SEO Exposed

below is some of my early writing on traffic management, its pretty outdated but new stuff is coming

link to content management power software power point presentation How do I use SEO techniques for propper search engine marketing (SEM)

SEO and SEM are two of the catch phrases of the web 2.0 new millennium. You will hear the term thrown around a lot, often because its definition is broad or ambiguous and constantly changing. Basically it means, techniques used to boost your search engine “ranking”,  or where your website appear in search engine results. Also using your ranking and other factors to properly market yourself and increase visibility on the web. Studies show that around 80 percent of Google users do not go past the first ten-fifteen results. This has created an extremely aggressive market for obtaining this top position. Many SEO “experts” have often been given a bad reputation by the unethical use of what is called “black hat” techniques (taken from old westerns where bad guys wore black hats). They try and fool search engines through various methods into ranking them higher. This may have worked years ago to some extent, but currently this almost always hurts your ranking, as Google has been programmed to look for these tricks. This should be avoided altogether. The best idea is to stay up-to-date on what the “best practice” is for SEO, and stick to these guidelines. This is often called organic growth, because it is similar to watering a plant. Slowly and surely your work will pay off, but it will not work overnight. Any company that claims to be able to do this instantly is a fraud! Google warns against this, but many people get tempted by the allure of quick results. This never works and these people stole your money. As with everything on the internet and the business world itself, one must use discretion as to how to market and who to work with. The two most important practices of SEO follow.

Quality Written Content

Google as well as most respected SEO agencies agree that QUALITY CONTENT, is the number one way to boost your site. This means lots of relevant, original TEXT as well as rich media. Most importantly, lots of written quality TEXT. Relevant and original text is the most effective for boosting your ranking. Quality content is like food for search engines, they gobble it up when they see it, displaying you in their search results. Often an experienced SEO who also has talent in writing can help provide this content. It is good to keep in mind many things when writing this material. In addition to relevancy, the KEYWORDS and KEY PHRASES that the text will be centered on and keyword density is also important, though a mistake is made when this becomes the focus of the article. This begins to detract from the quality of the content. Usually if one is writing quality content that is focused on the subject, it will naturally have an acceptable keyword density. Google uses extremely advanced mathematical algorithms to look for this kind of content. They keep the heart of these mathematical expressions top secret, though much of it is revealed to the public. There are also many other white hat approaches to working with text including, using bold, italics, the use of heading or h1 tags and other titles. An experienced SEO will know all of this. Again, it is wise to only use the most current and ethical best practices for search engine optimization as this has proved to the be the most effective. There is no substitute for hard work to create a rich and deep site, with quality, relevant well written content.

Links, and Link Building

Another Central SEO theme is the use of linking and Link Building. Generally speaking Google and Yahooconsiders a link from one site to another as a vote from site A to B, though Search Engines do more then tally up all the votes for one specific site, they analyze the quality of the site the inbound link is coming from, its relevancy to the subject and so many more factors kepy top secret in Silicon Valley. Search engine robots often find sites by “crawling” from site to site using links as the web that connects sites together. Inbound links are considered to be the best for your search engine ranking, as they are viewed by search engines as a “vote” from that site for yours. Many factors come into play as to the “importance” of this vote, including whether this link is reciprocated (viewed as link exchange, still very good but not as good), as well as if the site is a good or “bad neighborhood” , if this site is a very low ranking site, spam site or link farm this will not mean much. Another thing to consider when reaching for inbound links is whether or not the linking web page is relevant to your site. If you have a site about computer chips and a gardening site is linking to you, it will not carry as much weight.
Now that we have inbound links covered, link exchange and outbound links are also worth mention. Link exchange can be implemented by sending out emails to other webmasters requesting link exchange, “I’ll link to you if you link to me” type of deal. You will be surprised how often this is successful, boosting both site’s ranking in the process. Another way to encourage this is by setting up a link exchange partnership program on your website where people can come to you with proposals, this can also be automated with the use of JavaScript. Simply having a large database of relevant links, to “important sites” will be good food for search engine spiders, as they view your site as a valuable resource or directory in which people can find good information.. When doing this, a good idea is to not make this page extremely visible or flashy on the site so people don’t go directly to it and leave your site. Another good idea is to have any outbound links on your site open in a new window.
That’s it for now folks, I use many tools in SEO in addition to morals, quality writing skills, and in-depth knowledge. I also use the Fire Fox add-on SEO Quake, Web CEO, and Google Analytics. These are basically the industry standard of SEO tools and most anything outside of that is not only extraneous but dubious. Pat yourself on the back for reading this through to the end, I tried to make it concise and dense with valuable information. There is still much left uncovered, and this section will be constantly evolving as the internet constantly involves as well.

