Category Archives: SEO

Some interesting stuff is shown here that you can do with the Google search box, from basic things like math to down right scary stuff like find someone’s tax return or network password. I don’t think most know how far Google is capable of indexing and just don’t know what they are leaving open…perhaps even Google themselves. I was astonished to (easily) find what I could preparing this post.

Gray Area Google-Fu

Gray Area Google-Fu

After my presentation at the Skookum Tech Talks someone asked me about the hackability/indexability of the popular file storage service, DropBox. I’ve not heard anything related to this Google hack topic and them, but was just thinking that I added my tax folder to my dropbox. Although kind of fatalistically, the more I find out about online security seems like if someone who knows what they are doing really wants to get you then it’s game over. So bottom line, be nice to each other, follow the security stuff as best as you can…life is too short to worry all these details.

I didn’t get to most of the juicy stuff at the end, I only have 5 minutes for the audio/video. Perhaps that was a good thing for fear of showing you too much…but for those that are interested, here’s some more of juicier tidbits:

• http://goo.gl/7K9WY
  Use this search to find FTP servers that have been indexed. Being that most people I assume don’t think Google indexes FTP servers (Yale included), they aren’t as concerned about what information goes up on them. Just think outside the box and try combos of commonly used words on tax returns or how people would request social security numbers. Doesn’t take much thought to reveal some extremely sensitive information.
• http://goo.gl/gkyAo
  This was an instance of someone hacking into Google Webmaster Tools and showing how you can remove a site from the Google index. This was quickly fixed but shows the power here if you choose to look just below the surface.
• http://goo.gl/3pTnB
  Kind of scary to reveal that there are this many but this is a list of websites that have uploaded their VPN/network passwords on their server. Kind of mind numbing that there are so many results for this particular type of network. Supposedly, this is a way that many LulzSec and Anonymous users hide their location. By tunneling into others networks and computers they leave a very difficult trail to follow and hide where they are actually entering the net from.
• The bullet titled Bowling just refers to the aggressiveness that Google has taken recently to police sites receiving links from spammy/gray area link farms and networks. The assumption here (although unproven to my knowledge) is that you could sign your competitors up for one of these spamy link farms and move them from #1 to result #382.
• Last part titled ‘phpbb’ references a popular forum that is commonly outdated, thus vulnerable. However, PPC (porn, pills, and casinos) SEOers don’t just take down the site or load malware onto it, they use the site’s link juice and further build up their own link popularity, thus increasing their rankings for competitive words in Google. Just do some creative searches (on your home computer!) related to PPC and phpbb…you’ll get all kinds of interesting results.

In Douglas Adams’ classic science fiction novel, the words ‘DON’T PANIC’ are printed in very large letters on the front of ‘The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy’.  OK, in the book this was aimed at individuals who are new to intergalactic travel, but it is sage advice in pretty much all circumstances, I would have thought. However, it is advice, it seems, that many search engine optimization professionals fail to heed.

You see: for me, as someone who has been an SEO professional for over a decade, the one SEO tip I’ve never seen in any article is just that. Don’t Panic. Ever.

Client hit by Panda? Don’t panic.

A Fortune 500 company falling to page 3 when they search for their own name? Don’t panic.

Lost all your long tail traffic overnight? Don’t panic.

By now, I think you are getting the idea. All of the situations detailed above are resolvable but, as an SEO, if you panic you will most likely do far more harm than good.

Of course, like anyone else in this business, I am well aware of how difficult it is not to start worrying when you’ve either lost traffic/revenue of your own or you have clients shouting at you to get things fixed. However, you are the professional and you have to act like it even if, inside, your stomach is churning and you are thinking ‘oh God, what do I do?’

The temptation is to immediately start changing things to try to rectify the problem. You may begin that process by checking all the tools at your disposal to see if you have lost some critical links or if those 301 redirects didn’t work or if all those useless ‘tag’ pages are still indexed or whatever. You may even choose to first check out industry resources or peer forums to see if other people are experiencing the same thing. But, very often that desire to be seen to be doing something overwhelms more sensible impulses.

This is, of course, completely understandable. It’s a mistake but it is understandable. For me, more websites are permanently crippled by their SEOs making quick and rash changes than by the original problem the site was presented with. There is a real danger that, having spent a small amount of time reviewing potential issues, you start making premature changes to your or your client’s website.

So, I guess, the real SEO tip that no one ever tells you is twofold: ‘Don’t panic and don’t make hasty decisions’. Indeed, in a lot of cases I would go further and say: ‘Don’t panic, don’t make hasty decisions and often…don’t do anything at all’!

Without wishing to sound arrogant, one of the reasons I’ve been a successful SEO for so long is that frequently I choose to do nothing – at least for a time – when a client has lost rankings. And, if you think about it carefully, you would probably choose to do nothing too.
If you’ve been in the industry for even a small amount of time you will already know that when an algorithm changes comes about, there is a period of flux. This can frequently result in some fairly dramatic – but temporary – ranking changes. It would be foolish to start to make changes to a site before the situation settles down. And yet, many SEOs do, based on the flimsiest of chatter on webmaster forums.

Once again, I say: don’t do it. Hold fire until you really have a grip on what’s going on. Even then, be slow in making alterations based on forum gossip, Twitter posts or even blog posts from the almighty Google. In the last 10 years, I’ve lost count of the number of times that making no changes at all and keeping my nerve has resulted in websites rebounding as strong or stronger than ever.

It doesn’t matter whether you are trying to get your website to rank for something like 50th birthday presents or something hyper competitive like ‘free games’, you will certainly find that if you don’t panic and don’t make rushed decisions, your success in the SERPs will be more sustained and longer living.

