How to Improve Local SEO Efforts

Optimizing a website for local search is important for a few reasons. First, the number of smart phone and tablet users is on the rise meaning that a larger percentage of searches are being performed “on the go”. Mobile web searchers are often looking for local information and local establishments. Second, search is becoming more personalized and search results vary depending on individual search behavior, social media connections, and location. Therefore, it’s important to consider the following local SEO best practices while conducting an SEO campaign:

Incorporate Local Keywords
The first step of an SEO campaign is to conduct keyword research to find out how target audience members are searching for the products or services that you provide. Skipping this step can result in less traffic or less qualified traffic that won’t convert. Keyword research should first be conducted nationally, and then localized later by adding the city or town, state, and neighborhood in front of the chosen keyword. For example, for a local pizza shop it makes more sense to optimize for “Anytown NY pizza place” than it does to target the much more broad “pizza place”.

Develop Local Search Profiles
You don’t need to be a business that only operates locally to create a local search profile. In fact, all businesses should submit their information to Google, Yahoo!, and Bing local directories. It improves search engine results page visibility, increases your online real estate, and builds another legitimate inbound link to your website.

Include Contact Information
Contact information including a physical address, a mailing address, and a phone number should be included on every page of the site and should be crawlable text that the search engine spiders can “read”. For many websites it makes sense to include this information in the footer.

Optimize Social Profiles
Just as you would optimize your website for local keywords, it’s important to do the same to your social media pages. Optimize the title of the page using a local keyword and include local terms in the bio sections as well as in post content whenever it makes sense to do so.

Make Sure Your Website is Mobile Friendly
What’s the point of optimizing your site for local search from mobile devices if your site can’t be viewed on a mobile device? You can’t assume that a visitor will return to your site at a later time on a desktop. In fact, it’s doubtful that that will happen. They will simply go to your competitor’s site and do business with them instead.

Source----- http://isedb.com/20111230-16168.php

Search & Mobile Marketing Trends: SEO Apocalypse 2012

This has been a year where search marketing truly matured. Mobile became one of the largest growth components, with its share of the overall search market now reaching 20 percent.

Looking ahead, expect 2012 to be the year when we push further into the Mobile Semantic Web 3.0, which presents opportunities that will drastically change SEO as we know it.

There will be “Four Horsemen” of an SEO apocalypse in 2012 and they will all be carrying a mobile device.

1. QR Codes

Quick Response or QR codes in 2012 will be near ubiquitous both online and offline in the U.S. to easily send people with mobile devices to online destinations.

QR codes are increasingly being used on billboards and various signage as nearly 50 percent of U.S. mobile users have a smartphone. Mobile devices themselves are ubiquitous with their users and are used often in tandem with using other media, such as magazines and television.

I envision these pixelized matrix barcodes present in the corner of all televised programs, especially news. Viewers will then be able to receive and share the latest updates on that televised news or programming with their mobile devices online. Television use will also be the medium which will explain how to use QR codes as its being used, so it takes hold in the mainstream understanding.

Ultimately, QR codes will then replace or be in tandem to URLs on all offline advertising and even online. This will cause search engines to rely less on text links and factor in interest from QR code use. Google and Bing can directly acquire this information from mobile users on their operating systems, Android and Windows Phone 7, respectively.

2. Voice

There will be reduced dependency on text for search and logins in 2012, especially on mobile devices.

Voice actions on Android and recently Siri on the iPhone have provided users a more direct way of getting answers and producing actions on their mobile devices. Just as Google used its free 411 service to build the database for voice actions, I feel it will, in turn, use the database from voice actions as a free/paid service to business users for logins and purchasing online by just using your voice.

Another means of logging in for mobile users will be touch-friendly image combinations that can also be used to refine certain search results. Voice capabilities at times avoid the need for search engines and/or present the need to change search tactics.

3. Fragmentation

Search will be further fragmented in 2012 as mobile search is itself already fragmented by device-type to encompass feature phones, smartphones and tablets – with each offering different results not only between one another, but also with desktops.

The current landscape of mobile search to desktop is outlined with data and action items in a recently published Covario mobile SEO white paper. I envision that the search results of the three mobile types, as well desktop, will differ even more in 2012, as consumers’ ultimate search intentions and actions are different based on the device they are using.

A segmented search approach is needed, especially in mobile, as sites will need to be properly designed for each device type and optimized for the device user’s intent.

4. Personalization

There will be further personalization in 2012 search results as Google – with its secure login, Google+ and Android -- know what you're searching for, where you are when you search, what you like, and who your friends and influencers are.

“The perfect search engine would understand exactly what you mean and give back exactly what you want,” according to Google CEO Larry Page. Generalized search tactics become even murkier as results become so individualized to time, place, preference, and personal social trends.

