Pratik Dholakiya says, “National — or even global — SEO was once the revolutionary way to gain visibility on the internet. Now, it has become incredibly expensive and brutally competitive. As a result, small businesses are turning to local SEO to increase their exposure to potential customers online. So, what factors into an awesome local SEO strategy? Truth is, there are many components that come into play. A great place to start is by signing up with Google My Business to create your free business listing on Google. Fill out your profile with as much information as you can to create... [...]

Marcus Miller says, “The UK Intellectual Property Office has announced what they call a “landmark agreement” between Google and Microsoft Bing for “reducing the visibility of infringing content” in the UK search results by June 1, 2017. But Google tells Search Engine Land that they are “changing nothing today as a result of the announcement/code of conduct.” Google already has a Pirate algorithm that is in place to deal with DMCA complaints and other forms of pirated content in the search results. So when we heard this announcement, we asked Google if they are changing this algorithm... [...]

Purna Virji says, “Here’s a question for you: Do you think a brand can influence your behavior outside of purchase preference? Put another way, will seeing the North Face logo make you want to take up hiking in the snow? A few years ago, researchers at Duke University conducted an experiment with 341 students. Their goal? Studying what makes a brand powerful and how we’re influenced by brands. As part of this study, the students were asked to complete what they were told was a visual acuity test. During this test, either an Apple logo or IBM logo flashed on the screen for a second, so... [...]

Pratik Dholakiya says, “National — or even global — SEO was once the revolutionary way to gain visibility on the internet. Now, it has become incredibly expensive and brutally competitive. As a result, small businesses are turning to local SEO to increase their exposure to potential customers online. So, what factors into an awesome local SEO strategy? Truth is, there are many components that come into play. A great place to start is by signing up with Google My Business to create your free business listing on Google. Fill out your profile with as much information as you can to create... [...]

Maryna Samokhina says, “Imagine a scenario: a client asks what they should do to improve their organic rankings. After a diligent tech audit, market analysis, and a conversion funnel review, you have to deliver some tough recommendations: “You have to redesign your site architecture,” or “You have to migrate your site altogether,” or even “You have to rethink your business model, because currently you are not providing any significant value.” This can happen when SEO is only seriously considered after the site and business are up and running. As a marketing grad, I can tell you... [...]

Casie Gillette says, “If you’ve been working with one client or one site for a long time, you know it can be challenging to keep things fresh, both from an idea perspective and also an interest perspective. After all, it’s no secret that one of the common reasons people love this industry is the constant change. That being said, while change keeps us on our toes, there’s also an element of consistency I love. Yes, the search results change and strategies evolve, but at the end of the day, search really comes down to creating something that’s accessible, useful and important to your... [...]

MOz team says, “We all know how effective link building efforts can be, but it can be an intimidating, frustrating process — and sometimes even a chore. In today’s Whiteboard Friday, Rand builds out a framework you can start using today to streamline and simplify the link building process for you, your teammates, and yes, even your interns”. How to Prioritize Your Link Building Efforts & Opportunities MOZ  [...]

Barry Schwartz says, “Google has added a new video to their do you need an SEO help document page. The 11-plus-minute video walks people through the process of hiring an SEO consultant or firm. It tells them what to look for, what questions to ask, what some of the red flags are and more. Maile Ohye from Google is the face of the video, and she does a very good job clearly documenting the main points one should look at during this process. She outlines the SEO hiring process in these three steps: Conduct a two-way interview with your potential SEO. Check that they seem genuinely interested... [...]

Nathan sinnott says, “Everyone wants to get a high click-through rate and a good spot in Google’s search algorithm. But, when it is generally accepted in the industry that Google uses approximately 200 ranking factors to rank websites — and some of these are proven, some are controversial and some are purely nerd-based conjecture — it can be hard to know which factors to focus on when it comes to your search engine optimization (SEO). So, what is most important to Google? “It is content,” said Google Search Quality Senior Strategist Andrey Lipattsev. “And,... [...]

Casie Gillette says, “If you’ve been working with one client or one site for a long time, you know it can be challenging to keep things fresh, both from an idea perspective and also an interest perspective. After all, it’s no secret that one of the common reasons people love this industry is the constant change. That being said, while change keeps us on our toes, there’s also an element of consistency I love. Yes, the search results change and strategies evolve, but at the end of the day, search really comes down to creating something that’s accessible, useful and important to your... [...]