular line, Hastings made many people happy when they explained that they have the full collection in their showroom in the Architects & Design Building in NYC.

Close-up of Bardelli Wall Tile

The graphic Fornasettiana display was literally stopping people in their tracks as they responded to the iconic Fornasetti designs and the newer designs which were created by Fornasetti’s son.  People asked to be photographed in front of the display, as if they wanted to be a part of the design.  It was fascinating to see, and gratifying to listen as people told us about their personal relationship with, and love of the Fornasetti designs.

Bardelli Tile distributed exclusively by Hastings Tile & Bath

LAUFEN mimo Collection debuts at ICFF

LAUFEN’s booth drew people in for a number of reasons.  Touting their ‘Swissness’, LAUFEN had an eye-catching video explaining their philosophy of design and showcasing both the designers and the crafting of their products.  Their Mimo collection is pop-art reconceived as bathroom furniture. Attendees could not help but come over to look at, and touch the cabinets and the sculptural sink and vanity.  The vivid colors were a lovely contrast to the soothing white ceramic sinks. Many people were also completely taken by The ILBAGNOALESSI dOt Collection, designed by Wiel Arets for Alessi Design Group and created by LAUFEN.  Shown in a matte black finish, the dOt is named for the round, dot-like recess which adorns nearly every piece in the collection. If you didn’t understand ‘Swissness’ when you approached the booth, you certainly had a better understanding when you left!

And that’s me, Jocelyn Hutt appearing in the Mimi mirror!

On Monday, March 29 Caroma, the worldwide leader in highly efficient dual flush toilets for commercial and residential use, had their Profile Smart toilet with integrated sink and Sydney Smart™ toilet featured on The Today Show’s Green Gadget Time segment. In anticipation of this year’s Earth Day, renowned gadget expert Steve Greenberg demonstrated the features and benefits of Caroma’s water conserving yet powerful toilets to Kathy Lee Gifford, Hoda Kotb and the millions of viewers who tune into the popular daily morning program.

In the segment, Greenberg described how the Caroma Profile Smart toilet effectively recycles water by allowing users to wash their hands in the integrated sink with fresh water that drains into the toilet tank to power the following flush. Greenberg wowed the audience by easily flushing a potato and two limes down the Sydney Smart toilet. This successful demonstration proved how the large trap together with the flush-down technology of the Sydney Smart toilet virtually eliminates blockages even when using the low-flow feature of only 0.8 gallons of water!

For more information about Caroma Dual Flush toilets, visit their website: www.caromausa.com

You can see the full press release here: Caroma® Smart Toilets Featured on The Today Show

And watch the whole clip on the NBC website. The Caroma segment starts at about the 2:40 mark in the clip: Green Gadgets Help Save Planet and Money

Caroma Dual Flush Toilets

You can't do that! Flushing two limes and a potato.

It worked! Two limes and a potato flushed with a Caroma toilet.

Can anyone really predict a trend? We can spot them, but predicting them is a bit like catching a snowflake – the moment it lands, it melts away, or lands on an existing pile of snow to which anyone can then safely say, “It’s definitely trending towards snow.” We don’t like to make pronouncements of absolute certainty, but we do pride ourselves on being astute observers of design.

Here’s what we’re talking about:

- Material Maturation and Morphing – Avatar comes to A + D
- After Stainless Steel – A resurgence comes to life
- Slim down and get healthy – Flooring products, that is
- Luxury and Green – and really mean it this time
- New Buzz words to impress your friends with
- Intelligent Design – Not that kind… the useful stuff like Smart Products for your home
- Lighting – not a burn out; just a new efficient way to guide our way
- Color de jour for 2010 – check please
- Something Old is something Good; even hipper meaning to “recycling”
- Look afar but look close to home too – Made in USA is making a comeback and designers love it

Want to read the whole scoop? Check out our newest Research + Trends article posted on our site: DRS and Associates.com

Every company should want to be a pillar of their online community, and in essence help the community while becoming an active part of it as it evolves (remember, your community is your market, so not wanting to become part of your community means you don’t want to offer your products and services to your market!) In order to become a pillar of your community, your company obviously cannot sit on the sidelines doing nothing at all. Your company will need to become an active part of this community in one way or another, but the bottom line is that by helping people find what they want, by brightening their day or making their lives better in some way you will be making the community better than when you found it. Basics rules to follow include: be kind and respectful to your customers and prospective customers (the whole community in fact!), serve the community in the best way possible and produce and distribute the best products to the community.

As a pillar of the community your company will then obtain sales from your market. The more active you are in the community, the more recognized your products will be and the more sales you will receive. This is not only the future of your online market, but this is also the reality of your present day market. As nearly 100% of all business will get online in the next ten years, the competitiveness of the online marketplace will continue to increase and online advertising will eclipse all other forms. In the future your online market will change, but if you are an active part of that market then you will be able to react instantly to these changes in a seamless manner that will make your business more profitable, while keeping your customers and potential customers happy.