SEO 101 Refresher Part 6: Page Optimization Best Practices

In my experiences, many people with a general level of exposure to search engine optimization believe on the page optimization is where the 'magic' happens. I'm here to tell you there isn't any magic, nor a silver bullet that will gain your web site the best search engine visibility. It's adhering to best practices and having a strategy formulated to cover your keywords that will make the difference in the long run, combined with the first five segments of this series.

Best Practices:

Try to use no more than 3-5 keywords on a given page.

Prioritize the keywords you have selected for the page.

Use the keywords in your title tag in a coherent fashion (your title tags play a large part in bringing in visitors from the search engines).

Use the keywords in your meta description tag in a coherent fashion (sometimes a search engine may choose to use the meta description you have provided in conjunction with your title tag).

Use the keywords in your meta keywords (do not spam your keywords tag with keywords that are not amongst those chosen for this page).

Use an h1 header tag to begin the content of your page which contains as many of your keywords as it makes sense to use (remember your prioritization).

The content on the page needs to use the keywords you have chosen. There is no density percentages to target, however it should be clear that this content is about the keywords you have chosen for this page. If you find that your becoming too repetitive with certain keywords, use synonyms.

Break up the logical flow of your content into segments and give each segment a sub-header (ie: h2, h3, etc.) where appropriate. If possible, you could have different paragraphs of text aimed at the keywords selected for the page and use sub-headings with those keywords. This format is very similar to college English term paper writing.

Whenever possible and prudent, link to other pages from within your content and use keywords for those pages when possible (avoid 'click here' links).

These are the fundamentals of SEO page optimization, that when carried out will help to provide a good understanding to the search engines, and especially your users, as to what the page is about.

Google Banning Sites That Use DMOZ Data...How Could They?

While perusing the WMW forum this morning...I came across a thread that peaked my interest - being that I am an active DMOZ editor...Google Banning Sites That Use Open Directory (DMOZ) Data

I am in favor of Google doing their best to "weed out" sites that have scraped DMOZ and skinned them for their own benefit (typically for SEO/link building purposes) to improve their SERPs...HOWEVER...how can Google ban someone's site when they do this themselves?

For example...Google Directory / DMOZ Directory

Makes no sense to me!

Privacy and Search Behavior

The collection and storage of personal information, both with regard to statistical demographic data and with regard to search history, has been of concern to privacy advocates for some time – but was brought into sharp focus when the government asked for URLs and search data this January. Here is an article on the initial subpoena

This request was part of an attempt to begin enforcement of the 1998 Child Online Protection Act, but sets a precedent which could be applied to the enforcement of other laws. In this case, the government did not request personal data, nothing that could link a particular search to a particular individual - but there is nothing really preventing them from doing so, or from search data being requested in a criminal court case. And as tools like Google Desktop, toolbars, and MSN’s Open Platform become more widely used, the degree to which search engines are integrated into people’s personal lives will increase.

Before you dismiss this as irrelevant to you - don’t be so sure pornography laws don’t apply to you – the recent case with photographer Barbara Nitke established that the most conservative communities in the US can determine the standards by which your Website is judged. Are you sure that your online maternity clothing store won’t be considered obscene by a community in Utah, even though you are in New York? But search information could easily be collected in other types of cases by the government – such as national security. Such a possible use was specifically mentioned by the government. Do you sell anything which might be used by terrorists? That’s pretty broad – anything from books to box cutters could qualify.

But in regard to SEO specifically:
The demographic information that helps you find your customers and clients, can also be used against them. As people become increasingly aware of this, they will become more cautious about actively protecting their privacy. They may become more hesitant to reveal personal information or sign up for memberships, wary of efforts to collect information about them, however harmless the intentions. They will clean off cookies and clear caches more often – making data collection and statistical analysis more difficult, The most sophisticated and wealthiest visitors to your site will be the most difficult to track.

In short, being aware of how the law effects search engines can help you understand and keep in touch with the concerns of your customers and clients. You will need to establish yourself as trustworthy, and secure – while at the same time being open enough that search engines can find you. It’s a balancing act.

A lot of people see the ruling regarding the subpoena as a victory for privacy. Google was only required to comply with it partially. However, the judge pointed out, information collected by search engines with regard to web surfing and search behavior is not protected, private information. What he did determine, is that Google’s users had enough of an expectation of privacy that to demand search data would risk their reputation in the eyes of users, so that it placed an undue burden on the company to provide info that was available to the government through other means. This was not a right that was upheld, but a commercial interest. Which is still a good thing, but not quite the same.

A .pdf of the actual ruling his here.

Google's Different Stances on Click Fraud

It seems Google has been confused internally over their capabilities to protect pay per click advertiser from click fraud.

