Monthly Archives: February 2012

Internal Linking – The Best Of What’s Around

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If you own a website that’s not getting much traffic, you may need to rethink your internal linking strategy. Internal linking refers to the practice of placing hyperlinks that direct users to the same domain as the domain of the initial link… in essence, a link that is pointed at a page located on the same site.

What’s The Point?

Think this sounds a little silly? You’re not alone. In fact, internal linking is one of the most commonly misunderstood SEO and site development practices. Though, when the practice is implemented properly, the benefits include improved site usability and search rankings. Call it your very own dirty little secret.

Best Practices

1 – Make a point to utilize text-based links alongside proper link structures.

2 – Every link should include keywords in the link text.

One aspect of the rankling algorithm includes looking at the link text and comparing it to the page being linked. Do your best to avoid using links like “home” or “Click here” as text links, as they will be disregarded.

3 – Each and every page on your site should be linked from your home page.

Smaller sites consisting of 10 pages or less can generally use their home page as an effective site map. Sites that are a bit larger will require a separate page to help users navigate. If you use a sitemap page, make sure to include content other than links.

Sitemaps are valuable for a number of reasons, including:

-           Google will be able to locate and crawl various site pages faster

-           Your customers will locate what they’re looking for in a more efficient manner

-           Your PageRank will be distributed to other pages of importance

4 – Make certain that each page includes a link to at least one other page.

This practice will help your customers navigate your site easier and help Google crawl your site more quickly. Pages that have links to but not from them will not receive nearly as much traffic.

5 – Limit your links!

Now that you know the drill, you may feel inclined to throw a little link party. Unfortunately, this practice is frowned upon.

Most search engines adhere to a 150 link limit per page before they quit crawling other pages found linked-to from said page. While this limit is known for it’s flexibility, to be safe, it’s best to limit the links on most pages to 150 or else risk losing the crawl.

The Bottom Line

The bottom line is… the little stuff still counts. By taking the time to master the basics, you can rest easy knowing you’ve got a solid foundation to build from. But hey, if this sorta thing ain’t your style, your pals at Eminent SEO are ready and eager to help!

Team Eminent SEO

Eminent SEO is an Arizona website services and strategic internet marketing company.

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PPC Alternatives

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Google has been called a 1 trick pony over the years but as Eric Schmidt has said it is one hell of a trick. I have to agree with Mr. Schmidt 100%. At the same time Google is developing a lot of PPC alternatives to their one trick pony. What Google has more than any other business is traffic to their homepage, millions of users per day looking and researching different subjects, basically everything under the sun and over the sun.

What Google has going for it is unmistakable, they have traffic and relevancy. If you are looking for blue lampshades you can find them on Google and if you are willing to bid on “blue lampshades” as a key term Google is willing to rent that first page and that first position if and only if you are willing to pay for it. While it is possible to use SEO to rank for blue lampshades, SEO takes time and there are no guaranteed that you or anyone else will rank in the first position for blue lampshades in their organic search results. This is why PPC is so powerful; you can get immediate results, if you have the money.

So the challenge is to find other PPC alternatives that can boost your traffic with relevant clients. I think that while you might be able to use Facebook’s PPC solution I’m not so sure that the folks on Facebook are in buying mode when they are the social media site as they are in buying mode when they are on Google. So let’s take a look at 3 other so called PPC Alternatives that will get you immediate traffic and relevant traffic.

1) Direct mail –still the 800# gorilla
2) Newsletter ads – targeted audience
3) E-mail Marketing – listing building is essential for any business

Direct Mail Marketing

With direct mail we can rent a mailing list from a list rental company like InfoUSA. We can select the list based on the users’ preferences. Let’s say our current client base has an income of $86,000, female between the age of 35 -50 and they live in metro areas like New York City. We can ask InfoUSA to pull a list from their database and see how many people come up based on those demographics and preferences.
If too many people come up in the list we might want to narrow the geographic area or the age range we are selecting. In terms of testing I probably would test a list of 5,000 names to mail to and mail to them 5-7 times. Sending out 1 postcard or direct mail brochure just does not do the trick, we need multiple “impressions” in order to be heard from the client.

Next I would make sure that I drive the prospects to a 800# and a landing page, more specifically a “personalized landing page” known as PURL. This way we can track the people who chose to visit the landing page and track the people who call us. One of the other suggestions is to make sure that there is a call to action on the PURL, or make that multiple calls to actions. We want the user to call, add themselves to our newsletter, follow us on our Twitter account, become a fan of our Facebook Fan page, in other words we want them to TAKE ACTION!

