Business Blogging - How to Build A Better Blog

SEO for Bloggers: How to Get Started

SEO (Search Engine Optimization) is a mystery to most bloggers. I don't claim to be an SEO expert -- far from it -- but knowing a bit about how search engines work and how to find and use appropriate keywords for your content is useful (some would say critical) for creating an effective business blog.

For the last couple of days I've been reviewing a new training program called Wordpress SEO Secrets created by my colleague Michael Martine (@Remarkablogger on twitter). Like the title says, the program is directed primarily at bloggers who use Wordpress, but in my opinion, much of the content is important for all bloggers to know, regardless of the platform you use. 

The tutorials however, are all created for Wordpress. And since we know there are millions of Wordpress bloggers and some of them actually read this blog (even though it's on TypePad! :-) ) I thought it important to share this program with you.

When we work with clients, one of the first things we talk about is the fact that if you want to be found on the web by your ideal client, there are a few things that will greatly help:

Blog Content & SEO: Married happily ever after...

Blogs are natural search engine magnets, but you also need to understand the importance of using the right keywords, in headlines and when writing content that markets your business. SEO isn't something I understand fully, but Lee Odden is an expert I listen to.

Denise and I have always stressed how to do this organically so that your writing makes sense to readers. Lee Odden is an expert on the tech side of SEO. His Online Marketing Blog was recently named #2 on a list of Junta 42 Top Blogs for Content Marketing. Congratulations, Lee, that's well deserved.

(Our own WritingontheWeb Blog is #24 on the list, good for us!) But never mind that. I want you to read Lee's recent post about blog content and search optimization because it will enlighten your understanding of what it takes to write blog content to get good results with your 'findability' on the Web.

Blog content and search engine optimization go together like a horse and carriage. You can't have one without the other. The post is called Tips on Content Centered Link Building, go read it now.

Search Engines and Blogs

Over on Grokdotcom, there's an excellent article about The Search Engine's Love Affair with Blogs by Juan Tornoe. As Tornoe points out, and we've said many times ourselves, "search engines love blogs." And Tornoe goes on to say, it's not as simple as it sounds:

First, there's the issue of relevance. A blog won’t magically give you a top ranking position on Google, Yahoo! or the like. The content your blog has, the frequency with which such content is being updated, and the amount of relevant incoming links to your site are some of the factors that will make-or-break the effectiveness of your weblog.

Don’t add a blog to your site if you're not willing to consistently invest time and effort. An outdated blog will reflect the opposite image of whatever it is you want potential customers to know about your company.

That second paragraph (the emphasis is mine) is key. When we speak to prospects looking to add a blog to their marketing mix, we emphasize this point along with the following point that a blog that's not consistently update has the same effect as a storefront with broken windows and no inventory. It's not good for your business image.

It bears repeating that a business blog is a marketing tool and like any other tactic you use to market your business, it must be done consistently and professionally to get the results you want.

Juan Tornoe's article is excellent so do read it when you get a chance.

Blog Directory vs. Search Engine

Over the past few years we've discovered that there is often confusion about submitting one's blog to blog directories and what to expect from that tedious job. The question came up once again this week from someone who had purchased our blog directory submission service to over 200 blog directories.

I signed up for your offer to be put into 200+ blogs. How do I know if my blogs are showing up? I get google alerts for my blogs and receive them. I thought I'd get notice of my blogs from the blog sites you signed me up with.

First, by "blogs" we assume you mean "blog posts." Second, Google Alerts are based on keywords so you will get alerts that are relevant to those keywords you set up.

Now for the meat of the question, here's our answer:

Blog Management ala HitTail

Patsi alerted me to a post on the HitTail blog about blog management. Mike Levin asks these questions:

What is the correct ratio between blogging purely about what’s on your mind and in your heart, versus about what you KNOW FOR SURE will generate new traffic and audience to your site? (ala HitTailing)

Is blogging primarily a function to generate traffic (SEO) for some other ultimate purpose at your website (driving sales), or it is a “pure” medium for pontification and soapbox journalism? What if you’re a business and have to balance blogging with all your other corporate considerations?

To remind you about HitTail:

HitTail reveals in real-time the least utilized, most promising keywords hidden in the Long Tail of your natural search results. We present these terms to you as suggestions that when acted on can boost the natural search results of your site. It's that simple.

Blog Search Optimization: Intuitive or Scientific?

Shari Thurow writes a very knowledgeable article for clickz.com about Optimizing Blogs for the Search Engines . Now I'm am far from understanding all this, so I'm throwing it out for you readers and asking you what you think.

