Week of 2008-05-02 Hi Everyone, Huge issue this week so I'll leave you to your reading. Have a great week!
Featuring: Jennifer Laycock, Stoney deGeyter, Diane Aull, Debra Mastaler, Paul Jahn, Manoj Jasra, Liana Evans, David Wallace, Sage Lewis and Mack Collier. Targeting Conversions and Traffic with Long Tail Writingby Jennifer LaycockAs personalized search and universal search continue shaking up an industry that used to be dominated by "top ten results," more and more small businesses are learning the value of focusing on the keyword long tail. While there's no doubting the value of bringing in highly targeted traffic, many companies still don't quite get how to target the long tail in their copy. They also don't know that long tail friendly copy is also user friendly copy. Site Clinic: Content Is Key To Attracting Customersby Jackie BakerToday we begin the first installment of a weekly site clinic column, where small businesses are invited to submit their websites for review. Can't beat a little free advice, right? I'll be looking at the design, copy, usability, SEO, marketing,... How Poor Product Categorization Creates Duplicate Content and Frustrates Your Shoppersby Stoney deGeyterProduct categorization can play a significant role in how both search engines and users are able to access your products. There are two important things to consider when determining how to categorize your products. 1) Is each product assigned to the most appropriate category or categories? and 2) is multiple categorization creating duplicate content? The first issue frustrates your users and the second the search engines. Twittering Our Way Toward Truth on the Social Webby Karri FlatlaI admit, I've been relatively slow to catch on to Twitter. At first it just seemed like a lot of background noise with no real purpose. Silly almost. Like, um, Facebook. Except with Twitter the discussion becomes more relevant as... How to Simply Create Your Own Mobile Websiteby Ross DunnMobile web browsing is gaining popularity and acceptance thanks to the extensive proliferation of iPhones and other mobile appliances with surf-friendly interfaces. As a result it is becoming more and more important to offer a mobile-friendly alternative to your current... Ask.com Search Engine - A Brief Historyby Scott BureshAs of this writing, there are five top Internet search engines: Google, Yahoo!, MSN, AOL, and Ask.com, and while Google and Yahoo! get a lot of the press (particularly lately), the Ask.com search engine is a rather interesting engine that deserves a closer look. This article will cover some of the highlights in its 12-year history, from its start as Ask Jeeves to its innovations, as well as the most recent developments behind the scenes. So How DO You Pitch a Blogger?by Mack CollierOne of the highlights for me, as a blogger, during last week's Small Business Marketing Unleashed conference in Houston, came when Jennifer Laycock instructed the attendees on the proper way to 'pitch' a blogger. As a blogger that has received hundreds if not thousands of horrible pitches over the last 3 years, it was music to my ears! Theories in Duplicate Content Penaltiesby Stoney deGeyterThere are two kinds of duplicate content: content that is duplicated on multiple websites and content that is duplicated on multiple pages of a single site. I believe the search engines treat each differently and, of course, there may be different standards applied to duplicate content within each of these two main differentiations, depending on the cause and instance. SEM Bootcamp: Three Steps to Creating New Contentby Jennifer LaycockWith all the talk about blogging and social media lately, you'd think there was nothing left to do in the world of search engine optimization. I'm guilty of tunnel vision myself. After all, social media is far more fun to talk about than title tags, keyword selection and canonical issues. That said, sometimes the best way to give your site a boost is to go back to basics. Whether it's a refresher or your first shot at optimizing your site, here's a trip down content revitalization lane. What We Can Learn About Link Building from the TV Show Friendsby Scott AllenRecently, I had an epiphany, and realized that there is a lot you can learn about link building from the TV show Friends. I'm sure you're asking, "What exactly does a TV show have to do with search engine marketing?"... Win a Free Pass to PPC Summitby Jennifer LaycockIf you've been looking for a way to improve your paid search campaigns, it might not be a bad idea to check out the upcoming PPC Summit events in San Francisco and Los Angeles. In fact, if you're willing to submit your favorite SEO tip by May 8th, you'll have a shot at winning a free pass to one of the shows. How to Use Hx Tags To Boost Page Performanceby Stoney deGeyterThe value of the Hx tag is much the same as the value of your main points in an outline for a book or paper. Your outline shows your main topics and sub-topics. These are often then used as section headings in your final draft. Dull, Boring And Cheap Means No Links For Youby Debra MastalerHave you tried to hire an SEO professional or a link builder and been turned down repeatedly? Is your site not performing to your expectations? Do you like the color beige? If you answered yes to any of these questions read on.... When you monitor the blogosphere, what do you see?by Mack CollierIf you've read my posts here or were able to hear me speak at Small Business Marketing Unleashed in Houston, you know what a believer I am in businesses monitoring the blogosphere. It's a must for businesses to know what bloggers are saying about them, because then they can respond. But how do you know the correct way to respond? It depends on what you find. Who's Robert Clough? Hint: He's Not a Cartoon Dogby Jennifer LaycockIf you're new around here, you've probably never heard of Robert Clough. If you've been around here for years, you've probably decided Robert Clough is my imaginary friend...someone I made up to pin the blame on when things go south. The truth is he's a real person. The folks who attended SBM Unleashed last week know this and thanks to Anita Campbell, the whole world now knows it. Selling a Product or Are you Selling Yourself?by Stoney deGeyterThere are two important questions that every business needs to be able to answer: What's in it for me? and Why should I buy from you? The first questions, when answered correctly, helps sell your product or service, but it... How 3 Lines of Code Can Improve Your Rankingsby Scott AllenMany website owners have a small technical issue with their site(s) that they don't even realize, and when left uncorrected, can severely hurt search engine rankings.... Small Business Marketing Unleashed, We Miss Youby Jennifer LaycockThe first ever Small Business Marketing Unleashed conference has come and gone and I've had a full week to unwind and decompress. When we first announced our conference last fall, I had more than one person drop me an email asking if I knew what I was getting us into. I didn't, but I'm glad. If I had, we never would have done it. For those who joined us in Houston, thank you! It was a true pleasure getting to know you last week. For those who didn't make it, read on for a recap of the show. Focus on Ranking Improvement, Not Dominationby Jennifer LaycockLast week at the Small Business Marketing Unleashed conference, small business owners (and a handful of marketers) came from around the world (literally) to learn more about marketing themselves online. We decided to open the show with a tag-team panel approach aimed at helping attendees go into the show sessions with the right perspective. Search engine marketing, blogging and social media are wonderful; but if you're a small business doing it all yourself, you need to approach things from a unique angle. 5 Tips for Captivating Listsby Manoj JasraPeople seem to really appreciate the simplicity of lists and also have an easier time going throw their content, hence their immense popularity. In fact, I would have to say that 80% of my most popular articles on Sphinn have... Return to the Top of this Page 
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Readers Respond will be back next week.Return to the Top of this Page 
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(If you like our search engine news, you'll love our small business news.) Weekly Wrap of the Hottest Small Business ThreadsChris Logan shares the buzz from our small business forum. Return to the Top of this Page
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