Archive for Rank On Page #1
The Changing Face Of Online Marketing
Posted by: | CommentsWow, how times have changed in the Internet marketing world in the past 6 months. Most of the past Google updates have not meant a complete change in how we do things.
For the past 6 or 7 years I, and the a great majority of online marketers, played the google game by slapping up “ok” content and then backlinking the heck out of it. It worked like a charm…but not any longer.
A small number of you out there will stand up and self-righteously proclaim we are getting our just deserves. That small group remained on the high road of only the best quality content with no artificial backlinks. Most only had so-so success or, if they did well, it took FOREVER. The rest of us were making $ hand over fist playing the backlinking game.
But now many of us (including me) have seen some of our sites actually PENALIZED by Google BECAUSE we played the game THEY REWARDED us for in the past years.
How crazy is that??
It’s like telling people for years you could go 70 MPH on the interstate and then the speed limit is lowered to 60 MPH. That would be fine, but the cameras on the roadway were taking video the whole time. Now the video is being examined. Anyone caught going 70MPH in the past, when it was LEGAL, is now being sent tickets and some are even having their licenses taken away. This is exactly what is happening now with some sites.
Is it fair? Heck no! But life is not. It IS their business and they can do with it what they want. They get to make the rules for their business. If we don’t like it, we are free to build our own search engine.
More people will make more money online in the coming year than ever before. The rate of beginning online marketers having success will be the same or better in the coming year than ever before. People will still get tons of profitable traffic from Google’s organic search results.
How will that be possible?
It’s simple. Online marketers will adjust and learn the new “rules” Google has applied. Sure, it stinks in the short-term for many of us. But life goes on. I truly believe the recent updates will be for the best.
What You Should Know About Google’s Latest Update
Posted by: | CommentsWhether you are just beginning with Internet marketing or already rely on Google for some (or most) of your current site’s traffic, it’s extremely important you know about the recent changes happening with SEO.
As you may have already heard, Google changed the rules…again. It’s nothing new, and it for sure won’t be the last time. They have rolled out parts of this update (code named Panda) since the fall. By all accounts, they are still implementing new aspects of it on a regular basis.
Many sites are just now facing drops in their rankings. Some of my sites, for some keywords, have been affected too. (However, some of my big keywords have actually done better during this update…after all, there are as many winners as losers during each tweak of Google’s search algorithm.)
Of course no one knows (but Google) what all the changes are in the update. But we have a pretty good idea of its main focus. Basically, they are taking a harder look at on page SEO and the overall quality of sites’ pages. Specifically, they are watching more for over-optimization and over-advertising. Too many keywords, too many H1’s, too many bold keywords, too many ads…simply put, just TOO much “SEO” and too much “trying to monetize”.
There has always been much misinformation about SEO. It’s hard for beginners to understand exactly what is required. (hint: there is not much “exact” about any of Internet marketing).
Some of my new students, when they first start my coaching, still think a 5 to 7% keyword density is required (Yeah, there are many 8 year old web pages still proclaiming 7% is good…be careful where you find your info.) Now days, that high of density will fire up Google’s wrath.
If you are a current student, BE SURE to review on our member site my recent audios over the past few weeks. I go into great detail about how you should handle on-page SEO now.
Probably the biggest surprise about the Panda update is Google’s new focus on off-page SEO. Yes, they are hammering sites for over optimizing off the page. In other words, they are looking closing at our backlinking methods. They have devalued some of backlinks they rewarded us for in the past. I know, it seems really unfair; but Google gets to make the rules remember.
Again, all of my members should spend time listening to the recent info in the member’s area about all this. There are several hours of new MP3’s in the member’s area where I talk specifically about what you should do now AND stop doing now.
During the member calls in the recent weeks we talked about how it’s more important than ever to keep your links looking as natural as possible. In a nutshell, vary your anchor text greatly. Also, avoid link networks (BuildMyRank has lost all their Google love).
I can’t go into all the details here in an email, but for those non-members out there, my general advice is to keep your SEO work, both on and off page, as natural looking as possible. Google has always hated too strong of SEO efforts…but they hate it worse now.
