John Cow dot Com » link building

8 Vital Tips for A Successful Search Engine Traffic Campaign

Jason Katzenback — Sun, 17 Oct 2010 20:40:43 +0000

If you are trying to make money online, you know that search engine traffic is a HUGE component to your success. The following is a list of 8 Vital Tips for A Successful Search Engine Traffic Campaign according to “me”

This is how I do things and it works EXTREMELY well… take it or leave it, this has proven to work for me over and over and over again!

1. One Bite at a Time: You want to focus on one primary keyword for the first 3 weeks for each page you promote, I also recommend you initially only focus on one page at a time. This is because:

It tells Google initially exactly what the page is about.
There will automatically be “variations” added and after 3 weeks you will start to add a lot of variations yourself.

NOTE: Yes I realize variations are crucial but not at first for a brand new website. Focus on the term you want to rank for and then once you are ranking well or after three weeks, start adding variations.

I talk more about variations further down in this post also.

2. Look at Your Competition: Don’t be discouraged when you don’t see some competitors ranking in the top 2 or 3 spots that you can beat. What I do is start out by looking competition that looks beatable and is on page one or the top of page 2. Then I figure out the amount of links I will need to surpass them and increase that by 2X’s.

The search engines might not count all your back links or even find them, so you need to ensure you have more then the competition is showing. For example, if the competition is showing 50 back links, then you will want to have 100 back links to ensure the search engines (especially Google) sees at least 50+.
If there is nothing that appears beatable in the top 5 spots on page one but there is in the top 10 to 15, then go for it. Once you beat them you can progressively work your way to the top position.
You do not want to just match your competitors, you want to BEAT them.

3. Variations Are Important: Eventually you are going to want to use variations. After three weeks or once you are ranking on page 1, you will need to start adding variations in the anchor text links.

DO not force Google’s hand here. Instead, allow Google to tell you what to use. Use Google Keyword Suggestion Tool – type in your blog’s URL and look at what keywords Google tells you relate to your site and then start mixing in some of those terms. I make a list of about 7 to 10 terms that I rotate through
Only use the primary keyword once every three times (30% to 40%) and make sure to also mix in terms such as the URL of the site, “check this out” and “click here” to make it appear more “natural”.

The fact is Google wants to eventually find variations in your links anchor text and will actually penalize you eventually if it appears that you are too optimized from a linking point of view. That makes the use of variations an important component to campaign success.

4. Limit Interlinking: Try not to interlink Social sites, blogs and other websites you are using to link to your blog. You can interlink a few of them but I try not to interlink any of them. I do not want to risk Google or my competitors being able to uncover everything.

5. Split It Up: Make sure that you split the links to you index page and deep links to about a 50/50 split.

This does not have to be exact, but the routine I follow is I try to always promote a deep link when I promote the index page or if I am promoting a deep link then I will also promote the index page.

6. Consistency: Once you are ranking on the top of page 1, try to maintain an average of one new link a day (approximately 30 a month) with 40% using the main keyword term and the rest variations

7. Variety is Key: Make sure to use a variety of link sources and every month you should change it up a bit.

Make sure the Google page rank is all over the board. You do not want links only coming from high page rank sites.
Make sure some of the links are rel=”nofollow”. Remember we want to look natural here and the fact is some people will link to a site naturally and add a nofollow tag to the link.
Do not use the exact same sites every month, make sure to add in new sites. For example, do not use the exact same article directories every month, mix it up and change them around.

8. Promote Your Promotions: You want to ensure the search engines find each backlink you get and therefore you want to ensure you promote sites that link to you. This can be easily done by bookmarking with a service like Ping.FM

There you go… so what are your comments?

3 Link Building Techniques You Should Look Into

Jason Katzenback — Tue, 25 Aug 2009 11:00:51 +0000

This is a Guest Post by Igor Kheifets. Igor is 21 year old Internet Marketing Expert and the author and creator of Mastermind Internet Marketing where he shares the latest strategies on Social Media Marketing, Traffic and Lead Generation, Copywriting and Productivity.

Link building is (arguably) the most important part of your site’s SEO. The quality and the quantity of your links is how Google knows if you can be trusted. By building high authority links back to your site – you instantly boost your credibility and the likelihood of ranking higher in the SERPs.

