Zion Eye Media

New Blog site

2008-08-10T20:41:00.000-07:00

Hello all,
Sorry for the long wait, but now I have switched my blog from blogspot to my own site. Check it out at www.zioneyemedia.com/blog!

Ciao!

Search Engine Optimization for High Google Rankings Article

2007-10-26T21:08:00.000-07:00

This is a pretty decent article about learning some basic fundamentals of optimized Web sites and how they are affected in search engines. Although this article was written for those wanting to learn about it, it also shows a little bit of what the power of “truth” and “opinion” can play (as the author put it) in an online article.

“Good SEO is a lot more than just having your page title in title tags and your heading in H1 tags… more than just having the correct keyword density,” the author writes. This is true in a global sense that your site title tags is more about information targeted for users to see when they see your site from a search query. Keyword density can be tricky at times, especially if you’re going through it with Google eyes and not other search engines. What keyword density truly means is the weight of your keyword distributed evenly throughout each paragraph and each page of your site. Most people see this as keyword frequency, and how many times a keyword is suggested and linked throughout a particular page or site can be considered keyword spamming and stuffing. Not enough keywords can be considered as another cause of your site being ranked lower than others in your specific market and targeted key phrases. Even with the basics of organic optimization, it’s not an easy thing to do as more people are discovering new ways to be effective online, and this is considering white hat, blue hat, and (gulp) black hat methods and everything else in between.

The author also points out 2 interesting statements that are very poignant and evident in today’s search engine optimization world. First, “Google cares about the service you are providing to Google customers and how relevant the content of your web page is to their needs.” Wow. If you don’t know by now, Google is the preferred search engine to conduct user searches. The author’s statement clearly displays the value that Google has on its business practices and the customers it markets to: the incredible value of its data, its complex algorithms, and its business model. Hence, when Google “punished” all the Web sites with high page ranks that were selling links (possibly through Adsense), it did so to "protect" the investment and quality of its search data and information value, the package (if not one of them) that basically made Google millions. Or at least I think so, and I have heard many different opinions about it.

Secondly, the author mentions the use of internal linking as opposed to external linking (link exchanges, reciprocal link programs). Both link programs have its pros and cons, but using just one and not the other won’t help get your site ranking in weight and relevancy. Why or why not? Because they are both intertwined for the same purpose, and as a united front, if used properly, they can provide long-term content and search engine relevancy. Link exchange/reciprocal linking programs work very well when relevant sites with high page ranks and quality internal and reciprocal links are associated with your site. Similarly, internal linking can work very well when keywords within internal content are rich in weight, are relevant with search phrases and parameters, and with the right frequency and density.

Social Media Marketing Strategies

2007-10-18T19:01:00.000-07:00

Here is a great read for those of you who either have yet to join the social bookmarks bandwagon or want to understand the social media phenomenon.

Based on WebProNews article about the SMX Social Media conference in New York City, the relevancy of social media in today's online marketing efforts and initiatives is now becoming a necessity in reaching out to your audience and expanding your brand marketing initiatives (not to mention your knowledge about technology!!). Strategic advancements and methods are now more evident in generating value for your company, your business, your product, your services, and most importantly, yourself. Here is what they had to say about these strategies:

1) Fish Where the Fish Are
2) Promote Yourself, Not Your Product
3) Get Experience in Social Media before Marketing
4) Don't Rush Your Social Media Link bait
5) Big Companies Should Create Social Marketing Strategies
6) Give Them What They Are Looking For
7) Watch for the Woahs of Social Media Marketing
8) Don't Dilute the Quality of Your LinkedIn Network
9) Be Careful with Social Media News Sites
10) Play Safe with Wikipedia

The individual articles themselves provide some great insight, but what I really got out of these strategies is what I would coin "cautious progression." To progress cautiously in such marketing mediums, one must be aware of the possibilities and risks, and also to have the necessary knowledge and intellectual ammunition to be able to understand and comprehend the practical applications that these mediums can provide. Sure, social media is a phenomenon that is literally changing the way we conduct marketing and business. Where some have the basketballs to jump in and get fully wet, others have been reluctant to be wet that fast, and becomes the turtle in a Bugs Bunny cartoon race. I can understand the notion of taking baby steps in using technology, and I can see that from someone who has more wisdom in life to just dive into something that they may feel is risky. And in using social mediums as a collective, I can understand and value that timidity and/or hesitancy.

Maybe because I am a Gen-Xer that I embrace the possibilities as I take along the risks, especially when it comes to strategic marketing and business development using online methods. These possibilities and risks plainly exists, for example, in Second Life communities, and more businesses, both big and small, are using this platform as a medium to primarily make a name for themselves in addition to generating revenue. Knowing that there will be forms of risks out in such media is a great thing to have, but it's also great to know and be familiar with that can get you in a bad situation. How to shield yourself, your brand, and your business from being caught in something that you may not be able to get out of is part of doing business, especially when it comes to online marketing.

