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Blogging, Social Media Marketing & Linkbait
...the sort of people who have been doing “new”
SEO, or whatever you want to call it, that’s social
media optimization, link bait, things that are
interesting to people and attract word of mouth and
buzz, those sorts of sites naturally attract visitors,
attract repeat visitors, attract back links, attract lots
of discussion, those sorts of sites are going to
benefit as the world goes forward.
- Matt Cutts in an Interview from
Friday, March 2nd w/ Gord Hotchkiss
SES Munich 2007 | Linkbaiting, Social Search Marketing & Blogging
An Introduction to Blogging
Technical Topics
• Blog Software & Features
• Optimizing the Blog
Fun Topics
• Blog Content Strategies
• Blog Promotion & Marketing
SES Munich 2007 | Linkbaiting, Social Search Marketing & Blogging
Blog Software & Features
Blog Software & Features
How to Choose the Blog that’s Right for You.
SES Munich 2007 | Linkbaiting, Social Search Marketing & Blogging
Software vs. Custom-Built Blogs
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Choose Blog Software
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Easy Installation
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Handles Basic Functions
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Multiple Community Plugins to
Customize
Choose Custom-Build
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Allows for unique content serving
methods
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Easiest to customize specs & GUI
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Greatest flexibility for multiple uses
SES Munich 2007 | Linkbaiting, Social Search Marketing & Blogging
Publishing Considerations
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WYSWIG Editors
Website Look & Feel
Delayed Publishing
Static Pages
Navigation Options
Archiving System
Comment Options
 Anonymous Comments
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Moderated Comments
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Threaded Comments
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No Comments
SES Munich 2007 | Linkbaiting, Social Search Marketing & Blogging
Publishing Considerations
Serve the Users; Serve the Engines; Rule the World
SES Munich 2007 | Linkbaiting, Social Search Marketing & Blogging
Domain Use & Hosting
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Bad:
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company.blogspot.com
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companyblog.com
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blog.company.com
Good:
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company.com/blog/
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company.com/blog.html
Keep the blog as part of
the site for maximum
benefit
“Web 2.0” Companies like these
are inconsistent about domain
use, reducing their linkjuice and
ranking power
SES Munich 2007 | Linkbaiting, Social Search Marketing & Blogging
Keyword Research
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Step 1: Decide on a Topic
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Step 2: Write a Title
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Step 3: Run KW Research
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Step 4: Consider Re-writing title based on KW popularity
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Step 5: Write content to fit the title and your intent
NOTE: Sometimes it pays to write catchy titles and ignore
KW research – it's not necessary for every post
SES Munich 2007 | Linkbaiting, Social Search Marketing & Blogging
Title & Meta Tags in Blogs
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Blog titles should be reflected in the title tag
Compare stats on blog posts that receive heavy search
traffic and consider writing compelling meta descriptions
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Keep your brand name in your blog titles
SES Munich 2007 | Linkbaiting, Social Search Marketing & Blogging
Blog URLs
Worst to Best:
yourblog.com/post/entry.py?answer=42098&topic=8914
yourblog.com/post/entry.php?ID=42098
yourblog.com/post/entry/42098
yourblog.com/post/entry/writing_good_blog_titles.html
yourblog.com/writing-good-blog-titles
SES Munich 2007 | Linkbaiting, Social Search Marketing & Blogging
Leveraging Comments
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Comments = Free Content
For new blogs, turn off comments
– wait until you're popular
Reward frequent commenters
Offer incentives for comments
SES Munich 2007 | Linkbaiting, Social Search Marketing & Blogging
RSS Feeds
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Sidebar Feed Options
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Full Text VS. Partial Snippets
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Feedburner – Track Feed Usage
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Action Tracking – Measure
Signups
Offer multiple feed options on the
sidebar of your blog
SES Munich 2007 | Linkbaiting, Social Search Marketing & Blogging
Action Tracking Through Analytics
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Blog Actions to Track
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Feed Subscriptions
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Registration (to use
comments, create a
profile, etc.)
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Newsletter signups
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Ad clicks
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Browse Rate (number
of pages viewed per
user on average)
SES Munich 2007 | Linkbaiting, Social Search Marketing & Blogging
Blog Content Strategies
Blog Content Strategies
But, Rand… What am I Going to Write About?
