I won't be taking on any additional clients for website design, I am swamped. My theory of keeping things simple and being a little patient with marketing is working. I am currently getting the hang of social networking. Since I'm not a full time web designer any longer I have the time to do the research I like to do before I "buy" into any of the SEO "you have to" stuff. The SEO business changes rapidly, in my opinion, and I don't see much change in SEO know it alls. Sorry for being blunt, but if someone wants you to fork over $400 a month plus, I want major performance, not just the same old thing.
What I am finding that really works with regard to social networking is:
Attend events - show up consistently
Join organizations and get involved in mommittees
Network with other trade partners
Invest you time
Volumteer
Build relationships
Recognize those who have helped you out
Be authentic
Don't act desperate
Listen to what people are saying, and follow through
Share your experiences
Be a mentor
Fous on giving, not getting
Let people know what your expertise is
Follow up with people
Learn about other trades
Don't be afraid to give feed-back
Ask lots of questions
Be respectful of your peers and their existing relationships
Set goals and manage your time
Maximize customer service
Treat everything you do as a networking opportunity.
Social Networking is not just for the internet, facebook, twitter, etc.
Showing posts with label web. Show all posts
Showing posts with label web. Show all posts
Thursday, November 19, 2009
Sunday, October 18, 2009
Page Rank, was it ever worth it?
It isn't often that I find a article worth linking to but I believe this is important to those people who struggle to understand how to get more traffic. In the SEO world it seems like little is ever explained about statements made revelant to how much we are charged for SEO work.
I personally have never believed much in Page Rank, I tend to go with Key Words and Key Phrases. Putting myself in the shoes of the seacher. In other words, if I'm looking for X product, what words would I use to find that product on the web; and it works.
I've posted an article here about Google and Page Rank. I hope it sheds a little light on the subject; there are some good comments also, I said "some" good comments. (I also posted a link here so you can read comments.)
Google Ditches PageRank in Webmaster Tools
By Chris Crum
Google has quietly gotten rid of PageRank in Webmaster Tools. Barry Schwartz at Search Engine Roundtable points to a thread featuring an explanation from Google Webmaster Trends Analyst Susan Moskwa.
"We've been telling people for a long time that they shouldn't focus on PageRank so much; many site owners seem to think it's the most important metric for them to track, which is simply not true," says Moskwa. "We removed it because we felt it was silly to tell people not to think about it, but then to show them the data, implying that they should look at it."
Search marketers are wondering why Google tells people not to focus on PageRank and removes it from Webmaster Tools, but still keeps it in the Google Toolbar. "Back in 2007, Google wanted feedback on removing PageRank from the Toolbar," says Schwartz. "I felt it was a good idea but the idea died out. Google cannot remove PageRank from the Toolbar, it is too much of their branding. No matter how much Matt Cutts and the Google search quality and webmaster trends team want it removed, I cannot see Google's executives allowing it."
Andy Beal of Marketing Pilgrim says the role of PageRank has been reduced to nothing more than a "comfort blanket for SEO Noobs." He adds, "I say this, with a high degree of confidence that most experienced SEOs pour over the data in Google Webmaster Tools, whereas those new to the industry likely let the toolbar be their only guiding light."
He also notes, however, that PageRank data can still be useful. For example, it can be a good indicator of a site's behavior in Google's index. "Any green means 'go.' No green, means there's something to investigate," says Beal.
Despite this usefulness though, Moskwa pretty much closes the case on Google's position on it. In fact, she even points to a FAQ page about crawling, indexing, and ranking, which says that webmasters shouldn't even bother thinking about it. It also says that PageRank is just one of over 200 signals that can affect how your site is crawled, indexed, and ranked.
I personally have never believed much in Page Rank, I tend to go with Key Words and Key Phrases. Putting myself in the shoes of the seacher. In other words, if I'm looking for X product, what words would I use to find that product on the web; and it works.
I've posted an article here about Google and Page Rank. I hope it sheds a little light on the subject; there are some good comments also, I said "some" good comments. (I also posted a link here so you can read comments.)