Future of Online Marketing...

2007-10-11T22:36:00.000-07:00

I recently asked my colleagues in LinkedIn about where they see online marketing headed within the next 1, 3 and 5 years. I have received some amazing responses about the technological advancements we use today, and the mixture, collaboration, and evolving of other surfacing technologies that could be a major contributor to the increasing development of online marketing.

“What is online marketing,” one rhetorically asked. Another question can be stated like this: “What was online marketing?” Back then, online marketing can be collectively described as just simply having a web site. Nowadays, there are more ammunition and weapons to deliver a marketing scheme online, and all you have to do is pick your poison. Choose between social media and networking sites, 3D virtual worlds and online and game console marketing, search engine marketing and optimization, user-generated content sites, and a plethora of marketing techniques that I don’t even have room to mention. And that’s just what we have NOW. This doesn’t even take into consideration using “traditional” online marketing delivery mediums like email marketing and offline mediums like guerilla marketing, WOM and TV to generate results online.

How can we use the knowledge of past online marketing experiences to influence the future?

Each business sector and industry is different, thus it can be difficult to fully assess how to qualify and quantify methods to increase ROI. However, I believe that there is no reason why we cannot use a multitude of online marketing techniques simultaneously, as this promotes a strong foundational front for strategic and compound business development. For example, if we use today’s guerilla marketing approach, we can combine WOM tactics with email/viral marketing initiatives while implementing search engine optimization and marketing methods for our web sites, and simultaneously generating content in blogs, Myspace and LinkedIn accounts and other social networking sites. And as new media and marketing methods shift parameters and focus, I believe that we will still see a multitude of online marketing schemes being more targeted and more robust, as we develop better ways (with help of better technology) to communicate effectively and efficiently with our customers and users.

Duplicate Content?? What the...???

2007-05-17T15:00:00.000-07:00

If you're in the online marketing world, particularly in search engine marketing and optimization, you'll know what I'm talking about. Search engines hate this stuff like children hate eating vegetables or like cats hating bath times. The consequences of having duplicate contents can be seriously damaging to an online marketer's initiatives, and often times have to do more work to get THAT site back up and running. Even if you're not doing it on purpose, like changing servers like this artciles suggested, may have you end up on the wrong side of the fence, both in production and finance. This article notes some pretty cool things on what to do when you do get multiple contents within your site and how to solve your problems.

One of the methods is by using the nofollow tag and include relevant metatags to exclude the search engines from indexing a page. 301 Redirects are good helpers in making sure that the duplicate contents are minimized...

Click here to read more of the article...

User-Generated Content Hopes and Fears

2007-04-27T14:42:00.000-07:00

Let’s be honest here… we as a society is all about getting rich, and a majority of us want to be rich as quick as possible with little consequences to the means. And in today’s information-based tech frenzy, the majority of technology created and built is motivated primarily behind the acquisition of the almighty Benjamin (as Tim Curry from the movie “Clue” would say “What could be more American than that?”). I’m all about making money, but only to an extent. There are different variables that I need to assess first before I even start wondering the why’s and how’s on making money.

Is it about my passion or passions? Am I passionate enough about it to pursue making money off of it?
Is it worthwhile for me to pursue, creatively, physically, and economically?
Is it something of value to myself and to others?
Is it marketable? If so, how and why? What is the marketing value of this product to me and my audience that will generate revenue?
Is it something of quality to create?

Obviously, quality is important to me, and I agree that I don’t like having to weed through a bunch of crap to get to the good stuff. There needs to be more accountability on users, marketers, and spectators to be able to create, produce, display, and DISCERN quality products.

Link Exchanges - One Way to Boost Your Search Engine Rankings

2007-04-12T20:10:00.000-07:00

In my line of work as a Search Engine Specialist, I have to make sure that I work smarter in how I create better search engine rankings for my clients' websites. One technique that is pretty common amongst search engine marketers is link building, or as some would say link exchanges, reciprocal linkings, and so forth.

Basically, link exchanges are defined as the way it sounds: exchanging links with different websites. The purpose of link exchanges, reciprocal linkings, or whatever you want to call it, is to create search engine weight, relevancy, and authority for your sites. The more the search engines see your site as relevant to a user's searches, the more it gives your site weight and authority, which leads to a higher page rankings and more exposure for a user to click on your site and lead to a sale, or conversion.

The key to link exchanges is not just how many you build, but how many quality links you have. A bunch of websites linked to your site will not guarantee you a high page ranking if these links have page 2 search engine rankings. Conversely, a bunch of websites linked to your site with page ranks of AT LEAST 4 will be a good start in the right direction. A handful of page 7 ranking sites linked to your own will definitely keep you at the top.

