Paid and Organic Search Work Hand in Hand
It’s very common for fans of organic traffic to argue with fans of paid traffic. The two schools of thought are almost diametrically opposed. But are they really so different? Recent research has shown that not only are they not on different sides of the spectrum, but they actually vastly complement one another.
Using both paid and organic search in conjunction results in more than just the sum of its parts. In other words, you’ll get more results from using both together than you would if you just added up the results from both separately.
Taking Two Spots Builds Credibility
People are used to equating brands with having multiple spots. If someone sees that you hold the top spot in both the organic listing and in the paid listings, they automatically assume that your site is more credible. After all, your rank at the top – Twice.
If you search for major brands like Macys, Match.com or Amazon, you’ll find that they almost always appear in both the organic listings and in the search results. People have seen this often enough that they link seeing this dual appearance to having a quality brand.
What is Fresh Content & Why It’s Important – Google’s Algo Change
In the past, Google’s algo has been good – but not great – at figuring out which search terms are time sensitive. When a search term is time sensitive, the Google algorithm treats it differently than if it’s a static keyword. Static keywords are ranked based on how many backlinks they’ve generated over the lifetime of the page. On the other hand, new content is ranked differently – by how relevant the new content is to searchers who’re looking for time sensitive information.
Recently, Google has updated their freshness algorithm. Thanks to the new algo change, Google searches are now much more likely to be affected by the freshness filter. In fact, a whopping 35% of all searches are likely to be affected by the recent change.
How does this affect you and your website?
Covers Events in Real Time
Google’s new algorithm includes literally up-to-the-minute updates. That means that Google knows what’s most recent and what’s going on in the world, down to the minute.
This gives a huge boost to sites that do up to the minute blogging and event coverage. For example, during Mac World, many sites will cover exactly what’s going on, as it’s going on, through their wireless devices.
The same has been done at major political movements and other such events.
If you can cover a news event or in person conference in a similar manner, you stand a very good chance of ranking for time-related searches.
Update Your Content 
Google’s new filter can tell when the results of search terms are supposed to rotate.
For example, take a keyword like “Breaking Bad Trailer.” Last year, the trailer might have been the one for Season 5. However, this year the right trailer to show is the one for Season 6. In the past, Google might have ranked the Season 5 one higher because it had more backlinks. Today however, the changed Google algo knows that users are looking for timely information and will rank the more recent one instead.
Likewise, let’s say you have a site about fishing poles. If you make sure to update the website regularly with information about the latest fishing poles, you’re much more likely to get ranked than if you let the information slowly get stale.
Keep your information up to date. The new Google algo knows when users are looking for fresh content. You definitely want to fall under that category.
Title Tag Optimization: 15 Super Tips to Optimize your Title Tags
Getting your title tag right is the most important factor of your on-page SEO. Having a great title tag helps search engines figure out what your website is about and rank you properly. It also helps users who are browsing search results figure out what your website is about and decide whether or not they want to click on your website.
Here are the most important Do’s and Don’ts when it comes to title tag optimization. Following these tips will help make your site both user friendly and more search engine friendly.
1. Use a Unique Title Tag for Each Page 
Many sites use the exact same page title for several pages in their website. This is a terrible idea. Having specific keywords you’re targeting with each and every page will help you maximize the exposure your site gets in general. Make sure you optimize your title tags to ensure that you have a unique title for every single page on your site.
2. Embed Keywords in a Phrase
Rather than using just your main keyword in your title tag, it’s much better to embed the keyword within a phrase.
For example, instead of “lose weight,” a much more effective keyword would be “How to Lose Weight for Women Under 35.”
This will help you get traffic from more specific search terms. Also, you reduce the likelihood that Google sees you as keyword spamming.
3. Use Power or Action Words
Use power words or action words. For example, instead of just “How to Lose Weight,” try “How to Lose Weight Quickly” or “How to Shed Pounds in Weeks.”
These words sound more active and capture more attention. This helps attract reader attention and helps with Google rankings as well. One thing Google tracks to determine where your site should rank is how often users click on your result versus all the other results – By using more active words, you’ll get more clicks and thus more rankings.
4. Place Your Main Keywords in the Beginning
Keywords that appear in the beginning of the title tag are weighed more heavily than keywords near the back. Place your main keywords in the beginning and everything else towards the end of the html title tag.
