November | 2009 | May's Fashion & Beauty Blog

Archive for November 2009

How Much SEO Do You Need To Get Top Rankings?

November 3, 2009 | Author admin

How Much SEO Do You Need To Get Top Rankings?By Titus Hoskins (c) 2009 Perhaps one of the biggest misconceptions, perpetuated by industry SEO experts, is that a website must follow perfect SEO strategies to get top rankings. While adhering to simple common SEO standards does help the search engines both find and index your site more quickly, it doesn’t guarantee by any stretch of the imagination that following those SEO guidelines will propel your site to the top of the rankings.If only search engine optimization was that easy!No doubt, there are some SEO faux pas that will do harm to your site’s rankings, especially in Google, the ultimate hall-monitor all puffed up and ready to pounce on any misbehaving webmaster. Things such as keyword stuffing, keyword spamming or linking out to bad neighborhoods such as link farms, pharmaceutical or gambling sites may get you blacklisted. But how much SEO do you need? How much search engine optimization do you need to get top rankings? Do you need a whole lot or do you need very little SEO?Actually, after 10 years of marketing online, the answer to that question varies depending upon what you’re trying to accomplish with your SEO efforts? If you’re operating an online business in a very competitive (read lucrative) market, SEO will be high on your agenda as you go about annihilating your competition.Even if you’re an ordinary webmaster or website owner you’re probably fussing over your rankings in the search engines. The higher the rankings you achieve for your chosen keywords; the more traffíc you will get. Good quality traffic that converts well into loyal subscribers and fans of your site.Many webmasters and companies spend thousands of dollars each month in order to get their keywords and sites up to the top of the líst. If you’re into affiliate marketing, your daily income will rise and fall almost parallel to your rankings. Now, if my earnings go up, I know automatically my rankings have gone up, usually in Google. If my earnings go down, I know my rankings have gone south. Some times even a drop or rise of one place on the first page SERPs will affect how much you earn.Obviously, because of this fact, SEO or how well I am optimized for the search engines is extremely important to me. I am constantly building quality links and quality content for my sites. Some keyword battles you win, some battles you lose. I have been fighting some keyword battles for over 3 or 4 years now!But how much SEO is enough? How much SEO should you do with your sites? Many webmasters make sure all their on page set-up or lay-out is done exactly to what the SEO experts say you should do. This is not a bad idea. Make sure your Title, URL, Headlines, Keyword Density… are all laid out right. These are things we can control and adjust to meet the SEO standards.Other SEO or ranking factors are much harder to predict, many of them are simply out of our control. How other sites link to us, what they put in the anchor text, what they say about us… simply things we can’t control. I believe the over-riding reason why your site is listed at the top of any rankings has to do with the number, the quality and the quantity of sites linking back to your page. The higher the number of related quality one-way links you have flowing back to your site, the higher it will perform in the rankings. Your anchor text is very important (underlined part of a link); it must contain your keywords or variations of it. The content on the linking page should also be related to your chosen keywords.Get this part right and you will get high rankings.Or at least this has been my experience – all the other ranking factors do count but this is the over-riding factor in my opinion.Another major ranking factor lately, has been the importance Google is placing on social media links. Get your content to the first page of Digg with lots of diggs and it will rank high in Google. This is not surprising when you consider the nature of these social bookmarking sites… it really is an actual “vote” for the quality of your content. Getting Delicious bookmarks has a similar positive effect.Another prominent factor, from my observations, is having your major keyword in your Domain Name. Use hyphens if you want but having those keywords in there, does help rather than hinder your rankings.Now if you’re wondering about how Google ranks pages or your keywords…. Google has around 200 ranking factors (with filters and penalties thrown in to make all our lives interesting) which it uses to rank your keywords/pages. This is still the best online resource that lists all of Google’s ranking factors: www.vaughns-1-pagers.com/internet/google-ranking-factors.htm Now the question still remains, how much SEO do you need? How much time should you spend at optimizing, building links, worrying your head off over the latest Google Itch? The answer always comes back to quality content. Create a site that has quality content and the SEO will take care of itself. People will link to your site, you will get bookmarks in all the social media sites, Google will find your content and rank it. Your SEO will grow naturally as your site grows. Keep building more pages, keep targeting more and more related keywords in your niche or subject area and you will get higher rankings.Now, of course, some webmasters are a little more aggressive in how quickly they want their rankings to rise to the top of the search engines. Here’s something you can do if you want to go into the SEO battle full-force.1. Download SEOquake and place this free SEO toolbar plug-in on your Firefox (or I.E.) browser.2. Go to Google and type in the keyword or keyword phrase you’re targeting with your site or content.3. Select the number one ranking and observe how many pages it has indexed, PageRank, how many backlinks it has, age of the site… and so on.4. Then use the page info button and study all the on-page factors this site has and notice what it’s doing with its page and keyword density lay-out.5. Check all the backlinks this site has in the different search engines. Copy or try to get the same backlinks for your site that your competitor has acquired. Then get more backlinks and/or higher quality backlinks than your competitor.6. Watch your rankings rise…Just a few more words of wisdom and we’re done. Some battles will be too tough to fight, the competition will be so stiff you just can’t compete. Other battles will take a long time; months, even years before you rise to the top. Your best bet is to choose long-tail (multi-worded) keywords that have little or no competition. You can rise to the top within days, even hours. The sweet thing is this: long-tail keywords are often the most lucrative and bring in the most sales. For in the final analysis, you just don’t want SEO, you want smart SEO. And you will quickly learn, most times you can often out-smart your competition, even if you can’t out-rank them. About The AuthorThese 10 SEO Tactics Bring Me Over 2000 Visitors Daily: SEO Tips To learn more Internet Marketing Tactics try: Marketing Tools Copyright © 2009 Titus Hoskins. This article may be freely distributed if this resource box stays attached.