If you are looking to exchange links to your site, look for web sites, search engines, or web directories with at least a page 4 rank or higher. Of course, the higher the better, right? Right. Ma.gnolia.com, for example, is a social networking site with a page ranking of 7. Imagine if your website is linked by ma.gnolia.com and others like it!

If you don't have tools to know how to check a site's page rankings, there are tools that can be found online to help you get started. :)

In the Sands of Time

2007-02-05T19:38:00.000-08:00

In my professional line of work, I've come across several sites that have been in Google's sandbox as a result of being a new site or updated contents with new URL naming conventions. As much as I would like to think that I know the absolute solutions to this issue, (and if you Google employees would like to share it with the world, please do so!), it's basically going back to the basics of SEO work but with a little twist. Here's how I helped get the site back into track from out of Google's sandbox.

1) Content. Revisit your content and see if your content matches well or worse than others. Internet Business Promoter and ClickTracks are good softwares to help you analyze whether or not you're using too much or too little of a certain phrase, word, or sentence. Make sure that you don't overdo creating text links with your keywords.
2) Linkings. If you don't have any one-way or reciprocal linkings to your site, start creating these links as a practice. Having substantial and quality links to your site will help generate weight to your site and keyword search.
3) Patience. You know the saying, "Patience is a virtue?" Well, in this situation, patience is everything. In the search enginge marketing business, patience is an essential and integral component that, coupled with the right marketing techniques, decision-making, and business acumen, will help generate results for your marketing initiatives.

Last, but not least, is the one thing that I could not control myself, and that is Time. Depending on the nature of your issue, it can take between one month to three months (and possibly longer, which I hope not) for your site to be out of the sandbox and to start being ranked by the search engines. Time is our worst friend and our best enemy... or is it our best friend and our worst enemy?...

Meta Tags

2007-01-01T19:03:00.000-08:00

Whew!! It's been a while since I've written a blog... too many things going on in life that has set me back just a bit on keeping things in check. Now that I've got my priorities shifted and straightened out, let's get back to business...

So... Where were we again???

Oh yes, the next stop is Meta Tags. Meta tags, for those that do not know, are the descriptions, title, and keywords of your website. Although some pros in the search engine business have started to use meta tags as coasters in search engine optimization, the almighty Google have stated otherwise. The importance of meta tags can still play a role, albeit it may not be as grand as some would think. There are plenty of other factors that will need to play with meta tags for it to be a fully effective role-player. Think of meta tags as fingers of your body. You can't eat without fingers to hold utensils, but you also can't eat without other parts of your body, such as your wrist to hold the fingers, your arm to bend and get the food and deliver it to your mouth... Makes sense? Of course it does... Humor me, ok?

Nevertheless, it is still a useful tool in creating organic relevance to your website.

God Bless America - A Tribute to Those that Lived and Died in 9/11

2006-09-11T14:01:00.000-07:00

As a tribute to the fallen heroes of 9/11, and to those that are still suffering and hurting due to the effects of 9/11, my thoughts, prayers, and services will always be there for you, even to those that do not wish to receive it. I am proud of my country and proud of the soldiers that risked their lives for this country. I am proud of the camaraderie that is evident in the midst of tribulation. Most importantly, I am proud of those whose selfless acts of love have tried to help those in need, risking their lives to ensure that other lives are spared.

My salutes to you.

God Bless America.

Search Engine Optimization 101

2006-08-31T11:44:00.000-07:00

Now that search engine optimization has been introduced, let’s take that a bit further and focus on a few key and important things on organic website optimization. These key factors are: keywords, meta tags, alt tags, content, geocentric targeting, and website architecture. For time and readability’s sake, I’ll focus on one factor per blog, so at least you guys can pay better attention. I don’t want to be sued because your keyboard stopped working from the drool as a result of reading my blogs J

So, first off, here’s what you need to do with KEYWORDS.

RESEARCH – With keywords, it pays to research your keywords and phrases that, in addition to being relevant to the website, are used by the lowest common denominator. It is imperative that your keywords match those that most people will use. Otherwise, your relevancy will be obsolete. If you need to find out more information on what the right keywords or phrases to use, try Microsoft adCenter, Google’s sandbox, or Yahoo’s Search Suggestion tool.

RICH – If you want your website to be relevant, try to write rich keyword articles and content as part of your website. Whitepapers and editorials are GREAT examples.

INCORPORATION - If your website is about, say, the Dallas Mavericks or Dog Training, use and incorporate your keywords onto your content. Include such words as Dirk Nowitzki, Jason Terry, rebounds per game or training techniques, etc.

