Writing SEO Content for the Left Side of the Brain

As we've discussed, effective SEO content has to satisfy a number of specific criteria. It has to appeal to the humans who read it, and to the electronic robots that periodically scan it. Of course, those robots don't have human brains, so anyone who endeavours to write content must place the humans ahead of the robots. Both are looking for a certain degree of logic, and that's when the writing becomes challenging.

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Does your SEO company know how to write content for the left side of the brain? Engage the left side of your own brain as you read these pages:

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Watch Your Language in Front of Your Online Customers

Most people think English is English. Not so. There are many variations within the language including different phrases and spelling, depending on where in the world you are. The most discrepancies occur between the United States and Canada. That's because in Canada, we speak, read and write the Queen's English; in the U.S., they speak, read and write American English. To the untrained eye, the two languages look the same, but if you visit Web sites in both countries often enough, you're sure to notice subtle differences.

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Choose a Domain Name For Your Web Site That Makes Sense

What domain and web site made us scratch our heads?

Find out here -
http://www.cmsbuffet.com/Choose-a-Domain-Name-For-Your-Web-Site-That-Makes-Sense.php

How Shiree Pulled a J. C. Penney on Google

Google caught J. C. Penney cheating building links from UN related web sites to J. C. Penney web site.

Many SEO companies thought, and we are among them, that Google figured out how to catch this black hat SEO link building trick. We are sad to say, sites are doing the same and are very very successful. Building links UN related to your industry can still land you the biggest prize of all; Google link number 1.

http://www.cmsbuffet.com/How-Shiree-Pulled-a-J.-C.-Penney-on-Google.php

The Things Our Mothers Taught Us About Life and the Internet

In honour of Mother's Day, we'd like to share a little of mom's wisdom with a twist: it applies to our lives offline, and online.

Our mothers taught us patience: "Just wait until your father comes home..."

Black Hat SEO practices will get you into trouble; Once Google unearths your trickery, you are in TROUBLE!!

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Minimize Pay-Per-Click Expenses by Utilizing Negative Keywords

Driving quality traffic to your Web site is challenging enough without having to worry about pay-per-click expenses getting out of control. A simple, additional step in your keyword research can further narrow down your target audience and prevent ancillary users who are not searching for your particular product or service from landing on your site. Google AdWords Negative Keyword function can help drive the qualified leads to you, while avoiding draining your pay-per-click reserves.

Effective SEO practices should include blocking the keywords that are not relevant to your products or services. These might include the brand/product names sold by your competitors, and the services they provide which you may not. You should also block non-specific keywords that will drive users to your site who are not searching for a specific product or service. A good example of this would be users searching for a hotel in a specific city. If you own a hotel in Toronto, your keywords should include the word "hotel" plus your location. No one who is planning a trip to Toronto is going to be searching for hotels in New York. Therefore, the phrase "New York" should be added to your negative keyword list. Make your keyword choices as specific as possible and block all the ones that are too generic to keep users who are not looking for your particular services from landing on your site. Let them eat up someone else's pay-per-click budget.

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Focus on Quality Instead of Quantity to Keep Up Customer Interest

It's no secret that we are overwhelmed with so many choices. Everything from ordering coffee to buying a home is fraught with dozens of potential choices. Is it any wonder we're all walking around confused most of the time?

Everywhere we go, we seem to have limitless options. Wouldn't it be great if we knew what we wanted and had a few great options to pick from? A well edited selection of what we really need is a refreshing change from more than we can handle. If you're an e-commerce Web site owner, your main goal is to give your customer what they want without confusing them with too many options. Studies conducted over the past decade have shown that companies that have reduced their offerings have seen significant increases in sales. Not only are they cutting production costs, they're giving people what they want, without the confusion of having too many versions of an item to choose from.

Let's face it - not every retailer has the buying power to offer a product in every possible colour or size. Those that do have their customer base. Those who want to cater to a very specific clientele will offer higher quality products with less options. After all, you can't buy a "back-up" for everything. If you're making the investment in something special, be it a designer handbag, a car, or a spectacular piece of jewelery, you want to know you're getting the best. Even if your price point is on the lower end of the scale, you want to keep your customers focused.