Google Ditches PageRank in Webmaster Tools
By Chris Crum
Google has quietly gotten rid of PageRank in Webmaster Tools. Barry Schwartz at Search Engine Roundtable points to a thread featuring an explanation from Google Webmaster Trends Analyst Susan Moskwa.
"We've been telling people for a long time that they shouldn't focus on PageRank so much; many site owners seem to think it's the most important metric for them to track, which is simply not true," says Moskwa. "We removed it because we felt it was silly to tell people not to think about it, but then to show them the data, implying that they should look at it."
Search marketers are wondering why Google tells people not to focus on PageRank and removes it from Webmaster Tools, but still keeps it in the Google Toolbar. "Back in 2007, Google wanted feedback on removing PageRank from the Toolbar," says Schwartz. "I felt it was a good idea but the idea died out. Google cannot remove PageRank from the Toolbar, it is too much of their branding. No matter how much Matt Cutts and the Google search quality and webmaster trends team want it removed, I cannot see Google's executives allowing it."
Andy Beal of Marketing Pilgrim says the role of PageRank has been reduced to nothing more than a "comfort blanket for SEO Noobs." He adds, "I say this, with a high degree of confidence that most experienced SEOs pour over the data in Google Webmaster Tools, whereas those new to the industry likely let the toolbar be their only guiding light."
He also notes, however, that PageRank data can still be useful. For example, it can be a good indicator of a site's behavior in Google's index. "Any green means 'go.' No green, means there's something to investigate," says Beal.
Despite this usefulness though, Moskwa pretty much closes the case on Google's position on it. In fact, she even points to a FAQ page about crawling, indexing, and ranking, which says that webmasters shouldn't even bother thinking about it. It also says that PageRank is just one of over 200 signals that can affect how your site is crawled, indexed, and ranked.
Friday, August 28, 2009
Cross Browser Testing
I’m guilty, yes it is true I have not tested my website in the different browsers to see exactly what others see if they don’t use the browser I use all the time. I am a creature of habit like many people are; it is the convenience, comfort level, ease of use when you are using something all the time. This is not good when it comes to your website!
www.GotRocks4Sale.com screen shot example:
I recently discovered http://browsershots.org It’s a handy webmaster tool to see, all in one place, how your front page looks in several different browsers. It is a free tool and very easy to use. You can type in any of your web pages not just your front page.
The process takes a little time to upload the screenshots but it is worth it. I discovered that the text you choose to use on your website is not necessarily the text that your viewers are going to see. If you have labored over which text to use on your web site you may be wasting your time.
Color can be another issue. There are colors you can use that are ‘safe’ colors and will remain true in any browser.
www.GotRocks4Sale.com screen shot example:
I recently discovered http://browsershots.org It’s a handy webmaster tool to see, all in one place, how your front page looks in several different browsers. It is a free tool and very easy to use. You can type in any of your web pages not just your front page.
The process takes a little time to upload the screenshots but it is worth it. I discovered that the text you choose to use on your website is not necessarily the text that your viewers are going to see. If you have labored over which text to use on your web site you may be wasting your time.
Color can be another issue. There are colors you can use that are ‘safe’ colors and will remain true in any browser.
Monday, August 3, 2009
Tips and advice on how to get the most out of your classifieds
The title of your ad is arguably the most important aspect as this is what people see in the categories and search results and that is what is clicked on in order to view the rest of your ad.
By default, when somebody runs a search, it's your ad title that is searched so your title must contain descriptive words that describe what you're offering.
If your ad title doesn't describe what you're advertising, it can't be returned in the results when somebody runs a search.
Your title should be short and concise and should accurately describe what is being offered in your ad.
Bad titles include generic phrases such as "For Sale" or "Best Offer" as titles like those give potential buyers no idea what you're offering so they will be unlikely to click on your ad to view the rest of it.
Having a good description can be the difference between making the sale or not making the sale.
It's important to try and put yourself in the position of the kind of person you're trying to attract to your ad and ask yourself what information you'd like to see in the ad if you were the person looking to buy.
