Since the expansion of Google’s Knowledge Graph, I’ve been getting tons of questions around different Knowledge Graph results. One of the most frequent questions I get from my clients and business owners is regarding which Knowledge Graph result is best to have: a general brand or local panel. Before going into the answer for this question, here are some examples of what a brand and local Knowledge Graph panel look like. Brand Local The answer to which is preferable is not as simple as you Continue Reading ...
Posts Tagged ‘ SEO: General ’
SEO in 2017: Seizing opportunity, evangelizing success, achieving overarching growth
As we begin 2017, the fusion of the search and content marketing disciplines has become increasingly more evident. A full 89 percent of B2B marketers (PDF) say that they use content marketing, as do 86 percent of B2C marketers, according to the Content Marketing Institute. Additionally, over 70 percent of marketers in both groups plan on producing more content in the new year than they did in 2016. However, content only has real value if it is found and optimized, and if it converts with Continue Reading ...
How to avoid an outbound link penalty from Google
Most of us are aware of link penalties that occur if you have low-quality or spam links pointing to your site. But did you know you can also be penalized by Google for how you link to other websites from your site? Yup, you sure can. It’s called an “unnatural outbound links” penalty, and similar to the inbound link penalty, it can be applied partially or sitewide. Recently, we conducted an audit for a new client, and we flagged the spammy linking that was being done in a particular Continue Reading ...
Search Engine Keywords Selection
Search engines are the vehicles that drive potential customers to your websites. In order for visitors to reach their destination-- your website-- you need to provide them with specific and effective signs that will direct them right to your site. You do this by creating carefully chosen keywords. Think of the right keywords as the Open Sesame! of the Internet. Find the Continue Reading ...
What Google’s experimental content podium means for SEO
Google has been testing a new content platform called “Posts with Google,” and it could have a huge impact on brand searches, for both paid and organic. We all know that Google has had its struggles with trying to develop its own social network; Google Buzz is dead, and Google Plus seems to be on its way out. This new platform seems to have some social elements to it, though it is very different from a social network. On the official site for this platform, Google states the Continue Reading ...
Why Google’s quality updates should be on your algorithmic radar [Part 2]: The connection to low-quality user experience
In part one of this series, I covered a number of important points about Google’s quality updates (aka Phantom). I tried to provide a solid foundation for understanding what Phantom is and how it works, explaining its history, its path since 2015 and how it rolls out. In part two, I’m going to dive deeper by providing examples of “low-quality user engagement” that I’ve seen on sites affected by Phantom. I’ve analyzed and helped many companies that have been impacted by Google’s Continue Reading ...
PPC + SEO = match made in marketing heaven
It has been quite a year for the Search Engine Results Page (SERP). We’ve seen numerous algorithm updates, including a final Penguin update and the introduction of Possum. We also saw major changes to the way ads are displayed on desktop SERPs. Google continues to tweak how online consumers receive content through organic and paid listings. In order to meet the demands of today’s search landscape and connect with more qualified consumers, strategists need to create campaigns that treat Continue Reading ...
Give Google a break: Tackling paid links is harder than you may think
Prior to the recent arrival of Penguin 4.0, it had been nearly two years since Penguin was last updated. It was expected to roll out at the end of 2015, which then became early 2016. By the summer, some in the industry had given up on Google ever releasing Penguin 4.0. But why did it take so long? I’d argue that criticism directed at Google is in many cases unjustified, as people often take too simplistic a view of the task at hand for the search engine. Detecting and dealing with paid Continue Reading ...
Is SEO right for your business?
This may seem strange coming from an SEO guy, but there are many situations where organic search may not be the best option for a given marketing challenge. In fact, there are times when SEO is just simply not a good fit. In this article, I am going to look at a few common scenarios we see at my agency where we have been contacted for SEO and have fed back that we believe that SEO is either not aligned with their requirements or there is some other form of mismatch (speed, budget, etc.). 1. Continue Reading ...
SEO and the CMO: Communication and board room metrics that matter
SEO is now a digital marketing activity used by 94 percent of marketers, and it’s estimated that companies will spend just over $65 billion on SEO in 2016. Yet despite the increasing usage of and growing investment in this digital marketing channel, measuring the ROI of SEO efforts can still present a considerable challenge for marketers. For brands to maximize the impact of SEO, they need to be able to communicate the value of their efforts and show their CMO just how well SEO is Continue Reading ...