Ask me how BIG companies build their links and rank their sites

SEOsolo

14 years ago

I've got a few interesting points to make on PageRank, too - if anyone is interested.

Thanks
1 reply

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samuel.johnson 14 years ago

HI,

Awesome post.

I have been working hard on package holiday industry site but my page rank haven't changed.

I am happy to know about how to rank a site related to package holiday industry.

Originally Posted by SEOsolo

I've got a few interesting points to make on PageRank, too - if anyone is interested.
- Thanks
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tpw

14 years ago

I know that for nearly a decade, big-name SEO companies have been outsourcing a lot of their article syndication work to me.

The major lesson I have learned from the big SEO companies is the importance of outsourcing specialty work to specialists.

I know they were doing their writing in-house.

I would be interested to know how much of the work they do is in-house and how much is outsourced. And what types of work they generally outsource.

Thanks
2 replies

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Richard Van

14 years ago

Were you doing this alone?

Sounds like a lot of work for an individual to do, you had your own SEO company I assume?

I'm interested to know how you worked in the finance industry, the car rental industry and the package holiday industry, without any conflict of interest.

I mean finance is a ruthlessly competitive industry, I can't see one major finance company being remotely happy with you doing their SEO and their rivals SEO.

Or did you just keep that part quiet?

I'm interested in this point because I do the SEO for a client in a much smaller industry than that and I had to sign a contract giving them exclusivity of my services. I.e I couldn't do the same for their competition. Was I wrong to sign that contract?

I only ask because as you're someone that's "been there, done that" you'd clearly know.

Thanks
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SEOsolo

14 years ago

Hey Richard Van,

Sorry - I had so much to put down, I didn't make it as clear as I could.

I worked for these big companies on separate occasions. Got head-hunted out of the car rental into the finance then went to the package holiday on my own accord because I wanted something more morally-acceptable (if you get me!).

I signed an exclusivity contract for the finance company - because it's such a big company, and you're right, it was really competitive. We're talking changes in the top 3 on a daily basis - particuarly after an algorithm update (like the one we've just had).

I was employed as SEO manager/specialist for each company, but did agency work before hand.

If you ever want a challenge - give the finance industry a go, that is a tough cookie to crack but once you've got it you can dominate!

Hope that clears it up - sorry for the confusion!

Cheers!

Thanks
1 reply

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tpw

14 years ago

Originally Posted by SEOsolo

If you ever want a challenge - give the finance industry a go, that is a tough cookie to crack but once you've got it you can dominate!

I actually operated an SEO company from 2004 to early 2009.

I got out of it for a number of reasons, but primarily due to time constraints on my personal schedule. In the coming age of personalized search, I decided that SEO was going to become increasingly difficult, yet I had less time in which to work, so I bowed out of the SEO industry as a provider in March of 2009.

In 2007, I had picked up 3 clients in the financial industry. Until that time, I thought I was invincible. :rolleyes: LOL

The financial industry finally taught me what it is like to actually fail in SEO. The experience also taught me a lot more than I would have learned otherwise, so the experience was not all bad.

Thanks
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SEOsolo

14 years ago

tpw - I agree about being taught about failure lol. The finance industry is a very volatile place to do SEO, I've seen three, maybe four of the sites I worked on first time round falling foul to google penalties.

The sites get pushed down, the leads disappear... but you learn a lesson!

I won't be going back into finance, been there and done that!

So what do you do now then? Always interesting to see where people go to after SEO. Couple of my old colleagues went into PR and advertising!

I'm planning to 'go it alone' for a while solely focusing on SEO, then introducing other aspects like conversion-rate improvements, etc - all in areas I've researched heavily through the years!

Thanks
2 replies

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Robert Puddy

14 years ago

Originally Posted by SEOsolo

sites I worked on first time round falling foul to google penalties.

The sites get pushed down, the leads disappear... but you learn a lesson!

That there is why SEO stands for search engine optomist... spend a whole lot of time for no long term benefit.

relevant content
longevity in the domain
and patience

is all thats required

Everything else is just a whole lot of bull

Thanks
1 reply

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SEOsolo

14 years ago

Originally Posted by Robert Puddy

That there is why SEO stands for search engine optomist... spend a whole lot of time for no long term benefit.

relevant content
longevity in the domain
and patience

is all thats required

Everything else is just a whole lot of bull

That's the perfect place to start - you've got to have the relevant content and longevity in the domain, but anyone can tell you that.

Of course, you can get any site ranking over time, but when you're employed to do it, your employer wants it quickly lol - so that's where you've got to get clever! I never try to manipulate google itself, I manipulate what is seen as a 'clean' link - you've just got to go for the natural approach if you want a site to rank (and stay there). I've had a site at number one within weeks - but it didn't stay there... because it got there too fast!

Thanks
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SEOsolo 14 years ago

Important to note - though - that everyone's approach is different. I don't disagree with you at all, there's no strict 'right' way to do things... but as long as you get the end result it's all ok
- Thanks
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tpw

14 years ago

Originally Posted by SEOsolo

tpw - So what do you do now then? Always interesting to see where people go to after SEO. Couple of my old colleagues went into PR and advertising!

Before I got into SEO, I was in article marketing.

By eliminating SEO, I just went back to the basics.

These days, I am still doing article marketing, and I am beginning to diversify more into product development.

Thanks
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SEOsolo

14 years ago

Originally Posted by tpw

Before I got into SEO, I was in article marketing.

By eliminating SEO, I just went back to the basics.

These days, I am still doing article marketing, and focusing more on product development.

Cool. I was a writer for a few years before I got into SEO. Read creative writing and marketing back at college but sort of preferred the challenge of SEO. No doubt I'll get some more writing done now I'm self-employed though.

So - as you've read, I'm new here - I've noticed a fair few people have 'war room member' under their name... what's the war room??

Thanks
1 reply

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arttse 14 years ago

Originally Posted by SEOsolo

So - as you've read, I'm new here - I've noticed a fair few people have 'war room member' under their name... what's the war room??

Check out this thread!

http://www.warriorforum.com/temphidd...QmZMN9iAUh6ZIV
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SEOsolo 14 years ago

Hey tpw,

You're totally right about outsourcing - in particular, I'd say from about 2003-2007 it was big business doing that... but in recent years a lot of things have been moving in-house with some of the big companies.

You'll often see - particularly in the finance serps - websites popping in and out of the top 10 then getting de-listed. This, from the research I've done, is because they've all followed the same approach to their SEO strategies and on-site strategies

A lot of SEO companies offer base packages, and when companies go for these - they all receive the same service, so you'll see some websites with links to 10/11 websites who have all had SEO work done for them by on company.

You'll still find some SEO companies outsourcing their content, but those who don't just get agencies to write the content for them (by hiring people from agencies and bringing them in-house for 6 months). The problem with this is that the writer isn't an EXPERT at what they're writing - and this will become their eventual undoing!

As for link buildling - the amount of SEO agencies who tried to sell me awful packages that just involved links from Digital point (nothing wrong with info on there, but the links are a NO GO).

There's so much I could say on this - but the one key thing I would say is that when I was working my final months for one of these big companies we started building a new site. We got someone in who knew the exact niche - and was an expert on the market, so could produce masses of unique content. We did EVERYTHING in-house, and this site ranked and is still ranking MUCH better than other sites we did.. because we were in full control.

I'd say outsourcing now makes up less than half of BIG companies SEO strategies - they need people in house!

Have I written an essay there?!

Cheers,

SEOsolo
- Thanks
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pavionjsl

14 years ago

Just wonder to rank for " Home insurance" in front of State Farm, what would one have to do? What level of work would be required? Just looking for a basic outline, how would you approach this?

Thanks
1 reply

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SEOsolo 14 years ago

Hey pavionjsl,

You're looking at a big task there - I'm just looking at the site from the UK and can tell you that one of the downfalls of the homepage is that it's pretty blank - but anyone could tell you that.

What you've got here is a brand. A brand with some super-strong links giving it some SERIOUS juice - like from sites such as usfigureskating.org and shakeout.org (both PR7) - not to mention this killer: flash.org - also PR7.

To rank above this site would take a fair bit of clever SEO. You need to go clean, build a brand and tie up your long-tail phrases (by that I mean rank on the things other people aren't... that's a nice way to add authority and trust to your site - just like picking up the loose pieces that no-one else can be bothered going after) While you're doing this, it should give your site time to age a bit and gain trust.

You need content, and lots of it - and do NOT farm-generate it, it needs to be interesting, factual, keyword-juicy content. Particuarly on your homepage.

Just work at it - statefarm seems pretty huge and has some amazing links going into it (links some of us can only dream about!).

Good luck!
- Thanks
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PabloVTB

14 years ago

What's your take on PageRank?

Do these big companies actually do some of the stuff we as "smaller" internet marketers do? I mean Web 2.0 Links, Profile Links, Article Marketing, and stuff like that, or do they focus on getting links from high auhority sites directly?

Thanks

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SEOsolo

14 years ago

Originally Posted by PabloVTB

What's your take on PageRank?

Do these big companies actually do some of the stuff we as "smaller" internet marketers do? I mean Web 2.0 Links, Profile Links, Article Marketing, and stuff like that, or do they focus on getting links from high auhority sites directly?

Thanks

As for what the big companies do - I can't generalise - but the one's I've worked for and with do a mixture. Content is ALWAYS important - but the argument has always been between on-site content or external content linking back. I guess you need to have a BALANCED link profile.

Profile links tend to be avoided now - just as directories do - because a lot of them are being de-listed.

Web 2.0 links are nice for smaller sites but they don't tend to offer massive benefits to bigger sites (sites I call 'brand' sites). They won't do any harm though! Just as long as they're not spammy.

Links from high-authority sites are always desirable and it can be all too easy to try and get loads of these but when link building just put yourself in Google's shoes - does it look natural that a random .com/.co.uk/.net site (a new one) has suddenly received all this attention at once? You need to slip under the radar unless you've got good reason to be getting massive links straight away (like a charity would).

PageRank is a funny thing - it means a lot to some of us SEOs, and nothing to others. Customers don't know ANYTHING about your PR so it won't affect your conversions - but it COULD affect your rankings. note the COULD there lol.

If you've got a PR4 site, chances are, it'll be pretty decent and worthy of its ranking... but if it gets hit and goes to PR2 you're in trouble. it's easy to get hung up about this - but you shouldn't. You need to be resilient about it.

So - PR is the last thing to worry about. As for its importance - well, it was named after Larry Page... so it's gotta be important hasn't it? lol.

Honestly, though, page rank is more for google's purposes than ours - unless you want to make money off the back of it.

Thanks
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bfas

14 years ago

Originally Posted by SEOsolo

...

PageRank is a funny thing - it means a lot to some of us SEOs, and nothing to others. Customers don't know ANYTHING about your PR so it won't affect your conversions - but it COULD affect your rankings. note the COULD there lol.

If you've got a PR4 site, chances are, it'll be pretty decent and worthy of its ranking... but if it gets hit and goes to PR2 you're in trouble. it's easy to get hung up about this - but you shouldn't. You need to be resilient about it.
...

You have it backwards. Pagerank is simply an indicator, it doesn't affect your site; your site - primarily your IBL's - dictates your Pagerank.

That said, thanks for your generous posts~

Michael

Thanks
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SEOsolo

14 years ago

Hey - I know where you're coming from. But I've had an 'inside' tip-off telling me that PageRank COULD (I said COULD last time lol) affect your site's rankings - but only when google is doing a manual review of a website.

So - for example, if you've gone from PR4 to 2 automatically, whoever is doing the manual review will see this and realise that the algorithm has not liked something about the site... so it may get de-listed.

I've had sites going from PR6 to 2 in the past (when a site jumps down to 2 it's often said that it has been 'sandboxed').

But yes, you are right, your IBLs do dictate the PR you are given BEFORE a review (if one is needed).

Thanks!

Originally Posted by bfas

You have it backwards. Pagerank is simply an indicator, it doesn't affect your site; your site - primarily your IBL's - dictates your Pagerank.

That said, thanks for your generous posts~

Michael

Thanks
1 reply

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Black Hat Cat Banned 14 years ago

Originally Posted by SEOsolo

But yes, you are right, your IBLs do dictate the PR you are given BEFORE a review (if one is needed).

Thanks!

All backlinks dictate PR, internal and external.
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- SEOsolo 14 years ago
  
  Originally Posted by Black Hat Cat
  
  All backlinks dictate PR, internal and external.
  
  True - you don't want to be seen as a 'black hole' to google!
  
  Thanks
  
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ocd

14 years ago

Originally Posted by SEOsolo

You need to slip under the radar unless you've got good reason to be getting massive links straight away (like a charity would).

I hope you haven't already answered this but how do I build a new site and then "slip it under the radar"? Should I just concentrate on content and links generated from the content for 30 - 60 days and then focus on backlinks, working into that aspect slowly?

Thanks
1 reply

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SEOsolo

14 years ago

That part is simple - just keep everything natural. Everything you do on your site, ask yourself.. would google think this is bad/spammy/of mal-value?

It sounds paranoid - but you've got to be in this industry.

Concentrate on building your site FULL of quality unique content, then contact specific relevant sites asking for guest posts. Just don't go at it too fast!

Good luck!

Originally Posted by ocd

I hope you haven't already answered this but how do I build a new site and then "slip it under the radar"? Should I just concentrate on content and links generated from the content for 30 - 60 days and then focus on backlinks, working into that aspect slowly?

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kindsvater

14 years ago

OK, I'll bite - and welcome to the forum. Here's your question:

How do BIG companies build their links and rank their sites?

Thanks
1 reply

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SEOsolo

14 years ago

Originally Posted by kindsvater

OK, I'll bite - and welcome to the forum. Here's your question:

How do BIG companies build their links and rank their sites?

Hey, thanks for the welcome man!

The easiest way to answer the 'BIG' question is to use the word 'research'.

You've GOT to know your niche, market and audience. When big companies build sites, they'll spend a week in the research phase (yes, a week of full days). You need to know the link profiles of all sites in top 10, you need to know word counts on homepages (or other ranking pages) - with KW densities. And you also need to monitor the search results very very closely to see who is moving around in and out of the top 10.

Have a read of some of my other replies for some more ideas too. One of my favourite techniques was manipulating what was seen as a 'natural' link - this is easy, when you really think about it!

Anchor texts is another big talking point with big companies. They've got a lot of money, so can be black hat and buy a lot of links. HOWEVER - the mistake a lot of them make is buy too many links with the same anchor text. E.G. if they want to rank for 'dogs' - they buy loads of links with 'dogs' as the anchor text... daft example but you'll get me!

It's about balance - and the balance you need will depend on your particular market.

Like I said - research is the key. How are the other sites ranking? and where might they fall down? Get critical with their strategies but also take some tips from them! They're up there for a reason, remember.

Think that's concise enough lol

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1 reply

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SEOsolo

14 years ago

4morereferrals - here's my concise answer to your question!

Originally Posted by SEOsolo

Hey, thanks for the welcome man!

The easiest way to answer the 'BIG' question is to use the word 'research'.

You've GOT to know your niche, market and audience. When big companies build sites, they'll spend a week in the research phase (yes, a week of full days). You need to know the link profiles of all sites in top 10, you need to know word counts on homepages (or other ranking pages) - with KW densities. And you also need to monitor the search results very very closely to see who is moving around in and out of the top 10.

Have a read of some of my other replies for some more ideas too. One of my favourite techniques was manipulating what was seen as a 'natural' link - this is easy, when you really think about it!

Anchor texts is another big talking point with big companies. They've got a lot of money, so can be black hat and buy a lot of links. HOWEVER - the mistake a lot of them make is buy too many links with the same anchor text. E.G. if they want to rank for 'dogs' - they buy loads of links with 'dogs' as the anchor text... daft example but you'll get me!

It's about balance - and the balance you need will depend on your particular market.

Like I said - research is the key. How are the other sites ranking? and where might they fall down? Get critical with their strategies but also take some tips from them! They're up there for a reason, remember.

Think that's concise enough lol

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jhonsean

14 years ago

Like any ordinary companies they had the same way to rank their sites but the difference is how much quality backlinks was produced.

