Tree Styled Tabs

Who was the person who decided that tabs have to stay on the top or the bottom of the browser or application you are using?  In Firefox the default spot is the top but it does not have to be.  With the Tree Style Tab extension from Firefox you can add it to your side and also give it a tree like appearance.

Now does that mean it will be green and brown?  No, not exactly.  Think of it much more as a folder tree like you would see your folders in via Windows Explorer.  New tabs are opened from links and attached to the current tab.  If you have tons of tabs open this will help you figure out which tab is associated with which topic you are browsing about.

Some of the features of Tree Style Tab include:

• You can collapse/expand sub trees. It is convenient for too many tabs.
• When you close a tab which has collapsed sub tree, all of tabs in the sub tree will be closed only one action.
• The tree of tabs can be show in at right side.
• Vertical tab bar cab be shown/hidden automatically.

If you have been wanting to find a way to give your tabs a new look and feel or you are looking for a way to better organize the tabs you have open Tree Styled Tab is an addon that can not be overlooked.  It gives you a unique experience just by making one simple change to your browser interface.

SEO for Blogs

While there are many reasons to blog, there are two primary uses that are becoming more widespread with blogging: To game Google Adsense, and to also game the search engines for better rankings.

Since Blogs are known to the search engines as daily snippets of information that are updated on a frequent basis, they get a lot of preference in the search results.

So from this, how do you optimize your blog?

Depending on the service you utilize, there are still some basics that you can apply. The two biggest blogging sites are WordPress and Blogger. If you are looking for an advantage with SEO, you should use Blogger since they are owned by Google, and you’ll be indexed quicker.

Blogs aren’t all that much different than a site. The power of a blog is from the frequency of the posting. If the search engines see a pattern of 3 postings per day, they will be very active on spidering that site. Depending on the topic of the blog, you may be able to boost your blog in the rankings if it’s related to a hot topic on the Internet.

Now, to the actual optimization.

Since blogs are typically a few pages long, you only need to establish a few rules that will be applied sitewide:

• Use an interesting title – Also known as linkbaiting- your title should captivate the user to read more
• Try to use your blog keywords in the title – while it may be hard to always do this, by keeping the title related to the topic, your blog will always be relevant
• Use the H1 tags – All blog editors allow for custom templates, so be sure to stylize your blog title in the H1 tags
• Link to other blogs – Find other related blogs that your readers might find interesting, and ask for a link in return
• Don’t forget about your archives – You may post a topic that isn’t hot at the moment, but comes up later – make sure your readers can find that posting

As stated above, the key to a successful blog is frequent postings. You don’t need to write up an article everytime, two paragraphs and maybe some resource links is what a typical posting should be comprised of.

Paul Bliss

Search Engine Optimization for Google

With the recent Jagger update settling, many people find their sites no longer have the high rankings they had for so long enjoyed prior to the latest Google update.

So, the sites that lost these rankings are scrambling to find some answers as to why their site dropped. While it’s my business to know the intricacies of how this particular update impacted the search algorithm, there are some common ground starting points that if you apply these to all of your sites, you should be able to survive any update intact.

• Proper naming structure
• Name your page titles with your keywords if possible
• Always have a sitemap
• Always include a robots.txt file
• If you must use a re-direct, be sure it’s server side, not with a meta refresh tag
• Don’t use hidden text
• Make sure your keyword phrase is included in your H1 tags
• Don’t optimize for more than 2 keywords per page
• Use text links where possible
• In any product image, be sure to use the alt tag
• Use hyphens, not underscores when you name a page file
• Make sure your site has an error handling page
• Create a Google Sitemap and submit it to them (This is in addition to a typical sitemap)
• Offload all your js and css code
• Don’t forget about meta tags

Be sure to follow these simple guidelines and you won’t need to worry too much anytime Google has an update – your site will not be impacted by any filters that are checking for spamming, hidden text, or anything that resembles cloaking.

Paul Bliss

The SEO Halo Effect

The halo effect is a cognitive bias that occurs when a person’s positive or negative traits seem to “spill over” from one area of their personality to another in others’ perceptions of them. (as defined by Wikipedia)

So, how does this apply in the world of Search Engine Marketing?

It’s no secret that it takes more time to get a top ranking in Google than in MSN and Yahoo. Yahoo and MSN tend to allow newer sites top rankings within weeks, while Google will make a new site wait – this is done to prevent spammers from hogging up the top rankings through massive link campaigns.

So, the SEO halo effect takes place when your site gets it’s first top ranking. It seems that when your site achieves the much sought after #1 ranking for a popular keyword or phrase, to get the next ones are easier.

Case and point:

For my site, SEO for Google, that was the exact phrase I was optimizing for when the site was first launched in January 2005. I spent four months submitting to directories, writing and posting articles every two weeks, and I made sure I posted to my blog at least 5 times a week.

I knew I had to do all of this to overcome the “sandbox” that Google would place the site into. And in April of 2005, the site finally came “out of the box” and the phrase “SEO for Google” had the site somewhere around the 30’s. It took another month’s worth of focused effort to get phrase to the top spot.