Short ads with little information rarely perform well while the most successful ads are the ones that include lots of information and descriptions and clear photo's which answer people's questions before they ask them.
It's important to include as much information as possible and include details such as shipping terms, costs, your returns policy if you have one, the total cost, when the buyer can expect to receive the item, if you provide tracking information etc.
Generally speaking, the more information the better as this helps the buyer make an informed decision without having to contact you for clarification on anything that you may have overlooked when creating your ad.
For more information on What makes a good ad?
The most successful ads are usually ones that have a clear concise title, a thorough and accurate description with good punctuation, clear pricing, excellent im...
What to avoid when creating an ad
When creating an ad you should avoid adding any irrelevant information that doesn't relate directly to the content of the ad as this can confuse buyers. Spelli...
Using appropriate images in your ads
Having a premium membership or a Photo Pack allows you to upload up to 12 images to each ad. Uploading multiple images of the item you're advertising allows yo...
My ad is getting a lot of views but not many replies
If your ad is getting a lot of views but not many replies, that's a good indication that you've created an ad with a good title which is attracting people to cl...
My ad is not getting many views
If your ad is not getting many views, it usually means that you've either placed your ad in completely the wrong category so the potential customers browsing th...
You can go here:
">classifieds to buy, sell or advertise anything!
By default, when somebody runs a search, it's your ad title that is searched so your title must contain descriptive words that describe what you're offering.
If your ad title doesn't describe what you're advertising, it can't be returned in the results when somebody runs a search.
Your title should be short and concise and should accurately describe what is being offered in your ad.
Bad titles include generic phrases such as "For Sale" or "Best Offer" as titles like those give potential buyers no idea what you're offering so they will be unlikely to click on your ad to view the rest of it.
Having a good description can be the difference between making the sale or not making the sale.
It's important to try and put yourself in the position of the kind of person you're trying to attract to your ad and ask yourself what information you'd like to see in the ad if you were the person looking to buy.
Short ads with little information rarely perform well while the most successful ads are the ones that include lots of information and descriptions and clear photo's which answer people's questions before they ask them.
It's important to include as much information as possible and include details such as shipping terms, costs, your returns policy if you have one, the total cost, when the buyer can expect to receive the item, if you provide tracking information etc.
Generally speaking, the more information the better as this helps the buyer make an informed decision without having to contact you for clarification on anything that you may have overlooked when creating your ad.
For more information on What makes a good ad?
The most successful ads are usually ones that have a clear concise title, a thorough and accurate description with good punctuation, clear pricing, excellent im...
What to avoid when creating an ad
When creating an ad you should avoid adding any irrelevant information that doesn't relate directly to the content of the ad as this can confuse buyers. Spelli...
Using appropriate images in your ads
Having a premium membership or a Photo Pack allows you to upload up to 12 images to each ad. Uploading multiple images of the item you're advertising allows yo...
My ad is getting a lot of views but not many replies
If your ad is getting a lot of views but not many replies, that's a good indication that you've created an ad with a good title which is attracting people to cl...
My ad is not getting many views
If your ad is not getting many views, it usually means that you've either placed your ad in completely the wrong category so the potential customers browsing th...
You can go here:
">classifieds to buy, sell or advertise anything!
Good Points Inspire
While doing a bit of research I ran across a Hub Page Title: Fifty ways to bring traffic to your website and blog. After reading the list, which had suggestive notes, I read the comments which were all pretty positive until the last one by someone named Thomas and I quote: "Your SEO tips are what people think are what needs to be done, but you're wrong, sorry.
It seems as though all you did was copy and paste a bunch of stuff and you have no idea what it means.
Alt tags in images? - No, worthless to search results
Proper SEO means 'making some adjustments' to your site? - No, SEO is a full time job, not a wave of a magic wand
Submit to search engines? - No, waste of time unless by this you mean submitting a proper sitemap
Link exchange? - No, takes too long to get each link and they normally amount to nothing worthwhile. Reciprocal linking is dead.
Here's some things you said that are true, but you don't know why they are true do you?
