Google It - Speaker Deck

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GOOGLE IT Clicking Your Way to the Top

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I’M SETH fb.me/sethvargo @sethvargo

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FASTEN YOUR SEAT BELTS

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HOLD ALL QUESTIONS

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100+ SLIDES IN 50 MINUTES (that’s about 30 seconds a slide)

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“SEARCHERS EITHER FIND YOU, OR THEY FIND YOUR COMPETITORS...”

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WHAT IS SEO

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WHAT IS SEO “...the art and the science of getting a website to appear prominently in organic search engine results...”

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WHAT IS SEO “...the art and the science of getting a website to appear prominently in organic search engine results...” paid paid

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WHAT IS SEO “...the art and the science of getting a website to appear prominently in organic search engine results...” organic paid paid

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SEO VS SEM

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SEO VS SEM SEO - free things to improve your site

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SEO VS SEM SEO - free things to improve your site SEM - advertising/marketing/paid-rankings

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GETTING NOTICED CRAWLERS AND SITEMAP

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GET NOTICED BY CRAWLERS More Information: http://www.google.com/support/webmasters/bin/answer.py?answer=1061943

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GET NOTICED BY CRAWLERS crawler (aka bot, robot, spider) - an automated script that travels the Internet, copying content and returning to its creator for indexing More Information: http://www.google.com/support/webmasters/bin/answer.py?answer=1061943

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GET NOTICED BY CRAWLERS crawler (aka bot, robot, spider) - an automated script that travels the Internet, copying content and returning to its creator for indexing some crawlers fetch entire pages; others are easily bored and only view certain content More Information: http://www.google.com/support/webmasters/bin/answer.py?answer=1061943

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GET NOTICED BY CRAWLERS crawler (aka bot, robot, spider) - an automated script that travels the Internet, copying content and returning to its creator for indexing some crawlers fetch entire pages; others are easily bored and only view certain content spiders can only see things that you’ve linked to More Information: http://www.google.com/support/webmasters/bin/answer.py?answer=1061943

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IT’S TAKING FOREVER FOR MY SITE TO GET INDEXED!

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SITEMAPS More Information: http://www.sitemaps.org/

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SITEMAPS sitemap - an XML ﬁle that provides and index of all the URLs on your site More Information: http://www.sitemaps.org/

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SITEMAPS sitemap - an XML ﬁle that provides and index of all the URLs on your site also includes priority (home page > contact us) More Information: http://www.sitemaps.org/

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http://www.example.com/ 2005-01-01 monthly 0.8 http://www.example.com/catalog?item=12&desc=vacation_hawaii weekly http://www.example.com/catalog?item=73&desc=vacation_new_zealand 2004-12-23 weekly http://www.example.com/catalog?item=74&desc=vacation_newfoundland 2004-12-23T18:00:15+00:00 0.3 SAMPLE SITEMAP.XML

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DOING THE GOOGLE DANCE UNDERSTANDING YOUR LIMITS

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GOING ORGANIC

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GOING ORGANIC organic search engine trafﬁc is so valuable that it can sustain an entire business

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GOING ORGANIC organic search engine trafﬁc is so valuable that it can sustain an entire business you can inﬂuence organic searches, but ultimately you can’t control them

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GOING ORGANIC organic search engine trafﬁc is so valuable that it can sustain an entire business you can inﬂuence organic searches, but ultimately you can’t control them similar to writing an editorial - things can be cut, changed, or ignored

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GOING INORGANIC

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GOING INORGANIC inorganic searches are usually ignored by the end user

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GOING INORGANIC inorganic searches are usually ignored by the end user you have 100% control over the look, feel, and keywords honed

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GOING INORGANIC inorganic searches are usually ignored by the end user you have 100% control over the look, feel, and keywords honed similar to buying an advertisement in a magazine - you get exactly what you paid for

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“IF YOU WANT A GUARANTEE THAT YOUR MESSAGE WILL APPEAR IN THE NEWSPAPER A CERTAIN WAY, EXACTLY WHERE YOU WANT IT, BUY AN AD”

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MY SITE JUST DROPPED IN SEARCH RESULTS! WHAT SHOULD I DO!?

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AVAILABLE OPTIONS

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AVAILABLE OPTIONS run and hide in the corner

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AVAILABLE OPTIONS run and hide in the corner cry for hours because your entire life is ruined

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AVAILABLE OPTIONS run and hide in the corner cry for hours because your entire life is ruined nothing

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ITS ALL ABOUT TRAFFIC LOAD BALANCING YOUR TIME

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LOAD BALANCING YOUR TIME ITS ALL ABOUT QUALIFIED TRAFFIC

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SOMEONE SEARCHES FOR:

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photo lab SOMEONE SEARCHES FOR:

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SOMEONE SEARCHES FOR: online photo lab

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SOMEONE SEARCHES FOR: online photo lab in Las Vegas

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SOMEONE SEARCHES FOR: 1-hour online photo lab in Las Vegas

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SOMEONE SEARCHES FOR:

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1-hour online photo lab in Las Vegas qualiﬁed leads qualiﬁed leads board results THE CACHE-22 Note: I didn’t spell catch-22 wrong.. it’s a nerdy joke, since cache refers to an internal memory system

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AS AN EXAMPLE

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AS AN EXAMPLE digital camera

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WHAT DO THEY WANT?

