When Everyone Gets The Vote: Social Shares As The New Link Building. To understand how Google became the world’s most popular search engine, think of it as a giant vote counting machine. That’s why there’s so much attention these days on Google’s competition with Twitter and Facebook. They’re the new, popular ways that people are voting for things they like, casting ballots that Google can’t easily count. Search 1.0: Counting Words On The Page Let’s go back to the beginning of web-based search engines. I’ve referred to this as Search 1.0, and it was a system that was easy to game. Search 2.0: Counting Links & Other Off-The-Page Factors Google ushered in what I’ve called Search 2.0, a system of ranking pages by looking at factors about the quality and content of those pages that weren’t on the pages themselves. In particular, Google looked at how people linked to a page.
PageRank & Links As Votes Google’s method of counting all those links, and deciding how much credit should be given for them, is called PageRank. Problems With The Link-Based Election. Link Building From Scratch. With Google's Penguin knocking out some sites to the extent that webmasters are deciding it's better to start from scratch, many people are wondering how to formulate a link plan that will quickly bring them back to where they were ranking before. Site owners are scrambling to clean up link messes after receiving warnings or just erring on the side of caution. This bears a great question: is there a template for starting from scratch, link-wise? I think that there is, of course, just as there are things you need to do to make your site perform at its best. To get started, let's talk quickly about two free systems that I view as critical for any site: Google's Webmaster Tools and Analytics.
While some may argue that giving Google information is a bad idea, if you plan to count on Google for anything at all, you need to be in synch with how they view your site, period. Directory Links When I first started doing SEO, directories were a must. My opinion? Blogroll Links Sitewide Links Text Links. 17 Types of Link Spam to Avoid. If the last few months of ranking changes have shown me anything, it's that poorly executed link building strategy that many of us call white hat can be more dangerous than black-hat strategies like buying links.
As a result of well intentioned but short-sighted link building, many sites have seen significant drops in rankings and traffic. Whether you employ link building tactics that are black, white, or any shade of grey, you can do yourself a favor by avoiding the appearance of link spam. It's become very obvious that recent updates hit sites that had overly aggressive link profiles. The types of sites that were almost exclusively within what I called the "danger zone" in a post about one month before Penguin hit. I was only partially correct, as the majority of cases appear to be devalued links rather than penalties. 1. While not technically a form of link building, 301 "cleansing" domains are a dynamic of link manipulation that every SEO should understand. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. Link Building Means Earning "Hard Links" Not "Easy Links" For ages, Google has encouraged people to build links in order to rank well.
But in the wake of the Google Penguin Update, it’s become painfully clear to me how many people have failed to understand the inherent quality links part of that link building message. Consider this a wake-up call. Yes, you want links, but links that are hard to get, that take effort to obtain, that you’ve somehow earned, not “easy links.” Yesterday, at our SMX Advanced show, I went on a rant about this. All my frustration recently that so many seem so confused just bubbled out. You can listen to that below, if you like (the picture isn’t of me but rather Jeremy Bencken, who recorded my rant): Consider this article the tamer, more coherent version of my rant. You Want Links Meant For Humans, Not Google A comment last month here on Search Engine Land articles really drove this point home with me. I wouldn’t submit to directories just because they’re directories.
I’ve bolded the key part. I Blame Google! Ex-Googler: "To Please Google With Your SEO, Forget About SEO" It’s not everyday you get to hear from someone that’s worked on Google’s Search Quality/Webspam team and isn’t named Matt Cutts. But Andre Weyher, whose LinkedIn profile lists a two-year stint as a member of the search quality team, recently spoke with James Norquay, a search/digital marketer based in Australia, and shared some interesting comments that may — and I’ll say more about this below — help search marketers and webmasters understand a little better how Google views certain SEO strategies and tactics. NOTE: Before publishing, we asked Google for a comment on this story. It declined.
A day after publishing, Google got in contact to say that Weyher “didn’t work on webspam engineering or algorithms at Google” and said it found inaccuracies in what he said. The postscript below has Google’s full statement. Weyher explains that each person on the search quality team covers a certain “market” or “specialization.” On Link Building “…don’t dismiss directories completely. On On-page SEO. Google Link Disavow Tool: The Complete Guide. Google has finally released their link disavow tool enabling webmasters to report inorganic inbound links for their domains. This document contains a step-by-step guide with screenshots and a list of best practices including potential problems associated with the use of the tool. Download PDF of this guide. What is the link disavow tool? The tool allows you to disavow unnatural inbound links for a domain verified in your Google Webmaster Tools.
“If you believe your site’s ranking is being harmed by low-quality links you do not control, you can ask Google not to take them into account when assessing your site.” What are inorganic links? Google uses links as one of their ranking signals and they want them to occur naturally. How did I end up with inorganic links? You may have created some yourself or perhaps your SEO company did. Examples of Inorganic Links Here are some examples where inorganic links may appear: The above examples typically exhibit characteristics of manipulative anchor text. Using AdWords Data for SEO: Unlocking the Ultimate Keyword Research Treasure Trove (Arrrgh!!) Ahoy, SEOmoz UGC blog lubbers! In honor of International Talk Like a Pirate Day, today's post will show you how to unlock a secret treasure trove of SEO keyword research data from your own company’s AdWords account! Avast! Great SEO always starts with great keyword research – unfortunately, getting high-quality, actionable keyword data can sometimes be challenging for several reasons: Google’s keyword tool is an undependable source – it doesn’t always provide complete, accurate data.
For these and many other reasons, mining your existing Google AdWords campaign data can be incredibly helpful in determining keyword targets for SEO. In my article today, I’ll show you how to unlock a secret treasure trove of SEO keyword research data from your own company’s AdWords account! Keywords vs. Before diving in, I’d like to first call attention to an important distinction in PPC regarding the difference between keywords and search queries. Arrr Now Surrrrrender the Booty! Arrrr.... Google Lucky Number 7 – Differences in New Google SERP across Retail, Finance and Technology. What do 26,000 keywords tell us about the latest Google 7 change and the new Google SERP?
As the Google SERP continues to evolve and brands aim to increase their control over search results, the emergence of a new type of SERP has interesting implications for SEO Managers. Since August, Google has been serving for some keywords, SERPs with 7 organic listings, instead of the usual 10 listings as discussed in 7 Is The New 10? Google Showing Fewer Results & More From Same Domain. This fits in with what Google says is its ultimate goal – “Overall, our goal is to provide the most relevant results for a given search query as possible.” While this change has caused an expected uproar from many a marketer, a large opportunity presents itself for brands that invest in universal search techniques.
Now that the ‘dust has settled,’ so to speak, I want to walk you through these changes and explain what this means to a search marketer. In this article, I will cover: 1. 2. 3. 4. Keep two things in mind. SEO Should Be Invisible. Posted by Adam Audette | April 4, 2012 | 25 comments Or, put another way, ‘over-optimization’ is synonymous with ‘no real business model’. In many ways, the message of an “over-optimization penalty” by Google is their way of saying you’re doomed without a real business model. In another sense, it sends the message that SEO is important enough that you have to get it right. SEO should be taken seriously, and hackneyed work won’t cut the mustard. How We Approach SEO Our approach to SEO has always emphasized that it should be deliberately unnoticeable.
First, make the best user experience possible. SEO should be an invisible layer beneath a strong user experience, a beautiful site, and a clear, coherent message and purpose. SEO should be invisible. This makes the risk of falling to an over-optimization penalty simple to avoid. ‘Over-optimization’ May Not Be New Keep It Simple. Really, it’s nothing new. SEO is simple. SEO is simple.