Author Archive
July 28th, 2010 by Lisa Rosenkrantz
While Ja vaScript brings some smooth, beautifying features and functions to a website that enhance the total user experience, it’s not really beneficial for improving your visibility or elevating your rankings in Google. It doesn’t necessarily ruin your SEO efforts, but you need to decide if taking the time to create the code is worth it for you.
What JavaScript Does
- Attracts attention
- Makes a site less boring and vanilla
- Adds pop-ups, images and animations
- Takes you to another page for further info
- Enables web developers to manage/ maintain website
What JavaScript Doesn’t
- Help rankings in search engines
- Get picked up by Web crawlers
Impact of JavaScript on SEO
JavaScript alone isn’t necessarily good or bad for SEO, as the search engines pretty much ignore it. You could argue, however, that while it can help make a website more pleasant to visit, the difficulty spiders have following JavaScript has a negative impact on your rankings. Thus, the basic thing you need to remember is that the search engine spiders don’t crawl JavaScript, so at the very least you should avoid using it as the only location for your keywords. Site Search isn’t able to index content,
Also, comments in HTML are ignored by the search engines – and navigational links and content offered via JavaScript are ignored, too. This can impact your SEO because your links and content are top level factors for ranking and trustworthiness. Make sure you have normal HTML navigational links on the page and remove navigation from JavaScript so you don’t inadvertently lock search engines out of important areas of your site.
Another important SEO consideration is that JavaScript tends to slow down page loading time, which might have an impact on your rankings. Luckily, you can get around this by externalizing this function calling on it only when required by the client.
Think about this, too – an issue that Google in particular has with JavaScript is that it tends to assume that the site is serving up different content and navigation to the user than to the search engines. This is a tactic commonly used by adult and gambling sites, so it’s not always great for a site’s reputation.
Using JavaScript
Search engines are getting better at reading JavaScript, but you should never substitute it for regular link navigation. It’s certainly fine to use JavaScript, but the trick is in finding the right balance – between solid SEO practices such as well-written content and keyword rich meta titles, H1 tags, strong backlinks, etc. and fun extras that come in the form of JavaScript and other components of Web page design. And, while Web crawlers can’t see images or videos, you could try using alt tags to describe them – just remember they don’t have the same value as good, old-fashioned links.
There are some sites that are naturals for using JavaScript well; for example, e-commerce sites that require lots of images, but static content has the greatest chance of being indexed by search engines.
Tags: javascript and seo
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July 21st, 2010 by Lisa Rosenkrantz
 TrustRank is a measurement used to determine which websites are spam and which ones can be trusted. It’s sort of like sizing up a potential boyfriend – does he have the qualities you’re looking for in a mate? Can you bring him home to meet the parents?
What kinds of things does TrustRank check to make sure you’re on the up-and-up?
- Are you committed? The search engines want to feel like you’re in it for the long-haul, so register your domain for a longer period of time. Plus, the older your domain, the more trust it’s awarded.
- Do you kiss and tell? The search engines would prefer that you keep things private and publish a privacy policy that spells out what you do with any information you collect from visitors.
- Do you have a real address? You can’t entertain guests in a P.O. box, nor can you conduct business there. A physical address is essential.
- Are you totally available? How can you be trusted if you don’t supply your phone and fax numbers, and email address…and, oh yeah, your name?? Make sure that’s disclosed right off the bat.
- Are you good with money? Reassure your visitors by subscribing to Hacker Safe services and by buying an SSL certificate for an extended period of time. In fact, prove it by publishing the icons on your site where everyone can see them.
- Are you a good conversationalist? Keep your content on track – when you go off on a tangent, it makes you look like a bumbling spammer.
- Do you talk about off-color topics? Use your head and stay away from running sites supporting porn, gambling, alcohol, illegal activities or hate topics. No one wants to hear it.
- Do you say the same thing to all the ladies? Duplicate content, templates and meta tags prove you don’t think we’re special. Focus on one at a time.
The basic tenets of TrustRank include these concepts:
- Good pages seldom link to bad ones, while bad pages will try to link to good ones. The search engines are on to them.
- Smart, trustworthy linkbuilding is related to the number of links on a page.
