This business is a maker of a software product for retirement communities, yet the search engines seem to be having problems understanding that. This video points out exactly why, with some very basic fundamental search marketing principles.

This website is basically a Portland, Oregon business directory, but many of the individual pages are not being found in the search engines.

This applies not only to queries for phrases, but for specific URLs to0, which indicates a potential structural problem. This video points out some possibilities why, and also covers some fundamental search marketing issues.

I’ll be on a panel at Innotech this year, because for the first time, there will be live website reviews taking place at the conference,  here in Portland Oregon.

The entire conference is scheduled for next Wednesday, April 16th and Thursday April 17th,  but the live SEM Hotseat is Thursday April 17 3:30 PM in Room D135

Three members of SEMpdx,  Benjamin Lloyd of Amplify Interactive,  Kent Schnepp of Engine Works, and myself, Scott Hendison, will be on the panel critiquing participants websites, answering specific questions, and providing specific information to the site owner,  as well as to conference attendees.  The panel will be moderated by SEMpdx president Kent Lewis, of Anvil Media.

While it is not necessary to pay to attend the “Hot Seat” event beyond your Innotech pass,  if you’d like to have YOUR website reviewed, then that is something extra, but at a ridiculously low price…  Register your website to be reviewed here

I was asked to do a free site review of Flightstoswitzerland.com examining some of the many possibilities why the site doesn’t rank very well.

It’s basic SEO-101, but with a little bit more thrown in for good measure…

This site is not exactly what I would call “stellar” but in just under 10 minutes I point out a few things that might be educational to some people trying to take shortcuts on the fast track to success with MFA (Made for Adsense) sites and affiliates. Take a look, and please leave any feedback desired…

(and sorry about that crack I make “c’mon, you know this is crap” but you do, right?)

oh – I suddenly seem to be having trouble with my videos making weird noises Firefox. Does anyone else hear that? It seem to sounds okay in IE…

(*update 2/23 – new video replacing old small – Revver approval in process now, so video may not appear at the moment)

Is it possible that an Ebook can be a collectors item? Maybe so, because “the guy who wrote the book on SEO”, Aaron Wall has emailed his affiliates to tell us that as of midnight February 20th, it’s no longer going to be for sale, and in it’s place will be something better. (More on that tomorrow)

So, it looks like your last chance to legally buy the last (and most recent version) of the worlds #1 best selling SEO Book in history is running out. I already have mine…

You know the drill by now… Searching the web for subject relevant blogs, then posting an intelligent comment that you hope will get you a counted backlink to your own domain or webpage of your choice.

It’s a tedious process, but one that’s been proven effective for building backlinks and traffic. However, it takes an awful lot of time to not only find those blogs in the first place, but then evaluate the domain and the post to see if it’s even worth the effort to comment. That’s where this software comes in. ( Direct link to download the software demo)

The inclusion of the rel= “nofollow” tag on blog comments to prevent spam has made this practice less popular, but there are a large number of sites blogs out there that have removed the no follow attribute from their comments, and have started what i guess is called the “DoFollow” community.

Once you find a blog in your subject matter that allows followed comments, you can only do yourself so much good (link-wise) by participating, because it’s better to get multiple links from multiple domains. Besides, if you spend all your time commenting on just a couple of blogs you’ll become more of a stalker than a commenter!

Recently I received an e-mail about a new piece of software designed to help identify and locate blogs on which to comment almost effortlessly, and at first I was skeptical, expecting the majority of results to come back to me with nothing but junk.

However, after using it almost daily for nearly 3 weeks, I’m not only finding some real gems out there, but I’M ALSO seeing it add to my inbound link count and improve the related search rankings.

The software is called Fast Blog Finder, and it’s really simple to use.  You just enter a keyword or phrase in quotes, and the software searches the web for all of the blogs out there that allow comments, providing you with a link t othe blog, the page rank of the domain, the page rank of the actual post, the number of outbound links on the page, and the type of links it allows, either green (DO follow) or pink (no follow).

Instant column sorting lets me do a quick search for a phrase, sort by type of link, and then instantly read and comment right inside the software, or in a web browser if I prefer.

Once a comment is submitted, the software automatically adds a note for future reference, so you can see that you’ve commented there before.

A typical search for a phrase may come up with several hundred blogs, a couple dozen posts that allow Dofollow commenting, and just a handful that have actual page rank on the post page. The amount of time it saves is almost immeasurable.

Obviously, the idiots out there will abuse this software and attempt to make pointless comments with nothing but keyword rich name links, forcing the blog owners to delete their comments as spam. DO NOT DO THAT!

But if you use your head, and leave a thoughtful and relevant comment, linking back to your site, your page, or your clients site, then there is no reason the blog owner will not approve the comment, and the backlink will be a good one.

When I first saw this software I was pretty impressed, and now that I’ve seen some actual ranking bumps and inbound links increase for brand-new domains, I’m even more impressed.

