SEO - I just do not seem to get it
-
Hello All,
I came to the forum two weeks ago and prior to that studied SEO until my brain almost melted two weeks before. Now, I've read some great articles here on SEOMoz which have been fantastic. Mainly being this one: http://www.seomoz.org/beginners-guide-to-seo.
So anyway, I genuinely throught I got it about a week ago. Here's what I did:
First I decided on my keyword: "PC Repair Sheffield".
Then, I made a website and on-page optimizaed as best as I possibly could (Graded A on the SEOMoz on-page exam tool).
So I decided firstly to add myself to the Independant newspaper Business Directory, because it's free and has a great domain authority.
I then went to Yahoo answers, found a Question i knew the answer too and made a whole article on the question, I provided a really useful answer and put a link to my full answer in the 'Source' section. This was a NoFollow Link.
Every week, I write a new article and put it in my 'Blog' page. In the articles, I like to cover some problem that I've encountered throughout the week, if, for example, I write about a Hard Drive I replaced in Sheffield, I write about that and link it to my 'PC Repair Sheffield' page. Every article contains a video from Youtube, which is another 'NoFollow' link.
Past that, I just find forums which are preffereably not 'No Follow' links and try to help people by answering their questions, but putting more details on my site for them toi see, with a link.
That is pretty much the extent of what I 'Get' so far. But I do read a lot of the posts on here and I'm always seeing the Experts on SEO criticise these things and say it's bad without actually explaining why, or how to improve this, or what to do instead in some kind of simple way?
I mean, this blog i'm writing, is there really any point? It's unlikely anybody is going to see it, sharing it is just a rediculous assumption. Nobody shares a page on how to fix a hard drive from a local sheffield site.
I don't think that NoFollow links are a waste of time, but that's my personal assumption. I think that makes it more natural in a way..
'Write Fresh Content' and get natural links is a crazy suggestion, nobody is ever going to share it. It's just not the way the world works for small businesses.
No task is easy, but none are impossible either, i know that I could do SEO, i'm just not entirely sure 'what to do'.
-
Hi Paul. It seems you are doing the right things already.
Remember to target both low and high competition keywords - and focus on both short and long tailed keywords. Use good synonyms. fix <-> repair, PC <-> computer. Dont target too narrow. use Google Keyword Tool to find good keywords.
And, yes i would be that guy sharing a link to a page that saved my day by fixing my harddrive. I would comment and ask questions i stumbled upon on of your videos, when searching for someone or something to help me fix my problem.
Try taking a look at good performing local repair shops in ie Manchester. What have they done. From who have they acquired good links etc.
Keep it up
-
It can be hard for small (or even larger) businesses to accomplish some of these things.
However, to be successful, it's what needs to be done - so the question becomes, if you want to do C work, is it fair to expect an A grade?
-
Hi Paul,
It looks like you have a good understanding of SEO and are willing to do the work required for a good SEO campaign. Now if you can most efficiently use your SEO time, you will really have something.
The one thing that you seem to be lacking is building your online network. It is great to write for your own blog and it is ok to sometimes comment on forums, answer questions and submit to good directories, but in my experience, the best links are given by a person, not by just pressing a submit button.
I would recommend finding some target websites that publish content related to your company/industry and try to build a relationship with the blogger or website owner. These will be your target links.
Yes, you will need to "Write Fresh Content" or provide something that adds value to their website, but that is only the start. You should write content with a purpose. The goal should be to get that content published on a certian blog or website. The only way to do this is to physically reach out to the webmaster or blog owner (remember they are people) with a phone call or email (I always receommed calling first if possible). You cannot just sit back and expect people to link to your great content, it needs to be marketed by you.
You most likely are an expert in your industry, so you have the knowledge needed create content that people would love to use and post. All you need to do is pick your target websites and physically get it front of a person that has the ability to put it on the website.
I hope this helps.
-
Hi Paul, I think you do get it, and quite well. I think the other thing you are discovering is that SEO is a very long process. Last summer at MozCon, Rand shared some stats from his blog in the early days. He had post after post where it seemed like no one was reading, and certainly no one was commenting. It's hard work. It takes time. One of my favorite quotes is from a great master French flutist, Marcel Moyse. He would always say that becoming a great musician was a matter of "time, patience and intelligent work." I think you are doing the "intelligent work" part. Just keep at it. The "time and patience" part is hard, especially online because everyone expects the Internet to abound and placate us with instant gratification. You are doing all the right things. Trust in the force You'll get there. Just persist.
