Link Spreading

What is Link Spreading?

Link Spreading is the artificial simulation of the effect linkbaiting creates.

Here is and example how it works.

Yahoo! outs spammers

Even though I see some lawsuits coming, I think it´s a great thing for a search engine to provide as much information as possible to the searchers querying the natural results. Google should do the same thing, no matter how much they want to stay neutral in the public eye. The only question that I have would be if Yahoo! would change the note should the Carbon Neutral website owner decide to be an active advertiser in the search marketing program.
Ever since 1999 I have been using Google and am sometimes asking myself what it would take to make me switch and this kind of extra information and warning could definitely do it for me.
I strongly doubt Google ever going for this, but if they did, it would be an asset for sure.
We have all been spammed and frankly, I myself am sick of it and would like to be alerted of sites famous for blasting me with their eco stuff or whatever else you may get spammed with.
Congratulations Yahoo! for taking a strong and unique step in the right direction.

The Light at the End of the SEO Tunnel

The tech world is experiencing fusion like never before.

Domainers start developing, SEOs learn about branding, designer no longer need “an expert” to tell them how to structure their sites.

In a few words: Everyone is waking up!

Well, not everyone. Many are still stuck in one channel and think that registering “keyword friendly domain names” and doing pay per click will keep them going and growing, so here is my prediction for the future:

If you don’t wake up and expand your horizon a little bit, you will NOT survive.

Read more

Search Featured: Barry Schwartz from Search Engine Roundtable

Barry Schwartz from Search Engine Roundtable and CEO and Owner of Rusty Brick has granted us as a team an interview. You can see Barry’s contributions everywhere. He is the hardest working man in SEO. Enjoy!

Mike Dammann: Barry, you’ve been covering conferences, events and everything SEO related for many years, what do you believe has changed since you have started when it comes to what people are most interested in knowing and learning about SEO?

Barry Schwartz: Well, I think people are a lot more knowledgeable about SEO then they were in the past. Back when I started, SEO was more of a black art. Don’t get me wrong, many people still feel SEO is something mystical and all. But I think many more understand that SEO has basic guidelines and rules. Outside of that…

Search Engine and Webmaster relations have changed drastically from when I started.

Google is a lot more open now then they were in the past. In fact, we only had Matt Cutts as our liaison, now we have a whole group, the Google Webmaster Central team, answering our questions.

Jayson Gibson: Barry - I just read the recent post on Search Engine Roundtable, the one concerning banning websites becoming illegal, I read the post referenced on the search engine watch forums and it looked like everyone thought this is a great idea. I personally think its absurd - what are your thoughts on this and the possibility of it.

Barry Schwartz: Until Google becomes a utility company, which some may argue they are becoming slowly, then I don’t think that would be feasible. This has not stopped companies from suing Google for being banned, we have many cases like that.

Jayson Gibson: Are they having any success?

Barry Schwartz: None have had any success in the courts.

Here is a post on that case: http://www.seroundtable.com/archives/003511.html

Yes, surprise, Google won http://www.seroundtable.com/archives/012796.html

Mike Dammann: Barry, in the next 5 years, do you anticipate more of a who knows who and who spends what on SEO as important factors for ranking compared to today and do you believe it will be inevitable for even organic search results to become less based on quality of sites listed?

Barry Schwartz: Are you asking will search engines become less dependent on link analysis as a ranking aid?

Mike Dammann: Yes, and do you believe it will pretty much become impossible for Google to analyze which sites have the most value for each keyword since it seems more and more webmasters are catching on to what it takes to get their sites up on the SERPs.

Barry Schwartz: Google is doing a few things today to combat link manipulation. They are going after sites that sell links, they are penalizing some sites that buy links and they are discrediting links that look like they are not editorial in nature. So Google is doing a good job figuring out which links are good and bad - for the most part. But will it be enough? Nah, Google knows they need to look at other factors, that is where personalized search comes in - but we have a way to go with that. So in short, things will change in that area over the course of 5 years.

Jayson Gibson: Barry - it seems like Search Engine Roundtable has always acknowledged that buying links is an important part of every search engine strategy. Are there any websites you refuse to buy links for in fear of getting penalized - do you recommend using services like text-link-ads and textlinkbrokers?

Barry Schwartz: When did I ever acknowledge buying links is an important part of an SEO strategy? Getting quality links is a critical part of SEO, but it doesn’t have to be done through buying links.

Julie Kent: Do you think that Yahoo will merge with Microsoft, and if so, what effects do you think this will have on SEO in general?

