Emily Smith says, “As anyone who’s contributed to business development at an agency knows, it can be challenging to establish exactly what a given prospect needs. What projects, services, or campaigns would actually move the needle for this organization? While some clients come to an agency with specific requests, others are looking for guidance — help establishing where to focus resources. This can be especially difficult, as answering these questions often requires large amounts of information to be analyzed in a small period of time. To address the challenge of evaluating prospective... [...]

Cyrus Shepard says, “How fresh is this article? Through patent filings over the years, Google has explored many ways that it might use “freshness” as a ranking signal. Back in 2011, we published a popular Moz Blog post about these “Freshness Factors” for SEO. Following our own advice, this is a brand new update of that article. In 2003, Google engineers filed a patent named Information retrieval based on historical data that shook the SEO world. The patent not only offered insight into the mind of Google engineers at the time, but also seemingly provided a roadmap for Google’s algorithm... [...]

Tony Edward says, “Spammy link building practices, which Google refers to as “link schemes,” may seem tempting, but they can ultimately result in a loss of search engine rankings. Google considers link schemes to be an attempt to fool the search engine algorithms. If lower-quality content can rank high just because it has amassed a high quantity of backlinks, that is not a great experience for the user. So Google strives to rank quality content that will meet user needs. I am actually surprised that this type of activity is still happening, given how many Penguin algorithm updates have... [...]

Myles Anderson says, “Is selling SEO services getting harder, or are SEOs just not that good at it? I ask this question this because I’ve recently had a number of conversations with SEOs — freelance and at agencies — and almost all complained about difficulties in pitching and converting SMBs. It’s well-documented that business owners get bombarded with calls and emails from SEOs trying to convince them that they need their services and that they can deliver the moon-on-a-stick. From our 2014 SMB internet marketing survey, we found that 35 percent of SMBs are contacted every day by... [...]

Aleh Barysevich says, “In our fast-paced, digital world, few things help small businesses the way a local search engine optimization (SEO) strategy can. Search engines keep getting smarter, but that doesn’t mean SEO is no longer necessary. Your business will lose out to competitors if you’re not working to keep it in the public eye. Although all SEO hinges on great content and a responsive website, local SEO has its own practices and requirements that influence how you rank locally. There are literally hundreds of local SEO ranking factors to consider, but what I’ve detailed... [...]

MOZ team says, “As SEOs, we often find ourselves facing new changes implemented by search engines that impact how our clients’ websites perform in the SERPs. With each change, it’s important that we look beyond its immediate impact and think about its future implications so that we can try to answer this question: “If I were Google, why would I do that?” Recently, Google implemented a series of manual penalties that affected sites deemed to have unnatural outbound links. Webmasters of affected sites received messages like this in Google Search Console: Google Outbound... [...]

MOZ team says, “The long tail of search can be a mysterious place to explore, often lacking the volume data that we usually rely on to guide us. But the keyword phrases you can uncover there are worth their weight in gold, often driving highly valuable traffic to your site. In this edition of Whiteboard Friday, Rand delves into core strategies you can use to make long tail keywords work in your favor, from niche-specific SEO to a bigger content strategy that catches many long tail searches in its net”. Long Tail SEO: When & How to Target Low-Volume Keywords MOZ  [...]

Craig McConnel says, “SEO is a critical consideration for any entity that wants to manage a strong web presence. Anyone that takes SEO seriously understands there’s more to it than selecting a list of keywords and throwing them into content. SEO is research and everything from compelling content to back linking and smart videos. It’s also a task better handled by a team of professionals with an understanding of your goals, industry and search engine optimization. But just how important is it in terms of your budget? It has been estimated that 93 percent of online interaction of... [...]

Lindsay Kolowich says, “SEO can sometimes feel like it stands for “Something Extremely Obscure.” As marketers, we’re responsible for staying on top of what can feel like endless Google algorithm updates. And if we fail to do so, we run the risk of not showing up in search for important target keywords. But keeping pace with all of those changes isn’t easy. Thankfully, when it comes to achieving SEO success on your website, there’s one rule of thumb that remains a tried-and-tested technique: optimizing your website with relevant and targeted keywords. By having... [...]

Jason Decker says, “Local search marketing is a complicated system. Standard SEO techniques such as keyword-rich content, well-optimized meta tags and a strong backlink profile are always important. For multi-location franchises, add the complications of Name, Address and Phone Number (NAP) accuracy, maintenance and distribution of local business listings, proactive management of Google My Business data and citation development, and you have a real challenge, especially for large franchises in competitive markets. This article addresses three significant opportunities that are often overlooked... [...]