- TrustRank weakens as it passes from site to site.
Is there any correlation to PageRank?
It is a different algorithm than Google PageRank, but they sort of complement each other – like flowers and a box of chocolates. A high PageRank is desirable, but you won’t get it unless you have trust built into your site. Is there a pretty sure-fire way to build it? In addition to the tips above, get links from established sites, especially valuable directories like Yahoo Directory and BOTW. This elevates your trust, which in turn contributes to the likelihood you’ll have a good PageRank.
Tags: trust rank
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July 15th, 2010 by Lisa Rosenkrantz
Search engines reward websites that have links coming in from websites with high PageRank and that are relevant to your industry and credible in their own right. Sometimes those links come naturally, but sometimes you have to proactively work at acquiring them. If you go about it the  right way, you can uncover some buried link treasure. High quality text links can be an all-around boost to your SEO campaign.
To find the best link partners for your site, we recommend a rigorous but highly effective process:
- Research keywords related to your market.
- Browse through each individual ranking website.
- Research your competitors’ backlinks.
- Run critical analysis to obtain website statistics.
- Personally contact each site and request an html text link.
- Negotiate an appropriate fee according to link evaluator tools.
- Constantly track the standing of the backlink to ensure quality.
Locking in these types of links will be a win-win for all involved. You build up your link portfolio with quality links that’ll improve your presence in the search engines – and the advertiser brings in welcome revenue.
Keep in mind that securing text links isn’t easy and it’s very time-consuming. You should have more than a base knowledge of SEO before trying it on your own. This is one of those areas where it’s actually more cost-effective to hire pros to do the work for you so you can focus on running the other aspects of your business. Seasoned link service providers know the tools, techniques and categories to target, and will do the negotiating, paying and tracking for you as well.
Tags: text links
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July 8th, 2010 by Lisa Rosenkrantz
There are now about 100 million or so mobile Internet users, so it’s time to tap into valuable opportunities for mobile search engine  optimization (SEO). While it’s still in the early stages, there’s no doubt mobile search is current and powerful and it’s essential for businesses to understand how to capitalize on it. SEO also must make the transition along with consumers towards mobile applications.
The bottom line is that mobile search is different than regular search.
First of all, no cell phone is built like a regular computer, so you need to consider how a mobile search is physically conducted. On each tiny device there’s a tiny keypad that requires precise finger or stylus pointing – and many of today’s devices use some type of predictive text capability to assist in typing. Because typing on one of these keypads can be a bit precarious, it’s important to make search usability and convenience a priority.
Another point to remember regarding mobile devices is where they’re typically used. While computers are generally accessed in a desk-type setting, you can usually find people using mobiles while on the move or seated anywhere but a desk. People browse and text in waiting rooms, restaurants, airports, behind the wheel ( ) or in front of the TV.
This leads to the fact that mobile devices are also used for different purposes than their computer cousins. What are they used for? While a computer is your best choice for writing research papers, conducting critical shopping or holding video conferences because of the large display, handy mouse and full keyboard, cell phones are great for keeping in touch, experiencing personal multimedia functions and enjoying general convenience.
With these basic ideas about mobile search in mind, here are current mobile SEO best practices (likely to change as the capabilities of mobile search morph over time):
- Use fewer keywords. Google says that mobile queries are an average of 15 characters long and take about 40 seconds to enter. Employ mobile-centric search phrases that mobile searchers use, and optimize content accordingly.
- Make sure content is clean and the layout is simple. Don’t use frames or Flash or anything that complicates the minimal space available. Strategically place keywords within navigation, header tags, body copy links, etc.
- Make your code easily accessible for crawlability. Use the correct headers and robots.text file instructions, avoid blocking IP ranges and ensure that all of the pages you want indexed are located in the public domain.
- Submit your site to all of the most relevant directories and business listings services as these sites can provide valuable mobile traffic.
- Submit your site to all major mobile search engines (Google Mobile, Yahoo Mobile, Bing Mobile, etc.) to increase your chances of being crawled.
- Use compliant markup language, such as iMode, cHTML, xHTML, WAP 1.0 and WAP 2.0, to ensure that your content is accessible by most mobile devices.
- Shorten key factors such as title tags and URLs, while still making sure they’re keyword rich.
