URL Redirect Checking Tool

Use this tool to check for redirects.

Ignoring Google’s ODP tag in Google Results

Matt Cutts says:
To direct all search engines that support the meta tag not to use ODP information for the page’s description, use the following:

<META NAME=”GOOGLEBOT” CONTENT=”NOODP”>

or

<META NAME=”ROBOTS” CONTENT=”NOODP”> for any other search engine as well
http://sitemaps.blogspot.com/2006/07/more-control-over-page-snippets.html

GEO IP Tool – check location of URL

Use this tool to check the location of a website. Good results

http://www.geoiptool.com

Microsoft AdCenter Labs – New Tools for SEO

Content Categorization Engine:

This tool tells you ways your site may be categorized. Useful for:

• helping you determine what types of webmasters might be interested in linking at your website
• determining what type of affiliate ads you may want to consider using
• seeing how well search engines understand what your site is about

Try Microsoft’s Content Categorization Engine

Keyword Categorization Engine:

Similar to the content categorization engine, but for keywords. In addition to the uses described above this tool can also show you how well your page is aligned with your core keywords.
Try Microsoft’s Keyword Categorization Engine

Demographics Prediction Tool:

Shows the age groups and gender of searchers for a particular query or visitors to a specific URL. Useful for:

• showing the most common markets for a search query or domain.
• showing you how well your site audience is aligned with your core keywords (for example, if a site lacks corporate bullshitspeak™, it would be unsurprising that the viewers of that site would be younger than the demographic averages for a field which is typically targeted toward older people who can’t get enough corporate bullshitspeak™)
• the most common groups of visitors and mindset to a site or for a query might be obvious, but some of the secondary and tertiary markets may be well less defined. this tool can help you find some of those other markets.

Try Microsoft’s Demographics Prediction Tool

Seasonal Search Volume Forecast Tool:

Shows seasonal search spikes. It is like a hybrid between Google Trends and Google Suggest, but it will also show you relevant keyword phrases that have your keyword in the middle of them. This tool does not seem to have as much depth as Google Trends (ie: only a surprisingly few searches show results). They also seemed to have stripped out many gambling and porn related keywords. Unlike Google, MSN places search volume numbers on their trends. Useful for:

• showing seasonal keyword trends

Try Microsoft’s Search Forecast Tool

Keyword Search Funnel Tool:

Shows you the words people search for before or after they search for a specific search query. Useful for:

• finding common spelling errors
• finding related keywords that may not show up on most keyword tools

Try Microsoft’s Keyword Funnel Tool

Detecting Online Commercial Intent Tool:

Shows you Microsoft’s opinion of the probability of a query or a page being information, commercial-informational, or commercial-transactional in nature. Works well in conjunction with Yahoo! Mindset. Useful for:

• seeing how commercial they think a term or page is, which is important because it is believed that some search engines, such as Google, have a heavy informational bias to their search results.

Try Microsoft’s Online Commercial Intent Tool

Source: http://www.seobook.com/archives/001706.shtml

Is Your Copy Trusted by Google?

Is Your Copy Trusted by Google?
by Karon Thackston C 2006, All Rights Reserved

As long as I've been an SEO copywriter, I never knew that Google had its own trust factor in relation to site pages and their copy. Yet, a recent column in the Google Librarian Newsletter did a wonderful job of explaining what Google is looking for in the way of copy. These are practices I've preached with fervor for years. This information can help your copywriting become a trusted source for Google and potentially aid in increasing your rankings.

As I started reading the original issue of this newsletter, Matt Cutts began to explain that Google uses many factors (other than PageRank) to evaluate and rank pages. Matt continues to describe the use of keywords and their relationships to other page factors.

For instance, let's say one keyphrase you're working with in your copy is "flat monitor." I've preached for years that keyphrases work best when all the words remain in their exact order. That is, when you use the entire phrase "flat monitor" as opposed to using only the single words "flat" and "monitor" individually. Matt confirms this by saying relevance and trust might be increased in Google's eyes when the words "flat" and "monitor" are
used next to each other.