Source----     

http://searchenginewatch.com/article/2133514/Search-Mobile-Marketing-Trends-      SEO-Apocalypse-2012

What Is Seo-How Can You Do Effective Marketing Through It

SEO refers to search engine optimization. It has evolved in the virtual world as an independent domain. The main function of seo is to examine the working of algorithms and the things that people search over the Internet. This is done to increase the relevance of a website. If you wish to make your website or blog effective then it should contain seo-rich content that would make it appear at the top of any search engine. You can make your business successful online through seo-rich content at your blog or website. You also need to keep your data updated to make it more relevant. Apart from being very cost effective, this marketing strategy can certainly enable you to promote your company in the best possible way. All you need to know is what is seo?Users browse the net for some information. Informative blogs or websites serves a double purpose as they attract the end users by providing their desired information which then slowly leads the user to their services or products.

Need to know more regarding what is seo and why is it so relevant for a website? There is no doubt to the fact that without making your business online you can’t run your business effectively. If you ignore this marketing strategy then you might be ending your business. This is because your customers may need to approach you online and if they are unable to find your services there then they can prioritize some other company which has presented its business attractively online. A popular study has also shown that almost 85% of people use search engines over the Internet for information or for buying any product. Now, due to huge traffic on these search engines you need to make your company’s website appear among the top 20 links on any search engine. In this way only you can gain success in online marketing.While you are seeking an answer to the question what is seo, you need to learn about blogging too. Blog is also a sort of website that contains entries in a chronological order.

Typically, individuals create these blogs for expressing their ideas and thoughts by combining certain images, links and text to their blog. However, the increase in its popularity has driven a lot of people towards blogging. As a result, most companies also consider blogs as a helpful medium for promoting their business as it attracts a large number of audience. Such blogs provide information on different topics that are indirectly related to the services and products of the company too. However, the content of the blog should be seo-rich and updated frequently. Blogs prove to be the best tools for boosting visibility on different search engines.Hence, after learning what is seo, all you need to do is to move towards online marketing and make your business global by reaching millions of customers at a time. The virtual world has made it easier to earn money as it proves to be a very effective marketing tool online. If your website or blog contains relevant information and is optimized to attract your target audience then your business will develop extensively online.

Source----  http://articles.kanpurvision.com/article-story/2518/what-is-seo-how-can-you-do-effective-     marketing-through-it.html

Surprise hit Pinterest a top 10 most-trafficked social network

Move over Google+ and Tumblr, there’s a new star in social media town. Pinterest, a Palo Alto-based startup, is quietly becoming one of the most-trafficked social networking sites on the web.

The still-invite-only, one year-old digital pin-board site attracted nearly 11 million visitors in the week ending December 17, according to data intelligence company Hitwise. Hitwise counts Pinterest as one of the top 10 websites in the social networking and forums category.

For those without an invite (you can get one from a friend), Pinterest lets users virtually “pin” products and items they find across the web to their own themed pin boards. It’s a way to collect recipes, home decorating ideas or share your personal style with friends. It’s inherently social in nature, so you can browse friends’ pins and boards, and re-pin your favorite items to your own pin boards.

The site is most popular with females and arts and crafts enthusiasts between the ages of 25 and 44, and its user base is anything but typical — at least for a social network. “Pinterest over-indexes on visits from the states in the Northwest and Southeast,” said Heather Dougherty, research director at Hitwise. “This data indicates that Pinterest visitors have a different profile versus their counterparts visiting other social networking sites such as Facebook and YouTube.”

Pinterest is experiencing the type of hockey-stick growth startup dreams are made of — and that’s without really trying. Pinterest, reports Hitwise, now sees 40 times the number of total visitors it did just six months ago. In fact, Pinterest saw 31,788,893 visitors in November, according to Hitwsie data shared with VentureBeat. Better still, that figure puts the site ahead of Google+ (31,748,905) and Tumblr (25,716,031) in terms of monthly web visitors.

Pinterest may be the sleeper hit of the year, but investors are certainly awake to its potential. The startup has raised more than $37 million in funding from a who’s who list of venture capitalists, including Andreessen Horowitz, Bessemer Venture Partners, Ron Conway, Max Levchin and Michael Birch.

 

Source--- http://venturebeat.com/2011/12/22/pinterest/

How To: Increase Your Klout Score Through “Engagement”

Klout measures your online influence from your social networks and if you’re big into social media, it can be extremely frustrating to watch it rise and fall.

Through their own website, Klout is always offering up ways to Better Understand Your Klout Score, however many are still left asking question after question;  Is it better to tweet often? Should I be liking status updates or just a few?  If so and so replies to me on Twitter, will that make my score rise?