5. Use a Pipe or Hyphen to Separate Keywords
If you’re using multiple keywords when optimizing your title tag, use a pipe (|) or hyphen (-) to separate them. For example, “Lose Weight | Low calorie Foods.” Don’t let your keywords run into each other.
6. Specify the Acronym
If people are likely to search for your site by the acronym, make sure it’s included when you optimize your title tag. For example, instead of just making your title “Better Business Bureau,” make it “Better Business Bureau (BBB).”
7. Use Numbers to Get Clicks 
One proven method of getting more people to click on your content is to use a number, preferably a large one, in your title tag. For example, “101 Healthiest Foods to Eat” or “44 Little-Known Fatty Foods to Avoid.”
How Panda, Siri & Bing Changed the Face of SEO in 2011
2011 has been a big year for search. In the past, Google has traditionally updated their search algorithms slowly and steadily. Likewise, the competition also traditionally changed their algorithm slowly. This year however, was different. All the search engines rolled out major game-altering changes.
Here are some of the most significant events of the year.
Google Panda Update
Perhaps the most impactful update of all was Google’s Panda update. Google’s Panda updated rolled out several important changes at once. The update itself is named after a Google engineer, whose actual last name is Panda.
One change was that Google implemented artificial intelligence into their ranking factors. In the past, the AI technology was already there, but it would have been too expensive and processor intensive to run on all their search queries. With the Panda update however, new algorithms made it possible to use AI on all their searches.
Using artificial intelligence, Google Panda can now decide whether or not a site is a high quality site, much like a human would. It can gauge design, gauge content quality and gauge a large number of other factors to determine whether or not a site deserves to rank.
Panda also takes into account social media metrics. Things like the number of links you have, the number of tweets you have and the number of votes you have on sites like Reddit and StumbleUpon. It can gauge whether people are saying positive or negative things, as well as the authority of the people tweeting about you.
Finally, Panda also increases the emphasis on site metrics. That means things like bounce rate, return rate, length of stay, etc all play a part in your rankings.
The Google Freshness Update
In addition to updating their overall search algorithm, Google also updated their algorithm for searches that relate to time sensitive information.
For example, if you typed in the name of someone who was mentioned in a newspaper article, it’s much more likely that you’ll be able to access that article or recent information about that person, rather than their static LinkedIn profile.
Google estimates that this will affect about 35% of their searches.
Ten Things Google Has Recently Changed in their Search Algorithm
Search engines are always changing their algorithms. As SEO professionals break down the algorithms, new algorithms are written. Search engines aim to change with the times and be able to use new media and new technology to their advantage.
Though the panda update was by far the most important update over the last two years, many smaller changes have been taking effect. Here are ten recent algorithm changes that you should be aware of.
1. Translated Content:- If you’re using a language that Google doesn’t have many results for, (i.e. Icelandic, Serbian, Swahili, etc,) Google will automatically translate the English results and display those alongside with native language results. In other words, if you type in “How to build a bed” in Swahili and there are no good Swahili results, a translated English website will be listed.
2. Better Date Range Results:- Google now pays a lot more attention to search queries that deal with specific date ranges. For example, if you wanted to find tornado news only between Jan and March in 2011, Google’s results will help you do that.
3. Official Page Ranking:- Google now uses special algorithms to determine what is truly an official page. Official pages will almost always outrank non-official pages now. In other words, Google can now tell that the official site of “Cousineart Blender 5500” is the Cousineart main site, not the affiliate review or the Amazon websites.
4. Better Snippet Crawling:- In the past, Google’s snippet crawling technology might have picked up irrelevant content or content that just wasn’t representative of the whole text. Today, Google’s snipping technology is improved so that snippets and descriptions would pick up the most ideal snippet to represent the website.
5. Better Instant Search for Hebrew, Arabic & Russian:- In these languages, multiple keystrokes are often necessary to create one character. The instant search / autocomplete featured used to try and autocomplete unfinished words, which resulted in results that made no sense. This has been fixed.
9 Common Mistakes Business Owners Make in Google Local Listings
Most people who run small local businesses haven’t spent much time studying internet marketing. As a result, they often make mistakes.
These mistakes could be small and simply result in lower rankings or appearing less professional However, more costly mistakes could result in your listing not appearing in Google entirely.
Here are nine of the most common ways business owners mess up their Google local rankings.
