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"Google's Good Writing Content Filter" Excerpts
from 
The web pages actually at the top of Google have only one thing clearly in common: good writing. Don't let the usual SEO sacred cows and bugbears, such as PageRank, frames, and JavaScript, distract you from the importance of good content.
I was recently struck by the fact that the top-ranking web pages on Google are consistently much better written than the vast majority of what one reads on the web. Yet traditional SEO wisdom has little to say about good writing. Does Google, the world's wealthiest media company, really only display web pages that meet arcane technical criteria? Does Google, like so many website owners, really get so caught up in the process of the algorithm that it misses the whole point?
Most Common On-the-Page Website Content Success Factors - Whatever the technical mechanism, Google is doing a pretty good job of identifying websites with good content and rewarding them with high rankings.
I looked at Google's top five pages for the five most searched-on keywords, as identified by WordTracker on June 27, 2005. Typically, the top five pages receive an overwhelming majority of the traffic delivered by Google.
The web pages that contained written content (a small but significant portion were image galleries) all shared the following features:
Updating: frequent updating of content, at least once every few weeks, and more often, once a week or more.
Spelling and grammar: few or no errors. No page had more than three misspelled words or four grammatical errors. Note: spelling and grammar errors were identified by using Microsoft Word's check feature, and then ruling out words marked as misspellings that are either proper names or new words that are simply not in the dictionary. Does Google use SpellCheck? I can already hear the scoffing on the other side of this computer screen. Before you dismiss the idea completely, keep in mind that no one really does know what the 100 factors in Google's algorithm are. But whether the mechanism is SpellCheck or a better shot at link popularity thanks to great credibility, or something else entirely, the results remain the same.
Paragraphs: primarily brief (1-4 sentences). Few or no long blocks of text.
Lists: both bulleted and numbered, make up a large part of the text.
Sentence length: mostly brief (10 words or fewer). Medium-length and long sentences are sprinkled throughout the text rather than clumped together.
Contextual relevance: text contains numerous terms related to the keyword, as well as stem variations of the keyword. The page may contain the keyword itself few times or not at all.
Recommendations
Make sure a professional writer, or at least someone who can tell good writing from bad, is creating your site's content, particularly in the case of a search-engine optimization campaign. If you are a SEO, make sure you get a pro to do the content. A shocking number of SEOs write incredibly badly. I've even had clients whose websites got fewer conversions or page views after their SEOs got through with them, even when they got a sharp uptick in unique visitors. Most visitors simply hit the "back" button when confronted with unpalatable text, so the increased traffic is just wasted bandwidth.
If you write your own content, make sure that it passes through the hands of a skilled copyeditor or writer before going online.
Update your content often. It's important both to add new pages and update existing pages. If you can't afford original content, use free-reprint content.
Distribute your content to other websites on a free-reprint basis. This will help your website get links in exchange for the right to publish the content. It will also help spread your message and enhance your visibility. Fears of a "duplicate content penalty" for free-reprint content (as opposed to duplication of content within a single website) are unjustified.
In short, if you have a mature website that is already indexed and getting traffic, you should consider making sure the bülk of your investment in your website is devoted to its content, rather than graphic design, old-school search-engine optimization, or linking campaigns.
About The Author
Joel Walsh is the owner, founder and head-writer of UpMarket Content. To read more
about website content best practices, get a consultation with Mr. Walsh, or get a sample page for your site at no charge, go to
the SEO website content page:
http://www.upmarketcontent.com/website-content/#seo.
"Back to Basics in SEO " Excerpts
from
There has been a lot of talk about Google and MSN's new algorithms and Yahoo's search engine changes. When these changes finally do occur, it is always important to remember the number one rule in SEO: Don't Panic!
If there is one guaranteed constant in this business it is that there will always be changes in the search engines' rankings. Our job, as search engine marketers, is to stay on top of the changes and to monitor how the change affects our clients' site's traffic.
Keyphrases - First things first: Always be sure to research the keyphrases you intend on using. Find out what keyphrases Internet users most often employ to find your product or service. There is no point optimizing your site for "online web marketing" if everyone types in "Internet marketing".
Competition - Research your competition with these questions in mind: ...
What keyphrases are they using (take a peek at their keyword Meta tag)?
What are the titles of their sites?
When you do a search for the keyphrases you are considering, who comes up in the top five rankings?
What is their title/keyphrases?
Are the top ranking sites your competitors or are they industry associations?
Optimizing Your Web Site - Now that you know what keyphrase you are optimizing for, here is how to optimize your site: write good quality content that focuses on your keyphrases.
