Jan 31 2012

Google Loves WordPress: An SEO Dream For Beginners

Category: Search Engines,SEO,Wordpressadmin @ 10:13 am


It seems that Google loves WordPress. WordPress is an SEO dream for beginners. How and why they are having an affair is easy. Here is why:

New York, NY (PRUnderground) January 24th, 2012

By Alex Miranda:

Why are Google and WordPress so much in love? Why is it the perfect platform for anyone who wants to learn search engine optimization? This week Alex Miranda, the Editor-in Chief of the  social media press release company, PR Underground spoke at the Hudson Valley WordPress Meetup group. The topic of discussion was WordPress SEO Basics to Advanced. Let’s take a look at why WordPress sites rank easily on the first page of Google.

glove Google Loves WordPress: An SEO Dream For BeginnersIn the past year, Google has came out with many updates and programs that have changed SEO forever. Among them are Google Freshness, Query Deserve Freshness and The Google Authorship program. These updates are a match made in heaven for WordPress users.

Let’s take a look at why Google loves WordPress:

Google Freshness Update:

  • Age of Content – Part of your freshness score is the age of content on your website. Google scores frequently updated content differently from content that does not change.
  • Adding New Pages – Websites that add new pages at a higher rate may earn a higher freshness score than sites that add content less frequently.
  • Changes to Important Content – Content above the fold is considered important.

WordPress Solution:

  • Ease of Use - If you know how to use email or a word program, chances are you will have no problem updating your content.
  • Speed – You can change content on any part of your site on the fly. You can even do it via your mobile phone with the WordPress App.
  • Creating Pages Posts- Creating a page is extremely simple. Every time you create a page or post, WordPress creates a permalink for that page.

This works perfect with the Google Freshness Update. Because it is so easy to create new pages and update your content. Google is constantly indexing new pages and you always have fresh content. Thank you Google for this update. 3

Query Deserve Freshness:

WordPress Solution:

  • Adding Fresh Content – Adding content is so easy that it’s addictive. Google loves fresh content and WordPress once again makes it easy to add.
  • Plugins – There are many SEO plugins that will allow you to monitor your keywords and add proper title tags and meta descriptions. There are even plugins that will find keywords in your content for you. Three that come to mind are; All in One SEO, Rank Reporter and Scribe SEO.
  • Blogging – This is a major reason why we love you Google. WordPress is all about blogging and more!!!
It is almost as if Google’s Matt Cutts said, “Hey boss let’s reward all those who use WordPress to blog”

Google Authorship Program:

  • Distinguish and validate your content in search results.
  • There are a couple of steps which you have to take for this to happen.

WordPress Solution:

  • Coding: On WordPress all you have to do is add this line of code, a href=”http://www.yoursite.com/yourpost” rel=”author”Your Name/a at the top of your release and it automatically creates your structure data in the correct format.
  • Plugins – Even easier is adding the Allow REL= and HTML in Author Bios plugin. Then all you have to do is add the aforementioned line of code in your user bio and wait for Google to Authenticate. It’s that easy my friends!!

So you see my friends. It really looks like Google loves WordPress and has rewarded it’s users. This is huge for SEO beginners. There are many other factors I could point out. I think I will wait a bit and do some testing to see if I could beat my 5 minute time of ranking on top of Google with any keyword.

Alex Miranda2 e1327505206375 150x150 Google Loves WordPress: An SEO Dream For BeginnersAbout Alex Miranda:

Alex Miranda has been doing SEO since 1998. He is the Editor-in-Chief of the social media press release distribution company PR Underground. PR Underground has been in the forefront of social media press releases since 2007. Alex in known for his $20, 5 minutes on top of Google strategy.

He is also the Chief SEO strategist at Marknet Group Inc a web design and online business strategy company located in Brewster, NY. Alex has helped many clients big and small achieve #1 rankings on Google. Whether it is on YouTube, Facebook, Twitter or blogging, he makes sure the word gets out about the latest SEO news. At Market he is also known for hisFREE 15 minute website review. As Chief SEO strategist, Alex is always finding innovative ways to help his clients achieve greater online visibility.

A master of WordPress SEO, Alex is the assistant organizer of The Hudson Valley WordPress Meetup group. He has spoken at numerous events. in 2010 Alex was the featured SEO speaker at WordCamp NYC. If you have any questions about WordPress SEO, he is the man to contact.

Feel free to call him directly at  845-259-9396  or give him a shoutout at amiranda@prunderground.com

 

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Article source: http://www.prunderground.com/google-loves-wordpress-seo-dream-beginners/009070/

Jan 30 2012

21 Tactics to Increase Blog Traffic (Updated 2012)



It’s easy to build a blog, but hard to build a successful blog with significant traffic. Over the years, we’ve grown the Moz blog to nearly a million visits each month and helped lots of other blogs, too. I launched a personal blog late last year and was amazed to see how quickly it gained thousands of visits to each post. There’s an art to increasing a blog’s traffic, and given that we seem to have stumbled on some of that knowledge, I felt it compulsory to give back by sharing what we’ve observed.

NOTE: This post replaces a popular one I wrote on the same topic in 2007. This post is intended to be useful to all forms of bloggers – independent folks, those seeking to monetize, and marketing professionals working an in-house blog from tiny startups to huge companies. Not all of the tactics will work for everyone, but at least some of these should be applicable and useful.

#1 – Target Your Content to an Audience Likely to Share

When strategizing about who you’re writing for, consider that audience’s ability to help spread the word. Some readers will naturally be more or less active in evangelizing the work you do, but particular communities, topics, writing styles and content types regularly play better than others on the web. For example, great infographics that strike a chord (like this one), beautiful videos that tell a story (like this one) and remarkable collections of facts that challenge common assumptions (like this one) are all targeted at audiences likely to share (geeks with facial hair, those interested in weight loss and those with political thoughts about macroeconomics respectively).

A Blog's Target Audience

If you can identify groups that have high concentrations of the blue and orange circles in the diagram above, you dramatically improve the chances of reaching larger audiences and growing your traffic numbers. Targeting blog content at less-share-likely groups may not be a terrible decision (particularly if that’s where you passion or your target audience lies), but it will decrease the propensity for your blog’s work to spread like wildfire across the web.

#2 – Participate in the Communities Where Your Audience Already Gathers

Advertisers on Madison Avenue have spent billions researching and determining where consumers with various characteristics gather and what they spend their time doing so they can better target their messages. They do it because reaching a group of 65+ year old women with commercials for extreme sports equipment is known to be a waste of money, while reaching an 18-30 year old male demographic that attends rock-climbing gyms is likely to have a much higher ROI.

Thankfully, you don’t need to spend a dime to figure out where a large portion of your audience can be found on the web. In fact, you probably already know a few blogs, forums, websites and social media communities where discussions and content are being posted on your topic (and if you don’t a Google search will take you much of the way). From that list, you can do some easy expansion using a web-based tool like DoubleClick’s Ad Planner:

Sites Also Visited via DoubleClick

Once you’ve determined the communities where your soon-to-be-readers gather, you can start participating. Create an account, read what others have written and don’t jump in the conversation until you’ve got a good feel for what’s appropriate and what’s not. I’ve written a post here about rules for comment marketing, and all of them apply. Be a good web citizen and you’ll be rewarded with traffic, trust and fans. Link-drop, spam or troll and you’ll get a quick boot, or worse, a reputation as a blogger no one wants to associate with.

