non-SEO ways to increase your search rankings

[Robert_Charlton]

There's an excellent article by Chris Boggs today in the SEW Experts section of SEW...

Top 5 Non-SEO Ways to Increase Your Search Rankings
http://searchenginewatch.com/showPage.html?page=3629357

This article really struck home, because it highlights one of the most frequent discussions I've been having with clients, that SEO cannot work in a vacuum. To give the article its full due, it's as much about driving traffic as it is about improving rankings.

Taking steps to improve conversions is another area I discuss with clients as a way of effectively increasing traffic.

These approaches can be applied to small companies as well as large organizations.

[Chris Boggs]

Thanks Robert I am glad you enjoyed it! I look forward to hopefully seeing you in San Jose in August.

[root123]

Well an interesting article.....

Yes these are non-seo ways but still need assistance from SEO guys to execute them....

[Chris Boggs]

Originally Posted by root123

Well an interesting article.....

Yes these are non-seo ways but still need assistance from SEO guys to execute them....

Oh yeah root? Well why don't you shed some of your wisdom: what you would do with usability and alternate marketing for a site like, let's say Bed Bath and Beyond?

I will look forward to seeing how your advice would be better or more useful than an expert in either of these areas. Also, please let us know how long you have been working in SEO and some examples of the sites you have worked with or their competitors.

[cryptblade]

heh- oh don't hurt'em Chris!

One distinction I would make is the updating content. Some content needs to be updated sure. But if a company only sells 1 type of widget or widget service and has little else to change, "updating" content may not help. But ADDING content would be useful and just good practice.

I mean, if you sell Blue Widgets for Zorro Widgetland and ONLY Blue Widgets for Zorro Widgetland, there's not much room for anything else. But you sure as heck can keep talking about Blue Widgets for Zorro Widgetland until your face turns blue.

Communities are just really really tricky. It pays to be an observer and general contributor first. I liken it to in-person networking. You don't just jump into a conversation about yourself. You wait, observe, and look for an in. Then you add to the conversation.

[Chris Boggs]

great comment crypt I have to agree with you about keeping content fresh even if it's basically the same subject. Excellent additional advice on how to approach communities too.

[cryptblade]

Definitely - I hate it when people come here to drop links and add nothing to any discussion here, whether they just invaded a thread or created a new topic to drop a link.

And I would argue an "SEO" might not always be the best person for this type of job. A marketer - a promotional marketer with a background in in-person promotion might be better suited for dealing with communities.

That kind of person, generally, takes the company to "the streets". And that person engages the people. With that kind of mentality and approach, you make the community thing really pay off - without turning off the community people.

[metasynman]

I think a better way of saying what root was getting at, is that an SEO should at least be involved in the process in some cases. I know for me, at least, with working in a large corporation as an SEO a large portion of my projects tend to be "fixing" what others do to make web pages, press releases, etc. more SE-friendly. Ah, if ONLY they would call me once in a while to give recommendations BEFORE something launches, I wouldn't be pulling quite so much of my hair out.

In all fairness, though, I spent quite a lot of time on the other side of the fence as a designer & marketer before I realized just how important an SEO perspective can (and should) be when developing new web assets. It doesn't make me an expert in all the other fields, but having that familiarity and ability to speak the lingo really helps in getting things done from the SEO side.

[cryptblade]

I hate it when people play devil's advocate. Ain't no one know what Root was gettin at except Root.

Having an SEO perspective SHOULD be critical. Big companies can think of the Reputation Management aspect of SEO when they initiate anything online. New companies or new websites should consider the SEO factors as well. For example, want to launch a new campaign? Should it have a new domain or leverage an existing domain - SEO perspective is good. Many other examples.

But CB's point is that none of these are actually "SEO". And as I argued, an SEO is not the right consultant for leveraging communities. You can have "SEOs" (idiot SEOs in this case) try to find all these community sites and just drop in and drop links and think "Well all links help!" WRONG! Wrong way to leverage communities as assets.

Then you have things like site design and usability. An SEO may not know the exact way to do design or word choice.

I mean, I hate hearing designers with their self-aggrandizing and thinking they are soooo important. I HATE it. I mean, as far as I'm concerned, a designer is just a drawer until proven otherwise. I hate designers who think they take precedence over marketing or think design IS marketing and all that crap.

At the same time, Root's response has that tone of an SEO self-aggrandizing which is a turn off (but not to say Root meant it as that).

SEO and design are all part of the solution, part of A solution - but not THE solution.

[Chris Boggs]

woohoo go get 'em blade. There is no SEO in team, well there's an "e" I guess. A strong team of experts will always do the job best, be they under one roof or multiple rooves. (sic)

[amelia]

i think working in other marketing will be effeftive for me

[JohnC]

Excellent points guys ...

Originally Posted by cryptblade

Having an SEO perspective SHOULD be critical. Big companies can think of the Reputation Management aspect of SEO when they initiate anything online. New companies or new websites should consider the SEO factors as well. For example, want to launch a new campaign? Should it have a new domain or leverage an existing domain - SEO perspective is good. Many other examples.

I used to tell clients all the time "SEO is not something you do TO a web site, it is PART of your website." From the day you start planning to the day you turn it off.

Every aspect of running a site or business online can have some impact by/on SEO. On the flip side, if you try and do SEO in a vacuum the site has just as much chance to fail as if you did not do it at all.