Pratik Dholakiya says, “Doing a search engine optimization (SEO) audit is no joke. It used to take time, the patience of a saint and too many spreadsheets. You may grow a white hair or two in the process. But, thanks to technical SEO audit tools, we are no longer doing those insane manual checks that we did in the past. Most SEO experts arm themselves with these tools so they’re no longer rummaging through raw data but making strategic decisions instead. In this article I’ll share three of my go-to tools for performing a technical SEO audit: DeepCrawl (a cloud-based tool), Screaming... [...]

Cyrus Shepard says, “Howdy Moz Fans, After more than 5 years — including an 18-month hiatus as a Moz associate — tomorrow marks my last day working as a Mozzer. Make no mistake — I love this job, company, and community. Moz has taught me to be a better marketer. Both Rand Fishkin and Sarah Bird (and many others) have taught me more about emotional intelligence and how to treat others than I thought possible of myself. Moz has introduced me to amazing coworkers and industry folk around the world. I’m truly grateful for this experience. Since my first YouMoz post was accepted for publication... [...]

Brian Hughes says, “Are Google’s constant algorithm changes giving you whiplash? Keeping pace with SEO can be a challenge, especially when it comes to local SEO. First, the bad news: optimizing your site for Google search is not the same as optimizing it for local search. Now, the good news: many of the same SEO best practices still apply for local search, just with a few additions. Even better news: local SEO optimization doesn’t have to be a Sisyphean task (really). Just follow this roadmap to getting started with local SEO in 2016. Master the Basics: Why Does Local SEO Matter? Local... [...]

SMT team says, “Plain and simple, SEO isn’t dying; it’s only changing. This means that you still need SEO, local business or not, you just have to make sure your strategy is up to par with the latest best practices. When it comes to your local business, however, this is even more crucial. Remember that the way you create a plan for local SEO is slightly different than if you were focusing on a global audience because there are different factors at play. It should be easier to get rankings and see success, but it won’t come to you without a little bit of strategy on your part. If you’re... [...]

Ben Davis says, “Should SME owners employ an agency to carry out SEO? Of all the questions we get asked at Econsultancy, this is the one that always jumps out at me. We get asked by SMEs that are using an agency and not seeing great results, as well as those who haven’t yet attempted anything in earnest, either in-house or with a partner. I have had some experience (admittedly only a year) working with a search agency, as well as a dabbling in practical SEO triage myself. Here are some points to bear in mind. If you’re an agency or an SME, feel free to comment. Do you know your... [...]

Marcus Miller says, “If you run a small or local business, there is a good chance that your site is built in WordPress. In fact, statistics from BuiltWith.com would indicate that WordPress powers about 50 percent of the entire internet. The exact numbers vary, with other statistics showing WordPress powering 22 percent of new active sites or 58.9 percent of sites where CMS is known. Whatever way you look at it, that’s a lot of WordPress websites. WordPress is not just used for the likes of food blogs and local businesses, though — brands and huge websites use the platform. Further stats... [...]

Meghan Keaney Anderson says, “As marketers, we’ve gotten quite good at evolving our playbooks when it comes to SEO. But the changes we’ve seen to this point are nothing compared to what’s coming next. We are in the early stages of a new era of search — an era tied closely to more sophisticated patterns such as mobile, social, and voice search, among other things. And for the first time this isn’t just a matter of adding a new chapter to our SEO strategy, it’s a matter of creating entire new playbooks. To this point, SEO has predominantly revolved... [...]

MOZ team says, “From search ads and SEO to display ads, content, and your social efforts, there’s a lot to consider when creating the correct marketing concoction. In today’s Whiteboard Friday, Rand goes over advice on how and why you should be auditing your funnel to ensure you have a balanced, effective marketing mix“. Creating the Right Marketing Mix – Whiteboard Friday MOZ Blog  [...]

Aaron Friedman says, “Thinking in templates We all judge people on first impressions. When we see someone for the first time, we’re quick to decide what type of person they are — based on the clothes they wear, how they style their hair, and anything else we notice that immediately puts them in a group. It’s certainly not fair, but it’s human nature. And I’d like to keep my faith in humanity and argue that lots of us try NOT to prejudge others. Google is judging you Believe it or not, Google is the same. It judges, too. Some might disagree with this theory, but our internal... [...]

Brian Wood says, “At Wayfair.com, we conduct a lot of SEO tests. We’re constantly measuring and evaluating our strategies, some of which were shared in our last post for YouMoz, Accidental SEO Tests: When On-Page Optimization Ceases to Matter. Sometimes, however, we stumble across what we call “accidental SEO tests.” This typically happens when a bad code deploy unintentionally hurts our SEO, and we end up learning something useful from our mistake. Tens of thousands of 301 redirects One of our accidental tests involved regularly 301-redirecting large batches (i.e., tens... [...]