Thanks

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scentessence

14 years ago

Hi, we're an ecommerce site and don't have a lot of content on our homepage, mainly images.

We've had our domain name and site for quite a while now but we can't seem to get a higher pagerank than 0. also we rank very low for our main keywords such as perfume, fragrance, aftershave etc i know these are competative keywords but it's hard to fin us in a google search unless we type in our url!

Is there a way of moving up search results without a lot of content?

thanks

Thanks
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Chris Sorrell 14 years ago

Hi seosolo. Do you have a back up of clients you got from your job or are you now hunting for new clients? How are you going to get them?
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- 1 reply
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- SEOsolo 14 years ago
  
  Originally Posted by sorrellaff
  
  Hi seosolo. Do you have a back up of clients you got from your job or are you now hunting for new clients? How are you going to get them?
  
  Hey,
  
  Well I signed some confidentiality and exclusivity agreements so any of the clients I did have I cut contact with.
  
  However, I do have a few people in waiting for when I get myself fully up and running. As for new clients - it's about word of mouth and reputation. You can't fail on one project then expect a queue of people waiting for you. You need to have proof and go to them.
  
  We've all received those annoying sales emails telling us we can rank within 14 days - but that's a load of bull... you ain't gonna stay at the top for long if you get there that fast.
  
  What people want is honesty - and proof that you are the one for them. I'm going to be doing a lot of work getting my name out there - not just to make money (in the end), but to make some new SEO-friends... contacts are VERY important, so stick close with the people you chat with and help each other out!
  
  Thanks
  
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SEOsolo

14 years ago

Originally Posted by scentessence

Hi, we're an ecommerce site and don't have a lot of content on our homepage, mainly images.

We've had our domain name and site for quite a while now but we can't seem to get a higher pagerank than 0. also we rank very low for our main keywords such as perfume, fragrance, aftershave etc i know these are competative keywords but it's hard to fin us in a google search unless we type in our url!

Is there a way of moving up search results without a lot of content?

thanks

If you're going after products you're going to need content. Try padding out your sub-pages with HUGE reviews of the fragrances you're selling. You need to show google you're 'the place to go' to learn about a particular thing.

Perhaps a bit of user-generated content would help? Reviews, etc. - after all, that will show you're actually a store!

Your homepage needn't have loads of content above the images, but you can put it below - I'd say 500 words + (split it down into categories/sub-headings, and it will be easier to write).

That's the 'free' way to do things, anyway. You could pay for links, but you're at more risk of being caught out as people don't tend to link to e-commerce sites naturally.

Just get content, reviews and external content out there ranking back and you'll get there eventually. It's a competitive market but be clever about it and it won't be impossible!

Thanks

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officer_iron

14 years ago

Was there a certain type of backlink you went after harder than others. For example, did you pursue article backlinks the most?

P.S. Thanks for this thread. I actually have a potential job offer from a large company in the car dealership field that wants to bring their seo in house, so this is great info for me at just the right time.

Thanks
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SEOsolo

14 years ago

Originally Posted by officer_iron

Was there a certain type of backlink you went after harder than others. For example, did you pursue article backlinks the most?

P.S. Thanks for this thread. I actually have a potential job offer from a large company in the car dealership field that wants to bring their seo in house, so this is great info for me at just the right time.

You're welcome - thank me in the thread if you want!

I'd say in the car rental industry it was a lot of articles about getting the best deal - but they weren't just placed on any sites, we negotiated hard to get them placed on really good sites.

You should also go after some directory links - but don't go heavy on these, be VERY selective and be prepared to pay. A lot of directories are getting de-listed because they're too saturated.

Chuck a couple of high-quality no-follows in eventually too - that will help with brand development (linking for no self-gain is seen as positive by Google).

You've just got to have an even spread of links really - don't hammer one harder than the other, keep it keyword relevant to start with, then maybe set up a few smaller sister sites and pass leads or links through with that!

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2 replies

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arttse

14 years ago

[quote=SEOsolo;3454062] I'd say in the car rental industry it was a lot of articles about getting the best deal - but they weren't just placed on any sites, we negotiated hard to get them placed on really good sites.[QUOTE]

Welcome. Great to have you here.

Are you suggesting that you would syndicate your content? That is, allow the exact same content to be put on other sites (verbatim).

If that's the case, did it concern you that your content could get diluted - hence compromise your SEO efforts?

Thanks
1 reply

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SEOsolo

14 years ago

[quote=arttse;3454385][quote=SEOsolo;3454062] I'd say in the car rental industry it was a lot of articles about getting the best deal - but they weren't just placed on any sites, we negotiated hard to get them placed on really good sites.

Welcome. Great to have you here.

Are you suggesting that you would syndicate your content? That is, allow the exact same content to be put on other sites (verbatim).

If that's the case, did it concern you that your content could get diluted - hence compromise your SEO efforts?

Hey, thanks for the welcome.

No - I didn't use duplicate content at all, and if I saw anyone scraping my content I would contact the site owner and make sure it was either fully referenced or removed.

We did a test site once to see how long we could stay in the rankings by just using duplicate content - we stayed in the top ten for just 8 days then got de-listed - so that just proves how harmful dupe content can be.

We ALWAYS used original and unique content. Best way!

Thanks

Thanks

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scott g 14 years ago

Originally Posted by SEOsolo

Chuck a couple of high-quality no-follows in eventually too - that will help with brand development (linking for no self-gain is seen as positive by Google).

GREAT POINT and well worded LOL! Good thread!

CHEERS!
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"Whatever the mind can conceive and believe, the mind can achieve."
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- SEOsolo 14 years ago
  
  Originally Posted by scott g
  
  GREAT POINT and well worded LOL! Good thread!
  
  CHEERS!
  
  Glad you agree Scott g! Thanks for your support.
  
  On that note - thanks to everyone else who has welcomed me to the forum, only been here a week and you guys have helped me settle right in!
  
  Some great discussions going on, and some great information flying round.
  
  Thanks
  
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Topper

14 years ago

Hey there, Welcome! I'm fairly new too. So I got a question regarding backlink indexing and how big SEO companies get there backlinks indexed faster. Do they wait for Google to index them naturally? Or do they use a certain method to get Google bot to pick it up quicker?

Thanks
1 reply

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SEOsolo

14 years ago

Originally Posted by Topper

Hey there, Welcome! I'm fairly new too. So I got a question regarding backlink indexing and how big SEO companies get there backlinks indexed faster. Do they wait for Google to index them naturally? Or do they use a certain method to get Google bot to pick it up quicker?

Very good question! Indexing things 'faster' is a bit of a marketing perk to me - it doesn't matter to me how fast something gets indexed (as long as it does within a reasonable period of time, of course!).

When working for the package holiday firm, we used to get things indexed by throwing a few bookmarks into the link/article/page we wanted indexing.

I always used to tell myself... if it's taking AGES for google to index something, it means the googlebots haven't been crawling that site very often - which suggests this site isn't very trustworthy, and isn't too good.

You should always aim to get your own content on your own site indexed as quick as possible. Do this by showing google your site is active, and do it by driving traffic to your site. Updates (like content going on your site) are a good way to do the 'active' thing.

If something takes more than a week to index, it might not be worth the time you're spending worrying about it.

One test I used to do on blogs is take their latest post (from that day), copy and paste some of the text into google and if it shows up - that's good enough... but if it didn't show up it hasn't been indexed - so I'd put it in a 'reserve' pile for filler links.

Hope that helps

[ 2 ] Thanks
1 reply

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Topper

14 years ago

Originally Posted by SEOsolo

Very good question! Indexing things 'faster' is a bit of a marketing perk to me - it doesn't matter to me how fast something gets indexed (as long as it does within a reasonable period of time, of course!).

When working for the package holiday firm, we used to get things indexed by throwing a few bookmarks into the link/article/page we wanted indexing.

I always used to tell myself... if it's taking AGES for google to index something, it means the googlebots haven't been crawling that site very often - which suggests this site isn't very trustworthy, and isn't too good.

You should always aim to get your own content on your own site indexed as quick as possible. Do this by showing google your site is active, and do it by driving traffic to your site. Updates (like content going on your site) are a good way to do the 'active' thing.

If something takes more than a week to index, it might not be worth the time you're spending worrying about it.

One test I used to do on blogs is take their latest post (from that day), copy and paste some of the text into google and if it shows up - that's good enough... but if it didn't show up it hasn't been indexed - so I'd put it in a 'reserve' pile for filler links.

Hope that helps

Thanks for the TIPS!

Thanks
1 reply

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inter123

14 years ago

Hey.

What is your opinion on getting backlinks from comments especially the ones where there are like 100+ comments but the PR is 5 or something reasonably high.

Thanks.

Jim.

Thanks
2 replies

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4morereferrals

14 years ago

how BIG companies build their links and rank their sites

Ok ... so ... how do BIG companies build their links and rank their sites?

Thanks
1 reply

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JohnCitizen

14 years ago

SEOsolo,

are paid services like link juicers (getting moderate pr links at low quality sites), article submitters and other kinds of services still of use?

what about blog commenting and forum linking?

if these methods are new of no importance, then how to we tackle link building?

Thanks
1 reply

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SEOsolo

14 years ago

Originally Posted by aaron655

SEOsolo,

are paid services like link juicers (getting moderate pr links at low quality sites), article submitters and other kinds of services still of use?

what about blog commenting and forum linking?

if these methods are new of no importance, then how to we tackle link building?

Blog commenting is something you're going to want to move away from - it's going to be clamped down on SEVERELY - particuarly sites with 100+ comments - putting your site on there is just asking for a google penalty!

Forum linking - again, be careful here. It's very spammy just like blog commenting. You won't gain long-term rankings with these.

Article submitters - HAS TO BE UNIQUE CONTENT. this method isn't awful, but it's not great either.

In fact, all the methods listed are for the SEO with no time or for what I call the lazy SEO. If you want to rank a site, you've got to put some personal work in there and make it a super-site that will actually benefit the reader.

It's all about the 'natural' links now - I say "natural", because you can easily manipulate what is seen as "natural".

Cheers

[ 1 ] Thanks
3 replies

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NumbersJunkie

14 years ago

1. Do you have experience with paying writers on a basis other than number of words, number of articles or hours? I'd like to devise a clever way to reward and pay for quality.

2. If you suddenly had too many clients that you couldn't do the writing yourself, what would you do? where would you go?

95% of my clients are doctors and I can't provide crap content or crap links. I'm thinking about trying to find starving medical students.

Thanks in advance,

Thanks
1 reply

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SEOsolo

14 years ago

Originally Posted by NumbersJunkie

1. Do you have experience with paying writers on a basis other than number of words, number of articles or hours? I'd like to devise a clever way to reward and pay for quality.

2. If you suddenly had too many clients that you couldn't do the writing yourself, what would you do? where would you go?

95% of my clients are doctors and I can't provide crap content or crap links. I'm thinking about trying to find starving medical students.

Thanks in advance,

I've paid one or two writers based on the amount of clicks their articles delivered - but you won't get too much interest by doing that.

To be honest, I've always done most of the writing myself on smaller projects (bigger projects always had in-house writers). You've got to be super-motivated to make big money in this game. I didn't get through three BIG companies by just sailing along, I honestly worked my butt off and at some times it was really tiring but in the end, ultimately worth it.

If I ever had too many clients I'd first of all smile - because I'd be doing something right, but then I'd be a bit angry at myself for not organising myself enough. You're best delivering perfect results for 10 clients than delivering mediocre results for 20 clients. NEVER over-stretch yourself - if the client wants work, and you can't fit them in, apologise and be honest.

Hope that helps - just one last piece of advice, never rip a writer off - you never know when you'll need them again, and a reliable writer is gold dust when you need content!

Thanks

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gearmonkey

14 years ago

Originally Posted by SEOsolo

Blog commenting is something you're going to want to move away from - it's going to be clamped down on SEVERELY - particuarly sites with 100+ comments - putting your site on there is just asking for a google penalty!

Forum linking - again, be careful here. It's very spammy just like blog commenting. You won't gain long-term rankings with these.

Article submitters - HAS TO BE UNIQUE CONTENT. this method isn't awful, but it's not great either.

In fact, all the methods listed are for the SEO with no time or for what I call the lazy SEO. If you want to rank a site, you've got to put some personal work in there and make it a super-site that will actually benefit the reader.

It's all about the 'natural' links now - I say "natural", because you can easily manipulate what is seen as "natural".

Cheers

So blog commenting will result in a Google penalty?

Thanks
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SEOsolo

14 years ago

Originally Posted by gearmonkey

So blog commenting will result in a Google penalty?

Not ALL blog commenting - you've got to think about what looks natural and 'of value' to google.

If, for example, you set up a music review website, and you're reviewing a band's album - and people are commenting on the review... one of them could link to the band's actual website saying - "the band have released a few extra tracks on their website here" - and that would be a natural link.

However, if you just comment on a page with "great post - really good information"... that would be spammy - and if you keep doing that, they would add up and your chances of receiving a penalty would add up too.

Hope that helps!

Thanks
1 reply

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gearmonkey

14 years ago

Originally Posted by SEOsolo

Not ALL blog commenting - you've got to think about what looks natural and 'of value' to google.

If, for example, you set up a music review website, and you're reviewing a band's album - and people are commenting on the review... one of them could link to the band's actual website saying - "the band have released a few extra tracks on their website here" - and that would be a natural link.

However, if you just comment on a page with "great post - really good information"... that would be spammy - and if you keep doing that, they would add up and your chances of receiving a penalty would add up too.

Hope that helps!

What happens when a page gets penalized in Google, and Google drops the ranking from page 1 to page 25?

Is the website page dead forever? I have a keyword I was working on, using .edu blog comments, profile links and article marketing that help it succeed to page #1. It's now on page 25+. Should I drop the 4year old domain and restart from scratch with a new domain?

Not only did that page drop, but several other pages dropped that I didn't promote yet.

Thanks
3 replies

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bigalan6622

14 years ago

Originally Posted by gearmonkey

What happens when a page gets penalized in Google, and Google drops the ranking from page 1 to page 25?

Is the website page dead forever? I have a keyword I was working on, using .edu blog comments, profile links and article marketing that help it succeed to page #1. It's now on page 25+. Should I drop the 4year old domain and restart from scratch with a new domain?

Not only did that page drop, but several other pages dropped that I didn't promote yet.

That sounds like it might be due to the recent algorithm change. Were you using low quality or spun articles?

Thanks
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gearmonkey

14 years ago

Originally Posted by bigalan6622

That sounds like it might be due to the recent algorithm change. Were you using low quality or spun articles?

I used spun articles for the article directories and web2.0 only. But the website I was promoting has 100% high-quality rich content that eHow, Wiki and Yahoo Answers (among other websites, forums, and blogs that naturally link to it)

Thanks
2 replies

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arttse

14 years ago

SEOsolo

If your site has hundreds of backlinks pointing to porn sites would google penalise your site or just ignore these backlinks?

I would think the latter because what is stopping your competitors creating bad links to your site.

Appreciate your views.

Thanks
1 reply

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SEOsolo

14 years ago

Nothing is stopping competitors - I've been sabotaged before.. it's not good - you've got to try and clean it up.

The good thing is... if the spammy sabotage doesn't match your usual linking pattern/flags up with google - they MAY ignore it and pass it by. I've only ever read of this happening, but google does have a 'heart' sometimes!

Originally Posted by arttse

SEOsolo

If your site has hundreds of backlinks pointing to porn sites would google penalise your site or just ignore these backlinks?

I would think the latter because what is stopping your competitors creating bad links to your site.

Appreciate your views.

[ 1 ] Thanks

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SEOsolo

14 years ago

Get rid of the spun links - better off without them during a penalty.

Keep adding the quality content to your site, show that you are a valuable site to the reader and your quality score will improve!

Originally Posted by gearmonkey

I used spun articles for the article directories and web2.0 only. But the website I was promoting has 100% high-quality rich content that eHow, Wiki and Yahoo Answers (among other websites, forums, and blogs that naturally link to it)

Thanks

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SEOsolo

14 years ago

Never get attracted to a blog comment just because it has a .edu! If your links aren't relevant they won't add sufficient enough value.