Organised internal linking? YES, but what does it mean?
Using sitemaps? YES, but what is a proper sitemap and what do you do with it?
Using robots.txt? YES! But how? Why? What is a 'robots.txt'?
You're not giving the reader anything useful, just spitting out keywords to get clicks."
Thomas
I'm not sure why Thomas had such a gritty tone but I get his point. I would guess he is an underworked, broke SEO.
With so many people trying so hard to "be seen" on the web; who's funds are at a minimum, it is a good time to ask How, and Why and What is. Since this blog is dedicatied to the "technically challenged" I think it would be a good time to start explaining some of these things. But not at this minute, I have two deadlines to meet!
But first I want to thank Thomas for great things to write about so I can save everyone that reads my posts some time and money!!
It seems as though all you did was copy and paste a bunch of stuff and you have no idea what it means.
Alt tags in images? - No, worthless to search results
Proper SEO means 'making some adjustments' to your site? - No, SEO is a full time job, not a wave of a magic wand
Submit to search engines? - No, waste of time unless by this you mean submitting a proper sitemap
Link exchange? - No, takes too long to get each link and they normally amount to nothing worthwhile. Reciprocal linking is dead.
Here's some things you said that are true, but you don't know why they are true do you?
Organised internal linking? YES, but what does it mean?
Using sitemaps? YES, but what is a proper sitemap and what do you do with it?
Using robots.txt? YES! But how? Why? What is a 'robots.txt'?
You're not giving the reader anything useful, just spitting out keywords to get clicks."
Thomas
I'm not sure why Thomas had such a gritty tone but I get his point. I would guess he is an underworked, broke SEO.
With so many people trying so hard to "be seen" on the web; who's funds are at a minimum, it is a good time to ask How, and Why and What is. Since this blog is dedicatied to the "technically challenged" I think it would be a good time to start explaining some of these things. But not at this minute, I have two deadlines to meet!
But first I want to thank Thomas for great things to write about so I can save everyone that reads my posts some time and money!!
Sunday, August 2, 2009
Google Checkout store gadget (experimental)
It's about time! For the life of me I have not understood why Google with all their experience and expertise hasn't offered this before. Yes it might be experimental but hey, you have to start somewhere, right?
I'm excited about this because it gives all of use and EASY way to put a shopping cart on our blogs. You have choices now within your blog for placement and size etc.
Overview
The Google Checkout store gadget allows you to quickly and easily create an online store using a Google Docs spreadsheet.
No complicated coding or technical tasks are required. You can get your first online store up-and-running in under five minutes.
Get all the power of the Checkout shopping cart in just three easy steps:
Sign up for a Google Checkout merchant account
List the products you want to sell in a Google spreadsheet
Embed your new online store in any website
Get the details here
I'm excited about this because it gives all of use and EASY way to put a shopping cart on our blogs. You have choices now within your blog for placement and size etc.
Overview
The Google Checkout store gadget allows you to quickly and easily create an online store using a Google Docs spreadsheet.
No complicated coding or technical tasks are required. You can get your first online store up-and-running in under five minutes.
Get all the power of the Checkout shopping cart in just three easy steps:
Sign up for a Google Checkout merchant account
List the products you want to sell in a Google spreadsheet
Embed your new online store in any website
Get the details here
Saturday, August 1, 2009
Delete A Blogger Comment 1.0
I found this utility Delete A Blogger Comment 1.0 on Blogger Tips and Tricks. It's a great site with lotz of information. The problem I have is a "jerk" who posts a comment on one of my other blogs Private Stock Jewelry.blogspot.com and makes some stupid statement, not derogatory, just stupid and then puts links to his site. It is solely for the purpose of recording his/her link. If the statement made any sense at all I'd leave it up.
Anyway, the reason for the utility is that sometimes that little trash can doesn't show up and you really need to delete a comment. On one occasion I had to delete the entire post and then re- post. Hope this helps someone.
Anyway, the reason for the utility is that sometimes that little trash can doesn't show up and you really need to delete a comment. On one occasion I had to delete the entire post and then re- post. Hope this helps someone.
