Wikipedia has decided to block all of its content from users for the next 24 hours to make a statement to Congress, but at what cost? Is it really worth Wikipedia taking a chance at being penalized by Google or do they know something that we don't? (they do.)
Any good SEO will tell you that if you cloak content on a page, Google will not only "slap" you, but furthermore, your site is in jeopardy of not fully recovering all of its rankings even after you fix the cloaking issue.
It appears, however, that not only will Wikipedia not be penalized, but Google feels the same way Wikipedia does -- and even supports Wikipedia's cause (because it will have a direct negative impact on Google's own business as well).
The bottom line: this Wikipedia situation is yet another example of Google playing favorites and accommodating certain websites (aka its "white-list"). I challenge people to do a test the same exact way as Wikipedia did for 24 hours and see what happens to their rankings and traffic. We all know what will happen to us, and we all know it won't happen to Wikipedia.
Update: Google is accommodating Wikipedia to help support their cause...doesn't that mean that they are manually favoring websites?
In the wake of the economic downturn retailers are looking for new ways to cut costs without compromising quality. Though the economy is slowly improving consumers are still being thrifty with their spending and finding substitutions for luxury goods or forgoing them altogether. With competition between businesses higher than ever, retailers are utilizing digital marketing and training strategies to increase revenue, visibility, and employee productivity without drastically increasing costs.
The internet has become an invaluable tool in promoting both large and small businesses. In an effort to improve visibility and spread knowledge about their products retailers are utilizing SEO strategies to strengthen their online presence. Consumers are becoming savvier and looking for companies they can trust, and ranking highly in search results on reputable search engines such as Google helps to set a wary customer’s mind at ease. By optimizing their websites businesses are able to reassure existing customers and recruit new ones at the same time. By investing in SEO retailers can greatly improve their company visibility and revenue for just a small cost.
Retailers can also improve their online visibility and increase their customer base by using business video production firms for online marketing. Video marketing gives businesses a platform to reach new customers and educate them on the services and products they offer. Business video production allows customers to learn about the products and ...
In this week’s Highly Relevant SEO audit series, we’re going to help out SamAsh.com. SamAsh.com is a great resource for all kinds of music gear, but their website has got a couple wrong notes here and there.
In order to get them back to shredding at maximum potential, they should consider making some of these changes. Then they’ll be record label certified instead of your neighborhood garage band.
Problem 1: Images above text on product pages.
How to fix Problem 1: Text links should appear above the images because Google only counts the first link that it sees, and the text links pass more strength and relevance than pictures. Therefore, the text links on the product pages should be moved above the images.
Problem 2: Sitemap only shows zipped versions.
How to fix Problem 2: Currently, there is no XML sitemap on SamAsh.com; only the zipped versions appear. SamAsh.com’s webmaster should create both XML and zipped versions of the sitemap (as well as submit them both to the search engines).
Problem 3. Lackluster 404 page.
How to fix Problem 3: The 404 page is a dead end. A good 404 page should provide a search functionality and useful links to encourage customers to return to the store.
Problem 4: Dynamic URLs in subcategory pages.
How to fix Problem 4: These pages should have static, keyword-rich URLs and content on the page. Including these keyword-rich ...
In the third installment of our SEO audit series, we’re going to help out UnderArmour.com. Apparently “Protecting This House” doesn’t include optimizing their website, but luckily we’re here to help. They definitely got it going on the turf and on the court, but the juggernauts of the performance apparel market could stand to step up their game in the digital realm.
We’re not trying to sweat you, Under Armour, but we too are all about performance. Take a peek at some ideas we had for them to take their SEO game to the next level.
Problem 1: JavaScript Dropdown Menus.
How to fix Problem 1: UnderArmor.com’s dropdown menus are created with Javascript. While search engines can crawl Javascript, it is unknown how much link juice is passed through the links. Therefore, it is not recommended that sites use it for their global navigation. We strongly recommend HTML and CSS navigation.
Problem 2: Lack of keyword-rich content.
How to fix Problem 2: The home page and all major category pages should have keyword-rich content that is accessible to the search engines and helpful to customers.
Problem 3: Cannot locate the sitemap.
How to fix Problem 3: The page http://www.underarmour.com/sitemap.xml exists, however, no sitemap loads when you go that URL. We recommend implementing a sitemap that will actually load.
Problem 4: No Custom 404 Page.
How to fix Problem 4: All 404 errors return customers to ...
In this week's SEO audit series, we’re going to help out DicksSportingGoods.com.
Here are five SEO problems that DicksSportingGoods.com is currently facing, and our recommended solutions.
Problem 1: The site has multiple home page URLs.
How to fix Problem 1: Redirect all of the duplicate homepage URLs to the root URL:
http://www.dickssportinggoods.com/
Problem 2: Many of the URLs are dynamic and are amongst the most non-SEO friendly URLs that we’ve ever seen. Here is an example:
http://www.dickssportinggoods.com/category/index.jsp;jsessionid=QhfGTyGB0qZ5t4v8FWl7d7jHGVkJg5LySYTlbjjp2xcXv2RQn04C!1820288686?
ab=TopNav_Footwear&categoryId=4413987
(Imagine having to read that URL to someone.)
How to fix Problem 2: Update the URLs accordingly. Here is an example of what the above URL could look like: http://www.dickssportinggoods.com/category/footware
Problem 3: The category pages have no content on them, which is holding them back from an SEO perspective.
How to fix Problem 3: Add unique, relevant content to the category pages and add internal links to the most important sub-categories or products.
Problem 4: Not using H1 tags.
How to fix Problem 4: Adding H1 tags to the home page, internal category pages, and product pages is an SEO must-have.
Problem 5: There currently is no alt text on the logo and no title on the logo url
How to fix Problem 5: Add alt text to logo like this:
alt="Dick's Sporting Goods"
Search Engine Optimization has been an integral part of online marketing since the mid '90’s, and due to its constantly shifting nature, there is never a shortage of sites that we think could use a little help. So we’ve decided to start an understated, fun weekly SEO audit series here on the Highly Relevant blog.
Every Thursday, we’ll publish a post about a specific, high-profile website and identify five opportunities where that particular website can improve its SEO. (If you
have any websites that you’d like for us to assess, please e-mail us at info@highlyrelevant.com.)
Not only will we point out five specific challenges that the website is having from an SEO perspective, but we’ll also make recommendations on how these issues can be corrected. We’re solutions-oriented at Highly Relevant :)
Being big football fans, and since we’re right in the middle of football season, the first website that we’ll be “tackling” is NFL.com.
Here are five SEO problems that NFL.com currently faces along with recommended solutions:
Penalty 1:
Many of the URLs are dynamic or contain non-SEO-friendly characters (e.g. question marks and equal signs). Here is an example: http://www.nfl.com/teams/pittsburghsteelers/profile?team=PIT
How to fix Problem 1: Re-write the URLs and ensure that all of the URLs have SEO-friendly characters. This is what the above URL should look like: http://www.nfl.com/teams/pittsburghsteelers/PIT.
Notice that this new URL doesn’t have any non SEO-friendly characters in it.
Penalty 2: Many of ...
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