Barry Schwartz: Well, Yahoo! just announced a second ago that they are testing google ads on their search results, that is why i have been delayed in responding. In addition to that news, Yahoo’s second largest shareholder, Legg Mason, said they would support Yahoo, if MSFT wouldn’t raise their bid.

Meaning, Yahoo has a lot more money from a huge investment firm to back them, which should make shareholders happy. Hold, hot off the press, Microsoft sent a new statement out. They said “Any definitive agreement between Yahoo! and Google would consolidate over 90% of the search advertising market in Google’s hands. This would make the market far less competitive, in sharp contrast to our own proposal to acquire Yahoo! We will assess closely all of our options. Our proposal remains the only alternative put forward that offers Yahoo! shareholders full and fair value for their shares, gives every shareholder a vote on the future of the company, and enhances choice for content creators, advertisers, and consumers.”

Blah, means nothing, since the Yahoo! and Google deal is just a limited US test on less then 3% of their search queries.

Mike Dammann: Social networking, I have asked Danny Sullivan the same questions and am wondering how long do you think that the craze will last or do you believe that social media will actually play a more and more growing role and eventually become a substitute to some extent for search engines? And also, what do you believe the future of video and voice search is going to be? (Example: SearchMe)

Barry Schwartz: I don’t think social networking is a fad. i think you will see more companies try to use the concepts to bring out better and more integrated services around their content. Yes, I believe it will be used more and more in improving search relevancy, along with personalized search. Knowing who you associate with and what interests you have, can be a huge aid in search - but not a foolproof aid, so it has to be done in the right areas. Video and voice search are both in their infancy. the same issue needs to be addressed properly… how to understand the content in that video.

Content is the main issue with video and voice. The technology, today, is far from perfect. But search engines are throwing videos into search results all the time. They are using video titles, descriptions and so on to determine content and context. But that, on a more scalable level, can be abused easily.

Mike Dammann: So basically more factors will play a role in SEO? Especially visual since there is a need to not only rank, but be the site that people click on?

Barry Schwartz: Yes.

Julie Kent: Back to the Yahoo/Google thing…Even though just a test, if successful, do you think there might be a chance that this could set some new trend?

Barry Schwartz: If it is successful, which I assume they hope for, why test it otherwise. Then this can and will lead to a broader partnership and scare the heck out of Microsoft. Hence their statement. As in “trend,” many other search engines use google to power their organic and/or search ads.

Ask.com uses Google for ads as do many others.

As SEMs, yea, their is some concern to see Google have their search share (on the paid side) jump from a huge share to a dictatorship.

As MSFT said, it would “consolidate over 90% of the search advertising market.”

Julie Kent: Barry - where will you be speaking next, what conferences? And, can you give us a sneak peek at what you might be talking about?

Barry Schwartz: I speak Friday at Jim Boykin’s Link Ninja seminar on Universal Search.

Julie Kent: What SEO forums and blogs do you enjoy reading and are participating in?

Barry Schwartz: Sphinn, SEW Forums, SERoundtable Forums, Cre8asite, webmasterworld, and others.

Jayson Gibson: Barry What’s next with Search Engine Roundtable, RustyBrick Inc. and you? Anything we can expect to see shortly?

Barry Schwartz: More video recaps, and video casts. Subscribe at http://www.seroundtable.com/videocast.xml

Jayson Gibson: Barry - I’ve read that converting a site into different languages helps increase rankings - have you had any positive experience with this?

Barry Schwartz: Jayson, if you want to rank well in a foreign language, you should have content in that language. So yes, it can help increase traffic.

Thank you, Barry Schwartz for the interview. Looking forward to many more years of your contributions on places like Search Engine Land.

Search Featured: Dustin Williams of SEO.com

Well everybody, this is my first interview for the SearchFeature Blog (my first interview for anything ever, really).  And to get things off to a great start, I was able to interview Dustin Williams, from SEO.com.  Dustin is a SEO Specialist for SEO.com and he is the Master Administrator of the forums at SEO.com.  Dustin is known at the SEO.com forum, and several other webmaster forums, as Web Gazelle.  The SEO.com guys (most of them anyway) are pictured here.  Back Row (Left to Right): Arnie, Scott, Adam, Peter.  Front Row (Left to Right): Dustin, Dave

Stephanie: How long have you been in the SEO business and how did you get started? How long have you worked for SEO.com and what is your title there?

Dustin: I have been in the SEO business for 4 years and I got started when I was hired to be part of a web team for an online retail company. As part of the web team I was responsible for updating and maintaining their website as well as performing the SEO for their site. About a year ago I applied for a full-time SEO specialist position with the company that was called Web targeted at that time. They were in the process of finalizing the deal that would make Web Targeted into what is now SEO.com. I hadn’t been employed there for even a week before we changed to SEO.com. I am currently an SEO Specialist at SEO.com.