Why would it matter? Because "flat" can refer to practically anything. That word by itself could easily be used on a page that has absolutely nothing to do with monitors. While the word "monitor" can refer to a screen
used with a computer, there are many different types of monitors. If the search query were specifically for "flat monitors," pages about CRT monitors and other types would have little relevance and therefore wouldn't be deemed
trustworthy. "Monitor" can also mean "to observe," which would be irrelevant to the search query used in our example. So, using the phrase as it was typed into the search engine is the most relevant application.

What else? Have your keyphrase in the title. While Matt doesn't say this is a vital element, he does suggest that it "gives a hint" that the page would be more relevant, and therefore trustworthy, to the subject matter at hand than a document that does not include the keyphrase in the title. Toward the end of the article, Matt refers to Google's preference to choose the most trusted sites to include in their database. It's in a subsequent issue of the Google Librarian Newsletter that Matt explains, in part, other ways Google evaluates trust.

The fonts used on the page and the placement of words on the page are included in assessing trust. Also, an examination of the text of other pages of the site is included. Of course, this is not the entire equation. As originally stated, Google uses many factors to determine the relevance and trustworthiness of copy. These are just a few.

But what about copy that isn't trustworthy? What practices do you want to avoid? In a thread on Matt's blog (from April 26th), Matt discusses penalties. During the thread, a segment of horrible text is shown as an example of how not to write SEO copy. Matt's comments about the copy include mentions of these offenses: keyword stuffing, deliberate inclusion of misspelled words, gibberish text (the kind normally generated by automated copywriting programs), doorway pages and hidden text on the page. If you are currently practicing any of these techniques, you might want to seriously (and quickly) adjust your copywriting strategy.

The bottom line is that Google wants to include pages that are highly relevant. By writing your copy in such a way as to highlight the relevant factors of the content for Google, you also contribute to your visitors' experience. It's a win-win-win situation that benefits you, Google and those who come to your site.

Karon Thackston
Marketing Words, Inc.: http://www.marketingwords.com/

10 Worst AdWords Campaign Management Mistakes

SiteProNews: May 29, 2006 Feature Article

Article printed from SiteProNews: http://www.sitepronews.com
HTML version available at: http://www.sitepronews.com/archives.html

10 Worst AdWords Campaign Management Mistakes
By Tyler Huston (c) 2006

On today's highly competitive Google AdWords pay-per-click (PPC)
search engine, it is now more important than ever to ensure that
your PPC campaigns are optimized to their utmost potential.
You should be achieving maximum return on investment (ROI) for
the keywords or phrases that are most relevant to your business
and are most likely to provide you with targeted traffic to your
website. With ever growing cost-per-click (CPC) prices
throughout the various PPC search engines it is essential that
you avoid certain mistakes that will undoubtedly result in
poorly performing PPC campaigns.

The Mistakes to Avoid

Long list of less than targeted keywords
Not identifying unique aspects of your product or service
Lack of keywords in your ad text
Directing users solely to your home page
Creation of single Ad Groups
Utilizing single campaigns
Using broad match only
Failure to optimize Ad Serving for your ads
Not tracking results
Entering the content network without modifying bids

Long List of Less Than Targeted Keywords

When you first set out to create your AdWords campaign it is of
utmost importance that you do not go "keyword crazy". What this
means is that you must not create long lists of irrelevant and
generic keywords. For example, if you were an automotive
dealership then it would not be in your best interest to target
the keyword "truck". The reason being is that the cost-per-click
(CPC) for such a generic keyword would be incredibly high when
compared to a more descriptive relevant keyword such as "T-Z783
Extended Cab". An example of an irrelevant keyword which would
not produce conversions if you strictly conducted automotive
sales would be "tail light covers". The phrase may bring visitors
to your website but, if they do not find what they are looking
for when they get there, they will be gone just as quickly as
they arrived.

Not Identifying Unique Aspects of Your Product or Service

Before implementing your AdWords campaign you must first
understand exactly what it is that makes you stand out from your
competition. By identifying your unique products or services
you will have a lot more clarity on how to rise above your
competitors and zone in on the keywords or phrases that are
unique to your business. I would recommend that you perform an
analysis of your competition, have a look and see what they are
doing and which phrases they are using. After conducting a
competition analysis and after understanding what makes your
products or services unique you will be able to come up with a
strategy that will topple your competitors.