Finally! after five months of continual effort, about 1,200 directory submissions, and article postings, all based on the key phrase “SEO for Google”, the efforts paid off.

But, now the challenge was to expand on other phrases that people would enter to find out information on search engine optimization for Google. So, after using Wordtracker, I found nine more phrases to pursue:

• Google SEO
• Google Search Engine Optimization
• Search Engine Optimization for Google
• Google Search Marketing
• SEO Techniques
• SEO and Google
• Google Search Optimization
• Google Search Engine Marketing
• Google SEO Optimization

Now, to put things in perspective, the competition for the phrase “SEO for Google” was not very much when I started – about 5 million results. The new phrases, averaged around 30 million results to compete against. So, would my effort to get these new phrases need to be even more?

No – thanks to the SEO Halo Effect.

Since Google and the other search engines had already recognized the site as being the most relevant to the phrase “SEO for Google”, other similar phrases could take advantage of the relationship to the original phrase. In effect, I could leverage the top ranking for the original phrase to pull the new phrases up through the rankings without having to exhort the same amount of effort.

Today, those nine phrases are within the top 15 in Google and climbing. I continue to get directory submissions for the new phrases, while every tenth listing I will still use the original phrase.

So, take advantage of the trust you have created with the search engines for your top phrases, and be sure to always look for similar keyphrases that can help get you ranked.

Paul Bliss

All Links Matter

Many times when webmaster embark on a link campaign, they obsess on the vaunted Google PageRank that the linking page has.

What a waste of time.

Today’s site with a PageRank of 0 could have a PageRank of 6 tomorrow. I’ve seen this myself on 2 separate sites – as they come out of the gate, they are graced with a PageRank of 6. Now, prior to that, any webmaster who was obsessed with PageRank would never link to that site.

While the above mentioned scenario is probably not very common, the point is that while a site may be ranking low today, unless you know the webmaster personally, you don’t know what other efforts that person is putting in to get that site ranked.

Furthermore, a site may have little or no PageRank but still receive tons of traffic. So, would you pass up a page that was getting 11k visitors a day just because it has a Google PageRank of 0?

Yeah, I didn’t think so.

Another key element in consideration is that every unique link you get from a site counts. Whether it’s from Joe’s Pizza shop, or Pizza hut directly, to the search engine, they still count as two “votes” for your site.

Now, each link would carry different levels of weight in regards to relevancy, but if you can’t get a link from Pizza Hut, you could get about 1,200 links from the various Joe’s Pizza Shops located on the web to make up for it.

There is a current backlash of directory bashing. True, there are many directories that exist for the sole purpose of making money off of Google AdSense, and those directories should be punished accordingly.

But, there are many directory owners who are dedicated to having highly targeted and specific category related listings to provide for their visitors. These directories are a great resource for search engines as they help categorize the Internet – that’s why directories will always be important on the Web.

So, always get a link from any relevant site whenever you can – regardless of Google PageRank or any other factor. Even Google was an unknown when they first appeared on the Internet.

Paul Bliss

Internet Commodities

How valuable is your site?

How many ways have you monetized your site with Google AdWords or some kind of sponsorship via banner ads?

These are the more common uses of Internet Commodities – ways to make money off the good ‘ol net.

But, how many times have you used the value of your product or service in exchange for something else?

There are many like-minded people who may be interested in your product or services and would willing to do a stright up trade for goods and services.

Are you taking advantage of this?

Don’t forget about your site real estate space. While images are pleasant to look at, search engines could care less about them. The engines feast on content and links. While content will convert the user, links will drive the traffic.

Many times people contact me about wanting to purchase a text link and ask about the amount of traffic the site gets. First off, on my site in particular, it has one goal: to sell an eBook.

And, do you think the person who buys an ebook is really going to be interested in whatever you want to offer? My information tells me that there’s a better chance of Elvis coming back on tour.

But, there is high seo value in getting a link from the site.

Why? The site has some number rankings in Google, which in turn means that Google considers the site the most relevant in some topic. In essance, for every #1 ranking the site has, it is an authority on that keyphrase.

By being associated to a top ranking site, any linking site will recieve collateral benefits of being linked from that site.

Another element of swapping goods is to equate value – if someone sells an itme for $49, and my product only sells for $39, but I also have a fee based directory that allows for text links at $10 a piece, you can make an offer to exchange both products for the product.

Point is, the Internet is the greatest way to get your message, product or service known to the world. Why not capitalize on your expertise by getting some great freebies?

Paul Bliss

Earned Links Versus Bought Links

There are many discussions about acquiring links from the Internet. While all links matter, some have much more value than others.

Earned links are thought to have much more viral value, as they are links that people place on their sites linking to yours by their own accord. Often, your site provided some value, whether it was in entertainment, information or an offering of a great product or service.