- Use the word “mobile” in your title tags and meta descriptions so bots will know that these pages are specifically designed for the mobile web.
- To differentiate your mobile site from its PC counterpart, create a mobile sitemap along with a fully optimized mobile site. Mobile search logically syncs with mobile results.
Without question, mobile devices will change drastically and the rules of SEO for mobile will probably follow suit. But what won’t change are the concepts that (a) this technology is not going away any time soon and (b) mobile phone SEO is different than desktop SEO, but just as necessary. No matter what, how or when – to maximize your website, you’ll need to rework it with the latest coding and mobile web compliance standards in mind.
Tags: mobile seo, seo for mobile
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July 7th, 2010 by Lisa Rosenkrantz
So I was checking out Bing, hoping to find some new and exciting feature and I definitely got lucky. Their new Bing travel is comprehensive and lets you quickly research and explore your destination. It definitely helped me get a tight grip on planning a vacation and provided some very useful options. I’m a visual person, meaning I like charts and pictures and spreadsheets to focus me, and Bing uses graphic organizers to make it easy to compare fares, times and booking agents, etc. I tried it out for scheduling a round trip flight (it can also be used for hotels and travel packages) from Phoenix to Honolulu and have decided that I’m a fan.
What I liked most is the ease of use and what you get in return for a simple search. I love planning vacations and have booked dozens of them online with various companies, but it can be daunting and somewhat annoying going back and forth between wholesale travel sites and airline websites when you’re looking for the bottom line best deal. With Bing’s travel planning, when you enter your travel information, you get full flight details and more for multiple airlines, current prices and tips on when to buy and save.
Further, when you type in your destination, you access attractions and neighborhoods you might not otherwise have known about. Find maps of the area, links to hotels, restaurants, landmarks, hotspots and whatever else you’re into. Bing hooks you up with local listings on a map and even provides videos that feature the area’s places and people. There’s a slideshow of postcard-ish pictures and links for weather forecasts that will give you an idea of what’s waiting for you at your destination.
Here are the basic components of Bing travel:
Smart travel search
Bing travel bases their advice on a huge volume of airfare and hotel rate data that they process daily. It enables you to easily compare, sort and narrow travel results from hundreds of websites.
Price predictions
Their data and technology help determine if the lowest fare for a trip is rising or dropping within the coming week.
Rate indicators
Their Rate Indicator compares current and past hotel room rates to determine whether you’re getting a decent deal.
Search multiple travel sites and purchase tickets at the supplier’s website
Bing does the searching and brings it to you. All you need to do is choose what you like and they’ll deliver you to the supplier and you can take it from there.
Here’s my successful search…
Directly into the Bing search box, I typed in my departure and arrival cities. You can also access this feature by clicking on the Travel link on the homepage.
It brought me to the main search page where I could select dates and particular airports, then click Find flights.
In seconds, that page was replaced by the results, which gave me a list of 368 possible fares from lowest to highest and which airline they belonged to. Best of all, though, is there is a PRICE PREDICTOR function that told me to wait before booking because the fares may have been scheduled to drop.
When I clicked on the red arrow, Bing delivered a 7-day low fare prediction window that alerted me to a probable future price drop within the week (based on past trends). How cool is that? (Of course, every statement is qualified and no definite terms are used; instead, they use words like likelihood, risk, confidence…)
Using the tools on the left side of the page, you can tweak your search and have the results reflect the airlines, airports, flight quality and duration you prefer. Doing this narrowed down my results to a manageable 9 items. This helps to really close in on the perfect travel plan.
After choosing my desired flights, Bing connected me directly to the airline’s website in a separate window with all the information filled in already, and I proceeded to finish out my reservation (I opted not to wait out the seven days for the fare to drop). The whole process took me less than a half hour – normally it would take me hours. For those who work hard and deserve a vacation, do yourself a solid and simplify your search with this sweet online travel site.
Tags: bing travel, online travel sites, travel sites
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June 28th, 2010 by Lisa Rosenkrantz
IN THE RING…
GOOGLE – SOME SAY THE BIGGEST BADDEST SEARCH ENGINE IN THE WORLD
Current Record:
Undefeated. Until now, there’s been no true competition for search or popularity.
