The Vizion Search Engine Optimization Blog 
- How to Use WordPress as a CMS Content Management System
Scott Kingsley Clark recently spoke at the WordPress WordCamp Dallas 2009. (more…)
Written by Bill Hartzer on Jun, 30th 2009 in The Vizion Search Engine Optimization Blog, Miscellaneous | No Comments »
- Can Twitter Search Rival Google Search? Even for Michael Jackson?
Yesterday, June 25, 2009, when the news broke that Michael Jackson had died, many people went online and went over to Twitter. We searched. And we searched for news about Michael Jackson. Soon, we began to see everyone talking about Michael Jackson’s untimely death on Twitter. But we also continue to see people gaming the Twitter search engine.
Mark Jackson (no, he’s not related to Michael Jackson) was recently interviewed about Twitter search.
Written by Bill Hartzer on Jun, 26th 2009 in The Vizion Search Engine Optimization Blog, Search Engine Optimization, Social Media | 2 Comments »
- New Strides in Local Search Marketing!
It was an early Christmas gift from Google for all of us local search marketing geeks out there. Thanks to folks at Google Local Business Center, local businesses now have the opportunity to dig deeper into the performance of their Google local listings via a listing performance dashboard.
While this may not be new to those who were able to first explore this offering beginning June 2nd, I just received access to it and I am extremely happy with it. I think that the information made available is insightful, actionable and paints a great picture for how your local listings are performing. Let’s also not forget that ultimately it is much easier than digging through Google Analytics for minimal local listing performance data.
To start off, the dashboard provides the same top-level data of impressions vs. clicks. To some, this may be seen as the most critical data to assess. This is the first indicator that your local business listing is not captivating or that you are marketing to the wrong audience. However, seeing this in the past as effective due to a high click-to-impression/action ratio may have been misleading for those who title their location solely with their brand. Where Google Local took this pre-existing feature further was to show impressions and actions but break out exactly what actions are taking place. As illustrated in the image below, now you are able to assess how may searchers chose to see more info on your listing, request driving directions or chose visit your website. It is also beneficial that the dashboard also allows you to choose custom reporting time periods.
The next new feature of the dashboard report is the “Top Search Queries” section. Here we can see what search engine keyword phrase queries are driving the most impressions. Now while you do not have the information as to which queries drove actions, it is nice to see where you are showing up. With this information in mind, see if you are getting impressions for keyword terms related to your market focus. If so, this is a great tool to use in refining your listings for the impressions you are already residing within. Instead of having to fully optimize your listings, your listings simply need to be polished.
Lastly, another great offering is the section which indicates by zip code identification which listing visitors requested driving directions. This in itself can be used as a tool for offline marketing as well as within your online efforts. Knowing where a lot of your interested parties are located allows you to fine tune you offline advertising efforts to a certain locality. Knowing where your foot traffic is coming also allows you to provide added usability on-site by providing specific driving directions from these areas. If located within a large city, this specific data gives you the need to re-assess your keyword research at a suburb level as well. While city data is available in Google Analytics and other analytical packages, I have yet to see it at a zip code level.
All in all, Google Local Business Center has really made me happy with the integration of this expanded reporting information. While some of this data can be assessed by digging around in Google Analytics, is is nice to have a clean and concise report available for each individual listing you have.
Written by joshmccoy on Jun, 16th 2009 in The Vizion Search Engine Optimization Blog, Search Engine Marketing / PPC | No Comments »
- Update on PageRank Sculpting, the NoFollow Tag, and Their Effects on Search Engine Optimization
If you have not been keeping up with the latest Search Engine Optimization developments when it comes to Google PageRank, PageRank Sculpting, and the NoFollow Tag, then this blog post is probably for you. And even if you have been attempting to keep up with it all, then let this blog post serve as an “overview” of what’s going on, and the changes that you may or may not need to make to your website to improve its search engine optimization. (more…)
Written by Bill Hartzer on Jun, 16th 2009 in The Vizion Search Engine Optimization Blog, Search Engine Optimization | 1 Comment »
- Rushmore Drive Search Engine to Close
Just over a year ago, I wrote about Rushmore Drive a search engine that was launched in an attempt to deliver relevant search results to the black community. It apparently uses a “a dynamic layer of Black-targeted search results and user-generated content.”
Well, now one year and two months later there are reports that Rushmore Drive is closing, shutting its doors. (more…)
Written by Bill Hartzer on Jun, 10th 2009 in The Vizion Search Engine Optimization Blog, Search Engine Optimization | No Comments »