Linking out sometimes gets the short shrift to conserve PageRank to internal links. But linking out can give your web page something that is important to the search engines. The appearance of a page’s quality, credibility and salience.

Two quotes that back up this claim:

“In the same way that Google trusts sites less when they link to spammy sites or bad neighborhoods, parts of our system encourage links to good sites.”  – Matt Cutts

“Writing descriptive anchor text, the clickable words in a link, is a useful signal to help search engines and users alike to better understand your content.” – Maile Ohye

So, in much the same way that the PageRank algorithm found it useful to score target pages from anchor text, the text in the  anchor text quite frequently relates to the description of the page content and is used to gather information about that page. More specifically, the anchor text is used in improving page categorization or classification of a page.

Is linking out a ranking factor? Some seo’s suggest it does not influence rankings. Others say yes.

But it appears that Google is giving the anchor text more credence than just the regular text in the content and not just for the pages that they link to.

In my opinion, web-page classification has become more sophisticated and faster since Panda.  Panda has improved the accuracy of  classifiers that use both anchor text and content on the page.

This applies to both internal and external links and influences the  co-training algorithm.

As a result, you may want to follow a few do’s and dont’s:

Do’s:

• Do create descriptive text links that are related to the page category
• Do link to pages of high authority on related topics with your keyphrases in the anchor text
• Do surround the text link with normal language

Don’ts:

• Don’t link out using a large number of unrelated links
• Don’t repeat the exact same keywords in the text links (use Google Sets instead)
• Don’t link out to a page that looks spammy

No one likes spam. I for one dislike spammy blog comments the most. Unfortunately, in the blogging world, spam constitutes a large chunk of total comments and can be a major pain. As a Web Marketing Analyst/Consultant and blogger, I try to use comments for good and not evil. When used correctly, blog comments are a way to build relationships, exchange ideas, share links, and aid SEO. Sadly, all those spam comments make it difficult to be seen and heard out there. Many bloggers use spam filters and/or delete any comment containing a link. So for those of you wanting to reap the benefits of blog comments as a link-building tool or a relationship builder here are some simple Do’s and Don’ts.

DO

Keep it short. Paragraphs of text scream spam. (…and paragraphs of gibberish scream even louder.) Keep your comments brief and easy to understand. You want others to be able to quickly understand your message and respond to it.  A few sentences should do the job.

Get personal. Show the author you actually read the post. Explain why you agreed with them or like what they have to say. A lot of times comments saying things like “I love this post.” or “Great topic.” can be considered spam and bloggers feel like the comment is purely trying to leave a link since your comment often allows your name to link to your site.

Play nice. Offensive comments are never appropriate. It seems like an obvious suggestion but keeping your words civil and constructive instead of rude and aggressive contribute to the conversation instead of destroying it. It’s also a major reason for comment deletion.

DON’T

Don’t be useless. One-word comments or unrelated comments do not add anything to a blog discussion. It leads blog owners to believe your comment is spam and many times it will be deleted. Show that you have actually read the post you are commenting on and try to add some value. Your comment will have a greater chance of sticking and generating interest.

Don’t go link crazy. First, many blog sites allow your name to be a link so try not to duplicate that ink within your comment if this is true. Use your comment text to post useful information instead. If you must include a link within your comment, make sure it is specific and relevant to the post or discussion. An explanation of why your link is relevant is also helpful. Too many irrelevant links are a huge red flag and do your link building efforts no good.

Don’t wear out your welcome. Try not to comment multiple times on the same blog post or on every post. This strategy may get your name out there but it will quickly be received as bothersome and obvious. Spread your presence across multiple blogs and don’t force yourself into the spotlight.

Do not mess with me before my coffee.

All Hallow’s Eve is upon us. In that vein, let’s take a look at some SEO tactics with a Halloween twist. That makes this blog post dangerous – it’s topical. By November 1, it will be stale and you will probably stop reading about right…here. But I still have 6 to 7 day shelf life upon posting, so I am going to run with this anyways. The following is a list of treats (dos) and tricks (don’ts) to take into account when you are looking to optimize your traffic for search engine traffic.

Trick – Doorway Pages. You’ve seen them – pages that are optimized for loosely related keywords with the sole intention of directing you back to a different domain. Search engines hate them, once they have caught on. While you may get away with doorways and see a traffic spike for a bit, any gains generated are usually quickly lost in the high bounce and poor conversion rates that come from users who don’t like to be jerked around from site to site. Most people are clicking out as soon as they see the domain change. Your competitors are likely reporting you to Google as soon as they find out.

Treat – Optimizing your main domain for the most relevant keywords. Give the users what they want. Your site specializes in something, that’s why you built it. Make sure that the site is optimized for people who are looking in that specialty. I’ll bet bottom dollar that you are not ranking #1 for every key phrase related to your product. Win those phrases before you even think about venturing into unrelated terms.

Trick – Keyword stuffing to the Nth Degree. You’ve built your site and now you are ready to start optimizing for traffic. You’ve got a list of 250 keywords that you start stuffing into every title tag, meta description, alt tag, and content block you can find. I’m sorry, but that’s just not going to work. Not only are you going to (likely) hurt the user experience through over-stuffing, but you are also going dilute the value of your core keywords to the search engines. Optimizing for everything will have similar results to optimizing for nothing.

Treat – Focusing on a handful of phrases that are specific to the pages you are pushing. Go after a few highly relevant, high volume keywords and push hard for them. I have seen sites that are optimized for less than 10 key phrases perform very well.  Focus on who you are and where your strengths lie.

