Bruce Clay's Blog, page 43

Make an Online Photo Engaging: Tools and Rules to Help Edit Images

Make an Online Photo Engaging: Tools and Rules to Help Edit Images was originally published on BruceClay.com, home of expert search engine optimization tips.

According to eye-tracking research, people actually look at online photos only 42 percent of the time, and the images they look at only hold their attention for less than a second. After extensive eye-tracking research, Jakob Nielsen and Kara Pernice concluded that there were clear factors that attract and repel online readers.

“There are some very creative, captivating images … graphics that evoke emotion, graphics that relay a message far better and faster than words, and graphics that illustrate a process or instructions. People look at and respond positively to these graphics. But generic and pointless images are about as compelling as a garden slug.”

Photo by Zuhair Al-Traifi.

When creating blog posts or web pages, images are a critical factor for both reader engagement and search engine optimization (think ethical ALT attributes and optimized file names). Readers love images. Photos draw them in and make them want to read the content. Pick up any magazine or newspaper and notice that every article and ad speaks to this. Photos can work to inspire a feeling or clarify a concept, and they can be useful in making a page more interesting just by breaking up the text.

There are hundreds of thousands of artwork options available online — but not all photos are created equally. If you want your images to have maximum impact, consider these five factors when making your selection.

5 Factors to Consider When Choosing a Photo
1. Quality

Quality matters. One quick fix approach to improved aesthetic quality is increased contrast. According to eye-tracking research, people gravitate towards crisp images with high contrast.

Try This

You may have noticed when editing your own photos that dialing up the contrast nob using a simple image editor can improve the visual impact. Those images can be in color or black and white, so long as the contrast is stark.

“This is no reason to avoid black and white. Although a punch of color can attract the eye, a sharp black-and-white image can get a lot of attention as well. But shades of gray tend to have weaker contrast and attract the eye less,” wrote Nielsen and Pernice.

Also Consider File Types

Another important aspect of image quality is file type. Different types of images necessitate different types of files. Johnny Lin, web design manager at Bruce Clay, Inc., explains the use of .gif, .jpg or .png, depending on the image.

Save your online image as a .gif when the image has details and more solid colors, as is the case with clip art and most logos
Save as a .jpg extension when using a standard photograph
Save as a .png when the image has transparent shadows or multiple layers

2. Clarity

Any pixelation is too much pixelation. Make sure the photo you’re using is large enough for the space. That being said, you also have to be mindful that the photo is not too large. Because file size affects page load time, it’s important to keep file sizes as minimal as possible without sacrificing quality, i.e. if you have a file that is 4 MB, you can safely shrink it. Even if you’re using it for a banner image, it’s unlikely that the photo would ever need to exceed 100 KB.

Try This

You can reduce an image’s size in any photo editing software — or even Microsoft Paint. In Microsoft Paint, for example, choose the “Resize” option at on the toolbar (which also comes up when you hit Control-W). From there, you can reduce the photo by percentage or pixel. Make sure to select “Maintain aspect ratio” or you will skew the photo.

Also Consider DPI

When it comes to dots per inch (DPI), Lin recommends always keeping your DPI between 72 and 96 for online photos.

3. Focus

Eye-tracking research indicates that people prefer to look at images that are easy to understand. If the photo is too busy, readers don’t really look at it. Select pictures that have a clear focal point.

Try This

You can use photo editing software to create your a focal point if you’ve found (or snapped for yourself) an image with a background that’s too busy. In addition to professional software like Photoshop, you can also create focal points and adjust depth of field with free online software like Pixlr Express (using the Focal tool).

4. The Subject

The actual content of a photo matters — not all subjects are created equally. Action shots are better than posed photos; when possible, get a photo that shows people mid-action. When you use a photo that captures the moment, you capture your audience.

People as subjects are also a strong choice. In “Content Marketing Strategies for Professionals,” Bruce Clay and Murray Newlands state that “the best subjects are faces smiling, or (as in the above factor) people or things in action that capture a sense of the moment … People are more likely to have a positive impression of a (brand) if there is a person alongside it.”

Try This

Are you taking photos at events and gatherings? When your team gets together for a birthday or happy hour, is someone on camera duty? Not everyone likes to be be a photographer, but there’s a good chance there’s an amateur photographer or two among you, people who actually like capturing special moments. If your boss is making a presentation, reach out to someone you know in the audience to see if they could take a few photos and send them to you. Think of every public outing as a photo opportunity and grow your image library of people in your organization from which you can pull pictures when you need them.

5. Relevance

The image should complement the content, not detract from it. Nielsen and Pernice found that “many images that appear on pages are simply not related to the main ideas the page is trying to convey, and users ignore or barely look at them. People look at unrelated or somewhat related images just 14 percent of the time … Users look at images that are related to content about twice as often — 29 percent of the time.”

A photo should exhibit all of the above characteristics (action, people, quality, focus and clarity), but if it’s not relevant to the content it supports, it doesn’t belong.

Try This

Sometimes you have to get creative when it comes to relevance. Paula Allen recently wrote an article on “The State of SEO in Europe.” “SEO in Europe” is not exactly something you can just search for on a stock image site and get a result. At times like these, you need to think outside the box to find a photo that works. Allen chose this photo of a train station in Milan and used a text overlay to create relevance. The text she added makes the photo not just about Europe, but about SEO in Europe.