While we still try to decipher what exactly helps your @Klout score, I’ve found one sure fire way…

announced my engagement on Facebook late Friday Night and within 24 hours I had received nearly 170 Likes & Comments on the initial status update, another 100 on a subsequent photo related to the engagement, and not to mention countless wall posts.

The result on Monday? A 3 point rise in my Klout score!

 Now I just have to figure out how to top an engagement so I can maintain my score!  Perhaps my fiancée will let me stream our wedding live? =)

In the end, you probably shouldn’t get engaged just to increase your Klout score, but you should think about sharing more of of your “real life” accomplishments with your social networks.  After all, they are your friends and family (esp. on Facebook) who really do care about you as a person and not your “social influence”.

SOURCE----http://www.business2community.com/social-media/how-to-increase-your-klout-score-through-engagement-0110808

The New Role of Social Media in Public Relations & Online SEO Services

Public relations professionals may be skilled at crafting press releases, but when it comes to social media, many are navigating uncharted waters. Social media is no longer just a way for friends and family to interact and share photos.  Today social media is at the heart of companies' public relations and marketing initiatives.

So what does an integrated public relations and social media campaign look like? For many businesses it starts with simply developing profiles and pages on relevant networking sites. The relevancy of sites like Twitter, Facebook, MySpace or LinkedIn will be determined by examining a companies best customers, then selecting only social networking sites where these customers reside. For example, if a company does not deal with music or entertainment then MySpace should not be utilized as a business building tool.

Once relevant networks are determined and profiles filled out completely with links back to the company website, photos and logos, contact information and more, then public relations and social media can begin their journey together. A smart move in making social networks known is to put links from the homepage of your website and in all employees email signatures to the newly created networks. Public relations agencies will want to ensure that not only online marketing mentions the social networks, but that print collateral like fliers, business cards and advertising also points people to the companies social media profiles.

What drives social media is two fold – original content and interaction with connections. Original content can come in the form of blog entries, press releases, photos or surveys. When public relations agencies craft blogs and press releases for use on social media channels, writing the headline may be the most important piece. Headlines should be less than 140 characters so they can be shared as a status update and contain the topic of the article along with keywords. It is this original content that will draw in connections and foster interaction within the social communities.

In addition to its use for connecting with potential customers, social media can also be used in public relations for connecting with media outlets. Many trade publications, magazines and bloggers run Twitter accounts or Facebook pages for their news source. As a company utilizing social media in public relations, these news sources should be connected with. Once connections are established, do not immediately pitch a source on a story about your company. Instead take time to build a relationship and allow the new source to view you as a resource for future stories. Most magazines and trade publications know in advance what stories they plan to write so feel free to ask if they plan on covering any topics your business falls in to, then offer to contribute.

Public relations and social media will continue to become more intertwined as marketing categories as time progresses. Public relations agencies must adapt to social media trends and learn how to harness the power of social networking to stay competitive.

SOURCE--- /PRNewswire-iReach/

Top 20 SEO Jobs Salaries in Market

 

Sometimes finding your dream job is like an Easter egg hunt: It’s not only how you look for jobs, but also where you look for them. It seems like common sense, but in order to hedge your bets and ultimately nab a high-profile gig, it’s all about location, location, location.

This handy map, researched and developed by Onward Search ranks the cities where SEO (Search Engine Optimization) positions are most clustered and breaks down average salary ranges by rank, from entry-level to the big boss. It’s unsurprising that the mantle for most available SEO gigs is New York City (with L.A. and San Francisco hot on its heels), but smaller markets like Atlanta are also willing to pay comparable salaries for top-notch talent.

Are you hungry for a position in the SEO world? Check out the infographic below to find the prime locales for getting your feet wet (or a leg up) in the job of your dreams.

Source---->startbharat.com

Marketers want more SEO and social metrics in 2012

While 47 percent of businesses using email marketing say they do not struggle to measure the results of their campaigns, just 24 percent and 26 percent of the same companies report the ability to gauge the value of SEO and social media marketing campaigns, respectively, according to a report released by Ifbyphone.
The three channels are among the most popular for web marketers, but it can be difficult to tell when a campaign is successful. Some metrics, such as improved traffic and lower bounce rates, do not impress decision makers. However, if these figures are improving as web leads and conversions grow, the correlation between web sales and search and social campaigns is worth exploring.
“We need to determine the root cause behind this sentiment, and whether it’s a lack of education in best practices, or rather a gap in leadership and mentoring,” Irv Shapiro, CEO of Ifbyphone, said in a release from the company. “Businesses can only get better at marketing if they are held accountable for improving upon what didn’t work in the past.”
For companies in this position, using web analytics tools can help provide insight and inform strategic decisions regarding these campaigns.
While Google’s web analytics tools include detailed information on site activity and key search and social traffic sources, the company recently announced that it is working to develop a social media marketing service to measure off-site interactions, Brafton reported. Google+ and Digg are just some of the platforms already integrated, but major social marketing platforms, such as Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn, were not included in the release.