Here is Googles advice on choosing and SEO

Talk to many SEOs, and ask other SEOs if they’d recommend the firm you’re considering.
References are a good start, but they don’t tell the whole story. You should ask how long a company has been in business and how many full time individuals it employs. If you feel pressured or uneasy, go with your gut feeling and play it safe: hold off until you find a firm that you can trust. Ask your SEO firm if it reports every spam abuse that it finds to Google using our spam complaint form at http://www.google.com/contact/spamreport.html. Ethical SEO firms report deceptive sites that violate Google’s spam guidelines.
Make sure you’re protected legally.
For your own safety, you should insist on a full and unconditional money-back guarantee. Don’t be afraid to request a refund if you’re unsatisfied for any reason, or if your SEO’s actions cause your domain to be removed from a search engine’s index. Make sure you have a contract in writing that includes pricing. The contract should also require the SEO to stay within the guidelines recommended by each search engine for site inclusion.
What are the most common abuses a website owner is likely to encounter?
One common scam is the creation of “shadow” domains that funnel users to a site by using deceptive redirects. These shadow domains often will be owned by the SEO who claims to be working on a client’s behalf. However, if the relationship sours, the SEO may point the domain to a different site, or even to a competitor’s domain. If that happens, the client has paid to develop a competing site owned entirely by the SEO.
Another illicit practice is to place “doorway” pages loaded with keywords on the client’s site somewhere. The SEO promises this will make the page more relevant for more queries. This is inherently false since individual pages are rarely relevant for a wide range of keywords. More insidious, however, is that these doorway pages often contain hidden links to the SEO’s other clients as well. Such doorway pages drain away the link popularity of a site and route it to the SEO and its other clients, which may include sites with unsavory or illegal content.
What are some other things to look out for?
There are a few warning signs that you may be dealing with a rogue SEO. It’s far from a comprehensive list, so if you have any doubts, you should trust your instincts. By all means, feel free to walk away if the SEO:
owns shadow domains
puts links to their other clients on doorway pages
offers to sell keywords in the address bar
doesn’t distinguish between actual search results and ads that appear in search results
guarantees ranking, but only on obscure, long keyword phrases you would get anyway
operates with multiple aliases or falsified WHOIS info
gets traffic from “fake” search engines, spyware, or scumware
has had domains removed from Google’s index or is not itself listed in Google
If you feel that you were deceived by an SEO in some way, you may want to report it.
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) handles complaints about deceptive or unfair business practices. To file a complaint, visit: http://www.ftc.gov/ and click on “File a Complaint Online,” call 1-877-FTC-HELP, or write to:
Federal Trade Commission
CRC-240
Washington, D.C. 20580

SEO Video Tutorial – Goals in Analytics – #21

Nick and James take a look at Google’s wonder wheel, Goals in Google analytics and a article from search engine land. The full blog post can be found at www.crearecommunications.co.uk

SEO Link Building

SEO Link Building Video find out more about link building from Ianson at www.internet-marketing-ianson.com

Hiring the Perfect SEO Staff From a Business Process Outsourcing Company

Are you trying to look for the perfect Search Engine Optimization SEO staff from a Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) Company as a business solution? Not certain how to get one? And if you do, how will you recognize when you have found the perfect SEO Staff? SEO is not something you do one time and then it’s all done, you have to continue executing it and keep developing methods to improve what you have gotten along. Just like any variety of marketing the goals and the formulas are continuously shifting about.