In a recent article in Bloomberg CEO Eric Schmidt says:

Believe me, as a computer scientist, we have the ability to detect the invalid clicks before they reach advertisers.

But the Google Adwords FAQ says:

If we find that invalid clicks have escaped automatic detection, you'll receive a credit for those clicks.

And the Google blog says:

When we believe those clicks are invalid, we reimburse advertisers for them. Some invalid clicks do make it through our filters, but we believe the amount is very small.

I have to admit I find it humorous that Schmidt says to trust him, because of his PhD in computer science that invalid clicks don't reach advertisers then other PhDs at Google say that invalid clicks do reach advertisers. Also, does that mean that Google thinks that there aren't PhDs working against them? Or how about just really smart people who know how the system works and know enough about web technology to be dangerous?

It may have took PhDs to create the first atomic bomb for 'peace', but it doesn't take one to turn into a weapon of war.

SEO 101 Refresher Part 5: Link Building

Link building is one of the most confusing aspects of SEO for most people. Many don't realize that it's the links that provide the most weight in rankings for Google with Yahoo having less emphasis and MSN have even less than that. This is one of the reasons why you will more likely first see ranking in MSN, then Yahoo and finally Google.

Link building is the longest and most difficult process of SEO. Creating content is the second hardest. Why? Because, for the most part, who links to you is the part of SEO that you control the least. That's why Google relies on it as much as they do - its the least likely spot to be gamed. It can be done but it usually requires a great amount of resources and/or money.

Links fall into four categories:

1. Reciprocal linking. You exchange a link to a site for a link from their site to yours. More than likely, even if the site is similarly related, there will be very little gained from this kind of link. There are exceptions to this rule covered below.

2. Directory links. There are two kinds of directories:
a. 'Free For All' directories where there is not much of an editorial process and where many of the existing listings are scraped from other sites. This like has about as much quality as the standard reciprocal link.

b. Established editorial directories link The Open Directory Project (ODP or DMOZ) or Microsoft's bCentral that go through an established quality check. These are the best types of directory links. Note: The ODP is a unique directory in that Google pulls information directly from it. This may have an added bonus. A link from the ODP is highly desirable, but is by no means a silver bullet.

3. One way links. Links from relevant web sites to your own that you do not need to return are the standard link that most people seek out. Links from .edu domains and some established .org domains are more sought after than others.

4. Trusted site links. A 'trusted' site is one that Google recognizes as a special site which are usually well established and have a strict editorial process. For example, news publication sites often fit into this category. Why? For an article to be written a journalist has to research the story, talk to experts and witnesses and have their facts checked then have an editor approve the piece. Because of all of the quality check that happens that means that a link from a site of this nature is more likely to be the most legitimate.

Each of these types of links can and does play a role in most link programs. Trusted links however, are not normally achieved through a link building program but through an interactive public relations campaign. Often it takes public relations folks (or ex-journalists) to know how to pitch a site or a person for an article.

Out of the rest of link types, links from .edu and established .org domains are next on the list. They are usually difficult to get, which makes them carry more weight than standard links.

In addition to the type of links, the link text used will have a significant impact on rankings. Ideally you will want to change out your link text to focus on a diverse keyword list. If you sell shoes you may want to have different link text variations such as:

- Store X - Tennis Shoes, Walking Shoes, Cowboy Boots and Dress Shoes
- Reebok Shoes, Nike Running Shoes, New Balance Tennis Shoes from Store X
- Discount Brand Name Golf Shoes, Running Shoes and Bowling Shoes

To help the process along, link tools can be purchased to help find links, track submittals and track who links to you and who links to your competitors and not to you. Many can be found by doing simple searches in your favorite search engine.

In the end it will take time and persistence to obtain a solid link base. Zunch offers special link building programs that can make the difference in your rankings. Wether your domain is brand new or you have existed for years and are looking to secure your visibility Zunch can help, contact us today.

THE Click Fraud Detective...Jeff Martin

Our very own Click Fraud Detective Jeff Martin has made it into the news on Internet Retailer:

Google’s proposed click fraud settlement: a boon to some

Yet Another Example of Adsense Being Gamed by Click Fraud

Threadwatch broke a news bit about MySpace sites being setup using images of young attractive women to lure guys into going to specific web sites with instructions to "do me a favor" by clicking on their AdSense ads to make sure they work.

The one example site used appears to no longer be serving ads, however how hard is it to spend $8.00 to put another domain up with another MySpace area and start making more money again? What’s worse is that it looks like it took independent folks to point it out instead of Google's team discovering it on their own.

This in addition to news about Google possibly deleting blogs because bloggers ran MSN search makes for yet another day of bad PR for Google.