Your other pages have dropped because your domain has lost a lot of trust - it may be because of the blog comments... but it could be because of other techniques.

Get rid of the dropped pages, get them off your site and clean it up. Keep the next effort clean, and don't get tempted by 'good looking' links that prove to hurt your site!

Just for reference - when a page gets penalized, it's very hard to regain trust, you're best getting rid of the page and gaining domain trust via another, higher-quality page!

Hope it works out ok!

Originally Posted by gearmonkey

What happens when a page gets penalized in Google, and Google drops the ranking from page 1 to page 25?

Is the website page dead forever? I have a keyword I was working on, using .edu blog comments, profile links and article marketing that help it succeed to page #1. It's now on page 25+. Should I drop the 4year old domain and restart from scratch with a new domain?

Not only did that page drop, but several other pages dropped that I didn't promote yet.

Thanks
1 reply

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remodeler

14 years ago

Originally Posted by SEOsolo

Your other pages have dropped because your domain has lost a lot of trust - it may be because of the blog comments... but it could be because of other techniques.

Get rid of the dropped pages, get them off your site and clean it up. Keep the next effort clean, and don't get tempted by 'good looking' links that prove to hurt your site!

Just for reference - when a page gets penalized, it's very hard to regain trust, you're best getting rid of the page and gaining domain trust via another, higher-quality page!

Hope it works out ok!

What do you do when that page happens to be your home page that gets dropped?

Thanks
2 replies

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Tyler Abernethy

14 years ago

Originally Posted by remodeler

What do you do when that page happens to be your home page that gets dropped?

then you should go back and undo any of the links that are low PR if you can..

what would be easier is to just keep building, but make them more legitimate PR backlinks

^^get yourself a good drip feed that includes PR backlinks on a monthly basis^^

another good question is, do you have any nofollow?
because i believe in a good ratio of dofollow/nofollow and it is pretty easy to find nofollow .edu links, as well as nofollow high PR blogs to comment on

Tyler Abernethy

Thanks
2 replies

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arttse

14 years ago

SEOsolo
Any idea why a site like www.labnol.org was slapped by google in the recent update on the 24th Feb. They have lots of unique, original content and have been around for a long time. They are also an authority site.

Thanks
3 replies

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Tyler Abernethy

14 years ago

what were they ranking for?

Thanks
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F1SEO

14 years ago

Lovin this thread.

I like that comment about 'you've got be super-motivated' in this industry.

Indeed, results can take some time before you see them so it's sometimes difficult to keep up the pace when you can't see the impact of what you've done.

Very interesting read.

Thanks
1 reply

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SEOsolo

14 years ago

Thanks very much for your kind words.

And yes - I see so so many people giving up after jumping 3 hurdles and only seeing a few dollars coming back in.

You've got to be committed and give it your all. One project at a time is best, but if you're a machine at it I guess you can have more on the go!

When I first started doing anything online it took me a few attempts to make my first bit of money - and that's where I learnt a lot of things from. You only learn from mistakes you make!

My advice to anyone reading this is KEEP GOING - adopt it as a hobby, build a portfolio of money-making sites, add another spoke to the wheel. YOU CAN DO IT - it's just about getting it right. Someone once said to me (in an envious, spiteful manner, I believe, lol) "If you can do it, anyone can" - and you know what, they're totally right. You've just got to work work work and then you'll be rewarded!

Thanks

Originally Posted by F1SEO

Lovin this thread.

I like that comment about 'you've got be super-motivated' in this industry.

Indeed, results can take some time before you see them so it's sometimes difficult to keep up the pace when you can't see the impact of what you've done.

Very interesting read.

Thanks

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gearmonkey

14 years ago

Originally Posted by arttse

SEOsolo
Any idea why a site like www.labnol.org was slapped by google in the recent update on the 24th Feb. They have lots of unique, original content and have been around for a long time. They are also an authority site.

I 2nd this question. Lots of good websites have been slapped that deserve to be rewarded.

Thanks

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SEOsolo

14 years ago

Give it time, sites like this may level out soon - after most updates some big sites do suffer temporarily then come back in.

They may have been caught placing links anchored 'digital inspiration' - I've just had a wander through their links and their density on this KW is higher than the rest and may have just triggered an alarm if pressed too heavy.

However, it's a little confusing as it is a good site. Could be a range of things - the list could be endless but the aforementioned are most likely.

Added note: I've sometimes seen what looks like Google experimenting with rankings - to see which sites have lower bounce rates I think... you'll see some BIG sites falling down the rankings, swapping places with some random weak sites, then they'll just come back and the older results will return...

Like I said though, we'll have to wait and see - if I were you, I'd keep a close eye on that and watch their linking patterns, see if they recover. I know I'll be watching!

Originally Posted by arttse

SEOsolo
Any idea why a site like www.labnol.org was slapped by google in the recent update on the 24th Feb. They have lots of unique, original content and have been around for a long time. They are also an authority site.

Thanks

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SEOsolo

14 years ago

If you've been penalised you shouldn't jump straight to no-follow links from .edu (these are attractive, but they don't always add the value they may look to be able to).

And the last thing you should do is go for high-PR blog comments, that - in my eyes - is holding your hands up to google saying "Yes, I'm black-hatting and spamming this blog with my comment links, and you've caught me... but I'm going to carry on doing it" lol.

It's important that you only remove the 'spammy' aspects to your link building campaign overnight - you shouldn't change everything overnight, it should be a gradual thing with your other techiques because Google is very good at spotting patterns - particularly when they change dramatically!

Can't say this enough - just keep it natural! If you see a free PR6 link and want to get it - think... would it be a natural relevant link? Or am I just getting this because it's a PR6?

Sometimes it's best to sacrifice PR to gain quality. What you'll often find is that in the future, the QUALITY sites you get links from gradually gain PR - and as your link was already there before the PR came along, you'll benefit greatly for this.

Cheers.

Originally Posted by Tyler Abernethy

then you should go back and undo any of the links that are low PR if you can..

what would be easier is to just keep building, but make them more legitimate PR backlinks

^^get yourself a good drip feed that includes PR backlinks on a monthly basis^^

another good question is, do you have any nofollow?
because i believe in a good ratio of dofollow/nofollow and it is pretty easy to find nofollow .edu links, as well as nofollow high PR blogs to comment on

Tyler Abernethy

Thanks

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SEOsolo 14 years ago

Go through your backlinks - don't remove until you can see which anchor you've over-optimized for.

This process will take a while, you need to see which sites you've got links on have lost trust.

Some penalties are hard to recover from, so you've got to act fast and really freshen up your HP with new longer unique content - give it a new lease of life.

It's a long recovery process sometimes... sorry to have to tell you that!

Hope you get it sorted soon.

Originally Posted by remodeler

What do you do when that page happens to be your home page that gets dropped?
- Thanks
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mancred

14 years ago

Hi, great thread.

Can you please expand on what you mean by manipulating a natural/clean link?

("I never try to manipulate google itself, I manipulate what is seen as a 'clean' link")

Thanks
1 reply

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SEOsolo

14 years ago

I would expand on that - but I'm afraid that would be giving away some of my techniques/strategies/secrets - and I can't do that!

Instead of actually telling you what I mean, I'll say this:

When you're trying to obtain natural links, you need to get back to basics. If you were wikipedia, and you were ranking to a webpage (which is kinda rare, as you'll know lol - but for example's sake we'll go with it), you wouldn't just use an exact match KW (well, unless it was relevant). Instead you'd link with a 'natural' anchor text.

Here's an example - let's say you're ranking to a weight loss website.

Rather than using the anchor 'weight loss', a natural link (or at least a link that LOOKS natural) would often use a longer, more specific anchor like there are may ways to lose weight, and "there are plenty of resources on the web offering advice on this". The anchor is in quotation marks there.

You can see that the peripheral text still includes 'lose weight' so Google can see the link relates to that, but the anchor doesn't look commercial, or like a paid link.

Hope that makes sense, but like I said - I can't give away my secrets for nothing!

Thanks

Originally Posted by mancred

Hi, great thread.

Can you please expand on what you mean by manipulating a natural/clean link?

("I never try to manipulate google itself, I manipulate what is seen as a 'clean' link")

Thanks
1 reply

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SEOsolo

14 years ago

Dear all,

Just reading around today and I noticed Google's Wysz said this on seroundtable (placed on other forums too):

"Our recent update is designed to reduce rankings for low-quality sites, so the key thing for webmasters to do is make sure their sites are the highest quality possible. We looked at a variety of signals to detect low quality sites. Bear in mind that people searching on Google typically don't want to see shallow or poorly written content, content thatâs copied from other websites, or information that are just not that useful. In addition, it's important for webmasters to know that low quality content on part of a site can impact a site's ranking as a whole. For this reason, if you believe you've been impacted by this change you should evaluate all the content on your site and do your best to improve the overall quality of the pages on your domain. Removing low quality pages or moving them to a different domain could help your rankings for the higher quality content."

This backs up what I've been saying throughout this thread and backs up my strategies/techniques I've been using for clients. If you think you've been hit CLEAN YOUR SITE as soon as you can! It also backs up my (and many other people's) belief that low-quality content can impact a site's ranking as a whole.

On that note, go through your site - page by page - as soon as you can (even if you haven't been hit) and ask yourself these three key questions:

Is this content unique?
Is this content relevant to my website?
Is this content a good source of information, or can I make it better?

Thanks,

SEOSolo

Thanks
2 replies

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15minutes

14 years ago

Hi

Enjoying all the great information here.

What do you think of using

1.UAW - Unique Article Wiz.
2. Nichepress - private blog network
3. Build My Rank.com - private blog network

After reading all your comments I am scared to get any links so I can't get my sites banned.

Thanks

Thanks
1 reply

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SEOsolo

14 years ago

Don't be scared to get links.

You shouldn't discount using these sort of services - the key is, though, DO NOT rely on them for all of your links. Google will see right through this.

By all means, use the services you've mentioned - but don't JUST use them, you should balance your link profile out. If you've got a balanced link profile, links like the ones you've mentioned may actually help, as they 'pad out' the gaps between BIG links.

Just be careful - but don't be scared by all means. Balance your campaign and keep it looking natural.

Hope that helps!

Originally Posted by 15minutes

Hi

Enjoying all the great information here.

What do you think of using

1.UAW - Unique Article Wiz.
2. Nichepress - private blog network
3. Build My Rank.com - private blog network

After reading all your comments I am scared to get any links so I can't get my sites banned.

Thanks

Thanks

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gearmonkey

14 years ago

Originally Posted by SEOsolo

Dear all,

Just reading around today and I noticed Google's Wysz said this on seroundtable (placed on other forums too):

"Our recent update is designed to reduce rankings for low-quality sites, so the key thing for webmasters to do is make sure their sites are the highest quality possible. We looked at a variety of signals to detect low quality sites. Bear in mind that people searching on Google typically don't want to see shallow or poorly written content, content thatâs copied from other websites, or information that are just not that useful. In addition, it's important for webmasters to know that low quality content on part of a site can impact a site's ranking as a whole. For this reason, if you believe you've been impacted by this change you should evaluate all the content on your site and do your best to improve the overall quality of the pages on your domain. Removing low quality pages or moving them to a different domain could help your rankings for the higher quality content."

This backs up what I've been saying throughout this thread and backs up my strategies/techniques I've been using for clients. If you think you've been hit CLEAN YOUR SITE as soon as you can! It also backs up my (and many other people's) belief that low-quality content can impact a site's ranking as a whole.

On that note, go through your site - page by page - as soon as you can (even if you haven't been hit) and ask yourself these three key questions:

Is this content unique?
Is this content relevant to my website?
Is this content a good source of information, or can I make it better?

Thanks,

SEOSolo

This here is a very interesting element to Google's crack down, because it changes everything for a lot of big manufactures and sales pages (like Amazon, Overstock).

A significant fraction of duplicate content that *everyone uses* in my industry, such as news/press releases, about new technologies about specific products, months before anybody has access to the product, webmasters get emailed news releases from the manufactures of new products to re-post.

Twice a year there is a show that all manufactures introduce new products (in my niche). There are literally 100s of press releases every day for 7 days straight.

How does this effect large manufactures?

With this crack down, webmasters like me will to become afraid to republish a press or news release, which means less web buzz for breaking news because most news will get lost in the press release 'muck'. Webmasters will need to re-write every press release, resulting in a lot of *lesser* news to never get 'out there'.

When you have literally 100s of press releases to skim through to find 5 to re-write and publish per day, that's 100s of great news that will never get noticed to blog readers and followers.

So the result is it effects even the big industries. They'll need to re-strategize their *breaking news* and efforts. Maybe release the breaking news before the black friday frenzy so bloggers can catch it in time for a re-write and a publish?

As for Amazon, none of their content is unique in my niche. Every blurb about the product is written and republished by the manufacture for every online merchant to use. Amazon should be the first website to get deindexed and penalized by Google. All merchants should not show in google.com's search results. There should be a special search for people looking to buy something.

This is a catch 22 for Google. They are going to piss off a lot of manufactures that are probably more of a household name than Google is. Gibson or Fender guitars for example. When they release new instruments during the 'muck' season, bloggers will overlook the news because they have to decide which press release to re-write so it's 100% unique, resulting in less news to their readers.

I have a feeling we are seeing the end days for Google.com. In 5 years, Bing.com might be the dominant search engine the world has ever seen.

I'm thinking it's time to think less about what Google wants, and more what my readers want. They want a go-to source for all the breaking news in the industry, mixed in with some high-quality blog stories to read. I'm going to continue republishing press releases so I can get all the news out there for my readers. And when Google.com becomes the next "where are they now" story, and Bing.com realizes what the websurfers really want (and gives it to them), my site will be the authority.

Thanks
3 replies

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mitoshthewarrior 14 years ago

Originally Posted by gearmonkey

I have a feeling we are seeing the end days for Google.com. In 5 years, Bing.com might be the dominant search engine the world has ever seen.

Oh look.. I pig flew by my window!
- Thanks
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thetruth23

14 years ago

Originally Posted by gearmonkey

This here is a very interesting element to Google's crack down, because it changes everything for a lot of big manufactures and sales pages (like Amazon, Overstock).

A significant fraction of duplicate content that *everyone uses* in my industry, such as news/press releases, about new technologies about specific products, months before anybody has access to the product, webmasters get emailed news releases from the manufactures of new products to re-post.

Twice a year there is a show that all manufactures introduce new products (in my niche). There are literally 100s of press releases every day for 7 days straight.

How does this effect large manufactures?

With this crack down, webmasters like me will to become afraid to republish a press or news release, which means less web buzz for breaking news because most news will get lost in the press release 'muck'. Webmasters will need to re-write every press release, resulting in a lot of *lesser* news to never get 'out there'.

When you have literally 100s of press releases to skim through to find 5 to re-write and publish per day, that's 100s of great news that will never get noticed to blog readers and followers.

So the result is it effects even the big industries. They'll need to re-strategize their *breaking news* and efforts. Maybe release the breaking news before the black friday frenzy so bloggers can catch it in time for a re-write and a publish?

As for Amazon, none of their content is unique in my niche. Every blurb about the product is written and republished by the manufacture for every online merchant to use. Amazon should be the first website to get deindexed and penalized by Google. All merchants should not show in google.com's search results. There should be a special search for people looking to buy something.

This is a catch 22 for Google. They are going to piss off a lot of manufactures that are probably more of a household name than Google is. Gibson or Fender guitars for example. When they release new instruments during the 'muck' season, bloggers will overlook the news because they have to decide which press release to re-write so it's 100% unique, resulting in less news to their readers.

I have a feeling we are seeing the end days for Google.com. In 5 years, Bing.com might be the dominant search engine the world has ever seen.

I'm thinking it's time to think less about what Google wants, and more what my readers want. They want a go-to source for all the breaking news in the industry, mixed in with some high-quality blog stories to read. I'm going to continue republishing press releases so I can get all the news out there for my readers. And when Google.com becomes the next "where are they now" story, and Bing.com realizes what the websurfers really want (and gives it to them), my site will be the authority.

Hmm...it's easy to forget that what people write and contribute here is opinion and speculation...

Hopefully nobody reading takes what you wrote literally.