Search engine optimization is the word of mouth and any small or big business must achieve to beat up the top of Search Engine lists. However, you could pay SEs like Yahoo, Google and MSN for a sponsor link, but generally the strength of this approach is expensive and a lot of businesses discovered the competitive secret tool of hiring and outsourcing SEO staff, IT Staff and is by far more economical and effective. Naturally, you as a beginner in the world of Search Engine Optimization you do not have the tools to really distinguish from the skilled SEO Staff and the one who could use up your money just to merely do substandard processing or black hat SEO.

Now here are some points you can take to guarantee you’re on the right path and get the best from the rest:

A perfect Outsourcing SEO Staff Company will guide you on the whole process. They will discuss and work with you the terms used in SEO in its simplest language and not only serve to reach the lead but let you realize how you will get there too. A search engine optimization BPO Company is worth its fee. It offers not only to adopt an existing web site but as well progress a web site from its foundation and base upward. There should be samples of projects available and the general total appearance of the web sites developed should be professional, usable, and focus on its business’ requirements and goals. A good and well experienced SEO Staff from a trusted Business Process Outsourcing Company will really not cost you anything in the long run as it will measure to add exposure and increased traffic hits which successively gain more revenue from your site. SEO work in truth demands a full time line of work. You could tell that you will only get somebody on staff full time rather than hiring an SEO staff from a BPO company. But do you believe that you’ll be able to save up money? To employ someone of your search engine promotional campaigns will need anywhere from 40 – 50k or more than annually. And in that respect are health benefits, retirement plans, holiday and sick time to consider with. Right away, you’ll be able to hire an SEO company like RemoteStaff.com.au that will effectively set up your search engine promotional efforts and work it for you starting at only $4-8 per hour or $800-$1600 per month or $9,600 per year, and you don’t pay for holidays and sick pay from their offered IT offshore outsourcing services. That’s real savings for your business! Perfect SEO staff for your business site is more than barely getting an individual who can collect a site and do it advantageously in the search engine rankings. Rather, it represents an investment that lets in a program for future development and should embrace a long term business relationship. An effective and well experienced SEO Staff will submit your web site wisely. They will carry grading reports that tells you precisely where you are placed in several Search Engines and if you are badly positioned, good SEO Staff will make essential readjustments then submit again. An expert SEO Staff won’t simply resubmit just for the sake of submitting. Because if you have respectable placement in a search engine for a specific keyword, and so it is advisable not to resubmit and allow things the same. A good and well experienced SEO Staff will submit to the top web sites manually and don’t trust on automated software programs because almost top search engines don’t like automatic submission and be branded as Spam. Experienced SEO Staff will not merely furnish you on elaborated ranking reports that will indicate where you are placed on several search engines, but will furnish you with site traffic reporting. This kind of coverage will present what kind of traffic you are getting and where it’s coming from. This type of information is highly crucial and will assist you to effectively appraise your Return on Investment. A good outsourced SEO Staff supports on new trends in the Search Engine industry. They will build important modifications to your web pages or your effort to adapt these alterations so you do not drop off rankings. This is an ongoing procedure that never ends. It is a full time work just continuing with the entire changes and transitions that progress.

Should you practice it yourself?

If you have enough time, so it is strongly advice executing your own SEO and to begin you should be able to read much about SEO stuff. Sounds like a lot of work? If you would be in favor to focus more of your efforts on working your business then an experienced SEO staff from a trusted Business Process Outsourcing Company is the perfect answer.

Conclusion

There are numerous reasons why your business should hire an expert search engine optimization staff from a BPO Company instead of simply giving the SEO work to a novice existing team member. Hence, it is highly suggested that you hire a professional SEO staff from a trusted Business Process Outsourcing Company if you would like to achieve the top of search engine results. It is advantageously worth the money you will spend likewise the serenity knowing that someone else is professionally caring for your rankings.

