Why should I care about Social Media Optimization?
You should care about Social Media Optimization (SMO), because you care about your company's image. There's an old saying that goes something like, "A happy customer will tell one other person about his good experience. A disgruntled customer will tell ten people about his bad experience." Good or bad, that's powerful marketing. Social Media Optimization gives you the power to take an active role in managing your brand by interacting with your current and potential clients by discussing your products, their comments and concerns and continually promoting your brand.
Social Media Optimization Defined
In its most basic form, Social media optimization is any method used to raise your website's online visibility through meaningful communication. SMO opens a dialogue between you and your clients, using the power of popular opinion to fuel your marketing campaign. The open format strengthens your search engine optimization efforts by fostering a mutual connection with your clients through the myriad of online communities, also called social media sites. Current examples of SMO include:
* Creating profiles in social media communities such as MySpace, Facebook, and VIRB.
* Participating in and/or creating blogs.
* Disseminating your blogs or articles using RSS feeds.
* Creating and sharing content through community based sites like Flickr, YouTube, and more.
Not to incorporate unnecessary buzz words, but SMO is a very Web 2.0 approach to Search Engine Optimization. Of course, Web 2.0 merely refers to the perceived second generation of Web-based communities and hosted services - the social-networking sites, wikis and folksonomies, which facilitate collaboration and sharing between users. SMO allows you to become an active member of your online community, quite an important aspect of marketing your brand. Through participation, you establish yourself or your company as an industry leader and improve your online visibility.
As you can imagine, Social Media Optimization is most effective when the viral nature of the technique and its communities are utilized in a positive manner. Creating legitimate content, building relationships and instilling trust in your community is the very backbone of SMO. You may initiate the process, but effective SMO will take on a life all its own. A true forum is bred through the act of continual communication between your company and your online audience.
Of course, not everyone plays by the rules. In every aspect of life, you will find those who would cheat the system to receive short term gains. Like most schemes, the underbelly of SMO may seem attractive to anyone looking for a quick fix, but don't make that mistake. Just as it's true with SEO, erroneous SMO will backfire. Using questionable techniques will very likely yield the exact opposite results you were hoping to see.
SMO Etiquette
Legitimate SMO techniques are centered on sharing information and exposing your community to your interests. As such, you want to focus on promoting proper SMO etiquette. The MySpace super fríend, the guy or gal who adds anyone and everyone, would be a good example of improper Social Media Optimization. The whole concept behind Social Media is to create a community with similar interests for meaningful discussion and let the power of popular opinion grow your online visibility. Of course, you may belong to several different communities and you may even have some of the same friends in those different communities. That's perfectly fine. The idea is to remain active in your communities by adding friends and contributing relevant content. Adding friends in bulk, for no reason, is no way to optimize.
Communal sites like MySpace and Facebook, or even YouTube and Flickr to some extent, are indeed popularity contests. However, simply trying to catalog massive amounts of unrelated, uninterested "friends" is totally counterproductive. Let the high school kids worry about who's got the most friends. For the purpose of SMO, you should concern yourself with quality, not quantity.
Using unsavory SMO techniques is the Web 2.0 equivalent to spam. Unfortunately, we're all far too familiar with spam. Unsolicited bulk messaging and link heavy advertisements instead of useful comments are two of the more prevalent methods of Social Media spamming. However, Social Media spamming is even more atrocious than email spam, because the offending text is visible to everyone on the site. It doesn't hide in your inbox, so it can really dilute the appeal of the site. Your kindergarten teacher was on the right track. If you don't have something relevant to say, don't say anything at all.
Is SMO right for my firm?
There are many different types of Social Media sites currently available. To put it in perspective, think about all the different interests you have in life. Now, consider the possibility that there's at least one Social Media site for each of your interests. Of course, you're not the only person on the Internet, so it's a safe bet there are literally millíons of sites dedicated to countless interests around the globe. Believe it or not, there's a group out there looking for your company, product or service. You just have to make it available. Therefore, understanding how to submit to and maintain your content on each community is absolutely crucial when developing a successful SMO strategy.
A few examples of the different Social Media genres include:
• News - These sites allow users to submit news articles. Once an article is published, users can submit their comments and vote to promote the story and/or author.
Examples include: Digg, Propeller, Newsvine
• Media - These sites allow users to upload and share a variety of different media files. The overwhelming majority of these sites are dedicated mainly to photo and video files.
Examples include: YouTube, Flickr
• Wiki - These sites allow users to add and edit informational articles as determined by the individual users.
Examples include: Wikipedia, WikiHow, Million Dollar Wiki
• Networking - These sites allow users to create profiles and network with others according to similar traits, tastes, and interests.
Examples include: MySpace, Facebook, Virb
• Bookmarking - These sites allow users to compile public bookmark collections of sites they find interesting, informative, or helpful. The more a site is bookmarked, the higher the ranking.
Examples include: Stumble Upon, Technorat, Del.icio.us
When executed properly, Social Media Optimization can be quite a beneficial marketing tool. However, SMO may simply not be the right fít for your organization. Some questions you might like to consider before launching your SMO campaign are:
* Most SMO sites share very specific information. Would your products benefit from this type of content specific market?
* The audience for most Social Media sites is more of a young, tech savvy group. Would your company, product or service appeal to their fickle nature?
* Does your web site contain a blog, or similar media outlet, you can regularly update with relevant content?
* Given the fact that community based sites focus on individual profiles and commentary, are you comfortable with developing unique profiles across multiple sites?
In summary
Social Media Optimization has become a successful marketing tool for one simple reason. It works. The gap between old media and new has gotten smaller and smaller with the majority of the prominent television and print media outlets finally embracing the Internet by launching sites of their own. The different Social Media sites, like MySpace and Facebook, have exploded with profiles for everything from 8th graders discussing their favorite bands to full scale ad campaigns for Blockbuster movies.
If done correctly, SMO can expose your brand to markets you didn't think possible. Whether it's used alone to drive a campaign or in conjunction with your current interactive marketing strategy, Social Media Optimization offers you a significant advantage.
About The Author
Brian Easter is the CEO of NeboWeb. As CEO, Easter has led NeboWeb to explosive growth, attracting Fortune 500 clients and driving strategic partnerships which have fueled NeboWeb's expansion.
