text:
How important are backlinks to your Google rankings?

I am a huge fan of MozBlog and, in particular, their whiteboard Friday’s. To me, they are the SEO Mecca for anyone in the industry. Google also pays close attention to what they say and recommend because they are such a leader within the SEO industry. Because of that, they sometimes gloss over reality in order to avoid angering Google, but overall they offer excellent advice on how Google’s algorithm works and also where they think Google could be trending with their future algorithmic updates.

When I sat down for this post, I went looking for an old whiteboard Friday post from earlier this year that talked about the value of links within Google’s algorithm. It’s a hot button topic within the industry between borderline black hatters from forums like WarriorForum and white hat purist from Moz. I’ve frequented both areas to keep me well informed between how things should work and the way things actually work. The white hat tactics definitely work, but only if you have thousands of dollars each month to dedicate full-time staff towards “doing it right” and the real world of much smaller budgets along with the pressure to get those rankings at any costs. There is little in between, unfortunately and I’ve had to do SEO both ways in order to meet certain demands. Obviously, I prefer the right way to the cheap way, but the real world doesn’t always care about the right way…

So, just how important are backlinks?

To put it simply, very important. In fact, Google’s entire algorithm was built around them. Google even experimented with removing links from their algorithm entirely and found their search results were terrible, so if you think they will go away entirely then you are sorely mistaken. Instead, Google has slowly been transitioning away from links by eroding their value through updates like Panda and Penguin. Panda focused more on internal linking and over-optimized websites, while Penguin went after external backlinks.

What Google is doing is including additional signals for ranking that, when combined with backlinks, provide the most relevant search results possible. This is the key word here: relevancy. A website owner should strive for the most relevant backlinks possible, by worrying less about anchor text and more about the relevancy of the content of the website linking to them. Getting backlinks from websites that closely match your website’s industry or topic of discuss, the better that backlink is going to become as Google continues to update its algorithm.

Right now, the reality is that relevancy doesn’t matter as much as the anchor text and PageRank of the links you are getting. This is why black hatter SEOs are so focused on getting those links, because they work today. Right now. However, anyone paying attention knows what Google wants and is working towards, so its only a matter of time before their activities blow up in their face.

My own SaaS app, Rank My Keyword, is borderline black hat. If it wasn’t for a users ability to target specific categories of blogs, it would be outright dangerous to use. Even so, because it essentially comes down to “buying links”, it definitely violates Google’s rules. However, the only way people with small budgets can effectively get SEO done is through violating those rules, so let’s not play high and mighty in that regard. My advice to those with small budgets is to play this dangerous game with great levels of caution. I do this by not violating all of the rules, so I would suggest practicing extreme anchor text diversity, high quality unique content and focus a good portion of the budget on brand keywords. This strategy has allowed me to weather all of the update storms that Google has created for the black hat community, but still, I would much rather be doing high quality SEO work. However, I’ve found the market for that is less than 10% of the business out there.

In the future, I see an SEO landscape where backlinks are still the most heavily weighted ranking factor, but it will shrink to a point where its barely more relevant than your own website’s content and internal linking. As Rand Fishkin said in his Whiteboard Friday below, that is likely 5-10 years away.

How should you do your own SEO?

google-panda-backlinksThere is a specific way to rock your own SEO that will always work. First, publish great content. So far, after less than a week, I’ve written over four thousand words of awesome content that people would find useful today, tomorrow and a year from now. It has been easy to do given its all related to what I know best. By pushing out great content, writing for your readers and linking internally in a natural way, you will avoid Panda destruction forever. Google will never penalize a normal website that isn’t overrun with “SEO tactics”. If you focus on SEO more than your readers, you will end up having to deal with an angry panda.

A big part of his is how you structure your blog posts for maximum SEO effect without readers even noticing you did so. This will help your on-page SEO to the point where after a year or so of consistent blogging you will begin to find a wealth of visitors from Google’s search.

Another big factor is social media networking. Google checks all of those metrics of shares on major social media websites like Facebook, Twitter and Google Plus. If you are savvy enough to get Google’s Authorship going, then you will find a huge benefit to leveraging Google Plus for your blogging efforts. The community is smaller, but those that use Google Plus tend to be far more technical and much more into web interaction than places like Facebook or Twitter.