Posted in Internet - Websites - SEO | Comments Closed

Does Google PageRank Count Anymore?

November 2, 2009 | Author admin

Does Google PageRank Count Anymore?By Titus Hoskins (c) 2009 Being a full-time SEM (Search Engine Marketer) I have been conditioned like Pavlov’s dog (not a pretty picture) to jump every time Google twitches. Lately Google has been doing a lot of twitching. Specifically, the rather startling news from Google Webmaster Trends Analyst Susan Moskwa that Google has ditched PageRank from Webmaster Tools.”We’ve been telling people for a long time that they shouldn’t focus on PageRank so much; many site owners seem to think it’s the most important metric for them to track, which is simply not true,” states Moskwa. “We removed it because we felt it was silly to tell people not to think about it, but then to show them the data, implying that they should look at it.” (Source: WebProNews) Now, for SEO reasons or for ranking in Google’s index, PageRank has long been eunuchified by Google. However, even missing a few dangling bits, history has shown us, eunuchs still wheel tremendous power. PageRank is no different.Regardless of what Google wants to happen, PageRank is still extremely important to anyone marketing on the web, especially if you’re selling SEO services or operating a web business. Try selling SEO services when that little green bar on your site is pointing to PR0 or worst yet, pointing to a solid gray bar.Obtaining a high PR7 or PR8 simply means more business and revenues… regardless of how Google is or is not using PageRank. People know how to count and they learned long ago, a ten is a lot more than a big fat zero.Placed against a PR1 site, a PR8 will win more respect in the eyes of potential clients and can produce enormous profíts for the site owner and we won’t even mention the still widely practiced habit of selling links, which Google is desperately trying to stop. Total and full elimination of PageRank would be an honest start, but it will still be an uphill, if not an unwinnable battle, for Google to fully eliminate link selling.Even with my modest sites, I have turned down a small fortune by not selling text links on any of my sites. When I had a PR6 site instead of a PR4 – those link requests were nearly doubled. So one can easily understand Google’s position and the need to downplay PageRank, if they want to put even a small dent in all this link selling and buying, which is still running rampant on today’s web.PageRank is Google’s creation, and unless they drop it fully from their system and the Google toolbar, then PageRank still Counts. Actually, in the whole scheme of marketing your website on the net, PageRank counts big time. And in more ways than one. There are several reasons why you shouldn’t count PageRank out.For years Google has been downplaying the importance of PageRank and states it’s only one of about 200 ranking factors which determine how Google ranks its index for keywords. Obtaining top organic rankings for popular lucrative keywords in Google simply means money in the bank. Actually, even a movement of only one or two places on those first page SERPs (Search Engine Results Pages) can make a major difference to any online marketer’s bottom line.Now while you can have a lower PR number and still rank above other higher PR pages for your chosen keywords, I have even had many times when my PR drops but my actual SERPs rankings in Google goes up, mainly due to building related relevant backlinks. So PageRank counts little towards your keyword rankings, but it can’t be totally dismissed. Mainly because, even if PR is just one ranking factor, in close competitive keyword battles (I am presently fighting tooth and nail for some very choice keywords) just one ranking factor such as high PR can make the difference of whether or not you get to the top spot. Big dogs are still jumping and for those of us who know how to count, getting a number one spot in Google makes all the difference in the world.Not only because Google controls roughly 80% of all search engine traffic, but more importantly Google has established unmatched credibility and brand recognition in the eyes of potential customers visiting your site. Web users trust Google. Web users look to Google for guidance and direction. Web users believe what Google is telling them. In the online world, rightly or wrongly, perception is everything.As an online marketer, I am completely amazed each day at the marketing power Google now commands with web surfers and with the general population. Google is king of online search and no other search engine even comes close to Google.PageRank is Google’s ranking system, and in the eyes of those who notice these things, it still wields tremendous influence and power. By default, PageRank is Google’s opinion of your site, and web users can count (at least to 10) and if Google believes people are still not counting when it comes to PageRank, then they are fully mistaken. About The AuthorTitus Hoskins is a full-time online marketer who has numerous websites. For the latest web marketing tools try: Internet Marketing Tools. If you liked the article above, why not try this Free 7 Day Marketing Course here: Marketing Tools Copyright 2009 Titus Hoskins. This article may be freely distributed if this resource box stays attached.