For the most part I disagree but the only point I'll bring up is the one about amazon. Their user reviews for products makes it a very useful (valuable) site for it's visitors. Because of this I would see no reason to penalise such a site.

And what you wrote at the end is what you should always be doing anyway. That should always be your primary focus. Your customer. Always serve your customer first.

Thanks
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gearmonkey

14 years ago

Originally Posted by thetruth23

Hmm...it's easy to forget that what people write and contribute here is opinion and speculation...

Hopefully nobody reading takes what you wrote literally.

For the most part I disagree but the only point I'll bring up is the one about amazon. Their user reviews for products makes it a very useful (valuable) site for it's visitors. Because of this I would see no reason to penalise such a site.

And what you wrote at the end is what you should always be doing anyway. That should always be your primary focus. Your customer. Always serve your customer first.

Amazon's reviews are not that great, and only contribute to a small percentage of their products. Other sites that don't rank as well have better user reviews. I can't speak for everyone, but Amazon is the last place I read reviews if I am researching to buy a new GPS, TV, or anything of value.

And I don't have "customers", I have blog readers. I'm not trying to sell anything. My main objective is to be the go-to source for everything in my niche - and gain lots of quality traffic and loyal readers (and watch my feedburner subscribers grow). This will attract advertisers. My primary income right now is Adsense and CJ. I have an affiliate with Amazon, but nobody seems to shop/buy there, my readers are buying from another major online store (a site which provides better reviews that Amazon could only ever dream of)

I do believe, at this rate, Google will fade and Bing.com will become the big dog for web search.

Bottom line, if I get penalized by Google for providing my readers with the news and content they want to read, then its Google who doesn't care about the end users... not me.

What can you possibly disagree with?

Thanks
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thetruth23

14 years ago

Originally Posted by gearmonkey

Amazon's reviews are not that great, and only contribute to a small percentage of their products. Other sites that don't rank as well have better user reviews. I can't speak for everyone, but Amazon is the last place I read reviews if I am researching to buy a new GPS, TV, or anything of value.

And I don't have "customers", I have blog readers. I'm not trying to sell anything. My main objective is to be the go-to source for everything in my niche - and gain lots of quality traffic and loyal readers (and watch my feedburner subscribers grow). This will attract advertisers. My primary income right now is Adsense and CJ. I have an affiliate with Amazon, but nobody seems to shop/buy there, my readers are buying from another major online store (a site which provides better reviews that Amazon could only ever dream of)

I do believe, at this rate, Google will fade and Bing.com will become the big dog for web search.

Bottom line, if I get penalized by Google for providing my readers with the news and content they want to read, then its Google who doesn't care about the end users... not me.

What can you possibly disagree with?

My point was that in business there is always someone you're serving, and whoever that is, (readers of your blog or whatever), they should always be your primary focus regardless of outside influence.

Originally Posted by gearmonkey

I have an affiliate with Amazon, but nobody seems to shop/buy there

Nobody buys from Amazon??? :confused:

That statement couldn't be further from the truth!

There's more to Amazon than just their reviews. That was just one aspect as to why they are considered a valuable and useful site.

Anyhow, I actually believe Google do care...at least they try to...

At the end of the day, give what your readers want. If it happens to be regurgitated internet news, then so be it...but there's no reason for you to get the credit for it. You're not the reporter, journalist, or editor doing all the hard work.... :rolleyes:

Sure, you're providing a hub for all things related to your niche, but you're going to have to provide something unique and different to get some more love and attention from search engines and even from your readers (customers - people you're serving!). (that's my new take on things anyway - although probably should always have been the case!)

Originally Posted by gearmonkey

I do believe, at this rate, Google will fade and Bing.com will become the big dog for web search.

I still think you're drawing far too many conclusions from just one of their latest updates.

I don't see much evidence of bing becoming the leading search engine anytime soon. Just look at the fiasco of them copying google search results...

Whatever does happen, just roll with it...

SEOSolo, sorry for hi-jacking your excellent thread. It was kinda heading down the path of a one-man personal SEO consultation anyway. I'll try and keep comments and questions more on-topic as long as everyone else does!

Thanks
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gearmonkey

14 years ago

Originally Posted by thetruth23

Nobody buys from Amazon??? :confused:

Yes, nobody buys from Amazon from my website. I can generate $2,000+ sales per day for any other online stores, but Amazon has generated... maybe $11.60 since I started promoting them almost a yr ago. I ran a poll, and Amazon didn't rank too well among my readers.

I've only purchased one thing in my lifetime on amazon, and sent it back for a refund (other issues). I normally use Walmart.com or eBay. My mother inlaw is a shop o holic, and she's never talks about Amazon.
It's annoying, Amazon seems to always be at the top of Google when they shouldn't be. It's like mandatory to scroll down past Amazon to find what you want/need.

To the OP, sorry for the hijack. Google vs Bing should be a thread of it's own. My trigger was the report you posted, which I feel deserves a discussion.

Thanks
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15minutes

14 years ago

SEOsolo

what do you think of .co domains.

Are they 'international' like .info/.biz

Would you use one in the UK?

Thanks

Thanks
1 reply

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15minutes

14 years ago

Hi

Sorry got another one

I read somewhere that Google is going to change the way that it looks at domain names with the exact keyword in it

really cheap hotel room rates DOT com
(made up - before anyone looks)

To rank for 'really cheap hotel room rates'

Still do this or avoid?

What are your views?

Thanks again

Thanks
1 reply

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SEOsolo

14 years ago

First question -.co used to be COLUMBIA, but now means COMPANY - Google is still working (as far as I'm aware) on de-categorising this trait from the domain so it doesn't rank on the columbian google!

I wouldn't shy away from using one in the UK, but haven't yet seen them out-ranking the favourites like .co.uk and .com... I'm sure you get me!

By all means though, go for it!

Originally Posted by 15minutes

SEOsolo

what do you think of .co domains.

Are they 'international' like .info/.biz

Would you use one in the UK?

Thanks

Second question - Google will do that, but don't get too paranoid about that. As long as your domain isn't softwarereviewsoftheappleipadtwo DOT com... you should be ok.

You should still look at getting the exact matches in there if you can - but just don't go too daft on them lol.

You should avoid using words such as 'really' and 'amazing' unless totally relevant.

Words like 'best' should still work ok!

Hope that all helps!

Originally Posted by 15minutes

Hi

Sorry got another one

I read somewhere that Google is going to change the way that it looks at domain names with the exact keyword in it

really cheap hotel room rates DOT com
(made up - before anyone looks)

To rank for 'really cheap hotel room rates'

Still do this or avoid?

What are your views?

Thanks again

Thanks

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SEOsolo

14 years ago

Hey man, you're not hijacking the thread! Your points are bang on. Everyone has their opinions but unfortunately - gearmonkey - you have indeed jumped to conclusions.

Put yourself in the product creators shoes - you give out a product description of exactly what the product does.

If everyone re-writes this from what other people have said (a bit like chinese whispers), in the end, information about your product will be left out and it will be completely different from the start.

SO - it's right to keep things like this (information amazon and other sellers post) exactly as the creator/manufacturer ORIGINALLY put it.

Like I said, Google can see when something has been copied verbatum - but when it's RIGHT to do that, and acknowledge this, Google will accept this - and in some cases even give credit for providing the 'right' information.

When it comes to bing taking over - again, we're all entitled to our opinions but just look at Google, then look at Bing. There is a HUGE difference. What's more, Google is expanding in all angles, so the search result side of things will keep steady for them...

Also, when you talk about searching for 'buying' things, etc - you can now block certain pages on google (like amazon and other vendors) when you're signed in.

Cheers

Originally Posted by thetruth23

My point was that in business there is always someone you're serving, and whoever that is, (readers of your blog or whatever), they should always be your primary focus regardless of outside influence.

Nobody buys from Amazon??? :confused:

That statement couldn't be further from the truth!

There's more to Amazon than just their reviews. That was just one aspect as to why they are considered a valuable and useful site.

Anyhow, I actually believe Google do care...at least they try to...

At the end of the day, give what your readers want. If it happens to be regurgitated internet news, then so be it...but there's no reason for you to get the credit for it. You're not the reporter, journalist, or editor doing all the hard work.... :rolleyes:

Sure, you're providing a hub for all things related to your niche, but you're going to have to provide something unique and different to get some more love and attention from search engines and even from your readers (customers - people you're serving!). (that's my new take on things anyway - although probably should always have been the case!)

I still think you're drawing far too many conclusions from just one of their latest updates.

I don't see much evidence of bing becoming the leading search engine anytime soon. Just look at the fiasco of them copying google search results...

Whatever does happen, just roll with it...

SEOSolo, sorry for hi-jacking your excellent thread. It was kinda heading down the path of a one-man personal SEO consultation anyway. I'll try and keep comments and questions more on-topic as long as everyone else does!

[ 1 ] Thanks

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SEOsolo

14 years ago

Hmm..

It's important to understand the difference between 're-publishable' content and 'copied' content.

Some content is designed to be re-published - like press releases. Google sees this because PRs are published only on PR sites (when they're not... that's when they'll raise eyebrows). It is then journalists/writers who use these sites to re-write PRs.

So - what you're saying does carry weight but it all seems a bit 'end of the world-like' for me. Google will indeed have its market share reduced but as a verb, we dont 'bing' something, or 'yahoo' it... we 'google' it - and that much will remain.

Google knows the difference between content that CAN be re-published and the type that shouldn't - so don't read too far into it. Google might be a 'machine', as such, but it's more advanced than many people think.

Originally Posted by gearmonkey

This here is a very interesting element to Google's crack down, because it changes everything for a lot of big manufactures and sales pages (like Amazon, Overstock).

A significant fraction of duplicate content that *everyone uses* in my industry, such as news/press releases, about new technologies about specific products, months before anybody has access to the product, webmasters get emailed news releases from the manufactures of new products to re-post.

Twice a year there is a show that all manufactures introduce new products (in my niche). There are literally 100s of press releases every day for 7 days straight.

How does this effect large manufactures?

With this crack down, webmasters like me will to become afraid to republish a press or news release, which means less web buzz for breaking news because most news will get lost in the press release 'muck'. Webmasters will need to re-write every press release, resulting in a lot of *lesser* news to never get 'out there'.

When you have literally 100s of press releases to skim through to find 5 to re-write and publish per day, that's 100s of great news that will never get noticed to blog readers and followers.

So the result is it effects even the big industries. They'll need to re-strategize their *breaking news* and efforts. Maybe release the breaking news before the black friday frenzy so bloggers can catch it in time for a re-write and a publish?

As for Amazon, none of their content is unique in my niche. Every blurb about the product is written and republished by the manufacture for every online merchant to use. Amazon should be the first website to get deindexed and penalized by Google. All merchants should not show in google.com's search results. There should be a special search for people looking to buy something.

This is a catch 22 for Google. They are going to piss off a lot of manufactures that are probably more of a household name than Google is. Gibson or Fender guitars for example. When they release new instruments during the 'muck' season, bloggers will overlook the news because they have to decide which press release to re-write so it's 100% unique, resulting in less news to their readers.

I have a feeling we are seeing the end days for Google.com. In 5 years, Bing.com might be the dominant search engine the world has ever seen.

I'm thinking it's time to think less about what Google wants, and more what my readers want. They want a go-to source for all the breaking news in the industry, mixed in with some high-quality blog stories to read. I'm going to continue republishing press releases so I can get all the news out there for my readers. And when Google.com becomes the next "where are they now" story, and Bing.com realizes what the websurfers really want (and gives it to them), my site will be the authority.

Thanks

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William King

14 years ago

Originally Posted by SEOsolo

Blog commenting is something you're going to want to move away from - it's going to be clamped down on SEVERELY - particuarly sites with 100+ comments - putting your site on there is just asking for a google penalty!

Forum linking - again, be careful here. It's very spammy just like blog commenting. You won't gain long-term rankings with these.

Article submitters - HAS TO BE UNIQUE CONTENT. this method isn't awful, but it's not great either.

In fact, all the methods listed are for the SEO with no time or for what I call the lazy SEO. If you want to rank a site, you've got to put some personal work in there and make it a super-site that will actually benefit the reader.

It's all about the 'natural' links now - I say "natural", because you can easily manipulate what is seen as "natural".

Cheers

Same Ideas which I have, but I have them from little perspective. The recent change in algorithm of the Google makes me to realize that it is better to give first preference and utilize your marketing skills in the social media marketing rather than search engine optimization. As one little change in the algorithm can waste your efforts which you did to rank up in the SERP.

Thanks

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SEOsolo

14 years ago

Originally Posted by inter123

Hey.

What is your opinion on getting backlinks from comments especially the ones where there are like 100+ comments but the PR is 5 or something reasonably high.

Thanks.

Jim.

Hey Jim,

Well, I'd say about 2 years ago, comment links were all the rage and they were a great way to get very quick free links from PR sites. I once ranked a site in the top 10 (for a reasonably competitive term) just by using comment links... but the site didn't stay up the rankings for long at all.

I will always say be careful with comments links - even from PR sites (I know they can be SO tempting). The odd one or two CLEAN comments won't hurt too much but you're probably best without.

I'd recommend you make it a natural link if you're gonna do it. So act as if you're someone giving advice and refer to a few sites - not just your own (make sure the sites you refer to are high-authority ones, too - this will help lessen the 'spammy' look, trust me!).

Hope that helps,

Thanks

[ 1 ] Thanks

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Aki Fagno

14 years ago

Wow! That's pretty huge responsibility! So how do you all of these?

Thanks

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shafiqkamal

14 years ago

I have a question.

If the keyword I want to rank is not included in my domain name, how do you advice in promoting it? Hopefully you can provide step by steps which are much easier to understand.

Thanks
2 replies

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arttse

14 years ago

A few more questions:

1. How does google determine what is quality content - assuming they wont review manually?

2. How do you build quality backlinks back to your site with the right anchor text that gives the impression to google that the link is relevant and was built naturally by other webmasters?

3. How do you engage other bloggers/webmasters and convince them to write about our products and services?

Thanks
1 reply

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SEOsolo

14 years ago

Originally Posted by arttse

A few more questions:

1. How does google determine what is quality content - assuming they wont review manually?

2. How do you build quality backlinks back to your site with the right anchor text that gives the impression to google that the link is relevant and was built naturally by other webmasters?

3. How do you engage other bloggers/webmasters and convince them to write about our products and services?

Now then - I can't answer everything there... some agencies charge thousands for that info lol.

What I can say, though, is that quality content is determined by relevance. So you really need to manipulate 'relevance'. This is determined by how many people read something, how long they spend on the page itself reading it, their journey on the website from there (to a goal, maybe). It is also determined by on-site factors like keywords and relation to other content on the website. Quality content is something that gives you EVERYTHING you need to know about something (maybe broken over a few pages?).

As for anchor text - it needs to be balanced. "Click here" is an over-used favourite by people trying to balance. Try long anchor texts like chunks of a sentence that relate to the page the link goes to. Of course, don't lose sight of the target but make sure you mix it up.

Engaging bloggers to write about your stuff - you need to get some PRs out there, get your name out there, contact them, get to know people. They probably won't know about it until you put it in front of them. Incentivise them... etc.

Hope that helps - it's all I can say without actually going into some form of consultancy work lol

Thanks

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SEOsolo

14 years ago

Originally Posted by shafiqkamal

I have a question.

If the keyword I want to rank is not included in my domain name, how do you advice in promoting it? Hopefully you can provide step by steps which are much easier to understand.

I can't give step-by-step guides - but it depends how far away your domain is. If you're promoting golf clubs and your domain is xfdgfs.com or something random like that, you've got a HUGE task on your hands... what does xfdgfs even mean to customers?

You see BRANDS ranking but that's because they have huge press campaigns. One of the most commmon instances of people trying to promote non-keyword domains is when they pick up dropped domains - these can be quick wins for link sales, for example, but you can't really make a living out of anything on them!

Just keep plugging away and if you've not got anywhere in a month - it's not going to work. The key to success is partly in the domain name, so maybe get a different one? even if it's got a few words after it - like golfclubreviewsite.com or something like that (obviously related to your niche, though).