SES Munich 2007 | Linkbaiting, Social Search Marketing & Blogging
Claiming a Unique Niche
More Popular Topics - More
Need for Differentiation
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Less Popular Topics Broader Focus is Desirable
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Niche coverage allows for
broadening, and general
coverage allows for specificity
– pursue both
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SES Munich 2007 | Linkbaiting, Social Search Marketing & Blogging
Embedding More Than Text
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Additional Content to include in blog posts
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Screenshots
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Photos
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Cartoons
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Logos
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Charts/Graphs
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Diagrams
A few of the images recently on the SEOmoz blog
SES Munich 2007 | Linkbaiting, Social Search Marketing & Blogging
Multimedia Content
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Videos (Youtube, Metacafe)
Interactive Elements (tools, search
boxes, polls)
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Audio Podcasts
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Flash Animations
SES Munich 2007 | Linkbaiting, Social Search Marketing & Blogging
Deliver on Expectations
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Create & Fulfill Expectations on:
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Post Frequency & Timing
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The Subject Matter of Posts
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News Events that Will be Covered
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Other Blogs Users Should Read
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Boundaries for Comments
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Frequency of Off-Topic Posts
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Level of Discourse & Language
SES Munich 2007 | Linkbaiting, Social Search Marketing & Blogging
Brand Your Blog
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Titling Blogs – Memorable, Descriptive
Use your brand in press, on other sites, in interviews,
presentations, networking, when you comment, etc.
Don't shill, and be aware of who/what you promote
SES Munich 2007 | Linkbaiting, Social Search Marketing & Blogging
Blog Promotion & Marketing
How to Bring Eyeballs to the Site
SES Munich 2007 | Linkbaiting, Social Search Marketing & Blogging
Community Participation
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Comment on Other Blogs
Build Relationships with
Other Bloggers
Participate in Memes, Polls,
Events, Promotions, etc.
Make Your Blog Interactive Let Users Suggest Topics &
Ask Questions
Some blog communties are
highly structured, others, less so.
SES Munich 2007 | Linkbaiting, Social Search Marketing & Blogging
Blogging Q+A
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Topics
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Blog Software & Features
 Optimizing the Blog
 Blog Content Strategies
 Blog Promotion & Marketing
More questions? Just ask [email protected]
SES Munich 2007 | Linkbaiting, Social Search Marketing & Blogging
Social Media Marketing
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Rule the SERPs
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Show the Community You're a Participant
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Control your Brand
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Build Traffic from Alternate Sources
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Get Link Love
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Influence Traditional Media
SES Munich 2007 | Linkbaiting, Social Search Marketing & Blogging
How Social Communities View SEO
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SEO = Perceived Spam
In fact, SEO helps these
communities to grow and
spread by creating content
and contributing
An SEO must be mindful
of the community and
respect the establishment
This Gentleman Pretty
Much Sums it Up
SES Munich 2007 | Linkbaiting, Social Search Marketing & Blogging
Control Your Brand Before Others Do
SES Munich 2007 | Linkbaiting, Social Search Marketing & Blogging
Build Link Popularity
SES Munich 2007 | Linkbaiting, Social Search Marketing & Blogging
Rule the SERPs
SES Munich 2007 | Linkbaiting, Social Search Marketing & Blogging
Creating Successful Profiles
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Use your website's name or a single person's name
from the website.
Create robust profiles – use a consistent photo and
take the time to create content at each site
Comment at and build relationships with other site
users – go for popular/well-linked-to pages on the site
for your comments/interaction, as these will give you
the most link weight
SES Munich 2007 | Linkbaiting, Social Search Marketing & Blogging
Sites to Target
www.seomoz.org/article/social-media-marketing-tactics
SES Munich 2007 | Linkbaiting, Social Search Marketing & Blogging
Social Media Marketing Q+A
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Topics
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How Social Communities View SEO
 Controlling Your Brand
 Building Link Popularity
 Ruling the SERPs
 Creating Successful Profiles
 Sites to Target
More questions? Just ask [email protected]
SES Munich 2007 | Linkbaiting, Social Search Marketing & Blogging
An Introduction to Linkbaiting
How to leverage the web's
most powerful linkers into
sending traffic, links &
higher rankings to your site.
SES Munich 2007 | Linkbaiting, Social Search Marketing & Blogging
What is Linkbait & Why is it Valuable?