Tuesday, November 18, 2008
All Websites Are International
Tip O'Neill, the late Speaker of The House of Representatives is often quoted as saying "All politics is local," meaning a politician that helps a constituent with a problem is likely to win that vote based on the personal assistance provided, irrespective of that politician's stance on the larger, more weighty, geo-political issues. What then of business, is all business local or international?
Shopping Is An Experience
The world has changed dramatically since the days when neighborhood shopping was the main option, and people relied on their local merchants for products and services. The world of commerce today seems to be divided between two competing scenarios: on the one hand, people are more mobile than ever before, and more willing to travel to buy what they want, even with wildly fluctuating energy costs; and on the other hand, people are busier than ever and use the Internet to seek out the companies, products, and services they want and need.
What seems to be consistent is the underlying need to feel something, to experience the process. The higher the value, the greater the psychological component to the buying experience. The same is true for products and services that are considered non-essential.
People Wonder Why They Can't Sell More Stuff
We all have our favorite stores and websites, where we know we will be looked-after with more than the ubiquitous and perfunctory, "have a nice day," but sadly that sense of service is all but lost in a misguided rush to pseudo efficiency. Brick and mortar stores with their part-time, minimum wage time-fillers whose only talent seems to be a vacant blank stare accompanied by "that's not my department" is bad enough. But what of websites that don't accept phone calls, or any other kind of inquiry other than a form email that you can be assured will be answered in a week or two, along with a request for more information that generally corresponds to the information you've already provided - that's what passes for website service today. And people wonder why they can't sell more stuff.
The Web Is An International Venue
The Web of course presents one additional wrinkle to the service issue, one that puts a premium on communicating your message effectively: the Web is an international venue. No matter what you do, or where you're located, you can be sure people from all parts of the world are visiting your website if you have something of value to say. This then puts a premium on your ability to articulate a coherent message, one that eliminates the need for visitors to phone Mumbai, Beijing, or Lickskillet, Ohio.
English speaking companies have a hard enough time communicating effectively, but what of non-English speaking companies trying to break into the North American market? You find websites in many different languages, catering to local markets, but if you're looking for North American exposure, you best deliver your message in the language of the Web, and like it or not, that language is English.
Words Have Meaning
Far be it from me to criticize CBS news anchor Katie Couric, who generally does a fine job, but when she refers to the Democrats winning the House, Senate, and Presidency as "single party rule" it raises the hackles on the back of my neck. Words have meaning and presentation has impact. But I am not just talking about proper grammar, syntax, and usage, something many of us stumble over at times, but what of idiom, metaphor, and voice; elements that are just as important in effective marketing communication as proper usage.
Years ago while visiting London, England I passed a store with the sign that read "Fags and Mags," a disconcerting message until I got acclimatized to the British slang. When it comes to marketing, you can get away with a lot, but even countries that speak the same language have different patois, slang, and cultural references.
One of the great advantages of being from Canada with its proximity to the USA, its historical ties to the British Commonwealth, and its multicultural population is that we understand these differences and can translate them into effective North American marketing campaigns.
Crafting Your Web Marketing Message
What do you sell? A seemingly simple question any business executive should be able to answer, but can they answer it accurately? Ask yourself: do you sell a product, a service, or a concept? Does a shoe store sell shoes, or comfort and status? Does an accountant sell auditing services, or legitimacy and security? Does a politician sell tax cuts, or a better future?
When it comes to marketing you have to think concepts; if you build your advertising around products or services rather than concepts you will never be able to develop an effective campaign, let alone an effective website presentation.
Take Target and Walmart for example: they both sell similar products for the most part, a problem many retailers and most distributors have but refuse to face. Target markets itself as the leader in low priced, designer-styled merchandise, a distinct marketing position compared to Walmart that markets itself as the low priced leader and the heck with design. Each company delivers a unique marketing concept, one targeting consumers interested in price alone, the other aimed at shoppers who want a little style with their bargains: two different concepts, two different brand positions, and two different marketing strategies.
We All Sell Concepts Not Products and Services
One way or another we all sell a concept no matter what the product or service. When a client approaches us with the question "why aren't we selling more stuff?" a quick review of their site usually provides the answer: their website is not articulating in any meaningful, memorable manner, the conceptual premium their product or service delivers.
Before you invest in a new website or Web marketing campaign, decide what concept you are actually delivering. That concept is the basis of your marketing strategy and it informs what you say and how you say it.
Selling Concepts Is All About The Presentation
The recent US election is a great example of how to sell a concept. Putting all political bias aside look at the difference between how Obama approached his speeches and how McCain approached his. Of course both men talked about their policies and how they would handle different domestic and international situations.
McCain spoke to his constituency and delivered what they wanted to hear, but his words and presentation style fell far short of motivating the undecided or converting non-believers. Accusing a fellow Senator and Harvard Law alumni, with red baiting language like "redistributing the wealth" was obvious code language that failed the sniff test to all but his staunch backers.
Compare McCain's efforts to motivate through distrust and fear to Obama's message of hope, with his "Yes We Can" catchphrase echoing the American 'can do' spirit and traditional approach to solving problems. Not only did Obama say the right words to motivate his audience, he delivered his message with the motivational rhythm and cadence of an inspirational preacher.
Whether you're selling a political agenda or carbonated sugar water, you must learn to communicate your marketing concept in a way that people will understand, remember, and act upon.
Concepts Are Universal
The Web is an international venue. If you have something of value to say or sell, you will attract an international audience. Foreign companies that want to access the USA market must learn to speak "American" or hire a marketing communication company that does. American companies that want to grow beyond their local markets must learn to think concepts, the universal language of sales.
Shopping Is An Experience
The world has changed dramatically since the days when neighborhood shopping was the main option, and people relied on their local merchants for products and services. The world of commerce today seems to be divided between two competing scenarios: on the one hand, people are more mobile than ever before, and more willing to travel to buy what they want, even with wildly fluctuating energy costs; and on the other hand, people are busier than ever and use the Internet to seek out the companies, products, and services they want and need.
What seems to be consistent is the underlying need to feel something, to experience the process. The higher the value, the greater the psychological component to the buying experience. The same is true for products and services that are considered non-essential.
