blogging 102

Reading time: 13 – 22 minutes Table of Contents I. Introduction II. Search Engines: A Brief History III. Web 2.0: The New Internet IV. Web 2.0: The Technical Landscape V. SEO Linking Strategy in Web 2.0 VI. Social Media Optimization: A Piece of the SEO Puzzle VII. Usability vs. Searchability: The RIA Search Challenge VIII. Googles Personalized Search: The End of Traditional SEO? IX. Search Behavior R&D: Customized Engines and Long Tail Keywords X. Conclusion References I. Introduction To those of us whose passion for the growth of the World Wide Web is exceeded only by the marketing possibilities that emerge from that growth, the Internet has become a playground for the imagination. There is a large number of marketers, however, who are fascinated by the Web but approach its marketing capabilities more out of necessity than lifestyle. The Internets capacity has advanced in so many areas in the past few years that marketers playing catch-up are at a significant disadvantage. Marketing... 

Reading time: 5 – 8 minutes The Negative Perception of SEO You hear a lot about the negative perception that many in the business world have of SEO. I think a lot of this is inevitable for any new industry just emerging. For years SEO has been relatively easy to jump into and “expert” SEO firms were known to appear overnight, only to disappear months later. I often cringe when reading forums where somebody with a online name of “SEOprophet” (I pulled this name out of my hat, I apologize if it’s yours!) asks a basic SEO question that not only has been asked and answered many times over the past few years but is completely irrelevant to the optimization process today. Many of these SEOs found ways to get businesses to lay down their money only to prove that they could not meet the expectations they portrayed they would. Expectations are a two way street and its important for any SEO to lay them out clearly and early so the client doesn’t think she’ll... 

Reading time: 4 – 7 minutes You hear all the time about bad SEOs. Bad SEOs are offering worthless services, failing to deliver on their internet marketing promises, polluting the search engine resultswell, a lot of bad things. But how much ever gets said about bad SEOs’ spiritual counterparts: bad SEO clients? As an SEO, I can see things from the other side of the table. You see, despite trying hard to make it clear I’m a good, ethical, results-oriented, smarter marketing, white-hat SEO, I have gotten no end of inquiries from bad prospective SEO clients. Sure, no one who gets cheated is ever entirely to blame, and some cheated businesses are entirely blameless. But the bad SEOs would have too small a market to stay in business if it weren’t for almost-as-bad clients. Shades of Bad SEO Clients First, let me make clear what I mean by bad SEOs. Bad SEOs are bad because they either do unethical things to get e-marketing results, or because they consistently fail... 

Reading time: 8 – 12 minutes There has been much debate recently on the practice of ethical Search Engine Optimization (SEO). The recent removal of a high profile SEO company from the Google results has plunged the industry into yet another debate on what is ethical and what is not in our profession. I have been involved in the SEO industry for a few years now and the mention of the word ethics and best practices in what is still an unregulated industry creates a level of confusion the likes of which I have not observed in any other industry. Why does this reluctance to discuss ethics and best practices exist? After all, we call ourselves professionals and as professionals we should strive to be part of an industry which stands for best practices and quality of service. The confusion seems to come from the way that search engines rank sites. Each search engine has an algorithm which is a complex method of giving a value to a site which will ensure that it is returned in the search... 

Reading time: 8 – 12 minutes What is natural search engine optimization (SEO)? Natural, or Organic, Search Engine Optimization (SEO). It’s a process of making your site more search engine friendly by optimizing the entire website design and content. Then the site will be visible in SERPs against optimized keywords or Key phrase. Why is SEO important? Search engine optimization is important for a number of reasons including: 36% of searchers attribute top organic position with brand quality 60% to 70% of all search traffic comes from organic listings 90% of organic search traffic is driven from the top five listings 62% of searchers view only one page of results before clicking (Jupiter Research) Having the No. 1 listing in both organic and paid search can increase click rates by three times How do natural search differ from paid search? The primary differences are: Paid search can be launched quickly. Natural search generally takes months to show a...