Posted in Internet - Websites - SEO | Comments Closed

12 Ways to Use Twitter for Social Media Marketing

November 2, 2009 | Author admin

12 Ways to Use Twitter for Social Media MarketingBy Ron Knight (c) 2009 Twitter is a wildly popular microblogging service. It involves writing Tweets, which are short updates of a maximum of 140 characters that tell your followers what you are up to. Although your Tweets are technically supposed to answer the question, “What are you doing?” Twitter has moved far beyond that. Tweets are used to share stories, link to photos, promote content, break news, and a whole lot more. Twitter has also become an incredibly important tool for social media marketing professionals. Here are 12 ways in which Twitter can be used in your social media marketing campaign. 1. Sharing Links to Items of InterestAs soon as you read something online that you think is interesting, it is easy to share it on Twitter with all of your followers. Twitter is highly effective in this manner because it is such a quick way to be able to reach a large group of people. You can also get a lot of great ideas for blog posts from Twitter since many new ideas and stories are floating around that haven’t even made it to the blogosphere and definitely not to mainstream media. 2. Building Your NetworkUsing Twitter is a great way to build your network because it allows you to find and follow people with similar interests. You can use Steeple to find people who live in your geographical area. You can also use other tools that help you find new people to follow based upon who your Twitter friends follow.3. Build Relationships within Your Current NetworkPeople in different networks often use Twitter to connect with their contacts instantly rather than using instant messaging for that purpose. Furthermore, many people use Twitter to connect with their network during events like conferences.4. Re-Distributing Content from Your Blog or WebsiteTwitter can be used to redistribute content from your blog or website. However, you should take care to do this thoughtfully since many of your Twitter followers may already read your blog. For that reason, you may want to avoid using a blog plug-in that automatically Tweets your posts. Your best bet is to Tweet your content manually and customize each Tweet so it doesn’t get old.5. Get Involved in Live Tweeting EventsTwitter launched at SXSW last year, catapulting microblogging conferences to fame. Live Tweeting events are great because they are a form of citizen journalism that allow you to connect with several new people in your niche while making active and valuable contributions to current discussions in your community.6. Pitching Stories to Journalists on TwitterYou can send a direct message to a journalist who is following you on Twitter to pitch a story idea.7. Communicating with Your TeamYou can use Twitter as a company intranet that connects all of your employees. Twitter can be particularly useful in this regard if you have a virtual business with employees in different geographical locations. You can set your updates to private for security reasons. Anytime you are working on group projects, you can stay in touch with your team members using Twitter. 8. Brand MonitoringStay up to date with any mentions of your business on Twitter. If there is anything negative, you will be able to counter it quickly. You can also use Twitter as a way to receive feedback from your customers and improve your business. Just ask your followers to give their opinion on something. For example, if you designed a new website, ask your followers what they think about it and get their constructive criticisms so you can make your site design even better.9. Acquire More Votes on Social Media WebsitesIf you have submitted a story to Digg, Reddit, StumbleUpon, or any other social voting website, tweet a link to that submission to try to score more votes from your followers. If your followers like what they see, they are sure to vote for your content. 10. Hiring PeopleLooking for a programmer, designer, or writer? Whatever type of professional you seek, try finding them on Twitter. Simply send your followers a tweet telling them you are looking for someone for a job. They can either recommend someone to you or offer themselves for the job. Using Twitter in this way is ideal for finding qualified freelancers. It is much more convenient than putting out a classified ad.11. Build Your Personal BrandWhen you use Twitter to talk about things as mundane as what you ate for breakfast or how you are going to sleep early tonight, you make your followers feel like you are casual and approachable. Even those running a company that has a cold, corporate brand image could create more appeal and build a unique personal brand using Twitter.12. Streamline Electronic CommunicationsWhen you use Twitter, you’re likely to find yourself using IM, email, and other electronic communication methods less. Twitter not only provides public chatting through Tweets, it also allows you to send direct messages. Twitter will help you streamline your electronic communications, allowing you to scale back online. About The AuthorRon Knight is a US based Internet Solutions consultant with many years of experience helping people and businesses out in establishing a stronger presence on the web. Many Internet Marketing Service companies have benefited immensely from his advice.