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WHAT DO THEY WANT? buy a camera

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WHAT DO THEY WANT? buy a camera repair a camera

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WHAT DO THEY WANT? buy a camera repair a camera sell a camera

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WHAT DO THEY WANT? buy a camera repair a camera sell a camera compare cameras to buy as a gift

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WHAT DO THEY WANT? buy a camera repair a camera sell a camera compare cameras to buy as a gift compare digital cameras to traditional cameras

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WHAT DO THEY WANT? buy a camera repair a camera sell a camera compare cameras to buy as a gift compare digital cameras to traditional cameras whether “digital camera” is one or two words

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IT’S NOT SET AND FORGET SEO IS AN ONGOING PROCESS

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SEARCH NEVER SLEEPS

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SEARCH NEVER SLEEPS develop a content strategy to keep your content fresh, relevant, and attractive to spiders

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SEARCH NEVER SLEEPS develop a content strategy to keep your content fresh, relevant, and attractive to spiders use analytics to ﬁnd your top keywords - compare those keywords with (local) trends

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SEARCH NEVER SLEEPS develop a content strategy to keep your content fresh, relevant, and attractive to spiders use analytics to ﬁnd your top keywords - compare those keywords with (local) trends live on the bleeding edge of search engine tools - how can you beneﬁt from local search? mobile search? shopping search? map search? google+?

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NOT AN AFTERTHOUGHT YOU NEED TO START NOW

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SEARCH ENGINES CAN’T:

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SEARCH ENGINES CAN’T: read text on an image

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SEARCH ENGINES CAN’T: read text on an image understand anything on a Flash site or photo gallery

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SEARCH ENGINES CAN’T: read text on an image understand anything on a Flash site or photo gallery organize your content

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THERE’S NO FRONT DOOR NOT EVERYONE ENTERS YOUR SITE AS YOU WISH

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EVERY PAGE IS AN ENTRY PAGE

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BECAUSE OF THAT:

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BECAUSE OF THAT: every page needs to have:

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BECAUSE OF THAT: every page needs to have: a unique identity

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BECAUSE OF THAT: every page needs to have: a unique identity distinct purpose

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BECAUSE OF THAT: every page needs to have: a unique identity distinct purpose friendly URL

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THINK LIKE A PUBLISHER OR HIRE ONE IF YOU CAN’T

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THE INVERTED PYRAMID

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HOW TO WRITE GOOD WELL

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HOW TO WRITE GOOD WELL content should contain no spelling or grammar errors

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HOW TO WRITE GOOD WELL content should contain no spelling or grammar errors sentences should be short and concise

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HOW TO WRITE GOOD WELL content should contain no spelling or grammar errors sentences should be short and concise write as though you were speaking to some who’s native language was not English

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HOW TO WRITE GOOD WELL content should contain no spelling or grammar errors sentences should be short and concise write as though you were speaking to some who’s native language was not English paragraphs should be no longer than 4-5 sentences

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OTHER TIPS

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OTHER TIPS release content on a consistent schedule

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OTHER TIPS release content on a consistent schedule start a “photo-of-the-day” routine

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OTHER TIPS release content on a consistent schedule start a “photo-of-the-day” routine don’t be afraid to link to vertical industries

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DESIGNING THE OBVIOUS OR THE NOT-SO OBVIOUS

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No content

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avoid splash pages - they are graphic-heavy and deter crawlers

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avoid splash pages - they are graphic-heavy and deter crawlers avoid using (i)frames

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avoid splash pages - they are graphic-heavy and deter crawlers avoid using (i)frames be wary of drop-down navigation - crawlers don’t use Javascript

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avoid splash pages - they are graphic-heavy and deter crawlers avoid using (i)frames be wary of drop-down navigation - crawlers don’t use Javascript have well-structured, deep-nested content (if users can’t ﬁnd it, how can search engines?)

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No content

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tables are for tablular data - they should NOT be used for layouts

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tables are for tablular data - they should NOT be used for layouts use redirects efﬁciently (301 vs 302)

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tables are for tablular data - they should NOT be used for layouts use redirects efﬁciently (301 vs 302) avoid Flash at all costs

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tables are for tablular data - they should NOT be used for layouts use redirects efﬁciently (301 vs 302) avoid Flash at all costs link internally

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tables are for tablular data - they should NOT be used for layouts use redirects efﬁciently (301 vs 302) avoid Flash at all costs link internally use unique title tags

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tables are for tablular data - they should NOT be used for layouts use redirects efﬁciently (301 vs 302) avoid Flash at all costs link internally use unique title tags use breadcrumb navigation