Training:
24 hours a day/7 days a week, Google’s Stanford educated trainers and techno-geeks of all ages work it over. Armed with its high energy algorithm, it changes its techniques daily and always keeps us guessing about what it’s capable of doing next. Even though Google’s always been a winner, they constantly have their game face on and keep on the offensive.
Strengths:
Google offers hundreds of applications and tools to users, and is available in every country of the world. It is a great source for information of any kind –anywhere, anytime and in abundance. It’s a favorite of everyone and a new verb has even been coined in its honor: google as in I don’t know how to cook jambalaya; I’ll google it. It’s fast on its feet, delivering heavy blows within seconds of the bell and is the ultimate search machine.
Weaknesses:
While Google gets you what you need, it’s totally impersonal. It uses formulas, analytics and machine-originated processes to deliver results. While they’ve locked it in more often than not, they don’t know you and can’t answer your questions. If you ask for an auto repair recommendation, they give you a list with strangers’ opinions – and only information that’s public and available to anyone and everyone.
What to Watch For:
Google now has developed a communications platform that encourages Facebook-ish (more personalized) sharing and conversations. They offer Friend Connect, which allows websites to link to accounts on most major social networks. They’re trying to maintain one-upmanship on Facebook by assuring users that all their information stays confidential and is never used to deliver targeted advertising.
FACEBOOK – THE MOST WIDELY USED SOCIAL NETWORKING SITE ACROSS ALL DEMOGRAPHICS
Current Record:
Beats out MySpace and most other networking sites as far as number of users. It looks like they’re trying to be a contender for search but with a twist. They definitely have a chance at some serious popularity.
Training:
Harvard educated founders – basically a bunch of clever whiz kids with an attitude. They seem to listen to their users and have made strong changes that have solidified relationships and continuously attract new devotees. It’s safe to say that both Facebook & Google are propelled by the crème de la crème.
Strengths:
While it’s known for connecting people with others from their past, present and future, they’re emerging as an essential marketing tool for businesses of all sizes and even as a search option. With a combination of a simple design and the ability to control visibility and information, it’s drawing all types of fans. It supplies a totally personalized approach to getting answers and information. Facebook has created a cozy comfort zone, where people can collect friends, family, colleagues and favorite businesses and ask questions and get information from them. They figure who would you prefer to recommend a restaurant to you – an anonymous food critic, or your FB friends whom you know and trust?
Weaknesses:
While it’s improving, privacy is an issue and people fear being stalked. Your information is out there in public and could potentially be pretty vulnerable. If you’re not careful about customizing all your privacy settings, it’s easy for people to snoop around a personal profile and look at all your contacts (if they’re your Facebook friends). Also this site is a haven for viruses, hackers, hoaxes and other crimes/annoyances. It’s nothing new to hear of a security breakdown at Facebook and it’s even been involved in controversy over the sale of friends and fans.
What to Watch For:
Facebook is constantly working to get in better shape. They’re taking cues from everyday users and developers to make the site work better, faster and more securely. They’re making it really easy for users to retrieve the information they need by an improved use of indexing.
So…who’s going to be the winner in a Facebook vs. Google matchup? Well, Google will deliver on all your information – but if it’s the personal connection you want along with less information to sort through, Facebook makes a great contribution.
Tags: google vs. facebook
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June 18th, 2010 by Lisa Rosenkrantz
 While I’m not the only one in my demographic group to have graduated from the original AOL 1.0 dial up (does anyone remember how exciting it was when the 2.0 floppy disks came out?), I think I’m one of the few in my office old enough to have truly experienced the wonders of the Internet since personal computing exploded. I think it started somewhere around 1995 – that’s when I bought my first PC, a gynormous Hewlett Packard with a 486 microprocessor that cost about $1500 (a small fortune in those days) and didn’t even come with a printer, but DID come with 500 wires and cables that tangled around and trapped me in my room. It came bundled with AOL, which most of us at the time confused with the definition of the Internet. The concept just didn’t “compute.”
Since that time, I’ve gone through about 15 PCs, 5 laptops, dial-up, DSL, cable, 5” floppies, 3” floppies, CD-Rom 2x…to what I have now – which, even though it’s new and sweet-looking, was out-of-date and mocking me the minute I walked out of the computer store.