Posted in Internet - Websites - SEO | Comments Closed

Getting the Right Marketing Mix Using Social Media

November 2, 2009 | Author admin

Getting the Right Marketing Mix Using Social MediaBy John Sylvester (c) 2009 For months (or is it years now?) we have been reading articles on how businesses should develop a presence on Twitter and build a Facebook Page as part of their SEM objectives. Now, with social media firmly established in the armoury of our online marketing efforts, how can we best take advantage of these two social media giants? As if to demonstrate their power in the market these days, both Twitter and Facebook (to a lesser extent) have been targeted and dealt painful denial-of-service (DoS) attacks and, as a result, many hours of downtime. With hackers determined to bring Twitter down to earth, it was acknowledged that although defensive measures had been taken on the company’s part to repel further attacks, third-party developers whose applications have been using their application programming interface, were found vulnerable.In a similar vein, the social-networking site Facebook was also hit with a DoS attack, but it didn’t appear to be quite so threatening as the one that knocked Twitter off its perch on the same day.Social media, as a phenomenon, has taken marketing online by the scruff of the neck and placed it in the control of the general public. In essence, traditional search engines, where votes have often been bought and traded by sleight-of-hand SEM tactics, have now been delivered on a platform where we decide our preferred content. Not ideal, but popular.But how do we achieve success in this and what should the marketing mix be? Let’s take a look at how some of the “big guns” treat social media?One of the best marketing campaigns I have seen on Facebook Pages is that of Coca-Cola. They employ very sophisticated marketing methods, like the post, “Random Coke Fact: Coca-Cola translated to Chinese means “Delicious Happiness“.And not to be outdone by the world’s addiction to everything green, another post from the company reads: “Recycling Week in the United Kingdom, and to celebrate, Coca-Cola’s unveiled this massive sculpture made from recycled aluminum cans! So when your Coke is empty, please Give it Back.”Their posts are multi-lingual also. But I did notice the trends employed in their “open marketing”: no sooner did they try to have the Chinese and environmentalists in their pocket, they went after dog lovers with, “Puppies love Coca-Cola, and the feeling is mutual!“ This is not exactly a line that can easily be lifted by the SEM community: “Puppies love Google Sitemaps, and the feeling is mutual!” doesn’t quite work, does it? Conversely, their tweets have been styled to be far more interactive with the public and in many regards this company has the marketing mix about spot-on.Because of Google’s business model and its customer base, it is, of course, different. It has to be. Many of its posts on Facebook describe new products and services with a mix of more interesting posts such as, “Check out this cool video showing the Google Chrome logo being built out of legos!” and “Have you explored the Moon in Google Earth yet?” Not to be left out of growing environmental bandwagon posts, they wrote: “Should you spring clean your solar panels?” in which they have “assembled a 1.6 MW solar panel installation at our headquarters in Mountain View in 2007…“The BBC have registered their Facebook Page under the Entertainment & Arts – Television section and provide a modest link to their website and have provided a poorly-used discussion board — in my humble opinion. As a news outlet, they seem to be far more concentrated on exploiting Twitter, because of their Breaking News alerts, with 172,756 followers.Search Engine Watch and The Guardian newspaper provide a profile and leave their social media posts to the rightful platform of Twitter, as most major media companies do. So, it’s really a case of creating the right media mix for your clients. Nothing here is set in stone. You have to identify who your audience is, what they want and what is the best approach you should take to your marketing.If you have articles or press releases or are looking to improve your relationships with your customers, both Twitter and Facebook Pages allow you to do this. According to the owners, your Facebook Page allows you to “leverage connections” between “friends” and allow your “fans” to become “brand advocates”. Your posts will also appear in their news feed. Essentially, when Facebook users become a “fan” of your brand, they will be notified of your updates via this feed. You can also share other content options, such as videos and photos, etc.In summary, although there are many applications that can automatically post to both Facebook and Twitter, you need to make sure you have thoroughly researched how you intend to market yourself and your clients to determine your unique marketing mix.Simply posting the same information to both sites may well do for now but as social media marketing becomes ever more sophisticated, it may be a highly inappropriate and a tired marketing response for the future. As a first step, take a look at how the corporates have organised themselves. About The AuthorJohn Sylvester is the media director of V9 Design & Build, a company specialising in web design in Bangkok, and who is an expert in search engine optimization and web marketing strategies.

Posted in Internet - Websites - SEO | Comments Closed