Another option when you’re stumped for finding a photo is creating a grid. In an article promoting Bruce Clay’s latest book, “Content Marketing Strategies for Professionals,” special attention was paid to each of the twelve expert contributors. We didn’t, however, have a photo of all twelve of them together — so we created this collage, and voila: relevant image.

What are your tricks and tips do you have when it comes to making an online photo engaging? Share them in the comments!

E-A-T Alert! Run a Market Survey, Discover the Missing Statistic, Become the Go-To Source

E-A-T Alert! Run a Market Survey, Discover the Missing Statistic, Become the Go-To Source was originally published on BruceClay.com, home of expert search engine optimization tips.

Of the many types of content available to marketers, the humble market survey may be one of the least used. After all, surveys take a lot of planning; they require lots of people’s participation; they need technology to make them work; and results require some scientific analysis. And those steps are just the beginning, to give you something to talk about!

With so much work involved, can running a marketing survey be worth it?

Content marketer Andy Crestodina says the answer is a resounding yes — if you apply what he calls the “Missing Statistic Theory.” Having just completed a massive survey of 1000+ bloggers for Orbit Media Studios, Andy talked to us about what he learned in a Hangout On Air this week. In the conversation he gives lots of practical insights for running a successful survey and explains how a marketing survey can make a website THE go-to source in an industry for years to come.

Applying the Missing Statistic Theory for Surveys

The results of the recent “1000+ Bloggers” survey have been widely discussed. Copyblogger called the survey “great research, great content.” But nowhere has anyone talked about the why and how of the survey itself — until now. In our discussion, Andy reveals what he considers the key factor to making a survey with lasting marketing value as link-worthy, authority-building content.

The Missing Statistic Theory boils down to this: “Every industry has conventional wisdom: statements that people say a lot, but haven’t necessarily been supported or proven.” These statements are the missing statistics for that industry. If you design a survey that discovers the answer (based on data) and then publish the results, you become the go-to source and authority for that statistic.

For its recent survey of bloggers, Orbit Media Studios chose the conventional wisdom statement “blogging takes time” and designed a market survey that would find out how much time. By including such a large survey population, with more than 1000 bloggers, the results credibly answer the question. The survey proved the truth of the statement “blogging takes time” and actually discovered how much time — an average of 2.5 hours per post.

Expect the Orbit Media Studios stat to be quoted in presentations, blog posts and infographics from here on out. This is exactly the kind of content that demonstrates expertness, authority and trustworthiness (coined E-A-T in Google’s latest quality rating guidelines) that Google is so hungry for.

Finding Your Missing Stat

For every industry there are bound to be similar “frequently asserted by rarely supported” statements that can be surveyed and turned into content-marketing gold. Some examples Andy shared during the Hangout:

Optometry: A conventional wisdom statement might be: “People don’t get their eyes checked often enough.” A survey could ask people, “When was the last time you had your eyes checked?” The results could be shared that though getting an eye exam every 12 months is recommended, “patients on average only get their eyes checked every X years” — which could be used to support all of the services your optometry business provides.
Skin care: For the statement “people don’t wear enough sunscreen,” a skin care company could survey dermatologists and come up with a statistic such as “8 out of 10 dermatologists surveyed said people do not wear enough sunscreen.”
Gum:  For many years, Trident ran television commercials advertising their gum that ended with the statement, “4 out of 5 dentists surveyed recommend sugarless gum for their patients who chew gum.”

When you use data to support your claims, it makes everything else you say seem stronger. Yet marketers frequently forget this basic truth. What are the “frequently asserted but rarely supported” statements in your industry? They could be the seed for your next successful marketing survey that will not only back up your own marketing offers, but also attract links, and raise your authority as an industry source.

Tips for Running a Successful Marketing Survey

Andy shares many practical tips on how to do a survey right, based on his experience. Here are a few — watch the full video conversation (embedded below) to hear more!

Choose a survey topic with industry value: Follow Andy’s Missing Statistic Theory and you’ll be golden.
Keep it short & sweet: Limit the number of questions and make them straightforward. You want to set the bar low so it’s easy for people to participate.
Include space for comments: For at least some of the questions, provide an optional text box for participants to write a longer response in addition to the quantifiable yes/no or multiple-choice answers.
Build a participant list: Use LinkedIn to build your list of qualified respondents. (TIP: Tag them to make follow-up easier.)

Invite people individually, if necessary: Andy calls this using “brute force” — contacting potential respondents with handwritten emails, one at a time, in a massive manual outreach. It’s time-consuming, but addressing people personally increases the chance they’ll participate and builds the relationship.
“Anytime you interact with people, you should make it as high-touch and high-quality as possible.” – Andy Crestodina

Quote participants in the results: By including some of the best comments in your results with the people’s names (and pictures, if possible), you instantly make them co-creators and allies in promoting your content.

Think about promotion: From the very start, consider how you plan to promote your survey results. For instance, Orbit Media Studios surveyed bloggers because they would naturally be inclined to write about and promote the results.
“The best content is created with the promotion process in mind.” – Andy Crestodina

Watch the full interview to find out more:

A 6-Step Guide for Repurposing Content

A 6-Step Guide for Repurposing Content was originally published on BruceClay.com, home of expert search engine optimization tips.

People consume content in a myriad of ways: they can read it, they can hear it, they can watch it. And everyone has a preference for how they’d like to consume their content. So, marketers, are you creating content in the format your audience prefers?