#3 – Make Your Blog’s Content SEO-Friendly

Search engines are a massive opportunity for traffic, yet many bloggers ignore this channel for a variety of reasons that usually have more to do with fear and misunderstanding than true problems. As I’ve written before, “SEO, when done right, should never interfere with great writing.” In 2011, Google received over 3 billion daily searches from around the world, and that number is only growing:

Daily Google Searches 2004-2011
sources: Comscore + Google

Taking advantage of this massive traffic opportunity is of tremendous value to bloggers, who often find that much of the business side of blogging, from inquiries for advertising to guest posting opportunities to press and discovery by major media entities comes via search.

SEO for blogs is both simple and easy to set up, particularly if you’re using an SEO-friendly platform like WordPress, Drupal or Joomla. For more information on how to execute on great SEO for blogs, check out the following resources:

Don’t let bad press or poor experiences with spammers (spam is not SEO) taint the amazing power and valuable contributions SEO can make to your blog’s traffic and overall success. 20% of the effort and tactics to make your content optimized for search engines will yield 80% of the value possible; embrace it and thousands of visitors seeking exactly what you’ve posted will be the reward.

#4 – Use Twitter, Facebook and Google+ to Share Your Posts Find New Connections

Twitter just topped 465 million registered accounts. Facebook has over 850 million active users. Google+ has nearly 100 million. LinkedIn is over 130 million. Together, these networks are attracting vast amounts of time and interest from Internet users around the world, and those that participate on these services fit into the “content distributors” description above, meaning they’re likely to help spread the word about your blog.

Leveraging these networks to attract traffic requires patience, study, attention to changes by the social sites and consideration in what content to share and how to do it. My advice is to use the following process:

  • If you haven’t already, register a personal account and a brand account at each of the following – Twitter, Facebook, Google+ and LinkedIn (those links will take you directly to the registration pages for brand pages). For example, my friend Dharmesh has a personal account for Twitter and a brand account for OnStartups (one of his blog projects). He also maintains brand pages on Facebook, LinkedIn and Google+.
  • Fill out each of those profiles to the fullest possible extent – use photos, write compelling descriptions and make each one as useful and credible as possible. Research shows that profiles with more information have a significant correlation with more successful accounts (and there’s a lot of common sense here, too, given that spammy profiles frequently feature little to no profile work).
  • Connect with users on those sites with whom you already share a personal or professional relationships, and start following industry luminaries, influencers and connectors. Services like FollowerWonk and FindPeopleonPlus can be incredible for this:

Followerwonk Search for Seattle Chef

  • Start sharing content – your own blog posts, those of peers in your industry who’ve impressed you and anything that you feel has a chance to go “viral” and earn sharing from others.
  • Interact with the community – use hash tags, searches and those you follow to find interesting conversations and content and jump in! Social networks are amazing environment for building a brand, familiarizing yourself with a topic and the people around it, and earning the trust of others through high quality, authentic participation and sharing

If you consistently employ a strategy of participation, share great stuff and make a positive, memorable impression on those who see your interactions on these sites, your followers and fans will grow and your ability to drive traffic back to your blog by sharing content will be tremendous. For many bloggers, social media is the single largest source of traffic, particularly in the early months after launch, when SEO is a less consistent driver.

#5 – Install Analytics and Pay Attention to the Results

At the very least, I’d recommend most bloggers install Google Analytics (which is free), and watch to see where visits originate, which sources drive quality traffic and what others might be saying about you and your content when they link over. If you want to get more advanced, check out this post on 18 Steps to Successful Metrics and Marketing.

Here’s a screenshot from the analytics of my wife’s travel blog, the Everywhereist:

Traffic Sources to Everywhereist from Google Analytics

As you can see, there’s all sorts of great insights to be gleaned by looking at where visits originate, analyzing how they were earned and trying to repeat the successes, focus on the high quality and high traffic sources and put less effort into marketing paths that may not be effective. In this example, it’s pretty clear that Facebook and Twitter are both excellent channels. StumbleUpon sends a lot of traffic, but they don’t stay very long (averaging only 36 seconds vs. the general average of 4 minutes!).

Employing analytics is critical to knowing where you’re succeeding, and where you have more opportunity. Don’t ignore it, or you’ll be doomed to never learn from mistakes or execute on potential.

#6 – Add Graphics, Photos and Illustrations (with link-back licensing)

If you’re someone who can produce graphics, take photos, illustrate or even just create funny doodles in MS Paint, you should leverage that talent on your blog. By uploading and hosting images (or using a third-party service like Flickr to embed your images with licensing requirements on that site), you create another traffic source for yourself via Image Search, and often massively improve the engagement and enjoyment of your visitors.

When using images, I highly recommend creating a way for others to use them on their own sites legally and with permission, but in such a way that benefits you as the content creator. For example, you could have a consistent notice under your images indicating that re-using is fine, but that those who do should link back to this post. You can also post that as a sidebar link, include it in your terms of use, or note it however you think will get the most adoption.

Some people will use your images without linking back, which sucks. However, you can find them by employing the Image Search function of “similar images,” shown below:

Google's Visually Similar Search

Clicking the “similar” link on any given image will show you other images that Google thinks look alike, which can often uncover new sources of traffic. Just reach out and ask if you can get a link, nicely. Much of the time, you’ll not only get your link, but make a valuable contact or new friend, too!

#7 – Conduct Keyword Research While Writing Your Posts

Not surprisingly, a big part of showing up in search engines is targeting the terms and phrases your audience are actually typing into a search engine. It’s hard to know what these words will be unless you do some research, and luckily, there’s a free tool from Google to help called the AdWords Keyword Tool.

Type some words at the top, hit search and AdWords will show you phrases that match the intent and/or terms you’ve employed. There’s lots to play around with here, but watch out in particular for the “match types” options I’ve highlighted below:

Google AdWords Tool

When you choose “exact match” AdWords will show you only the quantity of searches estimated for that precise phrase. If you use broad match, they’ll include any search phrases that use related/similar words in a pattern they think could have overlap with your keyword intent (which can get pretty darn broad). “Phrase match” will give you only those phrases that include the word or words in your search – still fairly wide-ranging, but between “exact” and “broad.”

When you’re writing a blog post, keyword research is best utilized for the title and headline of the post. For example, if I wanted to write a post here on Moz about how to generate good ideas for bloggers, I might craft something that uses the phrase “blog post ideas” or “blogging ideas” near the front of my title and headline, as in “Blog Post Ideas for When You’re Truly Stuck,” or “Blogging Ideas that Will Help You Clear Writer’s Block.”

Optimizing a post to target a specific keyword isn’t nearly as hard as it sounds. 80% of the value comes from merely using the phrase effectively in the title of the blog post, and writing high quality content about the subject. If you’re interested in more, read Perfecting Keyword Targeting and On-Page Optimization (a slightly older resource, but just as relevant today as when it was written).

#8 – Frequently Reference Your Own Posts and Those of Others

The web was not made for static, text-only content! Readers appreciate links, as do other bloggers, site owners and even search engines. When you reference your own material in-context and in a way that’s not manipulative (watch out for over-optimizing by linking to a category, post or page every time a phrase is used – this is almost certainly discounted by search engines and looks terrible to those who want to read your posts), you potentially draw visitors to your other content AND give search engines a nice signal about those previous posts.

Perhaps even more valuable is referencing the content of others. The biblical expression “give and ye shall receive,” perfectly applies on the web. Other site owners will often receive Google Alerts or look through their incoming referrers (as I showed above in tip #5) to see who’s talking about them and what they’re saying. Linking out is a direct line to earning links, social mentions, friendly emails and new relationships with those you reference. In its early days, this tactic was one of the best ways we earned recognition and traffic with the SEOmoz blog and the power continues to this day.