Above all else, this is the single most important factor. Sure there are other on-site factors such as:
Getting the keyphrase into the title (this is the second most important factor)
Getting the keyphrase into the Meta description tag, the Meta keyword tag, the headers and sub headers, the alt tags, and into some link text (some of these factors are VERY minor)
Having a good site map so that the search engine spiders can easily navigate your site
Having a robots.txt to include the pages that you want the search engines to include
Don't use frames
Use flash wisely (not the WHOLE site in flash)
Use external files for your java-scripts
Use cascading style sheets (a .css file)
Use dynamic URL's wisely (Avoid using URL's with ? or & in them)
Content is king - Oh...and did I mention that you need to write good quality content that focuses on your keyphrases? All of the points above are superfluous if you don't have good content. Content is the food that the search engine spiders like to gobble up with a voracious appetite. The items below are just the side dishes. You need good content to get decent rankings, but you need the side dishes to become a serious competitor in your market.
Links - Start soliciting links today! Get people in your industry to link to you. Contact ...
Industry associations and organizations,
Web sites about your industry ,
Sites related to your product or service ,
Suppliers ,
Resellers ,
Competitors who don't compete in the same region ,
Sites that sell products/services that relate to yours, but don't compete directly.
Conclusion: - Build your web site for your customers, within the guidelines that the search engines set out.
Don't make the site awkward by over-conforming.
The site's first focus should be on what your clients want.
Create good content. Good, quality content that reads well and flows seamlessly.
Update it regularly. An active, living site is healthier than a stagnant, dead one (the search engines spiders like their food alive and full of life).
And remember: Content is King!
"SEO Sales And Services - Consulting Cuts Complexity" Excerpts
from 
Over the past two years, both the business and practice of search engine marketing have become much more complex. The same is true of the websites search engine marketers work with. The evolving design techniques and technologies that have made the website of today far more versatile than those of previous years, have also made them harder to work with for third party service vendors such as SEOs.
Mix in rapidly growing levels of keyword competition, new styles of search engine and the continued strength of the Pay per Click advertising option and a sector that once resembled a paint-by-numbers art project is now more of an abstract exercise in impressionism. ...
Today we are interested in dozens of different factors than we were in previous years. This increased complexity is often lost on potential clients, some of whom seem to see the initial consultation period as an unnecessary waste of time or money. For a good SEO, the information gleaned during these initial market studies forms an indispensable instruction manual for the conduct of the campaign. ...
About eighteen months ago, Yahoo started generating its own results, independent of Google. They were quickly followed by MSN which began producing its own results in 2004. Running its way into the pack, Ask Jeeves introduced a number of dramatic improvements to its search engine in 2003/2004 and now ranks with Google, Yahoo and MSN as "the Big4" of search engines....
Advertisers should start to expect a greater emphasis on research and recommendation before expecting SEOs to start digging into their documents and sites. While the expense might be slightly higher in the short term the results of a well informed optimization effort saves more money over the long-run....
For the entire article, go here
"E-Mail Blacklists and How They Affect You" Excerpts
from 
What is a blocklist? - A blocklist is a list of domains or IP addresses of known and/or suspected spammers originally intended to assist ISPs and corporate domains in blocking email from IP addresses reported to have sent spam. At one time, ISPs and corporate mail administrators turned exclusively to blocklists in an effort to satisfy their customer demands and reduce the impact of spam on their servers. (See more definitions in the glossary below)...
One of these blocklists is not like the other - vive la difference! - Well-maintained, reputable blocklists operate with clear listing and delisting policies. They provide reliable points of contact and their records are kept up-to-date with current information. SBL (SpamHaus blacklist) and Spam Cop are two such reputable, well- maintained blocklists. Use of these blocklists usually results in a low number of false positives...
Any blocklist can contain legitimate email senders or email service providers. In fact, just a few spam complaints can land an IP address or an email service provider on a blocklist despite the fact that the ratio of complaints to volume of email sent is extremely low.
ISPs cannot live by blocklists alone - Some smaller ISPs and companies that lack dedicated email administrators or the financial resources to use a more reliable solution, still use blocklists alone to determine which email they deliver. This is becoming less and less common...
What can you do? - Use a reputable email service provider that delivers your email with the proper protocols, has relationships with ISPs and is whitelisted (whitelist is to blacklist as paper is to rock). ...
Note to Constant Contact Users: Constant Contact's average email block rate is 3% compared to the industry average of 22%. If you are a Constant Contact customer and you think your email is being blocked, go to Constant Contact Support and search under bounces and delivery for help.
Glossary of Terms -
Email Blocking - Email blocking occurs when the receiving email server (e.g. Yahoo!, AOL, Hotmail etc.) prevents an inbound email from reaching the inbox of the intended recipient. Often the sender of the email receives a "bounce" message indicating that their email has been "blocked."
False Positive - A false positive occurs when a legitimate permission-based email is incorrectly filtered or blocked as spam.
Filters - "Filtering" is a technique used to block email based on the content in the header, "from:" line, "subject:" line, or body copy of an email. Filtering software searches for key words and other indicators that identify the email as potential spam.
Blacklist a.k.a. blocklist - Some ISPs use a blocklist to help them determine which emails should be blocked. Blocklists contain lists of domains or IP addresses of known and suspected spammers. Unfortunately, these blocklists also contain many legitimate email service providers. Just a few spam complaints can land an IP address or email service provider on a blocklist - despite the fact that the ratio of complaints to volume of email sent is extremely low.