Trick – Spamming Forums/Blogs. Simply put: it’s annoying, it will get you banned from those sites, and it doesn’t work long term.

Treat – Finding discussion boards and posts where your link is actually relevant. Not only will this give you more credibility with search engines when a link comes from a relevant site, but it also has the possibility of generating legitimate traffic in the forms of referrals from that site since you are already dealing with an interested audience.

Trick – Link Exchanges. Run any website long enough and you will get requests for link exchanges. Trust me, when somebody asks you for a link exchange, they almost always will be getting more than they are giving.

Treat – Linking in and linking out where appropriate. The best link building occurs when you find a site that represents your website’s message and you actually converse with the webmaster to get your link posted. Do not offer them an exchange, just show them how a link to your site adds credibility to the page you would like to get linked from. Likewise, when you have content that would be improved by an external authority, go ahead and link out to them. Just don’t forget to use the target=_blank to make sure that the user doesn’t forget about you.

Trick – Article Spinning. For those who don’t know, article spinning is a way of coding a written article so that different synonyms appear every 3-5 words, then sending off numerous copies of the same article. Due to the various combinations of synonyms appear, it makes it very hard for any software to see the article as a duplicated. It also tends to come across as just a bit strange to the user since the words do not flow as well as they typically would in regular article. You may see a short term bump gained from the abundance of “unique” links produced, but because of the awkwardness of the articles, none of these links are likely to survive long term and your rankings will eventually fall back to previous levels.

Treat – Writing good solid content that is actually of value to the reader. I am actually not against the use of free article submission sites. But, if you choose to go that route, do put some effort into your articles and make sure they are more than just link spam. That’s the only way you will gain any syndication links from those sites, which is where you will experience the best SEO bumps.

Trick – Building a website that immediately opens with loud music and bright flashy images just to draw attention.

Treat – There isn’t one. Just don’t do that.

Follow the “treats” and you’ll get candy (traffic and conversions). Try too many of the “tricks” and your site will only be visited by ghosts…and maybe people who still search with Altavista.

-EW

Executing great Search Engine Optimization tactics to your website is much like personifying the perfect date.  Practice the tips below and I guarantee you will see fireworks at the end of the night and a higher page rank from the search engines.

1)      Choose the Right Target Market: Dating Translation: If you are about the age that I am and are looking to settle down with Mr. Right, your dream house, your Volvo C70, and your white picket fence, make sure you are dating men who are also ready for a commitment.  I wouldn’t recommend dating the bad boy from your circle of friends who has a new girl on his arm every time you see him.

The most important part of marketing your company is knowing exactly to whom you want to sell.  Your website is your biggest marketing tool to acquire the conversions you desire, so make sure that you direct your SEO strategy to gain relevant traffic to your website.

2)      Use Correct Title Tags on Each Page: Dating Translation: Always wear appropriate attire when going on a date.  If Mr. Right decides to take you to a go-cart track for the afternoon, I recommend wearing comfortable and casual clothes; now is not the time to pull out your Nine West heels and BCBG sequin dress.

Your title tag is the first impression the search engines have for your web page, so make sure that the title clearly reflects the content displayed on the page.  Also, you would never wear the same outfit on the first few dates, so never use the same title tag on more than one page.

3)      Use Appropriate Keywords on Each Page: Dating Translation:  Always be sure to answer the questions he may ask you with the appropriate answers.  For example, if he asks if you are dating anyone, your answer should be “No,” not “My heart will always belong to my favorite teddy bear Mr. Snuggles.”

One spends so much time and money focusing on the application of the right keywords on each and every page of your website.  Be sure you emphasize your content on what visitors of your demographic are searching for, not what you think the content should be.

4)      Reduce the Excessive Use of Keywords: Dating Translation: Do not talk constantly about your ex while on a date with Mr. Right.  If he asks about the last person you dated, explain briefly that the door to that part of your life is closed, and you are living in the present.  Do not continue babbling about how great Chester was.  After all, he was a 30-year-old man who still lived at home with his parents, thought MC Hammer Jam Pants were still in style, and believed that Justin Beiber will become the next patron saint.

Once you have chosen the right keywords to implement in your website pages, be sure you do not overuse them. It is very important to apply a good ratio of these keywords, so you do not appear to be “stuffing.”  Such is a quick way to find your website blacklisted on the search engines.  If you keep reminiscing about Chester, you will find yourself with a permanent reservation on your couch Friday nights watching the next Lifetime Movie Premier.

5)      Have an Effective and Relevant Linking Strategy: Dating Translation:  If you have a crush on a guy in your circle of friends, I recommend telling one or two of his best buddies that you like him to ascertain that the message finds its way to Mr. Right; however, telling everyone in his neighborhood and purchasing a billboard on I-40 East might not be the smartest move to inform him of your interest.

Implementing a linking plan to increase your website’s page rank is an excellent way to increase the amount of traffic browsing your website.  Even so, if you post links on irrelevant websites, you will not only be spending money, but also lots of unnecessary time because you are not going to receive the conversions you are seeking.  Similarly, the fastest way for Mr. Right to recognize the tip that you like him would be to tell those buddies with whom he spends the most time.  It would be a waste of your time to tell his old middle-school, baseball team buddies you discovered on Facebook that you like him because fifteen years later, they have little or nothing left in common and rarely if ever speak to one another.

Good luck, and may the SEO/Dating gods shine down upon you this year!