Dana
-
"Every week, I write a new article and put it in my 'Blog' page. In the articles, I like to cover some problem that I've encountered throughout the week, if, for example, I write about a Hard Drive I replaced in Sheffield, I write about that and link it to my 'PC Repair Sheffield' page."
This is approximately what I do for two sites that I focus on.
I identify informative content that people are searching for, write an article that is among the best-on-the-web for that topic, supplement the article with great photos, graphics, perhaps a video (that we prepare ourselves), and post them on the site.
We have been doing this every week, every week, every week, for several years. We don't do any linkbuilding or other site promotion - our visitors share our content and link to it without any work done by us. Rankings climb steadily and traffic climbs steadily as we add more content and the site becomes more visible.
This works in niches with low competition and also in niches where the competition is very very high. The key to success is content that defeats what is already out there.
Got a burning SEO question?
Subscribe to Moz Pro to gain full access to Q&A, answer questions, and ask your own.
Browse Questions
Explore more categories
-
Moz Tools
Chat with the community about the Moz tools.
-
SEO Tactics
Discuss the SEO process with fellow marketers
-
Community
Discuss industry events, jobs, and news!
-
Digital Marketing
Chat about tactics outside of SEO
-
Research & Trends
Dive into research and trends in the search industry.
-
Support
Connect on product support and feature requests.
Related Questions
-
Seo for my medium.com site
I have my regular site blog at www.Guideyourhealth.org and a blog on www.medium.com, should I try to get back links for my medium articles as well that are on topics not competing with my site?
Intermediate & Advanced SEO | | BuyKratomPowderInfo0 -
External Redirects & SEO
This company page redirects their external clients links: https://www.coinbase.com/clients QUESTION: What effect does this type of redirection have on the SEO going to these client pages, for their clients Websites?
Intermediate & Advanced SEO | | mstpeter0 -
SEO site Review
Does anyone have suggestions on places that provide in depth site / analytics reviews for SEO?
Intermediate & Advanced SEO | | Gordian0 -
Best place to submit an SEO RFP? Anyone interested in 60 hours of SEO work?
I have a small SEO project (~ 60 hours of work) that I would like to get some help with. It is spread out over the span of 4 to 6 months (2 to 3 hours of work a week with the help of 10 - 15 support staff hours per week), and if it goes well there is an opportunity to extend the project through the rest of 2014. Does anyone here want to see the RFP or have any recommendations on where I can submit this request to get the maximum exposure? Thanks!
Intermediate & Advanced SEO | | pbhatt0 -
Frames and SEO
In the old days frames were a problem because they could end up being orphaned pages that get indexed and appear in the SERPS but had to navigation so they were useless. Are frames still a problem with Google and if so what are the suggested solutions?
Intermediate & Advanced SEO | | siteoptimized0 -
Mobile SEO vs. normal SEO?
Hi everyone, I wanted to ask you abour your opinon on mobile SEO. Do we already have two different Indices, one for mobile, one for desktop? Except a few mobile listings I don't see a difference yet. If yes, do I need to do special mobile SEO for my site or is it enough to have e.g. a responsive webdesign which detects the device and shows a different page? Are there any other extra Mobile SEO measures that should be considered? I know of the Mobile Sitemap and directories but is there anything else? Best regards
Intermediate & Advanced SEO | | CrazySEO0 -
SEO for Log in Sites
Hello, I just lunched a website where you have to sign up and to log in in order to use it. So I have the home, also a blog but then the rest of the pages are let's say it "hidden".How would you do the seo for it? I have been cheking facebook, foursquare and some others and they use different approaches. Facebook uses the same description in every single page for example. My site is similar to foursquare users have profile, stats, history, ranking. Well, what is your advice?? Thanks a lot
Intermediate & Advanced SEO | | antorome0 -
SEO question
Hi i changed my page titles for a competitive keyword last week and noticed it has dropped 9 search engine ranking positions. Was ranking 37 and now it 46. Would you guys leave it and see if it starts creeping back up or change again? the page title i used was across my pages for example was Primary keyword | secondary keyword | Heading on page thanks for you help
Intermediate & Advanced SEO | | wazza19850