Website Choices

… tools, news, products, and choices for webmasters

7
Aug
2008


Directory Submission ServicesFrom: Directory Maximizer
Getting top SERP (search engine results position): no one can be really sure just what it takes. There are SO MANY things you need to implement. But it is known fact that all search engines value the importance of links. Can it be all that simple to use a directory submission service? Read more…

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7
Aug
2008

Google Webmaster ToolsFrom: Eric Lander’s Blog
For the past few months Eric has been supporting Google Webmaster Tools, showing clients and friends how to use them to learn more about their web site. In that time, he’s had a number of questions about just what each of the tools do, and how they can be used for SEO purposes, etc. Read more at his website …

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18
May
2008

Badge: SEO/SEMSEO: Search engine optimization -techniques that enable your site to appear higher in a list of search engine results.
SEM: Search engine marketing - the practice of marketing and advertising through the search engines.
SEP: Search engine placement.
SERP: Search engine result page - this is the position you web page gets in a search engine.

FACTS:

  • There are 300 million searches carried out every single day.
  • A great website with great SEO/SEM is a powerful combination.
  • Most web design companies do not optimize for search engines.
  • Most SEO companies do not design websites.
  • If your website was build prior to 2004, chances are that it is not optimized or needs new optimization.
  • SEO is not and will never be an exact science.

Even though webmasters are getting search engine optimization services, there is still a lot of misunderstandings:

  • How can I get on Google front page?
  • Who can I go to that will bring me valid results?
  • Should I go with a company that guarantees results?
  • How much will it cost me?
  • Do I need an ongoing, continuous SEO service?
  • Is it possible for anyone to get Google front page?
  • Will I need to re-design my website?

Getting on Google front page (in the top ten organic results) is actually a simple task for professional SEO companies. But what you have to realize is that many of these companies will optimize for irrelevant or uncommon search terms. Some will guarantee Google front page but actually mean within the first 100 results (a user’s search option).

So, what if you’re on Google front page for a term that returns 2,000 results? And what if the search terms are don’t properly represent the product you offer? What type of return will you be getting?

I’ve seen many SEO companies that guarantee Google front page and was always leery of such a statement. Then today I entered the search term, “guaranteed Google front page” (without quotes), and could not find one legitimate company (on page one) actually offering this.

You also need to be aware of Google personalized search. When you are logged in to your Google account, you will receive personalized searches. This means that your searches will be modified by your search history - not displaying what everyone else necessarily sees.

What you need is a company that will allow you to see it happen before you pay in full.

SEO services are usually sold as an ongoing continuous service. I can see this as being valuable, as you wouldn’t like to one day wake up and notice your site dropped to page 147. But I offer an alternative where changes are made only if it is necessary. And this is the SEO service I offer all of my clients, included in all new design work.

For an initial website search engine optimization, I have been charging $500 or less, depending on how many pages you need done. But from the big SEO companies you can expect to dish out between $3.00 to $6.00 PER DAY … and then some. With a required one year contract, this represents a minimum of $1095.

How do I know when it’s necessary to re-optimize my website?

Through the free services offered at sheerseo.com. At Sheer SEO, you list all of the keywords you are targeting along with the web pages you want to keep track of, and whenever there is a change in SERP’s, you will get an email notification. They also supply a chart showing the history of each key-phrase/keyword.

But not all websites can be SE optimized. A few examples:
Websites that are incomplete or display “Under Construction”
Affiliate program sites (you do not have access to alter these)
Google AdSense sites (has 3 or more AdSense displays)
Sites that contain nothing more than links to third party websites.

Often it’s required to redesign or at least add more content to the web page being optimized, especially if the text is inside of an image. This is why you should use a designer that also optimizes for search positioning.

For an outstanding web design with SEO, I charge around $600 for up to five pages and $800 for ten. For SEO added to an existing website, the rate is between $200 and $500 for up to ten pages … another reason to use a designer that includes SE optimization.

I also offer link building campaigns and marketing services.
Get a free quote today!

Outside Articles:
Beware of Certified SEO Consultants
SEO Company with True Google First Page Service Be sure to read EVERYTHING before signing up.
FAQ: Search Engine Optimization Any other questions should be answered here.

stevestuff

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3
Apr
2008

The anatomy of a search result

 

Defining What is Displayed

What’s it all about when you view search results? Where does the content displayed come from? Is it from the website being displayed? Is it meta-data?

 

 

Matt talks about the anatomy of a search result, and gives some useful tips on how you can help improve how your site appears in our results pages. This talk covers everything you’ll see in a search result, including page title, page description, and sitelinks, and explains those other elements that can appear, such as stock quotes, cached pages links, and more.

Take a view at this video and see. You’re bound to learn something here, as I did also.

The anatomy of a search result

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2
Mar
2008

Google Sites logo A new application, Google Sites, was just launched from Google, making online file sharing a breeze!

In desperation to find an application for a new client, Hank’s Photos, I stumbled upon this new product. (Hank’s Photos doesn’t have access to a database) Although it’s not a solve-all free website hosting application, it could be just what you need for your company’s collaboration and productivity services. I found it a lot more user-friendly than ZOHO which was my choice prior to finding Google Sites.

From the article at webware.com:

[Google Sites] has two main features: First, you can set it up so anyone you want can edit a Google Sites page (or you can keep it private). And second, it records all changes and lets you change things so you can un-do these edits.

Users who want to keep track of changes to a Google Sites project, or just a page on it, can easily sign up to get alerted when other users make changes.

So, I did a little messing with it to see what could be done, and just how easy it would be for the non-techy to use. You can view my resulting design works here.

Other links of interest:

All-in-all, I give this new application from Google Apps a thumbs-up!

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21
Feb
2008

Do you need top search engine results?
Do you want first page Google?

Getting traffic to your website involves several marketing methods, of which
Search engine share chartsearch engine traffic is foremost. It is not really difficult to get top SERP (search engine results pages) or even to achieve first page Google. You can avoid the high cost of SEO (search engine optimization) companies, and the risky bidding for prominent Adwords. All you need is written up here in this article.

My Quick SEO for SERP formula:

  1. Use a 3-4 keyword phrase.
  2. Use keyword phrases that search users would probably use. This is where an SEO expert may come in handy, but with a little imagination and research you should be able to master this.
  3. Place your “keyphrases” in your title <title>, header <h1> to <h6>, and link <a href> tags.
  4. Place in meta name description <meta name=”Description” content=”place in here - easy on all caps” />.
  5. Use this keyphrase 2-3 times minimum in body content.
  6. If your website is geographic specific, (even if it’s not) be sure to include your city and state in your title and meta name description tags.

And there you have it! Use this formula, and you’ll see your website on Google first page within a week or two.

See my 1st page Google pages:

stevestuff

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