Not only does repurposing content generate media for consumption across your audience’s preferred channels, it also makes it easy to produce more content with minimal effort. You can save a lot of time and energy in the content creation process by repurposing content. Repurposing content is taking a piece of content and changing it to suit a different purpose or switching up the format to reach a new audience based on their media consumption preferences.

Why Repurposing Content is Worth it

There are several great benefits that come from repurposing content:

It saves you time in the content creation process. You only have to do the research once.
It creates new SEO assets for driving targeted traffic to your website.
It extends the life and reach of your content to new audiences using different mediums.
It turns one idea into many, creating a month’s worth of content around the same topic.

As Derek Halpern of Social Triggers has been quoted many a times: “You don’t have to create content, day in, and day out. You just have to work on getting the content you already have in the hands of more people.”

Getting your content in the hands of more people means communicating with them using content formats they’re more likely to be receptive to. Most people are visual learners and thus prefer content that engages them with images and graphics. Some people are auditory learners and prefer content they can listen to and hear. Other people are more kinesthetic learners and prefer content that engages them in a more interactive way.

6 Steps to Repurposed Content Creation

Repurposing content might be easier than you think. Here’s how to do it in six simple steps:

Step 1: Write an article or blog post on a topic related to your business.

Optimize your blog content with the appropriate keyword terms and phrases just as you would normally. Don’t forget to add an image or graphic to make your blog content stand out.

Step 2: Turn your blog content into a slide presentation.

Create a “CliffsNotes” version of your article, highlighting each key point in its own slide accompanied by eye-catching images and graphics that further illustrates the point. Then upload it to Slideshare, which you can sync to your LinkedIn profile to cross-promote your content on both platforms. You can use Google Drive or Microsoft Office to create the slides and download them into to a file format supported by Slideshare. You can also use an online tool like Haiku Deck to create a set a slides, embed them into your blog post and export to Slideshare directly.

Created with Haiku Deck, presentation software that inspires

Step 3: Turn your blog content into an audio file.

Record yourself reading what you wrote using a smartphone or digital voice recorder. You can also use audio recording software such as Garageband or Audacity to record and edit audio files. Once you’ve edited the file, then you can upload it to an audio sharing website like Soundcloud and embed the audio clip right into your blog post. Another easier way to give your content a voice is with a WordPress plugin such as Odiogo which turns readers into listeners with a text-to-speech solution. You can also use audio to supplement your content with added  insights and new commentary on the subject. Stay tuned for an upcoming episode of our podcast SEM Synergy where we look at this exact topic with our listeners.

Step 4: Turn your blog content into a video presentation.

Combine your audio and slide content into a short video you can post on YouTube, which you can sync up with Google+ for more cross-promotions between two additional social media platforms. You can hire someone to do this for you or do it yourself using Youtube’s video editor tool, which allows you to upload your slide images and overlay it with audio clips provided by YouTube using easy-to-use, drag-and-drop features. Or, conduct a Google+ Hangout On Air on the topic, which is saved as a video on YouTube following the live presentation.

Step 5: Turn your blog content into an infographic.

For a snack-sized piece of content you can promote via social media, create an infographic to supplement your blog post. You can use it to add new insights, share related statistics or re-emphasize parts of the blog post you want readers to remember. You can hire someone on Fiverr to make one for you or do it yourself with one of the free infographic maker tools online. The following infographic was created using Piktochart.

Step 6: Promote, promote, promote.

Tell everyone you know about your content, and how they can get it in a way that is most convenient for them. They can read it on your blog. They can get the CliffsNotes on Slideshare. They can listen it it in a podcast format. Or the can get the best of all the mediums in a video format. The choice is theirs.

Isn’t it amazing how you can turn one idea can turn into five different forms of media? You’re essentially creating four additional pieces of original content by taking one idea and repurposing it to fit the myriad of ways people are consuming content on a daily basis.

Deliver a variety of content to reach different segments of your audience based on their media consumption habits. It also improves the user experience drastically to give users options. They can read it. They can hear it. Or they can watch it. People learn and engage in different ways so make it easy for them to consume content in different ways. Doing so makes it easier for them to connect with your brand.

Google Author Rank is Coming; ClearVoice is Ready

Google Author Rank is Coming; ClearVoice is Ready was originally published on BruceClay.com, home of expert search engine optimization tips.

Google Author Rank is coming. Author Rank is an algorithmic analysis of an author’s authority which is used as a search engine ranking signal. When Google Author Rank comes, you’ll want to be ready, having firmly established yourself as a trustworthy authority. Now is the time for authors, journalists, bloggers and other content creators to evaluate themselves as authors in the way a search engine would. With last month’s disappearance of author photos from the SERP, we believe we’re closer than ever to the actualization of Google Author Rank. This means it’s time to evaluate your authority as an author by:

Looking at Google Analytics to determine the traffic, bounce rate, and time-on-page to articles on your site
Looking at data on when, where and how your articles (across sites) are being shared
Consistently monitoring your content to see where it is ranking for its intended keywords
Looking at how you align with prominent authors in your area of expertise; i.e. are you as prolific? As in-depth? As followed? As shared? As socially influential based on Klout score (read more on Klout here)?

In the search marketing industry there’s high demand for tools that can evaluate an online presence against metrics like those above, and tools built specifically for analyzing author authority are now coming to market. One such tool that calculates an authority score is ClearVoice, a free platform which has already indexed more than 100,000 authors since it’s launch last month.

“Authoritative writers are finally being digitally recognized by readers as trusted sources. It’s only natural that search engines would weigh the importance not only of the source of content but the voice behind it to showcase content authority,” said Joe Griffin, co-founder of ClearVoice.