Not only has the technology we use here in the U.S. morphed into something no one ever dreamed possible, Internet trends have amazed us as they totally whizzed past us. As much as we love our favorite nooks and crannies of the Web now, everyone knows  it’s just a matter of time before we lose interest and they go the way of the dancing baby of yesteryear. I remember thinking that the animation was cool and imaginative, and so did everyone else, until it appeared on every primitively designed website and in every forwarded email. After a while, that baby looked plain old creepy and we couldn’t wait for it to grow up already.
So, I got to thinking about then vs. now, and couldn’t believe the hot Internet user trends over the years that we couldn’t get enough of. Perhaps you remember the email about Bill Gates’s E-mail Beta Test, which circulated before everyone wised up to these epic time-wasters. The email explained that AOL and Microsoft would pay you something like $200 apiece for everyone you forwarded the message to. It even included a confirmation from a “lawyer” to make it seem legit. I think I received a thousand of those forwards (won’t tell you how many I sent). Guess how much my check was for?
I thought I was so popular for a while when the old AOL Instant Messenger was  “the thing.” I had a long AOL Buddy List and could chat with at least 15 people at the same time. Sure, sometimes the dial-up connection would be lost when someone in the house picked up the phone, but I didn’t let that phase me; we didn’t know any better back then. I must’ve spent 25 hours a week IMing friends, cousins and co-workers back in the mid-90s. That Internet trend was the introduction to typing messages to people whom you could easily call or see in the next room (precursor to texting, tweeting and Facebooking maybe?).
Napster, with its cool logo (I think it’s a cat with headphones), was wildly hot for sharing music files. Real people didn’t understand how you could download popular, current songs and not have to pay a dime for them. I guess artists like Metallica didn’t understand either, and Napster had major legal troubles (and so did some regular folks). Soon, music services like iTunes and Rhapsody, which make customers pay, overshadowed Napster and forced it to revamp. The company managed to survive, but who really talks about them anymore?
OK, this one was my all-time favorite, and I admittedly emailed it to everyone I knew because I thought it was so hilarious. JibJab.com featured awkwardly humorous, big-headed animations that poked fun at celebrities, politicians and  everyday people. Back in 2004, the creators took a stab at the Bush vs. Kerry Presidential race with a parody of “This Land is Your Land” and the little video took off like wildfire – even made it as far as Antarctica! Looking back, I’d like to think I’ve come a long way with my entertainment tastes since that viral phenomenon. (Sadly, I haven’t – when I revisited this one, I cracked up all over again. In fact, I’m going to put on my Facebook profile.)
Speaking of social networking sites, remember Friendster? It was pretty popular for a while, in the early 00’s. It represented a pioneering concept for online users, and many people loved it but soon tired of its performance problems. It did pave the way for the Facebook and Twitter of today, but there’s no way it can regain its popularity at this point. With everyone and (literally) their grandma tweeting and Facebooking, how can it compete? It’s still big, just not here in the U.S. You’ll have to look for a Friendster surge in South East Asia.
While the Hamster Dance, full-pages of obnoxious emoticons, the Neiman-Marcus chocolate chip cookie recipe and ICQ have had their moments in the sun and we can remember these trends on the Internet fondly, we need to focus on more important things like that amazing Mom who discovered a $3 tooth whitening secret, whether Charlie bit his brother’s finger, how to get a flat belly with just “one weird tip” and considering Wikipedia as the final authority on…well, everything.
Tags: internet trends
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June 4th, 2010 by Lisa Rosenkrantz
You work hard at making sure you implement just the right website design, you’ve worked out your product offerings, and you’ve written super smooth content. Now what you need is to test all the elements on your site to find out what’s working and what isn’t so you can improve your odds of having an optimal conversion rate. You have to do what it takes to have people buy, subscribe, join or whatever – after all, that’s what you’re online for.
Google Website Optimizer is totally free, and a great testing and optimization tool that enables you to split test the components of your website so you can make any necessary changes to help improve conversions. You can test calls-to-action, headings, images, the checkout process, colors, promotional offers, forms – anything that contributes to winning over customers. Its marketing value is phenomenal and it’s relatively easy to use and interpret.
