Social Media Link Building Strategies – Does it matter?

You are going to need to understand how social media and link building work together these days. This is likely going to continue to be an ever increasingly important topic.
 

I’ve wanted to write this post for several days. I haven’t had the chance until now.

But I wanted to tell you why Key Phrase Research is so important.

Key phrase research is the foundation of all search engine marketing. If you get your key phrase research wrong then everything else that you do will be wrong on top of it.

There are two main ways you can go wrong with key phrase research:

1. You can pick a phrase that you can rank well on but no one is searching for it.
2. Or you can pick a phrase that is so highly competitive that you don’t stand a chance ranking for it at all.

I see both of these mistakes happen all the time.

In this class we’re going to be looking at a wide array of key phrase research tools and a comprehensive strategy on how to make a solid key phrase strategy.

This is an all day class and even includes lunch!

On top of that, because it is my very first class (and I didn’t give you much time to consider it) I am taking $100 off the class.

If you use the link below you will get the $100 discount automatically applied to the class:

Key Phrase Research Class

Tuesday, April 05, 2011 from 9:00 AM – 4:00 PM (ET)
Akron, OH

And if you are a person who likes to save money, I have a total of 6 classes scheduled right now. I am offering $100 off each one until tomorrow night at 9:00pm Eastern time (that’s Tuesday, April 4). Here are the links to these classes with the discounts applied directly to them:

On-Site Search Engine Optimization Class

Tuesday, April 12, 2011 from 9:00 AM – 4:00 PM (ET)
Akron, OH

Link Building Class

Tuesday, April 19, 2011 from 9:00 AM – 4:00 PM (ET)
Akron, OH

Starting and Managing a WordPress Blog Class

Tuesday, April 26, 2011 from 9:00 AM – 4:00 PM (ET)
Akron, OH

Making The Most of Google Analytics Class

Tuesday, May 03, 2011 from 9:00 AM – 4:00 PM (ET)
Akron, OH

HTML Fundamentals Class

Tuesday, May 24, 2011 from 9:00 AM – 4:00 PM (ET)
Akron, OH

While I’m sure I’ll be offering discounts for classes in the future, I can assure you that I will not be offering $100 off again. So, if you think you are interested in the classes you’ll want to consider booking your seat in the class by tomorrow night.

I hope to see you there!

Sage

I’m sure we’d all agree that the main concern in our area has been the economy. TKG has been so focused on this that we have spent a good portion of our time pushing SEO and SEM techniques, not just to our clients, but to anyone who would listen through our seminars and Breakfast Bootcamp. As SEOs, we all understand just what marketing can do for our clients’ sites. It is vitally important, and can make the difference for a company that is struggling with sales.

That being said, I think it’s time to look to the future again. I, and many others I have spoken to feel that Northeast Ohio has hit bottom economically, and will be rebounding from here. TKG started off our year with the successful launches of several new sites, including an all new design for our own site. Good design and usability go hand in hand with the best SEO practices, and any good SEO should really help the client consider whether their design is SEO friendly, or if perhaps a redesign would best benefit the client, and their site. SEO done prior to launch is an especially cost effective measure.  This was discussed here in the past, and I am sure it bears revisiting.

Some of our clients understand at the outset of a project just how vital on page efforts can be, and want to make sure that their site is built with SEO in mind from the onset. PRN Funding is a great example of a client who is very aware of what SEO can do for their site, and made sure that SEO would be part and parcel when they started their initial web design project. Another firm that does a nice job of this is Cleveland SEO member Optiem. They state right in their strategy page that design and development are part of their SEO strategy, just as they should be.

If we lived in a perfect world, all of our clients would understand that a great design needs to go hand in hand with great, focused SEO. That when these are planned and implemented simultaneously, they can not only launch their sites a step ahead, but save on optimization costs, as well as design changes later on. I think that as our economy rebounds, more business owners are going to come to us, wanting to know the fastest ways to get back on track, and get there ahead of everyone else. For some this will mean a new site design, for others, this will mean some analytics and tweeking of their existing site and SEO efforts. I truly think that the longer the internet is a means of doing business, the more savvy site owners will become. It will get easier to get site owners to understand the value of researching and implementing SEO strategies while their sites are in the production phase. Soon, hopefully clients, SEOs and developers will recognize that working together is a best practice for all.  Time and budgets will both be well served.

