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Search Engine Optimization

Rob Bertholf
October 16, 2014

Search Engine Optimization

#1 Google ranked "Search engine optimization expert" @Rob Bertholf shares his insight on improving your search engine placement and content marketing success. Desired takeaways include how search engines think, factors to increasing your authority and various tools & tactics for online success.

Rob Bertholf

October 16, 2014
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  1. @Rob’s Geek Cred Google Search Engine Optimization Expert Out of

    over 22,500,000 Results #1 in @Rob PATENT APPLICATION #US20060294199
  2. Search Engine Optimization Expert Google Search Engine Optimization Expert @Rob

    Bertholf | Search Engine Optimization Expert rob.bertholf.com Hi, I’m @Rob on Twitter. California guy living in Honolulu, Hawaii the last 10 years. I teach at University of Hawaii’s PNM program and I am passionate about Development, Social Marketing Strategy, Web Analytics & Conversion optimization. Search engine optimization - Wikipedia en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Search_engine_optimization About 22,500,000 Results #1 in
  3. • What is a Search Engine • Factors to Search

    Engine authority • On-Page Optimization • Tools & Tactics Desired Takeaways
  4. Search Engines Timeline 1990: Archie - Query Form (First Search

    Engine) 1993: Excite / ALIWEB 1994: WebCrawler (First Crawler) 1994: Infoseek & Yahoo (Directories) / LYCOS 1996: Inktomi (Pioneered Paid Inclusion) 1997: Ask/AskJeeves (Natural Language Saearch) 1998: Microsoft launches MSN 1998/9: Google 2009: Bing
  5. Paid vs. Organic Easy to Find Hard to Find Money

    is Being Spent Money Is NOT being spent
  6. Catalog or “Index” Findings Spiders “Crawl” the internet looking for

    new web sites which are posted, linked to, or has its content altered. They catalog their findings which are then available to search.
  7. ... most of it anyway • Meta Keywords (are not

    used) • Link Exchanges (can get you penalized) • Keyword Density (can get you penalized) • Page w/outbound Links (always been useless)
  8. Can we please let SEO die already & focus instead

    on content development & marketing?
  9. Recommendations = Inbound Links Other Websites Your Website Local Directory

    Guest Blogging Press Releases Mentions Social Signals
  10. If it is good for Humans, it is good for

    Search Engines Google wants to serve relevant content wrapped in a positive user experience.
  11. The role of a search engine is to help a

    user find what they are looking for on the web. By using keywords and phrases, the search engine finds the most relevant results for what the user is looking for.
  12. Reliable Web Host • What is the point of a

    website if its down and people can’t see it? • Page loading speed directly affects time on site & conversion. • Re-think shared hosting, get dedicated IP address at a minimum.
  13. Reliable Web Host • Ensure your website is up when

    Googlebot visits your site. • SE’s want to serve best experience, site usage matters. • Don’t be on the same IP as spammer.
  14. Content Management System • Keep your website content fresh. CMS

    like WordPress make it easy to publish content. • Make it easy for your content to be shared. Add social sharing widgets from a library of plugins in seconds. • Make it easy to remember and share your link. Dynamically create “slugs” or permalinks to construct URIs.
  15. Recommended WordPress Plugins • Wordpress SEO Write better content and

    have a fully optimized Wordpress site • Redirection Easily manage 301 redirections and keep track of 404 errors from Wordpress admin • Broken Link Checker Check your posts, comments and other content for broken links and missing images • Google XML Sitemaps Generate a special XML sitemap which will help search engines better index your blog. • W3 Total Cache Improve site performance & user experience via caching and content delivery network support. • Google Analytics for Wordpress Track your statistics to find ways to improve • Jetpack or DiggDigg Add social media sharing widget to make it easy for your visitors to share your content. • Disqus Comment System Make it easy for visitors to post comments to your blog.
  16. Content Management System • Fresh content brings the spiders back

    quicker. • Social Shares validate content. • Make it easy for SE’s to catalog your content. • Place keywords in your URL’s to increase relevance.
  17. Responsive Site Design • Better for visitors to browse your

    website from any device (Desktop Computer, Laptop, Tablet, Smart Phone) • Take mobile seriously! Quickly surpassing desktop traffic. • Ease of navigation is important.
  18. Responsive Site Design • Search engines prefer mobile friendly sites