Lack of Keywords in Your Ad Text

When creating your descriptive ad copy it is imperative that you
find a means to inject your keywords into your title and
description while maintaining the delicate balance of clarity
and relevance. Your ad copy should be tailored in such a way
that when read by a visitor they know exactly what they are
getting into when they click on your ad, which brings me to my
next point.

Directing Users Solely to Your Home Page

Not taking the time to decide which destination URL should be
designated to which ad is an oversight that I come across far
too often. When you finish compiling your list of relevant
keywords that describe unique products or services of your
business, why on earth would you then send everyone to your
homepage and let them navigate through your site in hopes of
finding what it is that they are looking for. Instead why not
send them straight to the page that contains exactly what was
described to them within your ad copy. As an example, if you
are an automotive dealership and your ad contains the keyword
"T-Z783 Extended Cab", instead of sending them to
www.auto-motive-dealership.com send them to
www.auto-motive-dealership.com/T-Z783_Extended_Cab.html.

Creation of Single Ad Groups

Categorizing ads that are targeting related keywords into a
common ad-group will allow you to have a much higher level of
control over your entire campaign. Let's say that you run a
sporting goods store, start by grouping all ads targeted towards
hockey skates into a single Ad Group. You would then create
another ad-group which would be targeting hockey sticks and
another containing hockey gloves and so on. Organizing your
ad-group structure in this manner gives you the ability to
create in-depth reports on the performance of each ad-group.

Utilizing Single Campaigns

Once you have your Ad Groups sorted out into easy to identify
categories you may then move on to the next step of creating
relevant campaigns. From the example above you have created Ad
Groups containing separate products of hockey skates, sticks,
gloves etc. Now it is time to create a container for all of the
Ad Groups into one campaign entitled "hockey equipment". You
would then repeat the process creating Ad Groups for tennis, one
group for shoes, one for racquets etc. and then once again you
drop them all into a single campaign entitled "tennis equipment".
Having highly organized campaigns is the key to determining which
ads are creating optimal conversions.

Using Broad Match Only

When you do not take advantage of the phrase matching options
that are available to you, chances are you are missing out on
potential customers and creating a higher CPC. Broad matches are
usually less targeted than exact and phrase matching. Broad
matching is the default option your ads will appear for expanded
matches such as plurals or relevant keyword variations. When
utilizing phrase match your ad will appear for search terms in
the order that you specify and sometimes for other terms. Exact
matching is by far the most targeted option to use. You will
appear for the exact keyword specified. Negative keyword is
also a fantastic option to utilize in order to specify which
keywords you do not want to appear for.

Broad match
Default option:
Blue widget

Phrase match
Surround the keyword in quotes:
"blue widget"

Exact match
Surround the keyword in square brackets:
[blue widget]

Negative match
Place a negative character before the keyword:
-blue widget

Failure To Optimize Ad Serving For Your Ads

When you take advantage of the AdWords Ad Serving service
basically what you will be doing is showing your most popular
ads more often. The AdWords platform will give weight to ads
with the highest click through rates (CTRs) and display them
more often then keywords with lower (CTRs) within the same
ad-group.

Not Tracking Results

In order to have any idea on your AdWords campaign performance
you must be able to see the keywords that work as well as those
that do not. Google AdWords supplies a vast array of very useful
tracking tools. Google has also built into the user interface
Google Analytics which is a marvellous web analytics tool that
provides you with in-depth reporting on all aspects of your
campaign performance. I cannot stress enough the importance of
creating goals for your AdWords campaign to measure your success
by.

Entering The Content Network Without Modifying Bids

Within the AdWords platform you have recently been given the
ability to set different bids for the content network compared
to that of the search network. If you do not set different bids
on the content network for certain keywords, you will be paying
more per click than you should be. After lowering the prices on
certain keywords you will notice that the amount of click
throughs that you will be attaining will remain the same as they
were at the higher bid.