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DON’T DUPLICATE CONTENT

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USING ANALYTICS KEYWORD TOOLS, ANALYITCS, AND MORE

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THEY ONLY GAVE ME 50 MINUTES, SO I CAN’T DEMO THESE :’(

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GOOGLE KEYWORD TOOL https://adwords.google.com/select/KeywordToolExternal

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GOOGLE TRENDS http://www.google.com/trends

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INSIGHTS FOR SEARCH http://www.google.com/insights/search

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WORDTRACKER https://freekeywords.wordtracker.com/

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TRELLIAN http://keyworddiscovery.com/search.html

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BE WARY OF NEW TECH IT COULD BE YOUR DOWNFALL

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“SEARCH ENGINE CRAWLERS CARE NOT A WHIT FOR LUSH PHOTOGRAPHY AND FANCY- PANTS DESIGN ELEMENTS.”

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SEARCH ENGINES CAN’T:

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SEARCH ENGINES CAN’T: read AJAX content (unless it’s UJS)

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SEARCH ENGINES CAN’T: read AJAX content (unless it’s UJS) see Flash

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SEARCH ENGINES CAN’T: read AJAX content (unless it’s UJS) see Flash read images

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SEARCH ENGINES CAN’T: read AJAX content (unless it’s UJS) see Flash read images read Silverlight

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OPTIMIZING ON PAGE TITLE, DESCRIPTION, KEYWORDS, AND ALTS

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USE FRIENDLY URLS

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USE FRIENDLY URLS URLs should be “friendly”

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USE FRIENDLY URLS URLs should be “friendly” index.php?p=193&c=291#ac

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USE FRIENDLY URLS URLs should be “friendly” index.php?p=193&c=291#ac photo-books/my-awesome-photo-book#create

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USE FRIENDLY TITLES Untitled Page Photo Books :: My Photo Lab

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ALT YOUR IMAGES ”That

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LINKING IT UP NOT ALL LINKS ARE EQUAL

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“THE BEST WAY TO ENSURE GOOGLE FINDS YOUR SITE IS FOR YOUR PAGE TO BE LINKED FROM LOTS OF PAGES ON OTHER SITES...”

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MY LINK IS BETTER

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MY LINK IS BETTER The WSJ and NYT links are way better than Bill’s blog

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MY LINK IS BETTER The WSJ and NYT links are way better than Bill’s blog 10,000 Bill’s blogs are better than 1 WSJ link

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MY LINK IS BETTER The WSJ and NYT links are way better than Bill’s blog 10,000 Bill’s blogs are better than 1 WSJ link

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“IN THE WORLD OF SERACH, IT’S NOT THE QUANITY – IT’S THE QUALITY OF LINKS THAT MATTER.”

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WHERE ARE YOU? ARE YOU LIVING IN A SAFE NEIGHBORHOOD?

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IF YOU LIVE ON A STREET WITH DRUG DEALERS, PEOPLE WILL THINK YOUR A DRUG DEALER

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IF YOUR HOSTED ON A SERVER WITH HACKERS OR BLOCKED SITES, CRAWLERS WILL THINK YOUR AN ILLEGITIMATE SITE

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USE A RELIABLE AND TRUSTED HOST

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ARE YOU LOCAL? REACH CUSTOMERS ONLINE. MEET THEM IN PERSON.

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“LOCAL SEARCH IS THE EASIEST WAY TO LEVEL THE PLAYING FIELD BETWEEN LARGE NATIONAL BUSINESSES AND SMALL LOCAL PROVIDERS”

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PLACES FOR BUSINESS http://www.google.com/places/

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REDEFINE “SEARCH ENGINE” IT’S NOT JUST GOOGLE ANYMORE

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YouTube. Craigslist. eBay. Wikipedia. Flickr. ALL SEARCH ENGINES IN THEIR OWN RIGHT

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LET USERS DO WORK DON’T THINK YOU CAN DO IT ALONE!

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QUICK TIPS

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QUICK TIPS allow users to post reviews

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QUICK TIPS allow users to post reviews give users public proﬁles

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QUICK TIPS allow users to post reviews give users public proﬁles provide the ability to link to a recent order/album

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QUICK TIPS allow users to post reviews give users public proﬁles provide the ability to link to a recent order/album users will do the work for you

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TOOLS PUT ON YOUR HARD HATS

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SEOZIO http://eyeﬂow.com/seozio/

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WEBMASTER TOOLS https://www.google.com/webmasters

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ANALYTICS http://www.google.com/analytics/

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OTHER STUFF THINGS THAT MAY/NOT APPLY TO YOU

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MULTIPLE DOMAINS

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MULTIPLE DOMAINS pick one

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MULTIPLE DOMAINS pick one redirect the others using a 301 redirect

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WWW VS NON-WWW

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WWW VS NON-WWW doesn’t matter

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WWW VS NON-WWW doesn’t matter but pick one

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WWW VS NON-WWW doesn’t matter but pick one www.myphotolab.com and www.photolab.com are considered different websites by some crawlers

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BUY A BOOK http://www.amazon.com/Truth-About-Search-Engine-Optimization/dp/0789738317