    • Ease of navigation helps visitors find more content
  19. Attention to Detail • No broken links or images. •

    No misspellings or poor grammar. • Generate unique content.
  20. Attention to Detail • If you don’t care about your

    content why should Google • Duplicate content is not counted
  21. Craft Compelling Content • What is the point of driving

    traffic to your website your visitors do not find value from the content on your site. • Be consistent and realistic • Review analytics to check content performance
  22. Answer these questions: 1. What words would be used to

    refer to my brand? 2. What words would people use to request my product or service? 3. If my product/service is the answer, what is the question? 4. Who would ask the question?
  23. Keyword Exercise Branded Keywords (Company Name, Product Names, Trademarks, Executive

    Staff) BRAND/REPUTATION MANAGEMENT CUSTOMER SERVICE Setup alerts for these keywords. Industry (Product/Service) Keywords (Generic Product/Service Names) CUSTOMER ACQUISITION SEO Optimize and listen for these keywords Topical Keywords (Related to but not specific to a cause/service/product) CONTENT TOPICS CAMPAIGNS & HASHTAGS Create content around these keywords Customer/Lifestyle Keywords (Result of product/service or words which describe the consumer) CONTENT CURATION/ PARTNERSHIPS Identify content partners and build campaigns around.
  24. Watch the full video on how to conduct a keyword

    research exercise Find more information at http: //RobBertholf.com
  25. Craft Compelling Content • Time on site IS a ranking

    factor with search engines. • Inbound links increase your search ranking. • Google’s PANDA gives “Quality Score”
  26. Earned Links • Create compelling content ◦ Engaging content =

    Engaged visitors = Shares ◦ Earn inbound links by creating great content. • Originate content from your website/blog
  27. Social Shares (Links) • Place sharing widget/icons on your site

    • Share your content out to social networks • Encourage advocates to share your content (SurroundsMe)
  28. Share your content • Social Signals are largely weighted. •

    Without social validation, traditional link building will fall flat.
  29. HTML: The Language of the Web Markup language which your

    web browser (Chrome, Safari, Firefox, etc.) converts to what we see as a website.
  30. On-Page Tips • Optimize page titles using your primary keyword

    of the page • Use a variation of the keyword in the heading • Pay attention to your websites path, consider using a keyword (do not go overboard and get spammy)
  31. Watch the full video on what On-Page factors are important

    for SEO Learn more HTML & On-Page SEO tips at http://RobBertholf.com
  32. Link Building Tips • Unlearn what you know about SEO

    • Natural mix of Branded and Non-Branded anchor text • Stay away from Blog Rolls, Low-Quality Directories, anything spammy.
  33. Types of Inbound Links • Earned. Inbound links attracted by

    generating quality content. • Social. Not technically a link, but social shares on Facebook, LinkedIn or Twitter can influence search rankings. • Owned. Links from other websites of yours, from social profiles etc. • Requested. Manually reaching out to bloggers, publishers or webmasters asking them to link to your site. (Caution!)
  34. Owned Links • In Google+, list all your websites you

    contribute to • From your site link out to all of your social networks, ensure they link back to your site • Claim Tumblr, Wordpress.com, etc.
  35. Recommendations = Inbound Links Personal Website Business Website Directory: Yelp,

    FindLaw & TripAdvisor Microsite Guest Blogging News & Press Release
  36. Requested Links • Identify influencers, share their content and ask

    them to share yours. • Establish relationships with relevant reputable bloggers • Social Advocacy tools: Surrounds.Me
  37. Takeaways • Holistic marketing efforts • Less focus on rank,

    more focus on traffic source & conversion. • Setup goal tracking and trace lead sources. • Improve content performance through analytics. Identify pages with high exit ratio or other factors resulting in poor performance.
  38. Google Webmaster Guidelines Google wants your website to be better.

    Learn from their Webmaster Guidelines http://support. google.com/webmasters/bin/ answer.py?hl=en&answer=35769