There has been a lot of activity recently with our friends at Google. Last week they announced the rollout of Google Plus Your World. This is essentially a more elegant version of personal search, with a snazzy video (shown a bit later). Now that the dust has settled, the question marketers are asking is how to leverage this? What does it mean for SEO?  It means a lot. We’ll cover that and share 7 things you can do now to make the most of Google’s recent changes.

7 Ways Marketers Can Leverage Google’s Personal Search

The farm. Google is pretty much betting that on their social initiative, Google+. Before sharing more on that, if you haven’t seen the video of this new functionality it’s here:

From my vantage point there are several forces in play here:

• Delivering more relevant search results.
• Unifying many of the Google properties and services with the Google bar and Google+.
• In doing so, training users that the cloud is where they should put their data (and that it’s safe with Google).

1-Have a Long-Term View

Similar to SEO projects, your ability to penetrate personal search results will take time. So many get burned out when they don’t get “instant” results online. The fact is, “instant results” only become (more) instant once your site is viewed favorably, trustworthy by Google.

Having a long-term view is a step in that direction. I like to think of Google as a business partner. Built value and trust into the relationship and over time they will reward you for it. [Tweet Me]

2-Get on Google Plus

Many of you reading this likely already have a Google Plus account. If you don’t, go set one up. Be sure to fill out your profile data, and created an engaging introduction. If you want to get a head-start, here are some Google Plus Tips to get you going.

3-Hook in your other social profiles on your profile page

While personal search doesn’t currently support other social profiles like Twitter, this is certainly something Google has done in the past, and wants to do going forward. When creating your profile, be sure to add links to your other social profiles. This not only tells readers of your profile where else you may be active, but it informs Google to look there as well.

4-Get on YouTube

I’ve been a fan of YouTube for some time. It is one of the top referral sources of converting traffic (screenshot here) I’ve seen. If you don’t have channel on YouTube, it’s important you get one.

Why? We know that YouTube videos show up in Google search results, but more than that is the social component. YouTube is a social network. You comment, rate, favorite, subscribe. Those are social actions, and social indicators.

It may or may not happen this year, but look for Google to integrate YouTube more tightly into the Google + social framework. As evidence of their integration of Google apps, Android apps, Blogger, and AdWords ads (to name a few).

Last summer Google started cleaning house on YouTube, shutting accounts down what they deem invalid, and of no value to users (more on this here and here). I believe this is part of the process before Google integrates Google+ with YouTube.

5-Establish a Brand Page

Beyond having a personal profile, it’s important that you have a brand page for your website, or business. Learn more about how to build your Google+ business page here.

This additional profile page is important in telling Google that you are serious, and that you intend to deliver value to the web.

6-Build Your Networks

Targeted. This is key. Build connections with people who are influential in your market. Personal profiles, and business profiles. If what Jon Henshaw says is true and Google has a new page rank coined as the Google Profile Authority (GPA), it’s wise to think in terms of building authority into your profiles. Numbers take a back seat here. Value, relevance, and authority will factor in Google rankings.

The Premium version of Google Plus Secrets “How to Build a Power Network” is designed to help users do just that, build a targeted network on Google Plus.

7-Have a Steady Diet of Online Social

This ties into the points of thinking long term and thinking of Google as a business partner. Sharing valuable content with those who have added you to their network is nice, sharing content that is engaged with via +1, shares, and comments is better. Doing the former consistently will lead to more of the latter. This presents a challenge, and requires consistency, but in the end, it is worth it.

In the end, if you depend on SEO traffic as a significant portion of your traffic, you need to be involved and engaged in the social web. These 7 tips are designed to help set you in the right direction. What do you think? Do you think viewing Google as a business partner is smart, foolish, or somewhere in between? Do you think that the hype about Google+ is overblown, or is there merit to it? Chime in below.
Image Credit: xddorox 

Grow Google Plus Following with Google Search

This ability isn’t something that I’ve witnessed in my search results yet, and as with many of the newer Google product announcements, at the time of this writing consider this “beta” at best.

*Thanks to Chris Lang for bringing this to my attention on his stream.

Personalized Search – Removing Domains from Search Results

This I noticed last week, found it after hitting the back button to revisit the search results page.  Again, your results may vary as Google slowly rolls out features.

*Google’s personalized search results gets a face lift. As shared on Google Plus.

Bottom-line on these Changes? Produce Good Content

What is an online marketer to make of these pending and future changes? Getting away with crummy content will get more and more difficult. I’m of the opinion that content doesn’t always have to be off the charts outstanding, but it does have to have to be solid and with some personality.

Google will continue to evaluate these as indicators of your content’s value to searchers, and seems logical that they would also consider your social profile activity as ranking factors. Things like:

How do you react to this? Does it cause you to pause or plow on with your content marketing? Chime in below.

Two things today, quickly. First, information about a recent update at Google that impacts search results heavily, a must watch video for content marketing and SEO types. In light of panda changes, a free resource to give online marketers tips and ideas for creating rich content that visitors and the search engines will love.

