Is PageRank Asking For It?

Over on the LED-Digest today a post was made about paid links and how the the whole hoopla surrounding them would basically go away if Google just dropped the visible PageRank bar.

Sigh.

The concept of keeping PageRank hidden won't stop people from buying or selling links. They'll just come up with a rating system of their own or determine ad rates based on where a page ranks in the search results. You know, kinda like a lot of smart webmasters are doing now...

Maybe we should just make the serps invisible, that will fix things.

This Link Building Was Pure Genius

First an annoucement and then a link tip so please don't quit reading because you've already heard about the SEMMYS...

Thankfully those of us working in the SEO/SEM industry aren't on strike or we'd have far fewer articles to fill nomination spots for the new SEMMYS.

The SEMMYS are a collection of search marketing blog posts our friend Matt McGee showcased on his blog, Small Business SEM during 2007. There are 15 categories including, SEO, Local Search, Analytics, Rants and of course the most prestigious one (cough) - Link Building.

Yours truly is a judge in the SEO category along with Eric Enge and Andy Beal. We have a ton of articles to read through and adjudicate so I'm going to be busy for a bit.

It's important to keep in mind the articles selected are from Matt's weekly round-up lists, he had quite the collection in 2007. There wasn't a nomination or selection process so in the future it might be a good idea to suck up to Matt when you see him around the conferences.

Which is the other point I want to make about the SEMMYS in addition to announcing them.

This was a stroke of genius on Matt's part IMO, think about it... If you're an up-and-comer in SEO you'll work hard to get on Matt's radar by linking to and writing about him.

In turn (and here is where the genius comes in) Matt is going to get:

• A ton of on topic relevant editoral links which will probably
• Sit in content areas within a blog or site and
• Come from thematically related sites/blogs

Now if you're an old-and-been-arounder like me, and were either nominated, asked to judge or just annouce SEO news, you're going to link to Matt's site which means he's going to get:

• A ton of on topic relevant editoral links which will probably
• Sit in content areas within a blog or site and
• Get a bunch of less effective but still good links embedded in his badges as well as
• Long term branding since we're lazy bloggers and don't take badges down and all this will
• Come from thematically related sites/blogs that have been (mostly)online for more than two years.

Hmmm. Do you think that's the end of it and there's no more links to squeeze of out this? Think again.

There are two hits on Google News for the search term "semmys" and I'm sure more will come when Matt issues a press release. The annoucement for the program has been Sphunn, was added to the SEL daily Search Cap, made Gooruze, SE Roundtable, Cre8asite Forums, SEOBook, Bruce Clay's Blog, Cartoon Barry, and Search Engine Guide, not to mention a ton of other sites.

Pretty impressive list of sites from the SEO community isn't it? And you know what's even more impressive? The contest was officially annouced earlier today (1/14/08), all this attention and all these links --in ONE DAY!

Like I said - smart move. If you're a little-fish-in-a-big-pond, or even an old-fish-in-an-established-watering-hole and want editoral links from authority sites in your niche, this might be a good way to go about attracting them.

Do you have an opportunity like this in your industry?

Sphinn this here if you liked this post. Thanks!

Almost The Best Link Building Blog Of 2007

Thank you, thank you, thank you to everyone who voted for the Link Spiel in the recent Search Engine Journal 2007 Blog Awards contest. Here's the post Loren made announcing the winners:

Wow, the Best Link Building Blog of 2007 category was almost an all out tie, with last year’s winner, Jim Boykin, bringing in the bulk of the votes, but Debra Mastaler’s The Link Spiel, bringing in a higher percentage of top ratings.

Both blogs are at the top of their game and both bloggers are excellent speakers and trusted authorities on link building. Debra’s blog The Link Spiel has grown quite large in the past year and is a must read on my RSS reader. Jim Boykin has been pumping out link building tips and ideas for years now, and his blog has been a must read since day one.