If you’re trying to build links for your site to increase your pagerank, rank higher in Google and other Search Engines then you know that every link counts. Link building is a skill on and off itself, therefore I can’t break down all the elements in a single post.

What I want to do though, is I want to raise your awareness about the three link building techniques that are thought of as “Dead,” but in fact are more “Alive” than you could have imagined.

Social Bookmarking

The majority of internet marketers never indulge themselves into this “foolish” activity. However, the fact of the matter is that it looks foolish only to the untrained eye. Social bookmaking’s entire concept is based around building high authority linkbacks for your website in a very short time.

On the other hand, people fail to realize that, and so they get disappointed and discouraged because their stories didn’t make it to the front page of Technorati, Digg and Delicious. What you need to understand is that making it to the front page is a BONUS of social bookmarking. Instead, what your real agenda should be is the 6-9 PR BACKLINKs you get by submitting your content.

Remember that we aren’t talking about Traffic Generation. If your major focus in social bookmarking is traffic generation, then before you go about submitting your content you should also develop some major skills in Social Media marketing, Headline and Copywriting, Marketing Expertise and Storytelling. Only then you will be able to compete against some of the major players in the league of Social Media.

Article Marketing

If I were to receive a nickel every time I heard “Article Marketing is Dead” I would be a very rich man by now. I would like to remind you once more that we aren’t talking about traffic generation but rather about link building – totally different concept.

Article marketing is an awesometastic (yep, it’s a real word) way of building high PR backlinks for your website. And its effectiveness triples when you’re using some kind of article submission software. Most of the article directories (that are worth submitting to) are pagerank 5-8, which makes them an outstanding way of acquiring link juice.

Google and the search engines are in love with article directories such as EzineArticles, ArticleCity, ArticleBase and ArticleFeeder. You can easily dominate 4-6 positions on the first page of Google if you do your keyword research right. This means that a backlink from an article directory will not only become utterly valuable over time, but will also turn into a major Authority Indicator for Google.

The best way to utilize Article Marketing is to use proper article submission software. Personally, I use ArticleSubmitAuto, which is a free service that submits my articles to the Top 20 article directories. It means that for every article I write, I get twenty quality PR 5-8 backlinks back to my blog.

Forum Marketing

Besides being one of the Top Notch link building ways, forums are a great place to find business associates, form partnerships and get help. For the most part, people are very warm and generous there, which makes it an awesome place to hang out, socialize and improve your skills.

The best way to leverage forums is to build links while being genuine, honest, helpful and outgoing. In order to run a successful link building campaign you’ll have to take care of two simple things:

Create a signature file with an SEO Anchored Text linking back to your website
Be active, generous and helpful

This link building strategy is best suited for beginners. Reason being is that most forums are pagerank 2-4, which makes them useless for veterans with pagerank 5 and higher. If you’re just starting out and your site is yet to rise above PR2 – forums are a great place for you to build links.

Make it a habit to post at least 10-15 replies on Warrior Forum and Digital Point everyday and overtime you’ll notice a substantial increase in traffic and authority of your site.

And One More Thing…

Link building doesn’t produce instant results. Pagerank and Authority is a combination of quality, quantity, relevance and the age of your links as well as your content. Don’t expect instant results, in fact, don’t expect results AT ALL!

You know what they say:

“Shoot For The Moon, But Be Happy When You Land Amongst The Stars”

How To Construct A Press Release That Gets Attention

Jason Katzenback — Fri, 19 Dec 2008 11:52:52 +0000

Press releases have always been a great way to get not only visitors to your web properties but also backlinks. The problem is, most people have no idea how to write one. It’s not that difficult at all and I will give you an outline and some of the things you should do and shouldn’t do.

Firstly, ask yourself whether your news is actually newsworthy? If you think it’s not don’t worry, it doesn’t take much to make it look newsworthy. Here is the biggest no-no of a press release. Don’t use it simply to make a sale or sell something.

A press release needs to be toned down. It needs to answer the who, what, where, when and why of whatever it is you’re promoting.

