Link Development takes a major role in having your web site rank well in the search engines. Many web masters as well as SEO companies overlook how important it is to have a good link development campaign going for their web site. This article consists of 3 major topics; What is Link Development, Finding Link Partners and getting the max. potential from each one of your links, and Proving the power of Link Development which are meant to give you the basics of running a good campaign that will boost your rankings in search engines.
What is Link Development?
Link Development, also known as Link Popularity, is a term used to describe getting other web sites to link to your web site. Remember the popular kids in high school? Well lets just say that in most cases popular kids got noticed way more, they usually were social chair or prom queens and kings, top athletes and the list goes on. The point is, the popular kids got noticed while the not so popular kids didn't. This is the same concept that search engines go on. If you are popular, then you get noticed and how search engines decide whether you are popular or not is by how many web sites link to you and how popular those sites are.
Hopefully that isn't a painful analogy that brings up memories of your high school days. So now that we know what Link Development is, lets talk about how we start a link development campaign.
Finding Link Partners!
There are two types of link partners to go after, one is a one way link. This is a directory, forum, or web site that links to your web site without you having to link back to their web site. You can buy links now from web sites like: Expert Link Building Services from TextLinkbrokers.com, Buy Links, Text Link Ads, Text Links, but I am not to sure how the search engines feel about buying your popularity. The second type of link is a reciprocal link, which means that if you put a link on your web page pointing to them, then they will put a link on your web page pointing to you, the perfect "You scratch my back and I'll scratch yours".
So now how do we find one way links? Well first off, the easiest way is through the search engines. If you are doing link development for a real estate site, google: real estate directory. There are plenty of directories out there that allow you to add your site for free. Next you will want to look up real estate and find forums, so that you can find posts that relate to you and add a reply giving some useful information while providing a link to your web site. Please do not spam your link on forums, only place a link when it makes sense to. For example if you are a Real Estate agent in Vancouver BC, Canada and you come across a post saying, Where can I find real estate listings in Vancouver. Then add a nice reply and your link at the bottom. Finally, never forget about your friends and family, explain to them that by having a one way link form their web site to yours it will help you boost your search engine rankings.
It seems that reciprocal links do not have as much weight on the search engines as one way links, but are much easier to get. The reason they are easier to get is because you are helping the other web site get better rankings while they do the same for you. So there are a few general rules you should follow while doing reciprocal link development, first, try not to exchange with your competition as you will just make it harder for you to come up before your competition. Second, only exchange links with relevant sites. By relevant we mean that the site you are linking from and to should relate to your web site, an example of this would be if you are a real estate agent, you would want to link to mortgage brokers sites or home renovation sites not children's video game sites, however if the site is in your locality you can link to them and mention in the link that they are a local business/web site. Finally, always be honest and truthful when sharing links, do not put up a link and then take it down a week later, if you agree to sharing links, stick to your guns.
Finding reciprocal link partners is actually easier than you think. One of the best things to do is find out who is linking to your competition and ask them if they would also like to trade links. To do this, in google type: link:www.competitionswebsite.com. This will bring up a list of all the web sites that have linked to that site, then just find the web masters e-mail and send him/her a polite e-mail asking if they would like to exchange links. Do this for every major competitors web site and you will have links coming at you left and right. Another great resource is a free web site called sitesell. What this site does is lets you enter your information into their database, including your e-mail, web site and what keywords best describe your site, then it finds you people with the same keywords and sends them an e-mail asking if they would like to exchange links. I have received hundreds of links this way. I suggest you sign your self up right away at: The SiteSell Value Exchange.
Now that you know how to find link partners lets look at what your links should look like. Now this is only what I do and it seems to work very well, some may disagree and I can understand not everyone wants to exchange links this way. Personally I think Google has become to smart to just accept links that follow this general concept: Anchor Text - Description of link. How I exchange links is within a paragraph. For example:
Real Estate in Vancouver is a booming industry. With the 2010 winter olympics happening in Vancouver people are very interested in Vancouver Real Estate. Joel Carcone is an experienced realtor ready to help you make the right investment in Vancouver.
By having it in a small paragraph that gives the web site that is linking to you more text that is relevant to your site, it is going to make the link weigh more when the search engines count it as a vote. Lots of software out there will not let you do this and require a strict: link - Description, formation. Do not skip over these, they just won't count for as much.
Finally, Google ranks sites based on their algorithm and gives them a rank between 0 and 10. The higher the PR the more important Google believes the web site is, thus giving more weight to sites that link to you with a high PR.
The Power Of Link Development!
Link Development should have a Cape and a big "S" on its spandex suit as it has so much power it is unbelievable. The following examples are not intended to offend rather show you that link development can make a huge difference without even having the site optimised for the keyword.
