In a previous post Keeping Tabs on Your Market I told you about how you can use Google Alerts to keep track of what those in your industry, competitors or even Bloggers are up to.

It’s a simple concept really. You set up alerts for your main keyword phrases and new posts, sites and pages that include those terms are sent to you in a nifty little e-mail for you to check out. Another neato way to use these alerts is to track new links to your site(s). The alert e-mails then deliver to you the golden opportunity to network and build relationships with folks who have linked to your site.

All you have to do is setup an alert; I use Google and you can read more at the link above (or below). I set up alerts for all my sites for new inbound links. So for this site, as an example, I setup a Google alert to look for “link:http://www.theistudio.com/”. When a new incoming link is indexed by Google, I get an e-mail with a link to the site linking to mine.

When I’ve been notified of a site that found value in my stuff and has linked to me, I always stop by the site and thank them. If it is a Blog post, I’ll contribute to the conversation and again thank them for their support. This little effort on your part can be the beginning of some great partnerships!

Search engines put allot of relevancy on one-way inbound links — sometimes too much so without enough discrimination. But for the time being that’s the way things work and if another site owner “out there” gives you that golden link that search engines rely on to rank you higher, it is well worth your time to thank them!

You will find, as have I, that you’ll meet allot of nice folks, establish new relationships and create networking opportunities that might otherwise not have come your way!

At your service,
Judith

13 years and counting and still on a daily basis I am faced with explaining the truth about free search engine rankings. And every time I do, the other side is clearly in shock and awe over this reality of what is required, the time and effort needed and the challenge to be embraced.

You’ve heard that phrase “there’s no such thing as a free lunch?” Boy, does that apply to search engines! Yes, the “free” listings don’t cost you anything like PPC (Pay Per Click) advertising does. But don’t kid yourself, there will be costs if you are serious about being listed on the top page ahead of the tens of thousands or hundred of thousands of other sites fighting for the same rankings.

Before we continue; keep the following in mind. If hundreds of thousands of sites all want to pull on the top page for the very same terms you do, and if just being on the top page is not good enough, know all your competitors also want to be in the top five or top three for those terms, it is clear that not everyone can attain those positions. There are only five positions in the top five — that means only five sites can make the cut. Each site probably desires those positions as much as their competitors — but desire aside, what makes the difference? Choices and action!

There are many great resources online that guide site owners on the reality of what is required to attain top page rankings in the free SERPs (Search Engine Results Pages) on sites such as Google, MSN Live and Yahoo.   Do a search here on my site and find all the articles and posts I have on the topic — more than enough for you to know what you need to do.  Unfortunately, many ignore this reality to assume that they can tweak this, or do that, not spend any time or money and the rankings will happen just because they want them to.

Free rankings on the top page, top 10, top 5, top 3 are very difficult to attain. You have to take a serious look at the situation and consider “what makes my site so much better than the multitude of competitors for the same term that I warrant being above all the rest?” If you don’t have an realistic answer to that question, you don’t deserve top rankings.

Top rankings cannot be demanded — they have to be earned! To think that you can state, “I want to be top 5 –  make it so” without realizing that as a site owner there are things you have to do and consider, consistently and for the long haul, to put it nicely, is wishful thinking at best.

Each search site, such as Google, Yahoo and MSN all have their own proprietary algorithm that takes many factors into consideration when determining how to rank a site.  Albeit none are perfect, these algorithms are constantly evolving and changing all to offer the searcher the most relevant results based on a the search criteria used. That’s your mission; to be the most relevant quality site for the terms you want to rank for.

Remember Web sites and search engines are just computers talking to computers. The algorithm only has the content of your site to go on and the ability to know your link status throughout the network from quality “authority” sites. Even still, as complicated as these algorithms are — to get good rankings over the long haul is pretty black and white. Keep these 3 little tips in mind:

1. ADD VALUABLE CONTENT: You must continually grow your site with relevant useful information of value to your site visitors that also is worth linking to. Link exchanges and link farms are pretty much ignored when done between sites that have no commonality or synergy. Search engines know that anyone can exchange links — that doesn’t indicate quality or value. You want to encourage one-way links into your site — that is a vote of confidence that you have a good site and information.  Blogging, articles and a prudent use of social media tools can help you accomplish this task.
2. LESS IS MORE: You simply cannot cover all your keyword phrases on your top page or on any one page within your site (or in some cases with one site) for that matter and expect to pull on the top page. The more you are about; the less you are about any one thing. Search engines will list the most relevant site related to the term searched for. You need to have detailed concentrated pages about individual topics to accomplish this. You have to be ûber-niche!
3. LONGEVITY: Sites that have been online longer and updated more often will pull higher than those just launched or rarely updated. So use the test of time to build and grow your site to use this interactive technology for all it’s worth!

With the free SERPs you can’t “buy” your way into the top positions. Unless you take the above issues into consideration and have a long-term plan, you will most likely never enjoy top rankings.

So what is a Web site owner to do? Work hard at continually making your site the best it can be within its competitive market for your target customer.  Add articles, white papers, a Blog, directory, forums — the more the better! Strive to be the one-stop-shop for your target market and take the time to get out there and network and participate!

By having this approach, you not only make your site visitors happy but you give the search engines exactly what they need to rank you accordingly.

At your service,
Judith