Search Engine Optimization
Thread started by
kryxtanicole at 01.14.09 - 10:30 pm
I am trying to learn about SEO in order to develop traffic to my websites and future projects, and want to make the best decisions to utilize my most precious resource (my time).
Lost in a sea of SEO jargon, including SERP, SEM and PR 5...I am beginning to feel like I will have to wade through hours of information to gain an understanding...then again, maybe someone here can point me in the direction of some concise and useful data, or provide it if they happen to be knowledgeable?
I WOULD APPRECIATE IT SOOOOOO MUCH!
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Something like this maybe - http://www.seomoz.org/article/beginners-guide-to-search-engine-optimization
(I know jack about SEO, I just googled Search Engine Optimization for Beginners, and this came up. It looks pretty solid.)
JB01.14.09 - 10:34 pm
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whatever you do, do not use any black hat techniques.. it is frowned upon and unethical. plus, if people find out you've been doing this they will black list you and all the head way you might have made and all the connections that have come with it.... will be lost and no one will want to associate with you or whatever you're trying to promote/sell/do.
search engine optimization is probably not the best way to go to get started... if you know how to use html (the most basic of all computer languages) or java these can be used to your advantage. also, get to know about ftp and links. i cannot stress links links links.
Jazzy Phat Nastee01.14.09 - 10:43 pm
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ps it's an always evolving field that is hiring like mad but that is extremely competitive. all business should look into this to maximize their hits.
Jazzy Phat Nastee01.14.09 - 10:44 pm
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July - I don't even know what a black hat technique is! More misunderstood jargon, blah. I know NOTHING about HTML...but I don't think I need to...I don't run the pages my writing appears on, just have access to the publishing tools and have been studying google trends and trying to figure out how to increase traffic to my page without spamming or annoying my friends, and maybe even figure out where some of the traffic I get is coming from. How bout it?
kryxtanicole01.14.09 - 10:47 pm
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Black Hat SEO Techniques To Avoid
Keyword stuffing: Packing long lists of keywords and nothing else onto your site will get you penalized eventually by search engines. Learn how to find and place keywords and phrases the right way on your Web site with my article titled Learn Where And How To Put Keywords In Your Site Pages.
Invisible text: This is putting lists of keywords in white text on a white background in hopes of attracting more search engine spiders. Again, not a good way to attract searchers or search engine crawlers.
Doorway Pages: A doorway page is basically a “fake” page that the user will never see. It is purely for search engine spiders, and attempts to trick them into indexing the site higher. Read more about doorway pages.
Jazzy Phat Nastee01.14.09 - 10:49 pm
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honestly, your best bet is to take a course. there is so much that is involved in what i believe you're trying to do.
again, network. link your site, your blog, your anything to others. best way to do this... is to repond/comment on others stuff. let them know you have a similar site and would like to know if you could link up (helping both of you)
once you start getting linked up... maybe then (or sooner) you could learn where your traffic is coming from, what keywords are attracting them, and how you can make it even more efficient.
Jazzy Phat Nastee01.14.09 - 10:52 pm
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Search engine optimization reminds me of playing golf. The more you think about it and harder you try the worse you do. The more you can forget about it and just swing the better you do.
vor01.15.09 - 2:06 am
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Looking at how high ranking sites code their markup can be helpful too. Wikipedia for example has excellent code.
vor01.15.09 - 2:46 am
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easy, work for google and reverse engineer their ranking platform..
asparagus01.15.09 - 10:10 am
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Daaaayyyyaaaammmmnnn!!!!
I've got alot of time, but not a whole lot of shit to do right now.
bentstrider01.15.09 - 10:13 am
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Make your projects unique, have unique names, and promote/ publicize them and they will score high on google.
I'm not saying that SEO doesn't work, but the whole point of google is that it returns "honest" results ... they are constantly reworking the code so that the results are more accurate.
If somebody is gonna get paid for a higher ranking, google is gonna make it them.
Seriously,
Use the old school tactics of publicity and promotion, get people to write about your projects, link them, blog them etc. and your rankings will shoot up, they will shoot up super fast if you are doing something unique.
trickmilla01.15.09 - 10:22 am
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Thanks for the advice...I think maybe I left something out. I don't have "projects" - I'm the writer, lol. I write for a website and get paid by page hits, and I'm not trying to manipulate anything, just develop traffic. Maybe SEO is not what I'm looking for, but in my search I keep coming across it and the other terminologies I mentioned about. I searching for the the most effective, legit way. That's all. But, I am developing more understanding from your responses.
kryxtanicole01.15.09 - 10:45 am
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Make it popular on Digg or Delicious or whatever that "social bookmarking" website is. Because it isn't your page, and blah blah, you can't really do much except for advertise, I guess. I think. I know for sure that when you have your own website you can put those keywords like July mentioned. For example, if you look up Chynna Monforte, you'll get all the popular sites like MySpace, and Vimeo, but the first result you'll get is my personal website, because of keywords.
imachynna01.15.09 - 2:08 pm
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whatever it is you can promote it.
any time you have a link posted that boosts your google rankings
its the same reason we encode our email address (dot) com.
There are always little spiders lurking around following links.
(I think) a link from an outside source is given more weight than a keyword, because outside sources
They have rewritten the code from when a small group of people could easily create a "google bomb" but looking at the case
Miserable Failure google bomb of 2006 reveals a lot about how the ranking work rin relation to outside links.
trickmilla01.15.09 - 3:25 pm
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the best way towards SEO optimization is to have good content and make sure your website is adding more and more good content as often as possible. The more people realize your site has good content, the more they visit, and link to it and seek it out by searching for it.
pretty soon you will have great position in search engines.