Most of the bloggers in the link building category are people I call friend, some longer than others but friends just the same. From the looks of the results, everyone did well which means lots of people are reading - and hopefully learning from what's being shared. I know I learn and grow from listening to this group every day.

Blogging regularly is hard, time is precious and breaking news isn't exactly an every day occurrence in this niche. I started this blog as a way to improve my writing skills but found I genuinely enjoy sharing what I find and know about link marketing/building. Now, I worry less about my grammar and more about what I share - which is probably how it should be anyway.

The Link Spiel will have a new home soon, Alliance-Link is being redesigned (finally!) and a place has been made for her. She will be, like the packages always say "new and improved" so stay tuned. In the mean time, I'll plug away here and try not to go underground. ;)

So again - thank you. I appreciate the time you took to vote for the Link Spiel and the fact you think highly of her content. So...

Come back, drop a comment and read a little spiel.
You'll learn a bunch, laugh a lot and definitely be made to feel
That what you read is usable and something you can tap
To implement and get more links so you don't rank like crap.

Debra Mastaler

Ok, It's Settled. Link Bait Is A Science. Or Not.

Does anyone else think it's a little odd for a hospital research group to use an 11 year old algorithm to plot a course for staph?

Google tool could search out hospital superbugs

Would that article have gotten as much play had it NOT used the word "Google" in it's title?

Also, last month (Dec '07) this article surfaced in NewScientist magazine

Do our brains work like Google?

It's a recap of a report published by researchers from the University of California/Berkeley on how Google's PageRank algorithm can be used to help study the human brain information retrieval process. (Bill Slawski found the paper for me, thanks!)

The paper was presented at a technology conference (again - interesting) and then picked up by NewScientist magazine. Seems there really is more to PageRank than being fodder for SEO ire.

Now please don't go getting all huffy and accuse me of being a medical killjoy or wanting to hoard PageRank for the SEO community - it just ain't so. I'm all for the spread of green love in the world.

But still... (seriously now) the whole thing seems a little creepy and not because they're talking about staph. Bill pointed out scientists/researchers tend to use popular terms and examples (like the word "google") to reinforce concepts and I get that but - does the scientific community really need to use the word Google in the title of their research papers to get attention?

Cynical me says "seems so". Again - it IS an 11 year old algorithm... and Google is trading at what - a bazillion dollars a share? Are these people really using the best mathematical equations to find medical answers to benefit mankind or one that grabs attention and maybe research dollars?

One thing's for sure - it appears our friends in the medical/scientific community have learned the fine art of link bait. Which means it's really a science - right? Link bait for science. Has a nice ring to it.

If this spread of research love continues I wouldn't be surprised to see PageRank as Time Magazine's Person of the Year.... ;) Hey- add that to the prediction list!

ADDED:

iBrian sphunn a story about the staph post here: http://sphinn.com/story/21569

David from WebProNews blogged about it: http://www.webpronews.com/topnews/2008/01/04/hospitals-could-google-for-superbug-movement

It made Slashdot's science section: http://science.slashdot.org/science/08/01/04/1719213.shtml

and the tech section of InfoWorld: http://weblog.infoworld.com/techwatch/archives/015374.html

But nothing coming back from the medical community....... wonder how come?

Will The Real Search Engine Blog Please Stand Up?

Earlier today I read the The 2007 Paid Links War, In Review post on Search Engine Land and clicked through to the links within the article. After reading, clicking, and reading some more, I realized I had spent a solid 20 minutes on the post and had visited 12 different sites. Wow.

I came away with two things as a result:

1. I appreciate the time and effort it took Vanessa Fox to write the article, it's a huge amount of work and I think sites like SEL, Search Engine Guide, SER and SEJ provide a tremendous information service to the SEO community and/or anyone wanting to learn about the world of search marketing. And...

2. I have to wonder how does a small business person - or anyone outside of the SEO circle find the nuggets of information being shared by search engine representatives on individual, private commercial blogs?

