Happy New Year to you, search marketing friends! Surely you’re eager to dive head-first into 2014, weighing predictions and forecasts of what’s next in the worlds of SEO and SEM, but we’ve still got an installment or two in our Search Engine Land Year In Review series! So let’s get to it. You’ve seen the roundups of top news, most popular columns and stories, as well as posts that stole the show in our Twitter and Facebook communities. Now, it’s time to turn our sights to Google+. What kind of content did our readers share most on Google’s own social network over the last 12 months? Hmm… Not surprisingly, much of what Google+ users shared across their G+ communities was, yep, Google-related — from Panda to Penguin to Hummingbird, insights from Google’s Head of Webspam, Matt Cutts, a move to total secure searches, and the Big G’s tips for mobile-savvy sites. A few non-Google posts made it into the top 20, including the … [Read more...] about What’s Right, What’s Wrong, What’s Next, & What’s Dead
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What’s Behind It And How To React
There seems to be a fresh interest in link building. Why now? What do the search engines have to say? How should agencies and companies approach link building? Why The New Interest In Link Building? Why are search engine optimizers and agencies more interested in link building again? Because the search engines are getting good at rooting out unscrupulous links, and the internet is getting noisy. Link building never died, but real link building is difficult, time consuming and costly. It involves a lot of dead ends and frustration. Because advanced link building shares much in common with media relations - a proficiency most internet marketing agencies lack - managers and directors became accustomed to seeking shortcuts, working around link building or avoiding it altogether. From mass directory submissions to paid links to content networks to guest blogging networks, the SEO industry has consistently sought out software and services (local and abroad) to automate link building or make … [Read more...] about What’s Behind It And How To React
What’s new with markup & structured data
Structured data makes certain types of web content highly accessible and understandable by search engines and other third-party programs. Because the data on the page is tagged with standardized identifying code, it’s far easier to process and interpret than a regular webpage. For that reason, people refer to this type of data as “Linked Data” (similar to the way that the World Wide Web links billions of documents together). At June’s SMX Advanced, Aaron Bradley did an awesome job in his presentation, “What’s New With Structured Data Markup?,” providing a detailed update of what’s going on in this area. If you’re interested in a really detailed timeline of all the major happenings in the world of structured data markup, you can get access to that here. The overview In the SEO world, the most common form of structured data we speak about is Schema.org. This is because it’s a standard that was developed by and for search … [Read more...] about What’s new with markup & structured data
Facebook News Feed Change: Goodbye, Publishers
Facebook will soon alter the way its 1.65 billion users discover stories in their News Feed. The social network will give preference to updates from friends and family over brands, the company announced. Why Is Facebook Making This Change? In a separate blog post today that tries to define what exactly the news feed is, Facebook emphasized that it’s all about “connecting people with their friends and family.” It seems people are worried about missing out on important updates from their friends amidst the massive number of articles, videos, and memes people are sharing on Facebook. That’s why friends and family updates are going to the top of the news feed. Facebook also has done some research and knows that, after friends and family, people expect their news feed to contain informative and entertaining stories. The network promises it will continue to work on personalization to ensure its feeding users what’s most relevant to them: “Our success is … [Read more...] about Facebook News Feed Change: Goodbye, Publishers
Ask the Experts: What’s Changed After Panda 4.0?
At the end of May, I wrote a round-up post of expert opinions on the latest big Google updates: Panda 4.0 and Payday Loan 2.0. Now that it’s been a month or so, I thought I’d ask another group of experts for their opinion on how the update has continued to be reflected in their clients and their own SEO progress. I asked our experts the following: “Now that Panda 4.0 has been out for about a month, have you seen any long-standing changes to website traffic or SERPs? If so, what is your recommendation for first action steps to make the best out of this Google update?” From Marcus Tober, CTO and Founder of Searchmetrics: Unlike with other recent updates, I didn’t see many big changes after the release of Panda 4.0. A couple of well-known brands that landed on the loser list recovered, like yellowpages.com, which returned to nearly the same visibility it had before. When there are quick recoveries like this, it usually means that Google is still tweaking the … [Read more...] about Ask the Experts: What’s Changed After Panda 4.0?