This year promises to be a difficult one in Ohio, for us as SEMs, as well as for our clients. Northeast Ohio’s economy has been trying to pull out of a recession for a while, and Stark County, at least seems to have hit rock bottom and is rebounding. We want to make that happen for the rest of Ohio.

I know it’s February, and it’s been freezing cold for weeks, but it is time for our thoughts, and SEO / SEM strategies to turn to spring and summer, when many people begin making tourist trips into Ohio. I think this year may actually be especially good for tourism, as people still want to get away, but just can’t quite manage that Disney or Myrtle Beach vacation this year. We need to show Ohio’s citizens, as well as out-of-staters, just how much fun they can have right here in the OH! Just as we strategize to help our clients gear up for holiday sales, it is now time to think about how we can bring people, and their money into Ohio.

Hopefully many of you have clients in the tourism industry, and you may have clients that can benefit from the tourism in Ohio. Ohio is blessed with amusement parks like no other state in the Union. The indoor water parks have also become very popular in recent years. We also have a wealth of Amish goods available alongside the many antique shops and Amish and Country restaurants. Ohio also boasts of amazing museums and zoos. Ohio’s wineries have begun to garner attention nationwide and are now often a popular stop for any tourist looking for a little food and fun on their trip.

TKG is thrilled to provide SEO services to one such Ohio winery, right here in Hartville. Maize Valley has been in operation in one form or another since the 1960s. What began as a farm has evolved over time into the enterprising operation it is now, encompassing not only the original farm, but a bakery, deli with Amish meats and cheeses, a market with Maize Valley grown produce, and most recently, a winery.

Maize Valley is still evolving, this summer they will be hosting their first annual Civil War reenactment. Civil war reenactments have become very popular of late, and tend to draw families, tourists, students and history buffs. Maize Valley’s Bill Bakan is aware that his business has evolved over the years and that the way they have traditionally marketed their business has needed to evolve as well. He has chosen to “focus a lot on web based marketing because it is uniquely adaptive to the changing market place”. SEO/ SEM allows TKG and Maize Valley to focus on specific aspects of the business that Maize Valley would like to grow. Because the winery can be such a draw most especially during tourist season, it would be beneficial to concentrate our efforts in that area, as well as the many family friendly events that go on at Maize Valley, capitalizing on the natural growth in tourism in the spring and summer months.

Ohio has so much to offer as far as restaurants, family activities, camping , many outdoor activities. As an SEO, one suggestion you may want to present to your clients in the tourism sector is a page on their site with ideas and links to things to do in their particular area. This can be very helpful for users that are trying to plan a vacation, or a special trip to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, or even the Pro-Football Hall of Fame. If you let people know what else is available in your area, you may be bringing some much needed cash into our state. Some really great resources for marketing your client’s sites include the following Ohio tourism sites:

Discover Ohio

Travel Ohio

Ohio Traveler Magazine

Hopefully, we can use this opportunity to generate some real interest in Ohio. We live in a remarkable state, with much to offer visitors, and more economically than trips to far away places.

Well, this week’s column seemed to get people’s attention. If you are interested in link building (if you have a site, you should be) consider giving this article a quick read:

Get Links Now: Make a Difference, Make Connections – Search Engine Watch

I found it referenced a couple places.

Here:

2 powerful steps to Link Building and Making Money Online – googleme.com.au

Thanks George!

and here:
Sage Lewis Confirms: Linking Really Is About Relationships | Search Marketing Sage

Thank you both very much for the mentions and the links. This is how link building was meant to be

Take care,
Sage

While to many, it may not seem like a major deal to put off search engine optimization until Web development is complete, the reality of the situation is that it can be a much more costly approach. In the following article, the search I have outlined some of the major issues associated with this approach and the true costs of delaying search engine optimization until the post-launch phase.

To experts in the combination of art and science that is SEO; it is taken for granted that search engine performance is highly contingent on many factors. These include Web site design, technical infrastructure, Web site content (marketing and informational copy plus “behind the scenes” tagging), and offsite optimization (primarily involving link popularity development and enhancement). When some of these factors are ignored, it is unlikely that optimal organic search engine visibility will be achieved, especially in competitive industries. Yet, it remains extremely common for companies of all sizes to skip critical steps in the process, or at least put those on the “backburner” until the other aspects of Web development have been completed.

