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17 May 2013

How To Use Your Authority To Rank Higher

One of the factors that Google will be placing more and more emphasis on in the next few months will be the authority of a website. Whether it’s page authority or domain authority, Google will be looking at those scores and it will be impacting your websites’ ranking in the engines.

For those of you who aren’t yet familiar with the authority issue, let me explain.

The goal of any search engine is to provide the best, most relevant search results for the user. After all, who wants to get a list of car dealerships if they’re looking for pizza? So, one way that Google accomplishes this is by giving websites a score based on the following factors…

a) how many other websites are linking TO this website?b) what is the quality of those other websites?
c) what words are the other websites using to link TO this website?

The more websites that link TO your site, the better. The more websites that have high authority scores that link TO your site, the better. The more links that are using your keyword phrases linking TO your site, the better.

Domain Authority vs. Page Authority

Now that you know the overall gist, you should also know that there are two types of authority scores. Domain Authority and Page Authority.

Domain Authority – the overall score given to a website. Basically an average of all the page authority scores. Based on a 0 – 100 scale.

Page Authority – the score given to a specific website page. Based on a 0 – 100 scale.

What Is My Website’s Authority Score?

You can use the following free tools to find out what your site is scoring.

Domain Authority Score Tool

Page Authority Score Tool

I would encourage you to do this for your online competition as well. After all, it’s find finding out that your domain authority score is 52 but if several online competitors have a score of 81 then you know you have some work to do.

How To Increase Your Authority Score?

There are multiple “things” that you can do, just make sure to keep them all white hat (meaning don’t do anything to try to fool the engines). If you do a search on your favorite search engine for ways to increase your domain or page authority you’ll get lots of information.

One article I found was by Neil Patel written back in June 2012 but it’s filled with lots of information and it’s a very good read so check it out. Here’s a quick summary:

1) Make sure your website has a good architecture. What I mean is that certain pages are in certain files. If you’re a piano repair technician and you offer 10 different services for piano repair then make sure that each service has it’s own page on your website and that each page is in a folder called “piano services”. The idea is to group like items.

2) Link these “like” pages to each other. So, each of the 10 service pages should be linked to each other.

3) Use a variant of keywords in your content and in your text links. If you’re marketing “piano services” make sure to also use phrases like “piano tuning” and “piano repair”, etc.

4) Write as much of your own content as possible. The more unique, the more practical the better. The whole idea is to continuously give out information.

5) Make sure to share your information on your social networks. Social metrics are becoming more and more important so don’t dismiss them.

6) You can do all of this with videos as well. It’s not just written content.

7) Be patient. It takes time to build incoming links. In fact, you must do it slowly. It’s a red flag to Google if they all of a sudden see a large number of incoming links to your site.

Good luck.

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported.

eckweb | No comments | Tags: domain authority, internet marketing, page authority, seo

15 May 2013

business tips • internet marketing • seo • social media

Get Ready For More Google Updates

Okay, I know that some of my clients were affected by Google’s Penguin / Panda updates. Unfortunately, that’s how they became my clients. Their sites were chugging along just fine until these updates took place and then, WHAM, they disappeared from the search results.

I am SO PROUD to say that of all the websites I maintain (over 70 at this count) that only 1 was affected by the Penguin / Panda update and it was due to another service the client used that I was unaware of. No black hat SEO here at Eckweb!!

But, that doesn’t help my new clients who were affected. And believe me, the work to reinstate these accounts is HUGE.

So, if you were affected by Google’s last updates, get ready, cause more are coming.

A great article at searchenginewatch.com talks about these upcoming updates.

One that popped out to me, that can be worked on RIGHT NOW was their #6.

6. Authority

If Google’s algorithms believe you or your site is an authority in a particular area, they want to make sure those sites rank a little bit higher than other sites.

What does Google’s Authority mean?

Lately I’ve been including “domain authority” on the monthly reports for my clients because Google is paying serious attention to this number. And now I’m glad that I’ve added it because it seems they are going to be putting even more weight on that score.

Domain Authority is basically a score based on the quantity and quality (note both, not just one or the other) of incoming website links. So, this means that you want quality websites linking to your website. And the REASON that these other websites are linking to you is because of your content.

There has to be a reason they would want to share your website with their readers. Just like I’m sharing the article from searchenginewatch.com here on this post. There’s information in that article that I want to share with my readers.

Do you have any information on your website that others would find useful? I know many of you do not.

SEO Copywriters

Can SEO copywriters help you with this? Yes, to an extent. Copywriters can put together information for you. They do the research, they write the content and they optimize the text for the search engines. But there are limitations. The copywriter is not an attorney or a plumber or a wedding planner or a physician. In other words, they are not the expert in YOUR field. YOU ARE THE EXPERT.