To prove the power of link development we are going to use president Bush as an example. If you look up the following words in google, George Bush's White house Biography are the first to show up. I urge you to try this, read over the biography and notice that the words "failure", "worst president", and "worst president ever" do not show up in the biography at all, but if you look those same words up in google, you will see that his biography comes up first for all 3 of those words. Now this is an extreme case and is known as googlebombing, but this does show the true power of link development.
If Link Development can make a site that is totally unoptimized for those keywords come up first in a search that has about 213,000,000 sites competing for the word failure, imagine what a good link development campaign could do for your site that is optimised and ready to be found on the internet.
If you are thinking of getting SEO done to your web site, look into companies that do Link Development as this is a powerful way to gain rankings for your web site as shown with the example in "The Power of Link Development". Make sure that when asking about link campaigns that SEO companies follow an ethical approach to Link development, you would not want to wake up one morning to find your site dropped off the rankings because of unethical link development practices.
Monday, October 6, 2008
How To Get The Best From Meta Search ???
Metasearch is a great way to search several search engines at once. It's effectively a way of querying the indexes of dozens of search engines. If you want to search Google, Yahoo, Live and Ask at the same time, then metasearch is the only viable option.
However, not all searches are alike. There are terms you can use to get make your searches on a metasearch engine even more efficient. This means you will get better results. One way to do this is with search operators. Here's a guide to some of the main ones.
Searching With Quotes
One way to force a search engine to search for a phrase rather than individual words is to enclose the phrase in inverted commas. For example, as search for the words dog collars will return web pages with the word 'dog' and web pages with the word 'collars'. Think how many of those pages there are and you will realize that you need a way to tell the search engines what you really need. If you put the phrase 'dog collars' in inverted commas, then the search engine will search for the phrase rather than individual words.
Plus And Minus
The plus and minus signs are common math symbols, but they are also used with search engines. The plus sign shows that a particular term is required (for example dog+collar returns only results that have ). In contrast, the minus sign shows that a particular word or phrase should be excluded from the search (example: dog-collar)
Going Boolean
Some search engines also use Boolean operators, which narrow a search. The Boolean term AND narrows your search. It means that both or all of the terms linked by AND need to be included in the search results. (example: dog AND collar). In contrast, to broaden your search, you can use the Boolean operator OR (example: dog OR collar). This tells the search engine to search for either word. Finally, you can use the operator NOT to search for pages that contain one term but not another (example: dog NOT collar).
Combinations
You may also be able to combine some of the operators above to get an even more focused search. For example, you could search for "dog collar" NOT labrador, so that you didn't get any results about that particular breed of dog. You could search for "dog collar" +"Jack Russell" to find a site that offers dog collars for these small dogs.
How This Works With Metasearch
One issue for using operators with metasearch is that metasearch engines are searching other search engines, and all search engines have their own ways of using operators and querying their databases. This means that not all operators work with every metasearch engine and in some cases this can skew the results. However, there are other metasearch engines that use the accepted operators for each search engine they query, making the results you get totally reliable - as long as the indexes are up to date.
Metasearch is a great way to search several search engines at once. It's effectively a way of querying the indexes of dozens of search engines. If you want to search Google, Yahoo, Live and Ask at the same time, then metasearch is the only viable option.
Greg Aldrich created the Widow.com meta search engine in 1996 and continues to host and manage it today. Widow searches multiple search engine indexes in parallel and displays collated results based on relevancy. Widow also tracks the top searched keywords on the Internet.
__________________
However, not all searches are alike. There are terms you can use to get make your searches on a metasearch engine even more efficient. This means you will get better results. One way to do this is with search operators. Here's a guide to some of the main ones.
Searching With Quotes
One way to force a search engine to search for a phrase rather than individual words is to enclose the phrase in inverted commas. For example, as search for the words dog collars will return web pages with the word 'dog' and web pages with the word 'collars'. Think how many of those pages there are and you will realize that you need a way to tell the search engines what you really need. If you put the phrase 'dog collars' in inverted commas, then the search engine will search for the phrase rather than individual words.
Plus And Minus
The plus and minus signs are common math symbols, but they are also used with search engines. The plus sign shows that a particular term is required (for example dog+collar returns only results that have ). In contrast, the minus sign shows that a particular word or phrase should be excluded from the search (example: dog-collar)
Going Boolean
Some search engines also use Boolean operators, which narrow a search. The Boolean term AND narrows your search. It means that both or all of the terms linked by AND need to be included in the search results. (example: dog AND collar). In contrast, to broaden your search, you can use the Boolean operator OR (example: dog OR collar). This tells the search engine to search for either word. Finally, you can use the operator NOT to search for pages that contain one term but not another (example: dog NOT collar).