The more interaction you get from social signals, the better your website will do within Google’s search results. So get out there and promote yourself.

I think Rand is spot on in his analysis about links. He is right that its really difficult to earn legitimate backlinks, which is why so many SEO professionals focus on link buying because link earning is so difficult in certain industries. What people fail to realize is that earning links isn’t as difficult if you focus on building your authority in that specific industry. Earning links is so much easier when people are seeking you out for information that pertains to their own professions. The problem is, that takes a ton of time and few businesses have the patience for it.

All of Rand’s “What should SEOs do?” are things I do for all of my own projects and those clients able to fund that kind of effort. Good stuff and well worth the watch below.

0 replies

Leave a Reply

Want to join the discussion?
Feel free to contribute!

Leave a Reply


Content-Type: application/http; msgtype=response

WARC-Type: response

text:
Friday, August 1, 2014

a year without shopping

I have an unhealthy relationship with shopping and it's time I do something about it.  And since I'm a go big or go home kind of girl, I'm going all the way and taking the drastic  measures to challenge myself to a year without shopping.  You see I'm not just your average gal who loves shopping, budgets themselves and enjoys their purchases for years to come.  I'm an impulsive, compulsive shopper with an addictive personality.  I treat my credit card and line of credit like free money, I buy in excess and without need.  I don't think through my purchases which often leads to consumer guilt and debt.
Why now? I participated in Kendi Everyday's 30x30 remix a few times where I didn't shop for the month and I found it very rewarding to shop my closet but found the 30 items (including shoes) limiting.  I have a massive closet (it's actually a small bedroom) and I have no shortage of clothing, accessories, shoes or purses.  As someone who doesn't follow trends but instead wears what I like, there's no need for me to buy anything else because my weight rarely fluctuates, I know what I like and what looks good on me and I am an accessory addict who believes in the transformative abilities of a great hat, statement necklace or stiletto heel.
The hardest part about this challenge for me will be the temptation as I work at two local clothing boutiques and see new merchandise being delivered and sewn on a regular basis.  It's kind of like an alcoholic trying to abstain from drinking while working as a bartender.  It's the ultimate in exercising willpower!

The main things I want to get out of this challenge and what will keep me motivated:
1) Get out of debt and start saving! As I've been working in non-profit and fashion for the past eight years, I have no pension plan or health benefits.  I recently opened TFSA and RRSP accounts and would like to start saving for my future, for a European trip and to pay off my mortgage quickly.
2) Create it vs. Charge it.  Shopping can take up a lot of time and energy that I would prefer to invest in more creative endeavors.  I have a sewing machine, I'd like to learn how to use it. I have a craft room full of supplies and ideas, now I just need the motivation!
3) Closet shopping.  I think this is a very important skill to learn and one that I teach my SMASH styling clients about.  You won't always have the resources (financial, mobility or time) to buy a new outfit so why not learn how to create exciting new ensembles from your own wardrobe!
4) Healthier ways to relieve stress.  I've noticed a pattern with my impulsive binge shopping, it often happens when I'm stressed out, anxious or not feeling well.  Shopping is like a drug to me, it gives me an immediate euphoric feeling like a high but then I get guilty and crash.  I have recently been dabbling in the world of yoga and I want to explore this practice more along with mindfulness, meditation and exercise as coping mechanisms.

My Year without Shopping Rules:
From August 1, 2014- to August 1, 2015:
ALLOWED: clothing swaps, product reviews for my blog, lunch out (once a week), dinner out (once a week), drinks out (once a week), toiletries, makeup (as needed), hosiery (as needed), office supplies, anything for SMASH styling (except clothes for me of course!) and gifts for others birthdays/Christmas/special occasions
NOT ALLOWED: shopping for clothing (new or used), shoes, jewellery, purses, handbags, accessories, jackets, winter accessories, nail polish, household decor, knick knacks, books or just because gifts for others

During this challenge I will be posting at least monthly about the challenges, triumphs and any tips and tricks I learn along the way! Stay tuned and wish me luck!