#9 – Participate in Social Sharing Communities Like Reddit + StumbleUpon

The major social networking sites aren’t alone in their power to send traffic to a blog. Social community sites like Reddit (which now receives more than 2 billion! with a “B”! views each month), StumbleUpon, Pinterest, Tumblr, Care2 (for nonprofits and causes), GoodReads (books), Ravelry (knitting), Newsvine (news/politics) and many, many more (Wikipedia maintains a decent, though not comprehensive list here).

Each of these sites have different rules, formats and ways of participating and sharing content. As with participation in blog or forum communities described above in tactic #2, you need to add value to these communities to see value back. Simply drive-by spamming or leaving your link won’t get you very far, and could even cause a backlash. Instead, learn the ropes, engage authentically and you’ll find that fans, links and traffic can develop.

These communities are also excellent sources of inspiration for posts on your blog. By observing what performs well and earns recognition, you can tailor your content to meet those guidelines and reap the rewards in visits and awareness. My top recommendation for most bloggers is to at least check whether there’s an appropriate subreddit in which you should be participating. Subreddits and their search function can help with that.

#10 – Guest Blog (and Accept the Guest Posts of Others)

When you’re first starting out, it can be tough to convince other bloggers to allow you to post on their sites OR have an audience large enough to inspire others to want to contribute to your site. This is when friends and professional connections are critical. When you don’t have a compelling marketing message, leverage your relationships – find the folks who know you, like you and trust you and ask those who have blog to let you take a shot at authoring something, then ask them to return the favor.

Guest blogging is a fantastic way to spread your brand to new folks who’ve never seen your work before, and it can be useful in earning early links and references back to your site, which will drive direct traffic and help your search rankings (diverse, external links are a key part of how search engines rank sites and pages). Several recommendations for those who engage in guest blogging:

  • Find sites that have a relevant audience – it sucks to pour your time into writing a post, only to see it fizzle because the readers weren’t interested. Spend a bit more time researching the posts that succeed on your target site, the makeup of the audience, what types of comments they leave and you’ll earn a much higher return with each post.
  • Don’t be discouraged if you ask and get a “no” or a “no response.” As your profile grows in your niche, you’ll have more opportunities, requests and an easier time getting a “yes,” so don’t take early rejections too hard and watch out – in many marketing practices, persistence pays, but pestering a blogger to write for them is not one of these (and may get your email address permanently banned from their inbox).
  • When pitching your guest post make it as easy as possible for the other party. When requesting to post, have a phenomenal piece of writing all set to publish that’s never been shared before and give them the ability to read it. These requests get far more “yes” replies than asking for the chance to write with no evidence of what you’ll contribute. At the very least, make an outline and write a title + snippet.
  • Likewise, when requesting a contribution, especially from someone with a significant industry profile, asking for a very specific piece of writing is much easier than getting them to write an entire piece from scratch of their own design. You should also present statistics that highlight the value of posting on your site – traffic data, social followers, RSS subscribers, etc. can all be very persuasive to a skeptical writer.

A great tool for frequent guest bloggers is Ann Smarty’s MyBlogGuest, which offers the ability to connect writers with those seeking guest contributions (and the reverse).

MyBlogGuest

Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and Google+ are also great places to find guest blogging opportunities. In particular, check out the profiles of those you’re connected with to see if they run blogs of their own that might be a good fit. Google’s Blog Search function and Google Reader’s Search are also solid tools for discovery.

#11 – Incorporate Great Design Into Your Site

The power of beautiful, usable, professional design can’t be overstated. When readers look at a blog, the first thing they judge is how it “feels” from a design and UX perspective. Sites that use default templates or have horrifying, 1990′s design will receive less trust, a lower time-on-page, fewer pages per visit and a lower likelihood of being shared. Those that feature stunning design that clearly indicates quality work will experience the reverse – and reap amazing benefits.

Blog Design Inspiration
These threads – 1, 2, 3 and 4 – feature some remarkable blog designs for inspiration

If you’re looking for a designer to help upgrade the quality of your blog, there’s a few resources I recommend:

  • Dribbble – great for finding high quality professional designers
  • Forrst – another excellent design profile community
  • Behance – featuring galleries from a wide range of visual professionals
  • Sortfolio – an awesome tool to ID designers by region, skill and budget
  • 99 Designs – a controversial site that provides designs on spec via contests (I have mixed feelings on this one, but many people find it useful, particularly for budget-conscious projects)

This is one area where budgeting a couple thousand dollars (if you can afford it) or even a few hundred (if you’re low on cash) can make a big difference in the traffic, sharing and viral-impact of every post you write.

#12 – Interact on Other Blogs’ Comments

As bloggers, we see a lot of comments. Many are spam, only a few add real value, and even fewer are truly fascinating and remarkable. If you can be in this final category consistently, in ways that make a blogger sit up and think “man, I wish that person commented here more often!” you can achieve great things for your own site’s visibility through participation in the comments of other blogs.

Combine the tools presented in #10 (particularly Google Reader/Blog Search) and #4 (especially FollowerWonk) for discovery. The feed subscriber counts in Google Reader can be particularly helpful for identifying good blogs for participation. Then apply the principles covered in this post on comment marketing.

Google Reader Subscriber Counts

Do be conscious of the name you use when commenting and the URL(s) you point back to. Consistency matters, particularly on naming, and linking to internal pages or using a name that’s clearly made for keyword-spamming rather than true conversation will kill your efforts before they begin.

#13 – Participate in Q+A Sites

Every day, thousands of people ask questions on the web. Popular services like Yahoo! Answers, Answers.com, Quora, StackExchange, Formspring and more serve those hungry for information whose web searches couldn’t track down the responses they needed.

The best strategy I’ve seen for engaging on Q+A sites isn’t to answer every question that comes along, but rather, to strategically provide high value to a Q+A community by engaging in those places where:

  • The question quality is high, and responses thus far have been thin
  • The question receives high visibility (either by ranking well for search queries, being featured on the site or getting social traffic/referrals). Most of the Q+A sites will show some stats around the traffic of a question
  • The question is something you can answer in a way that provides remarkable value to anyone who’s curious and drops by

I also find great value in answering a few questions in-depth by producing an actual blog post to tackle them, then linking back. This is also a way I personally find blog post topics – if people are interested in the answer on a Q+A site, chances are good that lots of folks would want to read it on my blog, too!

Just be authentic in your answer, particularly if you’re linking. If you’d like to see some examples, I answer a lot of questions at Quora, frequently include relevant links, but am rarely accused of spamming or link dropping because it’s clearly about providing relevant value, not just getting a link for SEO (links on most user-contributed sites are “nofollow” anyway, meaning they shouldn’t pass search-engine value). There’s a dangerous line to walk here, but if you do so with tact and candor, you can earn a great audience from your participation.

#14 – Enable Subscriptions via Feed + Email (and track them!)

If someone drops by your site, has a good experience and thinks “I should come back here and check this out again when they have more posts,” chances are pretty high (I’d estimate 90%+) that you’ll never see them again. That sucks! It shouldn’t be the case, but we have busy lives and the Internet’s filled with animated gifs of cats.

In order to pull back some of these would-be fans, I highly recommend creating an RSS feed using Feedburner and putting visible buttons on the sidebar, top or bottom of your blog posts encouraging those who enjoy your content to sign up (either via feed, or via email, both of which are popular options).