People Wonder Why They Can't Sell More Stuff
We all have our favorite stores and websites, where we know we will be looked-after with more than the ubiquitous and perfunctory, "have a nice day," but sadly that sense of service is all but lost in a misguided rush to pseudo efficiency. Brick and mortar stores with their part-time, minimum wage time-fillers whose only talent seems to be a vacant blank stare accompanied by "that's not my department" is bad enough. But what of websites that don't accept phone calls, or any other kind of inquiry other than a form email that you can be assured will be answered in a week or two, along with a request for more information that generally corresponds to the information you've already provided - that's what passes for website service today. And people wonder why they can't sell more stuff.
The Web Is An International Venue
The Web of course presents one additional wrinkle to the service issue, one that puts a premium on communicating your message effectively: the Web is an international venue. No matter what you do, or where you're located, you can be sure people from all parts of the world are visiting your website if you have something of value to say. This then puts a premium on your ability to articulate a coherent message, one that eliminates the need for visitors to phone Mumbai, Beijing, or Lickskillet, Ohio.
English speaking companies have a hard enough time communicating effectively, but what of non-English speaking companies trying to break into the North American market? You find websites in many different languages, catering to local markets, but if you're looking for North American exposure, you best deliver your message in the language of the Web, and like it or not, that language is English.
Words Have Meaning
Far be it from me to criticize CBS news anchor Katie Couric, who generally does a fine job, but when she refers to the Democrats winning the House, Senate, and Presidency as "single party rule" it raises the hackles on the back of my neck. Words have meaning and presentation has impact. But I am not just talking about proper grammar, syntax, and usage, something many of us stumble over at times, but what of idiom, metaphor, and voice; elements that are just as important in effective marketing communication as proper usage.
Years ago while visiting London, England I passed a store with the sign that read "Fags and Mags," a disconcerting message until I got acclimatized to the British slang. When it comes to marketing, you can get away with a lot, but even countries that speak the same language have different patois, slang, and cultural references.
One of the great advantages of being from Canada with its proximity to the USA, its historical ties to the British Commonwealth, and its multicultural population is that we understand these differences and can translate them into effective North American marketing campaigns.
Crafting Your Web Marketing Message
What do you sell? A seemingly simple question any business executive should be able to answer, but can they answer it accurately? Ask yourself: do you sell a product, a service, or a concept? Does a shoe store sell shoes, or comfort and status? Does an accountant sell auditing services, or legitimacy and security? Does a politician sell tax cuts, or a better future?
When it comes to marketing you have to think concepts; if you build your advertising around products or services rather than concepts you will never be able to develop an effective campaign, let alone an effective website presentation.
Take Target and Walmart for example: they both sell similar products for the most part, a problem many retailers and most distributors have but refuse to face. Target markets itself as the leader in low priced, designer-styled merchandise, a distinct marketing position compared to Walmart that markets itself as the low priced leader and the heck with design. Each company delivers a unique marketing concept, one targeting consumers interested in price alone, the other aimed at shoppers who want a little style with their bargains: two different concepts, two different brand positions, and two different marketing strategies.
We All Sell Concepts Not Products and Services
One way or another we all sell a concept no matter what the product or service. When a client approaches us with the question "why aren't we selling more stuff?" a quick review of their site usually provides the answer: their website is not articulating in any meaningful, memorable manner, the conceptual premium their product or service delivers.
Before you invest in a new website or Web marketing campaign, decide what concept you are actually delivering. That concept is the basis of your marketing strategy and it informs what you say and how you say it.
Selling Concepts Is All About The Presentation
The recent US election is a great example of how to sell a concept. Putting all political bias aside look at the difference between how Obama approached his speeches and how McCain approached his. Of course both men talked about their policies and how they would handle different domestic and international situations.
McCain spoke to his constituency and delivered what they wanted to hear, but his words and presentation style fell far short of motivating the undecided or converting non-believers. Accusing a fellow Senator and Harvard Law alumni, with red baiting language like "redistributing the wealth" was obvious code language that failed the sniff test to all but his staunch backers.
Compare McCain's efforts to motivate through distrust and fear to Obama's message of hope, with his "Yes We Can" catchphrase echoing the American 'can do' spirit and traditional approach to solving problems. Not only did Obama say the right words to motivate his audience, he delivered his message with the motivational rhythm and cadence of an inspirational preacher.
Whether you're selling a political agenda or carbonated sugar water, you must learn to communicate your marketing concept in a way that people will understand, remember, and act upon.
Concepts Are Universal
The Web is an international venue. If you have something of value to say or sell, you will attract an international audience. Foreign companies that want to access the USA market must learn to speak "American" or hire a marketing communication company that does. American companies that want to grow beyond their local markets must learn to think concepts, the universal language of sales.
Official Google statement: the effects of outbound links on your website
Last month, Google published an official statement about linking out to other websites. Some webmasters still think that linking to other websites might have a negative effect on their Google rankings. That is not the case.
Google
Links to other websites can have a positive effect on your website if you link to the right websites. Here's a summary of Google's statements:
The good side of outbound links
Relevant links to other websites can help your website visitors. For example, you could provide your readers in-depth information about similar topics or you could offer your readers your commentary on existing resources.
Outbound links can also help your credibility. Links to the right websites show that you have done your research and that you have expertise in the subject manner. Good links to other websites can make visitors want to come back for more analysis on future topics.
A very positive effect on links to other websites is that they help you to build relationships with other domain experts. If you send visitors to another website then that website might send visitors to your website in return.
The bad side of outbound links
Links to other websites can have a negative effect on your website if you don't monitor to which websites you link. According to Google, unmonitored (especially user-generated) links and undisclosed paid advertising outbound links can reduce your website's credibility.
If your website allows user comments or other user created contents, then you should make sure that these comments are moderated and/or you should add the rel="nofollow" attribute to user generated links.
Google doesn't like paid links. If you accept money for outbound links, you should also add the rel="nofollow" attribute to the link.
Google recommends not to have more than 100 links per web page. Too many links on one page confuse your website visitors.
Should you worry about the PageRank of the linked website?
Google makes it very clear that you shouldn't worry about the PageRank of a website as long as you are linking to a website you believe your website visitors will enjoy.