There are several possible options you could use for testing your site. In all cases, the winner is the version that brings customers to the final conversion goal. Here’s a summary of just a few of them:
A/B Split Test
This simply allows you to test different versions of the same page to see which performs better. With A/B testing, you send some visitors to your original page and others to the test page, which are presented as different URLs.
Multivariate Test
Similar to the A/B test, it is more precise by being able to test just sections of pages, and you can even test more than one element on a page. For example, you can test different Add to Cart buttons while also testing different headings on the page. The Google Website Optimizer tool will create several different variations of that page for testing. Because you’re not creating new URLs, this testing method saves time when coding.
Split-Path Test
This is the test you’d use if you’re testing a process that involves a group of pages. If you’re, let’s say, checking your eCommerce checkout process that currently involves five steps (pages), you can try sending a group of customers on another path to the final checkout that takes only three or four pages.
Before using any type of comparison testing, plan your experiment by visiting the Google Website Optimizer help pages. A great place to start is by browsing their testing strategies articles. And always, before rolling out any changes to SEO pages, test PPC landing pages.
Tags: google website optimizer, optimizer tool
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June 4th, 2010 by Lisa Rosenkrantz
Maybe a combination of crowdsourcing and new automated techniques will work.
Much discussion has covered spamming techniques and whether or not they’re bad and/or worthy of penalties. What is more interesting at this point is whether spam can be detected quickly and efficiently so it can be eliminated and not damaging to those practicing good, clean SEO.
In the SEO world, spamming (also called Black Hat SEO) refers to any unethical practice used to artificially improve a page’s rankings in search engine results. The most common spamming techniques used by disreputable operators include:
• Keyword stuffing
• Submitting sites repeatedly to search engines
• Mirror sites used improperly
• Hidden text or links
• Pages loaded with irrelevant words
• Link farming
• Cloaking & false redirects
• Page not matching Google description
• Doorway pages
• Tiny text that only spiders can detect
• Stuffing alt text tags with unrelated keywords
So – can pages that employ spamming be recognized right away and pushed out? A recent U.S. patent filing outlines a possible remedy for identifying spam and quickly reporting it. It suggests a crowdsourcing type of approach by incorporating the feedback of everyday search engine users. The thinking is that a large group of users can help address the issue of spamming more effectively than just a department within an organization or single researcher. Search engines could add a feedback button next to every page in the results and users could report problems as they arise during their search.
Read the actual U.S. patent application, filed in December, 2009 and published in April, 2010.
In their abstract System and Method for Spam Identification, filers Brett Brewer and Eric Watson propose a system in which searchers interact with a “user interface spam feedback mechanism for allowing a user to indicate that a given result is spam.” This personalized component may additionally be combined with an automated mechanism to strongly support “the likelihood that a given result is spam.”
Currently, Google has a Give Us Feedback link at the bottom of the SERPs, but there’s a long trail of clicks and a webmaster tools login before you get anywhere that makes a difference. There is much room for improvement.
The possible automated spam testing that would merge with the crowdsourced feedback may include the following mechanisms (keep in mind that the outcome is based on the interaction of both components):
Popularity Analysis: Using toolbars or other measurement devices, traffic to a particular page will be gauged; the more popular the page, the less likely it’s spam.
Characteristic Analysis: The features of pages that show up in the SERPs will be analyzed to see if they include black hat techniques and/or whether they come from known spammer IP addresses.
PageRank Analysis: The number of backlinks determine the quality of a page; thus, a lower page rank might have a correlation to that page being spam.
Monetization Analysis: Certain highly commercial, expensive sponsored keywords might be associated with spam.
 While the crowdsourcing system of feedback is a great idea in theory, it’s likely to be abused. Searchers could randomly or purposefully mark pages as spam when they’re not (and vice versa) – or give no feedback at all. There are many possible permutations of unscrupulous handling of this function, so it certainly isn’t foolproof. However, with the addition of a universal Brewer/Watson-type automated system, there may be a streamlined way to identify and eradicate annoying spam in all the search engines. Wouldn’t that be nice?
Tags: identify website spamming, website spam
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