Why isn't information like this (see below) being added to the official search engine blogs? How would anyone in the small business community know to look on this blog, scroll through the mounds of comments to find a significant statement like this one made by Google Engineer Matt Cutts on paid links:

I think quoting me as saying "ALL links inside of any sponsored post should carry the no-follow tag period, regardless of whether they are required, not required or even link to the advertiser paying for the post" is different than our conversation. I believe that I said that adding nofollow to all links in paid posts would certainly be safe.

Bold mine. I wonder why this wasn't blogged about on an official search engine vehicle with links to the originating story/comments? The host blog would still get some attention, the search engine would make their point clear and official and the rest of us only have to visit one place. Win, win win.

Come on guys, you want us to follow your webmaster rules then make it official by posting them in one place, on your company blogs. Let's get rid of the FUD, the crude, and the mud associated with near-miss comments by people trying to share.

I'm not suggesting the information you're dropping around isn't helpful - it is - but it's damn hard to follow when it's left all over the blogesphere.

Fetch / Sphinn

The Link Spiel Needs YOU!

The polls are open and voting underway for the 2007 Search Blog Awards.

The Link Spiel has been nominated in the Link Building Blog category and we'd love to have your vote!

We can't promise a chicken in every pot but we will promise to continue sharing all the link nuggets we find! :)

So go! Do your civic SEO duty and vote!

More Link/SEO Predictions 2008

With Barry griping about being bored every five minutes on Twitter I thought I'd help out and give him something to do by suggesting he ask around for people's 2008 predictions.

And amazingly, he did!! :

http://www.cartoonbarry.com/2007/12/send_me_your_search_prediction.html

After thinking about it, I have a couple more predictions to add:

• I think Google will drop the DMOZ this year. It's been taken from their "even more" drop down menu to where-ever so what's the point of having it?
  
  
• Someone will create a hand-held device that is a USB stick, satellite radio, telephone, camera and dictaphone all in one. Ok maybe that one is more wishful thinking.
  
  
• Creative conference swag is going to make a comeback. It started with the mug Stoney sent out for the holiday's, thanks for sending me one as well honey. Hatip Simon .
  
  
• Reputation management is going to be the hot service this year, with more and more people participating in the review process it's going to be extremely important to monitor and correct/bump/trump what's out there.
  
  
• I think you'll see a lot of the smaller SEO agencies/single shops consolidating or merging with larger companies. SEO isn't just about SEO anymore.
  
  
• More private forums are going to blossom as people become hesitant to talk openly about what works and what doesn't in SEOLand. It's sad really because the quality of the content being shared publicly might suffer.
  
  
• And on that note, my last little predication is really an annoucement: at long last we're re-doing our site, adding new services and bringing on new people to Alliance-Link in January.
  
  
• In addition, my poor little blog here will be transfered to a new big girl Link Spiel. See? Hell can freeze over. ;)-
  

Happy New Year everyone. I wish you good health, family happiness and online business success.

And for Barry I wish no day ever be boring. :)

~ Debra.

Dan The Man And Paid Links

Great post by my old friend Dan Thies on the SearchReturn Discussion List today. This comment had been made in a previous edition (sorry can't recall by whom):

"Matt, using VPN, surfed into Google's network (without showingthe audience his screen) to come up with the internal number oflinks the site was actually being credited for towards rankings.The number? Three links."

And Dan responded by saying:

This is an extreme example of what has been the reality of paidlinks for a long time. Google is very good at detecting andfiltering paid links.When Matt said a while back that they were catching 95% of paidlinks already, the text link industry and their flacks in theblogosphere jumped all over it, accused Matt of lying, trying touse FUD to control webmasters, etc.

Here's the truth: the paid text link industry has become nothingbut a big scam. Those who profit by it, and there are many,don't want to admit that. They want to shift the discussion andattention away from the truth.

Here's the truth: renting links has never been a "standard and accepted SEO practice." Bob Massa remembers. Danny Sullivan remembers. No amount of spin and noise on the part of the link peddlers can change the reality of the situation.

