Joshua C. Farley says, “Everyone longs for the traffic that the first page of Google can equate, but getting there often seems elusive. With continued releases from Google that change how a page ranks, pursuing better rankings can seem like an illustrious time trap for most businesses. Yet successful businesses know that regardless of the potential pitfalls, the opportunity is worth the cost. So if it is worth the effort, then it is important that your investment of time and resources is not penalized by Google. Why White-Hat SEO? While some companies (even some SEO agencies) utilize gray... [...]

Miriam Ellis says, “Albuquerque’s locals and tourists agree, you can’t find a more authentic breakfast in town than at Perea’s New Mexican Restaurant. Yelp reviewers exclaim, “Best green chile ever!!”, “Soft, chewy, thick-style homemade flour tortillas soak up all the extra green chili,” “My go-to for great huevos rancheros,” and “Carne was awesome! Tender, flavorful, HOT!” The descriptions alone are enough to make one salivate, but the Yelp reviews for this gem of an eatery also tell another story — one so heavily spiced with the potential... [...]

MOZ team says, “The rules of link building aren’t always black and white, and getting it wrong can sometimes result in frustrating consequences. But where’s the benefit in following rules that don’t actually exist? In today’s Whiteboard Friday, Rand addresses eight of the big link building myths making their rounds across the web“. Weird, Crazy Myths About Link Building in SEO You Should Probably Ignore MOZ  [...]

Greg Sterling says, “In a decision that is already controversial, the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) has ruled in favor of copyright owners and against hyperlinks. The CJEU decision, though qualified, raises the strong possibility that publishers linking to infringing third party sites will also be liable for infringement. Critics charge the CJEU decision amounts to judicial lawmaking and is an attack on the free flow of information online, contrary to the way the internet has operated to date. It also places a burden of investigation on the linking publisher to determine whether... [...]

Ginny Marvin says, “With Google’s roll out of the new Merchant Center interface came more functionality for Feed Rules. Feed Rules debuted earlier this year to allow marketers to make some changes to their product feed data right within Merchant Center. But what can you really do with Feed Rules and who should be using them? The consensus is that Feed Rules are still best for simple updates, and it’s ideal to make changes to the actual feed. In reality, however, that’s not always possible or timely and why Feed Rules have such appeal. Maggie Webb, Partner at Five Mill Inc., says that... [...]

Jim Yu says, “From algorithmic changes to evolving consumer behavior, the SEO market is synonymous with change. Each year, marketers must revise their strategies as they keep up with the latest developments in best practices. Customer expectations are also changing, as they begin to seek more from brands online, including personalized experiences. Over the past two years alone, we have seen enormous changes. For example, the Mobile Updatein April 2015 took the marketing world by storm. We have also seen the introduction of RankBrain,changes in ad placement on Google’s search engine results... [...]

Aaron Agius says, “Ignore search-engine optimization (SEO) and focus on content. Worst. Advice. Ever. SEO still is kicking. The rules have changed and some of the starting lineup were in the minors a few years ago, but you need a plan. Look at just a few recent stats: 93 percent of online experiences begin with a search engine 75 percent of users never scroll past the first page of search results 70 to 80 percent of search users ignore paid ads Is SEO necessary? Yes, it is. SEO simply “translates” your website into language that’s easily understood by search engines... [...]

Ronell Smith says, “Steve Rayson’s latest BuzzSumo article is provocative, interesting and well-written. But I do hope he’s wrong when he says the future will be about more content, not less. He shares why he thinks content marketing brands will begin producing more content in the days ahead, and how they’ll likely be successful by doing so. Upon reading the piece, I did a facepalm. I was reminded of a conversation I had a few years back, when I walked into the break room of the agency I was working for, and almost bumped into the content specialist on my team. After we... [...]

Ian Bowden says, “Enterprise SEO platforms such as Searchmetrics, Linkdex and BrightEdge are used by a large number of brands and agencies. As the landscape and industry has evolved, are these tools still worth investing in? Recently, I’ve noticed clients challenging whether these enterprise platforms are truly necessary. Could the budget being spent on them be diverted elsewhere to drive greater performance gains? Most of the platforms’ capabilities can broadly be broken down into the following categories: Performance and insights Technical optimization Forecasting Content marketing Campaign... [...]

Dr. Peter J. Meyers says, “As many of you know, Moz recently went through a major reorganization, which included the loss of 28% of our staff. Our Community team was heavily impacted, which has understandably led to speculation about the future of the Moz Community. I want to specifically address those concerns, project by project. The Moz Community is an essential part of our past and future, and while we can’t ignore the reality and difficulty of our recent losses, we believe strongly in our Community and are doing our best to chart a path forward. A personal note I asked to write this... [...]