Depending on where the link is placed, the search engines will place a certain amount of value or “weight” on the link found on the site. While this same technique can be falsely accomplished, over time, these earned links will continue to accumulate, with little effort on the web owner.

Bought links offer up a way for your site to get some “web cred” almost immediately. One of the most expensive ways to get this is to purchase a “channel” sponsorship on the website, HowStuffWorks.org. That site is highly ranked by Google, so getting your link placed on that site will not only enhance your site in the search engine’s eys, but also from a traffic standpoint, you should expect a boost from that advertisement.

There are also text link brokers who offer up sites that allow you to rent some text link time to get your site a Google PageRank Boost. The problem with most of these sites is that it’s a monthly service, not permanent. If you are going to invest your time in paid for links, the best resource are fee based directories. After that, if you can find sites that offer permanent links, you should grab as many of those as you can.

Remember, all links count as a vote to your site, and every link you get is only going to help.

Paul Bliss

Links are the Gold of the Internet

It is said that in the internet marketing world, content is king. While there is no doubt that strong copy and valuable information is what will ultimately determine whether your site will be a profit machine or a money pit.

But, in order to get that buyer ready to part ways with their hard earned cash they must find your site.

There are traditional methods that include text link advertising, banner ads, “sponsorships”, and directory listings. While that is only the tip of the iceberg of the potential internet methods available, they are all meant to do one thing:

Send a reader to your site.

Now, the world’s current number one search engine, Google, has a system in place that favors these links. To see this in action, go to google.com and enter the following word: miserable failure

For those not inclined to test it yourself, the number one search result is for the biography page of the current President of the United State, George W. Bush.

Obvioulsy, the White House has not engaged in a SEM campaign to target that phrase to lead to that page. But what it does clearly demonstrate is how Google works.

It’s all about links.

Simply put, there are more links of the known Internet that have the word “miserable failure” as the clickable text that point to that page. Don’t get the notion that SEO/SEM is as simple as that, but in a case where there is a phrase that no one wants to rank on, it’s very easy to manipulate the rankings of Google.

Keeping that demonstration in mind, the goal of every webmaster should be to get text links that point to their site with whatever keyphrase they are actively pursuing.

While it will take more than just “out-linking” your online competition, it is a decided advantage to get your site as many links as possible – and take your money to the bank.

Paul Bliss

Blogging for SEO

It’s no secret that blogs are great for helping to boost your seo rankings. You can use a blog to get a new site ranked quickly and ahead of your main site if you are dedicated to posting on a frequent basis.

While the main goal of your blog may be to express your thoughts, talk back to your customers or as a vehicle to promote your product or services, there is another critical element to blogging.

Search Engine Optimization & Marketing.

Because of the frequency of active blogs (daily – or at least 5 times a week) the search engines have put high weight on blogs that are focused and tend to stay on topic.

It’s the freshness of content (in a perfect world) that a search engine is craving and rewarding to the blogs. The ideal situation is that the blog would provide for tiny snippets of information that over time build up to a greater whole.

But the most overloooked element of a blog is that once you’ve established a frequent pattern of posting and you have the Googlebot coming to your site every few days, you can then use that to link to other sites, sub-domains or any deep links that you need to get crawled. While most blog postings may not have direct links to any sites in particular, you could always format your blog with some permanent links on the side.

Another mistake made by the amatuer blogger is that they don’t realize that you can optimize your blog. True, most blogs only have a few areas, namely the “home” page and the “archive” page. But depending on the tool being used to post the blog, there are some places where you can take advantage seo-wise.

The title of your blog should be thought of as a headline – grab the reader’s attention – but also be sure that your blog title is also what gets archived – that way your titles can become search queries as well.

While the main objective of a blog should be to get your message out, don’t forget to take a little time for SEO and you should see your efforts payoff in the search engine results pages.

Paul Bliss

Why Pay for Directory Links?

While some frown on this method entirely, or may not need to partake in this action, there are those of us who do and reap the benefits.

Paid directory links are better for sem purposes (as opposed to text link advertising) – because good fee-based directories place your link in the appropriate category of which the site’s main topic is about.

Why does this matter?

For one moment, let’s take a look at how a search engine spider spends its life. It endlessly crawls the Internet, looking to not only discover new content, but to also find related topics, fresh information and to also somehow apply all of that knowledge together in order to algorithimically produce the most relevent result.

So, as the search spider continues to find your site listed in the same category through-out the web, (for this example we’ll use “Software”) it makes it easier for the spider to categorize your site. This partially explains why you may see some sites that appear in listings that are not 100% on target.

When the search spider repeatedly finds a website within the “Software” category on many directories, and the site in question is about software, it makes the ranking easier to compute for the search engine when delivering results from a user query.

Another factor that is added to the computation is the link weight – basically, of all the links that the search spider found linking to your site, how many of them were any or all of the following:

• Relevant
• Lead the search spider to a topical page
• Are from a “Trusted” or “Authority” site

All of these are great reasons to pay for fee-based directories that take the time to carefully review sites that are listed – take advantage of this great opportunity!

Paul Bliss