May 5, 2009 Posted by Judith

Pretend Search Engines Don’t Exist?

One of my favorite Bloggers has an interesting post using this premise to make the point. Search engines should not be the end-all, be-all. What I like about this post is it makes readers think outside the rut of obsessing over top 10 and above the fold rankings that many times are impossible to obtain for very competitive terms. There — I said it! Impossible? Yep! If the top 10 sites are... read more

Apr 21, 2009 Posted by Judith

Your Business in 155 Characters?

One would think that most folks would easily be able to describe their business in 155 characters or less. Not the case. When working on setting up new sites, I give clients a bit of “homework” to get them thinking. One of these exercises includes describing their business in 155 characters or less. 50% of those I work with assume I mean 155 words and send an unreadable paragraph my way... read more

Apr 16, 2009 Posted by Judith

Reality of Reciprocal Linking

Each day I receive e-mail through all my various sites from other site owners or link marketing “representatives” offering to exchange links. I also receive e-mails from clients asking my opinion on the very same type of requests. Most approach me in such a manner that I do not even consider their request — delete. They don’t include their name while using a throw-away gmail... read more

Apr 9, 2009 Posted by Judith

Octo-search Growing Like Gangbusters!

Trying to pull relevantly for one word keywords is next to impossible. Especially for new sites. That has always been the case except for back in the day when there weren’t that many sites — or that many searchers for that matter. A recent report that was touting Google’s dominance of 72% of search traffic for March, 09 had the usual Google gains and other search engines lose scenario.... read more

Mar 19, 2009 Posted by Judith

Become an All-You-Can-Eat Buffet for Search Engines

Everyone wants top 10 rankings as though just because they wished it that should make it so. Wishing has nothing to do with rankings. Unless you have a genie in a bottle, we all know it simply just doesn’t work that way. How about I get you thinking differently about this issue? Don’t Chase Search Engines — Let Them Chase You! How is that possible? Become a Search Engine... read more

Mar 9, 2009 Posted by Judith

Poor Rankings? Think About This…

Last week I covered the reality of how Search Engines work with my updated posted on the Ten Commandments of Search Engines. This post has been “out there” for over a decade and I make a point of updating it annually. Funny, though… not so much has changed over this time period. Quality, unique, fresh content will always rule the day. But what if you haven’t understood ranking... read more

Mar 5, 2009 Posted by Judith

Ten Commandments of Search Engines

Many site owners are not aware of the reality of what will be necessary to ensure their target market finds them when searched for and a detailed explanation of the process and what to expect – as well as what not to expect. Unfortunately, many times the spam of easy listings and top 10 positions drowns out the truth of what is required to gain and maintain relevant rankings. In order to have... read more

Feb 26, 2009 Posted by Judith

Optimize Schmoptimize!

“In order that all men may be taught to speak truth, it is necessary that all likewise should learn to hear it.” - Samuel Johnson (1709-1784) English Author, Lexicographer With all the talk in regard to SEO (Search Engine Optimization) one could come to the assumption that all you have to do is optimize your pages and Shazam! your site is in the Top 10 and the orders/contacts/conversions will... read more

Feb 18, 2009 Posted by Judith

Get On Search Engines by Friday?

We all know about the “sandbox” or waiting period new sites have to deal with to get indexed in the top search engines. Time in the sandbox is debatable and can run anywhere from 3 to 9 months. I look at the sandbox time as the 3 months for the site owner to get their sea legs, workout any kinks, add new content while allowing time to participate in forums and social media to begin exposing... read more

Feb 16, 2009 Posted by Judith

Feed the Directories!

Here is a sampling of some of the feed directories that you can list your site’s feed on (if apropos) and hopefully get more exposure for your Blog/Site. Feeds4All.com Free-RSS ... read more

Feb 9, 2009 Posted by Judith

Google Database Dance

Many folks do not realize that Google has a bunch-o-databases that display variances in search results. What results you see depend on which data center the results are drawing from at that moment in time. And there are other variables such as having a Google account and being signed in or not that can determine what results get served up to you. For example, my sister who lives across the lake from me... read more

Feb 4, 2009 Posted by Judith

Everything You Wanted to Know About Social Media but Were Afraid to Ask

I’m talking up the importance of social media use, marketing and networking all day long. When new clients contact me about a Web site, social media comes up. When current clients call asking about updating, upgrading or what their next step should be with their two, three, four or 10 year old sites — yep, social media! Technology can be very frustrating for those who do not do this every... read more