Here are a list of DO NOTs:

Don’t make your press release sound like an advertisement. If it does then go back and tone it down and remember the four “Ws.”
Never write a press release just to mention an opening or a launch. They are a dime a dozen and these type of press releases will usually get turfed.
Always avoid hype and don’t fill it with fluff. It needs to be direct and straight to the point.
Avoid exaggerations and over the top claims. The Journalism profession is one of skepticism. I know because I’ve spent my career working in news rooms around the world.
Avoid too many exclamation marks. This is definitely a no-no…!!!!! I would not include them at all.

Here are a list of the DOs:

Get straight to the point. People should know what your press release is about simply by reading the headline and the first paragraph.
Lead with your main point. It’s the hook to attract enough attention to get the media to want to use your press release.
Your press release should only focus on the features but in a toned down manner. Never try to sell. Ask yourself “why anyone else would want to read my press release?” Put yourself in the Journalists or reader’s shoes and decide if your release is interesting enough to share with the world.
Always try and use real life points that will illustrate how you or your service solved a problem. You could identify a problem and then explain why your product or site can solve it. Never exaggerate.
Try and relate your story to something going on in the world right now. For example, it could relate to the current state of the economy. If you have a home business opportunity relate, it to the frail economy. Mention the problem and then why you have the solution. Mention benefits.
Your language should be plain. Avoid using unnatural language. There is certain language which may be appropriate in a particular niche but remember, you want your press release to touch the general population. That’s what a Journalist will be looking for. They want to appeal to a wider audience and not just a specific niche.
The press release should end with a short spiel about your company, site, product, history etc. This is like a resource box but keep it short.

Just remember not to write a salesletter. It’s a news oriented item and needs to grab a reader’s attention very early on. Avoid too much fluff and keep it a reasonable length…250-400 words. Here’s a resource I posted in The forum recently on constructing a press release. It’s basically a template and will be a good guideline to writing your press release:

http://www.ducttapemarketing.com/IPR.htm

Link Boosting and WIN $10 000! – JOHNCOWtv Episode 2

Jason Katzenback — Fri, 19 Sep 2008 19:12:02 +0000

Well it has been a full week since our beloved COW was stolen from us (as witnessed in JOHNCOWtv Episode 1) and sadly we have not heard a single word from the authorities or the COWnappers. We are still hopeful that COW is safe and unharmed but we also a little concerned. We are moving forward still and in fact we want to celebrate with all of our readers what it is COW represents and stands for (too many things to write about in this post, that is for sure) and as a result we are giving away…

>> $10 000 CASH! <<

That’s right… we are not going to let these COWnappers ruin us and destroy this for our readers.

The rules are simple… watch the video and we announce the winner in the video. We selected a name from the list of email subscribers and picked one random winner. The only exception is we are not publishing the name, we are not emailing the person and they have to contact us within 24 hours of this post…

NO EXCEPTIONS!

If you do not hear your name or do not contact us within 24 hours… we are keeping all of it… and believe me Audrey can always find ways to spend that money!

So don’t email us or comment below that it is unfair if you do not hear your name or contact us in time.. remember NO EXCEPTIONS!

I also share a powerful strategy in this episode called “LinkBoosting”… which I know you will find useful!

So watch the video and see if you are a lucky winner!

Click Here to Add JOHNCOWtv to Your YouTube

Want Your Website or Business Spotlighted in the Next Episode of JOHNCOWtv?

If you would like to be spotlighted on JOHNCOWtv it is easy… simply send us something with your business name or logo on it (ball caps, winter caps, t-shirts, coffee cups)… OR… something cool (we like gadgets and PS3 video games ) and tell us what you want to have mentioned. We will also add the sponsor message in the text of the post.

Mailing Address: 645 Queen Street East 2nd Floor, SSM, Ontario Canada, P6A2A6

9 Ways to Create Worthwhile Backlinks To Your Blog

Jason Katzenback — Sat, 06 Sep 2008 10:04:50 +0000

This is a guest post written by Ryan Mclean of Smarter Wealth .NET

Backlinks are a key ingredient to any successful blog. Having a link back to your blog is like having a ‘vote’ towards you blog in the search engines. Backlinks have become even more important now with the mysterious “Google Pagerank”. Backlinks are awesome also because they not only help your search engine ranks but they also provide links all over the web for people to find your site, and you want people to find your site because this equals more money.