Combinations
You may also be able to combine some of the operators above to get an even more focused search. For example, you could search for "dog collar" NOT labrador, so that you didn't get any results about that particular breed of dog. You could search for "dog collar" +"Jack Russell" to find a site that offers dog collars for these small dogs.
How This Works With Metasearch
One issue for using operators with metasearch is that metasearch engines are searching other search engines, and all search engines have their own ways of using operators and querying their databases. This means that not all operators work with every metasearch engine and in some cases this can skew the results. However, there are other metasearch engines that use the accepted operators for each search engine they query, making the results you get totally reliable - as long as the indexes are up to date.
Metasearch is a great way to search several search engines at once. It's effectively a way of querying the indexes of dozens of search engines. If you want to search Google, Yahoo, Live and Ask at the same time, then metasearch is the only viable option.
Greg Aldrich created the Widow.com meta search engine in 1996 and continues to host and manage it today. Widow searches multiple search engine indexes in parallel and displays collated results based on relevancy. Widow also tracks the top searched keywords on the Internet.
__________________
Google Web API Tutorial
If you always wanted to give the Google Web API a try, but never did, I'd like to give you a small step-by-step tutorial.
What is the Google Web API?
The API* exposes the Google engine to developers. This means you can write scripts that access the Google search in real-time. For example, you could query all pages containing "hello", and output the page-count. Or anything else imaginable.
Limitations
You have a default limit of 1,000 queries per day, you cannot get over the 1,000th result, you can only query for 10 results a time, and you can only access Google Web Search (not Google Images, Google Groups, and so on).
* Depending on the source, the abbreviation "API" stands for Application Programming Interface, Application Programmer's Interface, Application Programmer Interface, Application Program Interface, or Application Programmatic Interface. In short, it's a wrapper around a program that helps developer's to easily access its inner functionality. The Google Web API is also called "Google Web Services".
Do I have what it takes?
What you need is a server that allows you to execute server-side scripts. If you got www.example.com, you should check your contract and wether or not you can do that; email your host support if in doubt. Ask them if they have CGI, scripting like PHP, Pythôn, Java, ASP, or the like.
Second, you need to know the programming basics. But using the Google Web API is not very complicated, as there are several wrapping tools to get you started.
For this small tutorial, I will give examples of a PHP implementation. You can use other languages as well (like Perl). You should be familiar with HTML as well. PHP is a language, besides other things, to dynamically create HTML pages.
The Google API (currently in Beta) is further based on the Web Services technology SOAP (the XML-based Simple Object Access Protocol). But you don't need to details of SOAP to use the API, really.
Downloading the API, and registering for a key.
Create your own folder on your computer and put all the needed files in it; first, you should download the toolset of the Google Web API (note that you don't need it for this sample), and get your developer key (which you do need for the sample):
*
Visit the Google Web API home and download the API tools (below 700K).
*
Get your developer's key by creating a Google account and write it down. You shouldn't pass it on to anyone else. It's like a personal password to make the Google Web API work.
Second, get the helpful file called "NUSOAP" by Dietrich Ayala. It's free and helps you to implement a Google Web API script in PHP. (Note that I put NUSOAP on my server because I made a small but important change to the file which was necessary to get the filter-parameter to work.)
Now that everything's unpacked and waiting in your folder, create your own test project by creating a sub-folder called "test". Put the "nusoap.php" file in the folder.
Next, use Notepad – or another text-editor, like my Netpadd – and write the following testing PHP script as "index.php" and upload it to your server via FTP (you can use Absolute FTP for that; it's free to test for 30 days):
What is the Google Web API?
The API* exposes the Google engine to developers. This means you can write scripts that access the Google search in real-time. For example, you could query all pages containing "hello", and output the page-count. Or anything else imaginable.
Limitations
You have a default limit of 1,000 queries per day, you cannot get over the 1,000th result, you can only query for 10 results a time, and you can only access Google Web Search (not Google Images, Google Groups, and so on).
* Depending on the source, the abbreviation "API" stands for Application Programming Interface, Application Programmer's Interface, Application Programmer Interface, Application Program Interface, or Application Programmatic Interface. In short, it's a wrapper around a program that helps developer's to easily access its inner functionality. The Google Web API is also called "Google Web Services".
Do I have what it takes?
What you need is a server that allows you to execute server-side scripts. If you got www.example.com, you should check your contract and wether or not you can do that; email your host support if in doubt. Ask them if they have CGI, scripting like PHP, Pythôn, Java, ASP, or the like.
Second, you need to know the programming basics. But using the Google Web API is not very complicated, as there are several wrapping tools to get you started.
