Paddy Morgan says, “Building the types of links that help grow your online business and organic search traffic is getting harder. It used to be fairly straightforward, back before Google worked out how to treat links with different levels of quality and trust. However, the fact that it’s getting harder doesn’t mean that it’s dead. What does the future hold? I’m going to talk about links, but the truth is, the future isn’t really about the links. It is far bigger than that”. The Future of Link Building MOZ Blog  [...]

Erik Devaney says, “You might remember analyzing that oft-quotedRomeo & Juliet line in high school English class. And I’m guessing you thought it was actually, “What’s in a name?” (Common mistake; I won’t hold it against you.) Contrary to what actual Shakespearean scholars will tell you, this quote is not about arguing that names have no inherent bearing on the true essence or quality of a person or thing (a reference, of course, to the feuding Montague and Capulet families and the strain these names are putting on Romeo and Juliet’s budding romance). Nope.... [...]

Russ Jones says, “I wish I didn’t have to say this. I wish I could look in the eyes of every victim of the last Panda 4.1 update and tell them it was something new, something unforeseeable, something out of their control. I wish I could tell them that Google pulled a fast one that no one saw coming. But I can’t. Like many in the industry, I have been studying Panda closely since its inception. Google gave us a rare glimpse behind the curtain by providing us with the very guidelines they set in place to build their massive machine-learned algorithm which came to be known as Panda.... [...]

Pete Prestipino says, “Just how important is it that your website appear atop the search results? Digital marketing and integrated advertising company Mediative recently published a new eye-tracking study which shows the new areas of the Google SERPs which are attracting the attention of users. Researchers at Mediative, who conducted a similar study back in 2005, identified how the “scanning” behavior of users has changed in the past decade as Google’s own search results pages have changed. The current study explores where on the SERP users look and click the most, providing... [...]

Allison Howen says, “Humans are highly visual creatures. In fact, a large part of our brain is devoted to visual processing, and scientific research abounds about how visual imagery helps us cut through the information clutter and process data more efficiently. Armed with this knowledge, it’s no wonder that Web designers and digital marketers make ample use of visuals on websites. The power of visual imagery has a downside, however, that is often overlooked: Photos can kill conversions”. Improve Images to Improve Conversions Website Magazine  [...]

Yael Grauer says, “You may have read our posts praising the virtues of creating engaging content, and heard us extol the importance of responding to reader or customer feedback and making appropriate adjustments. You may also know a bit about quality backlinks and using the correct header tags, sourcing images legally, and creating compelling headlines. Today we’re going to take a look at five thing your business should stop doing if you want to make sure you have killer Search Engine Optimization (SEO). Take a look at our list of faux pas and make sure to steer clear of these big mistakes. 1.... [...]

Rand Fishkin says, “It’s been 10 amazing years since Rand started the blog that would turn into SEOmoz and then Moz, and we never could have come this far without you all. You’ll find letters of appreciation from Rand and Sarah in this post (along with a super-cool video retrospective!), and from all of us at Moz, thank you!”. Thank You for 10 Incredible Years MOZ Blog  [...]

Dana DiTomaso says, “Metrics are really only effective markers of business success if they’re measuring your progress toward your organization’s goals. How, though, do we make the leap from goals to reportable metrics? In today’s Whiteboard Friday, Dana DiTomaso (a partner at Kick Point and a MozCon 2014 speaker!) walks us through that process”. How to Convert a Client’s Goals into Reportable Metrics MOZ Blog  [...]

Nicole Rende says, “Many savvy marketers know that SEO is not a one-time service and should be an ongoing marketing strategy. Why? Moz reports that Google makes over 500 tweaks to its algorithm every year–that’s more than one per day! As you can imagine, all these changes can have an impact on your ranking. So, keeping up with the changes and modifying your SEO strategy is definitely important. But while most marketers know they need to constantly monitor and tweak the SEO elements of their website, the question of “how often” is oftentimes a puzzling one”. How... [...]

Dr. Peter J. Meyers says, “Last week, drowned out by the Panda 4.1 rollout, the  MozCast Feature Graph detected a significant jump in the presence of answer boxes (+42% day-over-day, up to +44% on September 30th). This measurement includes all types of “answer” boxes – direct answers, stock quotes, weather forecasts, box scores, and even the new, attributed answer boxes. Digging into the data, it appears that almost the entirety of the jump is in the new style of answer boxes”. More Google Answer Boxes, with Bonus Experiment! MOZ Blog  [...]