RSS Feeds with Feedburner

If you’re using WordPress, there’s some easy plugins for this, too.

Once you’ve set things up, visit every few weeks and check on your subscribers – are they clicking on posts? If so, which ones? Learning what plays well for those who subscribe to your content can help make you a better blogger, and earn more visits from RSS, too.

#15 – Attend and Host Events

Despite the immense power of the web to connect us all regardless of geography, in-person meetings are still remarkably useful for bloggers seeking to grow their traffic and influence. The people you meet and connect with in real-world settings are far more likely to naturally lead to discussions about your blog and ways you can help each other. This yields guest posts, links, tweets, shares, blogroll inclusion and general business development like nothing else.

Lanyrd Suggested Events

I’m a big advocate of Lanyrd, an event directory service that connects with your social networks to see who among your contacts will be at which events in which geographies. This can be phenomenally useful for identifying which meetups, conferences or gatherings are worth attending (and who you can carpool with).

The founder of Lanyrd also contributed this great answer on Quora about other search engines/directories for events (which makes me like them even more).

#16 – Use Your Email Connections (and Signature) to Promote Your Blog

As a blogger, you’re likely to be sending a lot of email out to others who use the web and have the power to help spread your work. Make sure you’re not ignoring email as a channel, one-to-one though it may be. When given an opportunity in a conversation that’s relevant, feel free to bring up your blog, a specific post or a topic you’ve written about. I find myself using blogging as a way to scalably answer questions – if I receive the same question many times, I’ll try to make a blog post that answers it so I can simply link to that in the future.

Email Footer Link

I also like to use my email signature to promote the content I share online. If I was really sharp, I’d do link tracking using a service like Bit.ly so I could see how many clicks email footers really earn. I suspect it’s not high, but it’s also not 0.

#17 – Survey Your Readers

Web surveys are easy to run and often produce high engagement and great topics for conversation. If there’s a subject or discussion that’s particularly contested, or where you suspect showing the distribution of beliefs, usage or opinions can be revealing, check out a tool like SurveyMonkey (they have a small free version) or PollDaddy. Google Docs also offers a survey tool that’s totally free, but not yet great in my view.

#18 – Add Value to a Popular Conversation

Numerous niches in the blogosphere have a few “big sites” where key issues arise, get discussed and spawn conversations on other blogs and sites. Getting into the fray can be a great way to present your point-of-view, earn attention from those interested in the discussion and potentially get links and traffic from the industry leaders as part of the process.

You can see me trying this out with Fred Wilson’s AVC blog last year (an incredibly popular and well-respected blog in the VC world). Fred wrote a post about Marketing that I disagreed with strongly and publicly and a day later, he wrote a follow-up where he included a graphic I made AND a link to my post.

If you’re seeking sources to find these “popular conversations,” Alltop, Topsy, Techmeme (in the tech world) and their sister sites MediaGazer, Memeorandum and WeSmirch, as well as PopURLs can all be useful.

#19 – Aggregate the Best of Your Niche

Bloggers, publishers and site owners of every variety in the web world love and hate to be compared and ranked against one another. It incites endless intrigue, discussion, methodology arguments and competitive behavior – but, it’s amazing for earning attention. When a blogger publishes a list of “the best X” or “the top X” in their field, most everyone who’s ranked highly praises the list, shares it and links to it. Here’s an example from the world of marketing itself:

AdAge Power 150

That’s a screenshot of the AdAge Power 150, a list that’s been maintained for years in the marketing world and receives an endless amount of discussion by those listed (and not listed). For example, why is SEOmoz’s Twitter score only a “13″ when we have so many more followers, interactions and retweets than many of those with higher scores? Who knows. But I know it’s good for AdAge. :-)

Now, obviously, I would encourage anyone building something like this to be as transparent, accurate and authentic as possible. A high quality resource that lists a “best and brightest” in your niche – be they blogs, Twitter accounts, Facebook pages, individual posts, people, conferences or whatever else you can think to rank – is an excellent piece of content for earning traffic and becoming a known quantity in your field.

Oh, and once you do produce it – make sure to let those featured know they’ve been listed. Tweeting at them with a link is a good way to do this, but if you have email addresses, by all means, reach out. It can often be the start of a great relationship!

#20 – Connect Your Web Profiles and Content to Your Blog

Many of you likely have profiles on services like YouTube, Slideshare, Yahoo!, DeviantArt and dozens of other social and Web 1.0 sites. You might be uploading content to Flickr, to Facebook, to Picasa or even something more esoteric like Prezi. Whatever you’re producing on the web and wherever you’re doing it, tie it back to your blog.

Including your blog’s link on your actual profile pages is among the most obvious, but it’s also incredibly valuable. On any service where interaction takes place, those interested in who you are and what you have to share will follow those links, and if they lead back to your blog, they become opportunities for capturing a loyal visitor or earning a share (or both!). But don’t just do this with profiles – do it with content, too! If you’ve created a video for YouTube, make your blog’s URL appear at the start or end of the video. Include it in the description of the video and on the uploading profile’s page. If you’re sharing photos on any of the dozens of photo services, use a watermark or even just some text with your domain name so interested users can find you.

If you’re having trouble finding and updating all those old profiles (or figuring out where you might want to create/share some new ones), KnowEm is a great tool for discovering your own profiles (by searching for your name or pseudonyms you’ve used) and claiming profiles on sites you may not yet have participated in.

I’d also strongly recommend leveraging Google’s relatively new protocol for rel=author. AJ Kohn wrote a great post on how to set it up here, and Yoast has another good one on building it into WordPress sites. The benefit for bloggers who do build large enough audiences to gain Google’s trust is earning your profile photo next to all the content you author – a powerful markup advantage that likely drives extra clicks from the search results and creates great, memorable branding, too.

#21 – Uncover the Links of Your Fellow Bloggers (and Nab ‘em!)

If other blogs in your niche have earned references from sites around the web, there’s a decent chance that they’ll link to you as well. Conducting competitive link research can also show you what content from your competition has performed well and the strategies they may be using to market their work. To uncover these links, you’ll need to use some tools.

OpenSiteExplorer is my favorite, but I’m biased (it’s made by Moz). However, it is free to use – if you create a registered account here, you can get unlimited use of the tool showing up to 1,000 links per page or site in perpetuity.

OpenSiteExplorer from Moz

There are other good tools for link research as well, including Blekko, Majestic, Ahrefs and, I’ve heard that in the near-future, SearchMetrics.

Finding a link is great, but it’s through the exhaustive research of looking through dozens or hundreds that you can identify patterns and strategies. You’re also likely to find a lot of guest blogging opportunities and other chances for outreach. If you maintain a great persona and brand in your niche, your ability to earn these will rise dramatically.

Bonus #22 – Be Consistent and Don’t Give Up

If there’s one piece of advice I wish I could share with every blogger, it’s this:

Why Bloggers Give Up Traffic Graph

The above image comes from Everywhereist’s analytics. Geraldine could have given up 18 months into her daily blogging. After all, she was putting in 3-5 hours each day writing content, taking photos, visiting sites, coming up with topics, trying to guest blog and grow her Twitter followers and never doing any SEO (don’t ask, it’s a running joke between us). And then, almost two years after her blog began, and more than 500 posts in, things finally got going. She got some nice guest blogging gigs, had some posts of hers go “hot” in the social sphere, earned mentions on some bigger sites, then got really big press from Time’s Best Blogs of 2011.

I’d guess there’s hundreds of new bloggers on the web each day who have all the opportunity Geraldine had, but after months (maybe only weeks) of slogging away, they give up.

