A marketing resource for the small business owner
Internet Marketing
You MUST Use Your Keywords to Link Back to Your Website – No Questions Asked!
May 3rd
You have heard that doing keyword research is essential to website, video, and article success. Virtually every piece of content you put out on the Internet must leverage good keywords. It’s crucial to learn how to properly use the keywords that you’ve compiled. There are two types of keywords that are in your list – the first is a shorter type that is 2-3 words long. This type of keyword phrase is one that you would like your website to get a high ranking for. In other words, when your target customers type this phrase into Google, you would like for your website to appear high up in the results list, ideally in the number one position.
The other type of keyword phrase is called a “long-tail keyword.” Those are longer phrases, usually 3-8 or more words long, and they’re ideal for using as part of your title and as the subject for your articles. These longer phrases are ones that you’d like an article, report or video to rank for (instead of your website).
The Title
Each article, blog post, video or other piece of content that you have “external” or “off-page” of your website must have an attention-getting title that must include your keyword or keyword phrase.
The Description or Resource box
Each piece of content will typically have a description or resource box, as well. Make sure your are leveraging this area with a good sentence or two that includes again… your keyword or keyword phrase. Very important. The resource box is usually the area you put in information about the author. This is also where you would feature your keyword as “anchor text” that has a link back to your website. So instead of writing something like – “for more information on “keyword”, click here” (where “click here” is the link)… you would write – “if you would like more information on “keyword”, just follow the link (and have the keyword itself linked to your site).
Body Copy
In the case of an article, blog post or special report… your body copy must also feature a few sentences about your keyword or keyword phrase. Here again you would want to have the anchor text of the link be your keyword.
Linking back to your website with your keywords is an excellent way to help Google associate your keywords with your website. When Google and the other search engines can see the association – it helps your website get a higher ranking when people do searches for that keyword term.
RE-Purpose, RE-Utilize, RE-Optimize and… STRIKE!
Mar 5th
Need to write a new blog post and don’t know where to begin?
Look over yonder for good content...
Can’t think of new content? That’s fine – look over yonder, to some of posts you’ve written in the past. There’s gold in dem der hills!
Look over there for great content!
What content from a year or two ago (or less even) could be modified or updated to include a new slant on an old problem, new data for an old trend… or old information for a new trend. Bottom line – do you have a content asset that with a little polish and re-utilization, could attract new attention?
You might want to review an old blog post from 12 month’s ago and create a new post… cross-linking the two – and relating it to a specific trend of today. OR, yo umight consider turning articles into videos (or vice versa)… we have a great methodology here for doing that. It’s called our Article-9 Power Tool.
Content re-utlilization and re-optimization not only breathes new life into old content, it gives you a cost-effective way to re-purpose content that can work for you today – saving you time and money. No need to go back to the well or re-invent the wheel each time. Engaging in this process will help search engines and consumers rediscover the value you provide.
It IS…. that simple.
Attention Disreputable SEO Companies… Google is Watching
Mar 5th
Blackhat and disreputable SEO tactics should be avoided.
A valuable lesson was shared this month in the Google Webmaster Help forums. If you’re a shady or less reputable SEO company, Google will not hesitate to call you out and make a fool out of you. This story comes to us from our friends at searchenginenews.com
The story starts innocently enough when a Webmaster asks about the legitimacy of a company called Better Placement. A company which claims to offer guaranteed first placement in Google, and says that they are “the first company authorized to work directly with Google”.
A Googler, JohnMu set the Webmaster straight by saying that Google doesn’t accept payment for positioning and that no one can guarantee rankings, then he helpfully directs the Webmaster to a guide of choosing an SEO.
Shortly after a user named “bruben25″ came into the forum defending the company and its actions, he posted that it was all a misunderstanding. He took a strong position defending a company that was agreed upon to be practicing unethically. This created an argument between him the rest of the forum. When he was asked if he was affiliated with the company, the user continuously denied to be affiliated with BetterPlacement. Want to guess where this is going?
After some back and forth between bruben25 and the rest of the forum, well known Google employee, Matt Cutts decided to make a visit to the forum. His first post flat out says…
Let me make it more relevant for you as a Google employee based in the United States: I would definitely avoid Better Placement. The first thing I see when I visit betterplacement.info are the words “Guaranteed First Page Placement on Google.” That’s a big warning sign immediately on visiting betterplacement.info. The reason that it concerns me that Better Placement put those words (in an image) on betterplacement.info is because in our official documentation on our website we mention “Beware of SEOs that claim to guarantee rankings, allege a “special relationship” with Google, or advertise a “priority submit” to Google.” ~ Matt Cutts
Comically, bruben25 questions the legitimacy of Matt Cutts’ (yes THE Matt Cutts) Google Employee status. He even states that he’s attempted to find information on Matt but is unable to find anything.
Finally Matt brings our story to its climax by linking official Ohio Records stating that the agent for BetterPlacement is one B.D.Ruben, and that the email address is betterplacement25@gmail.com. He concludes there is no further evidence needed and that his advice to avoid BetterPlacement stands. If you’d like to read the forum posts yourself, feel free.
The Lesson – Be careful about any promises that your sales copy is making to potential new clients. Since the posts in the forum, BetterPlacement has removed the first spot guarantee, and has the following sentence on their page:
“We are not offering anything related to SEO. We understand that “ranking” or “placement” is something not any company can say or offer with certainty.”
Google Raises the Bar on Social Media Ranking Factors
Mar 4th
There was quite a buzz generated with Matt Cutts confirmation that Google is beginning to use social data in their search algorithm (as is Bing). Google claimed they use data such as how many times something was retweeted, followed on Twitter and liked or linked to within Facebook. With the focus on all things social, the fact that it’s beginning to effect organic search comes as no surprise. It just solidifies exactly how important and main stream social media has become. Face it – we live in a social world now.
Here is what Matt Cutt’s has to say about social media effecting Google’s search results…