Here are a few tips to help increase customer satisfaction:

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Beer Vendor Taking Orders From Fans On Twitter

The 36-year-old teacher who, for the past five seasons has served beer at Safeco Field, is ready to take orders from fans in the stands. Send a message to his Twitter address, @Msbeervendor, your seat and your order and he'll be there as soon as he can.

"Since the beginning of beer vendors, we've been walking up and down the aisles seeing who wants a beer, I'm going to try to change that," Zelko said.

Zelko says he normally sells about 80 beers during an average home game from the beginning of the game until the first pitch of 8th inning, when he has to stop. On those days he pulls in about $125. On weekends, he can sell more than 100 beers and pull in closer to $200 - even more if the Yankees are in town.

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Pull Out All the Stops to Enhance User Experience on an E-Commerce Web Site

We've all had it drummed into our heads that "content is king" when it comes to building an effective Web site. That will always be true, but in order to entice shoppers in an e-commerce arena. you need to have more than just great written content. Images and graphics are crucial, in order for the user to feel like he or she is viewing the product as if it were right in front of them.

It's no secret that e-commerce has become the preferred way to shop. A high-speed Internet connection and a credit card have given consumers unprecedented purchasing power. Why leave the house and deal with the crowds when you can just punch up whatever you need online? In most cases, there is no human interaction whatsoever; you order what you want, and that cute guy in the brown uniform delivers it a few days later. What could be easier?

The merchant still has to do his share to get his customers excited about the products he offers. The way to do that is to add the highest quality graphics to your site, regardless of load times or speed issues. When consumers can see exactly what they're getting, it gives them more confidence when they place that order. Of course, there are always going to be those major purchases you will make at "brick and mortar" locations, but today, even high-end items like jewelery, designer clothing and accessories are snapped up online if you install the best possible graphics that accurately depict the items.

to read the complete article http://www.cmsbuffet.com/Pull-Out-All-the-Stops-to-Enhance-User-Experience-on-an-E-Commerce-Web-Site.php

Official Google Blog: Hide sites to find more of what you want

Google Allows Blocking Complete Domains From Search Results

Foner Books - Another Victim of the Google Update

"They have a computer algorithm pick phrases that people are using in search engines that they believe will monetize well," Rosenthal continued. "Then they have their hordes of contract writers (not all of whom are evil) write a page around that key phrase using a simple, Step 1, Step 2, Step 3 formula. Some of the results are not awful, but most are a complete waste of time, and some provide advice that simply won't work because the writer, who is rewriting what they found on a website like mine, doesn't understand enough about the subject to even do a 1,2,3 summary. I used to just ignore eHow in the results and never gave it a thought, but around a year ago, a couple friends started complaining to me that Google kept sending them to this eHow place that just wasted their time."

http://www.cmsbuffet.com/Victims-of-the-Google-Update.php

J. C. Penney. Tricks Search Engines

With more than 1,100 stores and $17.8 billion in total revenue in 2010, Penney is certainly a major player in American retailing. But Google's stated goal is to sift through every corner of the Internet and find the most important, relevant Web sites.

The links do not bear any fingerprints, but nothing else about them was particularly subtle. Using an online tool called Open Site Explorer, Mr. Pierce found 2,015 pages with phrases like "casual dresses," "evening dresses," "little black dress" or "cocktail dress." Click on any of these phrases on any of these 2,015 pages, and you are bounced directly to the main page for dresses on JCPenney.com.

Some of the 2,015 pages are on sites related, at least nominally, to clothing. But most are not. The phrase "black dresses" and a Penney link were tacked to the bottom of a site called nuclear.engineeringaddict.com. "Evening dresses" appeared on a site called casino-focus.com. "Cocktail dresses" showed up on bulgariapropertyportal.com. "Casual dresses" was on a site called elistofbanks.com. "Semi-formal dresses" was pasted, rather incongruously, on usclettermen.org.

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Google Adwords February 2011 Change

As part of Google's effort to continuously improve Google's products, a system update will take place in February 2011 that will improve the overall quality of location targeting in AdWords. While this change will help make location targeting more accurate, certain location targets could experience a drop in impressions. The potential drop is due to improvements to our data which make targeting more precise.