For this small tutorial, I will give examples of a PHP implementation. You can use other languages as well (like Perl). You should be familiar with HTML as well. PHP is a language, besides other things, to dynamically create HTML pages.
The Google API (currently in Beta) is further based on the Web Services technology SOAP (the XML-based Simple Object Access Protocol). But you don't need to details of SOAP to use the API, really.
Downloading the API, and registering for a key.
Create your own folder on your computer and put all the needed files in it; first, you should download the toolset of the Google Web API (note that you don't need it for this sample), and get your developer key (which you do need for the sample):
*
Visit the Google Web API home and download the API tools (below 700K).
*
Get your developer's key by creating a Google account and write it down. You shouldn't pass it on to anyone else. It's like a personal password to make the Google Web API work.
Second, get the helpful file called "NUSOAP" by Dietrich Ayala. It's free and helps you to implement a Google Web API script in PHP. (Note that I put NUSOAP on my server because I made a small but important change to the file which was necessary to get the filter-parameter to work.)
Now that everything's unpacked and waiting in your folder, create your own test project by creating a sub-folder called "test". Put the "nusoap.php" file in the folder.
Next, use Notepad – or another text-editor, like my Netpadd – and write the following testing PHP script as "index.php" and upload it to your server via FTP (you can use Absolute FTP for that; it's free to test for 30 days):
Wednesday, October 1, 2008
Javascript Tutorial
Welcome To
JavaScript for the Total Non-Programmer
This tutorial will take you step by step through the fundamentals of Javascript. You will learn how to write functions, use data from text boxes, create IF-THEN conditionals, program loops, and generally make your web page "smarter."
I teach computer classes for a living to corporate clients of all levels. After 2 years of teaching, I have learned a lot about communication between people of various levels of computer experience. This tutorial assumes that you have no prior programming experience, but that you have created your own HTML pages.
If you find this tutorial helpful, please let me know (it's my only reward). Also, links are graciously accepted.
What is JavaScript?
Javascript is an easy-to-use programming language that can be embedded in the header of your web pages. It can enhance the dynamics and interactive features of your page by allowing you to perform calculations, check forms, write interactive games, add special effects, customize graphics selections, create security passwords and more.
What's the difference between JavaScript and Java?
Actually, the 2 languages have almost nothing in common except for the name. Although Java is technically an interpreted programming language, it is coded in a similar fashion to C++, with separate header and class files, compiled together prior to execution. It is powerful enough to write major applications and insert them in a web page as a special object called an "applet." Java has been generating a lot of excitment because of its unique ability to run the same program on IBM, Mac, and Unix computers. Java is not considered an easy-to-use language for non-programmers.
Javascript is much simpler to use than Java. With Javascript, if I want check a form for errors, I just type an if-then statement at the top of my page. No compiling, no applets, just a simple sequence.
What is Object Oriented Programming?
Everyone that wants to program JavaScript should at least try reading the following section. If you have trouble understanding it, don't worry. The best way to learn JavaScript is from the examples presented in this tutorial. After you have been through the lessons, come back to this page and read it again.
OOP is a programming technique (note: not a language structure - you don't even need an object-oriented language to program in an object-oriented fashion) designed to simplify complicated programming concepts. In essence, object-oriented programming revolves around the idea of user- and system-defined chunks of data, and controlled means of accessing and modifying those chunks.
Object-oriented programming consists of Objects, Methods and Properties. An object is basically a black box which stores some information. It may have a way for you to read that information and a way for you to write to, or change, that information. It may also have other less obvious ways of interacting with the information.
Some of the information in the object may actually be directly accessible; other information may require you to use a method to access it - perhaps because the way the information is stored internally is of no use to you, or because only certain things can be written into that information space and the object needs to check that you're not going outside those limits.
The directly accessible bits of information in the object are its properties. The difference between data accessed via properties and data accessed via methods is that with properties, you see exactly what you're doing to the object; with methods, unless you created the object yourself, you just see the effects of what you're doing.
Other Javascript pages you read will probably refer frequently to objects, events, methods, and properties. This tutorial will teach by example, without focusing too heavily on OOP vocabulary. However, you will need a basic understanding of these terms to use other JavaScript references.
Objects and Properties
Your web page document is an object. Any table, form, button, image, or link on your page is also an object. Each object has certain properties (information about the object). For example, the background color of your document is written document.bgcolor. You would change the color of your page to red by writing the line: document.bgcolor="red"
The contents (or value) of a textbox named "password" in a form named "entryform" is document.entryform.password.value.