Thanks

Thanks
1 reply

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shafiqkamal

14 years ago

Originally Posted by SEOsolo

I can't give step-by-step guides - but it depends how far away your domain is. If you're promoting golf clubs and your domain is xfdgfs.com or something random like that, you've got a HUGE task on your hands... what does xfdgfs even mean to customers?

You see BRANDS ranking but that's because they have huge press campaigns. One of the most commmon instances of people trying to promote non-keyword domains is when they pick up dropped domains - these can be quick wins for link sales, for example, but you can't really make a living out of anything on them!

Just keep plugging away and if you've not got anywhere in a month - it's not going to work. The key to success is partly in the domain name, so maybe get a different one? even if it's got a few words after it - like golfclubreviewsite.com or something like that (obviously related to your niche, though).

Thanks

Let's take for an example that my domain name is "catsworld dot com". And I want to rank for a keyword like "food for persian cats". Is this acceptable and how do you advice on ranking this?

As far as i'm concerned, methods i've read about are:

1. Article Marketing
2. Yahoo Answers
3. Guest Blog Posts
4. Blog Comments
5. Forum Postings (with anchor text at sig)

Are there others that these high-profile companies use? I'm trying to have a diverse way of doing my link building and would like to have only white hat methods which will only look natural to google.

Thanks
1 reply

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SEOsolo

14 years ago

Originally Posted by shafiqkamal

Let's take for an example that my domain name is "catsworld dot com". And I want to rank for a keyword like "food for persian cats". Is this acceptable and how do you advice on ranking this?

As far as i'm concerned, methods i've read about are:

1. Article Marketing
2. Yahoo Answers
3. Guest Blog Posts
4. Blog Comments
5. Forum Postings (with anchor text at sig)

Are there others that these high-profile companies use? I'm trying to have a diverse way of doing my link building and would like to have only white hat methods which will only look natural to google.

Right, ok. To start off with, do your research on 'food for persian cats' - what do people want to know about it? When you know, put a page on your site titles 'food for persian cats' and answer all possible questions here. It needs to be the definitive guide to food for persian cats.

Once you've got your page (probs about 600 words+... it needs to be chunky if you're going after a long keyword like this), start linking to it - start writing articles (your guest posts) and link to this specific page. Think about natural links - they're not ALL going to go to the homepage are they? They'll link to sub-pages... they'll link to the RELEVANT information.

Hope that helps! Can't give away much more without spelling out an entire campaign! Just start with that and make sure you give it enough keyword-rich content!

Thanks

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The Blueprinter

14 years ago

Hi !

Really great to have an expert that can answer questions

I will be back when I have a tricky ony

Thanks
1 reply

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SEOsolo

14 years ago

Hey - thanks.

Yeah ask me anything! I can't give away all my secrets but I'll do my best to help out!

I'm sure we'll see each other around on the forum!

Originally Posted by The Blueprinter

Hi !

Really great to have an expert that can answer questions

I will be back when I have a tricky ony

Thanks
1 reply

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jeannemk

14 years ago

I have commented on a certain page of a blog, that just 1 comment from the blog and when i check the number of my backlinks, it turns out that there are too many links coming from that blog I made my comment. I am really confused.

It simply goes like these,

1 comment (anchored link) --> 100 backlinks

is that good?

pls help me understand as it is growing in numbers

Thanks.

Thanks
1 reply

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SEOsolo

14 years ago

Originally Posted by jeannemk

I have commented on a certain page of a blog, that just 1 comment from the blog and when i check the number of my backlinks, it turns out that there are too many links coming from that blog I made my comment. I am really confused.

It simply goes like these,

1 comment (anchored link) --> 100 backlinks

is that good?

pls help me understand as it is growing in numbers

Thanks.

Sounds confusing - but you only tend to get that many backlinks when you get a site-wide link.

Another explanation is that if people are adding more comments all the time, it could be pushing your comment onto the next page of comments each time - so your comment will be displayed on a new 'numbered' page regularly - once these are indexed they'll show up in your IBLs.

Just be careful with comment links - they are very spammy.

Thanks
1 reply

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jeannemk

14 years ago

Originally Posted by SEOsolo

Sounds confusing - but you only tend to get that many backlinks when you get a site-wide link.

Another explanation is that if people are adding more comments all the time, it could be pushing your comment onto the next page of comments each time - so your comment will be displayed on a new 'numbered' page regularly - once these are indexed they'll show up in your IBLs.

Just be careful with comment links - they are very spammy.

i checked it just yesterday, there are just 3 comments, does post category and post tags are contributing factors? as well as the widget recent comments as it appears on a difference page wherein it shows my name and my post..

what do you think sir?

Thanks
2 replies

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fbt 14 years ago

what do you think about angela & paul links? and what do you think about pinging a page after you added a backlink? thanks
- Thanks
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safe as houses

14 years ago

Hi, and thanks for all your help here, can I ask what worth you put on press releases and when writing unique content, whats your views on ezine and submitting there, Regards, Mick.

Thanks
2 replies

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dp40oz

14 years ago

You mentioned that forum links and blog comments look spammy and to be careful with them because you may be penalized. I thought the whole "penalized" thing was a myth. Couldn't I just "penalize" my competition with forum and blog links then? In reality wouldn't the worst thing that would happen be that they just wouldn't count for anything?

Also you've been referring to "clean" and "natural" links. What are you considering "clean" and "natural" links? For example I used to play in a rock band that was slightly successful, when I look back at our sites backlinks they were mostly forum post links, forum signature links, blog comments, fans myspace pages and facebook page links. Basically fans telling other people about us. These would all be considered bad or spammy links these days but how would Googles robot differentiate those things? I find it hard to believe that even Googles robot knows the difference between what sites should have these sorts of links and what sites shouldn't. It just seems too subjective, not that its not possible but it would take an awfully human robot. I just wanted to say thanks for entertaining our questions. I wish there were more people with your knowledge answering questions around here.

Thanks
1 reply

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SEOsolo

14 years ago

Originally Posted by dp40oz

You mentioned that forum links and blog comments look spammy and to be careful with them because you may be penalized. I thought the whole "penalized" thing was a myth. Couldn't I just "penalize" my competition with forum and blog links then? In reality wouldn't the worst thing that would happen be that they just wouldn't count for anything?

Also you've been referring to "clean" and "natural" links. What are you considering "clean" and "natural" links? For example I used to play in a rock band that was slightly successful, when I look back at our sites backlinks they were mostly forum post links, forum signature links, blog comments, fans myspace pages and facebook page links. Basically fans telling other people about us. These would all be considered bad or spammy links these days but how would Googles robot differentiate those things? I find it hard to believe that even Googles robot knows the difference between what sites should have these sorts of links and what sites shouldn't. It just seems too subjective, not that its not possible but it would take an awfully human robot. I just wanted to say thanks for entertaining our questions. I wish there were more people with your knowledge answering questions around here.

Hey,

You've got a point there, and that's where things CAN get confusing. The forum and blog posts you're talking about were sort of 'social' posts - they weren't self-promotional, merely chitter-chatter. This is something some people Google believe CAN pick up... but I don't know if it can.

The thing with your band is that it's a 'brand' - it's a single entity... you didn't have 500 other people trying to do the exact same thing releasing the exact same songs. Social media chatter/forum buzz can be decent links for a band site - because it's not generally commercial (so you won't generally spend money on buying links and selling products day-in-day-out, etc.)

And the 'myth' surrounding penalties - trust me, google penalties are real. Sites lose trust (if you see a site with 100 pages indexed, then two days later you see the same site with just 20 pages indexed... it has been punished and has lost 80% trust).

Other penalties I've seen include sites going from position 4/5 to position 16/17 overnight - this is a lot more common than you may think.

You could 'penalize' your competition - but they could do the same to you if they found out it was you. Sabotage is a dangerous game in SEO, I've had it done to me and we gave them exactly what they deserved - I won't go into details, but they were soon out of the rankings!

And as for counting for nothing - a 'bad' link won't count for anything good - but it can damage you. One individual link might not hurt too much, but tonnes of them will.

Oh - and you're welcome about sticking around to answer questions! Like I said, I'm going self-employed so need to make a name for myself before I get stuck in!

Cheers

Thanks

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SEOsolo

14 years ago

Originally Posted by safe as houses

Hi, and thanks for all your help here, can I ask what worth you put on press releases and when writing unique content, whats your views on ezine and submitting there, Regards, Mick.

Hey,

PRs are GREAT for circulation and getting brand awareness going. Get them posted on a few sites (different PRs, that is), and encourage people to get in touch with you and answer questions so they can quote and link - that's a great natural link waiting to happen... how linking should be done in Google's eyes.

Ezine - used to be decent... and still is, to be fair. They announced they'll no-follow, then changed their minds. In my eyes, ezine is a good place to get a few free articles out there. Don't rely on it, but don't discount it from your campaign - just keep the articles factual and sales-talk free.

Unique content is easy to write - it's just got to be different from everyone else's. Try link-bait style texts, like 'lose weight in three simple steps' - you'll get people reading that, and if you give them the info and make them want to find out more, you're on to a winner.

Cheers

Thanks

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TZ

14 years ago

I know for sure that there is one guy (company) that kicks my butt bad in one of our more lucrative niches and he hires a company in India to nothing but guest blogging linking back to his domains.

He is doing very well, and you can't really get a better link (in my mind).

Thanks
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SEOsolo

14 years ago

Interesting - what niche is this? I'd watch out for changes here over the next few months. although there's nothing wrong with guest blogging, the posts aren't really adding 'value' to the site - which is something that may get ironed out soon.

Having said that, if you can't beat them, join them... but it depends on your niche and how commercial/competitive it is!

Originally Posted by TZ

I know for sure that there is one guy (company) that kicks my butt bad in one of our more lucrative niches and he hires a company in India to nothing but guest blogging linking back to his domains.

He is doing very well, and you can't really get a better link (in my mind).

Thanks

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JayVance

14 years ago

nvm, already asked.

Thanks

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cipango

14 years ago

What techniques could you advise to the little guy who has a website or blog in a micro niche and wants to take it to #1? Content has to be unique, that is out of the question, but after that, what specific techniques can he/she apply that won't require a big budget? Possibly free?

Because, from what I make from the posts above, you're dismissing many techniques that are widely used like blog commenting, profile building, article building isn't that great etc. What's left then? Please try to be as specific as you can. Thank you.

Thanks
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SEOsolo

14 years ago

Originally Posted by cipango

What techniques could you advise to the little guy who has a website or blog in a micro niche and wants to take it to #1? Content has to be unique, that is out of the question, but after that, what specific techniques can he/she apply that won't require a big budget? Possibly free?

Because, from what I make from the posts above, you're dismissing many techniques that are widely used like blog commenting, profile building, article building isn't that great etc. What's left then? Please try to be as specific as you can. Thank you.

Ok - just to clarify, different sites (different niches and different sizes) will need different campaigns. So, article building, profile building.. these sort of things MAY work to an extent.

It all depends if you've got a brand, too. But let's assume you don't and work from that.

A small site in a micro-niche won't take long to rank - providing it's not TOO competitive. Give it some welly on e-zine from different authors to build yourself a bit of a foundation. You need relevant content on there - if you're selling something, get some chunky reviews and optimize for '(enter product keyword) reviews'.

I ranked a tiny sports supplement site by using ezine, blog comments and just ONE black-hat link. It's about trust, content, and a bit of patience.

Have a look at what the guys above you are doing - that will give you a clue as to how hard you need to push your site.

The main tips I've given on here so far have been for medium-large commercial sites - ones with tough competition. So for your smaller site, just make sure your site is of use to people, try embedding some videos in there, some user-generated content - you'll soon get there.

Again, it all depends on the niche though so do your research!

Thanks

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MarksWineClub

14 years ago

Cipango.....I think that's my question here as well.

So far, what I've heard is that you need to have "natural" links and you need to build unique content.

Then we've also heard that basically no standard style of link building is effective.

I think what would be more helpful than saying what we all shouldn't be doing is giving some concrete steps of what we should be doing.

Sounds like guest blogging is ok for now, what about services like Build my rank?

If I need to take my wine site from Page 1 to #1 in a fairly competitive niche, what would you have me do today?

Thanks
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SEOsolo

14 years ago

Originally Posted by MarksWineClub

Cipango.....I think that's my question here as well.

So far, what I've heard is that you need to have "natural" links and you need to build unique content.

Then we've also heard that basically no standard style of link building is effective.

I think what would be more helpful than saying what we all shouldn't be doing is giving some concrete steps of what we should be doing.

Sounds like guest blogging is ok for now, what about services like Build my rank?

If I need to take my wine site from Page 1 to #1 in a fairly competitive niche, what would you have me do today?

You've got a wine site... that's a PERFECT opportunity to get some massive content on your site. Have a 'the ultimate guide to wine tasting guide' page. have a red vs. white wine page... basically look at what sort of keywords people are using to search and title your pages after these.

As for the giving some concrete steps - I'll give you a few steps so you can check your site and 'tick the boxes'... if you will.

1. Have you done enough research on your niche? Have you looked at what position 1 is doing differently to position 10? Why is position 12 not in the top 10? What might be stopping their progress? Are you tackling all possible keywords - and have you got pages optimized for these?

2. Once you've done all the research it's about putting it into action. If you're pushing brands get your site packed out with product reviews from these brands - think about what you would search for if you were buying a specific type of wine.

3. What are people coming to your site for? Information? To buy something? Design your site around this. If you want to sell something, drop subtle hints and buy now buttons in random places.

4. Now you've got your on-site SEO sorted, move onto off-site. For you, specifically, get some guest posts on wine websites or food websites - recipe sites might accept a guest post about 'the best wine to drink with red meat' or something like that. Make sure you're getting click-throughs on these.

5. As for links, just don't go too aggressive straight away, really think about where you can obtain them. Got for homepage only links on sites with LOADS of indexed pages (you don't want massive site-wide links just yet because you've got a specific niche).

It's hard to give any specifics without actually looking at your site and getting into the backlinks. These are just general tips - remember that everyone likes to do SEO differently, but these tips should give you a nice foundation/starting point.

Thanks

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mitoshthewarrior

14 years ago

Originally Posted by MarksWineClub

Cipango.....I think that's my question here as well.

So far, what I've heard is that you need to have "natural" links and you need to build unique content.

Then we've also heard that basically no standard style of link building is effective.

I think what would be more helpful than saying what we all shouldn't be doing is giving some concrete steps of what we should be doing.

Sounds like guest blogging is ok for now, what about services like Build my rank?

If I need to take my wine site from Page 1 to #1 in a fairly competitive niche, what would you have me do today?

Have you heard of Gary Vaynerchuk? He wrote the smash hit book "Crush It" (I highly suggest you read it by the way as there are references and stories of his wine business). He runs one of the most popular Wine sites out there and he does it using very unique techniques like a wine Internet TV show. Definitely check him out if you haven't already and run out and get that book, I suggest the audio book as it is read by him and he is a very unique and passionate guy.

Thanks

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GeorgR.

14 years ago

darn, those are GOOD reads! Thank you for the insight!

[ 1 ] Thanks
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SEOsolo 14 years ago

Originally Posted by GeorgR.

darn, those are GOOD reads! Thank you for the insight!

Thanks GeorgR! Glad you're enjoying my input - I've only been on here a few days so still settling in.

I'll be in the war room too soon

See you around!
- Thanks
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JackPowers

14 years ago

Hey SEOSolo,

Welcome to Warrior Forum, great to have another pro SEO'er on board!

If you don't mind, I'd like to get your opinion on these:

1) How important do you determine age of a domain/age of links to be and how do you get around it with a new domain?

You don't see this as much in highly competetive niches I know, but in smaller niches I often see old sites ranking with nothing but directory/dmoz links which would be worthless if not for the fact that they're as old as the internet. So, do you agree that link age is a an important factor and how do you get around this (old domain redirect, old domain links etc)? How do you short cut the waiting period of a new domain (do you agree that there is one)?

2) How important is the size of a website?

Could a site rank on it's own with minimal outside links but 100,000 unique pages? Does the inherent PR of a single webpage add up to anything meaningful if theres thousands and thousands of them? As there is a limit on how many pages get crawled roughly correlated to PR, how would you get all these pages indexed on a new domain?