The Perfect Domain Name?
Posted by: | CommentsIn the early stages of learning Internet marketing, a lot of beginners focus WAY too much time on picking “just the perfect domain name”. I’m not really against them trying to find something they like, can be proud of, or even looking for one with a great keyword in it. But the problem is that they wrongly put WAY too much importance on getting “just the right name” for their domain.
One of my sites, CactusCanyon.com, does not sell cactus or canyons…yet it ranks very well for a large variety of keywords. On the other hand, if a beginner was to somehow get a brand new domain name that had a SUPER great, super high-traffic, keyword in it (something like CarInsurance.biz just for an example), they may think they had hit the mother lode.
Sorry…But in that big area, even making a 50 to 100 page site with great content….and having that great domain name…won’t come close to getting it to page ten of the Google search results (much less page 1).
There is a lot more to ranking well with a profitable keyword than simply having a great domain name.
Sure, in very tiny niches, the keyword-rich domain name can help. But the larger the area and the greater the competition, the less of a factor it is.
I’m working in a very lucrative area now which proves the point well. The site’s domain name has a good keyword in it, we have about 100 pages of great content, we have been backlinking like crazy for 3 or 4 months now…yet the site still has only made it to page 7 of the search results for our big keyword (I’m actually very happy with that so far).
I guess my point in all this is for beginners to understand that buying a domain with “the perfect keywords in it” (and even building a great site with it) is just the beginnings of all the work involved before traffic will arrive.
Remember, “Relentless Focused Action” on a workable idea with tried and proven techniques is all that’s required for success.
Where’s My Traffic?
Posted by: | CommentsHere’s a typical letter I get from beginning marketers.
Dear Steve,
I’ve had my website up now for about 5 months and it still get’s almost no traffic. I see it in Google for a few searches, but it’s never higher than page 4 or 5 in the rankings. I keep adding content, pictures, and videos to it….but I still can’t get it any traffic to it.
Can you take a look at the site and see what might be wrong?
Thanks…..
Nine times out of ten, when I look at the site, it is fine. It looks OK, the content is original (I check it in CopyScape), and the on page SEO is OK. It seems too that they have given thought to keywords, etc.
So what is wrong? Why does their “OK cool” site not get any traffic?
When I get a letter like this and see that their site is so-so-OK at least, I am always willing to bet that they have done no (or very little) off page SEO. In other words, they are not working at getting backlinks to their site.
Google puts a LOT of emphasis on backlinks. They have for a while and it’s never been truer. You can rank any page for anything if you do enough backlinking correctly. In the past year I have had amazing results with backlinking strategies which ANYONE can do.
Yes. YOU can rank any page for ANYTHING if simply do backlinking correctly and to the degree required for the competition in the niche.
There are no tricks or secrets that only a few successful people know about. (Don’t fall for scam offers that promise such.) Backlinking IS one of those step by step, methodical and highly affective strategies that beginners like to know about.
So why don’t all beginners have massive success with their sites if backlinking is so affective and IS a simple step by step process?
The reason is laziness….pure and simple.
Backlinking takes a lot of work. It is NOT fun and it surely is not glamorous work. It’s just one of those dirty jobs that must be done.
If you have a site which gets little or no traffic, are you backlinking as you should?
I offer a Free Strategy Call with me for beginners. If you have questions about this or any other topic…or just need to brainstorm with me, register for your free call with me.
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Does Internet Marketing Success Require “Tools”?
Posted by: | Comments[nonmember] I use a LOT of different tools in my Internet business. I own all sorts of keyword, SEO, submission, video, article and other types of tools including VA’s to help with all the work. Beginning Internet marketers too often think that these tools are what make the success. They want desperately to believe there is some “magic formula” for making money online. They think all they have to do is find the perfect tools and use them.
What are the keys for success?
This may seem an odd post since this site makes most of it’s income from affiliate sales. But I enjoy my success here BECAUSE I tell it like it is and have helped a lot of folks get their online businesses going. The ONLY things a beginner needs to buy are [private_silver] a domain name and a good (inexpensive) hosting package. Nothing else is required…except a lot of work and study time.