Direct mail marketing will drive traffic to you quickly and with relevancy.

Newsletter Ads

Newsletter ads are great because like direct mail we are reaching a targeted audience. I would recommend finding the magazines and websites that your audience reads and visits and then contacting those publications. Once you contact those publications ask them about their demographics. Do their demographics map back to yours? Ask them about their open rates. If they have a list of 10,000 and an open rate of 20% then you might have 2,000 people view your ad. So the real number you are going to be in front of is 2,000, not 10,000.

The same goes here as in direct mail. You need multiple impressions in front of these folks. If the publication mails once per month you might want to buy a 3 or 6 month spend, this way your ad is repetitive 3 to 6 times over the next few months. You can easily track click through rates back to your web site as well as phone calls from this source of traffic using something like a Keymetrics tracking system.

E-mail marketing

E-mail marketing is the holy grail. It costs virtually next to nothing to manage and send. I use Infusionsoft for most of my e-mail marketing. However, e-mail marketing does require maintaining and fine tuning. Every business if they aren’t already should be building their list both in e-mail and direct mail. List building and PR or public relations are the 2 most cost effective ways to market and build a business. If you don’t have a list go into your contact manager and make one. Find 100 people who can use your products and services. Add them you your list and start building and mailing. Ask them to opt in to your new list about blue lampshades. You will be surprised at how many people actually appreciate that you stay in touch with them.

It is interesting sending out e-mail to your list. You might not think that your customers and prospects read them and some don’t but you still might get a call anyway because they see the mail come in and it reminds them to call you on a completely different topic. I try and mail not so much on a regular basis but only when I think I have something of value to offer my readers.

If you have any questions please feel free to comment below or call 781-990-8844 or click on the link below.

Jim Peake

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Have you cleared your Google Web History yet?

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Come March 1st, Google’s new privacy policy goes into effect and all those fun Google Products you use, including your Google Web History will be shared. Here’s a few simple steps to clearing your data before the big change!

Step 1:

Sign into your Google account and visit http://www.Google.com/history

If your web history is enabled you will see a list of any searches you’ve made or sites you’ve visited recently.

Step 2:

Click the button “Remove All Web History” then “Ok”

Step 3:

Your history will be free and clear of any exploitation from Google. This will stop Google from any further tracking of your web history. If for any reason you change your mind at any point and want your history tracked go ahead and click that blue button “resume”.

How do you feel about the new privacy policy change? Will you be clicking the “Remove All Web History” button? Leave us a comment below !

 

Star Padilla

You could say I'm a chatter box with an eye for design. I'm what you’d call a digital strategist. Helping companies and individuals focus on making their businesses money while managing their social media platforms, content and audit their overall design/brand.

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Pinterest should be a part of your 2012 Social Marketing Strategy

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You must have heard about the newest social addiction Pinterest. If you haven’t, let me give you a lil insight as to why you need to jump on this ‘pin’ board (if you will) of a network. According to Pinterest, “Pinterest is an online pinboard. Organize and share things you love.” People are utilizing their pinboards to collectively organize DIY projects, plan their weddings, put together motivational quotes and so much more.

So you’re wondering, Why do I need a Pinterest account for my business? Let us tell you.

With every social networking site, there are a variety of benefits when it comes to utilizing the obvious: Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, YouTube, etc. Here are a few reasons why you should be amped to get your company and brand on Pinterest.

  • Link Building- each “Pin” and “Repin” creates a link back to the image source. Hello to building traffic!
  • Keywords- Use keywords to describe these boards- GO SEO!
  • Brand Management in the SERPS- you’re securing the vanity URL www.pinterest.com/yourbrandname which boosts your search engine optimization efforts and will allow your profile to show up for branded search results
  • Building a Repoire- as you “Pin” images from your boards or website that are being shared within your network, other Pinterest users are sharing their love and support for your product and/or brand with their networks.
  • Brand Awareness- essentially every “Like”, “Pin”, and “Repin” is shared within the category that’s been chosen for it, as well as the network of the individuals who may have “Pinned” the image.

So how can you be a Pinterest addict like the rest of us?

At the moment Pinterest is on an “Invite Only” basis. You can request an invite directly from Pinterest.com, but you may end up waiting awhile or you can comment on this post with your email and we will send you over an invite from our Eminent SEO Pinterest account, so you can join instantly!