PR: wait… I: wait… L: wait… LD: wait… I: wait… wait… C: wait… SD: wait…

Expert SEO – How to Spot Reputable SEO Firms and Avoid the Scams

Choosing a reputable SEO Firm can be daunting, with so little knowledge available on what to look for. So the goal of this article is to give you the four key scams to watch out for, when searching for a reputable SEO Firm:

SEO WANNA-BE’S

Search engine optimization is one of those unknown fields that has no established standards. Anyone can say they are an SEO or can do SEO work, but that does not mean they have the talent, time or tools to produce any results. There are also programs that claim to help search engine ranking. They do not work either. Period.

An easy way to spot an unknowledgeable SEO or a web designer who poses as an SEO is to ask them if they optimized your site when they designed it. They will answer, “Oh yeah, I optimized it.”

That is equivalent to saying, “Oh yeah, I’ve been worked out.” Working out and SEO are never one time events. They are always on-going projects.

SEO SUBMISSION SCAMS

A lot of companies will also call people and tell them that they will submit their sites to 2000 directories, which will build their search engine ranking. It is a form of link campaigning–albeit lopsided and one-dimensional. The problem with these “auto-submissions” is that the directories to which they are submitting have safe-guards in place to reject these kinds of mass submissions. Now, here is the scam: the company has technically done what they promised they would do, SUBMIT your site, even though 99% of those submissions will be rejected and thus be of no use to building a client’s search engine ranking.

SEO KEYWORD SCAMS

Another prevalent scam in the industry is for SEOs to try to gull you into letting them pick the phrases to dominate. For instance, say you are real estate agent and your website is: www. MollyLynnMorganRealEstate .com

A scam SEO will come to you and say, “We can get you a #1 ranking for ‘Molly Lynn Morgan Real Estate.” They can probably do that for you. Unfortunately, none of your potential clients are going to Google and typing in that phrase.

More sophisticated SEOs will come to you and tell you, “I will try to get you the ranking ‘Real Estate in Middle Tennessee.’” That sounds like a wonderful phrase to dominate, but their data has told them that no legitimate SEOs are going after that phrase; because, again, while it might sound good, very few people are actually typing that in. People are actually most often using either ‘Nashville Real Estate’ or ‘Nashville Tennessee Real Estate.’

What a legitimate SEO will do (like we do here at Nashville SEO Info) is to show you the actual data. We will show you the exact numbers of how many people per month are searching for the product or services you offer and what exact keyphrases they are typing in. We won’t go after any of the silly phrases above. We will show you the data AND LET YOU CHOOSE!

BLACK HAT SEO

There are short cuts that can be used to quickly build a ranking. These shortcuts involve “spammy” techniques that are referred to as Black Hat SEO. One of these techniques includes overloading a website with keywords. This works temporarily, but once the Google algorithm figures out what the site is doing, they will banish the site to what is referred to as “Google hell.” This simply means that the site is marked to never be allowed to have a good ranking in the system.

SEOs will sometimes do this because it is the easier than doing the work the honest way. In the long run, the hard, honest way is more effective and far more safe, but it does take longer. A few years ago BMW of Germany hired an SEO firm. This SEO firm applied some black hat techniques and Google found out. BMW of Germany was banished to Google hell and the auto giant spent the next few years and millions of dollars wooing Google to allow them back in to the system. Google finally agreed, but unless you have millions of dollars and the power of a automotive giant, you have to be careful to choose a Reputable SEO Firm.

Part 2 — Internet Marketing With, SEO, youtube, Myspace, Facebook, RSS Feeds and More.

www.UndergroundTrainingLab.com In early 2008 I spoke at the Secret Society of Traffic and Conversion Seminar for my friends Buck Rizvi and Brock Felt. The attendees paid thousands to be there but I’m sharing my 3 hour presentation from the seminar with you for free. I outlined the social networking and web 2.0 strategies that I personally use to drive tons of traffic to build my list and make more sales. I covered dozens of topics including, but not limited to, internet marketing, creating a …

How to Get Affordable SEO Services?