When I started the SEOmoz blog in 2004, I had some advantages (mostly a good deal of marketing and SEO knowledge), but it was nearly 2 years before the blog could be called anything like a success. Earning traffic isn’t rocket science, but it does take time, perseverance and consistency. Don’t give up. Stick to your schedule. Remember that everyone has a few posts that suck, and it’s only by writing and publishing those sucky posts that you get into the habit necessary to eventually transform your blog into something remarkable.

Good luck and good blogging from all of us at Moz!


Feel free to copy and re-post this content or the graphics, but please do link back (or reference SEOmoz if using the images offline). Thanks!

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Article source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/seomoz/~3/MQsOxQcweL4/21-tactics-to-increase-blog-traffic-2012

Jan 29 2012

Facebook Launches 60 New Timeline Apps

Category: General Web News,Internet News,Search Enginesadmin @ 9:48 am


new-facebook-apps

Facebook’s 60 new Open Graph app partners span a range of domains, from food to fitness to travel, as announced in their live press event January 18. In addition, they will begin the process of approving apps for the new platform, which will allow for greater expression of activities; “If you’re into reading a book, or running, or knitting … the sky’s the limit,” the social network announced.

Opening up the app building and approval process also presents a huge opportunity for brands and marketers to engage users. The announcement isn’t surprising, but builds upon the groundwork they laid last year at the f8 Developer’s Conference.

According to the announcement, app content will show up on the Timeline in three different places. At the end of each Timeline section, Facebook will summarize all of your app activity for the month.

Users can start adding apps right now and, as long as they are using the Timeline, can authorize all 60 by tomorrow. Some of the apps were already available, but this newest release allows them to post to Timelines by default. You authorize once, it posts continuously. You can set privacy for individual apps.

App partners include TripAdvisor, UrbanSpoon, LivingSocial, Airbnb, Pinterest, Instagram, BranchOut, FundRazr, and more.

In a just-released blog post on the Developers blog, Facebook’s Eddie O’Neill writes, “Starting today, developers can build apps that let people add anything they love to their Timelines – whether it is eating, traveling, shopping, running or taking pictures.” He continues, “The apps launching today are just starting to demonstrate the types of self-expression that are possible with the Open Graph. There are many more stories to tell and great apps to tell them. Get started today!” The Facebook Developers blog has a tutorial to help users get started with the new apps.

The main Facebook blog posted an announcement for users that says new apps will be released over time and explains, in part, “You choose when to add an app, and you decide who can see it. After you’ve added an app, you can always remove posts directly from timeline, and you can also edit your settings from your personal Activity Log.”

Register now for SES London 2012, the Leading Search Social Marketing Event, taking place 20-24 February, 2012. SES Conference Expo features presentations and panel discussions that cover all aspects of search engine-related promotion. Hurry, early bird rate expires February 3!

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Article source: http://searchenginewatch.com/article/2139898/Facebook-Launches-60-New-Timeline-Apps

Jan 28 2012

Why Every Marketer Now Needs a Google+ Strategy

Category: SEOadmin @ 3:47 pm


Last week, Google rolled out “Search Plus Your World,” an update to Google’s universally popular search engine that biases logged-in users to receive socially shared content and markup in the results. Danny Sullivan wrote two excellent must-read pieces on the topic – Google’s Results Get More Personal and Real-Life Examples of How “Search Plus” Pushes Google+ Over Relevancy. Thank God for Danny. If it wasn’t for his tireless coverage, I’d feel obligated to spend hours writing those pieces myself (and they probably wouldn’t be as good).

SEOmoz received a lot of requests for coverage, but typically we don’t like to rush into writing about a new service/technology/change until we’ve got at least a few days of playing with it, watching the tech news cycles spin and evaluating how it might change practices for inbound marketers. To be honest, we still don’t really know – our own accounts sometime get access to SPYW, and other times it seems to go missing (right now, for example, my Gmail account, which was showing SPYW results all last week, is suddenly back to regular, non-personalized Google). However, we felt that this was a momentous enough to shift to warrant a video on the changes and some discussion.

 

It’s my opinion that if SPYW continues to roll out to all logged-in Google users and Google stays as aggressive as it’s been in the last 10 days with pushing Google+ for even logged-out users, the service will become a necessity for search and social marketers. In 2009 and 2010, Google’s integration with Twitter was remarkable – helping content get indexed in seconds, earning featured spots for logged-in users who were connected to each other on Twitter and showing up in all sorts of specially-marked-up results. Google’s taken that much, much further with SPYW, and while I’m no particular fan of using your market power to force users onto a platform they may not want, I’m also a realist. When I see this:

SEO Logged Out Search with Google SPYW Results

I know that as a marketer, there’s missed opportunity if I’m ignoring Google+ (the search above is done totally logged-out).

BTW – if you liked the video above and Whiteboard Fridays in general, check out our SEOmoz Google+ page which features a few more and will continue to host some unique, interesting content that doesn’t necessarily make it to the blog. Like everyone, we’re still experimenting with G+, and suggestions are welcome!

SEOmoz on Google+

Look forward to your thoughts around the necessity of Google+ (and watch this space as we plan on having some more tips + tactics on that front soon).

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Article source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/seomoz/~3/MhZM5yuOz78/why-every-marketer-now-needs-a-google-strategy

Jan 28 2012

Three Ways to Enhance SEO With Twitter



“While Google has ended its Realtime Search deal with Twitter, search engines are still using social media sites for ranking purposes,” says Jillian Stira at the Scholes Marketing blog.

And Twitter remains a critical part of your search strategy, she notes: “Twitter has pulled ahead of many other social media platforms, becoming a critical source for search engine optimization (SEO).”

Stira offers specific advice for making your Twitter account an SEO machine. Here are some key takeaways:


Choose your names with search engines in mind. When setting up an account, Twitter will ask for two names. The first is a real name—of you or your company—and you’re allowed up to 20 characters; it’s important to choose the name people will most likely search. The second is a username preceded by the @ symbol. You’re limited to 15 characters here, so you might have to do some trimming. “If your company name is long,” suggests Sitra, “consider using abbreviations, keeping the most relevant word whole.”

Create relevant and searchable content. When tweeting in a professional capacity, the occasional personal observation is fine. But your general rule should be to stick to professional content. That is the content your followers will want to share in social networks. “[I]t is vital that you use relevant keywords and #hashtags to warrant more visibility on search results for the terms important to your business,” she advises.

Include links to your URLs. Twitter links don’t provide SEO authority, Stira notes, but they do send followers to your website and prompt Google searches for follow-up research. That is where the keywords in your tweet also come into play—since you’ve given followers the terms with which they should search.

The Po!nt: You really can tweet for dollars. When executed properly, your Twitter presence can pack a mighty SEO punch.

Source: Scholes Marketing.

Looking for great search marketing data? MarketingProfs reviewed hundreds of research sources to create our most recent Search Engine Marketing Factbook (May 2010). With 121 pages and 81 charts, it is full of relevant search marketing stats and trends. The Search Marketing Factbook is Part 2 of the complete Digital Marketing Factbook (our 296-page full report).

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Article source: http://www.marketingprofs.com/short-articles/2463/three-ways-to-enhance-seo-with-twitter

Jan 26 2012

Top 14 Things Marketers Need to Know About QR Codes



I recently spoke at SES New York on best practices for mobile marketing with QR codes. Here’s a follow-up crash course on tools, tactics, and best practices to confidently help you jumpstart a 2D barcode marketing campaign.