Methods
Most objects have a certain collection of things that they can do. Different objects can do different things, just as a door can open and close, while a light can turn on and off. A new document is opened with the method document.open() You can write "Hello World" into a document by typing document.write("Hello World") . open() and write() are both methods of the object: document.
Events
Events are how we trigger our functions to run. The easiest example is a button, whose definition includes the words onClick="run_my_function()". The onClick event, as its name implies, will run the function when the user clicks on the button. Other events include OnMouseOver, OnMouseOut, OnFocus, OnBlur, OnLoad, and OnUnload.
Reply With Quote
JavaScript for the Total Non-Programmer
This tutorial will take you step by step through the fundamentals of Javascript. You will learn how to write functions, use data from text boxes, create IF-THEN conditionals, program loops, and generally make your web page "smarter."
I teach computer classes for a living to corporate clients of all levels. After 2 years of teaching, I have learned a lot about communication between people of various levels of computer experience. This tutorial assumes that you have no prior programming experience, but that you have created your own HTML pages.
If you find this tutorial helpful, please let me know (it's my only reward). Also, links are graciously accepted.
What is JavaScript?
Javascript is an easy-to-use programming language that can be embedded in the header of your web pages. It can enhance the dynamics and interactive features of your page by allowing you to perform calculations, check forms, write interactive games, add special effects, customize graphics selections, create security passwords and more.
What's the difference between JavaScript and Java?
Actually, the 2 languages have almost nothing in common except for the name. Although Java is technically an interpreted programming language, it is coded in a similar fashion to C++, with separate header and class files, compiled together prior to execution. It is powerful enough to write major applications and insert them in a web page as a special object called an "applet." Java has been generating a lot of excitment because of its unique ability to run the same program on IBM, Mac, and Unix computers. Java is not considered an easy-to-use language for non-programmers.
Javascript is much simpler to use than Java. With Javascript, if I want check a form for errors, I just type an if-then statement at the top of my page. No compiling, no applets, just a simple sequence.
What is Object Oriented Programming?
Everyone that wants to program JavaScript should at least try reading the following section. If you have trouble understanding it, don't worry. The best way to learn JavaScript is from the examples presented in this tutorial. After you have been through the lessons, come back to this page and read it again.
OOP is a programming technique (note: not a language structure - you don't even need an object-oriented language to program in an object-oriented fashion) designed to simplify complicated programming concepts. In essence, object-oriented programming revolves around the idea of user- and system-defined chunks of data, and controlled means of accessing and modifying those chunks.
Object-oriented programming consists of Objects, Methods and Properties. An object is basically a black box which stores some information. It may have a way for you to read that information and a way for you to write to, or change, that information. It may also have other less obvious ways of interacting with the information.
Some of the information in the object may actually be directly accessible; other information may require you to use a method to access it - perhaps because the way the information is stored internally is of no use to you, or because only certain things can be written into that information space and the object needs to check that you're not going outside those limits.
The directly accessible bits of information in the object are its properties. The difference between data accessed via properties and data accessed via methods is that with properties, you see exactly what you're doing to the object; with methods, unless you created the object yourself, you just see the effects of what you're doing.
Other Javascript pages you read will probably refer frequently to objects, events, methods, and properties. This tutorial will teach by example, without focusing too heavily on OOP vocabulary. However, you will need a basic understanding of these terms to use other JavaScript references.
Objects and Properties
Your web page document is an object. Any table, form, button, image, or link on your page is also an object. Each object has certain properties (information about the object). For example, the background color of your document is written document.bgcolor. You would change the color of your page to red by writing the line: document.bgcolor="red"
The contents (or value) of a textbox named "password" in a form named "entryform" is document.entryform.password.value.
Methods
Most objects have a certain collection of things that they can do. Different objects can do different things, just as a door can open and close, while a light can turn on and off. A new document is opened with the method document.open() You can write "Hello World" into a document by typing document.write("Hello World") . open() and write() are both methods of the object: document.
Events
Events are how we trigger our functions to run. The easiest example is a button, whose definition includes the words onClick="run_my_function()". The onClick event, as its name implies, will run the function when the user clicks on the button. Other events include OnMouseOver, OnMouseOut, OnFocus, OnBlur, OnLoad, and OnUnload.
Reply With Quote
Understanding the web host reseller account.
Reseller hosting is a form of web hosting wherein the account owner has the ability to use his/her allotted hard drive space and bandwidth to host websites on behalf of third parties. Reseller web hosting gives a company an opportunity to purchase large amounts of web space with the intention of packaging it for resale purposes. These web hosting plans, help the "reseller" to be a middle-man by allowing him/her to create and brand an image, find customers, and finally, host them on the servers owned by the hosting company.
