The Marketer's Guide to Facebook Graph Search

Social search has long been heralded as the "next big thing." The opportunity to create the search engine for people is too enticing; the prize being held above all others in the race to build the next Google. Facebook is widely recognised as the only company other than the search giant itself capable of creating such a product, and it's one of the key reasons behind its enormous price-to-earnings ratio. Few are investing on the strength of the current format; instead they know that the data it has at its fingertips could be world-changing in terms of information retrieval and advertising. And that project began in earnest, publicly at least, with the launch of Graph Search in 2013. At the time the product lacked any significant features and after a short fanfare, marketers' focus shifted elsewhere. The engineers, however, had very clear instructions to iterate, fast, and the results of that work are now starting to float to the surface. Graph Search is Facebook's way of mapping all the data we give the platform together in a really useful way. It is by far the best example of "Social Search" – the premise of creating a search engine based not on websites but on entities – people, places and things. The company has been quietly iterating it since last year. There's still a long way to go but the foundations are already there for what promises to be the only true rival to Google in the world of information organization and retrieval and only days ago did they start testing new functionality that allows some users to search through content as well as people, interests and things.

Still Spending Money on SEO? Why You Should Invest In Content Marketing Instead

Since the dawn of the web, SEO has undergone gigantic transformations. Its evolution has been immense, as it transitioned from just programme improvement to link building schemes and now sits as a dynamic array of rank increasing methods. however not all strategies square measure created equal. Some square measure mere parlor tricks that come with risk. If there's one issue a lesson in net copywriting has educated North American country, it’s that content reigns supreme. We’ve gone from the time of “your readers didn’t find it irresistible, however they couldn’t avoid it” as a result of Google hierarchal it to the times of “your readers find it irresistible, and Google hierarchal it as a result of quality, relevant content.” “But i want SEO! however else am I presupposed to rank on search engines? I even have to pay cash on that if I expect to contend with the competition.” Does this sound familiar? programme improvement is vital. nobody is denying it. you would like to analysis keywords and incorporate them. you have got to create some sound links to replicate quality and authority. Meta tags got to be sorted out. however the reality of the matter is, there’s a better manner, and also the formula is mind-blowingly simple: Content promoting = SEO If you’re truly serious you need semipermanent SEO, you would like to re-focus your efforts and invest in content promoting, Associate in Nursing alternative|instead} you’ll risk being left within the dirt succeeding time an algorithmic program update hits and plummets your already shaky rankings. will this mean web content improvement is dead? No. According to author Carl Weiss at SiteProNews, web content improvement continues to be vital. however it’s not 1999. on-site improvement solely accounts for around 25 % of your overall ranking score, and if improvement is wrong, MIA, or digressive to the content, search engines can misinterpret or utterly ignore your content and slap you with an occasional (or non-existent) rank.

A Freelance Writer’s Basic Guide to SEO

Hands up all those freelance writers who, when scanning the job boards recently, have seen writing gigs looking for copywriters with SEO experience? (should be everyone). Keep your hands up if you don’t understand what SEO is, or if you do, were confused the first time you saw it used? (should still be everyone). And now keep your hands up all those freelancers who have since realised how easy it is to make money writing SEO articles, or who would like to know what it’s all about? (Everyone should still have their hands up).

Yes it’s true, SEO seems like one of those fancy modern phrases, that only applies to tech-minded people, but the reality is very different. SEO has been around for a while; it’s only since the Google revolution has it been defined as an entity. Get your head around SEO, and it can be the source of many lucrative writing jobs.

This article will give you the low down on SEO, what it is, and how you can earn from it.

What is SEO?

SEO is an acronym for Search Engine Optimisation. It is the term to describe the methodology used to boost a website’s rating when it is searched for on an Internet search engine, and the resulting page rank it receives in relation to other related websites. This is achieved through the use of web content and articles enriched with keywords, and meta tags in the structure of the webpage.

Why is it Relevant?

SEO is relevant in the world of e-commerce and online business, and for those involved in the creation of web sites and web content. Because most Internet users don’t browse past the first page of search results they are offered, the higher a website can rank for a given keyword or phrase, the better its chances are of bringing in new customers. Research has shown most users only ever click on the top 5 to 10 results.

Yahoo, MSN, and in particular Google, account for over 70% of all search engine traffic on the Internet, so for an online business this avenue of attracting customers is highly valued.

What is a Page Rank?

Page rank is a way of determining a website’s importance dependent on its desirability and exposure. The term was derived by Google, who developed an algorithm to calculate rankings.

When this algorithm is executed, it determines the number of links pointing to a website, the amount of relevant content it contains, and then assigns it a number between 1 and 10; 1 being the lowest level of rank, 10 being the highest. The higher a page rank, the better chance a website has of appearing at the top of an Internet search result page.

What is a Keyword?

A keyword is a word or phrase an Internet user will enter into a search engine when trying to locate something, i.e., a product or information. For example, a website selling herbal tea will list keywords such as, “herbal,” “tea,” and “tea bags,” etc.

What is Keyword Density?

Keyword density is the numerical factor derived from dividing the number of words on the page of a website, by the number of keywords that are used within it. The more keywords used throughout a web page (and ultimately the entire site), the better the website will rank for that keyword or phrase.

Websites that have too high a density tend be considered as spam by search engines, and may be excluded.

Can’t Website Owners Pay For A Higher Ranking?

It’s not possible to purchase search list rankings, because they are free and calculated through algorithms. Instead, a website must earn its rating over time, and through the use of Internet links and keyword relevance.

It is possible to pay for promotion based on specific keywords or phrases, however these are separate to the free results offered when running a standard search, and usually appear as sponsored adverts.

What Has All This To Do With Freelance Writing?

For freelance writers, this means the appearance of more and more writing gigs looking for writers who are able to write dedicated SEO-rich web copy, related articles, and blogs.

All these methods are aimed at attracting hits and links to a website, thus boosting its rankings, and pushing it up the search ladder. There are two main methods you might be hired to do this.

The first is through the writing of web content for the target site. The aim of this is to attract interested users directly into a website via a landing page. For example, a user will search for the term “herbal tea,” and find their way onto a website that sells it. They will then be able to read all about it and order their favourite brand before they leave.

The second method is through the writing of articles and blogs that are external to the website, but show up in search engine results and guide users towards the main website at the centre of the business. So for example, somebody might search for “Lemon tea” and discover an article written by a freelance writer on the physical benefits herbal tea promotes. The article will contain a by-line or other links throughout it, that direct the reader to the main website so they can purchase lemon tea.

Where there are websites looking for business there will always be a need for writers. Fresh and attractive articles that are written using SEO techniques, and are enriched using keywords in a subtle and sensitive approach, are becoming more in demand. Master SEO writing, and you will never be short of work.

What is SEO

Search Engine Optimization is the process of improving the visibility of a website on organic ("natural" or un-paid) search engine result pages (SERPs), by incorporating search engine friendly elements into a website. A successful search engine optimization campaign will have, as part of the improvements, carefully select, relevant, keywords which the on-page optimization will be designed to make prominent for search engine algorithms. Search engine optimization is broken down into two basic areas: on-page, and off-page optimization. On-page optimization refers to website elements which comprise a web page, such as HTML code, textual content, and images. Off-page optimization refers, predominantly, to back-links (links pointing to the site which is being optimized, from other relevant websites).