There’s a completely  free version of the software you can download here, and I would encourage you to give it a try, even though it only returns 50 results in the free version.  You will still likely come up with some DoFollowed links the you can create instantly and almost effortlessly.

Another great feature is the fact that once the report has been run, you can export the entire list into an Excel (.csv) spreadsheet, and pass it along to an employee to work on over a period of time.

That’s great, because you cannot run this software on multiple computers without an individual license for EACH user. That’s worth noting. If you have a stable of employees, and you want THEM to do the research, then you’re going to have to buy a version for each one of them.  However, at only $49 a pop, I can tell you that the time saved will be well worth the investment.

I’m spending less than 10 minutes each morning taking the time to post just one link for one of my own domains, but I’ve sent spread sheets and assigned the task to a couple of Search Commander associates, and I give this software a wholehearted thumbs up.

It’s totally white hat, totally useful, and I cannot imagine doing the job without this software any more. If you want to see how much time you can save, here are a couple of links… (and yes, of COURSE they’re affiliate links!)

Trial Version
Main Website

Please comment here with your thoughts…

This is a large site that turned out to have lots of structural issues, server errors, disappearing pages etc. A bit more than the SEO-101 I though i’d be doing, but a lot got covered, all in just about 12 minutes.

As always, anyone else’s input is appreciated, and feel free to point out anything I may have missed (I’m sure there’s plenty) … Site review video here

SEMpdx and SAO IPSIG are teaming up to bring a joint internet marketing event to Portland, next Tuesday,February 5, 2008.

Similar to other SEMpdx hot seat events, there will be up to five websites reviewed, and site owners may address any questions the wish, from search engine optimization, to linking strategy, to pay per click management, or anything else they desire.

No stone may be left unturned in this rare opportunity to share world class knowledge and information. I’ll be one of the panelists, and if you attend, please don’t hesitate to introduce yourself.

Click here to register a site for review at SEMpdx
Click here to register for general attendance
Click here to learn more about the IPSIG

5:00pm-7:00pm Tuesday February 5th

Location: US BankTower -20th Floor Broadway Conference Room
111 SW 5th Ave, Portland, OR 97204

General Attendance $20 for members of SAO or SEMpdx
General Attendance $35 for non members
Hot Seat Site Review $99
Dinner is included

SAO IPSIG and SEMpdx invite you to take part in SAO/SEMpdx Hot Seat, an intimate panel event where you’ll get real, specific search engine marketing advice tailored to your site at a bargain price. Five of the best search marketing professionals in the Portland Metro area will critique 5 actual sites submitted for review. Specializing in different areas, the panelists will address SEM campaign strategy, search engine optimization, pay for click advertising, blogging, article syndication and more.

Whether your site is launched, in development, or being planned, you can gain invaluable insight and actionable suggestions to improve your search marketing results.

This Hot Seat is brought to you at special promotional prices thanks to SearchFest 08.

What You’ll Get:
• Hot Seat participants get SEM recommendations specific to their site / campaign
• Others learn from the event – Much of the advise will apply to you
• Tips on search engine optimization, paid advertising, blogging, article syndication
• Insight into common search marketing problems, questions, and issues
• Suggestions for overhauling your search marketing strategy
• Knowledge of panel of experts with years of SEM experience

Moderator
Kent Lewis, President, Anvil Media, Inc. & President, SEMpdx

Presenters

• Stanford M. Davis, Owner, Straight-On Internet Consulting
• Scott Hendison, CEO, Search Commander, Inc.
• Todd Mintz, staff writer for Search Engine Guide & Search Engine Land, and the Director of Internet Marketing & Information Systems for S.R.Clarke
• Tracy Chapman, Owner, Ignite Web Marketing Services

Program Agenda:
5:00pm-5:30pm – Registration/Dinner
5:30pm-6:45pm – Presentation
6:45pm-7:00pm – Questions & Answers

Parking Information: Metered parking is available on the street on 4th St. There is a parking garage in the building for a cost of $5.00 per hour or there is one across the street on 4th St. and Pine St. for $4.50 per hour.
Click here to register a site for review at SEMpdx

Click here to register for general attendance

Click here to learn more about the IPSIG

MiaDonna.com requested one of my free website review videos based on what I consider to be the top SEO 101 factors.

Since they have over 170 pages on the site, I went on a bit longer than usual, just over 14 minutes, and also made some specific recommendations, which I’ll try to do more of in the future.

You can see the video here or request your own free site review if you’re willing to share the findings with others, as MiaDonna was.

My goal with these free reviews is for users to be able to read my top 10 SEO 101 Factors article, then see how those principals are applied directly to their site.

If you have questions or comments about this particular video, please feel free to add them here. What did I miss? Help MiaDonna out and comment…

I have personally suffered from many of these afflictions below, and as a result, I’ve had a loss of productivity, loss of time, and most likely a loss of income.

This started out to be a quick list of things that I could do to improve in 2008, and it wasn’t going to be an actual list of New Year’s resolutions.

But, the more I thought about it, the more I realized they applied not only to me, but to employees and probably to Internet marketers all over the planet.