Source----Brafton News

What You Need to Know About Your Klout

When I first signed on to Klout, I expected the experience to measure social media much like Alexa measures website hits--that is, not well. It was hard to believe that an algorithm could accurately gauge the use of Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, and other social media tools. For a while there it looked like the only people using Klout were geeks and social media mavens. But what geeks deem to be awesome usually ends up in the mainstream over time, and Klout is definitely geek awesome.

How Klout Measures Your Social Media Influence

Your Klout score is based on three major ranking factors. True Reach is the number of people who act on and share your content, with spam and bots removed from the equation. Amplification is a measure of how likely people are to act upon your shared content. Network gives you marks for having top influencers in your circle; if they share your content, your Klout score goes up.

Which Social Networks Should You Link to Klout?

Your Klout score will suffer if you link a social network that you aren’t particularly active on. If you are measuring social media accounts for a business, don’t include your Facebook page if it isn’t that active. I have found that Klout is most effective for measuring Twitter usage; it will tell you if you need to engage more with your audience instead of just posting links, or if you need to increase your network. Klout specifically says that it doesn't decrease your score for adding inactive social networks, but why measure something you aren’t using and take the chance?

What Should You Be Measuring?

You should set out to be influential in topics that have to do with your business. If you are an accountant, you’ll want to be influential about money, accounting and any other topics related to your particular practice area. If you are a web designer, being influential about web design is a good goal. These goals are quite reachable with Klout, and you will be able to review your influential Klout Topics from your dashboard. You don’t even have to use hashtags on Twitter like #accounting to get there. Just post related content and Klout will pick it up. If you are influential in your target topics while increasing your Klout score, your business is doing social media right.

How Klout Measures Your Social Media Influence

Your Klout score is based on three major ranking factors. True Reach is the number of people who act on and share your content, with spam and bots removed from the equation. Amplification is a measure of how likely people are to act upon your shared content. Network gives you marks for having top influencers in your circle; if they share your content, your Klout score goes up.

Which Social Networks Should You Link to Klout?

Your Klout score will suffer if you link a social network that you aren’t particularly active on. If you are measuring social media accounts for a business, don’t include your Facebook page if it isn’t that active. I have found that Klout is most effective for measuring Twitter usage; it will tell you if you need to engage more with your audience instead of just posting links, or if you need to increase your network. Klout specifically says that it doesn't decrease your score for adding inactive social networks, but why measure something you aren’t using and take the chance?

What Should You Be Measuring?

You should set out to be influential in topics that have to do with your business. If you are an accountant, you’ll want to be influential about money, accounting and any other topics related to your particular practice area. If you are a web designer, being influential about web design is a good goal. These goals are quite reachable with Klout, and you will be able to review your influential Klout Topics from your dashboard. You don’t even have to use hashtags on Twitter like #accounting to get there. Just post related content and Klout will pick it up. If you are influential in your target topics while increasing your Klout score, your business is doing social media right.

How Can You Increase Your Klout Score?

Klout tells you exactly how to increase your Klout score when you use it. When you go to your dashboard, you’ll see at the top how much your score has increased or decreased. In this space you’ll also see why it increased or decreased, which can allow you to take appropriate action. My Klout score has gone down recently because my Amplification isn’t that great, which means I need to post better content that gets reposted. I also haven’t been as active on Facebook lately, which has decreased my influence there.

Can Klout Be Gamed?

This was the foremost question in my mind when I signed up for Klout, and the thing that made me wonder if it was going to be viable as a measure of true quality. I haven’t seen anything yet that has shown me that Klout can be gamed. People who have somehow acquired spammy amounts of Twitter followers without being celebrities have about the same Klout score as I do, if not lower. That’s usually a good quality sign, since people with bloated follower lists will usually try to game something like Klout if it is possible to do so. This is likely because Klout makes it exponentially harder to increase your Klout score the higher it rises. According to the company, going from 70 to 75 is much more difficult than going from 20 to 25.

Klout Perks Make It Fun

The big draw to using Klout are the Perks--promotions companies run in conjunction with Klout to give away their products or offer them at reduced prices to influencers in certain topic areas. Some, like mini business cards offered for the shipping cost of under ten dollars, are useful for small businesses. Others, like free energy drinks, are just fun. Major brands like Audi and Disney are using Perks to spread brand awareness.
Klout’s selling point for its Perks are that Klout is a true measurement of a person’s actual influence, and getting a product in the hands of select influencers can do nothing but good for the company that is buying the marketing. This is another important reason Klout cannot ever get a reputation for being gamed; it would lose its revenue source if companies didn’t trust that it was truly offering them key influencers.

Source---PCWORLD