SEO or Search Engine Optimization is a bunch of different things. I'm only going to talk about one thing related to SEO this time.
Become an expert in your field of expertise. Get involved with writing articles for other web sites (like GoArticles.com), newspapers, magazines, books etc. Get involved with online forums and groups. Don't forget to write articles for your own web site too. Start a blog (like this one) and make sure you "tag" the keywords of your article in it.
There is a whole lot more you can do to help get the word out about your web site, and these things are just a few of them.
Also, don't forget to include your web site address when you sign your name on the article. This will drive visitors to your site.
Showing posts with label seo. Show all posts
Showing posts with label seo. Show all posts
Saturday, February 2, 2008
Tuesday, November 6, 2007
Ahh, another old debate
Ok, while they really try to make some valid points here, the truth is, it depends on what you are trying to market. I have never used pay per click as I have better things to spend my hard earned money on. I'm always busy, and if I got even more busy using pay per click, (if it indeed actually works) I don't think I would be able to handle any more business than what I already have, but then again, I'm a smaller company too.
I'm not saying don't use PPC, it can be a good thing for the right company, but too many web developers out there say that it's the only way to go. I don't necessarily agree with that.
Read on...
Tuesday, Nov 06, 2007
So, what’s it going to be? Spend the time and effort cultivating your organic search engine marketing plan or just offer up the cash and invest in a pay-per-click program? Which is better for you? Both?
It’s a question most, if not all; businesses will eventually have to ask themselves in the course of developing their Internet marketing strategies. Which alternative offers the best return on investment? Which one is more easily managed? (Give us your comments.)
When you purchase visitors or "clicks" from a search engine, this is called "pay-per-click" (PPC) search engine advertising (or PPCSE). Pay-per-click search engine advertising allows you to quickly leverage search engine traffic by "bidding" (paying) for keywords related to your product or service.
On the upside… you’re free from the headaches and worry of trying to figure out what any given engine’s algorithm is up to and how it impacts your position. It’s scalable and controllable – you know exactly how much you’re spending and (ideally) have a good idea of what you’re getting in return. It’s also very fast. No waiting around here… just sign that check and watch your results.
On the downside, it costs several coins – sometimes quite a lot of them actually, to get really good results. The low hanging fruit of paid search has long since gone now that mainstream advertisers and Fortune 500s have jumped into the space. Paid campaigns are also not without their headaches. Coming up with effective keywords to bid on is a job in and of itself. Managing what you’re spending on what keywords, measuring their returns, adjusting your spends and playing the PPC game intelligently is a full time gig.
In the other corner we have "Organic" or "Natural" search engine optimization (SEO). Generally speaking, organic SEO consists of optimizing your web pages to enhance their position in the naturally occurring search results. Asking what goes into organic SEO is a lot like asking what goes into a Twinkie. You start with sorbic acid, which derives from natural gas. Ok really organic SEO consists of making sure the search engine spiders can crawl and understand what is on your web pages. Once they understand it, you need to make them like it more than all the other web pages with the same/similar information.
It’s about as easy as it sounds. In essence, you are just making sure your content on your page is in good shape and then start trying to move your pages up the results by doing things like cultivating inbound links from other sites. Inbound links dictate your "link popularity" so, by acquiring (ahem... however you do so) links that point to your web site. You can boost your rank in the search results.
That established, we decided to ask some of the experts which type of marketing most sites should be using: organic SEO or PPC? Executive Vice-President of SiteLab, Dana Todd, a regular speaker at Search Engine Strategies Conferences, and Jeremy Schoemaker of Shoemoney Media Group, Inc. have both been there and done exactly this with both methods.
Jeremy felt like, as a rule of thumb, the majority of bloggers should generallyuse organic SEO because they aren’t really selling a product. For those companies and sites that are trying to sell a physical product, PPC has quicker results.
He said, "Whenever you have a physical good, that you know what it's worth and you know what that value is, then it's real easy to use Pay-Per-Click. You know exactly how much to spend to make money."