Pinterest Etiquette to Keep in Mind

  • Create a few boards: rather having one board, it’s best practice to make a few that cover a spectrum of topics and/or interests
  • Don’t get greedy: Pinterest does not like vain brands who just self-promote. “Pin” and “Repin” from multiple sources.
  • Don’t forget to “Repin”: this is the networking side of Pinterest. It’s the best way to build up your network of followers and engage with others.
  • When possible Pin from the original source: giving credit where it’s due is vital and shows that you are a great resource.
  • Pin from permanent links: nothing is worse than clicking a link that’s now non-existent. Make sure you are Pinning links that aren’t going anywhere.
  • Get the “Pin It” button for your browser: this will make Pinning on the web that much easier and seamless!

Hopefully this gave a lil more insight as to how Pinterest works and why it’s soo important for you and your brand to get involved.  Need an invite? Have your own thoughts about the site? Need us to set-up a Pinterest account for you? Be sure to leave us your comment below !

 

 

Star Padilla

You could say I'm a chatter box with an eye for design. I'm what you’d call a digital strategist. Helping companies and individuals focus on making their businesses money while managing their social media platforms, content and audit their overall design/brand.

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Do It Yourself: Best Blogging Practices for the Newbie

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A quick rummage through a few Tumblr and Blogger sites confirms the initial suspicion; ANYONE can start a blog. And while many use blogging as a cut and dry, self-indulgent picture post diary, there are those who seek to monetize their contributions through an intriguing, relevant and engaging visitor experience. From page design to individual posts and the silly matter in between, the process involved in making a successful blog takes time, vision and unabashed honesty. In the entry below, we will offer up some insight regarding how to write a blog that people (other than your “crew”) actually want to read.

Features and Elements

Above all else, the most important aspect of your blog is what you say and how you go about saying it. Visitors will continue visiting, and even subscribe, if they have an interest in the subject matter and enjoy your writing style. As such, writers should take care to write posts with a tone that reflects the topic at hand AND the audience your blog intends to reach. Personality is key to ensuring interaction, repeat visits and referrals to your blog from other bloggers who enjoy what you have to say.

Writing Content

Simply put, nobody wants to weed through a text entry that reminds them of an Earth Science syllabus. Making a point to write honestly and openly about the subject at hand will speak to readers on a more personal level than fact listing and rambles. People who are visiting your blog for the first time and do not find a voice to identify with, or are even against, are not likely to return. Therefore, the content you post must be interesting, dynamic, original and provoking.

Best Practices

Though blogging is certainly an area for rule breaking, there are a variety of best practices worth following to ensure optimal traffic and reception. Use as you see fit:

• Graphics – Blogs without pictures are pretzels without salt; no good. While you want to avoid turning your blog into a cluttered picture album, a couple choice images will work to break up the read while holding your visitor’s interest. Choose something tasteful, relevant and grabbing.

• Headline – This is your wakeup call. Use your headline as both a description and attention grabber to hook your audience for the kill. Short and sweet wins the race.

• Intro – This is where you stake your claim. A well-written introduction will make the reader ache for more. Think of it like a movie trailer, leaving hints and potential highlights to linger on.

• Body – Where you make your case. Whether your entry is personal, professional or just goofy, the body serves as the area to make your opinion known. Lay down the facts and tell your story in a smooth and charismatic fashion. And as with all other area… BE SURE TO CHECK YOUR GRAMMAR!

• Conclusion – Your final point and invitation.

Sharing Is Caring

Of course, it wouldn’t be good blogging practice without a healthy dose of social media. Make sure to post links to your content on social media pages and invite others to do the same! With a little time, practice and creativity, you just might have yourself a big old piece of that sweet blog success pie.

Team Eminent SEO

Eminent SEO is an Arizona website services and strategic internet marketing company.

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How Does The “Page Layout Algo” Improvement Affect You?

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In an effort to optimize the user experience, our friends at Google have implemented yet another algorithmic change called “Page Layout Algo”. How does this affect you? Well put your seat back and we’ll get right to it:

As with most of Google’s algorithm changes, this alteration aids in the search for content that is relevant to the actual search being performed. We’ve all had the experience of clicking on a search result only to spend the next 5 minutes sifting through ads. The Page Layout Algo seeks to rectify this situation by ranking sites with a low amount of content “above the fold” lower than those that keep their above the fold ad space to a minimum. As a result, users are able to locate the content they’re searching for faster, and with less hassle. Direct and to the point.