SES Munich 2007 | Linkbaiting, Social Search Marketing & Blogging
Meet the Linkerati
SES Munich 2007 | Linkbaiting, Social Search Marketing & Blogging
Linkerati Dominate Linking on the Web
SES Munich 2007 | Linkbaiting, Social Search Marketing & Blogging
How Does Linkbait Help You Rank?
SES Munich 2007 | Linkbaiting, Social Search Marketing & Blogging
How Does Linkbait Help You Rank?
SES Munich 2007 | Linkbaiting, Social Search Marketing & Blogging
Samples of Successful Linkbait
Worst College Mascots
Article on Drivl.com
Launched via Digg Sports
 128,000 Pg Views
 2,000+ Referring Domains
 #4 for “College Mascots”
 200 New RSS Subs
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Make Fun of College Students;
Get Links.
SES Munich 2007 | Linkbaiting, Social Search Marketing & Blogging
Samples of Successful Linkbait
Celebrity Nudity Awards
on Drivl.com
Launched via GorillaMask
 100,000 Pg Views
 400+ Referring Domains
 #5 for “Nudity”
 250+ Searches/Day
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Naked Never Gets Old
SES Munich 2007 | Linkbaiting, Social Search Marketing & Blogging
Samples of Successful Linkbait
Launched on SEOmoz
 75,000 Pg Views
 250+ Referring Domains
 #1 for “Increase Blog Traffic”
 75+ Searches/Day
 Speaking Gig from Stanford
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21 Tactics to Increase
Blog Traffic
SES Munich 2007 | Linkbaiting, Social Search Marketing & Blogging
Samples of Successful Linkbait
Drug Identification Chart
Launched via Digg
 100,000 Pg Views
 300+ Referring Domains
 #1 for “Ilegal Drugs”
 500+ Searches/Day
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SES Munich 2007 | Linkbaiting, Social Search Marketing & Blogging
Content Strategies
Lists (best of, worst of)
 Lists of tips, how-tos, problems, benefits, resources
 Teaching resource (how to)
 Humor, Irony
 Controversy
 Interviews
 Breaking News
 Product Review
 Poll Results / Data Results
 Aesthetic Beauty
 Tools
 Comprehensive Reviews
 Great Insight
 Many, many more...
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SES Munich 2007 | Linkbaiting, Social Search Marketing & Blogging
Linkbait Launching Portals
CRITERIA:
 High Visibility
 Sends Big Traffic
 Right Demographics
 Potential to Go Viral
SES Munich 2007 | Linkbaiting, Social Search Marketing & Blogging
Digg.com
2mil+ Visits Daily
 Tech & Web Centric
 50-100 Votes Req'd
 10-30K visits avg
 1000+ Links per
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SES Munich 2007 | Linkbaiting, Social Search Marketing & Blogging
Reddit.com
500K Visits Daily
 Broad in Scope
 20-40 Votes Req'd
 4-10K visits avg
 600+ Links per
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SES Munich 2007 | Linkbaiting, Social Search Marketing & Blogging
Netscape.com
250K Visits Daily
 News Centric
 20-40 Votes Req'd
 4-8K visits avg
 300+ Links per
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SES Munich 2007 | Linkbaiting, Social Search Marketing & Blogging
Del.icio.us/Popular
1mil+ Visits Daily
 Developer Centric
 20-30 Votes Req'd
 2-6K visits avg
 250+ Links per
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SES Munich 2007 | Linkbaiting, Social Search Marketing & Blogging
StumbleUpon Toolbar
3Mil+ Users
 All Subjects
 70%+ Thumbs Up
 500-5,000 visits (cont.)
 25-250 links
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SES Munich 2007 | Linkbaiting, Social Search Marketing & Blogging
Popular Blogs & Sites (Editorial)
SES Munich 2007 | Linkbaiting, Social Search Marketing & Blogging
Rules for Linkbaiting Safely
IP Tracking
 Geography
 Groups
 Profile Identification
 Spam Submissions
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SES Munich 2007 | Linkbaiting, Social Search Marketing & Blogging
Linkbaiting Q+A
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Topics
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How Linkbait Can Help Websites Rank
 Identifying the “Linkerati”
 Link-Worthy Content
 Linkbait Launch Portals
 Linkbaiting Safely
More questions? Just ask [email protected]
SES Munich 2007 | Linkbaiting, Social Search Marketing & Blogging