The truth is that I had NO MONEY to buy all these tools in the beginning. My wife and I bought a domain name, $3.95 hosting, and ONE case of products to sell ($200). We got our first order because we figured out how to optimize one of our site’s pages for a niche keyword…which Google then ranked on their first page. I got really lucky and picked a tiny niche (I didn’t really know what I was doing) so ranking on the first page was pretty easy.
After that first success, I knew I had the key. I ramped up what was working (more optimized content…more first page rankings for other keywords).
I didn’t use ANY purchased tools for this. Heck, as a beginner, I wouldn’t have known how to use any special tools anyway!
And this is why I fell in love with Internet marketing. ANYONE can learn the basics and enjoy success WITHOUT any investment to speak of.
By the way, we took no money out of the business in the beginning. We let the money grow and reinvested it back into the business. THAT is how you can afford all the cool tools which make things much easier and can help ramp up your business even more.[/private_silver]
Off Site SEO – After Your Site is Built: What’s Next?
Posted by: | CommentsOK, you have found a good niche and researched its top keywords or you purchased one of my ready-to-market niche sites. Your site is built, optimized, and online . Now what do you do?
Believe it or not, many people sit back and only check their PayPal account waiting for affiliate sales to roll in at this point…but I KNOW that’s not you!
Hopefully, YOU already know (since you’ve studied my site and read my past emails) that Internet marketing success is not a , “build it and they will come” process. Unless your niche is EXTREMELY tiny, it will take more than simply submitting your site directly to Google. (In fact, I have not submitted a site that way for years….it does no good actually.)
So what’s next after your niche site is published to the web? First double check that the site is optimized well. Put your SEO thinking cap on and scour the site. Are the title tags optimized well? Are the pages all interlinked with optimized anchor text? Etc…
Once you are sure the site is “presentable” to the search engines, the “real” Internet marketing work can begin. What we call Off-Page optimization is where most of the meat is. Even poor On-Page optimization can be offset with super off-page optimization…but not the other way around.
Sure, it’s a LOT more fun to do all the brainstorming and site building/optimization than it is to do the grunt work of off-page optimization. No one…and I mean NO ONE enjoys it. I use VA’s now for the most part. But in the beginning I did it ALL. I think that is what’s called “paying one’s dues”.
When I refer to “off-page” optimization, I am particularly speaking about backlinks. A backlink is simply a link on someone else’s site that links back to your site. Google places a LOT of importance on backlinks. Both quantity and quality are important. But for a new site it’s all but impossible to get quality backlinks (those on sites that are already highly respected by Google), so you have no choice but to focus on quantity in the beginning.
HOWEVER, (in big bold caps) that is ONLY if all things are equal…they never all. So even though backlinks are vital for success, there are other factors too which come into play…just FYI.
Since we know backlinks are very important AND they are something we have control over, you’ll be focusing a LOT of time there.
So let’s get busy and begin building backlinks!
SPECIAL NOTE: Do NOT pay any service to get backlinks for you unless you know EXACTLY what you are doing. Some backlink building services will get your site banned. Stick to the basics for now and begin the process yourself.
Understand Basic Off-Page SEO 101: It helps a BUNCH if the backlink is in or near content associated with your site’s niche and the link uses optimized anchor text. For example, it does almost no good for your uncle to put a link on his gardening site to your dog training site. Worse still is if the anchor text read simply “click here”.
“New” Google Rules
Posted by: | CommentsI’m glad I never participated or taught the whole “auto blogging/scraping”.
Sure, in the past it did work. There were folks with many hundreds (and often many thousands) of website filled with Unoriginal content. Each site might make ten or twenty bucks a month. Life was good for those who took massive action there.
But all good things have to come to an end. Google, just like the rest of us who see the trash in our search results pages, have had enough.
In recent weeks they have specifically stated that sites that “copy content from other sites” should take a back seat to legitimate content.