Now before you go altering your current layout, you should know that the change does NOT affect the rankings of websites with above the fold ad placement to a “normal degree”. Rather, this alteration seeks to impact sites with excessive ad space, making it difficult to locate the content being searched for. Long story short: you will not be negatively affected by these changes unless your site has a large block of ads pushing down a small portion of relevant content.

Still having doubts? A recent outline from Google states The Page Layout Algo alteration will only affect less than 1% of global searches. If you are considering whether your site makes the grade, take a close look to see whether the pages on your site use above the fold ad space and whether or not the content found on those pages is difficult to locate. For a quick fix, consider utilizing Google’s browser size tool to determine how your site is presented to those viewing in alternate screen resolutions. If during your assessment you happen to find issues with your current layout and decide to make changes, the algorithm will assess and reflect them automatically once a re-crawl has been completed.

While above the fold ad placement is a wonderful way to monetize online content, there are ways to realize the benefits without falling victim to Google algorithm updates. If you’re looking for the best way to ensure an engaging user experience while optimizing ad space, your friends at Eminent SEO are here to help!  Contact us today to learn more!

Team Eminent SEO

Eminent SEO is an Arizona website services and strategic internet marketing company.

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Direct Response Consulting – A view from an Oldtimer

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Direct Response Consulting

When I first broke into the direct mail printing business as a printing broker I worked with many paper dragons like Readers Digest, Dreyfus Service Corporation, The Danbury Mint, Consumers Union (Consumers Report) and American Express just to name a few. This was when direct mail better known as “junk mail” and direct mail was king back in the early 1980’s. This was back in the Chicago heyday where there had to be 2-3 dozen big strong direct mail printers who used web presses rug at 2,200 feet per minute on a fast sheeter. Most of these companies were billing from $15 Million to $75 Million per year each.

We literally printed train loads of paper and converted the paper into “junk mail.” The reason why it was called “junk mail” was because 98% of it was thrown out. Hello landfills! It only took 2% of the mailed pieces to convert into orders to make a business go into the black. The interesting thing today is we have very similar parallels with the internet. If we can get 2% of people to respond to our website with a phone call or an e-mail or a 2% click through on a banner advertisement we usually have something. However the difference is the other 98% is not called “junk.” In
online the other 98% just doesn’t work!

In order to make the 2% conversion number go higher in the old direct mail days we changed a “black plate” on the press which usually was something like a simple copy change or a pricing change. We had to stop the press from going 2,200 feet per minute and make the change. This cost money and time, however it saved a ton of money if we could optimize the right price with the right offer. Many times we would change 200 plus plates on a single creative package and get them into the mail and wait for the responses. If the responses pulled well over 2% we had want we called a “rollout” and would print millions of pieces and drop them in the BRC’s (bulk mail centers) around the USA.

So here we (direct response consultants) are some 30+ years later, nothing and everything has changed! Black plate changes are a thing of the past. Today we change codes on web pages and 800#’s and run multiple landing pages at the drop of a hat. We can do this for minimal costs as well as in a few hours in some cases. A good example might be today where I have a client who has been successfully running Google Adwords and wants to test other search engines.

We are going to run some PPC traffic at Yahoo and Bing as well as start up a new Facebook PPC campaign. The Facebook campaign is more effort than redirecting the same Adwords traffic from Bing and Yahoo to the same website as Google sends traffic to. Since Facebook is a propriety walled garden platform we have to create a special landing page or “fan page” designed to convert the traffic. This effort does cost money and time and it would need to be run so that enough impressions are accumulated to make some smart decisions if this is the place to advertise, ideally 500,000 to 1 million impressions is a good sampling of Facebook traffic. Time will tell. I will alos tell you that direct mail still works just as well today as it did 30 years ago, however we now have the direct response know how to test online first before we us the more expensive direct mail services.

Here is a secret about Facebook, Facebook is probably the single greatest Direct Response Platform ever invented. The point to all of this long winded article is to test and track the people and how they use the Facebook Fan Page, (or any other media) this is direct response consulting whether it be in direct mail or in Facebook. If they, the users, take action (CPA) and give us the desired and measured results it is an area we will continue to re-invest in.

If you have any questions please call Jim Peake @ 781-990-8844. Thank you.

Jim Peake

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I <3 Pinterest, how about you?