#1 – Placing Directions in the Address
If you add directions like “between the red and blue building” in your address, Google won’t be able to tell where you really are.
Google’s mapping technology only understands real addresses. Instead of putting directions in the address, add them to the description box. Or just let Google maps handle it.
#2 – Using a P.O. Box 
Google doesn’t like P.O. boxes. Yes, for many legitimate businesses, it simply doesn’t make sense to hire real office space. P.O. boxes are great for those businesses, as it gives them a real address without having to rent office space.
Unfortunately, Google frowns upon this practice, most likely because it’s so easy to rent P.O. boxes. Even people who don’t own real local businesses can use P.O. boxes to get rankings.
Avoid using a P.O. box. Use your home address if you have to.
#3 – Not Displaying an Address
Google Places gives you the option to not display your address if you don’t want to. Unfortunately, what Google doesn’t tell you is that if you don’t display your address, your chances of getting ranked are nearly zero.
When’s the last time you saw a Google Places listing with no address? It almost never happens, because any listing that has no address is rarely ever displayed.
Don’t make the mistake of checking this box.
#4 – Not Using Your Main Phone Number
Some people choose to use 1-800 phone numbers or different phone lines for different places with regards to their business. For example, some people will use one phone number for the main line, another for online orders and a third of the Yellow Pages. This allows them to track which sources of advertising brings in the most leads.
Google doesn’t like this, because they want to be able to independently verify your phone number. They want you to use your main number so they can determine if you’re really who you say you are.
Not using your main phone number can affect your chances at a good ranking.
Link Baiting: An Update on Modern Tactics
Linkbaiting has changed a lot since it first came into the SEO space. In the past, you could come up with a decent graphic, a quiz or an infographic and have a very good shot at going viral. In fact, Mingle2 used just simple quizzes to rank in the top 5 for the keyword “Dating.”
Today however, these tactics have gotten much more competitive and much more complex. If you want your linkbait to take off, you’ll need to put in more time, effort and creativity.
Overview: What is Linkbaiting?
Before discussing actual tactics, let’s go over what exactly linkbaiting is.
Linkbaiting is creating content that’s designed to get linked to. The content needs to fit a particular mold.
Not only does the content need to be interesting, but it should work within a formula for content that gets passed along. Each of the following tactics has been proven to get people to link to them.
Quizzes
Quizzes like “How many 2 year olds could you take in a fight” have done very well. The basic premise is this: Come up with an interesting quiz, ask fun questions, give them the results, then give them the chance to share it with their friends.
Make sure you include the HTML code at the bottom of the results page so people can link to their results and the quiz. If you design a quiz that a lot of people want to share, you’ll get a lot of backlinks.
Free Software / Tools
Free software can be great linkbait. There are two main types of free software.
One is software aimed to web developers or website owners. These types of software work really well, because if you can embed a link in the software, you can easily get a lot of backlinks.
Examples include WordPress plugins, calculator apps, skins, themes, templates, etc. Just a small link at the bottom of the page can result in thousands of backlinks.
The other type is the typical for-consumer applications. The goal here is to create the best possible app for an audience and give it away. If people like it, they’ll link to your site where the software is being offered.
Marketing Tactics to Take Advantage of the Holiday Season
Did you know that over a billion dollars is spent on the Monday after Black Friday? In a single day, consumers on the internet collectively take out their credit cards and spend more than a billion dollars in a 24 hour timespan.
The holidays are a special time for business owners. Most consumers typically have guards and reservations against spending money. On the holidays however, many of these guards come down. Consumers who would normally be thrifty are suddenly willing to take out their credit cards and buy.
So how can you get a piece of this action? Here are a few ideas to help.
Start Marketing Early
You want people to buy on or before the holidays start. That doesn’t mean you should start marketing on Christmas Day, New Year Day etc. In fact, you should start marketing as early as six weeks in advance.
If you want exposure for your sale, do it early. People should know sales are coming up. Don’t just put it on your site the day of the sale, or you’ll miss out on major exposure opportunities.
Give Them Ways to Save
There are two reasons people buy on the holidays: The first reason is because they want to buy gifts for friends and family. The second reason is because of all the sales and discounts.
Holiday buyers are a sale-driven bunch. If you can give them interesting items at a stellar price, they’ll buy in droves.