Dana Todd emphasized the fact that everybody can benefit from organic SEO. Dana says, “(each form of) Advertising has a completely different place in your media mix. We would never recommend, here at SiteLab, that you do one or the other; you always do them both wherever possible."
Jeremy and Dana both felt that neither method was sufficient by itself and indicated that everyone should look at trying both if at all possible. For some sites, depending on your goals, it often makes sense to allocate more or less resources to one form or the other. However, for most sites looking to put together a comprehensive marketing strategy, most any plan should include components of both.
To find out more details of the interview with Shoemoney and Dana Todd, you can watch the video and gain helpful tips of how to start and what to do when tackling marketing online.
About the Author:
Kara Ratliff is a reporter/anchor for WebProNews.
I'm not saying don't use PPC, it can be a good thing for the right company, but too many web developers out there say that it's the only way to go. I don't necessarily agree with that.
Read on...
Tuesday, Nov 06, 2007
So, what’s it going to be? Spend the time and effort cultivating your organic search engine marketing plan or just offer up the cash and invest in a pay-per-click program? Which is better for you? Both?
It’s a question most, if not all; businesses will eventually have to ask themselves in the course of developing their Internet marketing strategies. Which alternative offers the best return on investment? Which one is more easily managed? (Give us your comments.)
When you purchase visitors or "clicks" from a search engine, this is called "pay-per-click" (PPC) search engine advertising (or PPCSE). Pay-per-click search engine advertising allows you to quickly leverage search engine traffic by "bidding" (paying) for keywords related to your product or service.
On the upside… you’re free from the headaches and worry of trying to figure out what any given engine’s algorithm is up to and how it impacts your position. It’s scalable and controllable – you know exactly how much you’re spending and (ideally) have a good idea of what you’re getting in return. It’s also very fast. No waiting around here… just sign that check and watch your results.
On the downside, it costs several coins – sometimes quite a lot of them actually, to get really good results. The low hanging fruit of paid search has long since gone now that mainstream advertisers and Fortune 500s have jumped into the space. Paid campaigns are also not without their headaches. Coming up with effective keywords to bid on is a job in and of itself. Managing what you’re spending on what keywords, measuring their returns, adjusting your spends and playing the PPC game intelligently is a full time gig.
In the other corner we have "Organic" or "Natural" search engine optimization (SEO). Generally speaking, organic SEO consists of optimizing your web pages to enhance their position in the naturally occurring search results. Asking what goes into organic SEO is a lot like asking what goes into a Twinkie. You start with sorbic acid, which derives from natural gas. Ok really organic SEO consists of making sure the search engine spiders can crawl and understand what is on your web pages. Once they understand it, you need to make them like it more than all the other web pages with the same/similar information.
It’s about as easy as it sounds. In essence, you are just making sure your content on your page is in good shape and then start trying to move your pages up the results by doing things like cultivating inbound links from other sites. Inbound links dictate your "link popularity" so, by acquiring (ahem... however you do so) links that point to your web site. You can boost your rank in the search results.
That established, we decided to ask some of the experts which type of marketing most sites should be using: organic SEO or PPC? Executive Vice-President of SiteLab, Dana Todd, a regular speaker at Search Engine Strategies Conferences, and Jeremy Schoemaker of Shoemoney Media Group, Inc. have both been there and done exactly this with both methods.
Jeremy felt like, as a rule of thumb, the majority of bloggers should generallyuse organic SEO because they aren’t really selling a product. For those companies and sites that are trying to sell a physical product, PPC has quicker results.
He said, "Whenever you have a physical good, that you know what it's worth and you know what that value is, then it's real easy to use Pay-Per-Click. You know exactly how much to spend to make money."
Dana Todd emphasized the fact that everybody can benefit from organic SEO. Dana says, “(each form of) Advertising has a completely different place in your media mix. We would never recommend, here at SiteLab, that you do one or the other; you always do them both wherever possible."
Jeremy and Dana both felt that neither method was sufficient by itself and indicated that everyone should look at trying both if at all possible. For some sites, depending on your goals, it often makes sense to allocate more or less resources to one form or the other. However, for most sites looking to put together a comprehensive marketing strategy, most any plan should include components of both.