Conclusion

The purpose for this article was to create awareness for common
mistakes and to eliminate frustrations that may emerge when
managing Google AdWords campaigns. The points mentioned above
are compiled from management mistakes that I have stumbled upon
time and time again in hopes to assist you in creating a
marketing campaign that will generate dramatic increases to the
profits of your business.
================================================================
Tyler Huston is the founder and CEO of SearchStrategist.com
(http://www.searchstrategist.com), a search marketing firm that
provides professional PPC Management, expert search engine
optimization, SEO press release writing and blog optimization
services. Tyler takes pride in ranking clients from all over the
world at the top of the search engines. He can be reached at
tyler@searchstrategist.com.
================================================================

Copyright © 2006 Jayde Online, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

The Value of Branded vs. Non-Branded Search Terms

http://searchenginewatch.com/searchday/article.php/3608456

By Chris Sherman, Executive Editor

May 24, 2006 New research suggests that branded search terms offer the highest conversion rates, but that non-branded terms, when used properly, can significantly impact the outcome of a paid search marketing campaign.

The research, done by search marketing firms 360i and SearchIgnite, looked at than 3.9 million users and 5.1 million clicks during the first quarter of 2006. The study focused on e-commerce retailers who had active search marketing campaigns in place.

The primary purpose of the study was to track the value of the entire path a searcher takes from the first click through purchase, comparing the relative effectiveness of branded vs. non-branded search terms. The focus on e-commerce sites allowed the researchers to capture a user's entire clickstream from initial search to ultimate purchase from the retailer's web site.

Fully 25% of conversions occurred from users who clicked more than one ad. The highest conversion rate (9.30%) occurred when a user's first and last click were both on brand terms. However, when the first click was on a non-brand term and the last click was on a brand term, the conversion rate was almost as high (8.73%).

Notably, for searchers who began their search process on a non-brand term and then switched to a brand term, conversion rates were seven times higher than when a searcher used only non-brand terms.

These findings have significance for several reasons. Supporting the findings of other studies of searcher behavior, searchers tend to click generic, non-brand terms earlier in the search process, and more on brand terms when they are closer to making a purchase. This suggests that search marketers can leverage non-brand search terms to drive searchers toward brand terms later in the searching and purchase consideration process.

To do this effectively, the metrics used to determine the effectiveness of search terms must be adjusted to give more "credit" to the generic non-brand terms. While they may not directly lead to conversions, they offer an "assist" to the brand terms that ultimately lead a user to make a purchase.

Getting users to click on multiple ads pays off. Searchers who ultimately made a purchase clicked an average of 15% more ads than those who didn't complete a transaction. Really determined searchers—those that clicked a search marketer's ads ten times—were three times as likely to convert as those who clicked an ad only once.

The study also looked at query length. Most searchers are still using relatively simple queries. Searchers using multiple unique keywords made up just 8.39% of the sample studied, but they accounted for 19.2% of all ultimate transactions.

This suggests that a "long tail" approach to search marketing also pays off. Targeting multiple-word queries that individually have a low volume of searches can still result in meaningful conversions and high return on ad spend.

The study defined brand keywords as those where the name of the marketer, website or trademark owned by the marketer is present. Non-brand keywords are those which do not include any reference to the marketer, its website, its trademarks, or its proprietary brands.

While the study was limited to search marketing campaigns for e-commerce web sites, the researchers believe that similar results are likely to be observed for other types of web sites, and when other factors are considered, such as seasonality affecting searcher behavior.

360i and Search Ignite plan to continue investigating searcher behavior, looking at other vertical web sites, and expanding the scope from paid search marketing to include the impact of brands on organic search results, as well. As the report states:

"We're also aware of other questions that have yet to be answered. How do interactions with natural search and other forms of interactive marketing affect the results? How do these findings impact transactional metrics such as average order size and return on ad spending? How does offline brand equity play a role? For the scope of this report, we've had to be selective as to which questions we tackle, but we will delve deeper into these questions and others as we proceed with this research."

In addition to reporting on the findings of the searcher behavior study, the report offers numerous tactical suggestions for search marketers wanting to apply the learnings gleaned from the study. The free report, "Giving Clicks Credit Where Theyre Due: What You Need to Know When Allocating Your Search Budget" is available as a PDF download.