Here is her general guideline for optimizing blog sites for search engines:

"Keyword research: With blog sites, it almost seems as if the keyword research process is nonexistent. Before you categorize and headline blog content, use the keyword research tools offered at Yahoo, Google, and MSN Live to get a clearer idea of the terminology your site visitors might use. I understand that a Web log is just that -- a Web log. However, if you are using a blog for business reasons or want others to read your blog, you should make it easy for site visitors to find information. Using keywords is a part of this process."

Read her article to learn more about this whole process, but I think Ms. Thurow complicates the issues for most professionals who write a blog to drive traffic and generate business.

Maybe it is because she actually knows a lot about SEO; maybe she knows too much about it, and all those details cloud the issues. To me, spending time using a keyword search tool is unnecessary if you know your clients and know your subject.

It is my opinion that when a blog author is clear about who his targeted audience of readers are, and what their challenges are, then writing on those topics will naturally generate a lot of keywords that the readers would use to find the blog posts on those topics.

Maybe I'm naive, but I think a blog author is better off spending time writing good content, and using keywords intuitively, rather than using a keyword search tool and trying to adapt a particular phrase to the post.

Is it just me? Or is this really more complicated than I dreamed of, and I should be doing keyword searches and then working those phrases into my writing?

Can't I get the same results by writing about a particular topic that I know my readers are interested in? Isn't that the natural way to go about this?

You tell me.

Comment Spam

A couple of weeks ago I responded to a question about links in blog comments. That post generated quite a few comments.  To follow up on that issue, today we got a comment that primarily promoted a competitor's blog services. He included some good feedback in the comment but then proceeded to promote his own blogging program.

I can tell you from my perspective, as the blog owner, that's a big NO NO.  I deleted the promotional paragraphs from his comment and left the info that contributed to the conversation.

Then, I read a post over on Blog Business Summit about the fine line between SEO and spam.

Blogging is about building relationships.  Business blogs showcase the author's expertise and services.  Bloggers are mostly very generous and link to competitors and others who can assist their readers.  But don't abuse that generosity by overtly promoting your own business on someone else's blog. Participate in the conversation and if readers are compelled by what you write, they will visit your blog or site.  If you have a link to a post on your own blog that supports your comments, then include it, but DO NOT blatantly advertise your business in comments on my blog unless I have invited you to do so.

End of rant.

HitTail Drives Targeted Traffic to Your Blog

One of the things I love about our Conversations with Experts series is how much I learn from our guests.  Last night was no exception.   Mike Levin of Connors Communications and founder/developer of HitTail, joined us for our 59th Conversation.

The purpose of this Conversation was to learn how Mike's new tool, HitTail, works to help publishers, primarily on blogs, leverage The Long Tail. HitTail is a keyword analytics tool that mines the Internet for keywords by looking at the actual traffic to your site, then makes suggestions for new keywords you can use in titles of articles and posts so you can increase traffic based on unusual or less frequent search terms.

The theory behind this is that by focusing on The Long Tail keywords, you ultimately attract and drive more targeted traffic to your site.

Long Tail Marketing: What Is It?

The Long Tail is a term we're hearing all over the place these days, and it's not going to go away any time soon. It is particularly important for entrepreneurs, professionals and small businesses. So here's the skinny on "The Long Tail." Of course, to really understand it, get the book by Chris Anderson, editor of Wired Magazine, or read the definition on Wikipedia.

But here's how to capture the strength of Long Tail marketing. Forget trying to score big numbers. Focus on your niche. Write articles and blog posts using all the different versions of keywords that your potential clients use in the search engines.

The Long Tail theory in effect says it is better to tailor your marketing to specific niches and audiences, rather than trying to be big and be all things to all people. There are more numbers of potential sales out there in 'the skinny long tail' of the statistics.

So how do you find out what keyword variations people use to find your products and services? Ah...that's the topic of our Conversation with Expert Mike Levin this Wednesday, October 4th, at 8:30 p.m. ET. Register over at Conversations with Experts. Mike is heading up a new company called HitTail.com...A very interesting tool for using Long Tail marketing. Be there or be square.

HitTail.com offers a new approach to natural search

HitTail.com was quietly launched a couple of months ago (press release here).  I read about it on a client's blog a few days ago and made a note to check it, which I did this morning.

SEO (search engine optimization) is a complex subject that I confess, I don't really understand and basically ignore because it seems to difficult to figure out.  However, I was intrigued by HitTail.com when I read about it and decided to take a look.  They have an excellent demo video on YouTube.

HitTail is a content intelligence product that reveals in real-time the least utilized, most promising keywords hidden in the long tail of your natural search results. We present these terms as suggestions that when acted on will boost the natural search results of your site. It's simple, easy to use, and the results are immediate.