How is the ClearVoice Score Determined?

With the ClearVoice Score, content creators have access to an objective measurement of their authority as an author. The ClearVoice Score is calculated by an algorithm that evaluates content that has been marked up for Google Authorship or for Twitter social cards. The ClearVoice Score is then calculated based upon factors including:

The amount of websites the author contributes to
The domain authority and reach of those websites
How often the author publishes content
How much each piece of content is shared

Authors will then be given a score between 1 and 100 (100 is the top possible score). The average ClearVoice Score is 45.7, and 25% of writers score between 40 and 50. The top .01% of writers have a ClearVoice Score above 90. These numbers, of course, can fluctuate as more and more content creators are evaluated.

“This metric is imperative in today’s influencer marketing economy. If, as a brand or publisher, you’re looking for a writer with a strong voice in a particular vertical that not only can produce compelling content but can also amplify that content, ClearVoice is a powerful tool for identifying those top-tier voices,” explained ClearVoice PR Director Allison Freeland.

Freeman also points out that ClearVoice is the first platform to use Twitter social card markup for authorship validation. ClearVoice studied the habits of 500 major media outlets and found that 40.8% of articles are marked up for Twitter social cards and 33.4% are marked up for Google Authorship. Knowing that, ClearVoice thought it would be valuable to identify content creators via their “digital signature” on Twitter as well as Google+.

How to Leverage Your ClearVoice Score

There’s a reason we look at metrics; as with traffic reports, ranking reports, follower counts and more, they provide us empirical data of where we’ve been and where we’re going. Is ClearVoice an absolute indicator of your worth as a content creator? Or course not — but it’s a tool to help you gauge your reach and grow by identifying how and where you can improve. That way, when Google Author Rank comes (and we believe it will), you will be ahead of the game!

Could Disappearing Author Photos in Google SERPs Signal Coming Author Rank?

Could Disappearing Author Photos in Google SERPs Signal Coming Author Rank? was originally published on BruceClay.com, home of expert search engine optimization tips.

When John Mueller announced Google was “simplifying the way authorship is shown in mobile and desktop search results, removing the profile photo and circle count,” he asserted that this change was simply an effort to de-clutter the search results page (SERP). Prominent Internet marketers, however, had their own theories on Google’s latest bold move.

Here we evaluate some of the theories posed by industry thought leaders about why Google has cut author photos from SERPs. We also explore how the removal of author photos from SERPs may actually portend Google’s intent to add author reputation as an algorithmic ranking factor.

Background on Google Authorship and Author Rank

So many authors, such a spammed signal. With these latest changes, though, Google may be angling to clean up authorship for a trusted ranking signal.

First, a refresher on the Google Authorship program and when to apply authorship code to a web page.

The only place authorship markup should appear is on pages that offer educational, unique or otherwise useful information, created by a true author. Authorship markup should not appear on product pages, for example. Think of a magazine — bylines don’t belong on advertisements; they belong on articles. Google has historically used authorship markup to create a special display, or rich snippet, in its search results that may include an author’s name and headshot.

For more on what Google authorship markup is and how to correctly implement it on a website, read Claiming Your Authorship on the Web.

It’s also necessary to understand how Google may now or eventually use an individual author’s reputation as a ranking signal. Author Rank is industry jargon for an algorithm that gauges the authority of an author so that higher rankings can be given to content written by more authoritative authors. This concept is called “Agent Rank” in one Google patent for a system that quantifies author authority.

Google confirmed that author authority was a ranking signal within In-Depth Articles results. It’s not known if author reputation is used as a ranking signal in other contexts, but there has been indication from Google reps that the search engine would like to use author authority in appropriate contexts if it can be trusted as a clean signal — that is, if the ranking factor can’t be easily spammed.

Abuse of Authorship Markup

Since Google authorship photos debuted in 2011, there have been many reports of increased click-through rates (CTR). A Catalyst Search Marketing case study, for example, found SERP results with author photos saw a 150% CTR increase.

History has shown that known ranking signals become targets of spam and abuse. Ecommerce sites have inappropriately implemented authorship markup on product pages that don’t qualify as “authored” content.

In December 2013, Matt Cutts announced a change that would reduce the appearance of authorship photos in SERPs by 15 percent. This was likely motivated by Google’s interest in cleaning up the signal, weeding out unauthoritative and inappropriate authorship markup. Some have theorized that the latest removal of author photos altogether can also be viewed as a move by Google to stop abuse of authorship markup.

“Google has a vested interest in eliminating people who are using authorship markup just to get their picture in SERPs for an enhanced CTR — people who aren’t really authors or interested in writing true content,” said Bruce Clay, Inc. Senior SEO Analyst Rob Ramirez. “Now that Google has removed photos, i.e., the reward, we’ll see a cleaner SERP.”

In a nutshell, by removing the incentive to abuse authorship markup, Google may be moving closer to using author authority as a ranking factor.

Consider also how Google has experimented with including photos and bylines and a mix of not having one or the other. Google has been selective when including photos and bylines, not always including author bylines despite proper authorship markup implementation. Yet, since Google removed photos completely, we now see author bylines in SERPs consistently. That is, while author photos have been removed altogether, we can now trust that bylines will show up (where authorship markup is set up). Before, it was up to Google’s discretion whether a result would be enhanced with any author info.