It doesn't matter if the linked website has a lower PageRank than your website as long as the website is somehow related to your site. According to Google, webmasters should consider outbound links as a common sense way to provide more value to their users, not as a complicated formula.
If you link to good websites, outbound links will have a positive effect on your site. IBP's link builder helps you to find good related websites, it helps you to build relationships with other websites and it also helps you to increase the number of inbound links to your website.
Links to other websites can have a positive effect on your website if you link to the right websites. Here's a summary of Google's statements:
The good side of outbound links
Relevant links to other websites can help your website visitors. For example, you could provide your readers in-depth information about similar topics or you could offer your readers your commentary on existing resources.
Outbound links can also help your credibility. Links to the right websites show that you have done your research and that you have expertise in the subject manner. Good links to other websites can make visitors want to come back for more analysis on future topics.
A very positive effect on links to other websites is that they help you to build relationships with other domain experts. If you send visitors to another website then that website might send visitors to your website in return.
The bad side of outbound links
Links to other websites can have a negative effect on your website if you don't monitor to which websites you link. According to Google, unmonitored (especially user-generated) links and undisclosed paid advertising outbound links can reduce your website's credibility.
If your website allows user comments or other user created contents, then you should make sure that these comments are moderated and/or you should add the rel="nofollow" attribute to user generated links.
Google doesn't like paid links. If you accept money for outbound links, you should also add the rel="nofollow" attribute to the link.
Google recommends not to have more than 100 links per web page. Too many links on one page confuse your website visitors.
Should you worry about the PageRank of the linked website?
Google makes it very clear that you shouldn't worry about the PageRank of a website as long as you are linking to a website you believe your website visitors will enjoy.
It doesn't matter if the linked website has a lower PageRank than your website as long as the website is somehow related to your site. According to Google, webmasters should consider outbound links as a common sense way to provide more value to their users, not as a complicated formula.
If you link to good websites, outbound links will have a positive effect on your site. IBP's link builder helps you to find good related websites, it helps you to build relationships with other websites and it also helps you to increase the number of inbound links to your website.
Search Engine Optimization And Search Engine Crawlers
There is a lot to learn when it comes to online or internet marketing and search engine optimization. That is why a lot of people hire SEO consultants to worry about their internet marketing for them.
However, if you do not want to have to pay SEO experts to help you with the marketing of your website, then you may want to think about doing it yourself! It's not that hard, it just takes some reading on the internet from trusted sources. Really, most of the SEO services that are provided online are built around one thing, and that is search engine crawlers.
Today we are going to talk more about search engine crawlers, and what they do. Soon you will find out that pretty much everything that you do, as far as search engine optimization goes, is to make these little crawlers happy. It is no longer as easy as a quick search engine submission and your website becomes popular.
As you may be able to guess by the name, these search engine crawlers are little bots that roam around the internet looking for new websites and ranking them based on an algorithm. When they come across a new website, they rank it in different ways, taking many things in to consideration. These ranks help to determine where the site is going to end up in a search done on a search engine.
The first thing that you have to do for these crawlers is to get noticed by them, and that is the hardest part of SEO, or at least that is what SEO consultants want you to think! The truth of the matter is, you can get your website noticed by simply visiting different popular search engines and adding your URL to their submission forms.
You also must get links from other web sites pointing to your web site to obtain link popularity and credibility with the search engines. This way the crawlers will know where your site is at, and find it a lot quicker. They will also consider it a relevant source of information if other sites link to you.
After that, it's all about marketing your web site on the internet through search engine optimization techniques. These little crawlers are programmed to look for certain things on your web site, these are things that SEO experts study and have an understanding for.
Using the services of SEO Consultants to help in your marketing, however they can be very costly, so you should hire a service provider that is talented and can provide a portfolio to ensure you get quality work.
Before hiring someone to work on your web site you should make sure they use ethical search optimization and marketing tactics and also make sure that they can provide results.
The first thing that crawlers look for is, of course, keywords.
Keywords in your web sites content and keywords in the links pointing to your site. When it comes to search engine optimization, use keywords wisely. Don't over-saturate your web site with keywords because you can get docked as a spammer. These keywords have to be worked into the web page and not just listed there. You should integrate them in to your content, page titles, meta tags and URL. Also, it will help the marketing of your web site if you work them into the titles of your web page as well.
Also make sure that your main page headings are bigger than that of your normal font so the crawlers can easily pick out what the main focus of your page is.
SEO consultants also worry about how many links there are out there that point back to your website. The more links, the better. However they must also be quality links from popular sites that are credible with the search engines. That is why SEO experts are always looking for different places where they can post links to your website. While crawlers are looking around, if they come across links to your website, then that helps to boost your ranking online.
As you can see, SEO services are very helpful, but if you can learn how to do online marketing by yourself, you don't need to hire anyone.
However, if you do not want to have to pay SEO experts to help you with the marketing of your website, then you may want to think about doing it yourself! It's not that hard, it just takes some reading on the internet from trusted sources. Really, most of the SEO services that are provided online are built around one thing, and that is search engine crawlers.
Today we are going to talk more about search engine crawlers, and what they do. Soon you will find out that pretty much everything that you do, as far as search engine optimization goes, is to make these little crawlers happy. It is no longer as easy as a quick search engine submission and your website becomes popular.
As you may be able to guess by the name, these search engine crawlers are little bots that roam around the internet looking for new websites and ranking them based on an algorithm. When they come across a new website, they rank it in different ways, taking many things in to consideration. These ranks help to determine where the site is going to end up in a search done on a search engine.
The first thing that you have to do for these crawlers is to get noticed by them, and that is the hardest part of SEO, or at least that is what SEO consultants want you to think! The truth of the matter is, you can get your website noticed by simply visiting different popular search engines and adding your URL to their submission forms.
You also must get links from other web sites pointing to your web site to obtain link popularity and credibility with the search engines. This way the crawlers will know where your site is at, and find it a lot quicker. They will also consider it a relevant source of information if other sites link to you.
After that, it's all about marketing your web site on the internet through search engine optimization techniques. These little crawlers are programmed to look for certain things on your web site, these are things that SEO experts study and have an understanding for.
Using the services of SEO Consultants to help in your marketing, however they can be very costly, so you should hire a service provider that is talented and can provide a portfolio to ensure you get quality work.