Now, here are some things you SHOULDN’T do…

HIDE – Don’t hide keywords by making the font color white on white background, and don’t hide them behind images or objects on the website. Most search engines will flag that and will ultimately lead your website to be taken off their databases.

SMALL TEXT – Don’t hide keywords with the smallest text.

APPROPRIATE USE – Don’t use keywords that are unrelated to your website. Again, most search engines will flag that and will ultimately lead your website to be taken off their databases. More importantly, it will devalue the relevancy of your website.

Next up to bat: META TAGS…

Web Marketing: Keywords are Key!

2006-08-23T10:23:00.000-07:00

In my first blog, I talked about the importance and significance of blogging as a marketing value. Now we are going to look at some of the behind-the-scenes work on how online content can be an effective marketing tool for your business. We talked briefly about keywords and how that is a key component to really getting your content ranked in search engines. Ready to get your feet wet? Roll up your sleeves and let's get to work!

First off, keywords aren't just the kind of cheat sheet, Cliff Notes-type material that you used in high school to do well without really getting into the reading aspect of learning. Keywords serve a more important role in an online business, particularly in generating web traffic, ranking on search engine pages, getting conversions and ultimately lead to revenue growth. How you use these keywords are really important as well, and can either increase or decrease your page rankings in search engines.

So what is a keyword? A keyword is a word that is used as a reference point to direct to further information. Defined through a web perspective, it is a word that is used by search engines to find and locate relevant web pages (i.e., “iPod stores in Seattle,” “California subaru car dealers”). These keywords are, and should be, found in two places: the meta tag and the body of the page (in various forms). For example, on a California Subaru car dealership site, the keywords in the HTML meta tag would look something like this: “Meta name=”keyword” content=”California Subaru dealer, California car dealer, Los Angeles auto dealership, Legacy GT, Subaru WRX” and so forth. In your body, you should try to insert these words somewhere in your content that is easy to read and picked up by your user. More importantly, the word or phrase that you want to put an emphasis on, make sure that 1) the specific word or phrase is the first word (if not one of the first words) that they will see on your body, 2) the content itself is of great quality that encompasses the keywords you implemented in your meta tag. This will ensure relevancy and integrity of content, and can help achieve better page rankings on search engines. The search engines look at those keywords on your meta tag and makes sure that what’s in your meta tags are consistent with what you have in your body content. If your keywords on your meta tag don’t match with your body contents, search engine robots will flag that and, depending on the severity of the issue, can ultimately take your site off of their search engines.

So, to recap this short blog, keywords are a great way to rank your web site on a higher search engine page. It takes quality content and quality keywords for you to be able to take a big step in achieving the results that you want. And once you get used to adding keywords on both the meta tags and your content, it will produce better results for your business unlike any Cliff Notes can.

My first blog

2006-08-05T22:44:00.000-07:00

It's funny, I never really was successful in writing journals of any kind when I was growing up. Now with a business in mind, and with the addition of online communities like myspace, it's hard NOT to! Which leads me to my first blog about, well, blogging! Being the owner/designer for Zion Eye Media and a web marketing specialist for an advertising firm in Nashville, I have been asked almost constantly about marketing methods and their effectiveness on the web. One of my answers was about blogging, and I can almost always get a weird look on their face when I mention it. I'd ask them why they had that look on their face, and almost always the answer is that they never expected blogging as a way to market themselves.

Blogging is a GREAT way to market yourself on the web. The reason is mostly due to search engine optimizations, or how search engines "market" in the web. These search engines take information from your websites based on frequency of updates, relevancy and integrity of content, and substance of keywords, among a few. Search engines love text-based websites, and the frequent that particular website is being updated, the more search engines feed off of it. When chosen carefully, the type of keywords in your contents can really boost up your page rankings on Google, Yahoo, or MSN, or any other search engines for that matter. Much more to know about keywords and search engine marketing, but we'll do that in a separate blog.

So once the search engines rank your blog site on a page in their results, a user such as yourself can search on any topic that is of relevancy to your specific blog. If your blog is on the first page of Google, then that is telling you overall that your blog is being read in a consistent basis spanning a distinguished demographic view. Conversely, the lower you are in page ranking in Google, there can be a consideration that your blog isn't being read and seen by the public in a wide demographic view. Note that you'll need to really understand web metric statistics such as click-throughs, conversion rates, and so forth to fully gain perspective on the performance of your site. More on that in a separate blog.

Outside of the roles that search engines and relevant content play are the design concepts of your blog. Color schemes, layout, navigation, and accessibility are just a handful to start on when you're creating a blog. The design concepts aren't just for creativity's sake. They are there to create a better user experience and atmosphere for your audience. So, if you're on your way to create a blog, let your audience know that you are there to make them feel comfortable and at home, like going to grandma's house for Thanksgiving.

With the exception of all the family drama.