Derek Edmond says, “When Google first launched Webmaster Tools (now known as Google Search Console), I was more than skeptical of its value. I had a hard time buying into XML sitemaps as a must-have SEO asset, and the original results for keyword data were never close to what could be found in web reporting tools. Fast forward to the new year, and we all know Google Search Console has evolved significantly. One of the key areas where the platform has become essential is in the Search Analytics dashboard. With nearly all organic keyword data blocked due to “not provided,” this dashboard... [...]

MOZ team says, “Many small businesses see content marketing as something that you can only be successful with if you are a huge company with a big budget. I was in the same boat for a long time, but after much research, many (many) failed attempts, and a lot of perseverance, I’ve finally started to see some predictability in how to get results from content marketing. Nothing illustrates this better than a project we managed for a travel company that was inspired by the finale to the fifth season of the television series Game of Thrones. To sum up how effective this effort was, let me break... [...]

Winston Burton says, “One of the most common problems in the SEO industry is that clients often do not implement their agencies’ SEO recommendations — and then they complain when they don’t get the results they expect from their SEO campaign (i.e., increases in visibility, traffic and conversions). There are several reasons clients do not implement SEO recommendations, including: Not having the appropriate resources or time to make the recommended changes. Internal politics and red tape. Lack of qualified developers. High cost associated with the changes. No internal champion. Limitations... [...]

Erica McGillivray says, “Every morning, I listen to the news. I’ve been doing this since high school and now well over half my life, as I’ve changed from radio antennas to apps. Sadly, with all the recent tragedies — from mass shootings in the US and terrorist attacks to devastating earthquakes and other natural disasters — my lifetime habit has become essential to my work. As one of Moz’s community managers, it’s my and my team’s responsibility to take care of all of you. Whether you interact here on the blog or tweet at us, we’re here to help you... [...]

Brian Hughes says, “With all the hype around content marketing and social media, are pay-per-click (PPC) campaigns still relevant to digital marketing in 2016? Absolutely! While SEO tactics and content marketing are important for building long-term marketplace dominance, these strategies won’t deliver overnight results. PPC campaigns remain a critical component of any well-rounded marketing program and are especially important for building initial traffic for a new business. These campaigns rapidly deliver a high number of qualified leads, thanks to advanced targeting segmentation.... [...]

Everett Sizemore says, “If there has been one “SEO tactic” that we’ve seen work consistently throughout 2015, it’s the idea of pruning underperforming content out of Google’s index. Sometimes it is a result of outdated SEO tactics like article spinning, or technical issues such as indexable internal search results or endlessly crawlable faceted navigation. Other times there are thousands of products with little or no content, or manufacturer-supplied product descriptions. This is why it’s important to make distinctions between pruning off the site (i.e. removing) and... [...]

Varun Sharma says, “A new year brings along new opportunities and new challenges. The SEO world, too, is preparing to combat unexpected threats, especially from various Google penalties. What are those possible threats? Imagine, you wake up one fine morning and get a call from the office reporting, “We have lost all traffic,” and your heart stops. It’d be no less than a nightmare… your worst nightmare, in fact. But did you know this could really happen, at any time? Whether you like it or not, websites in variety of niches depend on Google for a high percentage of their traffic.... [...]

Michael Hewitt says, “The explosive emergence of price comparison websites and money advice websites has made for grim reading for many traditional banking brands. But, are these brands starting their digital fight back and seeing positive movement in their favour? We’re all aware of the challenges banking brands have faced in recent years – repairing their reputation and improving public perception in the wake of the 2007 financial crisis, PPI mis-selling and a general lack of consumer confidence. This led to many of these brands adopting a rather cautious approach both on- and... [...]

Alex Chris says, “SEO does not always work the way we want. It is common for Google to rank a page for keywords other than the ones for which we would like the particular page to rank. What can you do? How can you guide Google to improve the ranking of a page for the keywords you want? The simple answer is that you need to make sure that Google “receives” the right signals from your page to optimize it, but this is not always easy. A thin line separates optimization and over-optimization. Optimization is good, as it will increase the page’s rankings, while over-optimization is bad,... [...]

Thomas Stern says, “Coordinated search strategies increase visibility and drive conversions. Paid and organic search work in tandem to hit the same marketing goals by increasing page authority, developing user awareness and gathering data to continuously improve campaigns. For the last 15 years, marketers have brought paid and organic search together to connect brands and consumers at key points in the customer journey. By nature, search engines are used to answer important research questions that can lead consumers to take action. By developing a paid and organic search strategy where one... [...]