Manoj Jasra

Manoj Jasra

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So you just started a new job in the "Insert Category Here" industry and are instantly expected to get up to speed so you can begin helping your team with billable work. You've heard that blogs are a great resource to begin your education, however you discover that there are literally a million blogs you could read, so where do you start??

This situation is one that probably many individuals face and I can understand where they are coming from especially since it's quite difficult to believe which bloggers are actually telling the truth or which bloggers' strategies actually work. Below I have listed some ideas to help shortlist the number of blogs in your feed reader:
  • Do some research on the author of the blog by checking out their LinkedIn profile, MySpace Page, FaceBook Group, or other Social Networking profile.
  • Find out how long the Blogger has been in the industry and how long they have been blogging for.
  • Has the blogger spoken at any industry related conferences?
  • Run a site:www.blog.com command to find out how many pages the blog has indexed
  • Use Yahoo Site Explorer to find how many back links the blog has.
  • From the back links above you should be able to determine the authority of the blogger by figuring it out networks/resources the blogger writes for.
  • A couple of simple measurements are looking up the blog's Google PageRank as well its Technorati rank.
  • Feed Subscribers are an excellent way to determine how many other people think of the blog as a useful resource.
  • Use Blog Influence and Text Link Ads' Blog Juice.
  • How many other industry related blogs reference this blog as well as include this blog in their blog roll?
  • Create a quality score of your own by adding a blog to your reader and monitoring number of posts, number of strategic posts, number of breaking news posts and number of re-posts of industry news.
  • Do a keyword search in Google Blog Search and try reading blogs that Google suggests in its "related blogs" section.
  • Find out how many members the blog has in its community at MyBlogLog.
  • Is the blogger providing valuable advice that you can apply to your business or is it just old news and outdated tactics?
Original Post: Which Blogs Should I Read?

Comments (4)

"Has the blogger spoken at any industry related conferences?"

Why? The speakers at the SEO conferences tend to be part of a very small select group.

That has no relevance whatsoever to who is or is not a good blogger.

"Do some research on the author of the blog by checking out their LinkedIn profile, MySpace Page, FaceBook Group, or other Social Networking profile."

I have a profile on LinkedIn. It won't tell you much of anything useful about me.

"Use Yahoo Site Explorer to find how many back links the blog has."

Why? The Technorati search you suggest would be more informative. However,...

"A couple of simple measurements are looking up the blog's Google PageRank as well its Technorati rank."

Google PageRank? Please tell us that was a joke.

"How many other industry related blogs reference this blog as well as include this blog in their blog roll?"

YES.

"Create a quality score of your own by adding a blog to your reader and monitoring number of posts, number of strategic posts, number of breaking news posts and number of re-posts of industry news."

YES.

"Is the blogger providing valuable advice that you can apply to your business or is it just old news and outdated tactics?"

If someone is new to the industry, how can they tell which advice is valuable and which advice is just marketing guff intended to sell more ebooks, subscriptions, or whatever?

Hi Michael,

Thanks for your comments. The point of my post was not take each point separately but rather apply them together. It's difficult for blogs to be transparent therefore each factor cannot stand alone.

For instance, you would never just measure page views to judge site performance would you.

I think the article illustrates an important point for people, in that they should develop a list of criteria for quality they use to judge their resources.

We won't all agree on the same criteria, but you and I agree on the value of evaluating our peers and industry colleagues.

That's exactly right!

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Web Analytics World

Blogger Profile

Manoj Jasra has been in the search marketing industry since 2002 with Enquiro Search Solutions, where his technical background in programming and software made him a key member in the development of several proprietary industry tools.

Since then, his learning in marketing and business strategies as they relate to online has led him to become a resident expert on Search Marketing/Web Analytics.

Manoj also authors the blog, Web Analytics World, which features Manoj's insight on the Search Marketing and Web Analytics Industry.

Enquiro


Enquiro offers a complete solution for your business needs - everything from Organic SEM & SEO to managing your Sponsored SEM strategies (PPC). Enquiro also provides in-house research to help you build stronger Search Engine Marketing relationships through usability resolutions with your target market - leveraging technology to bridge the disconnect between intent and lead.

However, more than anything else, Enquiro knows the value of having a robust analytics solution to track and measure success.

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Manoj Jasra is currently the Director of Technology and Sr. Search Marketing Strategist at Enquiro Search Solutions. He has been in the Search Marketing Industry since 2002, since then, his learning in marketing and business strategies as they relate to online has led him to become an expert in Search Marketing/Web Analytics, providing consultation and implementation strategies for clients. Manoj frequently writes in his blog about the latest in the Web Analytics and SEM Industry.