  1. Good luck Emily! I'm rooting for you. You're young enough that you can still make up for past errors in judgment and still have a great financial future ahead of me. But I think the personal growth you'll get from this challenge will be the biggest bonus. Healthy financial habits will set the stage for a much less stressful life. I look forward to following your progress!

  2. Good Luck with this. I have been thinking of doing one of these myself. If I do it. It won't be until next year.

  3. Way to go on this! I'm doing a no-shop summer and it's been VERY hard, but I'm really trying to make it work so I can start getting out of debt and working towards being able to stay home more with my son. I'm rooting for you!

  4. Wow! You are definitely going big. Tracy and I do monthly shopping bans every few months. In fact we are in one right now! I wish you the best in your challenge and look forward to your updates.

    Jessica @ Sunny Days and Starry Nights

  5. This article is very effective which I was looking for. administration jobs in Ottawa

One of my daily joys is reading the lovely comments you leave. It may take a day or two (or three, depending on how hectic life gets!) but I will stop by your slice of the blogosphere soon! xo Emily

warcinfo:
robots: classic
hostname: ip-10-233-31-227.ec2.internal
software: Nutch 1.6 (CC)/CC WarcExport 1.0
isPartOf: CC-MAIN-2017-13
operator: CommonCrawl Admin
description: Wide crawl of the web for March 2017
publisher: CommonCrawl
format: WARC File Format 1.0
conformsTo: http://bibnum.bnf.fr/WARC/WARC_ISO_28500_version1_latestdraft.pdf


WARC-Truncated: length

text:
Free Alignment

With Purchase of 4 Select Tires and a Regularly Priced Installation

Free Four Wheel Alignment with purhcase of four Bridgestone, Continental, Michelin®, BFGoodrich®, Firestone, General, Uniroyal®, or in-stock Goodyear and a regularly priced installation.

Offer Excludes:

  • LT (6 Ply & Up) Truck Tires
  • All-Terrain & Mud Terrain Tires

Offer good until July 14th, 2013. Not to be combined with Jackson/Grant promotion, or any other coupon, offer, discount, or promo.

Call For Details

Shop Tires


text:
Started just a few short years ago, Tough Mudder has become the recognized leader in Obstacle Course athletics and has quickly garnered attention as the one to watch. Our milestones are plentiful, here's just a few.....

Spring 2009

Will Dean comes up with idea for Tough Mudder while studying at Harvard Business School. He enters the concept into Harvard's Annual Business Plan Competition, but professors say that no one would ever pay to do such an event that's not timed or competitive. The plan does not win.

Fall 2009

Despite some critics and his professors who thought Tough Mudder would never work, Will Dean and Guy Livingstone found Tough Mudder and begin to plan for its first event.

Tough Mudder hosts its first event at Bear Creek Ski Resort in Pennsylvania with just three TMHQ employees on May 2, 2010. Will and Guy expected about 500 people to show up, but over 4,500 people attend the first event. In 2010 Tough Mudder heads to New Jersey and California in its inaugural season, crowning over 20,000 Mudders with orange headbands and debuting Electroshock Therapy for the first time.

Mudder Nation grows to over 140,000 and hosts 14 events in 2011. TMHQ closes its 2011 season with the first annual World's Toughest Mudder event. Arctic Enema debuts for the first time, then known as Chernobyl Jacuzzi.

After two years of rapid growth in the US, Tough Mudder goes global, hosting seven events internationally in Australia and the UK. TMHQ expands to over 100 team members and opens a London office.

TMHQ hosts 53 events globally, including 18 international event and its first event in Germany. Mudder Nation surpasses the one million mark early in 2013, as TMHQ begins scouting new venues in New Zealand and Ireland. TMHQ kicks off the Mudder Volunteer Program and builds a mini Tough Mudder course for The TODAY Show team during a live broadcast. TMHQ launches Mudderella.

Tough Mudder launches Mudder Legion for the first time, and Legionnaires earn enough headbands to stack as high as 43 Great Pyramids. Mudders around the world have raised over $2 million for charities worldwide. TMHQ takes World's Toughest Mudder to Las Vegas for the first time.