Monday, July 27, 2009
I would like your opinion
I've just set up a website for my friend Millie; she's Overstocked with Rocks. This is the first phase, there are many, many pictures to take. Between you and me she should open a brick and mortar store.
Seriously, I would like "objective" opinions. I know that most of you are not jewelry designers looking to purchase precious and semi-precious gems, that's not the point here. I want an objective opinion of the website.
Please keep in mind the about page, and the blah, blah, blah pages have not been constructed, those aren't the important pages. I won't give you a quarter for your opinion but I'll give you a link!! That's worth a bunch more than a quarter!
Seriously, I would like "objective" opinions. I know that most of you are not jewelry designers looking to purchase precious and semi-precious gems, that's not the point here. I want an objective opinion of the website.
Please keep in mind the about page, and the blah, blah, blah pages have not been constructed, those aren't the important pages. I won't give you a quarter for your opinion but I'll give you a link!! That's worth a bunch more than a quarter!
Monday, July 20, 2009
Easy Thumbnails
Easy Thumbnails is a great tool for taking any number of photos and making thumbnails is litterally a flash. Since I am totally redesigning two websites with vast amounts of photos that need to be used as a visual index (one picture is worth a thousand words)I needed a quick and easy way to make thumbnails.
I found Fookes Software, It is Great!
Easy Thumbnails is a popular free Windows utility for creating accurate thumbnail images and scaled-down/up copies from a wide range of popular picture formats. An elegant interface makes it a snap to find your images and select them for processing individually, in groups, or in whole folders, using a simple file selector and built-in image viewer. You can use slider controls to rotate images and adjust their contrast, brightness, sharpness and quality, and check out the results with the built-in viewer.
Thumbnails can be created in any existing folder or a new folder, and you can identify them clearly by adding a prefix or suffix to their filename. If you're an image-processing enthusiast, you'll enjoy having a choice of eleven resampling filters for the best possible results. You can convert small batches of images inside Windows Explorer from the File menu or with a right-click of the mouse, display thumbnails in your browser, and even take advantage of command-line switches to generate thumbnails seamlessly from other programs. You can also save your thumbnails to a Web page using a HTML template that you can easily customize to create your own layouts, and there's helpful documentation that includes full instructions and some useful tips.
Easy Thumbnails is a genuine freeware product that will not annoy you with advertising, intrusive spyware components or nag screens. It comes from the developers of the award-winning NoteTab text editors.
If you need to make thumbnails, I highly recommend this and yes I have used it many times. I give it a 10 out of 10!
I found Fookes Software, It is Great!
Easy Thumbnails is a popular free Windows utility for creating accurate thumbnail images and scaled-down/up copies from a wide range of popular picture formats. An elegant interface makes it a snap to find your images and select them for processing individually, in groups, or in whole folders, using a simple file selector and built-in image viewer. You can use slider controls to rotate images and adjust their contrast, brightness, sharpness and quality, and check out the results with the built-in viewer.
Thumbnails can be created in any existing folder or a new folder, and you can identify them clearly by adding a prefix or suffix to their filename. If you're an image-processing enthusiast, you'll enjoy having a choice of eleven resampling filters for the best possible results. You can convert small batches of images inside Windows Explorer from the File menu or with a right-click of the mouse, display thumbnails in your browser, and even take advantage of command-line switches to generate thumbnails seamlessly from other programs. You can also save your thumbnails to a Web page using a HTML template that you can easily customize to create your own layouts, and there's helpful documentation that includes full instructions and some useful tips.
Easy Thumbnails is a genuine freeware product that will not annoy you with advertising, intrusive spyware components or nag screens. It comes from the developers of the award-winning NoteTab text editors.
If you need to make thumbnails, I highly recommend this and yes I have used it many times. I give it a 10 out of 10!
Sunday, July 12, 2009
To tweet or not to tweet?
Twitter:
To tweet or not to tweet?
How do you tell who is worth following though once you've found them?
How much time out of your ‘no time left’ day do you have to tweet?
How do you know the person you are following is even who they claim to be?
