How about your Search Engine Optimization expert? Do they hold their cards so close to their chest that you have no idea what their next move is?
“Baby Google” Causes a New Industry Called SEO
Only 10 years ago, when Google search was in it’s infancy, a whole new industry started to appear. Search Engine Optimization consultants, or SEO’s, as they are commonly referred to, emerged as a new industry. Over the years there have emerged some excellent SEO practitioners, as well as some less than desirable. Most SEO practitioners continue to do the work of Search Engine Optimization for their clients, but the act of doing SEO is something that can be learned. It is something that can be taught. As the purchaser of these services, I assert that you should have, at minimum, an entry level understanding of what you are buying.
Where Do the Best SEO Practitioners Come From?
Some of the best Calgary Search Engine Optimizers, that I know of, have evolved from website developers into website marketers. It is natural that someone who develops hundreds of websites would be challenged to help their clients get those sites on Google Search Engine Results Pages (SERP’s). I have also witnessed some very driven entrepreneurs create very powerful online brands by doing their own research and implementation. You can effectively get your own website to perform online.
There is no Secret Sauce or Magic Relationship to Page 1
Beware the Search Engine Optimizer that tells you there is a secret formula. A silver bullet that only they can shoot, a special relationship with Google… I met one of these new SEO practitioners recently. My red flags were flying pretty high by the end of our little chat. Unfortunately, the website owner doesn’t typically know enough about this industry to protect themselves from people like this. More and more website owners are tuning in though, and as a result making better decisions when finding trusted advisors.
Enter The Era of a New Industry – and a bunch more confusion
11 years after Google revolutionized the word “search”, a new industry is spinning up. Companies are being driven to find a Social Media Consultant. Enter the era of a new industry, and another confusing purchasing decision for small business owners. Business owners have to decide to learn and do it themselves, hire an employee, or hire a consultant. This industry is, in my humble opinion, even more crazy than that of website development, or search engine optimization. We are seeing people who were Virtual Assistants yesterday touting themselves as an expert in Social Media the next. I’m sorry, but just because you can open a Twitter account or use Facebook does not make you the best advisor for a legitimate business.
We found this at a recent blog posting in Calgary;
I have been helping businesses market themselves for over 10 years, starting off with promotional products and now with Social Media. I understand the value of 140 characters
Anyone Can Tweet – But Does a Tweet in the night get heard?
There is more to Social Media Consulting than just opening accounts and shouting at the World. Having a fundamental understanding of the tools and technologies helps. Having the ability to craft good messages and manage relationships – essential. Having a social media action plan that gives purpose to your chatter online – essential. At the end of the day, if participation in the social aspect of the Internet does not position your business as the experts in your industry, and if it does not allow you to own your online reputation, then what are you getting out of these efforts?
How Many Red Flags can you raise?
If your Social Media Consultant simply brushes your questions off with the assertion that they are the expert, “just leave it to me”, then you should raise a red flag. If your Social Media Consultant does not teach you with the intention that you or your own staff can take ownership of your online “persona”, then you should raise another red flag. If you do not control your social media accounts online, you are at the will of your consultant. Raise another red flag.
Know What You are Buying…
You can learn how to do these things yourself. Indeed you may want to stay focused on your core business. In any case, being educated about these industries will make you a much better purchaser, should you wish to hire a consultant.
Ulistic, a Calgary Internet Consulting firm, combines the power of search with the power of social to turn website havers into website owners. We have developed a website owners training process that will empower you to take ownership of your online marketing. Is it time to get started now?
Cheers –
David
or Is it? Google is now serving personalized search results to everyone…
There have been a number of changes in the way that Google displays search results. These changes are subtle and have been rolled out slowly over the past months. If you care about where your website or information about your business surfaces online, you will want to know this…
Kulick & Horling, both Googlers, declared online that Google now uses browser cookies to trend your search behaviour. By tracking what you search for, and what website links you choose on search engine results pages (SERPS). Google is massaging the results in hopes of giving you what you need. Good accurate search results = happy searcher = return to Google for future search. If you have a Google account, and you are logged into it while you surf, Google is collecting more than just your search behaviour. They are tracking your web surfing history, even after you leave Google. Using this collected data Google can further manipulate the search results that they serve you.
Incidentally, any web developer can use cookies to store information about your surfing behaviour while you visit their website. The data stored in cookies, which are tiny text files that reside on your own computer, can not be read by different domains. So Google can not read cookies from other websites and vice versa other websites can not read Cookies by Google.com.
“Previously, we only offered Personalized Search for signed-in users, and only when they had Web History enabled on their Google Accounts. What we’re doing today is expanding Personalized Search so that we can provide it to signed-out users as well. This addition enables us to customize search results for you based upon 180 days of search activity linked to an anonymous cookie in your browser,” wrote Google’s Bryan Horling, Software Engineer and Matthew Kulick, Product Manager.
Here is a scenario for you, to help you understand what this all means. A website owner checks the position of their site often by entering keywords into Google Search. Google returns a search result and while the website owner is there there, they will often check their competitors websites out. Let’s say that this website owner loves their own website – but never visits it from the Google search result. This behaviour could potentially teach Google that your competitors website is more relevant to you than your own website. Given a similar pattern over a period of time and you could find that your own site is slipping lower and lower on the search result page. How Google interprets the general behaviour gleaned from a large sample of users who search the same keywords is yet to be seen… or perhaps already being seen?
You can clear your web browsers cookies. I won’t get into that here… but if you Google it… you are sure to get the right results… custom tailored to meet your needs based on your previous search behaviour.
Google does have a page that descirbes “Personalized Search” here. They point out the difference between logged in to your Google account and not. – - http://www.google.com/support/accounts/bin/answer.py?answer=54041
Google does allow people to turn off web history from within their Google account. A regular deleting of Cookies from your web browser may be a good habit too.
David West
As Google continues to develop it’s “Local Business Centre” one of the new advents is the introduction of physical labels that include a barcode. These physical labels are being sent to business owners that have already verified ownership of their Local Business listing on Google maps.
The barcode, or QR Code that is on the label allows people with smart phones to simply scan the code with the phones camera. Litterally within a fraction of a second, you receive all of the business details from Google’s Local Business listing including any coupons or offers that the owner has posted.
Reviews are also returned. The good, the bad and the ugly are returned. In fact Google even suggests that there is no better time than the present to leave a review -
“Leave a review right after you leave the business. What’s a better time to write what you think, than when you’ve just visited?”
There are already several QR Code scanning apps on the App Store. I dropped a $1.99 and got one and scanned the code on this page… It works very quickly.
To learn more about being a “Favorite Place on Google” you can visit this page here
Cheers -
David
Would you do business with a person who didn’t tell you their name or hand you a business card when you met them?
Would you consider requesting a proposal from an online service that does not include a phone number, contact form, or address on their website? It is not difficult to find websites on the internet where there is no information about the owners or key stakeholders.
Does your website have your phone number on the home page? How about a page that has information about your company directors? A detailed contact page is important – it certainly would encourage me to give you a call.
The Social aspects of the Social Networking craze that is sweeping the internet has to have an impact on how you write for your marketing website. Earn some trust by providing good information, make a clear call to action, and identify yourself. The days of doing business with corporations are slipping away… people want to do business with people.
If your marketing website is more than a few years old, it will be missing key elements that a modern website should include. It may be time for a website review with an Internet Consultant.
David A. West
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