SEO - Search Engine Optimization
Top 10 Most Influential Blog Posts for 2009
While 2009 was a tumultuous year for many, I look back at 2009 as a year of considerable success and growth. Even though last year had its own significant challenges and losses, they stood only to accentuate the high points and achievements.
I spent less time blogging in 2009, continuing a trend from the year before. I cut RSS subscriptions, funneling information through social media channels instead. Professional commitments, additional responsibilities, and other interests took up more of my time. But as the year moved on, professional curiosity moved back into the blogosphere and blogging in general.
A Beginner’s Guide to Personal Brand Management in Search
A set of recommendations for ranking for your name in search engine results.
As recent as a year or two ago, Google would list a map of “Edmond, Oklahoma” when you searched for “Derek Edmond“. It was annoying but not a big deal in the grand scheme of things.
Even before Google finally realized my name should not be associated with “oil dereks in the Oklahoma area“, I was working on making sure the rest of the search results showed more “professional” information.
Is Twitter Making You a Lazy Blogger?
Apparently, I was a week behind with feeds in my RSS reader but did manage to read Lyndon Antcliff’s post on why he won’t tweet Rand Fishkin. If you’re suffering from writers block yet spending too much time on Twitter, perhaps you should read it as well.
Updating Search Engine Friendly Links with WordPress
Last week, Melanie Phung pointed me to an interesting post (via Twitter) by Robert Rolfe on how SEO’s are giving the wrong advice when creating search engine friendly links with WordPress.
I’ve historically recommended using a custom permalink structure which includes only the /%postname%/ element. This eliminates the date-based folder hierarchy while still enabling the creation of a keyword-friendly web address.
Experimenting with Google Friend Connect
I’ve started paying attention to Google’s initiatives with the Social Web, particularly Google Friend Connect and the development of Google profile-related initiatives. Here’s a video that explains Friend Connect:
Social Networking and Google
7 Simple Ways to Customize a WordPress Blog for SEO
WordPress is a fantastic resource for the small businesses needing easy-to-use, free software for running a blog or small website. Most would agree that “out-of-the-box”, WordPress is easy to install, configure and design to fit one’s business needs.
Business owners should note that the WordPress default configuration does lack certain best practices of basic SEO.
In this post I’ve outlined seven challenges all website owners face with search engine optimization. For each one, I’ll outline how WordPress users can overcome these challenges with WordPress plugins, administrative settings and some basic customization.
The Time May Be Running Out on Your SEO Strategy
The one competitive SEO advantage small business owners still have is speed.
The small business owner should take heed of Weip.net’s recent post, The Day All Large Companies “Got It”. There are distinct advantages that larger companies have only begun to realize when it pertains to a search engine optimization strategy.
Just like the retail giants Wal-Mart, Blockbuster or the Home Depot moved into a community and force small storefronts to closed their doors, the same may happen to the keyword strategies the online business holds, when big business makes online marketing (not just SEO) a priority.
9 Free Resources for Learning Search Engine Optimization
There’s no shortage of resources for learning about SEO. From books to blogs to conferences to articles, the list is endless. The challenge for business owners new to SEO is where to go and what to read first.
Before Your SEO Strategy: 6 Tutorials You Want to Read
Do you own a small business? Are you interested in SEO and want to use online channels to drive sales and revenue for your business?
While many business owners want search engine traffic they don’t understand the fundamentals that enable websites to “work” online.
The danger in that the lack of knowledge is that it can lead to a very uninformed decision when selecting SEO services or working on an SEO strategy.
Here is a list resources small business owners interested in search engine marketing should read first, before engaging in an SEO strategy or hiring an SEO consultant. I would bet the bulk of this material could be read and worked through in less than a week’s time.
5 Ways Companies Half-Ass Their SEO Efforts
Why it matters and how to prevent the same mistakes…
A good search engine optimization strategy requires a difficult mix of analytical prowess, creativity, and a detail-oriented mindset. While not all of us are able to decipher algorithmic formulas or draft the most powerful piece of linkbait; we can improve in almost every aspect of SEO by maintaining strong attention to detail and a commitment to getting things done right.
This post talks through 5 potential ways companies fail to fully develop a strategic SEO initiative and why it can lead to ineffective or even disastrous results.
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