10 Tools to Tell What’s Hot Today (Right Now Even)!
Are you afraid that you’re missing out on an important event? Concerned that you won’t know what’s being discussed around the water cooler tomorrow? Worried that something is happening in the world right now that you don’t know anything about and that you’re missing out on some very lucrative keyword opportunities? Worry no more! Here is a list of 10 tools that will help you stay in the know—from hot keywords that searchers are using on Google to what’s trending on Twitter or Facebook and what’s going viral on YouTube this very moment. These tools will help you stay informed (and potentially fill you with useful information) day by day and even minute by minute. Never get left in the dark again! Compare two or more keywords to see which has a higher search volume and how searches change over time. This is great for looking at seasonal terms, as well as the best time to start ramping up (or slowing down) your marketing efforts for any … [Read more...] about 10 Tools to Tell What’s Hot Today (Right Now Even)!
Snapchat vs. Instagram Stories: What’s the Difference?
On August 2, 2016, I opened up my Instagram app and thought “Wait, did I accidentally click on Snapchat?” We all saw it coming — Facebook tried to buy Snapchat, as well as released several (unsuccessful) competitors in the past. Now, Facebook-owned photo-sharing app Instagram had added a new feature in its update: Instagram Stories. It’s like, should I post my stories to instagram or snapchat or maybe try to save this hollow shell of a loveless marriage or what? — Mark Hoppus (@markhoppus) August 10, 2016 We live in a time where we have nothing but choices on where to publish our content. Both Instagram and Snapchat now offer the ability to post 10-second videos and photos that disappear in 24 hours. These features are meant to share what’s going on “in the moment.” Here we are, five months later, and both platforms continue competing — adding new options to each of their respective features, one after the other. So is Instagram … [Read more...] about Snapchat vs. Instagram Stories: What’s the Difference?
After Guest Blogging…What’s Left for “Safe” Link Building?
As link building tactics get shot down by the Big G, online marketers are left wondering what’s left. Guest blogging has been devalued, alongside every other known scalable method to build links, including comments, forums, article marketing, and directories. These almost sound like dirty words in today’s marketing environment, but years ago, they were the way to rank. So what now? What can you do to get your site to rank? Everyone is now touting the benefit of Content Marketing as the only safe tactic left. But what happens when EVERYONE starts doing it? Mark Shaeffer from BusinessesGrow coined a term called Content Shock. There’s simply too much content being produced. So is content marketing a sustainable model for every businesses wanting to improve their presence in Google organic? Safe Link Building Strategies Let’s start by changing the paradigm. “Link building” is over, done, kaput. Any of the known methods used to build links are now on … [Read more...] about After Guest Blogging…What’s Left for “Safe” Link Building?
Inbound vs. Outbound Marketing – What’s Best for 2017?
You’ve heard the terms “inbound” and “outbound” marketing, but do you know the difference between the two? To develop an effective marketing strategy for 2017 and beyond, you should have a solid understanding of both. It boils down to what is best for your business. What’s the Difference? Outbound marketing is considered a more “classic form” of marketing. It relies on “in your face” or forced methods of advertising, such as television commercials, printed billboards, and print advertisements. Outbound marketing has been around “forever” and even pre-dates the formation of the United States. The History of Outbound Marketing The first newspaper advertisement to appear in North America was an announcement published in the Boston News-Letter in 1704 seeking a buyer for an Oyster Bay, Long Island estate. Andrew Bradford published the first magazine in North America – “American Magazine” in 1741. He … [Read more...] about Inbound vs. Outbound Marketing – What’s Best for 2017?
What’s so great about digital marketing anyway?
Do you work in digital marketing and do you love it? Are you new to the industry and feeling overwhelmed by it? Either way, all this constant change means people in this industry are always learning and sharing their ideas. In case you hadn’t noticed, the digital world is all around us. For those people still trying to fend off the ‘future’ by disengaging from the digital world, the tide is turning. It’s now getting harder and harder to do everyday things like pay a gas bill, book a holiday or apply for a job without some kind of digital presence. In some parts of the world – like China – you can’t even get a taxi these days unless you are connected to the internet. In the words of Bill Heslop: “You can’t stop progress.” That quote might be lost on anyone who is not Australian, but in the two years since I attended my first ClickZ Live event, the digital landscape has changed phenomenally and there are no signs it’s … [Read more...] about What’s so great about digital marketing anyway?