Before hiring someone to work on your web site you should make sure they use ethical search optimization and marketing tactics and also make sure that they can provide results.
The first thing that crawlers look for is, of course, keywords.
Keywords in your web sites content and keywords in the links pointing to your site. When it comes to search engine optimization, use keywords wisely. Don't over-saturate your web site with keywords because you can get docked as a spammer. These keywords have to be worked into the web page and not just listed there. You should integrate them in to your content, page titles, meta tags and URL. Also, it will help the marketing of your web site if you work them into the titles of your web page as well.
Also make sure that your main page headings are bigger than that of your normal font so the crawlers can easily pick out what the main focus of your page is.
SEO consultants also worry about how many links there are out there that point back to your website. The more links, the better. However they must also be quality links from popular sites that are credible with the search engines. That is why SEO experts are always looking for different places where they can post links to your website. While crawlers are looking around, if they come across links to your website, then that helps to boost your ranking online.
As you can see, SEO services are very helpful, but if you can learn how to do online marketing by yourself, you don't need to hire anyone.
The New SEO - Let's Get Real
Once upon a time, onsite optimization was the most crucial factor in search engine ranking. Webmasters and SEO experts spent ample time ensuring keywords were used in all relevant tags, and that the keyword concentration on each page was just right (usually 5-7%). Then came all the spamming and keyword stuffing, as webmasters and SEO experts fought viciously to usurp one another in the ranks. Search engines took notice, and adjusted their scoring algorithms accordingly. Onsite optimization lost its footing.
Nowadays, onsite optimization is becoming less and less significant, overshadowed by the all powerful offsite optimization. Where keyword concentration was once god, now links have become the mighty ruler of the search engines. The fact of the matter is, onsite optimization counts for almost nothing these days (I did say "almost"). So why are webmasters and SEO experts still spewing all this nonsense about the importance of building great content. I really wish it were about building great content. The sad truth, however, is it's all about the links.
Search engines want you to believe that ranking well is all about building a great website with great content. Build a site for your users, keep your users happy, and you will do just fine in their eyes. After all, isn't this the main principle behind organic search results; let's keep it real, honest, and user-friendly. Boy, I wish that were so. What I don't understand is why all these so-called experts and webmasters are spouting the same foolish nonsense all over the Internet. Perhaps it's because they don't want us to work on improving our own rankings as their ridiculous articles are improving theirs.
It's almost like these experts and webmasters are afraid that if they tell it like it is, somehow Google will find out what they're saying and drop their site a few points. Gee, but I thought the results on the left side were purely organic. Besides, if it were that easy, I would just start posting all kinds of articles and claim they were written by my competition. Sure there are some "must haves" for onsite optimization, but any web owner could learn these in an afternoon. The reality, however, is that all the great content and onsite optimization in the world will only get you to the starting line. Links is how you run the race.
The best way to acquire these necessary links, the experts say, is to once again build great content. It's the old "if you build it they will come (and link to it)" line. This is nearly ludicrous. First of all, how would people even find your "great content" if you're on page 50? Because no matter how great your content is, and no matter how much onsite SEO you do, you'll never get closer than page 50 without back links (unless you're vying for a top position with a keyword or phrase that gets searched less than 100 times a month).
Now even if a few people do find your site, what makes you think that these people have their own websites? Most Internet users do not have their own websites, and even if they do, they probably do not know enough html to properly add a link in their own code. They especially wouldn't know that they are supposed to use your "keywords" in the anchor text (many webmasters don't even know to do this).
Now, let's pretend that a few knowledgeable webmasters do find your site and really enjoy the content. This does not mean they are going to go through the trouble of creating a link on their site to yours. This takes time, effort and energy. Why would they do this unless they have some incentive (but if you give them incentive, doesn't that undermine its organic nature)?
Nevertheless, if you do everything right, eventually people will link to your site. This is true. However, it will likely take you about 2 years to acquire enough relevant, high PR back links with proper keyword anchor text to move you up just one point in the PR scale. That will possibly move you to page 49 in the search results. Congratulatíons, only a few dozen more years to go. (The only alternative you have now is to pay for results on the right side of the screen, and that my fríend gets expensive.)
The fact is, you could hire a SEO company and pay them millions for onsite optimization of your PR 2 site. Then, you could spend months creating unique and user-friendly content that perfectly integrates all your keywords and phrases in a symphony of optimized perfection. Then, when you're nearly on top for some obscure keyword phrase, along comes some PR 5 website that just coincidently adds an extra page to their site that just happens to have your key phrase spliced throughout the title tag. Guess what? You just got beat. Even though they haven't done one thing to optimize their site or page for these keywords, and even though there is zero "quality content" on this add-on url, it just usurped you in the ranks.
Now I know what you're thinking. If acquiring links is so incredibly important, then why don't I just spend my time doing this? Well, this is easier said then done. I've just recently been told that reciprocal link exchanges, directory listings, and 3way link exchanges no longer account for very much in the eyes of the search engine gods (although this is still up for debate). Writing letters to relevant high PR sites is almost a ludicrous task, in that only maybe 1 in ten ever even respond to your pathetic, though eloquently written e-mails. The ones who do usually have some wonderful explanation of why you should look into paid advertising on their site instead. And of course, paid links and link farms will possibly get you banned completely from the search engines (which is about the worst thing that could ever possibly happen), though I'm not sure how they distinguish between an add and paid link, a directory and a link farm. Nevertheless, it's enough to keep your head spinning.
So what's my conclusion? I guess your witnessing it right now. I'm writing articles. It's a lot better that spending hours trading links that never seem to help, or adding links from partners who never exchange the favour. I know there are a lot more ways to acquire back links, so I guess I'm now opening it up to responses. This, after all, is the million-dollar question. If you can succeed at the link game, you will be rich beyond your wildest imaginations. Just look at Plentyoffish.com, and other sites that rank in the top five for well sought after keywords. I for one wouldn't mind finding myself in their position.
About The Author
Jack Strawman is the cofounder of the popular new website Late Night Chat, Dating and Hook Up at UStillUp.com, a totally free late night chat, dating and social networking site for late night fun.