Five years after the first event, over two million people have participated in Tough Mudder events globally, making it the fastest-growing mass participation event in the world. TMHQ launches Urban Mudder and Fruit Shoot Mini Mudder, as well as Tough Mudder Redefined, demonstrating the team's commitment to developing growth opportunities and continuing to delight our customers.

TMHQ grows to nearly 150 employees working across three offices worldwide. The company will host over 60 events in three countries and expands to Mexico in 2016. Tough Mudder Half launches for the first time with nine events in the US and UK in 2016. Tough Mudder participants have raised over $10 million for charities worldwide.


text:
The Ninja Turtle Museum
Turtles in space

One small step for a web page,

One giant leap for mutant kind

And one GIANT overhaul for this website!

It has been long overdue, but I am finally getting around to rebuilding the figure guide here. After several decades the number of toys produced for the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle lines has grown too large to continue with just one figure list. So I've broken it down based on the various relaunches of the line that have occured over the years. Hopefully this will make things easier to navigate for those who are only interested in toys from a certain period.

I have also combined all of the toys (figures, vehicles, giant figures, mini figures etc...) into each list. With the number of vehicles with figures included, this should make things a bit clearer and give me a place to list items that I previously didn't have a place for such as the various role play sets that have been produced over the years.

With the overhaul set. I will be trying to go back and update some of the more out of date photos, particularly of the vehicles. (Some of those predate my very first digital camera!) And with luck, I hope to a few other features as well.

Original Line
Original Line
The Next Mutation Line
Next Mutation Line
2003 Line
2003 Line
Fast Forward Line
Fast Forward Line
TMNT Movie Line
2012 Line
Modern Line
NECA toy Line
Toy Lines

You can contact me at


text:
UT Recycling Collects Record Waste on Game Days

KNOXVILLE – No matter what happens on the field, the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, has been claiming a big victory this football season. UT Recycling, the campus crew in charge of recycling, has been collecting record numbers of material on game days. This Saturday, Oct. 23, the crew will face its biggest challenge yet.

As the football team battles the University of Alabama on the field, UT Recycling will be battling the Crimson Tide and other universities off the field in the EPA Game Day Recycling Challenge in which universities fight to see who recycles the most.

“That particular game is a big one both for UT Knoxville and for UT Recycling,” said Jay Price, environmental coordinator. “We will be upping the ante by composting leftover food and putting out even more than the 925 recycling bins we already have.”

UT Recycling set a record at the Florida game by collecting eight tons of material, putting it on target to gather its goal of 50 tons this season. Last year, UT Recycling collected 35 tons for the season. The effort is part of the university’s Make Orange Green environmental initiative.

“Fans are really starting to get into recycling. They’re seeing more bins in more places and really starting to use them. They’re understanding that recycling should be a part of their tailgate, a part of their game day tradition,” said Price.

UT Recycling took steps to make it even easier to recycle at the stadium that include the following:

  • There are now 500 recycling bins in tailgating areas, up from 125 last year.
  • There are 300 bins inside the stadium, up from 100 last year, and 120 bins in the skyboxes.
  • The crew is seeing an uptick in volunteers.
  • UT Recycling has garnered interest by adding recycling games in Volunteer Village.

“We are getting better at what we are doing. We are getting more strategic about where we put bins so people don’t have a choice but to recycle,” said Price. “I have some great staff that keep pushing harder and harder each game to get as many aluminum cans and plastic bottles, plastic cups, cardboard and paper as possible.”

While Price hopes to win the Game Day Recycling Challenge and meet the 50 tons of material goal, his recycling aspirations don’t stop there.

“For the future, we’d like to target food waste from the stadium for composting in our new compost pile on campus. We also hope to be able to get more staff and more bins to push this even further. There’s a lot of material that we’re still missing, but we’re doing a pretty amazing job with the limited resources we have,” he said.

With more resources, Price estimates UT Recycling could be able to recycle half the waste from game days.

For more information on UT Knoxville’s sustainability efforts, visit the Make Orange Green website at http://environment.utk.edu.

For more information on the EPA Game Day Recycling Challenge, visit http://www.epa.gov/wastes/partnerships/wastewise/challenge/gameday.

C O N T A C T :

Whitney Holmes (865-974-5460, wholmes7@utk.edu)