If you find someone with 2500 followers, you might think they have something of value; but do they?
Spammers are hitting Twitter like the plague. Twitter has started to verify account because of a lawsuit. Almost everything I read about marketing says you MUST be on the social network and yet I have not seen much that interests me because idle chit-chat is a waste of my time. In addition to all the nonsense that is going on in Twitter.
By Mike McDonald
“Social Media is still an area very much in it's development. There will no doubt be plenty of twists and turns as we move along. However, there is one thing you can absolutely take to the bank: if aren't in it, you need to get there. For better or worse, "wait and see" strategists have no place in this world.” (Mike has been covering ebusiness and the search industry for WebProNews since 2000.)
Somebody please tell me why I Must! The “authority” (?) that be tell us we must right after they tell us it’s not a good place to be. Go figure. Yep, and they will probably come with search engines for tweeters too.
What is the difference between Bird Flu and Swine Flu?
For bird flu you need tweetment
And for swine flu you need oikment.
To tweet or not to tweet?
How do you tell who is worth following though once you've found them?
How much time out of your ‘no time left’ day do you have to tweet?
How do you know the person you are following is even who they claim to be?
If you find someone with 2500 followers, you might think they have something of value; but do they?
Spammers are hitting Twitter like the plague. Twitter has started to verify account because of a lawsuit. Almost everything I read about marketing says you MUST be on the social network and yet I have not seen much that interests me because idle chit-chat is a waste of my time. In addition to all the nonsense that is going on in Twitter.
By Mike McDonald
“Social Media is still an area very much in it's development. There will no doubt be plenty of twists and turns as we move along. However, there is one thing you can absolutely take to the bank: if aren't in it, you need to get there. For better or worse, "wait and see" strategists have no place in this world.” (Mike has been covering ebusiness and the search industry for WebProNews since 2000.)
Somebody please tell me why I Must! The “authority” (?) that be tell us we must right after they tell us it’s not a good place to be. Go figure. Yep, and they will probably come with search engines for tweeters too.
What is the difference between Bird Flu and Swine Flu?
For bird flu you need tweetment
And for swine flu you need oikment.
Sunday, July 5, 2009
Simple Things: Html
Below are simple things that can help you control the look of your posting in your blog. By typing these into the code you can, for example, put a widget in the center of a column. The picture below illustrates what the characters look like but can’t be typed here because it won’t show up. Put the first character set before your text or widget and the second set directly after.
The br is for a break in a line. It creates a new line.
Strong means the text will be bold.
Strike means there will be a strike through a word.
As in the price was49.95 Now 39.95. There is a character set of html before and after the 49.95 that you don't see.
The br is for a break in a line. It creates a new line.
Strong means the text will be bold.
Strike means there will be a strike through a word.
As in the price was
Wednesday, July 1, 2009
Straight from Blogger Buzz!
Third Party Templates for Blogger
BTemplates.
A free directory of user-submitted templates, classified by type and/or features.
The Cutest Blog on the Block
Run by Becky and Ashley of 2 Moms Talk, this site offers free, premade layouts, as well as customizable backgrounds.
Blogger Styles
Gallery of submitted templates, ranked by visitors and includes detailed configuration instructions.
FalconHive
Conversions of WordPress templates upon request, along with archive of past conversions.
All Blogspot Templates
Templates in 1-, 2- and 3-column options. Also includes AdSense-ready templates.
Zona Cerebral
Spanish site with dozens of templates to choose from, including several converted WordPress themes.
Quite Random
A number of free templates, and several Blogger-specific tutorials regarding setup and layout editing.
ChicaBlogger
In Spanish, templates designed primarily for women.
Deluxe Templates
Hundreds of templates, including many converted WordPress themes. Also has a nice "tips & tricks" section for customizing Blogger.
Pyzam
Thousands of templates, browsable by category and sortable by recency or popularity.
Our Blog Templates
160+ free templates, all well-labeled for easy browsing to find the one you want.
eBlogTemplates
Combination of free and premium templates, and a wealth of tips for tweaking your Blogger blog.