Whitelist - A whitelist is the opposite of a blocklist. Instead of listing IP addresses to block, a whitelist includes IP addresses that have been approved to deliver email despite blocking measures. It is common practice for ISPs to maintain both a blocklist and a whitelist.
"The Factors that Play a Role in Your Web Site's Ranking" Excerpts
from
Have you ever had a proposal, estimate or quote for search engine optimization work and wondered what goes into the pricing? What makes one site need more work than another? Why do some sites increase rankings faster than others? Why do some sites get more traffic from their top page ranking than yours?
There are so many aspects of a web site that can decrease or boost your search engine rankings. Each web site is as unique as DNA and as such, will react differently to different marketing treatments.
What are these different factors that go into your web site's ranking? Below is a list of the most important aspects:
1. The State of Your Site Prior to the Optimization - Your web site can have many different attributes that contribute to its ability to rank well or not so well. Your site's PageRank for example, if your PR is a 0/10 or 1/10, it's going to take a lot longer and a lot more work to get your site ranking well. If your site is poorly designed, contains frames or is written entirely in Flash, a lot of work will be required to redesign your site so that it is search engine friendly. If your site has very few incoming links, a fair amount of link development will have to be done in order for you to see the rankings and traffic you're after. A web site that has been around for a while and developed its PageRank, has a search engine friendly design and obtains links on a frequent basis, will be able to reach top positions much faster than other sites, once an optimization campaign is under way.
2. The Keywords You Are Targeting - Some keywords are less competitive than others. If you search Google for a keyword or keyword phrase, you'll see at the top of the results how many web pages are listed in those results. That is the amount of web sites that are competing with yours to reach top page placement for that keyword or keyword phrase. For example, the keyword phrase "web design" has approximately 303 million web pages listed in the results, whereas if you search for my name in quotations, "courtney heard", you will see that there are only 508 web pages listed in the results.
It is therefore, much easier to rank well for the keywords "courtney heard" than it is for web design. This is why you must choose keywords wisely. With tools such as wordtracker.com, you can find out approximately how many searches are performed for a given keyword or keyword phrase. The more competitive those keywords are, the higher the cost will be to optimize your web site and the longer the optimization will take.
3. The Size of Your Target Market - If your site is targeting a global market, it will take a lot more effort to reach the top ten search results than if your site is targeting a regional market. It also depends on what sort of market you're targeting. If your site sells a product that only a small group of people will be interested in purchasing, your site will be optimized easier than if the product or service appealed to the global population. For instance, the keyword phrase "real estate" will require a lot more effort to reach top page placement for than "real estate canada" and even "real estate vancouver".
4. Competitor Sites' SEO Campaigns - You might find that once your optimization campaign is under way, your site jumps and slips and jumps and slips several times. This can be due to many things, but the one we'll look at is your competitors' sites SEO campaigns. If your competitors are aggressively optimizing their own sites for search engines, they can also be achieving new rankings and displacing your site. This brings us to our 5th and final point...
5. Your Own SEO and Link Development Campaign - Your own link development and SEO campaign should be thorough, covering all the aspects of a well optimized site and utilising all your resources for obtaining incoming links. If your SEO campaign isn't approached properly, your competitors can surpass you in the rankings easily. You must be aware of your competition and adjust your efforts accordingly.
As you can see, there are many, many things that make your site unique in the services it requires. Some sites can reach top page placement by just changing a title tag, while others wait 6 months to even be listed on Google. The bottom line is, educate yourself, ask questions, choose the right SEO company and be patient. In time, your top page placement will come.
July Search Engine News From
www.searchengine-news.com
Google - Beta release of the Google Sitemaps protocol. In essence, this signals the return of meaningful web page submissions ... Google also enhanced their video search feature. Google relaunched Personalized Search this month, adding a host of improvements designed to continuously monitor your searching behavior. Their objective is to deliver customized, behavior-based search results. Google Earth was released from Beta on June 28th. Perhaps the most exciting part is that the basic program (which was about $30/yr) is now free!
MSN - MSN released their new local search service hot on the heals of rival Google and Yahoo (motto: why lead when you can follow?).
Yahoo - Rolls Out MyWeb 2.0. MyWeb 2.0 tackles social search. That is, it lets you share your favorite sites with friends and tailor your search results based on the favorite sites of other people within your community or trust network.
AOL - AOL took their first steps away from their traditional subscriber-based model and towards a more Yahoo-like, advertiser-supported model.
Yahoo! Search Marketing - Behavior-Based Contextual Ads ... In the run-up to releasing their own contextual text ad system to compete with Google's AdSense, Yahoo has begun testing text ads triggered by user behavior. The applied formulas that trigger the targeting are secret. Regardless, you can get a look at the ads being tested on Catster.com and Dogster.com .
Ask Jeeves - Nothing of importance to report.
336-408-9075
Rich@RichsWebDesign.com
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