1. A QR Code is a 2D Barcode

QR codes are an encoded barcode image resembling a square-like maze. Unlike a 1-dimensional UPC code, a 2-dimensional barcode stores data in both directions and can be scanned vertically or horizontally to be decoded.

1D versus 2D Barcode Comparison

2. 2D Barcodes Can Store a Variety of Data

A traditional 1D barcode (UPC/EAN) stores up to 30 numbers, while a 2D barcode (QR) can store up to 7,089 numbers. The additional storage capacity accommodates a variety of data beyond numbers:

  • Text
  • Hyperlink
  • Telephone number (Phone call)
  • SMS/MMS message
  • Email (Send message)
  • Contact entry (vCard or meCard)
  • Calendar entry (vCalendar)

Storing a hyperlink presents a myriad of possibilities beyond just loading a web page — play a video, download a mobile app, check-in on Foursquare, update a Twitter status, “Like” a Facebook page, display map directions, and more.

3. Read/Decode a 2D Barcode by Scanning it With a Smartphone

(A 2D barcode reader app is required to decode the encoded data.)

2D Barcode Scanning Process

4. 2D Barcodes Can be Placed in and on Nearly Any Location

Once the barcode image is created, it can be printed on nearly any surface and location — newspapers, TV ads, billboards, temporary tattoos, product packaging, clothing labels, cake frosting, and more. This enables you to drive traffic, interaction, and conversion from anywhere. 2D barcodes excel at bringing non-digital media to life.

Note: Use caution placing barcodes online. They should always enhance the user experience. If a user could click a hyperlink, don’t make them scan a code to complete the same task.

Bear in mind the location must be easily scannable. Plastic frames and packaging can reflect light. Lighting can cast shadows, and hillsides and subways can kill Wi-Fi access. Consider all contextual factors that could impact the scanning experience.

5. Mobile Barcode Scanning is on the Rise

QR codes can be used for nearly any function (logistics, advertising, customer service, etc.) for B2B and B2C across a variety of industries:

6. QR Isn’t the Only Type of 2D Barcode

The most popular 2D barcode formats are QR code, DataMatrix, ScanLife EZcode, and Microsoft Tag (Tag).

2D Barcode Popular Formats: QR Code, DataMatrix, ScanLife EZcode, and Microsoft Tag

There are several key differences in these code formats. ScanLife EZcode and Microsoft Tag are proprietary formats only decodable by their tools, while QR and DataMatrix formats are open standard. (Additional format differences can be addressed in another blog post.)

A Google Trends analysis of these 2D barcodes shows “QR code” dominates by far from a search popularity perspective. QR has become a common term used to reference a 2D barcode (2D code, mobile tag, mobile barcode, etc.) even when codes are technically a different format. Even @MicrosoftTag uses the #QRcode hashtag on Twitter.

7. Tools to Generate and Read 2D Barcodes are Free

Tools are available for all major mobile phone handsets. To run a 2D barcode campaign you’ll need to following:

  1. 2D barcode generator (Website service)
  2. 2D barcode reader (Mobile app)
  3. [Optional” 2D barcode management/tracking tool (Website service)

Generators:

Different generators have varying features. Choose a generator based on the options for:

  • Code Format (i.e. QR, EZcode, Tag, etc.)
  • Stored Data (i.e. hyperlink, meCard, SMS, etc.)
  • Output (i.e. color, size, download file type, etc.)

QRstuff.com is a comprehensive QR generator providing a variety of stored content, color, size, and output options. ScanLife’s generator creates their proprietary EZcode as well as QR and DataMatrix formats. Microsoft Tag only generates Tag.

Note: To generate a code on the ScanLife or Microsoft Tag sites, you’ll first need to create an account. (Tag requires providing personal info like birth date, gender, etc.)

Readers:

Microsoft Tag and ScanLife EZcode can only be decoded by their respective reader apps. Because of the open standard for QR codes, dozens of reader apps are available. (DataMatrix is usually supported on most QR readers.) Some mobile handsets come with a reader app pre-installed.

The following 2D barcode reader apps work on the majority of phones/handsets.

RedLaser and ATT Code Scanner also have geolocation features for local price comparison shopping.

8. Management Tools are Available to Track Scanning Analytics

URL-shortener and web analytics for 2D barcodes storing URL hyperlinks are a great start. For comprehensive scan tracking, you’ll need to use a barcode generator tool that includes tracking analytics. (These tools are not independent.) Some management tools will merely track the number of scans while others provide detailed metrics like demographics, repeat scans, geolocation, and more. Collected analytics depends on the reader app used for scanning, so data results may vary.

Management tools are relatively inexpensive and sometimes free. Paid plans typically have a free trial with fees based on the number of scans.

2D Barcode Management Tracking Tools:

9. 2D Barcode Content Should Provide Special Value for the Customer

It’s work to scan a barcode, so users have higher expectations as to what content they will find. Reward the user with discounts, exclusive content, or useful tips relevant to the code’s context. Consider scenarios that leverage smartphone features (email, SMS, phone call, video, map, apps, etc.) to save the user time.

For example, including a QR code on a business card that links to a meCard would be a lot easier than the user manually entering the contact record. In contrast, a QR code that links to a website homepage adds limited value.

Note: If you link to a web page, make sure that it’s mobile-friendly.

10. Small or Complex QR Codes Can’t be Scanned by Smartphones With Lesser Quality Cameras

Complex 2D barcodes (a lot going on, not very dense) are more challenging and time consuming to scan. In the case of QR codes, more stored content forces a larger code size. In general, it’s best to minimize data stored in 2D barcodes. Always use a URL-shortener to shrink hyperlinks. (Add analytics tracking parameters before shortening the link.)

Warning: Small, complex QR codes are the biggest mistake currently being made by marketers. (Microsoft Tag and EZcode formats generally don’t have this issue.) Smartphone cameras with resolution less than 4-megapixels can’t scan a QR code smaller than about 1″x1″. Moreover, without the auto-focus (AF) camera feature, a complex QR code will have the same scanning issue, even if the code is larger. The iPhone 3GS and Blackberry are popular handset examples that lack both of these camera features. Unscannable codes kill and delay the adoption rate for 2D barcode campaigns.

Tip: Always provide a back-up (i.e. hyperlink, SMS text message, etc.) option for users to retrieve info within the code. A back-up enables non-smartphone users to also participate.

11. Consumers Need Guidance to Scan 2D Barcodes

The variety of code types, readers, and different terminology is confusing to consumers. Nielsen Company estimates that only 40 percent of U.S. mobile devices are smartphones as of Q1 2011, growing to almost 50 percent by Q3 2011. That means there are a lot of smartphone rookies that barely know how to use their phone, much less distinguish differences in mobile barcode formats and reader apps. As long as 2D barcodes are a novelty concept, always include a brief step-by-step guide with the context of your code.

Logical steps:

  1. Get the reader app
  2. Scan the code with your mobile device
  3. (Action that happens upon scanning)

Tip: For the reader app download, include a URL link or SMS shortcut to expedite the process. This step is imperative when using proprietary Microsoft Tag or ScanLife EZcode formats since only one reader is capable of scanning their codes.

Steps two and three can be combined as a call-to-action. Example: “Scan to ____.” (… watch a video, download our app, call customer support, etc.)

12. 2D Barcodes can be Customized Artistically

Artistic QR code by DelivrQR codes include an Error Correction Level (ECL) that enables “damaged” codes to still be scanned. The error level tolerance (set by the code generator) can be as high as 30%. As a result, creative license can be used to create designer QR codes from a variety of colors or materials (i.e. jelly beans, sand castles, product packaging, etc.) as long as there is adequate contrast to read the code.