About The Author

Mark Stockton is an experienced SEO and online marketer, now working almost exclusively for Find Me A Gift, the UK gifts store.

I just posted a video about WolframAlpha. It’s a new kind of engine. It’s not a search engine like Google, Yahoo, or MSN which displays lots of different results. Ideally, it displays the exact answer you are looking. So, what does it mean for me…and why should it matter? Those are good questions and again I don’t know the answer. However, I think you should at least be aware of some of these really incredible technologies out there.

Check it out below.

Also, no making fun of me because this is my first screen cast.
Being in the video mood, here’s a great video about Google Local Business Center. I think it’s very well put together.

So you have a great website, you update it frequently, and you are clever and targeted in your content choices. That’s great, but what is it doing for you? You can have the most useful or sought after business information posted up there, but unless people know about it, it isn’t doing you any good.  You need to make your web presence work for you, and reap the rewards of all your electronic efforts.

Increasing people’s knowledge of your web presence can either be dramatically involved, or relatively simple. On the simple side, don’t send out an e-mail that doesn’t have your website address within the body at some point. It sounds like a no-brainer, but many businesspeople forget to put their web address in their missives.  Keeping it in your signature at the end ensures that everyone is aware of you.  Along the same lines, consistently direct people to your website for answers to questions or more information, (of course this requires that you have useful and up-to-date information available). Getting people in the habit of going to your website, and having your address burned into their brains are the easiest way to build up traffic.  Make sure all your marketing material and media (business cards, letterhead, corporate vehicles, stationary, toilet paper, etc) has your website prominently featured.  I’d have my website be my license plate if I could….Wait..hmmmm, can I?

Don’t be afraid of jumping into the big social media stew too. Friendster, Linked In, My Space, Facebook, Twitter and their ilk all are basically free opportunities for you to supplement your website’s features. Mirror the information, and constantly direct people to your address.  Now remember, for all this to work, you’ve got to have the website up-to-date. There is no bigger turn-off than website with incorrect info. Take the time every week to make sure all your essentials are current. What good is a snazzy website if your phone number is wrong?

Include interesting content and features, which make web visitors want to return. It can be anything, from images of your latest project to your own musings on New England versus Manhattan Clam Chowder (I vote, New England!).  Newsflash: Most web use happens during work hours, when visitors are tired of working on their latest spreadsheet or drudgery report. Visitors appreciate personal touches, humor, and good old quality information. Websites can be impersonal, but they don’t necessarily have to be. You can capture the attention and interest of the skillions of web surfers with some simple, clever, witty commentary. And if “witty” is not your style, or doesn’t fit your product or service, provide detail, industry news, product specs, or other information that will be a value-added service to your visitors.

Finally, open up your mind (and this sometimes means cracking your wallet just a bit…) to expanding your features. Video components, integrated social media tools, and animation all might sound tricky and expensive – but you will increase your attention and your hits with some small and minor fabu features. Have your best customers talk about your company, or show clips of random acts of brilliant creativity around the office. Blogs? Obviously, we love blogs…Make all the components easily out-linked, so your visitors can pass them to others – making you a viral hit!

I can’t remember if it was a college professor, or the guy with the “THE END IS NEAR” sandwich board who stands outside of my drycleaner that said, “Content is king!”  It’s true, even if the crazy guy said it. It’s not necessarily how much you say, when you say it, or where you say it – but HOW you say it that matters.  The right content can take a sweet site into the stars, while the wrong content can have your users scurrying away like rats.

Any, and all, content on your website should mirror your organization or businesses personality. I don’t recommend being too edgy if you’re a physical therapist or banker. Those might be occupations that would benefit from plain, simple, in-english-please bits of information about services and opportunities that you offer. Remember, your audience may not have, (or want) the degrees or knowledge you do.  People are going to click off your site if  they find your site too preachy, uppity, or uber-educated.

Now, if your company likes to think of itself as a cutting-edge, or sophisticated, or avante guard operation – then your website better express that as well. Content is again, key.  Witty writing and clever banter between employees or top clients, artsy pictures, and links to topical and fascinating news items will help you express yourself and your corporate image. If you can’t find the write people in-house to generate the “right write”, then ask around and find a writer who scrawls the way you speak.  Humor is perfect in just the right dose, and accessible style and snap always makes people remember you.

Don’t overload people with too much extraneous information.  One to three blogs on your site or topic are smart, and give people choices and different voices. But beware of saturating your portal with way to much noise.  Even with different contributors or writers, make sure there is a common thread that empowers your business and doesn’t distract from your core values. Daily updates on your toy train collection just aren’t cute on your CPA site… making your site fun is one thing, but business is business!

Fresh content should be added regularly, don’t be stale. The first couple times you attempt to update, you might find yourself suffering from writers block or a lack of imagination. It’s totally common, so sit back and let your mind wander. Or ask the intern to do it!  Your family, friends, and coworkers all might have interesting insights and ideas that can bring some zing to your site. Don’t be shy about hiring outside help. Our fine colleges kick out plenty of gifted writers every year, and many will work for peanuts! (Sometimes even real peanuts…or cheese)!

Think about the websites that you read regularly, and use their format and style as inspiration. Read other people’s sites for ideas, but make yours as original as possible. If you find something on another site that is interesting, link to it – as long as they aren’t a competitor! If you’re running a gym, talking about nutritional tips and linking to sites that talk about food makes sense. It’s not your content, and you might be sending people “out to eat”, but your still providing your loyal readers with news. Keep your content, and your linked items fresh and hip, and people will quickly make you their one-stop shop. They’ll thank you by coming back for more.