seo tools Archives • Identity Developments

August 23, 2013May 18, 2022

Paid and Organic Search: Better Together in AdWords Search Report

Excerpts from my latest article at Practical Ecommerce: “Google Offers Paid and Organic Search Report.”

Paid and organic search work better together. Because searchers inherently trust that search engines are recommending the best pages in search results, when brands rank well in both paid and organic search their search performance for that phrase tends to increase. However, measuring that increase has been a bit challenging until now.

Google AdWords released a new feature this week enabling search marketers to measure performance of their paid and organic search efforts. The “paid and organic report” can be found in the AdWords campaigns tab as a dimension.

Analyzed together, paid and organic search data can uncover a wealth of optimization opportunities. Taken together, paid and organic search represent a large portion of the available real estate on the search results page. The larger your brand’s footprint on the search results, the more likely searchers are to choose one of your listings over the competition.

For example, the report could show keywords that are driving organic search traffic but no paid search traffic. Those keywords could be added to your AdWords campaigns to drive additional traffic and potentially boost the effectiveness of the organic search listing as well…..

Read more at “Google Offers Paid and Organic Search Report.”

Read my articles in full at Practical Ecommerce » Jill Kocher

Originally posted on Web PieRat.

August 9, 2013May 18, 2022

Banned by Google? Check Now in Webmaster Tools

Excerpts from my latest article at Practical Ecommerce: “SEO: Google Adds Manual Spam Actions to Webmaster Tools.”

Google Webmaster Tools launched its new manual spam actions feature yesterday, enabling verified site owners to check whether their site has been manually penalized by Google.

Over the last couple of years, Google has slowly increased its communication to webmasters, with the goal of fighting webspam by educating site owners on how it impacts their performance in search results. Previously, Google would leave notifications about manual actions taken against a site in the owner’s Webmaster Tools account. This feature augments the notifications with a real-time tool that performs a live check against Google’s internal webspam systems.

Read my articles in full at Practical Ecommerce » Jill Kocher

Originally posted on Web PieRat.

July 19, 2013May 18, 2022

Using Google’s Keyword Planner for SEO

Excerpts from my latest article at Practical eCommerce: “SEO: Using Google’s New Keyword Planner.”

Keywords are the foundation of search engine optimization. They’re what searchers type into Google’s search box, and what marketers incorporate into their web pages to attract searchers to their sites. Google recently launched a new tool that changes the way we research keywords: AdWords Keyword Planner.

Intended for use by paid search marketers, the Keyword Planner replaces the AdWords Keyword Tool I’ve often recommended using and merges it with the AdWords Traffic Estimator. In essence, the Keyword Planner is designed to simplify keyword research and campaign planning for paid search marketers.

Despite its AdWords focus, the Keyword Planner can still be used by SEO professionals. The core of the toolset revolves around keyword volume, a measure central to both paid and organic search.

For those familiar with the Keyword Tool, the new interface will take some getting used to. Where the Keyword Tool offered a single interface to accept keywords and return keyword data, the Keyword Planner gives marketers three choices for how to proceed.

Really, though, it doesn’t matter which we prefer, the old Keyword Tool or the new Keyword Planner. The Planner was launched in mid-May, and the AdWords Keyword Tool should be discontinued sometime this month. Since the Keyword Planner is here to stay, get used to the interface before the Keyword Tool disappears and you’re left scrambling for data.

Read the article in full at Practical eCommerce » http://www.practicalecommerce.com/member/2459-Jill-Kocher/articles

Originally posted on Web PieRat.

March 15, 2013May 20, 2022

What to Expect from an SEO Audit

Excerpts from my latest article at Practical eCommerce: “SEO Audits: What to Expect.”

One of the challenges that plagues the search marketing industry is a lack of standards around the quality and scope of work. Different agencies and consultants will use similar words to describe very different deliverables and processes. One of the most abused of these is the SEO Audit.

Clients have told me bitter tales of ghosts of “audits” past that didn’t live up to expectations, like the big-brand shoe retailer that paid $10,000 over three months’ time for a two-page Word document containing weak, tactical recommendations. I thought my client was exaggerating for effect until he emailed me the product.

To protect their investment, businesses need to understand what to expect from an SEO audit and which questions to ask to ensure they’ll receive the quality and scope required.

An audit commonly begins a search marketing engagement with a client. The goal is to identify the challenges and opportunities the client’s sites have for improving their SEO performance to drive more brand impressions, visits and conversions. The input is a client’s web analytics, access to search tools like Webmaster Tools or SEOmoz, the client’s own site and the search results themselves. When combined with SEO knowledge and experience, the SEO professional has what he or she needs to analyze the site and document a strategy to improve organic search performance….

Read the article in full at Practical Ecommerce » “SEO Audits: What to Expect.”

Originally posted on Web PieRat.

September 21, 2012May 18, 2022

Google Algorithm Weather Reports Via MozCast

Excerpts from my latest article at Practical eCommerce: “SEO Ranking Forecast: 74 and Sunny.”

One of the hardest aspects of search engine optimization is determining whether changes in your site’s organic search results are based on changes to your own site or external influences like algorithm changes. SEOmoz created MozCast weather report to help answer this question, and today’s addition of “Top-View Metrics” makes the tool even more useful.

The foundation of MozCast is a meteorological metaphor displayed on the home page that represents the relative change in Google’s algorithms each and every day. The stormier the icon and the higher the temperature, the more Google’s algorithms changed compared to the previous day. For example, “sunny and 57” means very little change but “thunderstorms and 101” means big changes.

The magic starts with a set of 1,000 keywords. The MozCast tool grabs Google’s top 10 rankings for each keyword and compares the changes across all 1,000 keywords to get a holistic high-level view that is then translated into the weather metaphor.

Read the article in full at Practical eCommerce »

Originally posted on Web PieRat.