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http://www.cmsbuffet.com/Google-Adwords-February-2011-Change.php

SEO Tips For Clinics and Doctors

Doctors and health care professionals need the Internet to establish a roster of patients, or to continually obtain new ones. It doesn't matter if you're a family doctor, a plastic surgeon, a dentist or a chiropractor. Having an online presence is the best way to spread the word about the types of treatments and services you offer, to the largest possible audience.

The Prescription for Health Care Professionals, Clinics and Doctors:

http://www.cmsbuffet.com/SEO-Tips-For-Clinics-and-Doctors.php

17 Steps to Legal Web Marketing

Law firms and attorneys in practice for themselves need to embrace technology by acquiring a strong Internet presence. Let prospective clients know exactly which type of law you practice, and encourage contact by offering complimentary consultations through your Web site.

http://www.cmsbuffet.com/Law-firms-and-Attorneys-Web-Marketing.php

Medical Information For the Taking

How many of us got into the habit of self-diagnosis when WebMD landed on our computer screens? Now, there are myriad ways to get information about all types of medical conditions on the Internet. It is still not recommended to self-diagnose, but you can obtain details about illnesses, diseases and other common ailments via the same mouse clicks that can find every type of good or service anywhere, any time.

Consumers have become experts at putting search engines to good use for just about anything. Gone are those "word of mouth" recommendations we all used to count on from friends and family. Now, that can include medical professionals as well. Internet users are turning to Social Media in addition to the search engines, for information about common forms of cancer, as well as more obscure illnesses and conditions. Medicine and health can be two of the most intimidating topics, and sometimes, we don't want to discuss them with our friends and family members. What we would rather do, is to find a "cure" for what ails us online. Medical marketing has become prominent, and many health professionals are turning to Social Media to inform the public about common medical and health topics. For example, many dentists now have Facebook pages in addition to their Web sites. Patients are invited to give testimonials on specific treatments, and YouTube videos are made to document amazing smile transformations. If you're looking to have more than just that cavity filled, there's a wealth of information about teeth whitening, porcelain veneers, dental implants - everything you need to know, and see, online. You can even try out the teeth of celebrities!

There's no doubt that the Web is now a source of reliable, medically vetted information. It's fun to play around with teeth and imagine ourselves with a completely different look, but we must remember to be responsible disseminators of information. Yes, that Web site and Social Media campaign are a sure-fire way to get people buzzing about exciting new treatments and technologies, but medical professionals must remember to be responsible.

When you hire a web designer, content writer or CMS professional to design your site and launch your Social Media campaign, make sure your information is truthful and accurate, and written in terms the average person can understand. Follow the lead of reliable information portals like WebMD, Yahoo Answers and ShareCare. Health, wellness and medical topics are important to millions of people, and the best way to get users to pay attention is to offer truthful, pertinent facts, written in simple, cogent language. A little SEO, never hurt, either; Google the terms relevant to the services you offer, and enlist the help of a professional to optimize your site, so it can realize its full potential.

Facebook Receives Validation from Hollywood

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If there were any doubts about the importance of Social Media in society, they were laid to rest on Sunday, with the Golden Globe Awards for Best Picture, Best Score, Best Screenplay, and Best Director, all awarded to "The Social Network". These are the latest indications that Social Media, like it or not, is here to stay.

As we speak, MySpace is laying off approximately half of its workforce, and rumours about the plug getting pulled on Facebook some time in March are causing apocalyptic waves of panic on the Internet. Fear not; Facebook is not going anywhere. If anything, the boost it will get from the publicity generated by its cinematic Doppelganger will increase its presence. With the Academy Awards nominations due to be announced in a few days, the buzz isn't even close to dying down.

What does all this mean for small businesses looking to increase their online profiles? You never know how far a little social interaction can get you. Building and maintaining a page on Facebook can increase your exposure, showcasing your brand to tens of millions of active Facebook users. Social Media goes where you go; the accessibility and affordability of smart phones allow users to text, Twitter and access Facebook from just about anywhere. Mobile web access is no longer a luxury, it is out there for the taking. The question no longer is, "how will people find me online? the question is "When?" Having a Web site is just part of the solution. Web sites must be supplemented by a Social Media platform in order to provide regular updates about products and services. The beauty of having a presence on a Social Media outlet is that it gives you the ability to have fun with your content. Inject some personality into your business, and it will surely get you noticed. The more active you are, the better your results will be.

Get on board with a Social Media game plan now. It's easier and more effective than you think.