3) Is the wonder wheel the best gauge of keyword relevance?

I hope that wasn't too much!

Thanks!

[ 1 ] Thanks
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SEOsolo

14 years ago

Originally Posted by JackPowers

Hey SEOSolo,

Welcome to Warrior Forum, great to have another pro SEO'er on board!

If you don't mind, I'd like to get your opinion on these:

1) How important do you determine age of a domain/age of links to be and how do you get around it with a new domain?

You don't see this as much in highly competetive niches I know, but in smaller niches I often see old sites ranking with nothing but directory/dmoz links which would be worthless if not for the fact that they're as old as the internet. So, do you agree that link age is a an important factor and how do you get around this (old domain redirect, old domain links etc)? How do you short cut the waiting period of a new domain (do you agree that there is one)?

2) How important is the size of a website?

Could a site rank on it's own with minimal outside links but 100,000 unique pages? Does the inherent PR of a single webpage add up to anything meaningful if theres thousands and thousands of them? As there is a limit on how many pages get crawled roughly correlated to PR, how would you get all these pages indexed on a new domain?

3) Is the wonder wheel the best gauge of keyword relevance?

I hope that wasn't too much!

Thanks!

Hey,

Some great questions there - something to get my teeth into! Right - when it comes to domain age/link age, it would SEEM that the older the domain (providing it's a good site), the more trust it will have. This isn't FACT, it just seems that way, and it's something (unfortunately) that hasn't been given a 100% definate answer.

When you talk about short-cutting the process of age=trust, I guess you've got to ignore the age aspect completely and go for trust. You can't shortcut the age, you can pretend your site has been around for years to your customers, but Google will know (obviously!). BUT... you CAN shortcut the trust aspect. You can't fake trust, but you can definitely gain it in faster ways - and LOTS of unique content can be a great way to help this along.

The size of a website is only relevant to what it's about. If you've got a site about one product and you've got 100,000 pages.. it doesn't really make sense - why would it need that many? If, however, I was setting up a site about 10 products, for example, I'd aim for 1 information page about each product, and that info page would link to a review page (making 2 pages for each product). The pages would be a MINIMUM of 400 words.

The wonder wheel is good, but there are SO SO many keyword tools out there providing different insights - my advice is NEVER just use one, your research stage should be one of the biggest stages of your website building.

Hope that helps

[ 1 ] Thanks
1 reply

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JackPowers

14 years ago

Originally Posted by SEOsolo

Hey,

Some great questions there - something to get my teeth into! Right - when it comes to domain age/link age, it would SEEM that the older the domain (providing it's a good site), the more trust it will have. This isn't FACT, it just seems that way, and it's something (unfortunately) that hasn't been given a 100% definate answer.

When you talk about short-cutting the process of age=trust, I guess you've got to ignore the age aspect completely and go for trust. You can't shortcut the age, you can pretend your site has been around for years to your customers, but Google will know (obviously!). BUT... you CAN shortcut the trust aspect. You can't fake trust, but you can definitely gain it in faster ways - and LOTS of unique content can be a great way to help this along.

The size of a website is only relevant to what it's about. If you've got a site about one product and you've got 100,000 pages.. it doesn't really make sense - why would it need that many? If, however, I was setting up a site about 10 products, for example, I'd aim for 1 information page about each product, and that info page would link to a review page (making 2 pages for each product). The pages would be a MINIMUM of 400 words.

The wonder wheel is good, but there are SO SO many keyword tools out there providing different insights - my advice is NEVER just use one, your research stage should be one of the biggest stages of your website building.

Hope that helps

Thanks for you answers!

The thing about age, and I really believe this to be true, is that link age is a very important factor in Google. Some would say, TOO important a factor. I have seen several of my sites ranking in the top in Bing for example and being second page of Google, where the competition only really seems to have age going for them. I guess the solution to this as internet marketers, affiliate marketers, is to get those sites up and running as soon as possible (with great content, design etc), while you work on other more profitable projects.

Regarding the size of a site, I'm asking because it seems to something of a mantra in most of SEO business (that is TONS of unique content). You often see the big travel sites have 100,000's of pages where they probably don't need more than a few hundred, a few thousand for usability. I'm not a 'huge website' freak in that regard. Nothing tells me that there is a significant ranking bonus just by having a massive site. I think that is a leftover from the early days of SEO, but I could be wrong and that's why I asked. It does give the SEO'er more work to bill the client

Anyway, thanks again and I'd recommend you to use an avatar and update your website info. We all have an easier time remembering pictures than usernames and you wouldn't want this great thread to be wasted for you.

Thanks
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SEOsolo

14 years ago

Originally Posted by JackPowers

Thanks for you answers!

The thing about age, and I really believe this to be true, is that link age is a very important factor in Google. Some would say, TOO important a factor. I have seen several of my sites ranking in the top in Bing for example and being second page of Google, where the competition only really seems to have age going for them. I guess the solution to this as internet marketers, affiliate marketers, is to get those sites up and running as soon as possible (with great content, design etc), while you work on other more profitable projects.

Regarding the size of a site, I'm asking because it seems to something of a mantra in most of SEO business (that is TONS of unique content). You often see the big travel sites have 100,000's of pages where they probably don't need more than a few hundred, a few thousand for usability. I'm not a 'huge website' freak in that regard. Nothing tells me that there is a significant ranking bonus just by having a massive site. I think that is a leftover from the early days of SEO, but I could be wrong and that's why I asked. It does give the SEO'er more work to bill the client

Anyway, thanks again and I'd recommend you to use an avatar and update your website info. We all have an easier time remembering pictures than usernames and you wouldn't want this great thread to be wasted for you.

You're welcome

And thanks for the advice about avatar and website - I'll get that done.

As for my website - I mentioned this just recently - I am taking my time with this because I've got some clients waiting until I say "I'm ready" - and those clients are there because of word of mouth.

That's a good tip, actually, always keep your contacts close - because word of mouth is super-important. I've got several clients waiting simply because people have recommended my services - and if I do a good job for them, I'll request that they recommend me too. Contacts in this industry are so so important.

You seem to be on the right wavelength with age/size of website so just keep plugging at it - sometimes patience is the key with some sites, but just keep at it!

Time to find a cool avatar now!

Cheers

Thanks

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enwereuzo

14 years ago

Great answers SEOsolo,
I am in a highly competitive niche; Software niche. Can you give me a guide on how to make it at least at no 2 in this niche.

Enwereuzo

Thanks
1 reply

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SEOsolo

14 years ago

Originally Posted by enwereuzo

Great answers SEOsolo,
I am in a highly competitive niche; Software niche. Can you give me a guide on how to make it at least at no 2 in this niche.

Enwereuzo

I can't give you a guide - people make money off those on here, and I'd be selling myself (and them) short by doing that lol... that is meant in all due respect, mind you. If it was right for me to do so, I would give you a full guide.

What I can say though, is when I read 'software' I immediately thought 'product' and 'sale' - and that led me to think 'reviews' and lots of them.

Google loves sending people to a website then not seeing them return to Google again soon after (if they do, it means they haven't found what they're looking for). So - make sure you get that bounce rate down and give your visitors exactly what they want... then they'll give you what you want (which I assume is money!).

Cheers, hope that helps

Thanks

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dvduval

14 years ago

There is a big difference with big companies in that they are going to have a natural traffic flow. But the basics are still the same. The big SEO secret is that you have to build a site that is engaging, worthwhile, and worth visiting again. When you get that right, the rest is easy.

Thanks
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SEOsolo

14 years ago

Originally Posted by dvduval

There is a big difference with big companies in that they are going to have a natural traffic flow. But the basics are still the same. The big SEO secret is that you have to build a site that is engaging, worthwhile, and worth visiting again. When you get that right, the rest is easy.

Darn right there! Google doesn't like high bounce rates so get that right down and the rest is - as you said - easy

Thanks

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GeorgR.

14 years ago

SEOSolo,

i myself have several sites, some in micro niches (health), some in in the software niche and my recent one where i am going for the weight loss niche.

The sites are not new anymore, about 2+ years old and they're already ranking "pretty good" for many keywords and long tails.

But i see myself at a point where i dont think whether what i am doing is enough for really "dominating" the search engines - seeing that a page #2 position is really not worth squat...neither is basically anything BELOW position #3 in Google.

What i am doing for the longst time already:

(keyword research)
Had people write and submit articles on ezine, TONS
Submission of well spun articles on blog networks (seolv, aln)
Blasts with Article Marketng Robot
RARELY blog commenting
Using software like Senuke or XgenSeo
Hiring people off fiverr doing some link building (profiles, senuke etc.)
A couple small xrumer blasts on the oldest sites

So many keywords still on page #2 or page #3 still..and i am wondering what i can do more to boost my sites.

Thanks and sorry for asking!

Thanks
2 replies

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JackPowers

14 years ago

Originally Posted by GeorgR.

SEOSolo,

i myself have several sites, some in micro niches (health), some in in the software niche and my recent one where i am going for the weight loss niche.

The sites are not new anymore, about 2+ years old and they're already ranking "pretty good" for many keywords and long tails.

But i see myself at a point where i dont think whether what i am doing is enough for really "dominating" the search engines - seeing that a page #2 position is really not worth squat...neither is basically anything BELOW position #3 in Google.

What i am doing for the longst time already:

(keyword research)
Had people write and submit articles on ezine, TONS
Submission of well spun articles on blog networks (seolv, aln)
Blasts with Article Marketng Robot
RARELY blog commenting
Using software like Senuke or XgenSeo
Hiring people off fiverr doing some link building (profiles, senuke etc.)
A couple small xrumer blasts on the oldest sites

So many keywords still on page #2 or page #3 still..and i am wondering what i can do more to boost my sites.

Thanks and sorry for asking!

Less automation, more human interaction imo. You're leaving out guest blog posts, guest articles and link exchanges, which really is the staple of linkbuilding. That's just my take.

Thanks

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SEOsolo

14 years ago

Originally Posted by GeorgR.

SEOSolo,

i myself have several sites, some in micro niches (health), some in in the software niche and my recent one where i am going for the weight loss niche.

The sites are not new anymore, about 2+ years old and they're already ranking "pretty good" for many keywords and long tails.

But i see myself at a point where i dont think whether what i am doing is enough for really "dominating" the search engines - seeing that a page #2 position is really not worth squat...neither is basically anything BELOW position #3 in Google.

What i am doing for the longst time already:

(keyword research)
Had people write and submit articles on ezine, TONS
Submission of well spun articles on blog networks (seolv, aln)
Blasts with Article Marketng Robot
RARELY blog commenting
Using software like Senuke or XgenSeo
Hiring people off fiverr doing some link building (profiles, senuke etc.)
A couple small xrumer blasts on the oldest sites

So many keywords still on page #2 or page #3 still..and i am wondering what i can do more to boost my sites.

Thanks and sorry for asking!

Hey,

You seem to be using a nice spread of techniques there - and that should continue to help you maintain site and domain strength.

My advice this issue:

You've got several sites ranking reasonably well - but NOT high enough.

What you should do is pick the site you think could make the most money and focus on that one first, get that one ranking up there, then - and only then - move onto your next one.

Of course, don't ignore your other sites while focusing - but don't spread your efforts out too thinly.

You need to see where your competitors are getting their links from. You should also get in touch with personal trainers, gyms, etc... get your site out there and get the brand heard of. You need links from these guys, and you need to provide a super-resource for people wanting to lose weight.

So, continue what you're doing to all sites on a steady level, but one-by-one get your sites up there. Really get into the research and development - is there anything you could add to your site to make it a better resource for your readers? Google wants to send them there and not see them come back to search for other sites... Google wants to send people to the ultimate resource - and that's what you need to master. You'll find that rankings come much much much easier then, trust me!

Hope that helps!

[ 1 ] Thanks

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lukyjoe

14 years ago

Hi SEOSOLO,
Welcome to the forum.
I have a couple questions for you:
- What do you look for when evaluating the competition. number and quality of backlinks? quality of content? site structure?
- Do you think the data returned by g00gle adword tool is accurate?
- Do you trust and use g00gle webmaster tools?
and last question: If you are certain your system and knowledge works and generate good money for you, do you honestly be tempted to turn it in WSO and sell it for $27.00 even if there is a 1000 people willing to buy it?
Thanks

Thanks
1 reply

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SEOsolo

14 years ago

Originally Posted by lukyjoe

Hi SEOSOLO,
Welcome to the forum.
I have a couple questions for you:
- What do you look for when evaluating the competition. number and quality of backlinks? quality of content? site structure?
- Do you think the data returned by g00gle adword tool is accurate?
- Do you trust and use g00gle webmaster tools?
and last question: If you are certain your system and knowledge works and generate good money for you, do you honestly be tempted to turn it in WSO and sell it for $27.00 even if there is a 1000 people willing to buy it?
Thanks

Hey lukyjoe,

Firstly, when evaluating the competition you've got to treat it as though you're compiling a file on someone - like special services work lol - it needs to be full of detail.

From there, I do indeed look at quality of backlinks and content - I work out their KW densities on every page on their site, I so site word counts... all sorts.

When I determine quality of backlinks I have access to several tools I use to work out how much 'juice' is passed down from certain links. I would love to share these tools and my methods of working link-value out, but I will be using it when I begin doing my self-employed work.. so I'd be selling myself short!

You've got to think about what google will think about each link - ask yourself is it natural, is it beneficial? Does it just look 'thrown' on there?

When it comes down to adwords and webmaster tools - I do use these, everyone should, but don't take the information as 'bible' - the key to research is to get information from multiple sources and analyze them yourself. You'll get into a pattern of doing it and it'll become much easier!

And as for creating a WSO and selling it - if there is demand for a guide I have no problems putting together a chunky guide (say a 30-day guide or something like that), but it'll take me a little while because I'm all over the place at the moment, travelling to and fro, etc. - But yes, I would be willing to share my knowledge and techniques with everyone at some point in the near future! I'll keep you updated

Cheers

Thanks

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MarketingZen

14 years ago

Hey, some great content there, apologies if this has been asked but what sort of software do the 'big' agencies use.

How is it going starting out on your own? I am based just down the road (Liverpool area) and have a client base who are very much interested in the expertise you are able to offer...

Thanks
1 reply

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SEOsolo

14 years ago

Originally Posted by MarketingZen

Hey, some great content there, apologies if this has been asked but what sort of software do the 'big' agencies use.

How is it going starting out on your own? I am based just down the road (Liverpool area) and have a client base who are very much interested in the expertise you are able to offer...

Hey,

No need to apologise - so much to read through that it's sometimes hard to keep track!

Well, software-wise, 'big' agencies differ really, some out-source their work to places like India, while others have their own software developed.

Some places use things like Xgen, others don't use 'software' at all, and have simple excel sheets to categorise their link targets/plans... it's what works for different people I guess.

There are tonnes of reviews online for all sorts of software, I'm not going to 'plug' any particular one here because to be honest, I used to get other people to do the software work for me while I got stuck into the real SEO!

Setting up on my own - I thought it would be incredibly daunting, but it's actually REALLY exciting, I've got so many ideas, so many plans - I just can't wait to 'cut the ribbon' and start things up. I'm still a few steps away from being ready to open the floodgates (so to speak), but I'm open to helping people out here and there.

I've not actually got my personal website set up yet - and there's good reason for this lol - I've got a few clients waiting in the wings, so word of mouth is playing a massive part for me at the moment. I know having a personal website is important, but I will take my time with this, because word of mouth is often more valuable than just words on a page!

So what do you do in Liverpool then? Was round that neck of the woods recently!

Thanks
1 reply

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MarketingZen

14 years ago

Originally Posted by SEOsolo

Hey,

No need to apologise - so much to read through that it's sometimes hard to keep track!

Well, software-wise, 'big' agencies differ really, some out-source their work to places like India, while others have their own software developed.

Some places use things like Xgen, others don't use 'software' at all, and have simple excel sheets to categorise their link targets/plans... it's what works for different people I guess.

There are tonnes of reviews online for all sorts of software, I'm not going to 'plug' any particular one here because to be honest, I used to get other people to do the software work for me while I got stuck into the real SEO!