Roadblock01.15.09 - 3:32 pm
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what roadblock said. the googles are pretty good at detecting crap.
ephemerae01.15.09 - 8:32 pm
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+1 to what Roadblock said
I'm no expert in SEO but I know having good content is step #1
thinkpeace01.15.09 - 10:06 pm
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I used to work in seo (very shortly) and i'm telling you.... LINKS LINKS LINKS... back to your page and others will work wonders. if you have the time build a raport with some of the people who have very viable and full of traffic sites. it's sorta like cheating... but if you're good... then it's backed up.
Jazzy Phat Nastee01.15.09 - 11:40 pm
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Thanks everyone! FOR CEREAL! Your replies have confirmed that I'm doing the best I can, and saved me from hours of research, confusion and spinny-ness. I love you gaise!
p.s. Good content is #1. Always, always, always. : )
I'm new to this web thing. LOL.
kryxtanicole01.16.09 - 1:27 am
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Good writing, and good html markup, and being a valuable resource are #1.
vor01.16.09 - 1:56 am
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Krista,
the first thing you need to define is; on which search words you want to improve your ranking.
"I want when someone searches ANYTHING in Google for my website to come up in the top three". That's not an attainable goal. We need to narrow it down.
The first realistic goal is to improve your ranking when someone searches for your full name. Try searching for it. Are you # 1? Are you in the top ten? If you are not where you want to be, scroll to the bottom of the Google results page and click on:
Dissatisfied? Help us improve
Give the link to your website and explain that it's the best site to represent your name since you are the principal author of that site and it contains your collective thoughts and works.
Maybe your name isn't important to you. Then trickmilla's suggestion was an excellent one. Create unique names that represent your project(s), that give you unique identity. Why? It's a lot easier to be found on top of search results when the search terms are to be found on your website only.
For the same reason it's extremely hard to reach the top if the search terms you are aiming for are the main subject of thousands of other websites. (example: bike, transportation etc)
In order to get there analyze what makes THOSE websites come on top and try to emulate them... or ... maybe not...
The bottom line is: Why should you even be found by search engines?
If you are trying to reach a certain audience perhaps there are ways to reach them through other means. Who do you want the audience to be?
Is it your friends, family, coworkers? Create an e-mail list (with an opt out feature) to alert them about your website or every time you have a new article.
Are you trying to reach people in a specific market? Then try posting on forums, distribute flyers in shops that reach that market.
Are you trying to reach the greatest masses of America? Then try submitting articles or even comments, letters to the editor to popular media (newspapers, magazines, blogs) that already reach a mass audience.
My website
locationscout.com has been #1 in Google search results for ten years in the search terms
location scout and
location scouting. The reason is: Visitor added content. By letting visitors post links and threads on the forums the content with the valuable keywords is multiplied by 10,000. This makes it a more encyclopedic website and it stands apart from keyword competitors who only talk about themselves. It hasn't made me any money. Just bragging rights.
marino01.17.09 - 7:51 pm
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Krista is this website you are talking about;
http://begreentoo.blogspot.com ?
"A GREEN LIFE FOR EVERY MAN, WOMAN AND CHILD!"
Hmm... tough sell...
Lots of people writing for green stuff.
If you are trying to reach a wider audience you should offer your articles to a publication with similar concerns that already reaches a wider audience. Blogging is not an independent's game any more unless you don't care about vast audiences and you only do it for friends.
I also have a friend who owns the domain name
shopgreen.com He is trying to sell it but while he waits for a buyer to pay the kind of money he hopes for (mid five figures +) he may give it to you.
Your benefit: Keywords in the domain name. UP in the google ranks
His benefit: Related content on his domain name. UP his chances with a sale.
And no he's not a domain speculator. He's an artist and a zen budhist and a cab driver in SF and he bought the domain name with a genuine interest in the subject But he had an accident and he can longer pursue it.
marino01.17.09 - 8:19 pm
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Best Advice yet professor. THANXXXXXXXXX.
The website is here: http://www.examiner.com/x-2248-LA-Shelter-Pets-Examiner
(I don't know how to make it a link)
I didn't create the site, I simply have publishing access.
Thanks Marino. : )
Conclusion (again?): I just need to stick to developing good content and getting the word out. Simple solutions are usually the best.
kryxtanicole01.19.09 - 4:50 pm
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OMG! You have a pygmy goat?
Success is within reach.
Scrap the kitten pix + post more goat pix = SUCESSS
marino01.19.09 - 6:14 pm
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That's an awesome painting. One day I will have a goat farm. I will find a pix of Warwick and post.
kryxtanicole01.19.09 - 6:43 pm
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kryxtanicole said: (I don't know how to make it a link)
k you want real advice on the key to SEO?
step 1: learn HTML
professor fate01.19.09 - 7:28 pm
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Actually first step is to learn
How to make a link
If you link your articles in places that make sense ...
like if USER1 and Sexy are debating about the best ways to help a pet shelter you can put in your two ¢ents and link your story as an example.
Also,
When you write a story do a bulliten about it on myspace or facebook,
when you read an article relevant to to something you have written about you can post a link to your story in the comments section.
Basically, the more often you link your article especially if the link words relate to the subject of the article or the title, you will draw more hits.
trickmilla01.19.09 - 7:43 pm
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weblinks on myspace and facebook are automatically hyperlinked. I always put them there. that much i do know. Putting my links in comments of related information tho, had not occurred to me. I appreciate that tidbit. : )
i'll look at the link you put up, professor. By the way, I chose not to take your last bit of advice, and thus have not killed myself. This piece seems more valuable tho, i may apply it. lol.
kryxtanicole01.19.09 - 7:49 pm
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