Nowadays, onsite optimization is becoming less and less significant, overshadowed by the all powerful offsite optimization. Where keyword concentration was once god, now links have become the mighty ruler of the search engines. The fact of the matter is, onsite optimization counts for almost nothing these days (I did say "almost"). So why are webmasters and SEO experts still spewing all this nonsense about the importance of building great content. I really wish it were about building great content. The sad truth, however, is it's all about the links.
Search engines want you to believe that ranking well is all about building a great website with great content. Build a site for your users, keep your users happy, and you will do just fine in their eyes. After all, isn't this the main principle behind organic search results; let's keep it real, honest, and user-friendly. Boy, I wish that were so. What I don't understand is why all these so-called experts and webmasters are spouting the same foolish nonsense all over the Internet. Perhaps it's because they don't want us to work on improving our own rankings as their ridiculous articles are improving theirs.
It's almost like these experts and webmasters are afraid that if they tell it like it is, somehow Google will find out what they're saying and drop their site a few points. Gee, but I thought the results on the left side were purely organic. Besides, if it were that easy, I would just start posting all kinds of articles and claim they were written by my competition. Sure there are some "must haves" for onsite optimization, but any web owner could learn these in an afternoon. The reality, however, is that all the great content and onsite optimization in the world will only get you to the starting line. Links is how you run the race.
The best way to acquire these necessary links, the experts say, is to once again build great content. It's the old "if you build it they will come (and link to it)" line. This is nearly ludicrous. First of all, how would people even find your "great content" if you're on page 50? Because no matter how great your content is, and no matter how much onsite SEO you do, you'll never get closer than page 50 without back links (unless you're vying for a top position with a keyword or phrase that gets searched less than 100 times a month).
Now even if a few people do find your site, what makes you think that these people have their own websites? Most Internet users do not have their own websites, and even if they do, they probably do not know enough html to properly add a link in their own code. They especially wouldn't know that they are supposed to use your "keywords" in the anchor text (many webmasters don't even know to do this).
Now, let's pretend that a few knowledgeable webmasters do find your site and really enjoy the content. This does not mean they are going to go through the trouble of creating a link on their site to yours. This takes time, effort and energy. Why would they do this unless they have some incentive (but if you give them incentive, doesn't that undermine its organic nature)?
Nevertheless, if you do everything right, eventually people will link to your site. This is true. However, it will likely take you about 2 years to acquire enough relevant, high PR back links with proper keyword anchor text to move you up just one point in the PR scale. That will possibly move you to page 49 in the search results. Congratulatíons, only a few dozen more years to go. (The only alternative you have now is to pay for results on the right side of the screen, and that my fríend gets expensive.)
The fact is, you could hire a SEO company and pay them millions for onsite optimization of your PR 2 site. Then, you could spend months creating unique and user-friendly content that perfectly integrates all your keywords and phrases in a symphony of optimized perfection. Then, when you're nearly on top for some obscure keyword phrase, along comes some PR 5 website that just coincidently adds an extra page to their site that just happens to have your key phrase spliced throughout the title tag. Guess what? You just got beat. Even though they haven't done one thing to optimize their site or page for these keywords, and even though there is zero "quality content" on this add-on url, it just usurped you in the ranks.
Now I know what you're thinking. If acquiring links is so incredibly important, then why don't I just spend my time doing this? Well, this is easier said then done. I've just recently been told that reciprocal link exchanges, directory listings, and 3way link exchanges no longer account for very much in the eyes of the search engine gods (although this is still up for debate). Writing letters to relevant high PR sites is almost a ludicrous task, in that only maybe 1 in ten ever even respond to your pathetic, though eloquently written e-mails. The ones who do usually have some wonderful explanation of why you should look into paid advertising on their site instead. And of course, paid links and link farms will possibly get you banned completely from the search engines (which is about the worst thing that could ever possibly happen), though I'm not sure how they distinguish between an add and paid link, a directory and a link farm. Nevertheless, it's enough to keep your head spinning.
So what's my conclusion? I guess your witnessing it right now. I'm writing articles. It's a lot better that spending hours trading links that never seem to help, or adding links from partners who never exchange the favour. I know there are a lot more ways to acquire back links, so I guess I'm now opening it up to responses. This, after all, is the million-dollar question. If you can succeed at the link game, you will be rich beyond your wildest imaginations. Just look at Plentyoffish.com, and other sites that rank in the top five for well sought after keywords. I for one wouldn't mind finding myself in their position.
About The Author
Jack Strawman is the cofounder of the popular new website Late Night Chat, Dating and Hook Up at UStillUp.com, a totally free late night chat, dating and social networking site for late night fun.
The Secrets to Keywords - Expanding Your List
The Primary objective of a business website is to attract potential buyers and convert them into paying customers. Relevant keywords allow you to fulfil this primary objective. They help you attract relevant traffic that want to buy the types of products you have to offer, however, the more relevant keywords that you rank well for, the more business you will do. By effectively expanding your keyword lists, you expand the potential market for your business.
There are two fundamental ways of expanding your keyword lists:
* Long tail keywords that give you depth and allow you to dominate a particular market - so, moving from 'chocolate' to 'chocolate gifts' to 'corporate chocolate gifts'. These long tailed keywords tend to have a smaller advertiser competition, therefore you get a better PPC price, also, you dominate that specific niche market.
* Related keywords that allow you to broaden the range of market sectors that you can target. So, if you're selling gourmet chocolate, you may find opportunities in related keywords such as 'truffles', 'fudge' or 'luxury foods'. Related keywords can make you aware of markets that you might now have considered. So in building your online business, you need to make sure you have an effective sales process in place. Do that and you will have real benefit from expanding your keyword lists.
You need to convert people who arrive at your website into paying customers. If you don't do that, then it doesn't matter how extensive you keyword research is, or how effective your optimization efforts are in drawing new visitors to your website. If you can't convert a visitor into a customer then your efforts will be doomed to failure.
Only when you have got an effective sales process can you get the real benefit from expanding your keyword lists. And when you have that sales process in place, like any business you will want to expand. You could add new product lines, associated products and other ways to expand your potential income from each of the customers you attract.
However, before you embark on the path of product development you need to be sure that you are getting maximum return from what you have already. Let's suppose you've got a website that performs well - you get 100,000 unique visitors per month and you have a conversion rate of 3%. That equates to 3,000 paying customers per month. Not a bad business situation to be in.