Setting up on my own - I thought it would be incredibly daunting, but it's actually REALLY exciting, I've got so many ideas, so many plans - I just can't wait to 'cut the ribbon' and start things up. I'm still a few steps away from being ready to open the floodgates (so to speak), but I'm open to helping people out here and there.

I've not actually got my personal website set up yet - and there's good reason for this lol - I've got a few clients waiting in the wings, so word of mouth is playing a massive part for me at the moment. I know having a personal website is important, but I will take my time with this, because word of mouth is often more valuable than just words on a page!

So what do you do in Liverpool then? Was round that neck of the woods recently!

Hi mate, I own some property companies up in the Liverpool/Wirral area, also have a digital marketing agency in the Midlands which serves clients in a particular niche but looking to expand our client base. Give me a shout when your looking at starting, we are always looking for JV partners to work with on some level.

Thanks
1 reply

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SEOsolo

14 years ago

Sounds good to me mate, and sounds like you're keeping yourself busy! Always good to see.

Yeah keep in touch about the JV idea - I'm certain we can pass clients between each other and work something out there.

Take care mate.

Originally Posted by MarketingZen

Hi mate, I own some property companies up in the Liverpool/Wirral area, also have a digital marketing agency in the Midlands which serves clients in a particular niche but looking to expand our client base. Give me a shout when your looking at starting, we are always looking for JV partners to work with on some level.

Thanks

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ross88online

14 years ago

By what method you work for a website that gives you a better result?

Thanks
1 reply

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SEOsolo 14 years ago

Originally Posted by ross88online

By what method you work for a website that gives you a better result?

This question is similar to 'the meaning of life' question lol - the answer is endless. It depends what site it is, what niche, how competitive, visitor volume, local searches, content possibilities...

The key to knowing ALL of that is research - I cannot stress how important this is. You see so many sites ranking poorly because the research stage has evidently been skipped.

Research should be on-going, too, because just like the weather, things always change!
- Thanks
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bigalan6622

14 years ago

SEOsolo do you have any experience with Google Places and local SEO? If so, what would you say the biggest difference is between local SEO and regular SEO campaigns? I know reviews is a big factor but there's also more to the big picture. I'm in the process of trying to rank my first client in Google Places.

Thanks
1 reply

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SEOsolo

14 years ago

Originally Posted by bigalan6622

SEOsolo do you have any experience with Google Places and local SEO? If so, what would you say the biggest difference is between local SEO and regular SEO campaigns? I know reviews is a big factor but there's also more to the big picture. I'm in the process of trying to rank my first client in Google Places.

Hey,

Well, local SEO is (saying this holding my breath) easier to rank with.

Here's why:

If you're tying to rank a hairdresser's website in london, for example, it's easier to rank 'hairdresser in london' than it is for just 'hairdresser'.

That's the key difference, I feel, between local and regular SEO campaigns. You get a much more targeted customer doing local SEO.

As for link building when doing local SEO. I always go for sites LOCAL to the client. So, I'd go for sites from businesses/people/services within london. Get on london directories, etc.. you see what I mean.

If you try to rank a local company using 'international' links, it won't really work as well as ranking a local company using 'local' links - it's all about relevance.

Reviews, you're right, they play a big part - so if you're in touch with a local company you're going have to get creative with your SEO. Here's how I would do it:

Go into the local business, get to know the manager. Print out some cards you can put on the counter so customers take them. On these cards would be the company's website... and I'd set up a competition for people who went online to review the company (they post a review, they get entered into the competition). It's down to the company to keep their customers happy - you're just getting some great free reviews there...

Anyway - that's just an idea, and if I keep talking I'll just waffle on.

Just keep the links for local companies LOCAL.

Thanks
1 reply

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bigalan6622

14 years ago

Originally Posted by SEOsolo

Hey,

Well, local SEO is (saying this holding my breath) easier to rank with.

Here's why:

If you're tying to rank a hairdresser's website in london, for example, it's easier to rank 'hairdresser in london' than it is for just 'hairdresser'.

That's the key difference, I feel, between local and regular SEO campaigns. You get a much more targeted customer doing local SEO.

As for link building when doing local SEO. I always go for sites LOCAL to the client. So, I'd go for sites from businesses/people/services within london. Get on london directories, etc.. you see what I mean.

If you try to rank a local company using 'international' links, it won't really work as well as ranking a local company using 'local' links - it's all about relevance.

Reviews, you're right, they play a big part - so if you're in touch with a local company you're going have to get creative with your SEO. Here's how I would do it:

Go into the local business, get to know the manager. Print out some cards you can put on the counter so customers take them. On these cards would be the company's website... and I'd set up a competition for people who went online to review the company (they post a review, they get entered into the competition). It's down to the company to keep their customers happy - you're just getting some great free reviews there...

Anyway - that's just an idea, and if I keep talking I'll just waffle on.

Just keep the links for local companies LOCAL.

That's a really creative idea about a competition for reviews. Here's the problem. I read that if you get 10 reviews in a day or even 10 in a week all of the sudden, it could set off some red flags at Google and they could possible mark it as spam and delete your Google Places listing all together.

So if this could be done by somehow limiting how many come in at once that would be good.

Another thing, I know it's not all just about reviews and backlinks. There's more to it. I do know that one thing is consistency of your company name, address, and phone number across other sites and local business directories you are listed in. I also know that Google likes to see photos and videos in the Google places listing. Have I covered everything yet? Or am I still missing some pieces to the puzzle.... Perhaps you would like to PM me. I don't mind brainstorming in public but at the same time I guess we don't want to reveal ALLL the secrets behind local SEO lol.

Thanks

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thetruth23

14 years ago

Hey SEOSolo,

Great thread you started and thanks for taking the time to answer questions.

Did/Do big SEO firms use any of the SEO services many small/solo SEO'ers use, like Linkvana, Linxboss, and the like...?

Which ones?

Do you have any recommendations of your own?

You've also mentioned a few times about getting ranked highly, too quickly. What's too quick, and I have a feeling it's somewhat dependant on the strength of the niche/competition, so maybe you could break it down into easy, medium, and hard?

Lastly, if a site had just one page of unique content, and 50+ pages of duplicate content, is it still possible to achieve a high ranking for that one page of unique content? (google rank pages not sites, right? but does overall site quality have a large bearing over ranking your quality pages?)

Thanks again for creating a valuable thread!

Thanks
1 reply

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SEOsolo

14 years ago

Originally Posted by thetruth23

Hey SEOSolo,

Great thread you started and thanks for taking the time to answer questions.

Did/Do big SEO firms use any of the SEO services many small/solo SEO'ers use, like Linkvana, Linxboss, and the like...?

Which ones?

Do you have any recommendations of your own?

You've also mentioned a few times about getting ranked highly, too quickly. What's too quick, and I have a feeling it's somewhat dependant on the strength of the niche/competition, so maybe you could break it down into easy, medium, and hard?

Lastly, if a site had just one page of unique content, and 50+ pages of duplicate content, is it still possible to achieve a high ranking for that one page of unique content? (google rank pages not sites, right? but does overall site quality have a large bearing over ranking your quality pages?)

Thanks again for creating a valuable thread!

You're welcome

Some companies I have dealt with in the past do use SEO services - but everyone prefers different ones (for different reasons) Linkvana was popular with more of the companies, though, so maybe there's something to be said there? Just be careful you don't dilute your backlinks with vana links, etc..

When I say ranking too highly too quickly - yes, this is entirely based on the niche - but just ask yourself what's natural before hammering links into something. I cannot overuse the word natural, but believe me, so many SEOs fail to keep their campaigns looking natural! they get complacent and lazy and outsource everything and that's when it goes wrong (if you outsource to one particular company (and ten other people outsource to them too) you'll all get similar links.. so just be careful.

And you're right about the pages vs. sites thing - but what you've got to bear in mind is that even if your one page of clean content stays and the rest get kicked, your domain and site will have lost A LOT of trust - so it would just take a cleaner site to come along to push you down the rankings.

My advice is - if you want to make money online, don't get lazy and duplicate, put your heart and soul into it - put in what you expect to get back. If you cut corners, you won't do as well as you could!

Thanks

Thanks

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philbell

14 years ago

Thanks for offering your insight

Some sites get indexed fast and move up to page 3 thru 10 relatively fast but then get stuck and do not want to move up further. What do you do for this situation to move things to page one steadily.

Thanks
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SEOsolo

14 years ago

Don't go aggressive because you'll lose ranking - you should just play it steady. Article placements (unique content on clean sites), add content to your site - let it grow!

Look at the competition and out-do them.

It's a patience game while your domain gains a bit of trust - you don't want to go too hard now and get red flagged!

Cheers

Originally Posted by philbell

Thanks for offering your insight

Some sites get indexed fast and move up to page 3 thru 10 relatively fast but then get stuck and do not want to move up further. What do you do for this situation to move things to page one steadily.

Thanks

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rjowais2

14 years ago

Hi SEOsolo!

I have been reading your replies and found it quite rich in details on SEO. So I come here with a query for you, It is an example which reflect my SEO problem and the sites mentioned below are not mine, I have changed the keyword,

I hunted down a keyword "Cancer Diet" but when I went for domain searching, I couldn't find an exact match domain for this keyword. So I registered the domain cancerdiets.us and started my website based on wordpress. I have posted around 50+ unique posts on it and done article posting in high PR article directories, some press releases and blog commenting. I also supplied some powerful contextual backlinks from my other old medical sites (PR3 and PR4)
But 4 months have gone past and this site never ranked for its targeted keyword CANCER DIET in the serps. However it ranks for CANCER DIETS on the 4th page. But the on-page optimization I have done is based on the keyword "CANCER DIET".
Why it is not ranking for its targeted keyword?
Is this the problem of attaching an extra "s" to my keyword rich domain name or its due to the dot us (.US) domain?

Thanks
1 reply

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SEOsolo

14 years ago

Your domain extension won't affect your keywords.

Does your site have any pages, or is it just a WP blog? If it's not got pages, you need to create a static homepage and apply your posts to a different page.

Optimize your HP for your KW - try and write about 1,000 words - the health niche needs big content to rank well.

Give that a go - it should help soon!

Originally Posted by rjowais2

Hi SEOsolo!

I have been reading your replies and found it quite rich in details on SEO. So I come here with a query for you, It is an example which reflect my SEO problem and the sites mentioned below are not mine, I have changed the keyword,

I hunted down a keyword "Cancer Diet" but when I went for domain searching, I couldn't find an exact match domain for this keyword. So I registered the domain cancerdiets.us and started my website based on wordpress. I have posted around 50+ unique posts on it and done article posting in high PR article directories, some press releases and blog commenting. I also supplied some powerful contextual backlinks from my other old medical sites (PR3 and PR4)
But 4 months have gone past and this site never ranked for its targeted keyword CANCER DIET in the serps. However it ranks for CANCER DIETS on the 4th page. But the on-page optimization I have done is based on the keyword "CANCER DIET".
Why it is not ranking for its targeted keyword?
Is this the problem of attaching an extra "s" to my keyword rich domain name or its due to the dot us (.US) domain?

Thanks

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dagaul101

14 years ago

Great thread, I am sure your self employed SEO franchise will do pretty well and wish you the best of luck

[ 1 ] Thanks

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Tyler Abernethy

14 years ago

The more outsourcing, the merrier my friends

find good reliable people that will be quick to respond,

if you want good people, then you have to be willing/good at negotiating and compromising

good people want high prices, bad people want low prices
^^meet in the middle and you will find the best people for you^^

Tyler Abernethy

Thanks
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SEOsolo

14 years ago

That's the key to outsourcing - finding reliable people you can trust!

I've seen how badly wrong outsourcing can go - some sites just become messy and lazy with their work and give it to anyone looking for a dollar!

And you're right - if you want good services, you need to be prepared to pay.

Thanks for your input

Originally Posted by Tyler Abernethy

The more outsourcing, the merrier my friends

find good reliable people that will be quick to respond,

if you want good people, then you have to be willing/good at negotiating and compromising

good people want high prices, bad people want low prices
^^meet in the middle and you will find the best people for you^^

Tyler Abernethy

Thanks

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corycrabb

14 years ago

well you got my attention .. How long have you been doing SEO work for?

Thanks
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SEOsolo 14 years ago

Hey,

Well I was involved in 'peripheral' SEO for about 2 years while I worked in a marketing department - this is when I first took interest in the industry. From there, I did a lot of reading, researching, following and testing in my own time until I felt confident enough to label myself an 'SEO' as such. (I never label myself as 'just' an SEO, though, because I've done a lot of work on coversions and I worked as a writer, too!).

Once I had 'labelled' myself I was in SEO for about 3 years.

The thing is, though, what was relevant when I first started isn't so relevant now - and that's what I find exciting about the industry. I know people who've only been in SEO for a year, but have spent all their spare time researching and involving themself in SEO all the time... they're pretty clued up to it now!

Cheers

Originally Posted by corycrabb

well you got my attention .. How long have you been doing SEO work for?
- Thanks
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akif

14 years ago

Hello there
im totally a newbie in this Seo market but i want to know more .. and reading all your good reviews and answers.. i have gained alot of new information.. still learning..
i have a question.. when to start SEO of a Newly made website? cux i guess google penalizes new websites more if we do alot of SEO in the beginning.. i hope i made some sense here ;s

Thanks
1 reply

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SEOsolo

14 years ago

Hey,

Get your site FULL of unique and great interesting content before you start anything - you need to have something worthy of linking to before you start linking to your site.

Link to your homepage to start with - then do a few specifics to your sub-pages to show Google their importance.

Just keep it steady but gradually increase the intensity of links (don't go too heavy too soon is the key).

It really depends on your site/niche/market... that will determine your speed!

Originally Posted by akif

Hello there
im totally a newbie in this Seo market but i want to know more .. and reading all your good reviews and answers.. i have gained alot of new information.. still learning..
i have a question.. when to start SEO of a Newly made website? cux i guess google penalizes new websites more if we do alot of SEO in the beginning.. i hope i made some sense here ;s

Thanks

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bertyounger

14 years ago

Don't you just love it when everyone drinks the Google Kool Aid?

Thanks

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derekad

14 years ago

does it give any benefit to place backlinks om HIGH PR sites( or .EDU sites ) but not related sites?

Thanks

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taboy74

14 years ago

Hi there! Does it mean that Xrumer Forum Profile blast will do no good to my money site? I am a noob and I am sorry for the dumb question? What is the best way to build links for static site? Thanks

Thanks
1 reply

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SEOsolo

14 years ago

Originally Posted by derekad

does it give any benefit to place backlinks om HIGH PR sites( or .EDU sites ) but not related sites?

Don't be tempted by 'high-authority' sites that aren't relevant. Though they are tempting and look really good, every spammer in the land will go after these. Go for relevance, not greed.

Originally Posted by taboy74

Hi there! Does it mean that Xrumer Forum Profile blast will do no good to my money site? I am a noob and I am sorry for the dumb question? What is the best way to build links for static site? Thanks

It's not that it will do 'no good', it's just that there are better ways to get it done. Read through this thread, there are some great tips on it - my only advice is to review your on-site SEO and get loads of content on there.

Thanks

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Praney Behl

14 years ago

Great discussion going on this thread, I am following it quietly will say when my little beast is ready.

Thanks

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Jamieh

14 years ago

This is a really valuable thread. It out strips many others here and provides information for a long term SEO plan rather than an overnight success which fails in the long term.

I run a holiday accommodation site that serves the South West of England, along with blogs and other non related web properties. I would say I have success, but I am far from reaching my goal and the full potential of my accommodation site, which I am determined to make my main income stream over the next two years. The holiday site is 6 years old and ranks well for the original Keyword terms I was targeting, however over time and due to large "BRANDS" entering the market place I have seen search terms change and I have been lazy and lost my market position.

My questions are:

With SEO being an ongoing process, ie I build links on a continuous basis and have unrelated people comment from other web properties back to my site, how do I evaluate which of my actions are working and should be further pursued!

I seem to be stuck in a mire, not really sure which way to turn, to make my time and effort into visitors, hence cash!

Also, and I guess this question has no answer, but how do you calculate how much time it should take before you see your efforts effecting your serps?