Noted Google-authorship expert Mark Traphagen reported:

“Qualification for an authorship byline now is simply having correct markup. This was a bit of a surprise given Google’s move last December to differentiate and highlight authors with better quality content who publish on trusted sites. But in a Google Webmaster Central Hangout on June 25, 2014, John Mueller indicated that now as long as the two-way verification … could be correctly read by Google, a byline would likely be shown.”

With the return of bylines for all authors and the removal of authorship photos, it seems like Google is experimenting with authorship rich snippets as it moves toward an increased emphasis on authorship and a fully realized Author Rank.

Ramirez expects that moving forward, SEOs will continue to see changes within authorship:

“The next thing that we might see Google do is clean up those authors who aren’t really publishing content. How often someone publishes content might start to become a factor. If, for example, authorship is set up one time and it hasn’t budged since that date, that might indicate to Google that this ‘author’ is not, in fact, a real author. In such cases, the user might lose any kind of benefit of authorship. Now that they’ve gotten rid of the photo enhancement in the SERP, they have the problem of cleaning up the people that were spamming it before. That has to be a next step before they go to Author Rank.”

Did Google Remove Author Photos Because the Images Competed with Ads?

On the day of Mueller’s announcement, noted search industry speaker Rand Fishkin (of SEO tools company Moz) tweeted: “the compelling explanation for Google removing profile pics from search is that it distracted from ads, and cost advertisers clicks” and that he was “frustrated [by John Mueller] saying that it will not cost CTR. Either Google lied about the increase in CTR with photos, or they’re lying now.”

In his announcement regarding the removal of authorship photos, Mueller said experiments indicated that CTR would remain steady despite the change to the SERP. Fishkin was not alone in his disbelief; Larry Kim of search advertising software company WordStream tested the theory by turning to analytics data. By his analysis, the CTR of a WordStream ad targeting “negative keywords” gained a 44% increase after the removal of author photos.

“We tested this data rigorously, and the difference we observed is statistically significant with 99% confidence due to the high number of daily ad impressions (thousands) for this keyword,” Kim wrote. “It’s clear to us that based on this data, it’s not realistic to say the deletion of Google authorship photos has no impact on the CTR of other elements on the SERP.”

Even if the removal of authorship photos impacts CTR on ads, Ramirez doesn’t think ad revenue was Google’s main catalyst for this change.

“Things are rarely that black and white when it comes to Google’s motives. I don’t think that Google is hurting for money — they don’t need to make those kind of decisions,” Ramirez said.

Instead, Google’s motivation is most likely tied to improving results and encouraging a cleaner signal for author authority. In the following video, Ramirez shares more of his thoughts on the changes in Google authorship in an exclusive interview:

SEM Synergy Returns to WebmasterRadio.FM

SEM Synergy Returns to WebmasterRadio.FM was originally published on BruceClay.com, home of expert search engine optimization tips.

After almost three years since its last episode, SEM Synergy is making a comeback to WebmasterRadio.FM. It’s the Internet marketing podcast you don’t want to miss hosted by leading search marketing expert Bruce Clay, president and founder of Bruce Clay, Inc.

With new episodes starting July 16 (THAT’S TODAY!) at 11 a.m. Pacific time, 2 p.m. Eastern time, Bruce Clay will be joined by co-hosts Virginia Nussey and Mindy Weinstein. Together, the trio will bring Internet marketers and business owners a weekly dose of news and commentary with interviews from the brightest minds in SEO, like next week’s guest Duane Forrester of Bing and past guests that have included Matt Cutts, Bryan Eisenberg and Avinash Kaushik.

Picking up right where they left off in 2011, Bruce and hosts will be talking about all the different puzzle pieces that make SEO come together synergistically from branding, content marketing and social media to paid search, analytics and conversions. In the first episode of the relaunched radio series, listen in as they discuss Panda 4.0, updates to Google’s Quality Rating Guidelines, the disappearance of author photos in search results, and Matt Cutts’ leave of absence.

Panda 4.0

Described as a kinder and gentler version of Google’s latest algorithm update, Panda 4.0 targets sites with little content or low-quality content on their web pages. In a Google+ Hangout on Air recorded shortly after the news of Panda 4.0 broke, Weinstein discussed why this was a good thing for Internet marketing. On today’s show the discussion turns to how SEO strategies have transformed over the past several years and how Bruce approaches website rankings in a post-Panda world.

New Quality Rating Guidelines

A sixth generation of the Google Quality Rating Guidelines was just recently “leaked.” The guide is given to human reviewers to give Google feedback on the quality of pages in relation to search queries. SEOs can use this document to evaluate the quality of their site and pages as Google might. Bruce, Mindy and Virginia discuss what the new guidelines entail. They also answer questions like: How will these guidelines affect your rankings? And if Google doesn’t trust your website, will your visitors?

Vanishing Authorship Photos

There has been speculation from many in the industry on why Google removed author photos from appearing in search results. One theory is that author photos weren’t a valid sign of authority as originally intended. But is this true, or is there something bigger at play going on here? Get the scoop on how to approach authorship markup moving forward on today’s episode of SEM Synergy.

Matt Cutts Takes Personal Leave

Google’s leading spokesperson to the search marketing industry is taking a leave of absence. After 15 years of working with Google since the very beginning, this will be the longest amount of time he will be taking off from his role as head of Google’s webspam team. But where will we get our all-important SEO updates during his absence? Bruce, Mindy and Virginia look at life outside of SEO and SEO news without Matt Cutts.