When it comes to advanced QR code graphic design, it’s harder than it looks. If you want to get fancy, I recommend connecting with QR art experts at QRarts.com or Delivr.com.

Microsoft Tag also allows for artistic codes. Their custom tag tool allows users to generate art from codes or even overlay codes on top of photographs.

microsoft-tag-design-examples.png

Tip: Some artistic design is fun and good to see; however, don’t go overboard. As long as 2D barcodes are novelty, it’s important that users easily recognize a scannable code from a distance.

13. Testing Scannability is Imperative.

Before you mass print or distribute barcodes be sure to test for scannability. Testing factors:

  • Smartphone cameras (resolution/auto-focus)
  • Reader apps
  • Scan context (i.e. lighting, shadows, surfaces)
  • Scan distance
  • Scan timing

14. Seek Expertise to Ensure Successful Campaigns

To ensure campaign success, consider consulting with a mobile barcode marketing expert, especially if it’s your first time running a mobile barcode campaign. Technology, trends, and tools in this arena are rapidly changing. A few hours of expert consulting can bring your team up to speed, help optimize campaigns for success, and avoid unnecessary embarrassment for poor implementation.

Expertise goes beyond consultants: Talk to your web analytics guru and learn all you can about the mobile users currently accessing your website. Seek out mobile marketing industry statistics regarding popular devices and demographics to appropriately target your audience. (Compete, ScanLife, and eMarketer provide regular useful reports.) Follow the #QRcode Twitter hashtag or subscribe to “QR Code News Mobile Trends” (Paper.li) for the latest news and case studies.

Finally, download my QR Code Best Practices Checklist Campaign Worksheet to help plan and manage your campaigns:

Next Steps…

Are you ready to jump start a QR code campaign? What questions do you have about the technology, tools or tactics? Please let me know in the comments below. I’ll be sure to address the most popular topics in upcoming articles.

Editor’s note: This column originally was published on April 26, 2011, and was the most popular column of the year on Search Engine Watch in 2011. Over the final two weeks of 2011, we’ve celebrated the Best of 2011 by revisiting our most popular columns, as determined by our readers. We hope you have enjoyed this look back!

Register now for SES London 2012, the Leading Search Social Marketing Event, taking place 20-24 February, 2012. SES Conference Expo features presentations and panel discussions that cover all aspects of search engine-related promotion. Hurry, early bird rate expires February 3!

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Article source: http://searchenginewatch.com/article/2066777/Top-14-Things-Marketers-Need-to-Know-About-QR-Codes

Jan 25 2012

How to Improve Local SEO Efforts



Optimizing a website for local search is important for a few reasons. First, the number of smart phone and tablet users is on the rise meaning that a larger percentage of searches are being performed “on the go”. Mobile web searchers are often looking for local information and local establishments. Second, search is becoming more personalized and search results vary depending on individual search behavior, social media connections, and location. Therefore, it’s important to consider the following local SEO best practices while conducting an SEO campaign:

Incorporate Local Keywords
The first step of an SEO campaign is to conduct keyword research to find out how target audience members are searching for the products or services that you provide. Skipping this step can result in less traffic or less qualified traffic that won’t convert. Keyword research should first be conducted nationally, and then localized later by adding the city or town, state, and neighborhood in front of the chosen keyword. For example, for a local pizza shop it makes more sense to optimize for “Anytown NY pizza place” than it does to target the much more broad “pizza place”.

Develop Local Search Profiles
You don’t need to be a business that only operates locally to create a local search profile. In fact, all businesses should submit their information to Google, Yahoo!, and Bing local directories. It improves search engine results page visibility, increases your online real estate, and builds another legitimate inbound link to your website.

Include Contact Information
Contact information including a physical address, a mailing address, and a phone number should be included on every page of the site and should be crawlable text that the search engine spiders can “read”. For many websites it makes sense to include this information in the footer.

Optimize Social Profiles
Just as you would optimize your website for local keywords, it’s important to do the same to your social media pages. Optimize the title of the page using a local keyword and include local terms in the bio sections as well as in post content whenever it makes sense to do so.

Make Sure Your Website is Mobile Friendly
What’s the point of optimizing your site for local search from mobile devices if your site can’t be viewed on a mobile device? You can’t assume that a visitor will return to your site at a later time on a desktop. In fact, it’s doubtful that that will happen. They will simply go to your competitor’s site and do business with them instead.

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Article source: http://isedb.com/20111230-16168.php

Jan 24 2012

6 SEO Tips for the New Year



Welcome to 2012, everybody! We hope your holiday festivities were smashing successes, and that you brought in the New Year with joy, appreciation, and excitement for an even better 2012. Most of us have made New Year’s resolutions to exercise, eat better, overcome irrational fears (okay, maybe that’s just me) and more- so, here’s to sticking to all of these resolutions and more. With new goals to achieve and a clean slate with which to approach them, we should all enter this New Year with excitement for many promising days ahead, especially when it comes to working extra hard to triumph in a bad economy.

If you are a small business owner, likely your number one resolution is to bring in more business this year – in fact, if you are a business owner of any size, this is likely your goal. With that in mind, as many of you know, one way to approach this is to invest time, money and energy into Search Engine Optimization. Though there will undoubtedly be more challenges to face in 2012 as SEO grows and evolves (and as Panda updates continue to be run), ultimately, we all adapt and work together to achieve a better, more user friendly internet experience.  The most important thing to remember going into 2012 is that the game has changed. It’s not about just link-building anymore; it’s about branding, content, social media, and more.

 

SEO in 2012

So, keeping all of that in mind, I’ve drummed up six things SEOs should adhere to as they get back to work after the holidays (at least, these are the factors the folks here at ESI are focusing on!):

  1. On-Page Factors: Make Sure Title Tags and Meta Descriptions Read Well

In much earlier posts, we have discussed the importance of optimizing your title tags and meta-descriptions. Just as a refresher, your title tags should include at least one (if not two) of your high-priority keywords, and should not exceed a 70 character limit. Your meta-description, which should be under 157 characters, should also include these keywords, as well as a call to action. But what’s important about creating these important elements for your website in 2012? Gone are the days of the mechanical title tags and meta-descriptions: conversational, catchy and well-written title tags and meta-description are incredibly important for SEO success now. For those who were reluctant to spend a little extra time on these on-page factors, carving out creative time to do so might be a good (albeit, slightly late) resolution.

  1. Improve the Relevancy Off-Page Factors: Link-Building

Link-building is as important as ever, but with the Panda update, higher quality links are paramount. Further, these links should be relevant to your site, and spammy links should be avoided at all costs. Further, rather than simply building links for your highest priority keywords, be sure to focus on branding as well.  Further, make sure to go after quality over quantity when it comes to link-building!

  1. Create High-Quality Content… and Keep Creating!

In my (somewhat crazy) mind, I tend to think that all SEOs have chants continuously repeating in their heads – or, at least they should – to me, “Content is king” is and should always be on your mind if you are an interactive marketer. As Panda continues to be run, content will continue to rein over the land of SEO, and if you aren’t consistently creating fresh and unique content, you will be expelled from the kingdom (too far? Probably – but it’s my first day back, so give me a break!). Create content that users will want to read and engage with, comment on and share with their friends and colleagues (while this is easier said than done, it’s something to strive for. Spend some time getting to know your audience before beginning to write, and you might notice improvement!).