One thing led to another, and the list started growing, and the next thing you know, it’s a blog post.

In 2008, I hereby resolve to:

1. Pay less attention to visitor counts, and more attention to conversions.
One of the best tips overheard at Pubcon 2007 was from Rand Fishkin, pointing out that it’s much easier to double your conversions than to double your traffic. Take better advantage of the traffic you already have, instead of chasing after traffic that you don’t, and and you’ll make your clients much happier.

2. Spend less time in forums, reading peoples advice whom you don’t know
Forums are one of the biggest time wasters on the Internet, and although many are filled with valuable information & advice, they are also frequently the source of misinformation and rumors.

Unless you’re actually researching an issue for a solution, try not to get sucked into the pointless theoretical conversations, and wandering around these communities filled with anonymous users.

Instead, save yourself valuable time, and try asking specific questions in one of the communities or web pages where experts are hanging out, offering to answer specific questions with their reputations on the line; and you can also ask me too!

3. Spend more time reading the blogs and articles written by industry leaders
Unlike many forums, when a search engine expert posts something on their own personal or company blog, they have a reputation to protect, so you can bet it’s usually going to be accurate.

If it’s not true, the rest of the internet marketing community will be all over them with comments, pointing out any factual errors, and keeping them accountable for what they say. (See my “recommended reading” links on the left for more)

4. Pay less attention to search engine ranking reports
It doesn’t matter where you rank for any given phrase, because ranking itself makes you no money. The actions taken by a visitor after they reach your website that’s far more important, and analyzing visitor behavior is a much more valuable service you can provide than ranking phrases for your clients egos.

The hard part is of course getting clients to understand this, but once you’re making them more profitable, they’ll quickly get the picture.

5. Develop more niche affiliate relationships for products or lead generation
It’s highly likely that the most profitable website in the world has not even gone online yet, and every day new opportunities, new inventions, and new ideas pop into people’s heads all over the world.

By developing more “affiliate” relationships as opposed to flat rate services, you will have more incentive to do a good job, add quality content, and develop the valuable links. You both will be much happier in the long run, making everyone more money.

6. Stop worrying about keyword density & the search engines
Running your text through a keyword density analyzer and agonizing over small changes that will get you to that “magic percentage” is a complete waste of time, especially since the magic percentage changes every week. By providing valuable information, tips, knowledge and content to your readers, or to your client’s readers, is going to provide a greater long-term benefit, as the search engines get smarter at determining the subject of a page.

7. Unsubscribe to most of the “Guru” newsletters
The proliferation of “get rich quick” schemes seems to be accelerating rather than declining. More and more self-proclaimed “experts” continue to develop and share their email lists, to which they market “the next big idea” in the form of downloadable products, e-books, linking schemes and membership sites you can join.

The VAST majority of these products and schemes are just recycled ideas anyway, and you can get back a significant portion of your time by simply unsubscribing. Trust me, if it’s something “really good”, you’re going to hear about it anyway.

8. Develop more video content, and do it properly
It’s all about content, no matter what industry you’re in or what you’re trying to accomplish. You know you’re already behind the pack when it comes to producing and distributing video content, but nobody is likely that far out in front of you.

Video is undoubtedly here to stay, and by completing all of the the meta-info, and by supplementing your video pages with surrounding text, you’re going to better capture the attention of your audience, attract more inbound links, and basically, do much better than the next guy.

The day may not be far off when videos can stand on their own and actually be indexed by the search engines for content, but for now that’s just wishful thinking, so don’t be lazy.

9. Participate more often in the Sphinn community
Whether you’re trying to increase your own visibility, or you’re trying to stay up to date on the latest information available about the search marketing industry, you’ll find no hotter community than Sphinn. Everybody who’s anybody has an account on Sphinn, and nothing goes on in this industry that escapes attention there.

Read, vote, submit, and comment (when appropriate) as often as you can, setting aside at least a little bit of time each day.

10. Attend at least one major industry event annually, such as Pubcon, SMX or SES
You’ll never have a better opportunity to mingle with the experts and pick up inside bits of information weeks before the rest of your competition does.

Barely half of the value even comes during the sessions, with incredible information and relationships to be acquired at lunch time, in the halls after sessions, or over cocktails in the bar. You’ll simply never get the really best stuff by only reading all of the great live bloggers who were (or werent) there.

I have a few more too, that pertain to my business personally, that include doing more speaking about search, and continuing to increase my use of my own  Twitter, Facebook, and Linked In, accounts. I also want to escalate my activity and improve in all things Web 2.0 and social,.

I also vow to work less in 2008, sleep more, and spend more time with my kids, Mikkel and  Matthew by helping coach on some of their various sports teams.

Anyone have any more to add to this list?

Since I’m not taking clients new clients at this time, and I’ve yet to find someone I can reliably send referrals to, I’m still offering my free basic SEO video site reviews.

This review of is for the site of a law firm that phoned me, and I was happy to give some free advice to in exchange for their willingness to share, and they were.

Here’s a link to their SEO video