It was interesting to learn while listening to the show that Bruce Clay has been doing SEO since 1996; meanwhile Google didn’t hit the scene until 1998! SEM Synergy aims to offer weekly coverage of the newest marketing strategies, emerging technologies and search marketing news affecting the daily work lives of Internet marketers and business owners across the globe.

Tune into SEM Synergy with Bruce Clay and co-hosts every Wednesday at 11 a.m. Pacific on WebmasterRadio.FM or through the WebmasterRadio.FM mobile application for iOS and Android devices. Listen to past episodes of SEM Synergy on-demand by visiting the archives under the Search Engine Optimization channel at WebmasterRadio.FM.

8 Common Mobile Website Pitfalls to Avoid for SEO

8 Common Mobile Website Pitfalls to Avoid for SEO was originally published on BruceClay.com, home of expert search engine optimization tips.

With mobile Internet usage at an all-time high, Google has been cracking down on websites with poor mobile experience. Mobile web design and user experience must be addressed as part of any effective online strategy.

The way a site handles traffic from mobile devices can directly affect that business’s presence in search results. Just this month, Google announced it was adding a disclaimer beneath mobile search results that redirect smartphone users from the page they click on in the SERP to that site’s home page. From Google’s perspective, this disclaimer improves its mobile experience; meanwhile webmasters should be concerned if their mobile websites are ill-equipped to handle the growing number of mobile queries.

Update: Hours after this post was published, Google announced another change to SERPs related to warning mobile users about sub-optimal user experience. Websites that use Flash will include a disclaimer that the site listed in the results “Uses Flash” and “May not work on your device.”

The pressure is on for websites to provide a user-friendly mobile experience as the number of mobile queries surpassed desktop queries this year.

Google’s example of how it will handle mobile SERPs when a site listed in results may redirect users to the home page.

Mobile browsing isn’t a here-today-gone-tomorrow fad. The mobile web has given rise to a new way of life for consumers. Mobile design is no longer an option, but a necessity in a world where mobile-friendly websites turn visitors into customers.

According the Pew Research Center:

90 percent of American adults own a cell phone.
⅔ of Americans with cell phones use their phones to go online.
⅓ of Americans with cell phones use their mobile device as their primary access point to the Internet.
Since 2012 smartphone adoption has grown by 69 percent.

 

So, is your mobile website experience up to par? To help business owners and Internet marketers stay current with mobile trends, lead SEO analyst at Bruce Clay, Inc., Ty Carson, reports the most common pitfalls in mobile website design.

Mobile Website Technology

Avoiding the most common pitfalls in mobile web design begins first and foremost with choosing the right technology to build your mobile website. Without an IT or web developer background, how do you know which technologies are more search-engine friendly than others?

Carson suggests business owners consult with an SEO company first before deciding on which technology to use. He also recommends building mobile websites using crawlable, static HTML pages rather than AJAX-based technologies. If AJAX happens to be your preferred technology, you can help Google properly index your website by following Webmaster Guidelines for making AJAX applications crawlable. But know that, as Carson says, “Search engines have trouble accessing dynamically-served JavaScript, so you’re better off avoiding AJAX or JS technologies altogether.”

Mobile Web Design Options

Once you’ve decided on which technology you’re going to use to build your mobile website, the next important factor to consider is which of the three smartphone configurations that Google supports works best for your website:

Responsive web design
Dynamic serving
A separate mobile site

BCI SEO Analyst John Alexander covered the pros and cons of each option in a BCI blog post titled A Cheat Sheet for Mobile Design. Read the full post for details on the benefits and drawbacks of each, but at a high level know that:

Responsive design is Google’s preferred smartphone configuration for mobile websites. However, this may not always be a practical solution depending on the size and layout of your website.
Dynamic serving is another great option for mobile web design, but it can be a little tricky to implement and may result in unintentional cloaking issues if not implemented correctly.
A separate mobile site is a fairly common option, particularly among websites with lots of pages, but requires double the maintenance with a whole separate website in the mix.

Whichever configuration you choose to work with, or have already implemented, there’s still a chance you could be losing 68 percent of mobile traffic if these mobile solutions are not implemented correctly.

Common Problems With Mobile Sites Built In HTML

Want to make it easier for your customers to find you no matter where they are or what device they are using? Keep reading to find out if you’re committing one of these cardinal sins of mobile web design as seen through the eyes of our lead SEO analyst who has conducted more than his fair share of mobile site SEO reviews.

Pitfall #1: Faulty Redirects

A website should correctly detect user agents and direct the visitor to the desired page of a desktop website or mobile website, as appropriate. In order for the server to properly direct visitors coming from a variety of devices, the mobile site must have corresponding equivalent pages for every page on the desktop site. This issue is the instigating factor for Google’s new handling of search results that redirect users to the home page, as described above.

Pitfall #2: Missing (or Wrong) Alternate

This issue can be a problem for site’s with a separate mobile site. As a general rule of thumb, every desktop page should point to a corresponding mobile page. This can be done by including a rel=”alternate” tag on desktop pages. Most importantly, the mobile page you point to needs to be a page that closely matches that of the desktop page. This creates a better search experience for mobile users. There’s nothing more disappointing for mobile users than to click on a seemingly promising result only to discover that the page doesn’t really exist … at least for a mobile device user.

Pitfall #3: Missing (or Wrong) Canonical

Here’s another issue that can arise when using a separate mobile site. For every mobile page with a corresponding desktop page that points to it, website owners should be including a rel=”canonical” tag that points to the corresponding desktop page. While the rel=”alternate” tag on mobile pages improves mobile search experience, the canonical tag prevents duplicate content issues and lets search engines know which version of the page should be indexed.