This business allows the reseller of web hosting to strategically investigate market demands and creatively answer via competitive pricing and package content. Lastly, it is mutually beneficial to the web host, as their servers remain full and profitable.
Besides the entrepreneurial aspects of being able to create a brand and have another company actually provide the web hosting service, reseller hosting has some interesting advantages and features including:
- Resellers possess the opportunity to offer other services, to be used in conjunction with web hosting accounts. These include merchant accounts, SSL Certificates, search engine optimization, and domain name registration, which all may provide additional income for the reseller.
- Resellers can avoid the expenses involved in maintaining their own in-house web servers, mail servers, DNS servers, backup generators and other network hardware and connections required to host Internet web sites.
- Resellers are able to respond to increasing numbers of businesses and individuals that are migrating to the web. A rich target demographic exists.
- Resellers can purchase packages based on his/her sales forecasts for their use of hard disk space, allowance of data transfer, and a variety of other add-on options.
- Web hosting resellers can pursue scalability, where purchases from the web host will directly correlate to growth of one's business.
- Web hosting resellers can enjoy high profits compared to initial investments.
- Resellers are offered nice multi-level graphical user interfaces that can automate the processes of managing domains and customers, which makes the profession of reseller web hosting more enjoyable.
This business allows the reseller of web hosting to strategically investigate market demands and creatively answer via competitive pricing and package content. Lastly, it is mutually beneficial to the web host, as their servers remain full and profitable.
Besides the entrepreneurial aspects of being able to create a brand and have another company actually provide the web hosting service, reseller hosting has some interesting advantages and features including:
- Resellers possess the opportunity to offer other services, to be used in conjunction with web hosting accounts. These include merchant accounts, SSL Certificates, search engine optimization, and domain name registration, which all may provide additional income for the reseller.
- Resellers can avoid the expenses involved in maintaining their own in-house web servers, mail servers, DNS servers, backup generators and other network hardware and connections required to host Internet web sites.
- Resellers are able to respond to increasing numbers of businesses and individuals that are migrating to the web. A rich target demographic exists.
- Resellers can purchase packages based on his/her sales forecasts for their use of hard disk space, allowance of data transfer, and a variety of other add-on options.
- Web hosting resellers can pursue scalability, where purchases from the web host will directly correlate to growth of one's business.
- Web hosting resellers can enjoy high profits compared to initial investments.
- Resellers are offered nice multi-level graphical user interfaces that can automate the processes of managing domains and customers, which makes the profession of reseller web hosting more enjoyable.
What is the Purpose of the Sandbox?
Despite its pleasant sounding name, the so-called Sandbox Effect is more like quicksand than a playground to many webmasters.
Named for the phenomenon of new websites being held back, in the search engine results pages (SERPs) by leading search engine Google, the Sandbox Effect has many website owners upset. When a new website is indexed in Google, it often receives what many observers consider to be a new site bonus. The brand new site will rocket to the top of the SERPs charts for a brief, shining moment. From there, it’s all downhill.
After the initial glorious days at the top of the search rankings for the most important keywords, the site finds itself so deeply buried in the Google SERPs as to be almost non-existent. Even though the website may have strong Google PageRank, many powerful and themed incoming links, and good content, the site will still feel the dampening effect of the Sandbox.
While the website is buried deeply in the sand at Google, the same site may enjoy strong search rankings, for the same keyword phrases in Yahoo and MSN Search. The Sandbox Effect appears to be a Google only event.
You need to examine what you can do to get out of the Sandbox. How you can use the time spent in the sandy desert, can help your site explode back into the SERPs when the damper is removed.
The Sandbox Effect: Not a Nice Place to Play - What is the Sandbox Effect?
The Sandbox Effect appears to be a search ranking damping filter, applied by Google, to sites for their first two to four months after the initial launch “fresh site bonus”. The bonus for brand new sites is to appear very highly in the SERPs for a short time, based on Google’s preference for fresh content.
As formerly new content ages slightly, the Sandbox filter kicks in. That is the Sandbox Effect. The average length of time for a site to remain trapped in the sand is about ninety days, although stays in the holding pattern lasting four months, are not uncommon.
Most sites appear to share the damping down effect, regardless of keyword category. The Sandbox filter appears to apply to all sites, whether or not they have many incoming links or not. Having well themed links appears to make little difference either. Content rich sites also get mired in the quicksand. Because of the near universality of the Sandbox, it must be part of Google’s algorithm.
What is the Purpose of the Sandbox?
Many observers believe the purpose of the Sandbox filter is to discourage unscrupulous webmasters from using practices that are against Google’s Webmaster Guidelines. Some of the techniques that Google is attempting to disrupt are the use of throw away spam sites to build early traffic, and to slow down the purchase of expired domain names to get a jump start from any pre-existing Google PageRank.