So, yes, a copywriter can write the initial copy but then it’s up to you to fine tune it with the knowledge that you have. That’s the difference between good content and great content.

Check Your Domain Authority

You can use this free tool at Moonsy.com to see what your domain authority is. My recommendation is to also check several online competitors and see what their scores are. It’ll give you an idea if you’re leading the pack or if you have some work to do.

The either get writing or contact an SEO copywriter to get started on your content marketing plan to improve your domain authority. You’ll be ahead of the game when Google implements their next algorithm change.

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported.

eckweb | No comments | Tags: domain authority, google, seo

20 Dec 2012

internet marketing • seo • social media

Important Factors For Internet Marketing in 2013

If you’ve been involved in Internet marketing for at least a year you should be aware that nothing on the Internet stays the same for long. If your SEO (Search Engine Optimization) company has been harping on you to add content to your website – for the sake of your company – LISTEN TO THEM!!! They are absolutely correct.

I say this to at least one person every single day, “It’s literally impossible to have too much content on your website.”

For years the general wisdom in SEO circles has been that “Content Is King”. That statement is more true today than ever. The reason is that every single day the Internet is filled with more and more content. The role of the search engines is to give the viewer the best possible content match for the viewers’ search. After all, who wants to browse through multiple websites to get the information you need?

So, for Google and other search engines – the goal is to assess what website has the most relevant, up to date, legit information. I stress the word “legit” because in the last 6 months 90% of the new clients that we’ve contracted have all been affected by Google’s Panda and Penguin updates. Which basically means that their websites were engaged in duplicate content or rubbish content and “black hat” linking practices.

In 2012, Google began (with Penguin and Panda updates) to weed out the websites that were clearly in violation of offering quality content. In 2013, they will be taking this a step forward by increasing the importance of Website Bounce Rates and Google Author Rank.

Website Bounce Rate

When someone comes to your website page and they leave that website page without going to any other page on the website, that is considered a Bounce. If your website’s overall bounce rate is 70% or higher – Google will notice and your rankings will suffer.

Reasons your bounce rate may be high…

1) your content doesn’t match up with the interests or intent of your viewers.
2) viewers are having problems navigating through your site
3) your site doesn’t solve problems or offer solutions to your viewers
4) the information (or content) on your site is too difficult for your viewers to understand
5) there’s no clear “call to action” on your website pages

Google Author Rank

In 2012 I began adding Google Authorship coding to websites to begin the process of assesing the Google Author Rank. Basically, this code ties your business website to your Google+ profile. Google+ is essentially Google’s version of Facebook.

The more people you are involved with (who you follow and who follow you) the higher your Google Authorship will be. So, it’s predicted that in 2013 your Google Authorship rating will represent a powerful ranking metric for Google. It basically lets Google know who the “best experts” in the industry are.

So, if you’re beginning to think about your SEO / Internet Marketing strategy for 2013, then add these to your list…

1) Begin planning on how to add more content (good quality content) to your website. Whether you write it or you hire a copywriter to write it – make a plan. Work with your SEO firm to use the best possible keyword phrases.

2) Social media (especially Google+) will be the new “incoming links” source. I spoke with a potential client a month ago (who didn’t use our services) about this. She wanted to know our “back link strategy” and I told her that the practice of “back links” basically went out 2 years ago and that these days, incoming links to websites (the important ones) are from social media. She thought that was “interesting” and basically thought I was making it up.

These days, social media is the “Angies List” for every business. What others say about you, who is “connected” to you are all very important factors on scoring your website. When you really think about it, it makes sense.

There’s more information from this great article on Forbes.com – check it out.

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported.

eckweb | No comments | Tags: 2013 seo, bounce rate, google authorship, internet marketing tips

15 Aug 2012

internet marketing • ppc marketing • seo • small business • social media

I Want More Visitors To My Website!

The BusinessInsider.com has a great article for small business owners about SEO (Search Engine Optimization).

The main concept of SEO is that the listings are organic, natural. This is in contrast to the PPC (Pay Per Click) listings on the right hand side which are paid listings. Of course, the SEO listings cost much less than PPC but they are harder to attain simply because the search engine rules apply to them (and believe me, there are MANY rules!).

The article gave 5 very good tips for small business owners about what it takes to get higher SEO status.

1. Build your site for users

The idea here is to make the website as user friendly as possible. I know, it’s “more fun” and “more unique” to make your website look different from other websites. From an artistic point of view, that is very true. But when was the last time you re-visited a website because it looked different? Aesthetics are important, absolutely. But usability is more important.