Pitfall #4: Cloaking to Change Content Based on User-Agent

This is a common issue among dynamic serving mobile websites as well as sites using technologies the search engines have trouble accessing like Flash and JavaScript. Cloaking is a direct violation of Google’s Webmaster Guidelines and refers to the practice of presenting users with one version of the mobile site while the search engines are getting an entirely different version. The best way to fix this issue is by making sure that all user-agents and search engine bots are getting the same source code as mobile users.

Pitfall #5: Mobile Website Speed

According to data from Google Analytics, the average web page takes about 10 seconds to load on a mobile device, and yet most mobile users have a significantly shorter attention span than that. Google recommends cutting page loading time down to one second or less for optimal mobile user experience. Use tools like Google Page Speed Insights or W3C Mobile Validator to run site speed tests and identify different ways to improve your mobile site’s page loading times.

Pitfall #6: Large Image and File Sizes

Related to issue #3 above, image-heavy websites with large file sizes are major issues that can cause your web pages to load a lot more slowly. The longer it takes for your page to load, the more likely you are to lose visitors. Slow page loading times can also result in slower crawl rates, which means less of your mobile pages getting indexed. The solution: Use compressed images and smaller file size to reduce the time it takes mobile search engines to render your page.

Pitfall #7: Missing Meta Tags

When it comes to delivering search results, Google treats mobile and desktop quite differently when user behavior and intent are factored into search results. That’s why you want to optimize your website for mobile search the same way you would for desktop search. The easiest fix for missing Meta tags on your mobile pages is to pull them from their corresponding desktop pages and make sure they match what the mobile user is searching in Google for a seamless user experience.

Pitfall #8: No Mobile Sitemap

If you have a separate mobile site, you need a separate sitemap. Without a sitemap for your mobile site, you’ll only make it harder for search engines to quickly identify what your site and pages are all about. The sitemap also clues them in on additional pages on your website that may have been missed during the normal crawling process. A sitemap.xml file should be created containing all of the static pages that should be crawled and indexed by search engines and reside in the root directory for your m.domain site.

Avoid the most common pitfalls in mobile design by installing website analytics and verifying ownership of both your desktop and mobile website through Webmaster Tools. This will help you identify and fix errors that may be hindering the mobile experience for users.

Get mobile SEO tips and so much more by checking out the Bruce Clay, Inc. Blog. If you’re interested in a mobile site SEO review, get in touch with us for guidance on how to improve your mobile site experience.

3 Enhancements to Bing Ads Manager Rolling Out Now

3 Enhancements to Bing Ads Manager Rolling Out Now was originally published on BruceClay.com, home of expert search engine optimization tips.

A few changes to the Bing Ads user interface are rolling out and we got a walk through of them earlier this week. If you’re managing paid search campaigns on the Yahoo Bing network, expect to see these tweaks to your UI in the coming weeks.

Exclude 0-Click Terms in Search Terms Report

What it is: Faster report running time and a more refined data set in the returned report as the filter will return only search queries which resulted in clicks

Why we like it: This can be useful for those interested in only looking at search queries that received clicks. As far as speeding up things, it really depends on the amount of data you are trying to look at. This will not make a big difference to most, but for those who need to see (or not see) 0-click data, it can be more convenient than having to download a spreadsheet and manipulate it in Excel.

Bid Estimation Workflow Enhancements

What it is: Three new non-default columns in the keywords grid for easier consumption

Estimated Mainline bid
Estimated Front Page bid
Estimated Top Page bid

Click to enlarge screenshot

Why we like it: The major advantage of having estimated bid data is it gives advertisers an idea of the estimated bid levels necessary to achieve the desired ad position in the SERPs. For example, if an advertiser has a valuable keyword that they’d like to show ads for at the top of the page, they’d be able to get a good idea of how much they’d have to bid (and spend) to achieve the “Top of Page” position. If they have a keyword that is not as important, or if they simply can’t afford to show at the top of the page and pay a premium CPC, they might want to utilize the “Mainline” or “Front Page” bid estimate, so they are at least visible in the SERPs but not paying a ton for position.

New Delivery Statuses

What it is: Two new delivery status types for keyword entities under “Eligible – Limited”

Low search volume
Low quality score

Click to enlarge screenshot

Why we like it: Delivery status basically tells us whether or not there are any issues with the keyword being able to serve. For example, an “Eligible” keyword is eligible to show ads that are triggered by searchers, with no issue. Sometimes, if the Quality Score is too low, the deliver status will tell us that there is an issue (Low QS) that might cause our ad to not run. This information has been available in AdWords for a while. This information is significant because it simply gives us more in-depth ability to troubleshoot serving issues, specifically for individual keywords. This way, we can diagnose and fix any problems.

We’re currently seeing the bid estimation workflow enhancements and new delivery statuses in our Bing Ads manager but not yet seeing the 0-click terms in search reports. What data or enhancements you’d see in your ads manager if Bing was taking requests? Let us know in the comments.

Best Practices for NEW Google Shopping Campaigns

Best Practices for NEW Google Shopping Campaigns was originally published on BruceClay.com, home of expert search engine optimization tips.

Yesterday morning the Google Shopping Team, including Partner Education Manager, Nicole Premo, and Product Specialist, Chris Azalde, held their second Google+ Hangout where they discussed best practices for Shopping campaigns and AdWords Editor support.