Short-term link renting and placement, until more permanent links are added, will not provide much benefit for a new site. The possibility also exists that Google doesn’t give full PageRank benefit during the first few months that a site is indexed. The non-crediting of PageRank form of dampening effect would lower the value of incoming links to expired domain names.
Such a scenario would logically follow, if Google is attempting to prevent widespread purchase of expired domains. The Google toolbar might read PR7, for example, but the algorithm could credit zero PageRank value to the site’s search placement. That, of course, would be a rather extreme position for Google to take on the matter.
Another practice Google may be discouraging is spam sites. If a pure spammer can’t rank well within the first few months of operation, they may close their spam site down. Discouraging spammers has long been a Google goal.
Any allegedly good intentions on Google’s part, however, sideswipe sites that are employing nothing against the guidelines as well. Many webmasters, especially those entirely oblivious to search engine optimization entirely, often are very confused by what has happened. They see good rankings in Yahoo and MSN Search, for example, and think they are not included in Google’s index for some reason. Many others mistakenly believe that they have unknowingly triggered a Google penalty.
Another practice Google may be attempting to dampen is the purchase of links to gain initial PageRank. The people at Google may feel that a site should develop natural linking over time. They may not consider purchased links to be part of that natural website evolution. On the other hand, sites with only a few natural links, experience the same Sandbox dampening effect.
It is entirely possible as well, that a website is not placed in the Sandbox, but rather it’s the links that are being monitored. The algorithm could consider the age of the links, their source website, the range of Internet providers hosting the links, and the overall link diversity in general. Either way, the result is the same. The website fails to rank as highly as expected
If your website has just entered the Sandbox, it’s best to not panic. Google has not imposed a penalty on your site. You already know that your site has been indexed by Google. Instead, it’s simply a natural, if a somewhat bewildering and upsetting part, of Google’s algorithm. It can be an especially bitter pill to swallow, if the site had entered the SERPs, highly ranked from the new site bonus effect.
Treat the Sandbox stay as an opportunity to improve your site. Add as much fresh content to your site as possible. In the long run, Google always rewards content. Larger sites that feature more content pages will always rank highly as well. A fatal error for your website would be to stop adding content while under the Sandbox damper. That can happen to you if you think that your site was penalized, or will never rank well for your most important keywords.
Use the time in the quicksand to add incoming links to your website. If you intend to employ a link exchange strategy, now is a good time to do it. Seek out sites that are related to the main theme and topics of your website for cooperative efforts. Link out to interesting and helpful sites for your own visitors and potential customers. Linking to good sites can help, in the longer term, toward turning your site into a hub or an authority site. Since you have little to lose in the SERPs, the filtered time is a great time to start.
Submit to the various Internet directories, including The Open Directory Project, better known as DMOZ. Seek out useful directories as good sources of one-way links, additional PageRank, and potential visitor traffic. Because of the time lag between directory submission and inclusion, the Sandbox time period is an ideal time for directory submissions. Since not having the directory links isn’t hurting your site while it’s in the Sandbox, adding them will help your site make tremendous leaps in the SERPs, once the filter has been removed.
Develop other promotional and marketing ideas for your website to raise and maintain traffic levels during your time in the sand. Both online and offline promotional techniques will provide much needed visitors while Google is providing very limited numbers. An added bonus from this concept is your marketing and promotional activities will continue to boost your website visitor traffic in the long run, even when your site leaves the sand trap.
Since being placed in the Sandbox is inevitable, the best thing to do is prepare for the inevitability. Your goal is to lessen the damage, along with using the time to your best advantage. To keep the Sandbox filter from causing severe harm to your online, and even your offline business, be certain to plan ahead.
One technique, to avoid spending too long in the sand, is to purchase and register a domain name and park it. By placing the domain on a parked basis, some of the sand time will be run through the Google hourglass, by the time your site is ready for launch. During the time period of your parked domain, you can be preparing content when your site goes public.
Plan the time of your website launch to have the Sandbox time period passed when your site is needing high search engines rankings the most. If your site is a retail site, the last thing you need is to be filtered during the Christmas holiday shopping season. Plan for entering the Sandbox by putting your site live at least three months earlier than expected. By doing so, the dampening effect will already have been removed, in time for the busy retail season.
Carefully timing your website launch date is important for all seasonal websites. If it’s important that your site be topping the SERPs, during a special time frame, take the Sandbox dampening period into consideration.
Conclusion
Google has placed a dampening filter in its search algorithm, which holds back new sites for three or four months, following the initial fresh site bonus.
The so-called Sandbox Effect places new websites into a brief moratorium, where they will not rank well, if they appear at all, in the SERPs.