Of course, if you’re a small business that is in the business of aesthetics, then of course, the colour scheme and graphics on your website will be very important. But if you’re an attorney, or a plumber, or a doctor or a million other “business type” of industries, your visitors aren’t looking for artwork or colour schemes. Your users are searching for what you have to offer, your prices and how qualified you are.

Stick to what your potential clients want and give it to them. Market your website to that. Don’t spend months focusing on just the right background colour.

2. Become a subject matter-authority

I say this to everyone, clients, potential clients, people who ask me “What can I do to get more visitors to my website?” – the answer is simply, “Showcase yourself as an expert in your field.” The way to do that on the Internet is with information. The more information you put out, the better.

I just had a client tell me the other day that he doesn’t want to put out too much information, he would rather that the visitor see his site and then call him. That may have worked years ago but these days, it’s just too easy to click the button and look for the information elsewhere. And the user will find it. Internet users for the most part want to engage via the Internet. They want to email or make the purchase. They want the easiest method possible. And as a side note, as mobile usage gets bigger and bigger, this scenario will become even truer.

3. Do stuff to attract links

This goes in conjunction with the #2 tip. If you have information on your website that is unique, that is relevant, that is important – others WILL link to you. Just like I’m linking to this article. I can’t say it any better than they did in the article so I’m just going to quote them.

The easier answer is that to attract links you have to do stuff. You have to give people a reason to talk about you. And on the Web, talking about you means linking to you.

“You have to give people a reason to talk about you. And on the Web, talking about you means linking to you.”

4. Increase social and be social

One of the most difficult things these days, for small business owners, is to become involved and to be consistent about social media. (I know I struggle with it as well). But the fact is that these days, social media is your online Chamber of Commerce, your online Networking Groups. It’s simply part of doing business.

5. Think about performance

The final tip they gave is a great one. It’s one that I argue with clients over almost every day. Website Performance. I literally have to beg some clients to remove huge flash movies or slide shows from their websites so that the site loads faster, content is seen easier and of course, it’s more mobile friendly. I argue about buttons that aren’t seen easily (hard to read) and colours or patterns that make it difficult to read the content. I argue about placement of buttons and size of graphics.

My goal is to get visitors TO the website, I have to do that first. Then I have to get them to convert. As an SEO webmaster, that’s my entire job. But, in order to do that job, there are some features that have to be sacrificed. Again, this loops back to the #1 tip. Usability. And not only usability for the Internet user, but Usability for the search engines as well. If your large graphics or flash movies impede the search engines from scanning your site, then what’s the point?

A business website should be bringing in business. Period. If it doesn’t, stop fighting with your SEO webmaster, listen to them. Hopefully they’re giving you these 5 excellent tips!

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported.

eckweb | No comments | Tags: internet marketing, more site visitors, seo

08 Aug 2012

social media • Uncategorized

Like It Or Not – We’re All Integrated

The political season in the USA is in full throttle. Hate is in the air! It seems to get like this when we’re close to a major election. I suppose even the not so major ones as well!

I saw this graphic in a blog and it inspired me to write this post.

The writer who captioned this photo is absolutely correct. The Chick Fil A company president may have his beliefs, (and who are we to deny him that?) but the truth of the matter is that his company does business with other companies who do not follow his beliefs.

Does that mean he’s going to stop doing business with them? Doubt it. After all, “…it’s not personal, it’s just business.”

It’s such a SILLY concept to believe that any of us, especially in the United States can truly isolate ourselves. The higher the walls that people build around themselves, the less sturdy they become and the more easily they are to be brought down.

If you’ve spent any time on the Internet – you must realize that we’re all interconnected. We’re all integrated. From the tools you use at home or at work, to the sounds you hear and the film that you watch, all these products are created with a multitude of companies that have a multitude of belief systems and values. Some you may not agree with. So what are you going to do? Lock yourself up and stop interacting with the world? That will probably be about the same time you begin stocking up on guns and planning the next mass killing. Do you REALLY want to do that?

Living in today’s world and doing business in today’s world requires more interaction than ever before. Social media is helping us to expedite that. So, get with it. Accept the fact that others may have different belief systems but don’t hate them because of it, instead, try to find out and understand why they believe that. Challenge their beliefs with discussion and challenge yourself as well.

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported.

eckweb | No comments | Tags: social media

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Esther C Kane

Archive for social media

Domain Authority vs. Page Authority

What Is My Website’s Authority Score?

How To Increase Your Authority Score?

6. Authority

What does Google’s Authority mean?

SEO Copywriters

Check Your Domain Authority

Being Proactive With Your Social Media

What Can We Learn From This Social Media Muse?

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