Now look at your log files. From these you see that 30% of your traffic comes from search engines. Dig a little deeper and you find that 80% of this comes from around 20 good keywords. Here's a quick calculation of what this means:
* 30% of your traffic comes from search engines so that's 30,000 unique visitors per month. 80% of these come from your top 20 keywords - that's 24,000 per month.
* With a conversion rate of 3%, those 20 keywords bring you 720 paying customers every month. Now, if you could find another 20 keywords that perform just as well, then you could add another 720 customers, giving you a total of 3,720 customers per month - an increase of 24%.
And if you could achieve this growth once, could you do it again? Of course, the answer to that depends on the potential in your marketplace but the underlying principle is that good keywords will bring additional revenue to your website and you really can't get too many of them.
There are two fundamental ways of expanding your keyword lists:
* Long tail keywords that give you depth and allow you to dominate a particular market - so, moving from 'chocolate' to 'chocolate gifts' to 'corporate chocolate gifts'. These long tailed keywords tend to have a smaller advertiser competition, therefore you get a better PPC price, also, you dominate that specific niche market.
* Related keywords that allow you to broaden the range of market sectors that you can target. So, if you're selling gourmet chocolate, you may find opportunities in related keywords such as 'truffles', 'fudge' or 'luxury foods'. Related keywords can make you aware of markets that you might now have considered. So in building your online business, you need to make sure you have an effective sales process in place. Do that and you will have real benefit from expanding your keyword lists.
You need to convert people who arrive at your website into paying customers. If you don't do that, then it doesn't matter how extensive you keyword research is, or how effective your optimization efforts are in drawing new visitors to your website. If you can't convert a visitor into a customer then your efforts will be doomed to failure.
Only when you have got an effective sales process can you get the real benefit from expanding your keyword lists. And when you have that sales process in place, like any business you will want to expand. You could add new product lines, associated products and other ways to expand your potential income from each of the customers you attract.
However, before you embark on the path of product development you need to be sure that you are getting maximum return from what you have already. Let's suppose you've got a website that performs well - you get 100,000 unique visitors per month and you have a conversion rate of 3%. That equates to 3,000 paying customers per month. Not a bad business situation to be in.
Now look at your log files. From these you see that 30% of your traffic comes from search engines. Dig a little deeper and you find that 80% of this comes from around 20 good keywords. Here's a quick calculation of what this means:
* 30% of your traffic comes from search engines so that's 30,000 unique visitors per month. 80% of these come from your top 20 keywords - that's 24,000 per month.
* With a conversion rate of 3%, those 20 keywords bring you 720 paying customers every month. Now, if you could find another 20 keywords that perform just as well, then you could add another 720 customers, giving you a total of 3,720 customers per month - an increase of 24%.
And if you could achieve this growth once, could you do it again? Of course, the answer to that depends on the potential in your marketplace but the underlying principle is that good keywords will bring additional revenue to your website and you really can't get too many of them.
Is your competition beating you with SEO?
You have optimized your website for winning keywords, are mid-way with your link building campaign, and have been going absolutely crazy creating fresh SEO friendly content that pleases the users and search engines.
You are obviously very serious about your online business, and yet you cannot seem to cross the Rank # 12, Page 2 barrier of Google search listing for your primary keywords.
A series of questions arise from the imaginary situation above:
1. Why is my ranking for the particular keyword not going up?
2. Am I missing out on any SEO strategies?
3. Maybe I am not building enough links? How much will be enough?
4. Do I have to improve my content quality?
5. The search engine has changed their algorithm (…again)
6. Others are using illegal SEO techniques
Now while one could go over the questions in your head, read up on latest search engine algorithms, contact a SEO expert, or blindly start buying links out of desperation, there is an easier way to find your answers.
Simply ask why are the other 10 websites ranking before your website?
Now that does not mean that the above questions 1 to 6 are not relevant, but simply put, one of the easiest ways to boost your search rankings is to study the top 5 to ten websites for your keyword and then apply what working for them into your own strategies.
Now I am not asking you to copy the competition or have a strategy that just involves beating the competition at the ranking game. It never works. What is needed is a better balance between your company's SEO strategies and of those of your competitors.
Like in any business strategy, you have to know your competitors, study what strategies they are using, and then apply the best of those strategies to your own game plan.
In the same way, in defining the SEO path ahead for your website you must analyze your competition. What are they doing to rank in the top 10 that you are not doing? After all those websites are listed on the top for a reason, and they are applying SEO strategies that the search engine in particular seems to like.
Now while finding the answers to those questions in the real business world may be difficult, in the online world all you have to do is to right-click and view the source of the page.
The below simple steps will open up a world of information to you.
1. Does the domain name contain the keyword? If the link is a sub domain then does the sub domain contain the keyword?
2. In what Meta tags, title, etc has the competition placed their keywords?
3. Does the link name contain the keyword? eg. www.seo-optimization-experts.com/mumbai-seo-expert.html
4. How many keywords are listed in the keyword tag i.e. is the page focused around one or two keywords, or is it a jumble of keywords listed out.
5. Is the title and description captivating enough? How has the keyword/s been placed in the title and description and at what position?
6. Is the page graphic intensive? Is the site using a lot flash or active server pages? Search engines cannot understand graphics, only the text it can read on the page. Make sure there is a good balance between the graphics and content.
7. How long is the body text? Writing 400 to 600 words is normally fine.
8. Has the keyword (keyword weight) been used appropriately in the body content? Ideally the first 25 words of content should be keyword rich, and the keyword should appear after every 100 words in remaining content.
9. Is the content interesting to you as the reader? Does the content follow a theme? Is the content relevant to what keyword the page has been optimized for?
10. What is the page rank of the page (You can check page rank of any website by downloading the Google Toolbar at http://toolbar.google.com.
11. Which is the first place in the source code the keyword appears?
12. Has the keyword been used appropriately in headline tags and link text?
13. Does the site use java script, tables, frames, dynamic content, CMS etc?
14. Is the page focused around a theme?
15. How many inbound links are there to the page? You can check the link popularity of the page on www.marketleap.com? Visit the sites that have given the link. What is their page rank? What is the link text that describes the link to the website? Has the keyword been used in the link text?
