Here is a recap of what happened in the search forums today, through the eyes of the Search Engine Roundtable and other search forums on the web.
Search Engine Roundtable Stories:
- How to Look at Nearby Data to Optimize Your Link Building Campaign
Wiep has posted an excellent link marketing campaign blog post that suggests that you look at nearby data to optimize your linking rather than seeking out brand new links from unchartered territory. He proposes that you check Google Webmaster Tools to fix your 404s and to improve your internal linking structure. You can also optimize existing links. If someone is already familiar with your site, you can just have them add a link to it. - How Does One Find New Clients for Search Engine Optimization?
A High Rankings Forum member is starting his own SEO consultancy firm and wants to know how to find clients. Where would you look if you're just beginning? You can try to go to your Chamber of Commerce and other local business organizations. But be careful: Don't try to sell them directly. Become a member, then volunteer to give presentations about how having an online presence can benefit small businesses. People find that method to - What Do You Do to Manage a Group of Link Builders?
A Search Engine Watch Forums member asks what kinds of people you should seek for link building opportunities, what pay they should receive, how to evaluate their performance, and other related questions. Most people agree that the best thing is to seek out college students and pay them $10 per hour for the job. Chances are, they're scouring Craigslist looking for something challenging and will contact you directly if you post there. Some people up - Sphinn's "Bury" Button Goes Live
If you haven't visited Sphinn, the new "Digg" for Internet Marketers, it's about time that you go. It's a bustling community of users who share informative stories about anything related to search, PPC, blogging, social media, and more. And yesterday, one of the most controversial features has been launched. As editor Rob Kerry puts it, the Desphinn button is live. This is equivalent to "bury" (like Digg), "sink" (like shoutwire), "downvote" (like Reddit). The catch: - Does Using a NoFollow Attribute Raise a Red Flag at Google?
Eric Lander wrote a piece at Search Engine Journal named NoFollow: An SEO Red Flag? which sparked some interesting debate over in a Sphinn thread. The question at hand is, does using a nofollow attribute on many of your links raise a red flag over at Google and other search engines. There is a lot of debate on if it would raise a red flag or not. Personally and currently, I think it wouldn't make - Will You Continue to Use Google Checkout After Trial Period?
A featured WebmasterWorld thread asks merchants and webmasters if they will continue to use Google Checkout now that there are processing and transaction fees. The response is fairly mixed. But overall, most people are saying they enjoy the extra visibility in the AdWords area by having a Google Checkout Badge displayed prominently on their AdWords listings. There are many pros and cons listed in the forum thread but I wanted to get a poll going - WebmasterWorld Version 5: Software Updates & Features
WebmasterWorld founder, Brett Tabke announced a major software update at WebmasterWorld this week. The most noticeable change to me is the "Quick Reply" feature that many other forums already have. You should be able to see the Quick Reply box at the bottom of all open threads when you are logged into your WebmasterWorld account. The box looks like this: Also, a major change is the ability to manage the skin of WebmasterWorld. The current - Graham From Google Reader Help Leaves
I am a huge fan of Google Groups, specifically the forums where Google representatives offer assistance on their products. This ranges from Google Webmaster Help to Google AdSense Help and as far as Google Docs Help and Google Reader Help groups. One of the most active Google representatives in any of these Google managed help forums was Graham, the Google Reader Guide. Graham announced in a Google Group thread last night that he will be - Google's Toolbar Reportedly Overwriting 404 Pages Across The Web
There are reports that the new beta version of the Google Toolbar is acting a bit evil. Reports are that when you install the toolbar and surf to a 404 page, a page not found, Google will replace the 404 page with their own page. I have not tested this myself, because I am on a Mac and this is an issue with a Windows toolbar. I do not know if it affects all 404
Other Great Search Forum Threads:
- AdWords Downtime: February 16, 10am-2pm PST, Google Groups
- Eric Enge Interviews Danny Sullivan, Sphinn
- Microsoft Responds to Yahoo's Rejection, DigitalPoint Forums
- Search Engine Sales Going Down..., Search Engine Watch Forums
- Webmaster Tools Link Reports Are Very Inconsistent, WebmasterWorld
- Yahoo Displaces Google From T-Mobile Europe, WebmasterWorld
- Google: I'm Going To Disneyland! 10 Signs Google Has Visited the Disneyland Resort, Sphinn