You must understand blogger.com does not provide support for third party templates. When I imported the template for Wear My Blues I had great insturction from the website eBlogTemplates.
I also started with a blank Blog, I did not move anything. The entire setup was a breeze!
BTemplates.
A free directory of user-submitted templates, classified by type and/or features.
The Cutest Blog on the Block
Run by Becky and Ashley of 2 Moms Talk, this site offers free, premade layouts, as well as customizable backgrounds.
Blogger Styles
Gallery of submitted templates, ranked by visitors and includes detailed configuration instructions.
FalconHive
Conversions of WordPress templates upon request, along with archive of past conversions.
All Blogspot Templates
Templates in 1-, 2- and 3-column options. Also includes AdSense-ready templates.
Zona Cerebral
Spanish site with dozens of templates to choose from, including several converted WordPress themes.
Quite Random
A number of free templates, and several Blogger-specific tutorials regarding setup and layout editing.
ChicaBlogger
In Spanish, templates designed primarily for women.
Deluxe Templates
Hundreds of templates, including many converted WordPress themes. Also has a nice "tips & tricks" section for customizing Blogger.
Pyzam
Thousands of templates, browsable by category and sortable by recency or popularity.
Our Blog Templates
160+ free templates, all well-labeled for easy browsing to find the one you want.
eBlogTemplates
Combination of free and premium templates, and a wealth of tips for tweaking your Blogger blog.
You must understand blogger.com does not provide support for third party templates. When I imported the template for Wear My Blues I had great insturction from the website eBlogTemplates.
I also started with a blank Blog, I did not move anything. The entire setup was a breeze!
Saturday, June 27, 2009
Free Image Hosting - Photobucket
Author: David Cowgill
Website: http://www.eblogtemplates.com
Finding a place to park your web images is fairly easy to do these days. The problem is there are dozens of sites out there so how do you know which one to use? If you pick the wrong one, you will usually find out pretty quick. After you spend hours uploading all your images and then linking to them from your website, all of a sudden your image links break and your site is broken with no images.
Most free blog template sites let you download their template but fail to mention anything about the images that go along with it. Some people don’t even realize that images need to be hosted somewhere in order for the template to work properly. They install their newly downloaded template and it just works. Other templates don’t host the images and include the images in a folder which you need to find a place for them to live. People get confused and don’t know what to do.
If you are one of these people or just want a place to drop off your images, then listen up. I’ve been using a great image hosting site called Photobucket ever since I started eBlog Templates. You can use their free service which is great for small sites with not a lot of bandwidth needs or upgrade to their pro plan which gives you unlimited bandwidth for around $25/year.
Here are some other great features of Photobucket:
Keep all your pics and videos in one place - room for up to 10,000 photos and hours of video!
Share with everyone you know by email, IM or mobile phone.
Make slideshows and mashups with music, special effects, captions, and more.
Link to your profile, blog or website. One-click posting, direct to your favorite sites.
I recommend at least setting up an account since it doesn’t cost you anything. Then upload a picture or two just so you’re familiar with how it’s done. If you are currently using a Blogger template that you downloaded for free, it’s probably a good idea to start moving all your images over as well. If you don’t, you’re leaving your images in the hands of someone else and they could delete, move or even put up adult images on your site by just changing the images on their server. Not good.
Ready to super charge your blog? Check out our professional premium blogger templates or make money by joining our blog affiliate program!
Website: http://www.eblogtemplates.com
Finding a place to park your web images is fairly easy to do these days. The problem is there are dozens of sites out there so how do you know which one to use? If you pick the wrong one, you will usually find out pretty quick. After you spend hours uploading all your images and then linking to them from your website, all of a sudden your image links break and your site is broken with no images.
Most free blog template sites let you download their template but fail to mention anything about the images that go along with it. Some people don’t even realize that images need to be hosted somewhere in order for the template to work properly. They install their newly downloaded template and it just works. Other templates don’t host the images and include the images in a folder which you need to find a place for them to live. People get confused and don’t know what to do.