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

As a side note I see a real value in having a paid resource which would provide a feasibility study in a selected area of SEO/marketing. I would love to know if I am taking on more than I can chew!

There are many like me, I feel, who want to do the work themselves and learn, but it would be great as a foundation if we could get some guidance on the size of the mountain we are about to climb.

Thanks
1 reply

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SEOsolo

14 years ago

Hey, thanks very much.

I've had a few members PM me actually asking if I would consider writing a WSO about long-term success with your website, and I will indeed do this - but only when I'm settled down in a few weeks.

You should check that out when I do it - I'm all about the long-term success of sites. By all means, we love a quick win, but you can make so much more money with stability and site strength!

I give it about 6 months to see 'real' steady rankings from a site - that is a long time, but I only quote that length to compensate for any potential algorithm changes, any ranking walls - when the page just won't go higher - and on-going research to out-do competitors.

It may be the case that the rankings come after 1 month, and I have had that several times, but I like to rank other pages of the site too - because it adds so much strength and trust to the domain.

One of the projects I took on a while ago was making a couple of hundred dollars a month, I did SEO for them for 4 months and graudally increased their rankings and brand image and by the time the 4 months was up, they went from couple of hundred to couple of thousand... in just 4 months. It was a massive win!

Your user-generated content on other sites is good - it shows activity and if it's all positive that will help with visits.

You should continue with SEO, perhaps look into PRs to get your brand strength up (to compete with big companies) and really clean up your image. Contact local review sites and get links... just get yourself out there!

When it comes to determining the size of the mountain you're about to climb, I can tell you that. I've done plenty of market reviews and SEO plans with cost-ranking ratios, etc. It's pretty simple when you know how - I could teach you, but I couldn't do that for free because it's quite a big process (but once you know how, you could save a lot of money). PM me on that subject if you're interested and we can talk it through!

Hope that helps!

Originally Posted by Jamieh

This is a really valuable thread. It out strips many others here and provides information for a long term SEO plan rather than an overnight success which fails in the long term.

I run a holiday accommodation site that serves the South West of England, along with blogs and other non related web properties. I would say I have success, but I am far from reaching my goal and the full potential of my accommodation site, which I am determined to make my main income stream over the next two years. The holiday site is 6 years old and ranks well for the original Keyword terms I was targeting, however over time and due to large "BRANDS" entering the market place I have seen search terms change and I have been lazy and lost my market position.

My questions are:

With SEO being an ongoing process, ie I build links on a continuous basis and have unrelated people comment from other web properties back to my site, how do I evaluate which of my actions are working and should be further pursued!

I seem to be stuck in a mire, not really sure which way to turn, to make my time and effort into visitors, hence cash!

Also, and I guess this question has no answer, but how do you calculate how much time it should take before you see your efforts effecting your serps?

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

As a side note I see a real value in having a paid resource which would provide a feasibility study in a selected area of SEO/marketing. I would love to know if I am taking on more than I can chew!

There are many like me, I feel, who want to do the work themselves and learn, but it would be great as a foundation if we could get some guidance on the size of the mountain we are about to climb.

[ 1 ] Thanks
1 reply

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Jamieh

14 years ago

I would love to discuss this further. I cannot PM yet. Could you send an email to jamie at visitdevonandcornwall.com

Regards

Thanks
1 reply

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mllnsgrl

14 years ago

Hi Seosolo...

Thanks for putting up this thread.

I hope you can help me out with a couple of questions..

Here goes:

1. What's the best way to set up or seo an Amazon products site (that has lists of posts imported from amazon w/pics) for traffic? I have a couple of these, and not sure if I set them up right for maximum traffic. Some have the first post as a long article with keywords in there, on home page and the start of each category - then the amazon posts underneath, with additional categories in the sidebar. Would this work?? or should I just have an "articles" category and just post all the content to that?

2. Is there a way to tell if you have enough content on your site? Say 3 - 10 articles of content to start? Is this enough - then you can start adding backlinks?

3. I'm not good at backlinking. Is it the weekly consistency, or the amount of backlinks you set up initially that makes your site rank higher?

4. What's the easiest way to backlink the site properly.. Can you recommend tools? Is it variety that really makes a difference (web 2.0, forum, articles, blogs, edu, etc.)

Thanks for helping out.

Best,
Liz

Thanks
1 reply

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SEOsolo

14 years ago

Hey, thanks for your kind words.

I can help you out - to an extent - but like I've said before to fellow forum members, I can't give away too much, because I'll be selling myself short. After all, I've got a business to run now!

Here's what I can say:

1. It really depends how 'clean-looking' you want your site map to be. Google likes clean site maps, they are easier to read and catalogue so which ever way will create the least 'mess', go for that.

When it comes to 'SEOing' an amazon products site, I've found the best way is to have individual product pages with a big review. It's up to you here - but if you've just got posts going on with products on them, you won't get much from that as the posts will just get pushed down. It all depends how much money you want to make!

2. When it comes to having 'enough' content. As long as it's unique, very high-quality and great/interesting to read... I guess you can never have enough. The bare minimum should be enough to give your reader ALL they need to know (key facts) about something.

3. You can either do this yourself, or pay someone to do it for you. One way will give you ultimate control over your site and its rankings, the other you'll be putting your trust in someone else - so pick someone with experience! Don't 'pattern' your link building, because google will see this, you need to build links randomly - different types of links and different times and in different volumes.

4. Variety is the 'spice of life' and that much is true when it comes to link building. You need a 'seasoning' of links (as I like to say) - with different types, and as I said, different volumes!

So - that's about it there... just keep your head down and you'll get there eventually. I'd advise you to focus on one site at a time though so you can really get working hard on an individual goal.

If you need any further help, PM me and I'll talk to you about the services I'll be offering when I'm all set up.

Thanks

Originally Posted by mllnsgrl

Hi Seosolo...

Thanks for putting up this thread.

I hope you can help me out with a couple of questions..

Here goes:

1. What's the best way to set up or seo an Amazon products site (that has lists of posts imported from amazon w/pics) for traffic? I have a couple of these, and not sure if I set them up right for maximum traffic. Some have the first post as a long article with keywords in there, on home page and the start of each category - then the amazon posts underneath, with additional categories in the sidebar. Would this work?? or should I just have an "articles" category and just post all the content to that?

2. Is there a way to tell if you have enough content on your site? Say 3 - 10 articles of content to start? Is this enough - then you can start adding backlinks?

3. I'm not good at backlinking. Is it the weekly consistency, or the amount of backlinks you set up initially that makes your site rank higher?

4. What's the easiest way to backlink the site properly.. Can you recommend tools? Is it variety that really makes a difference (web 2.0, forum, articles, blogs, edu, etc.)

Thanks for helping out.

Best,
Liz

[ 1 ] Thanks

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markowe

14 years ago

Seems to me a lot of what you describe is really about networking, creating relationships etc to get those guest posts, good contextual links etc, which I have long thought is really what SEO is all about. We IMers are often introvert types and usually don't want to go to that hassle of real live networking, but are always after that automated method that will get us the backlinks. While these brute force methods still have some mileage I think the big G will get more and more sophisticated at devaluing those kinds of link.

I have recently got a site close to the top 10 using ONLY some very little, but REAL social promotion, no fake methods at all, just good content that people actually WANT to read and link to. And you know what, it doesn't really take any more effort than any artificial ranking method, and it's more enjoyable too! Of course, it actually involves talking to people and engaging with them, not envisaging them just as 'traffic'...

Thanks
2 replies

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Who says you can't earn money as an eBay affiliate any more? My stats say otherwise

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Emergent 14 years ago

Hi SEOsolo, I have a question!

My offline retail business ceramicbusiness[dot]com sells a range of high-quality ceramic products (60+ in total)*. These products span multiple (6+) categories such as ceramic kitchenware, ceramic tiles. In addition, the material ceramic itself has multiple (4-5) names people use to search for it, such as ceramics, and polyceramic.

We want to start a strong eCommerce campaign. Based on Keyword research competition is medium to low, and because they were unregistered we have acquired 15+ domain names which cover all of the permutations I have outlined above, ceramics[dot]com, polyceramics[dot]com, ceramickithcenware[dot]com, etc. All these domains combined represent about 15,000+/month exact keyword match google searches.

What would you recommend if our sole focus was long-term building of our online sales? We don't manufacture any items, our selling point is nobody else has built such a diverse range of high-quality ceramic products.

Do I focus on our core domain for the highest volume keyword, and build subpages for each speciality listed above? Or utilise all of our domains? If so, as feeder sites, or individual eCommerce sites selling the specific products? Or something completely different?

Thanks, this is a wonderful thread and I applaud you for being so generous.

* Ceramics is a made up example
- Thanks
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SEOsolo

14 years ago

You're right - it's about building relationships.

To those of us who don't like talking to people and getting out there, as such, you could just draft an email to send out to a lot of people. It's not hard, if you REALLY want to rank a site, you'll be able to send an email! I guess with the first success, it will bring confidence.

You're also heading along the right lines about Google devaluing certain links - they'll start with blog comments in my opinion, they're just getting too spammy!

Originally Posted by markowe

Seems to me a lot of what you describe is really about networking, creating relationships etc to get those guest posts, good contextual links etc, which I have long thought is really what SEO is all about. We IMers are often introvert types and usually don't want to go to that hassle of real live networking, but are always after that automated method that will get us the backlinks. While these brute force methods still have some mileage I think the big G will get more and more sophisticated at devaluing those kinds of link.

I have recently got a site close to the top 10 using ONLY some very little, but REAL social promotion, no fake methods at all, just good content that people actually WANT to read and link to. And you know what, it doesn't really take any more effort than any artificial ranking method, and it's more enjoyable too! Of course, it actually involves talking to people and engaging with them, not envisaging them just as 'traffic'...

Thanks

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thegreatnapi

14 years ago

Originally Posted by SEOsolo

Hey guys,

I'm currently working towards becoming a self-employed SEO. I've worked as an SEO specialist for a number of years (for other people), and want control over what I do - hence me 'going it alone'.

In order to 'go it alone', though, I'm going to need to gain trust from people in the industry - a.k.a - you guys!

I've worked for some BIG companies in the past (and I mean big players - the ones ranking top 3 for super-competitive terms), and I've managed their SEO campaigns, along with assisting with PPC, etc.

One of the things someone asked me recently is how do these big companies build their links and rank their sites - so I told them the basics and they told me I should get on here and share my knowledge.. so I am doing! I've seen WarriorForum in action before, but never had my own account, so I'm sorry if I'm a bit rusty!

Ok, I won't be telling you everything I know (that would be pointless!) but to prove myself on this forum, I'll answer your questions about SEO - whether it's how to deal with penalities or how to get high-juice links naturally.

This isn't a plot to make money - this is an honest approach to gaining a reputation. It's an inventive way, too, which I thought I'd give a go. So let's share ideas... ask me questions and I'll do my best to help you out based on what I've learnt and implemented for this big companies.

I can't name the companies, but I can tell you the BIG ones were in the finance industry, the car rental industry and the package holiday industry - I spent a good number of years working for all three.

SO -ask away!

Look forward to getting to know you all and maybe working with some of you.

Cheers,

SEOsolo

This is interesting. Hopefully we can learn something from your experience.

Thanks

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jason146

14 years ago

I have 30+ very competitive keywords so can you tell me what method I will use to get top rank from each keyword as I dont want to ban my 4 years old official corporate site so looking forward for your advise

Thanks
1 reply

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SEOsolo

14 years ago

Hey,

I can't tell you that lol, that's practically giving away money! To rank for a lot of keywords, you're going to need a very very very very strong site. No dupe content, no spam, just a very good, interesting and useful site.

If you want help working (actually doing the work), you'll have to hire someone, but you should start by strengthening your site. Really clean it up and have NO duplicate content on it.

Cheers.

Originally Posted by jason146

I have 30+ very competitive keywords so can you tell me what method I will use to get top rank from each keyword as I dont want to ban my 4 years old official corporate site so looking forward for your advise

Thanks
1 reply

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arttse 14 years ago

SEOsolo

Have you seen this video?

YouTube - If you were an SEO of a large company,...
- [ 2 ] Thanks
- 1 reply
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- SEOsolo 14 years ago
  
  Hey, thanks for that - very interesting points raised there.
  
  I've not had chance to search around for things like that lately with everything moving so fast!
  
  I was having a discussion with one of my old colleagues about site speed - it's much bigger than many people realise!
  
  Thanks for the great video anyway - I'll be sure to pass that on.
  
  Cheers
  
  Originally Posted by arttse
  
  SEOsolo
  
  Have you seen this video?
  
  YouTube - If you were an SEO of a large company, what would you include in your 2011 strategy?
  
  Thanks
  
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intelinside

14 years ago

How can you add your own content to a 'brand' site?

That is, for example I am promoting NIKE and I want to rank for SHOES. How can I add content to NIKE.com?

I am sure they won't let me do it then how do you come around this situation?

Thanks
1 reply

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SEOsolo

14 years ago

I honestly don't think you'll be able to 'add' content to their site.

If you're selling some nike shoes as an affiliate your best bet is to write a load of reviews about different nike shoes - rank long-tail on loads of different types (even old ones), and you will generate traffic - from there you'll need to get the traffic clicking through to the 'current' shoes, so they can buy, and you can make money!

Simple, as it sounds, but a little harder to execute as it's such a BIG brand!

You'll need to rank for "[type of nike shoe] reviews" to stand a chance of getting decent traffic!

Good luck!

Originally Posted by intelinside

How can you add your own content to a 'brand' site?

That is, for example I am promoting NIKE and I want to rank for SHOES. How can I add content to NIKE.com?

I am sure they won't let me do it then how do you come around this situation?

Thanks

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Marvolo

14 years ago

Hey SEOsolo,

Thanks so much for this great thread. I've learned a lot.

I'll be starting a new job soon as a keyword research analyst on the SEO team at a corporation. I was wondering if you could give me an idea of what it is like working in SEO in the corporate world. Any tips on career path, growth, resources to look at, or anything else? Thanks again.

Thanks

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commonjoe

14 years ago

In your opinion what is the best way to spy on your competition. How can I find out how much backlinking I need to do and where.

I have researched one keyword in my niche with googles keyword tool and it has 600 daily searches locally.

I then entered the keyword into google search with no puctuations.

Then I took to url of the top ranking site and went over to backlink checker and it had only 483 backlinks.

Now what is my best way to find out the pr of the inbound links so I can do a better job of banklinking them.

Thanks,
John Gaddis

Thanks
2 replies

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alldaylinks 14 years ago

Just reading this thread - some interesting stuff SEOsolo!
- Thanks
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SEOsolo

14 years ago

I have my own techniques, but one of the easiest ways is to just follow their backlinks - see where they take you.

Also - watch their site closely to see any small changes they're making, any tweaks or any new content going on.

You'll know what you're looking for when you see it, you've just got to watch them!

Originally Posted by commonjoe

In your opinion what is the best way to spy on your competition. How can I find out how much backlinking I need to do and where.

I have researched one keyword in my niche with googles keyword tool and it has 600 daily searches locally.

I then entered the keyword into google search with no puctuations.

Then I took to url of the top ranking site and went over to backlink checker and it had only 483 backlinks.

Now what is my best way to find out the pr of the inbound links so I can do a better job of banklinking them.

Thanks,
John Gaddis

Thanks

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kadesmith

14 years ago

I have a question. Say you have a site that is relatively young and you got some really bad SEO advice and now have a bunch of spammy links pointing to the site. What can you do to counter the negative effects of that? I believe g00gle will penalize the site as they find these spammy links.

Thanks
1 reply

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SEOsolo

14 years ago

You should firstly try to get these links removed - but that can be tricky.

Easiest option is to start again (if it's a new site). There are 301 alternatives, of course.

It's difficult to say really, just do your best to get rid of them. Failing that, you could either set up a new site or get some monster links to 'cancel' the bad ones out... they'll always be there though!

Originally Posted by kadesmith

I have a question. Say you have a site that is relatively young and you got some really bad SEO advice and now have a bunch of spammy links pointing to the site. What can you do to counter the negative effects of that? I believe g00gle will penalize the site as they find these spammy links.