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Maybe you’ve hopped on the ever-so-addicting bandwagon of a site, Pinterest?

If not it’s a must to check to out. The site essentially helps users catalog their passions- ranging from home decor, DIY projects, Geek Humor, to wedding and event planning. The possibilities are really endless. We’re all very visual people and the site makes it plain and simple to view a number of pictures in a matter of seconds and share with a plethora of friends in a matter of one button click.

Here are 5 Pinterest Pins about Pinterest:

(Shameless plug- Be sure to follow us here on Pinterest

Star Padilla

You could say I'm a chatter box with an eye for design. I'm what you’d call a digital strategist. Helping companies and individuals focus on making their businesses money while managing their social media platforms, content and audit their overall design/brand.

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New Media Marketing Questions You Should Be Asking

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Taking a fresh look at how best to implement SEO into your small business social media marketing strategy? Aiming to improve your Google and Bing organic rankings for your selected keywords? While it isn’t easy, there are a few common SEO-related questions you should be asking:

Is your web design up to date?
A well-designed, cutting edge web presence will engage readers, help your organic ranking and drive more traffic to your site, which will in turn increase your bottom line. If you’re hopelessly behind the times, talk to a web design firm that knows their stuff – you’ll see results.

Are you providing high quality blog content?
If you can’t write well, hire someone who can and pay them! Visitors who don’t find quality content will quickly continue clicking on through competitor sites until they find something worth reading. The most popular types of content for link sharing are “best-of” lists, video or text tutorials, and splashy infographics.

How much of your web traffic is actually converting?
Don’t waste time (and money!) competing for those high traffic keywords. Search and track keyword phrases which are less common and convert traffic to sales – that’s the whole point of web traffic anyway, right? It’s about quality, not quantity.

Are your keywords “key?”
Don’t waste time on global keywords if you’re a local business or utilize generic keywords which don’t prequalify interest. Rather, be as specific as you can and target a narrow client niche or location. Use location in keyword phrases, like “SEO Company Arizona”. Getting the people who are interested in what you’re selling, the specific info they need, that’s what created quality traffic that converts.

Are you optimizing for local visitors?
Optimizing your website for traffic in your own city or region means that search engines will handle searches differently than global searches, so include region or city specific keywords in your content, page titles and meta tag descriptions. You can also include city specific keywords in image file names.
Also include your address and local phone number on the header or footer on each page. Make sure these details match the info you have on your Google Places page. Don’t forget to register your business on Yelp and FourSquare with this same address and number too.

Are You Using Title Tags and Meta Descriptions?
Each web page on your site should have a unique title and focus on the keyword phrase which that  page is targeting. Carry your brand throughout your site while still focusing on specific keywords. A good working rule of thumb is Keyword Phrase | Company | Location or Keyword Phrase – benefit or unique value. Meta descriptions are a 160 character pitch for each page within search results, so include a compelling description which will trigger searchers to want to click on your listing in search results.

Are you using anchor text for internal links?
When you create internal links around your website, be sure to include specific keyword anchor text instead of generic calls to action such as “click here” or “read more” and the like. Google and the other search engines actually count internal links and use them to help determine what keywords your site should be ranking for in their result pages.

Are you switching up anchor text on all your backlinks?

Using identical anchor text repeatedly won’t fool the search engines! Select your target phrases (root keywords) and then find at least 10-20 good supporting secondary terms that include that root. Also, besides randomizing your keyword strategy, you can use “click here”, brand keywords, a direct URL link or other calls to action as your anchor text every once in a while to help keep your backlink portfolio looking natural.

We hope this helps! If you’re too busy, or this all seems like too much for one small business owner to handle, you can always consider outsourcing social media and search engine marketing. We’re here to help and we have solutions to fit every budget.

Star Padilla

You could say I'm a chatter box with an eye for design. I'm what you’d call a digital strategist. Helping companies and individuals focus on making their businesses money while managing their social media platforms, content and audit their overall design/brand.

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What was your fave Super Bowl XLVI Commercial ?

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Some of us watch the game for the pure sport while others watch for the pure commercial entertainment.
There were a bunch of great commercial’s this year and we want to hear what your favorites were?

Take a peak at the full collection of the Super Bowl XLVI commercials on YouTube, and share what you believe to be the best (and the worst) this year!

Team Eminent SEO

Eminent SEO is an Arizona website services and strategic internet marketing company.

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