One problem is that many traditional SEO or marketing firms provide their services in a vacuum. They are not actually involved in the design / development of the site or in the implementation of their SEO recommendations. Instead, they simply provide search engine optimization recommendations in document form. Because of this approach, they are not always aware of the incremental expenses – comprised of both direct and indirect costs that are incurred by postponing the implementation of search engine optimization.

As a full service interactive agency, Brulant has unique experience in measuring the true costs associated with a non-integrated SEO effort in direct comparison to those of our clients who include SEO as part of the initial scope of the design or redesign effort.

Direct Costs:

The primary direct costs associated with post site launch optimization stem from the rework that is often necessary. In most cases, decisions that are made during the design and development processes are not in alignment with or inclusive of search engine optimization best practices.

Technical infrastructure:

There are many aspects of a site’s technical infrastructure that can have a significant impact on search engine performance. Therefore, the ideal approach is to follow search engine optimization best practices at the time of initial site development. Otherwise, it is highly likely that additional work and significant expenditure will be needed at the time of optimization to rectify previously made decisions that preclude optimal search engine performance.

Typical points for rework include:

• • URL structure – an optimized URL typically includes targeted keywords, a shortened length, and only alpha numeric character, which may or may not have been requirements during the site design or redesign phase.
  • Canonical URLs – multiple versions of the same page existing on multiple URLs are often allowed to be crawled and indexed by search engines. SEO efforts are required to focus efforts on a single version of the page
  • Directory structure – SEO calls for a clean directory structure with descriptive folder names and concerted efforts to minimize the “depth” of pages within the design hierarchy
  • Use of JavaScript, Flash, or AJAX – SEO recommendations often include directions to externalize JavaScript code to ensure it is non-obtrusive to the spidering process. Additionally, rich Internet applications (RIAs) such as those that use Flash and AJAX require additional content to be presented in a format legible to search engine spiders (as well as to disability software).
  • Code cleanliness – while validated code will not necessarily help to improve rankings, poorly formed code that is difficult for the spiders to traverse can negatively impact ranking performance.
  • Code ordering with CSS – the use of cascading style sheets (CSS) enables the ordering of code to present keyword-rich content to the search engines first, followed by all of the code and superfluous page elements. In addition, CSS helps to minimize the amount of code needed to display a Web page, therefore reducing the code to text ratio.
  • Titles, Meta tags, Header tags, and ALT tags (and their corresponding placeholders in the database) – the basic tenants of SEO are often ignored by developers who may not have been tasked with this consideration. If not handled in a proactive manner, adding these tags can be very time consuming proposition, especially on large Web sites.

Design / Layout:
In a similar fashion to the technical infrastructure, layout decisions that are made during the design and development process can greatly impact the opportunity for search engine performance. In order to avoid rework in this area, a qualified search engine optimizer should be part of the design process to review prototypes and provide direction from the search engine perspective. Otherwise, considerable investment will likely be required to alter the site layout to support the requirements for search engine accessibility. Typical points for rework include:

• • Navigational structure and placement – the use of images as navigation elements are disruptive to search engines spiders and limit the ability to use descriptive anchor text within internal linking
  • Adequate space for HTML text content – many site designers disregard the needs of the search engines when developing a page, presenting in many cases only human-visible images. HTML text content is required for a search engine to be able to determine the true context of a Web page and is also a usability best practice.
  • Use of images and Flash in place of text – same as above, search engines cannot read Flash or images effectively.

By comparing four projects in which optimization was a post-launch initiative to four projects in which optimization was included in the initial scope of the design / redesign effort, summary conclusions have been made for the average incremental costs associated with site updates for search engine optimization.

On average, the post-launch method of search engine optimization led to incremental redesign project costs of roughly 30%. To put that into perspective, the incremental costs of updating the site layout and technical infrastructure for optimization of a $250K Web site was $75K. For larger, more complex sites, the cost is more significant; $150K in site enhancements for a $500K Web site project and $300K for a site that initially cost $1MM to develop. Much, if not all, of this additional design and development cost could have been eliminated if search engine optimization had been made part of the initial project scope, not an after thought.

Opportunity Costs:

In addition to the direct costs that are incurred when optimizing a site in a post launch fashion, there are also significant opportunity costs that should be factored into the decision making process.

According to many studies, 60%-70% of searchers prefer to click on organic listings over paid search listings. When they do, over 60% of searchers don’t look past the first page of search results, making first page search results critical to online success. Therefore, without the right SEO program, a great deal of opportunity to acquire new customers is being missed.