So if you need backlinks in order to have a successful blog then you better be 100% sure that you get as many backlinks to your site as is humanly possible. The more backlinks the more likely people are going to come to your site and the more ‘votes’ you get in search engines meaning the higher ranked you will be in the search engines.

Firstly how do you find out how many backlinks you have?

This is a good question and there are many free tools out there that can show you how many backlinks you have. I recommend the SEOPro free link checker (Click here to check it out) as it is one I use and I find works quite well.

Now I know that I currently have 1,247 backlinks to my blog which I have gained in the last 1 and 1/2 months of blogging (because previously my blog was foolswealth.com so I lost all the backlinks from the first 4-5 months).

So I have set the goal of getting 3,000 backlinks. I have set myself the goal of doing this before the end of October

So how can you get backlinks to your blog?

1. Comment Other Blogs

Commenting on “Do Follow” Blogs (blogs that allow your links in comments to be tracked by search engines) is one of the best ways to build up links. Doing this alone I would need to ad 1,750 comments which is 29 comments per day (which I could probably do), but I will comment a lot plus use other methods. This is by far the easiest way to get backlinks to your site. It helps to insert key words into your “name” when you comment because that is the text that will be linked back to your site. But don’t spam it and write something crazy. Personally I often write “Ryan @ Smarter Wealth” when commenting.

2. Do Link Exchange

Using forums such as Digital Point forum is a great place to find people to exchange links with. You place a link to their site on your blog and in return they will link to your blog. One for one, win-win situation. I will definately be doing some of this to gain some extra links.

3. Link to Other Blogs and Much as You Can

You know how when you give people presents often they will want to give you something back? Well linking for a blog is like giving that blog and present and it is likely (if they are a blog around the same size or smaller than yours) they will link back. So pass out as many links as possible (without flooding your blog with them) and then hopefully you will get some link love back.

4. Write Guest Posts

Writing guest posts guarantees you a link back to your blog with quality content to back it up. Write guests posts and submit them to blog owners. You might get lucky with a few. This is great because it now only drives traffic to your site through that blogs readers but it also gives you a link of two with relevant content relating to your blog.

5. Write Articles for Free Article Websites

Writing articles for free ezine articles is a great way to build backlinks because every time someone uses your article on their website they have to put in a footer which you have created linking back to your site. Just a tip though, avoid posting the articles you have written for your blog in these free articles databases because duplicate content can decrease your SEO rankings. I will write unique articles JUST for free ezine articles and so should you A great site to submit them is www.ezinearticles.com

6. Top Commentors List

Many sites have a ‘top commentors’ list (I have one of Smarter Wealth) by being active on blogs you can easily make it onto this list which will give a link back to your site. This is a great way to get a high pagerank link to your website because it is often just the homepage that will have a high pagerank. They higher the pagerank of the page your link in on then the better it is for you. It is like if the pope said you were awesome (pagerank 10/10) it would be worth more than if some average punk said you were awesome (pagerank 0/10).

7. Forum Posting

Many forums allow you to have a signature (which you can include a link back to your site). Write good content in forums with a catchy signature and people will visit your site. You can even pay people about $0.10 per post to post in forums. So you can get 100 links back to your site for just $10 (or less with a little bargaining).

8. Linking Between Your Own Sites

If you have more than one site then you have the perfect opportunity to link to each of your sites through each other. Put a link in the sidebar, write a post about your other blog, include links to relevant articles where appropriate. Use your multiple sites to your advantage by linking them up.

9. Write Quality Content

I left this one till last because it is probably the easiest way you can create links to your site. Because if you write quality content then people will naturally link to you and that means you don’t have to do any of the linking work. Continually write good quality content and submit them to social media sites such as Digg and StumbleUpon and if people like them they will link to them. A-List bloggers such as Darren from Problogger must get hundreds (if not thousands) of organic links everyday.

So using these techniques you should be able to build hundreds of links back to your site and help give it ‘votes’ to increase your rankings in the search engines, increase your google pagerank and also to provide links so people can find your site.