Protecting & Improving Search Ranking in 2015

Steve Wiideman, Search Strategistwww.seosteve.com

SEO 1011. Relevancy

Keyword-Themed Content Usefulness of Content

2. Popularity Mentions, Links, & Social Signals

3. User Behavior Similar to Real User Monitoring (RUM) Search, Click, and Return Behavior

“Dangerous SEO” involves manipulating search engine ranking signals.

Relevancy + Popularity + User Choice= Higher Ranking

SEO 101

Which Search Engines Matter?

SEO 101

Ref: http://www.isoosi.com/blog/is-googles-market-share-data-accurate.html

Your Search Department

SEO Strategy& Audits

Audits to Run

You or your SEO consultancy should run the following audits:

Obstacle Analysis Report (OAR) Competitor Analysis Report (CAR) Link Analysis Report (LAR) Keyword Discovery Report (KDR)

On-Page Audits1. Check for duplicate content2. Add long-tail semantic keywords to web copy3. Run surveys to improve title and meta data4. Differentiate “intent” and “interest” copy5. Make navigating easy for search engines & users6. Encourage sharing and engagement7. Improve the user experience (think load time)8. Make mobile a priority in 2015

On-Page SEO

Strategy Focal Points

You or your SEO consultancy should create a plan for each of the following:

How to Handle Mobile Optimization Video & Social Media Campaigns Link & Ego “Bait” Strategies Collegic & Government Strategy Content Marketing Calendar

The Effect of Design & Usability on Ranking

Real User Monitoring (RUM-ish)

Most users click this result

Users who click don’t return

Returning users end here

What Effects User Behavior?

Avoid Over-Optimizing

Bad for UsersBad for Search Engines

What’s the Industry “Norm” for Links and Social Media Activity?

Protecting Your Search Engine Rankings

Which Updates Matter?

Panda – Low Quality Content Penguin – Spam Links Hummingbird – Matching User Intent

Google Updates

Google Panda

Panda Updates – Began in February 2011

Removing Duplicate and Low Quality ContentReduced Ranking on Similar Content Pages

Goodbye PR & Article Distribution Goodbye Blog & Ping Techniques

Google Penguin 1.0

Penguin Update - April 24, 2012

Too Many Links with Explicit Anchor TextWebpages without Authoritative Links to Them

Goodbye Web 2.0 “Micro-Sites” Goodbye Profile Links

Goodbye Web Directories

Google Penguin 2.0Penguin Update – May 22, 2013

Advertorials and banner ads without a rel=“nofollow” attribute, unnatural link networks,

hacked domains, and a high allocation of non-authoritative links.

PR is the New SEO

Free Tools SEO’s Use

1. Google Analytics2. Google & Bing Webmaster Tools

a) Crawl Errorsb) Linking Websites (Google Penguin)c) Parameter Handling

3. WebsiteTest.org4. MobilePhoneEmulator.com5. Google Structured Data Testing Tool6. Google PageSpeed Insights Tool7. Siteliner.com (Duplicate Content – Panda)

Links, Links, Links

7 Powerful Link Building Strategies

1. Be Found Where Competitors Are2. Joint Content Contribution3. Advanced Tutorials & How-to’s4. Conduct Research & Discuss the Results5. Establish Yourself as an Authority (Author Rank)6. Create a Free Tool, Product, Plugin or Extension7. Recognition & Interviews

Off-Page Link Building

Link Building vs. Link BaitingWhat is the difference between link building and

link baiting, and which one is better?

4 Powerful Link Baiting Strategies

1. Frequently Updated Survey Results2. Be a Source for Industry Data3. Provide Free Training & Tutorials4. Answer Commonly Asked Questions

Off-Page Link Building

Be THE Source for Industry News

Authoritative Content

• SearchEngineJournal.com (150,811 root, 326,108 total)• WSJ.com (1,231,513 root, 1,782,454 total)• PizzaMarketplace.com (76,405 root, 80,651 total)• ModernWoodworking.com (400 root, 573 total)

Anyone can become an authority on what they specialize in or what people they know specialize in.

2015 Link-Building StrategyPre-2015 Linking Building – Fuggedaboutit

Research hot topics, resources, and authors Engage for opinion, quotes, survey, poll & feedback Publish WITHOUT mentioning your service Perform outreach to authors of content in your vertical

• Try this Google operator: site:*.edu “your topic here”• Set the date to the last 30 days

Have your content used as “Additional Reading” Perform outreach to those mentioned or featured

Social Media’s Impact on SEO

Social Media SignalsCorrelation Authoritative Mentions Authoritative Followers / Subscribers Authoritative Shares and Recommendations

Causation Brand Prominence Sharing & Engagement (referral traffic) Natural/Organic Linking Behavior

Use in place of authoritative:

Influencers, Thought Leaders, Celebrities

Wiideman has been working with Search Engine Optimization Since 2003 and authored several eBooks on the topic while working with Fortune 100 & 500 organizations.

He has been featured in Entrepreneur Magazine, Response Magazine, National Journal, Visibility Magazine and many industry blogs, including the Marketing Sherpa Blog.

In 2015, Wiideman is consulting for well-known brands and working on his latest version of “SEO in a Day”, which will likely be published after the summer of 2015.

@seosteve

Steve Wiidemanwww.SEOSteve.com Facebook.com/stevewiidemanP. (562) 732-4417E. steve@seosteve.com

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