Google Panda Impact and Content Tips

Watched a great video recently by the folks over at SEOmoz.org. It talks about a recent Google “Panda” algorithm update, and it’s impact on search engine optimization going forward. At just under 12 minutes, it is worth every second. For online marketers who are struggling to rank on Google, or have taken a hit, this is a good investment of your time.

Why I Like This Google Panda Video and You Should Too

The video is relatively short and what could be perceived as highly technical, is well presented in a non-technical way. Easy to understand.

Thanks to Chris Brogan for bringing attention to it. If you prefer you can read the transcript and/or watch the video here.

It’s Rand Fishkin from SEOmoz in the video, what caught my attention starts at 3:00 with the categorization of content based on Panda technology. The usage metrics in the lower right of the whiteboard serve as a guideline of what Google values, and what website owners should be measuring.

A Content Marketing Resource in Light of Google Panda Update

Recently we gave a long look at a keyword research tool designed to give marketers and search engine optimizers greater detail faster when it comes to finding valuable keywords. The folks at SE Cockpit have produced a special guide in light of recent Google changes entitled, “Rich Content Optimization”. They do ask for an email address, but it’s simple to unsubscribe if it’s not for you. You can get the guide here.

The guide accompanies a few SEO education videos they are releasing during their product launch…If the videos are anything like the guide, it is time well spent for many. I recommend signing up (smart people from Switzerland).

You can see our SE Cockpit review here.

Paying Attention

If you rely on traffic from Google or any search engine, it is important to pay attention to changes that may impact your business or the business of your clients. These resources are designed to help you do just that.

Chime in with your thoughts feedback on these resources below.

A while back the question was asked here, Is Google’s +1 Search Useful for Marketers? Now that Google’s I/O event is over, and having mentioned very little about social strategy, +1, etc. (at least from the live stream I watched) are you planning on implementing Google +1 on your website when it becomes available? Why or why not? I have my own thoughts, but will reserve them for the comments section below.

Will Marketers Adopt Google +1 for Websites?

Since Google first mentioned +1, I’ve been thinking a lot about it. Talked to some friends, read an ebook on the subject. Given Google’s history, I’m considering my options carefully with this forthcoming service.

What about you, planning on doing +1…

• As soon as it’s available
• Sometime after it’s available
• Not sure – probably just wait and see

Why or why not?

Chime in below.

Is Google’s +1 Search Results Feature Useful for Marketers?

How does it work? After performing a search, the result page has a “+1″ option on the right hand side of each result listed. Here’s a screenshot.

Why? This feature the answer to the Facebook “Like” button (as seen at the top of this post). This gives searchers the ability to indicate they found the result useful, and that information shared with friends who see the same search result. So far so good.

The first time I selected the button, I was prompted with this popup window (account info in upper right blacked out).

After selecting “Confirm and +1″ the box was dismissed, and back on the search results page. I never saw this popup on subsequent +1s.

First, The Good with +1 – Why It Could Win

Data. Facebook has the best profile data on the Internet. The “Like” button has been a key component to gathering profile data. Google needs such data, and so +1 appears to serve that purpose. A searcher who ranks a result offers more value to Google, and ostensibly to Google users (friends), than searchers who do not.

With this data Google can build more relevance in search results, and provide more value to site owners who place the +1 button on their site as well as AdWords advertisers.

Now, the Potential Problems

Not Intuitive. Reflecting on Facebook, the “Like” button is intuitive. It does not require much explaining. My concern with +1 is that it doesn’t clearly translate to “this is pretty cool”. It has the potential to create confusion. What is this button for? Beyond that, how will people communicate this function? Saying I “Liked” it, or will you “Like” my page is fairly straight forward,and probably already updated in an official dictionary somewhere, but +1? “Will you +1 my site, article, post?”

The Forgotten Button. Site owners might +1 their site, but will searchers? Afterall, a searcher clicks a search result, that they like and move on to the next thing. Will they hit the back button and click +1?

Google Account Required. It is necessary for searchers to have a Google account and be logged in so they can use the +1 feature. This could work well for Google by training searchers to always be logged into their account, something Facebook has done well, but it will initially slow down the experience for searchers, and may create frustration.

It’s still early, and likely part of a greater social strategy Google may roll out in coming months. Too early to tell. That said, as with anything Google does, marketers do well to pay attention. In fact, you may just see a +1 button on this site in the near future.

What about you? See yourself using +1 feature long-term, or do you see it going the way of Google Wave, and Buzz in your regular web routines? Looking forward to your feedback in the comment boxes below.

Anyone serious about marketing online knows that if they want to be effective with the search engines they need to have an effective keyword marketing and optimization strategy.  Language has always been fascinating to me.  If you are like me, however, sometimes we need a little inspiration something to generate ideas.  In this brief post I’ll share 3 placeswhere online marketers can get keyword ideas and inspiration.