If you want links, build something worth linking to and market the hell out of it. It's easier, it's cheaper, and it works. ~ Dan Thies.

Excellent advice! If you haven't had a chance to subscribe to Detlev Johnson's SearchReturn, you should. It's a great, free discussion list with lots of good info and input from people working in SEO and SEM. Here's the link to subscribe to SearchReturn , give yourself an early Christmas present!

It's Prime Time To Get A Video Link

I've been following the Writers Guild of America (WGA) strike since an old high school friend is a member. She's been writing for a popular police drama for a number of years now so I set my alert services to bring back tidbits on the strike and her writing group in particular.

This morning I got an alert from the Center for Media Research with a survey recap from the Online Testing Exchange with some interesting numbers as they relate to the way people will watch TV (or not) as the strike goes on.

Seems 44% of the people surveyed stated they'll continue to watch their favorite show even if they're repeats and 26% said they'd probably watch more reality TV since those types of shows aren't likely to be affected by the strike. (I love you Simon!)

But the most interesting number IMO was this one:

16% said they'll watch more original content on the Internet as a way to keep themselves entertained during the strike.

The OTX only surveyed 3100 people for this opinion poll but still...... 496 of them said they'll go online for original content. The fact they KNOW to go online means they're already aware it's there and will just do more of it. Don't let the statistic fool you, that little drop in the bucket represents a huge possibility if you think about the millions of people with Internet access.

If you've thought about creating a video now might be the time to get it going. With universal search the topic du jour and the writers strike possibly re-channeling people online, you stand a pretty good chance of being seen -- and linked to.

Here's Why I Won't Quit My Link Building Job

Besides the fact I'm old and have plenty of insurance, here's why I'll stick to link marketing and ignore future casting calls:



This little piece of video handiwork is my daughter's book report. She wrote the script, the cuecards (in crayon since she couldn't find any markers) and directed her dad (cameraman) her brother(cuecard guy) and me (sorry excuse for a talk show host). I'll let you know what grade she gets. ;)

Anyway....... enough schtick, there is some link building spiel here, read on.

Last week Justilien and Roger each wrote a piece on why it's a good idea to build links in-house.

Scott Boyd of FusedNation countered with an interesting and colorful point of view on why you should out-source. While I don't agree with some of his comments regarding link builders as professionals, I do get where he's coming from and agree that linking can be tedious.

I'm not sure there is a right or wrong answer with this whole issue of out-source vs in-house but I do know this:

if you want to rank well, you need links. But if you want to succeed online, you need link marketing.

We tend to put blinders on when we talk about link building and look at it from a technical standpoint rather than a marketing or tactical viewpoint. Everything we do to get online is technically related. Web design, shopping carts, CSS, databases, stat programs, live chat, etc. All widgets/software used for instant interactive success.

But then... we hit the SEO/link building aspect and boom --not so instant, not so easy. It doesn't matter if you outsource or keep this part in-house, this is where it gets hard for everyone.

So why is that? Even Justilen, Roger and Scott all agreed on this point - link building is hard. Why is this necessary evil we call link building so difficult for so many?

I believe part of the answer lies in the approach. Link building requires a technical and creative outlook, it's the one aspect of online business you shouldn't automate and can't just upload for success. The techincal nature of your business needs to be put aside for good old fashioned sales and promotion skills. If your background isn't in marketing or you're not channeling PT Barnum, here's where it gets hard for you.

I recommend a two-tiered approach starting with foundational linking and then branching into the custom work which can use tactics such as link bait, incentive marketing, traditional advertising etc.

Every business is different and requires a custom link marketing program if you want to attract quality links. There's no cookie cutter approach here, everyone is unique from the smallest of online business to the big boys so your custom link programs need to be the same.

If you want to outsource, use these guidelines.

If you want to keep it in-house, look for people who understand the difference between being a short order cook and being a chef. Those are the folks you want to train to be your link marketers.

Fetch / Sphinn