Lately internet forums that discuss real estate and SEO issues have been buzzing about Yahoo and the across-the-board penalty doled out to two of the most popular template sites used by Realtors. These penalties actually happened a few months back but I guess many agents were just waking up to the fact that their presence in Yahoo had disappeared. Continue reading »
One of the more public faces of Google – Matt Cutts – has an interesting blog entry about the timeline of Google’s implementation of “Big Daddy”, Google’s new search structure which has been unrolled over the last few months.
There are some interesting points made in the article which confirm some things that have been “known” for a while and also one or two points which may contradict some commonly held beliefs.
One thing to take note of is that linking is still important but who you link to and who links back to you is far more important than the number of links. In particular, If you are buying links or exchanging links on sites that are not related to real estate you are probably receiving no benefit. Continue reading »
I would recommend that you regularly check to ensure those you have traded links with are keeping up their end of the bargain. You may be surprised at what you find. Today for example I was checking the reciprocal links of a client’s site and found that 100% of the links we had carefully accepted over the last couple of years had stopped linking back. Every last one!
The links we were providing to these cheaters were all good links on a PR3 page – which was way better than we were getting in return in the first place. There was no reason for these sites to remove their link back. I guess some people just like to take advantage of others.
So, even if you carefully check out potential link exchanges (as outlined in other posts here) to ensure that you are getting a fair trade – you need to keep checking to make sure you are still getting value and are not being taken advantage of!
Jan 212006
In an earlier post I outlined how to tell if an offer to exchange links was worthwhile. Lately there has been some talk that exchanging Reciprocal Links no longer works. The fact is that link exchanges still work although I believe some carry more weight than others. It has been widely noted in SEO forums (and I agree) that a link from a site whose links are organized as a “web directory” IS ignored.
By “web directory” I mean where they have multiple categories not related to the actual theme of the site – so if a real estate site has a links directory that has categories for travel sites and health insurance sites etc. – you probably get no benefit from the exchange.
Also, if a site uses popular links programs like Linksmanager you most likely get zero benefit from from the link as Google would recognize such programs and ignore links from them.
It IS getting harder and harder to find link exchanges that are of value but there still are some out there.
When Google first appeared on the scene its relevant results and word of mouth advertising quickly propelled the search engine the top of the search engine heap. The media caught on to this as well and the gushing stories about Google solidified its position. Continue reading »
Nov 022005
Google is once again in the middle of a major update – this one has been dubbed “Jagger” and the good folks at Google have been kind enough to tell us that Jagger is actually being rolled out in 3 parts. As of this writing, we are still waiting for the completion of Jagger2.
This update did not just begin – the changes some are seeing now have been happening for several weeks now as Google has been incorporating new backlink and PR updates into the indexes. The update was just recently given a name but probably has been underway for many weeks. Continue reading »
Google began another major update of it’s search results about two weeks ago and according to Googleguy (a Google representative who posts at Webmasterworld Forums) this update is incorporating “3.5 improvements to search quality” and they have not finished yet. The last improvement is slated for next week and then there will be an adjustment period where search results still are not settled. That could last an additional week or two going by past experiences.
Googleguy says to take a rest from checking your site positions until then because you may go crazy watching the major fluctuations. I would agree with that- no point in getting all worked up until you know for sure how it all ends up!
In a new patent application filed in December 2003 and made available to the public today, Google gives clues to the changes that began with the Florida Update in November 2003.
The Document is titled “Information Retrieval Based On Historical Data” and basically outlines all the ways Google would like to use your site’s past history in determining its present ranking. The document also makes clear that Google now takes a whole site into consideration when ranking unlike PageRank which just considered individual pages.
Some quick points that I jotted down include… Continue reading »
Google is no longer the search engine it once was. It no longer returns the search results that led people (including myself) to proclaim that it was the best search engine on the planet.
Lately, I often do not find what I am searching for on Google so I check the new MSN Search and guess what? The information I am looking for is there – right in the top few results! This is becoming a habit for me and I suspect it will for a lot more people too as I hear rumblings from friends that “Google isn’t very good anymore”.
Give MSN Search a try – I think you may actually like it.
Feb 192005
Google’s Allegra Update is still going on – this is the longest update in recent memory. Aside from the disappearance of vast swathes of websites, this update also includes an algorithm change which is not index wide but seems to be placed on specific keywords just the way the Florida Update was in 2003.
Google’s results are still changing frequently and when it will all settle down is anyone’s guess. With the Florida Update they applied their algorithm change to sets of keywords and then added more to the list in the following days and weeks. I suspect that is what is happening with Allegra as well. Continue reading »
As I am writing this Google is in the middle of scrambling their index once again – some have called it an “update” although I would not agree that anything at all has been actually updated. You need to see an improvement in search results in order to call it an update in my view.
The folks over at Webmaster World began giving Google updates a name a few years ago and called this one “Allegra”. This is the first “update” in about a year to receive that honor if my memory serves me correctly.
This change in Google is receiving nearly as much attention in various search engine forums as the Florida Update did in 2003 – and that says a lot! Alas, the attention is not good however. Some webmasters are lining up and threatening to quit the business much the same way as stockbrokers leaped out of windows in the Great Depression! Continue reading »
The practice of redirecting one domain or website to another does have some serious problems. It is commonly preached that as a way of increasing your internet business it is a good idea to have lots of domains – perhaps targeting different keywords or market areas – all pointing at your website. The reality is that this can actually cause you serious grief. Continue reading »