3 Unconventional Places for Keyword Research

It is important to understand the search terms searchers use when they are in the research or buying phase of their searching (wow! say that 10x fast!). These sources alone should not be used to base a keyword strategy, but that can be used to establish or validate one if done in concert with the more common tools. Ok, so here they are…

eBay for Keyword Research

For those that have a product to sell, or interested in promoting a specific product as an affiliate via commission junction or another consumer oriented affiliate network like Amazon, eBay provides a great tool called pulse. You can find it here.

http://pulse.ebay.com

Shopping.com Top Searches

Another great product oriented site, breaking it down by category, marketers can easily determine what are the top 100 search terms for a given category, and there are well over 100 categories. The site indicates the list is updated every 2 weeks.

http://shopping.com/top_searches
(This link is now dead, we have not been able to find a top searches page since they removed it. Will update if new link is provided).

Keyword Questions at Wordtracker

This is great if you are trying to bring in traffic for the top questions searchers have for anything with decent search volume. You can take the top questions for a category, and publish them with the answers on a blog to generate targeted traffic.

http://labs.wordtracker.com/keyword-questions

Other Keyword Related Resources

Here are a few other resources used for keyword related research subscribers have found useful.

• Google Search Keyword tool (soon to be replaced) – Free
• AdBeat – Your “Need to Know” for understanding advertising trends of your competitors – 7 Day Free Trial
• Microsoft Advertising Intelligence Add-in for Excel – Free, requires Excel 2010
• Keyword Winner – Plugin for WordPress – $97, reviewed here

Thoughts? Ideas? Feedback? Chime in below.
Photo credit: PhylB

Just three traffic ideas today as we continue the Revive Your Business series. Last time we talked about the essential numbers you need to know in order to reach a targeted revenue goal. The formula came down to traffic, visitors to the sales page. That is key to all online ventures, traffic. I thought it would be appropriate to continue the discussion, by helping you get more traffic.

Reviving Your Website with More Traffic

Three simple ideas. Let’s go.

SEO vs. SEO.

Last month an interesting discussion transpired on this post with Ben Giordano. A 5 step formula was suggested to help Ben get more targeted traffic, using the RRR formula explained in that post. Blog commenting is a great way to get lasting targeted traffic.

Press Releases

Make some news, and then tell everyone about it. The search engine benefits are worth it, not to mention the social benefits, especially if a big new outlet picks it up off the wires. Here are some great resources for publishing press releases:

• PRweb.com
• PRleap.com
• PRlog.com (free)
• Webwire

If you are a relatively new site, a well done press release can provide a high percentage of your traffic within 24-48 hours of it’s release (especially if it rides a cultural trend).

Banner Swaps

Look for people in your niche who might want to swap banner ads with you. You host an ad for their site, on your site, and they host a banner on theirs directing traffic to your site. Make sure you put a time limit on it (30 days), and measure its effectiveness.

There are many ways to get traffic to websites, these are three that offer a decent return for the effort and are relatively easy to do.

As 2010 slips into the past, and 2011 emerges, it can be useful to reflect on what has gone on in the last 12 months. Earlier this month Google released it’s updated Zeitgeist page which highlights the top 10 search trends in 2010 over 12 categories.  They also include a video of the search year in review, which is classic Google, and cleverly alludes to buzz around their own products for 2010.

Google Visualizes Search for 2010

For me, some of these events seemed to have happened years ago.  I’ve included the video below, see if you can detect the subtleties of Google products that released for 2010 (like this one and others).

If you unable to see the video below, find it here.

Try it yourself…Have a look at the interactive search tool with 2010 trends here at Google Zeitgeist.

This site get’s spam comments all the time. If you have a blog, you likely know what I mean. They are pretty distinguishable.

Socializing Blog Comments for Improved SEO

For whitehat SEO, comments that miss what I call Social Engagement Optimization (SEO), will kill the effectiveness of your efforts.

If SEO (the search kind) is your focus there are other ways to get links to your site, that may offer better results.  Similar to the comments above, from ‘Ahmed’ and ‘Sf’ yours may go unapproved if you aren’t careful.

If you engage the writer and even other commentors on the site socially, you’ll increase your chances of your comment being approved, and having your viewpoint is exposed to everyone else reading the post.

Consider the RRR Formula for Blog Commenting Effectiveness

Read. Actually take the time to read the article, you might learn something, and see if it doesn’t strike a nerve with you in some way.

Relate. (Writing) In my experience this step is most often overlooked entirely, don’t let it happen to you! In your comment relate the subject of the article to your own experience (doesn’t have to be long).  Perhaps you would’ve benefitted in the past had you known a specific tip presented in the article.  Or maybe the article presents a problem that you’ve had to deal with at one time.

React. (Socialize) This is where you can engage the writer further. You can certainly share your viewpoint without being preachy, or better yet ask a question.  Going even further, balance your viewpoint with a question of the reader that would give them an opportunity to share their expertise further if they choose to answer.

Using these steps in your comments may take a little more time, the results can benefit your SEO, and your SEO.

Now is your chance, chime in below (consider using the RRR formula).

Image Credit danpeerflixand doctorow