Plus, there is one point they made that I think is even more important. They stated that their ranking algorithm will begin putting more weight on “how users interact with a site”.
Time on page/site has always been a factor they looked at. But it seems they will put even more importance on it. In other words, if Google does decide to rank your page well, thus feeding it traffic, that site had BETTER be good enough for visitors to hang around a bit.
Visitors had better spend some time reading your content, looking at pictures, and/or watching your videos on several pages of your site.
Just like I have been teaching for years, your site MUST offer value.
Online success is nothing more than basic Karma 101: (ala Zig Ziglar ) “The more you give people what they want, the more you get what you want.”
Too many try to pass go and jump right into the “money making” side of Internet marketing. All will fail with that path. Those who focus on offering value, along with correct SEO techniques, will find their income increasing almost by default.
Here’s an article from the Wall Street Journal with more info about Google’s latest moves for increasing the value of their search results.
Does “Auto-Blogging” Work?
Posted by: | CommentsOne of the hardest things to convince new Internet marketers of is that there are no “shortcuts”. Beginners are extremely vulnerable to all sorts of “easy money” offers. Some of the best sales pages you will ever see online are for absolute scams. Few marketers understand marketing better than the scammers!
Fast and easy money, no experience required, no web site required, etc….they hit all the pie-in-the-sky promises beginners desperately wish to hear. One of the biggies lately is how easy it is to create autopilot income using a process called autoblogging.
Granted, this process has produced income for some. But few realize the magnitude Read More→
Tips For On-Page Optimization
Posted by: | CommentsTen years ago SEO usually referred to “on-page” optimization. Back in those days keyword density was the hot SEO topic. My how things have changed! In the “old days” there was debate about whether a 4% or 6% density was best. Today, densities that high will raise the red flags at Google HQ! In all but the smallest of niches, “off-page” optimization is now considered of greater importance than on-page SEO.
Definitions: On-page optimization refers to how we create the actual web page. Word count, keyword density, title tag, meta description, inter-linking, bolding, heading tags, etc.
Off-page optimization refers to what we do off of the site. Obtaining backlinks on other relevant and respected sites is the most important off-page optimization method.
Is on-page optimization still important in mid to large sized niches or areas? Of course! When we build plenty of great backlinks which lead back to our well optimized, content rich web site, Google will fall in love with our web site…or at least we are providing them every opportunity!
In a way, writing content for our sites today is much easier than in times past. First, we are not constantly checking keyword densities! (unless you think you are prone to over-optimization!) Secondly, the process of LSI (if unfamiliar with that term, read my post about LSI) gives us permission to use a wide variety of words and still maintain good optimization; this makes writing so much easier!
On-page Optimization Tips:
- Optimize the file name with the keyword. Example: If the page is about leather dog collars, name the file something like “leather-dog-collar”. In other words, when you open that page, the URL would look something like this: “www.mysite.com/leather-dog-collar…”
- Forget those 6% densities! Today 1% is more like it! In fact, if you have the keyword in the title tag, in the heading of the article, in the first or second sentence, and once more, maybe twice, later in the article (assuming a 400 to 600 word length) Google will understand the subject of your page.
- Title tags: Again, make sure the title tag is well optimized when you create the web page. (By the way, the title tag is what shows at the very top of the browser window and is bold lettering in Google search results.) It’s preferred to have the keyword first in the title tag. Other words in the title tag will dilute the importance of the keyword. Be prudent when adding extra words to the title tag. If your site is large, be sure to use Webmaster Tools to make sure you do not have duplicate titles tags on the site.
- Show your keyword in the heading of the page. If possible, put that heading in h1 or h2 tags. With the heading, you can be more liberal with other words and gear it more toward the human aspect of optimization.
- Bold your keyword once in the article. There’s no need to do it on every article, but do it regularly. (We do not like to patterns of similar behavior when optimizing…it’s not “natural”)
- LSI now allows us to well optimize our content without worries about keyword stuffing. Google understands synonyms and related topics. Google actually EXPECTS similar and related words to show up on the same page in order to give them more confidence for the true topic of the page. Examples include: dog/canine, home/house/, cat/feline, car/automobile, television/TV, quick/fast, easy/simple, etc.