  1. Implement the Rel=Author Markup

The authority of content has also been important, and will very likely continue to be this year. How do you prove the authority of your content? Well, you (or whoever writes content for your blog) use the rel=author markup (if Google approves you, that is). This necessitates having a Google + profile, and linking it to an author page on your blog. With a clear headshot, someone who has the rel=author tag correctly set up will likely see his or her information show up in the SERPs when his or her blog posts come up in the results.

  1. Get Social, Especially On Google +

It’s always a good idea to expand your social reach – for marketing and SEO purposes. Think about it – Google wants to create a good experience for the user. Isn’t it evidence that users want to hear from a company, if that company is engaging and interactive with its customers and therefore popular on social media? If, last year, you knew this but didn’t act on it, maybe it’s time to take the proverbial leap of faith and get to work on social media monitoring and marketing.  In this case, it’s important to be a social climber!

This is especially true when it comes to Google +, which we know impacts the rankings on the SERPs signed in Google users see. Plus, posts made on Google (like, say, from a business page) tend to show up pretty high in the search results anyways. This is reason enough for both you personally AND your business to have a presence on Google’s social network. Sharing photos, videos and other types of viral content will only contribute to a positive outcome when it comes to climbing the rankings.

  1. Focus on Local and Mobile

With an ever-increasing number of people using cell phones and tablets to access the internet, SEO has had to adapt to a correspondingly growing local audience. Focusing on local keywords and mobile optimization will be one key to success in the coming year.

 

But Don’t Forget the Basics

While you’re doing your best to keep up with the changes to Google’s algorithm and to interactive marketing as a whole, don’t forget to stop, breathe, and remember the fundamentals too. SEO is about climbing the organic rankings and putting yourself in front of your potential customers.  Always keep the customer in mind, remember to create a website that is both engaging for the user AND satisfying when it comes to the search engines (and not just one or the other), get the important directory listings, and continue to guest-blog.  Go for a holistic approach; you won’t find one single smoking gun that will bring you to that coveted number one spot, but rather you will find your success in a balanced combination of a multitude of factors.

 

More Information

If you’re looking for more free SEO tips, updates and information about interactive marketing, come back and revisit our blog for regular updates about what’s going on in the industry. If you have questions that are more specifically related to your company’s SEO efforts, give us a call at 770-481-1766.

Related Information:

12 Things We Lived, Learned and Learned to Live With In SEO This Year

Google Plus Thanksgiving Day Commercial: What Does it Signal?

Digital Atlanta: Discussing the Usefulness of Google +

5 Common Content Mistakes to Avoid

Now, You Can Put a Face to the Blog

Google Has 60% of Search Market Share as Plus Grows

Google Ushers in New Year with Plus Changes

Google +1 Button Changes, Twitter Redesign Up the Ante on the Web

Local SEO Tips

Read more posts on Everspark Interactive »

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Article source: http://www.businessinsider.com/6-seo-tips-for-the-new-year-2012-1

Jan 24 2012

SEO, SEO, SEO

Category: SEOadmin @ 1:25 am


SEO, SEO, SEO

Google has made many changes to its search platform over the last six months. Real-time search was suspended this summer, and once the contract with Twitter expired, the search feature, which displayed Twitter feeds in real-time, was turned off. Now, Google has integrated a live Google+ feed into its searches.

The best way brands can take advantage of Google+ is to amp-up their SEO. Each time a user clicks the +1 button, it helps with that brand’s SEO and the content getting served to users above other content. Search results are personalized based on the +1s of those in your circles, and as a marketer, that changes the game. Search results are still based on Google’s proprietary algorithms, but sites with more +1s will appear to be more relevant and thus ranked higher.

With the addition of social buttons in search results, SEO is where brands can expect to see results. Buying AdWords won’t help brands in natural search results, but creating great, well-linked content will.

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Article source: http://www.imediaconnection.com/content/30867.asp?step=toc

Jan 23 2012

Basic SEO Tactics for Wholesalers in 2012



by Claudia Bruemmer

While Search Engine Optimization tactics evolve over the years, the good old basic tactics remain valid. That means keyword research, search-friendly URLs, Title tags, Meta descriptions, headers, great content, images with Alt tags, optimized videos and linking. As Google and other search engines continue to tweak their algorithms to benefit users, wholesalers must think about satisfying the needs of their users as well as search engine robots. This article will review traditional SEO tactics that can be used to create great pages for top rankings.

Keyword Research: Keyword research is the foundation of SEO. Even though search algorithms are highly sophisticated and complex, you basically get found by your keywords. For an explanation of the value of keyword research see the SEO Moz Beginner’s Guide to Keyword Research.

Search Friendly URLs: While URLs are not a huge ranking factor, search-friendly URLs are important because they provide a good user experience as well as information for search robots. Put relevant keywords in your URLs as this provides anchor text when people use your URLs to link to your pages.

Title Tags: The title tag is the main text that describes an online document. It is the single most important on-page SEO element and appears in three key places: the top of a browser, search engine results pages, and on external websites as link anchor text. Best practice is to use no more than 70 characters in the Title and to use strategic keywords.

Meta Description Tags: The Meta description tag draws readers to a website from the SERPs; thus, it is very important for gaining user click-through from search results. As a short paragraph describing the content on the page, the description tag should be compelling, contain strategic keywords and contain between 150 and 160 characters.

Headers: Headers are handy for scanning content and they provide clues search engines. Use keywords in your headers wherever possible.

Content: All copywriting gurus say to write great content, but what does that mean? Write accurate, descriptive and compelling text about your products. Use the thesaurus in your word processing program for synonyms to keep from being repetitive. Have your keyword list handy for use whenever it’s relevant. Use tools like ubersuggest to get ideas for improving your content. Use keywords in the beginning, middle and end several times throughout the page. The old adage is to write for the user first and search engines second, but keep both in mind when creating content.

Images: A picture is worth a thousand words and can be used to good advantage by wholesalers. There’s even a possibility that the image and its associated Alt text can help boost your rankings. However, use relevant images and accurate, descriptive Alt text.

Videos: Videos have been displaying in search results since Universal Search; yet, many wholesalers don’t use them. Featuring videos on your web pages can help you upsell, drive traffic and make your site sticky. Make sure your videos are relevant and optimized.

Inbound Links: Authoritative inbound links are links that can help your site become a subject matter expert in your niche. Google rewards authoritative links in its algorithm. An example of an authoritative link for a wholesale jeweler might be a link to its site from The Fashion Jewelry Accessories Trade Association. Outbound links to pages of interest to your readers are also helpful. For instance, a wholesaler might want to link to pages with basic information about drop shipping or other topics of interest to its target market. Lastly, it’s good practice to link your inner pages to each other for relevant content throughout the site. It takes time and skills to gain authoritative links. For a primer on linking basics, we refer you to the SEO Moz Beginner’s Guide on Linking.

Sitemap: Create a sitemap of all the pages in your site to reveal the link structure so search robots can find all relevant pages of your site for crawling.

Site Validation: Last, but not least, you’ll want to ensure your pages are indexable and links can be followed with the free W3C Markup Validation Service.

In conclusion, SEO basics never go out of style. These tactics will help you create rich web pages that get good rankings. You can combine the above tips on SEO with usability, marketing and psychology principles to create pages that will do exceptionally well in 2012. Just remember to satisfy users and search engines at the same time while implementing the elements above.

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Article source: http://www.toptenwholesale.com/news/basic-seo-tactics-wholesalers-2012-5860.html

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