A Search Marketing Agency

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17
May 13

Coming Soon: Penguin 2.0

Matt Cutts announced on Monday that there are some pretty big changes in the Google algorithm coming down the pipes, as Cutts calls it: Penguin 2.0. Exact release date is TBA, but it sounds like it will be coming in the summer months.

In the past, algorithm updates have only been revealed when they are significant. This one was announced ahead of time and labeled with a 2.0, not a 1.6,7,etc. – so we can expect that the SERPs will be shifting indefinitely pretty soon. Some brands will likely see improvements in their search performance, while others less fortunate may fall off the radar completely. Continue reading →

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25
Apr 13

Simple .htaccess Tricks for On-Site Optimization

This post goes out to all the site owners/developers out there who are running a site using the Apache server. You want to optimize your site for search results, but the whole task seems rather daunting. We’ll be honest, it can be. But before doing keyword research, building landing pages, and perfecting your internal linking structure, there are some basic on-site modifications you can make first.

This list represents some of the most common on-site mistakes SEOs encounter. Luckily, they are also some of the easiest to repair. All of these changes can be implemented by simply adding a few basic lines of code to the site’s .htaccess file.

How to Edit the .htaccess

Accessing the .htaccess:

Using an FTP client, you can log in to your domain and edit the .htaccess file from there. (My preferred FTP client is Filezilla.) Your FTP login should be available from whatever host you are using (e.g., GoDaddy, Bluehost).
Continue reading →

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18
Apr 13

Connecting with Consumers through Search

Today Derek spoke at IABC’s seminar, The Communicators’ Toolkit, about the ability for brands to use Search as a means of connecting with consumers. The purpose of using keywords on a website isn’t to bait people online; it’s to match your brand’s services and products to the needs of a searcher.

If your website is receiving primarily branded traffic, you are missing out on the opportunity to connect with the larger audience that is unaware of your brand – yet has needs your services or goods can fulfill.

Derek talked about the importance of understanding a buyer persona before diving into keyword research, then making sure a website is able to rank for terms that attract audiences in all stages of what we call the “sales funnel.” To break it down simply, most people start searching with a vague problem in mind. As they perform additional research, they refine their queries to be more specific and often inclusive of a brand name.

Check out the presentation below:

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28
Mar 13

Keyword Research for the Novice

Our job as SEOs is to teach our clients how to be experts in online marketing. We know we have done our job when our clients no longer need us; we like that. (Even though we hate to see them go.) Hence the purpose of this post: to show non-experts how to fake it until they make it with keyword research.

Keyword research is an important concept for SEO, arguably the most important. It ultimately serves as the basis for all online strategies that follow.

But it is a pretty daunting task for some of us non-keyword research experts, including me. For some of us, navigating Excel or drawing takeaways from data are not easy tasks, much less getting into the mind of consumers in search.
Continue reading →

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13
Feb 13

Put content on hold; first fix what’s broken.

SEO in 2013 encapsulates much more than it once did. Rather than dousing a site’s pages in keywords and purchasing thousands of crummy links, brands are now receptive to the idea of doing more than just ranking on Google’s first page. It’s partly due to the updates in search engines’ algorithms, but also due to the fact that we as searchers have raised our expectations for what is acceptable on a website.

John Candy Content can wait

This post, however, acknowledges the significance in fixing a website’s errors in order to make the pages more easily crawled and indexed. There’s undoubtedly value in recording content ideas in your handy sketchbook – but before pursuing those creative sparks, it’s best to pump the breaks and ensure your site is in ship shape. Continue reading →

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6
Feb 13

Robots.txt vs. noindex: What’s the difference and when to use which?

Earlier this week, I discovered that several of our uploaded images were being assigned a unique URL and indexed in Google. While it’s not likely that someone would be performing a site search of evolvedigitallabs.com, it is still alarming to see pages I didn’t know existed floating around the SERPs.

There are a couple ways to prevent search bots from showing a website’s pages in the results. One is adding the URL(s) to the robots.txt file. Another way – the more effective way in many cases – is by using meta tags to instruct robots what you want them to do. This post explains each route and provides some scenarios so you can better understand which way to go. It can be confusing. Continue reading →

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10
Jan 13

Take Control of Bad Google+ Reviews

Written by Kristy Kuntz, the SEO Manager at Evolve. Find her on Twitter!

Are bad Google+ reviews getting you down? We hear ya. Trust us when we say you are not alone. Google+ Local business pages are extremely important for company reputation, and when bad reviews arise, it can be difficult to fix them. But with a little dedication and TLC, it is possible to overcome negative reviews.

Why Does it Matter?

Google+ Local has proven to have quite an impact on both click through rates and online reputation. And unfortunately, this means that when bad reviews accumulate, they need to be addressed. Otherwise they can negatively affect traffic, rankings, and conversions.

Continue reading →

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4
Jan 13

Why most agencies miss the point of Search

In the last few years, many traditional agencies have tried and failed to dip their toes into search marketing. Others have tried to find partner agencies but experienced limited success. Either way, it has left a bad taste in both the agency and their client’s mouth.

Here is a list of common mistakes and a few ideas for the agencies to consider before partnering or investing in search.

Common Mistakes

1. Search is the last piece.

“We will just add it to the website after we are finished.” -Famous last words.

Sorry, but SEO isn’t a shot you inject into your website. Success in the search engines is a collaboration of many parties within your organization and outside of it. It takes a great deal of research and strategy. Optimizing a website for Google extends beyond the technical upgrades to a website. It now includes adding supportive content to the site that answers consumers’ questions and (bonus!) features keywords for which it aims to rank.

Icing on the Search Cake

Continue reading →

Blog / Related Analytics / SEO / Uncategorized — 5 Comments
19
Dec 12

Raven SERP Tracking Gone – What’s An SEO To Do?

Written by Kristy Kuntz, the SEO Manager at Evolve. Find her on Twitter!

Google’s Laying Down the Law!

Google has recently been enforcing some pretty strict terms and conditions in relation to its AdWords API. It has decided to restrict access to many paying subscribers who were deemed unable to pass the test. Long story short, Google has limited the use of its AdWords API access in co-existence with other scraped Google data.

In this recent blog post, Jon Henshaw, the founder of Raven Tools, discusses how this recent change will affect the Raven Toolset, specifically the SERP Tracker tool and SEMRush data.  Starting on January 2nd, this data will be removed entirely. Continue reading →

Blog / SEO / Uncategorized — 2 Comments
29
Nov 12

Multiple Domains: Make it stop.

Lately I’ve been seeing a lot of brands that have multiple domains, particularly local companies. I get it. Well, sort of. These guys figure more separate websites will equal a greater web presence – so they have a different domain for different locations and even services. What they don’t realize is that spreading out across multiple domains actually works against them for several reasons. Continue reading →

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