Have a Christmas sale. Have a New Years sale. Have a winter sale. Have a pre-Christmas sale. Have a generic holidays sale. Use whatever reason you can to create a sale event. But never just mark down your prices – Consumers need to believe the actual price is much higher than what they’re paying.
What Are Consumers Buying?
The trick with holiday buyers is that they often don’t even know what they’re looking to buy. They’re often in browse-mode: They’re looking to buy something for presents, but they don’t know what. Instead, they just browse until they see something nice, then make a purchase.
Giving consumers suggestions on what to buy is a great idea. If they don’t already know what they’re going to purchase, help them make that decision.
Suggest items. Suggest add-on items. Suggest different categories of items. Have suggestions for different types of people. Have suggestions for family, have suggestions for friends, have suggestions for kids and have suggestions for adults.
Do whatever you can do give them as many buying options as possible.
Building a Brand is an Underlooked Source of Traffic
When it comes to traffic, people tend to focus on traffic generated online. They’ll focus on SEO, on PPC, on social media traffic. These are all highly effective methods of getting traffic; but they miss one crucial component: Authority.
Having authority does two things. First of all, it helps you get more traffic. Authority in and of itself will help you get type-in traffic from people who know your brand. Second, it helps you increase your conversions.
Think about it. Let’s say there’s a person who’s interested in buying an MP3 player. They land on two websites. These two websites sell the exact same product for the exact same price.
One website is an unknown website. The other website is Amazon.com. Who are they more likely to buy from? Amazon, naturally. Why? Because they have more authority. They’re a known brand. There’s more trust established.
Learning to build authority will help you get more conversions, as people will already trust your brand. It’ll help you get more traffic from every aspect of your marketing funnel, as people will be more likely to click on your listing in the search engines and in PPC placements because they recognize your domain.
Finally, you’ll get people typing in your website, or people Googling you or your brand’s name.
So how do you build more authority?
Create a Strong Brand Identity
What do you stand for? If people are to trust in your brand, they need to know what your brand stands for. 
When people think of you, your brand or your website, they should think of just one thing. Is it speed? Is it expertise in a certain area? Is it customer service? Is it uniqueness of thought?
What should people think of when they think of your brand? Cultivate that brand deliberately.
Get Press Attention
Someone who’s been seen on TV, on the radio or in print media is going to have a lot more authority than someone who just put up a website.
Getting press attention isn’t as difficult as most people think it is. Remember: Journalists need good stories just as badly as entrepreneurs want to be in those stories. Getting featured is a win-win relationship.
To get in the press, join services like Help a Reporter Out (HARO) to find potential press opportunities. Make sure that before you contact any press you have a clear story to pitch them with.
The story should have a clear hook and have a headline that turns heads. In other words, it should be something so unique that reporters will really want to have it in their publications.
6 Best Practices for Modern SEO
It’s no secret that SEO is changing. Search engines like Google are always on the lookout for better ways to rank websites. Sometimes no major changes are made for years, while at other times change after change is pushed out in rapid succession.
Today we’re in a rapid change period of SEO. First came the Panda update, then Panda 2.0, then an increased emphasis on social media. Using old-fashioned SEO tactics just won’t cut it in today’s competitive and fast changing SEO environment.
Here are six best practices for ranking in the search engines in today’s quick paced SEO world.
Practice #1: Social Cues Matter
Google and especially Bing are paying close attention to social cues. How many people pass along your websites? How many people tweet about you on Twitter? How people have “liked” your page?
Social cues play a significant part in search engine rankings now and experts believe it’ll only get more powerful over time. If you don’t already have a solid social media campaign in place, now is the time to start.
Practice #2: Natural Content vs. Keyword Optimization
Gone are the days when you could easily select a specific keyword to rank for and target it specifically. 
Today, search engines will penalize you if you over-optimize for specific keywords. If you have too many links coming to your site with the same anchor text, if your one keyword is all over your title tags, meta tags and body content, you’re more likely to get penalized than ranked.
Instead of trying to create content around specific keywords, a much better strategy is to craft natural content that’s meant to be read by real human beings.
Practice #3: Unique, Quality Content is Still Key
As search engines get smarter, specific tactics that allow you to gain rankings artificially will fall to the wayside. Many such sites have already been pushed aside in the last few years, and more will soon follow suit.
The only real way to guarantee rankings in the long run is to give the search engines what they want: High quality, unique content that people will love. Read more
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