- Inter-link your pages together. Simply having links to your other pages in a redundant navigation system is not enough. Put a link or two on each page’s content to other relevant pages on your site…use keywords in the anchor text related to the site’s other pages of course.
- Once in a while it is fine to link off the page to a very relevant .org and .gov site. These are preferred since they rarely are your competitors and in general Google well respects those types of sites. Do not go overboard on this…here and there on a mid-sized site is fine.
- Lastly, but definitely not least, write your content with HUMANS in mind. Don’t be a slave to “writing for the search engines”. It’s easier, more fun, and Google is “smart” enough today to appreciate human oriented content. Any hints of over-optimization and Google will deal out the appropriate punishment. If you wonder if you have optimized too much, you probably have!
That’s about it. Those simple steps, along with appropriate off-page optimization, will ensure your site has the best chance in Google and the other search engines!
Niche Marketing and Online Success
Posted by: | CommentsOne of the most difficult concepts for new Internet marketers to learn is the “niche” concept. Most beginning Internet marketers confuse “area” with the term niche.
For example, “dog health” is an area and not a niche. “Gardening” is an area…not a niche.
However, “treating dog diabetes” is a niche. Likewise, “growing rhubarb” is also considered a niche.
For those with local brick and mortar businesses, identifying the niche is EASY! An example would be a flower shop in Austin. For that business the niche is “Austin flower shops”. There are many keyword variations. Examples would be, “flower shops in Austin”, “deliver flowers in Austin”, “wedding flowers in Austin”, etc.
Why is identifying the correct niche important? In general, true niches are relatively easy to rank with in the search engines. Most “areas” are not easy to rank well in the search engines. Beginning Internet marketers can waste tremendous amounts of time and work by attempting to compete in areas where the competition is too intense.
Sure, we’d all love to rank on the first page of Google for the “Dog training”. That term would generate a LOT of traffic for first page listings and there are great opportunities to monetize traffic for that term. The problem is that there is far too much competition for that keyword.
In fact, I did a search in Google for “dog training”, including the quotes, and found there were over 5 million results. That’s a STEEP mountain of competition to climb!
(I included the quotes just to filter in ONLY the pages that have that phrase EXACTLY on the page. The reason is that only the pages that include that exact phrase on a page could possibly be optimized for that keyword.)
On the other hand, I searched for “how to train german shepherd puppies” and found only 3,000 search results. That could work for a small niche site!
Remember, it’s always better to have a small piece of a small pie than ZERO from a big pie!
Let’s say Jane builds a site that is all about general aspects of “dog training”. John builds a small site that is all about “how to train german shepherd puppies”. They each have a great ebook they can promote on their site. Who will make more money? All things being equal, Jane will get traction much sooner than John even though her niche is so small. Of course if John is in it for the long haul, he stands to eventually do far better than Jane. John simply as a LOT more work to do before he enjoys any success.
Beginners underestimate the size of the Internet. My wife’s and my first real online business involved selling 2 products that over 99.9% of the population have never heard of. Yet, the market for those two obscure products was large enough that both of us were able to quit our jobs in education because of how successful our web site became.
I wish I had a magic formula for helping people identify their “perfect niche”. But choosing the niche and its related keywords is not a “paint by numbers” process. There are simply too many variables.
Considerations for choosing a niche:
- Monetization methods
- Amount of competition in the specific niche
- Size of the overall area which the niche is a member of
- Webmaster’s SEO skill
- Webmaster’s available time and/or resources for marketing the site.
- Webmaster’s personal interest in the niche
Choosing the wrong niche makes for a long and frustrating road which causes most beginners to give up. I am not sure what the percentages are, but I would guess that 90% to 95% of those who attempt Internet marketing never make a dime of profit.
One of the biggest reasons for this huge failure rate is poor niche selection.
Never is the saying, “An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure” more applicable than with the act of choosing a niche and the related keywords.