Nicole Premo

Chris Azalde

During the informational session, the Shopping Team reviewed a few items to keep in mind when managing the new replacement of PLAs and Shopping Campaign benefits. Whether you’re new to Product Listing Ads or a PLA master, the following takeaways and recommendations will help you with the Shopping campaign transition taking full effect in late August.

Below you’ll find takeaways from the Google+ Hangout including:

Best practices for implementing a Google Shopping campaign feed
A heads-up on updated data feed attributes
Shiny new features coming to the AdWords Editor (version 10.5!)

And, if you’re interested in talking about how Bruce Clay, Inc. can help you manage your Google Shopping or other paid search campaigns, let’s get in touch!

Best Practices for an Optimized Shopping Campaign Feed

Ensure “product data is complete, fresh and accurate”

Upload data regularly to keep information current

Once a day, or depending on changes, schedule frequent uploads


Feeds should be kept updated to reflect any new price changes and availability
“Product eligibility can improve your impressions”
Match the data feed to the information found on your website
Submit Unique Product Identifiers

Keep “titles, descriptions and images user-friendly”

Use high-quality, clear images for products

Use white, gray or light gray backgrounds
Avoid watermarks and logos


“Relevancy can improve your click through rate”

Use Search Query Reports to hone relevancy of products’ keyword lists


No keyword stuffing

Keep “product type and custom labels in good shape”

“Bid based on your product group’s relative value”
Organize your inventory by product type for easy management of your shopping campaigns

Create a product catalogue or taxonomy


Five custom labels are available and they make management control of new and old products that much easier

Each product can be assigned up to 5 labels

Resource: AdWords Best Practices Series on Search Engine Land

Updated Specifications for Data Feed Attributes

Landing Page Policy
Image Quality Recommendations
Attribute Character Limits

Resource: Google Merchant Center Product Feed Specification

Note: The Google Shopping Team will be reviewing feeds on Google Merchant Center.  Google strongly recommends reviewing the Feed Summary Page for any warnings or messages. GST also mentioned to update account contact information to receive email notifications. You will be hearing from them this summer if your account is in need of any immediate changes.

Note on “is_bundle”: A good example for the best use of this attribute is a bundle including a camera and case. Clearly, the camera is the dominate product in the bundle.

NEW! 10.5 AdWords Editor Features

Manage and edit campaigns offline
Bulk Management: Bids and URLs of Product Groups
Bulk Management: Negative Keywords
Update promotional text for many Ad Groups

Note: Shopping campaigns or product groups cannot be created or deleted.

Things to Consider

Adding negative keywords to your Shopping campaigns directly from the Search Query Report is currently not available, but, like PLAs, you can still add keywords lists also available for bulk management
Review your Search Query Report to see how your customers are searching
Backend Auction Activity and Algorithm remains the same and has not changed
How can you get your product to be displayed for highly competitive keywords?

Submit Unique Product Identifiers
Update titles and optimize by relevancy
Submit Product Group Category

RECOMMENDED REFERENCES

“AdWords Best Practices Series” for checklists, whitepapers and more!

3 Factors of a Standout SEO Resume + 1 Bonus Off-page Factor

3 Factors of a Standout SEO Resume + 1 Bonus Off-page Factor was originally published on BruceClay.com, home of expert search engine optimization tips.

Your resume is the first thing a hiring manager is going to see when you apply for a job — is your SEO resume optimized to make a good first impression? Our SEO Manager Mindy Weinstein shared three factors that make for a standout SEO resume:

Experience
Training
Results

And beyond the SEO resume itself, she emphasized an off-page factor she considers when hiring a potential SEO analyst: attitude.

SEO Resume Factor 1: Experience

When it comes to experience, an SEO analyst should have at least one to two years of experience. A senior SEO analyst should have three or more, with experience interfacing with clients and managing projects. For those without SEO experience, however, there are internships, apprenticeships and associate SEO positions where aspiring analysts can get valuable experience.

“If someone is coming with no experience, I focus mainly on communication and time management abilities. SEO can be taught, but great communication is harder to learn. I try to relate his or her past work experience with what I know applies to an SEO’s job,” Weinstein said.

SEO Resume Factor 2: Training

Because Internet marketing is a relatively new industry, ways in which SEOs have been trained vary widely (read more in Learning SEO and the Future of SEO Education). Weinstein said she weighs experience more heavily than training. That being said, if a prospective analysts lists a reputable course or certification program on his or her SEO resume, it stands out.

SEO Resume Factor 3: Results

“One of the first things I look for on an SEO resume are results. It’s one thing to say you have experience optimizing web pages and increasing keyword rankings,” said Weinstein. “Backing those statements up with specifics, such as ‘moved primary keyword rankings to the first position in search results and doubled organic traffic,’ is a whole lot more powerful.”

Off-page Factor: Attitude

A standout SEO resume can get you an interview, but your personality and ability to articulate yourself is going to seal the deal. While experience, training and results are key factors, so is your attitude.

“I pay close attention to how a prospective analyst is able to articulate thoughts,” Weinstein said. “I also watch for signs of a positive attitude. For example, if the candidate is very negative when talking about past work experience, it is usually a red flag.”

Put Your SEO Resume to the Ultimate Test

Do you have what it takes to catch Bruce Clay and Weinstein’s attention? Bruce Clay, Inc. is looking for talented SEO analysts to join our team. We have two open positions right now, in fact. Find out more and apply here.