What are affordable SEO services? If you are looking for SEO services these prices may range from as little as $200 a month to $5000 a month. There are several different factors that affect the amount of work and quality of search engine optimization services you sign up for.

Cheap SEO services: Ironically, the cheaper the services, the higher the promises will be. Such as ‘Get ranked #1′, ‘Get ranked in a week’, ‘Guaranteed 1st page rankings within in a month’. This may sound good and is not actually false advertising. You might notice, that when an SEO company promises guaranteed first page rankings, they are saying what keyword or keywords your website will show up for. In fact, your website shows up #1 by default if your domain name is searched for. For example, if your website’s name is ‘www.discountpetsupplies.com’ you are likely to show up #1 for discount pet supplies. Additionally, if your website domain name does not match what you do, it is easy to have your website show up on the top page of google for an obscure keyphrase that does not match your business. Additionally, there are additional free utilities that will show what your website shows up in Google for in the first or second page. It is very likely that your website already shows in the first or second page in Google for an obscure word or phrase that you are not aware of.

What do Search Engine Optimization services include?: When a company is providing SEO services, it can include internal website search engine optimization, external SEO services, or both! Excluding scam SEO services that are extremely cheap, SEO services may also be cheap because it only includes optimization work performed on a website. This means that your website may be structured to target specific key phrases both in the back-end code of your website and the content. However, this is what is called, ‘partial SEO’. This level of service is partial because it does not include link building. What is link building you ask? Google evaluates every single website in the world that has a link or hyperlink that points to your website. This is Google’s and other search engine’s primary ranking system for determining the popularity and worth of your website. Without including link building, your SEO campaign is not complete and will not be successful.

How long do SEO services take to work?: Successful consistent rankings and results can only be achieved by signing up for at least 3 months of service! The reason for this is because Google will visit and evaluate every website in the work once a month on average. The frequency of visits for major search engines depends on your website’s ranking. If you are starting SEO services for the first time, it is likely that Google will only visit your website for changes twice or three times in the course of a few months. Lately, however, major search engine have been making frequent changes to their ranking strategies to better accommodate for filtering out more spam tactics and rewarding websites that are properly SEO’ed higher! Keep in mind, with these frequent changes, your website could see a down-turn in results if Google makes a major change soon after you discontinue your search engine optimization services. With that in mind, your SEO services should be a long term solution, that continue providing your increase rankings, traffic, and revenue for years to come. SEO services are a marketing tool, if this marketing tool is used correctly, it is the best way to spend money in order to make more money.

How much should SEO services cost?: A complete Seo services package that includes month to month website optimization, link building, and monthly reporting and analysis will cost between 500. and 5000. a month. The reason for this broad range in pricing is the amount of work needed to make your website perform well against the competition. Depending on what your idea, services, product(s), or services are, your website may be very unique or may have a lot of competition. For example, the real estate and legal industries have thousands of competitive websites and therefore require the maximum amount of SEO work to achieve successful rankings. Most SEO companies will offer three levels of SEO services based on that amount of work that is needed to properly rank your services. If you happen to have a niche product that has a unique name, it would take minimal SEO efforts to help you rise to the top and stay on top.

Case Study: An SEO services firm in Austin provided a court reporting firm with complete search engine optimization services for a few years. This firm reaped the rewards from top placement until several more competitors came into play. The firm was suddenly faced with stagnant results. This Austin SEO services company offered to double the level of SEO services being provided from a basic level of service to larger level of service. This particular company was hesitant to increase their website marketing budget but realized the reality of competition is they wanted to remain competitive.

Basic level Search Engine Optimization packages may run between 500. and 1500. Mid-level or professional Seo service packages may run between 1000. and 2000. High-level or premium seo service packages may run between 2000. and 5000. First step is to select the level of Seo service needed to your business website to be successful. The second step in the process is to evaluate your SEO company. Find out what specific tasks are performed, the companies success and testimonials, and make sure your seo provider understands your business and services when you speak to them in person or on the phone.