Stephanie: Why SEO as a career? What is so special/exciting about SEO that makes you so passionate about it?

Dustin: I originally studied web design in school and never thought I would become so involved in SEO and internet marketing. It was through practicing it and seeing the results that I began to really enjoy it. It is seeing the results of my efforts that motivates me to keep doing it. Seeing a site that isn’t showing up in searches and then being able to apply my knowledge of SEO to help the site show up for targeted search terms is the driving force that keeps me interested in and involved with SEO.

Stephanie: You seem very passionate and serious when it comes to SEO. Are you like that in real life as well? What else are you passionate about?

Dustin: I am passionate about SEO because I enjoy seeing the results of my work. I am like that with most things in life. I have an interest in aquarium fish. I currently have a 20 gallon freshwater tank and I also have my own site about freshwater fish keeping. It is something that my Dad and his Dad also had an interest in. You could say it is in my blood. If space permitted me I would have a much larger tank.

Stephanie: Who are the most influential people in your SEO career? 

Dustin: The person who got me started with SEO is the guy who was the senior web developer on the team when I worked for the internet retail company. His name is Brad Young. He taught me the basics and pointed me out to a couple good tutorials on the internet. Brad is the person responsible for leading me to where I am today.

Stephanie: What do you think will happen in the world of SEO, let’s say five years from now?  What changes do you foresee for the industry? Will there still be such a thing as organic optimization?

Dustin: It is hard to say for sure what could change in how the search engines work. Algorithms are constantly being changed to try to improve the quality of search results. I do believe that organic optimization will still be as important in five years as it is today.

Stephanie: The SEO.com forums are fairly new. What is so special about your forum? What sets it apart from the rest?

Dustin: SEO.com as a company is still young. If you include the years that the company existed as Web Targeted then we have a few more years of experience as an SEO company. The forums were only just launched in January of this year but we have seen much growth already. I think something that we offer that is unique is that each one of the experienced SEO specialists at SEO.com is an Administrator on the forums. That means that all questions posted in the forums will be able to be answered by someone who is experienced and has achieved great results from their work. Where is it better to learn SEO than from experienced SEO professionals who practice it every day?

Stephanie: How about the rumor that SEO.com paid $5 million for the domain name? Care to confirm or deny the rumor?

Dustin: That figure is just a rumor. I know that 5 million is not correct but I do not know the actual purchase amount.

Stephanie: What do you see as the future of SEO.com? How will you distinguish your company as different from all the rest of the SEO companies out there?

Dustin: We have great plans for SEO.com. Some are close to being ready to be launched. We plan on offering various levels of SEO services that will make our services affordable to both small business and large corporations. We plan on staying current with the changing trends of the industry by having representatives present at as many SEO conferences as possible.

Stephanie: What inspires you the most when you do your work?

Dustin: It is seeing the results of my work that inspires me the most. I have always enjoyed doing things where, when it is finished, you can see some type of positive effect from what you have done. For SEO, it is the end result that is inspiring.

Stephanie: What is the #1 piece of advice that you would give to someone just starting out in SEO? What are the most common mistakes that you see people making when starting out in SEO?

Dustin: If anyone is going to get into SEO and search marketing they need to be prepared to have plenty of patience. SEO isn’t something that brings results overnight. It takes time for all the work that is put into it to bring the desired results. Anything that offers quick results in the search marketing industry has to be manipulating the system in some form or another, and the results will be short lived. My advice is to stay away from anything that promises fast results. Have patience and don’t give up if the first effort at SEO doesn’t bring the desired results.

Stephanie: Where did the name Web Gazelle come from?

Dustin: The name Web Gazelle came to be when I was first registering at some SEO forums. I didn’t want to use my real name so I needed to come up with an alias. That day at work a couple co-workers and I were imitating Randy Jackson (a judge on American Idol). We were calling each other “Dawg” like Randy does. Then we decided to replace the word “Dawg” with exotic animals. Gazelle was one that came to my head. My co-workers started saying “you da gazelle” to me. Since I was part of the web team I added Web to the front and came up with Web Gazelle for my alias on the forums. We like to mix some fun in with our work.

And speaking of mixing fun with their work, this is a little video that they made one snowy day last winter.  The crazy man with his shirt off is Adam, Nelson is filming it, and Scott is driving.  So who ever said that SEO guys are not cool?  Oh, and Adam won a $5 bet for doing this little stunt.