To find out more details of the interview with Shoemoney and Dana Todd, you can watch the video and gain helpful tips of how to start and what to do when tackling marketing online.
About the Author:
Kara Ratliff is a reporter/anchor for WebProNews.
Monday, September 3, 2007
Who to create your site for, visitors or search engines...
Whenever Net Magik Pros gets a new customer, one of the first questions that is always asked is "how can we get my site to the top of the search engines?".
For someone who doesn't know, this is a very valid question because they probably only know that if they get into the top of the search engines, the business will come.
Unfortunately, this is not the case.
Generally what we tell our potential clients is this:
Make your site for your potential visitors and getting to the top of the search engines will happen.
There are a few basic things that you can do to make sure you get good search engine placement (good titles for your pages, good keywords, use the keywords in the page you have them listed on, links, the text of the links, to name a few) but then you will eventually have to ask yourself, who do I want more of on my site, visitors or search engine spiders (or robots)?
The simple answer is both!
While a search engine spider will not purchase anything from your site, they will get people who will purchase something from your site. But that's where the search engine spider's job is done, once they get the people to your site, they have completed their mission, the rest is up to what you have put on your site. This will make the difference whether someone stays on your site or leave to go to your competition's website. Good quality links can definitely help you out here. Offering something for free will definitely help out also.
But the main thing that will help you sell your product or service is... are you ready for this...
YOU HAVE TO ASK YOUR VISITOR TO PURCHASE YOUR PRODUCT!
Many people overlook this, and then wonder why they have a boat load of website visitors, and they don't sell anything.
The fact is, if you don't ask, you won't sell, it's that simple! It always helps to put a sense of urgency into your sales pitch also. Don't just ask your website visitors to purchase your product or service, but tell them the advantages of why they should purchase right away.
It sounds pushy, but keep in mind that your website visitors are at your site almost anonymously, so if they think you are too pushy, they can leave and don't have to worry about you showing up at their front door step or follow up calls etc. They can just leave and that's it. But because they are there and most visitors know this, they generally don't mind the "pushy sales pitch" as long as you don't go too overboard with it.
You don't have to be obnoxious with your sales pitch, but don't be afraid to ask the visitor what you want them to do, and give them a reason to do it quickly.
For someone who doesn't know, this is a very valid question because they probably only know that if they get into the top of the search engines, the business will come.
Unfortunately, this is not the case.
Generally what we tell our potential clients is this:
Make your site for your potential visitors and getting to the top of the search engines will happen.
There are a few basic things that you can do to make sure you get good search engine placement (good titles for your pages, good keywords, use the keywords in the page you have them listed on, links, the text of the links, to name a few) but then you will eventually have to ask yourself, who do I want more of on my site, visitors or search engine spiders (or robots)?
The simple answer is both!
While a search engine spider will not purchase anything from your site, they will get people who will purchase something from your site. But that's where the search engine spider's job is done, once they get the people to your site, they have completed their mission, the rest is up to what you have put on your site. This will make the difference whether someone stays on your site or leave to go to your competition's website. Good quality links can definitely help you out here. Offering something for free will definitely help out also.
But the main thing that will help you sell your product or service is... are you ready for this...
YOU HAVE TO ASK YOUR VISITOR TO PURCHASE YOUR PRODUCT!
Many people overlook this, and then wonder why they have a boat load of website visitors, and they don't sell anything.
The fact is, if you don't ask, you won't sell, it's that simple! It always helps to put a sense of urgency into your sales pitch also. Don't just ask your website visitors to purchase your product or service, but tell them the advantages of why they should purchase right away.
It sounds pushy, but keep in mind that your website visitors are at your site almost anonymously, so if they think you are too pushy, they can leave and don't have to worry about you showing up at their front door step or follow up calls etc. They can just leave and that's it. But because they are there and most visitors know this, they generally don't mind the "pushy sales pitch" as long as you don't go too overboard with it.
You don't have to be obnoxious with your sales pitch, but don't be afraid to ask the visitor what you want them to do, and give them a reason to do it quickly.
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