16. How many pages does the site have?
17. Does the site have a good site map that lists all the content pages, videos on the site that search engine spiders can crawly easily?
18. Are there any 404 errors on the website?
19. What is the domain name extension e.g. .com,. net, .edu, .co.in
20. How long has that domain name been in existence? Search engines rank those sites better that have been around for a while, or those that plan to be around for a while?
21. How many directories has that page/website been submitted to?
22. Has the site used any spamming or illegal SEO techniques like keyword stuffing, cloaking, hidden text, duplicate content and other such spam techniques? If yes you can inform the search engine of the same but do so with caution. For Google: http://www.google.com/contact/spamreport.html
Please note that sometimes you will find no reasons why the competitors' website is ranked above yours. And that's ok. I have experienced many cases of certain sites which go against the search engines guidelines (set by search engines themselves), and yet they rank above meticulously optimized pages.
Search engines are constantly trying to remove badly optimized or spam pages which offer little or no value to the users. Our intent here is not to focus on the missing pieces/loopholes of search engines algorithms or isolated instances of sites that don't deserve it and yet are ranking high, but to work within the framework and guidelines for the long haul.
By mapping out the answers to the above questions (preferable on a spread sheet), you will find the overall patterns of what is working for those sites and why, and then figure out ways to modify your SEO strategies to improve your rankings.
About the Author: Nevil Darukhanawala - SEO Expert http://seo-optimization-experts.com/seoblog.html Zen of SEO Now what has search engine optimization and search marketing got to do with spirituality? Am sure the Big Search Engines will be laughing all the way to the very end...
You are obviously very serious about your online business, and yet you cannot seem to cross the Rank # 12, Page 2 barrier of Google search listing for your primary keywords.
A series of questions arise from the imaginary situation above:
1. Why is my ranking for the particular keyword not going up?
2. Am I missing out on any SEO strategies?
3. Maybe I am not building enough links? How much will be enough?
4. Do I have to improve my content quality?
5. The search engine has changed their algorithm (…again)
6. Others are using illegal SEO techniques
Now while one could go over the questions in your head, read up on latest search engine algorithms, contact a SEO expert, or blindly start buying links out of desperation, there is an easier way to find your answers.
Simply ask why are the other 10 websites ranking before your website?
Now that does not mean that the above questions 1 to 6 are not relevant, but simply put, one of the easiest ways to boost your search rankings is to study the top 5 to ten websites for your keyword and then apply what working for them into your own strategies.
Now I am not asking you to copy the competition or have a strategy that just involves beating the competition at the ranking game. It never works. What is needed is a better balance between your company's SEO strategies and of those of your competitors.
Like in any business strategy, you have to know your competitors, study what strategies they are using, and then apply the best of those strategies to your own game plan.
In the same way, in defining the SEO path ahead for your website you must analyze your competition. What are they doing to rank in the top 10 that you are not doing? After all those websites are listed on the top for a reason, and they are applying SEO strategies that the search engine in particular seems to like.
Now while finding the answers to those questions in the real business world may be difficult, in the online world all you have to do is to right-click and view the source of the page.
The below simple steps will open up a world of information to you.
1. Does the domain name contain the keyword? If the link is a sub domain then does the sub domain contain the keyword?
2. In what Meta tags, title, etc has the competition placed their keywords?
3. Does the link name contain the keyword? eg. www.seo-optimization-experts.com/mumbai-seo-expert.html
4. How many keywords are listed in the keyword tag i.e. is the page focused around one or two keywords, or is it a jumble of keywords listed out.
5. Is the title and description captivating enough? How has the keyword/s been placed in the title and description and at what position?
6. Is the page graphic intensive? Is the site using a lot flash or active server pages? Search engines cannot understand graphics, only the text it can read on the page. Make sure there is a good balance between the graphics and content.
7. How long is the body text? Writing 400 to 600 words is normally fine.
8. Has the keyword (keyword weight) been used appropriately in the body content? Ideally the first 25 words of content should be keyword rich, and the keyword should appear after every 100 words in remaining content.
9. Is the content interesting to you as the reader? Does the content follow a theme? Is the content relevant to what keyword the page has been optimized for?
10. What is the page rank of the page (You can check page rank of any website by downloading the Google Toolbar at http://toolbar.google.com.
11. Which is the first place in the source code the keyword appears?
12. Has the keyword been used appropriately in headline tags and link text?
13. Does the site use java script, tables, frames, dynamic content, CMS etc?
14. Is the page focused around a theme?
15. How many inbound links are there to the page? You can check the link popularity of the page on www.marketleap.com? Visit the sites that have given the link. What is their page rank? What is the link text that describes the link to the website? Has the keyword been used in the link text?
16. How many pages does the site have?
17. Does the site have a good site map that lists all the content pages, videos on the site that search engine spiders can crawly easily?
18. Are there any 404 errors on the website?
19. What is the domain name extension e.g. .com,. net, .edu, .co.in
20. How long has that domain name been in existence? Search engines rank those sites better that have been around for a while, or those that plan to be around for a while?
21. How many directories has that page/website been submitted to?
22. Has the site used any spamming or illegal SEO techniques like keyword stuffing, cloaking, hidden text, duplicate content and other such spam techniques? If yes you can inform the search engine of the same but do so with caution. For Google: http://www.google.com/contact/spamreport.html
Please note that sometimes you will find no reasons why the competitors' website is ranked above yours. And that's ok. I have experienced many cases of certain sites which go against the search engines guidelines (set by search engines themselves), and yet they rank above meticulously optimized pages.
Search engines are constantly trying to remove badly optimized or spam pages which offer little or no value to the users. Our intent here is not to focus on the missing pieces/loopholes of search engines algorithms or isolated instances of sites that don't deserve it and yet are ranking high, but to work within the framework and guidelines for the long haul.
By mapping out the answers to the above questions (preferable on a spread sheet), you will find the overall patterns of what is working for those sites and why, and then figure out ways to modify your SEO strategies to improve your rankings.
About the Author: Nevil Darukhanawala - SEO Expert http://seo-optimization-experts.com/seoblog.html Zen of SEO Now what has search engine optimization and search marketing got to do with spirituality? Am sure the Big Search Engines will be laughing all the way to the very end...
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