Unfortunately, strong organic search engine performance is not achieved over night. Even in ideal situations, the process of spidering, indexing, and ranking takes time. For a new site, one with a newly registered domain with no existing link base and established Google PageRank™, the process of ranking for competitive terms can take upwards of six months. For existing sites with strong incoming links and PageRank™, the process is expedited, but still takes time.

Optimistic Project Timeline for Post Launch Optimization:

Design or redesign project duration = 6 months

Post launch optimization project = 3 months

Optimization implementation = 3 months

Ranking adjustment latency = 3-6 months (redesign vs. initial launch)

—————————————————————————-

= 15-18 months

Realistic Project Timeline for Integrated Optimization:

Design or redesign project duration = 7 months

Post launch optimization project = 0 months

Optimization implementation = 0 months

Ranking adjustment latency = 3-6 months (redesign vs. initial launch)

—————————————————————————-

= 10-13 months

As illustrated above, the integrated approach to SEO, in which optimization activities are embedded in the redesign project scope, can shave roughly five months off of the time that is required to achieve top organic search engine listings. For the companies analyzed, the value of the direct conversions from organic listings over a five month period ranged from $625K to $2.2MM.

Summary:

While postponing search engine optimization may seem like a logical decision in light of timelines and overall project budgets, the truth of the matter is that it can be an incredibly costly decision. With additional direct costs ranging from $75K to $300K and opportunity costs ranging from $625k to $2.2MM, the total costs of waiting are between $700K and $2.5MM.

Before moving forward with your next Web site design or redesign effort, consider the direct and opportunity costs associated with making search engine optimization a post-launch initiative.

As far as the sweet part of our tale is concerned, everyone was pretty excited (you should have seen our President, Geoff Karcher, bouncing through the office) when we finalized the acquisition of TKG.com. Besides not having to spell out T H E K A R C H E R… when telling people about our web site, we also knew that long-term having a three letter domain would benefit us greatly.

The bitter continuation was that before we even started we realized the mission would be challenging. So despite mild protesting and “on the record” concern, the TKG SEO Team, led by Marketing Manager Jennifer Geh, “volunteered” to handle the web marketing transition of TheKarcherGroup.com to TKG.com.

Despite experiencing a wide continuum of issues, ranging from being blacklisted, to indexing issues, to benchmark comparisons, our little narrative has apparently become a perfect study of domain transfer issues, in addition to a great learning experience. We’ve even had some great changing domain name insight from professionals in the field like Anita Campbell which has proved extremely helpful. Ultimately, just like most things in the SEO world, you learn a little everyday.

]]> http://www.clevelandseo.com/2008/06/11/tkgs-domain-change-a-case-study-in-progress/feed/ 1 http://www.clevelandseo.com/2008/05/20/how-to-choose-an-seo-firm/ http://www.clevelandseo.com/2008/05/20/how-to-choose-an-seo-firm/#comments Tue, 20 May 2008 19:37:53 +0000 John Inama http://www.clevelandseo.com/?p=170 It’s pretty easy to get bamboozled by a company with a pretty website and pie-in-the-sky promises.  But, true, lasting success in search engine optimization requires a long-term commitment to content development, ethical linking and staying on top of the ever-changing requirements of search engines.

The best bet is to work with a qualified SEO firm.   How do you do that?  Cleveland SEO member Pilot Fish has created a list of questions to help you identify the best company to manage your SEO project.  This article also includes tips on how to avoid common SEO mistakes.   Read How to Choose the Right SEO Firm.

Without a good SEO copywriting strategy, most sites fail in their quest for higher search engine rankings.

To help with the process, Angela Charles, president of Cleveland SEO member company Pilot Fish in Akron, Ohio, has developed a comprehensive list of SEO copywriting tips.   

This site has been the definitive search engine news resource site since the onset of this industry.

My focus in going to be on “Link Love.” This means I’m going to be discussing the ins and outs of viral marketing and what the link building world is all about these days.

It’s an extremely interesting area of expertise. Understanding this arena will help you generate untold numbers of new visitors to your web site with little or no cost.

So, check out my first article. I’ll be writing on this topic every other Thursday:
Prevention is the Best Medicine: Don’t Let Viral Campaigns Get Sick and Die