If you are one of these people or just want a place to drop off your images, then listen up. I’ve been using a great image hosting site called Photobucket ever since I started eBlog Templates. You can use their free service which is great for small sites with not a lot of bandwidth needs or upgrade to their pro plan which gives you unlimited bandwidth for around $25/year.
Here are some other great features of Photobucket:
Keep all your pics and videos in one place - room for up to 10,000 photos and hours of video!
Share with everyone you know by email, IM or mobile phone.
Make slideshows and mashups with music, special effects, captions, and more.
Link to your profile, blog or website. One-click posting, direct to your favorite sites.
I recommend at least setting up an account since it doesn’t cost you anything. Then upload a picture or two just so you’re familiar with how it’s done. If you are currently using a Blogger template that you downloaded for free, it’s probably a good idea to start moving all your images over as well. If you don’t, you’re leaving your images in the hands of someone else and they could delete, move or even put up adult images on your site by just changing the images on their server. Not good.
Ready to super charge your blog? Check out our professional premium blogger templates or make money by joining our blog affiliate program!
Thursday, June 11, 2009
Writing by Nick Stamoulis on Wednesday, May 13
How Many Backlinks Do You Need?
When it comes to link building there is no way to overemphasize the importance of backlinks. It is pretty much common knowledge that you need them. Different search engine optimization experts will put varying degrees of emphasis on them, but all SEOs pretty much agree that they are important. How important are they? Do you need thousands? Hundreds? How many is enough?
There’s no easy answer to the how much is enough question. It depends on a lot of factors, primarily the competitive nature of your niche. One keyword in a very competitive niche may require tens or hundreds of thousands of thousands of backlinks just to make a dent, and a small one at that, in the armor of your competition. Why bother beating your head against a stone wall?
Instead, go for the smaller, less competitive keywords first. The ones that won’t require an army of link builders to spread artillery all over kingdom come just to sound like the squeak of a mouse. If you target those less competitive key phrases and get respectable traffic from those, once you capture the top of the search engine rankings for the long tail phrases, you’ll start to see yourself climb for the more generic phrases within your niche. But it takes time. And patience.
How many backlinks does it take to succeed? One more than you had yesterday. Just keep plugging away, one link at a time, until you win.
http://www.searchengineoptimizationjournal.com/2009/05/13/how-many-backlinks-do-you-need/
When it comes to link building there is no way to overemphasize the importance of backlinks. It is pretty much common knowledge that you need them. Different search engine optimization experts will put varying degrees of emphasis on them, but all SEOs pretty much agree that they are important. How important are they? Do you need thousands? Hundreds? How many is enough?
There’s no easy answer to the how much is enough question. It depends on a lot of factors, primarily the competitive nature of your niche. One keyword in a very competitive niche may require tens or hundreds of thousands of thousands of backlinks just to make a dent, and a small one at that, in the armor of your competition. Why bother beating your head against a stone wall?
Instead, go for the smaller, less competitive keywords first. The ones that won’t require an army of link builders to spread artillery all over kingdom come just to sound like the squeak of a mouse. If you target those less competitive key phrases and get respectable traffic from those, once you capture the top of the search engine rankings for the long tail phrases, you’ll start to see yourself climb for the more generic phrases within your niche. But it takes time. And patience.
How many backlinks does it take to succeed? One more than you had yesterday. Just keep plugging away, one link at a time, until you win.
http://www.searchengineoptimizationjournal.com/2009/05/13/how-many-backlinks-do-you-need/
Monday, June 8, 2009
Google Tracking For You
We are not sure how anyone can sell this service when Google provides it free along with so many other services at no charge. This Fast Implementation is great, it's easy and we love it. We Rate: 10 out of 10
Go to the : Getting Started Page
You don't have to buy a kit, that is a scam.
You don't have to pay anybody to do this for you, it is truly simple.
You also have an entire section on help, the help describes and gives directions on everything you need to get the job done. If you use the information, read the reports, use the reference materials provided you will be amazed at how you can attract more traffic to your site.
As for the experts, well, we all have to start somewhere.
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