Because the Sandbox appears to affect every new website, the onus is on the webmaster to plan for it happening to them. To counter the Sandbox, website owners are encouraged to carefully select their launch date to limit the damage.
During the sojourn in the sand, a tremendous opportunity exists to add content and incoming links to your website. That time period affords you the chance to find additional links, optimize your site, and submit to the many Internet directories.
With a little planning, and using your time in Sandbox hiatus wisely, your site can burst forth from the filter to the top of the rankings for your keywords.
The Sandbox appears to be a reality. You must be prepared to dig in that sand to help your website.
Named for the phenomenon of new websites being held back, in the search engine results pages (SERPs) by leading search engine Google, the Sandbox Effect has many website owners upset. When a new website is indexed in Google, it often receives what many observers consider to be a new site bonus. The brand new site will rocket to the top of the SERPs charts for a brief, shining moment. From there, it’s all downhill.
After the initial glorious days at the top of the search rankings for the most important keywords, the site finds itself so deeply buried in the Google SERPs as to be almost non-existent. Even though the website may have strong Google PageRank, many powerful and themed incoming links, and good content, the site will still feel the dampening effect of the Sandbox.
While the website is buried deeply in the sand at Google, the same site may enjoy strong search rankings, for the same keyword phrases in Yahoo and MSN Search. The Sandbox Effect appears to be a Google only event.
You need to examine what you can do to get out of the Sandbox. How you can use the time spent in the sandy desert, can help your site explode back into the SERPs when the damper is removed.
The Sandbox Effect: Not a Nice Place to Play - What is the Sandbox Effect?
The Sandbox Effect appears to be a search ranking damping filter, applied by Google, to sites for their first two to four months after the initial launch “fresh site bonus”. The bonus for brand new sites is to appear very highly in the SERPs for a short time, based on Google’s preference for fresh content.
As formerly new content ages slightly, the Sandbox filter kicks in. That is the Sandbox Effect. The average length of time for a site to remain trapped in the sand is about ninety days, although stays in the holding pattern lasting four months, are not uncommon.
Most sites appear to share the damping down effect, regardless of keyword category. The Sandbox filter appears to apply to all sites, whether or not they have many incoming links or not. Having well themed links appears to make little difference either. Content rich sites also get mired in the quicksand. Because of the near universality of the Sandbox, it must be part of Google’s algorithm.
What is the Purpose of the Sandbox?
Many observers believe the purpose of the Sandbox filter is to discourage unscrupulous webmasters from using practices that are against Google’s Webmaster Guidelines. Some of the techniques that Google is attempting to disrupt are the use of throw away spam sites to build early traffic, and to slow down the purchase of expired domain names to get a jump start from any pre-existing Google PageRank.
Short-term link renting and placement, until more permanent links are added, will not provide much benefit for a new site. The possibility also exists that Google doesn’t give full PageRank benefit during the first few months that a site is indexed. The non-crediting of PageRank form of dampening effect would lower the value of incoming links to expired domain names.
Such a scenario would logically follow, if Google is attempting to prevent widespread purchase of expired domains. The Google toolbar might read PR7, for example, but the algorithm could credit zero PageRank value to the site’s search placement. That, of course, would be a rather extreme position for Google to take on the matter.
Another practice Google may be discouraging is spam sites. If a pure spammer can’t rank well within the first few months of operation, they may close their spam site down. Discouraging spammers has long been a Google goal.
Any allegedly good intentions on Google’s part, however, sideswipe sites that are employing nothing against the guidelines as well. Many webmasters, especially those entirely oblivious to search engine optimization entirely, often are very confused by what has happened. They see good rankings in Yahoo and MSN Search, for example, and think they are not included in Google’s index for some reason. Many others mistakenly believe that they have unknowingly triggered a Google penalty.
Another practice Google may be attempting to dampen is the purchase of links to gain initial PageRank. The people at Google may feel that a site should develop natural linking over time. They may not consider purchased links to be part of that natural website evolution. On the other hand, sites with only a few natural links, experience the same Sandbox dampening effect.
It is entirely possible as well, that a website is not placed in the Sandbox, but rather it’s the links that are being monitored. The algorithm could consider the age of the links, their source website, the range of Internet providers hosting the links, and the overall link diversity in general. Either way, the result is the same. The website fails to rank as highly as expected
If your website has just entered the Sandbox, it’s best to not panic. Google has not imposed a penalty on your site. You already know that your site has been indexed by Google. Instead, it’s simply a natural, if a somewhat bewildering and upsetting part, of Google’s algorithm. It can be an especially bitter pill to swallow, if the site had entered the SERPs, highly ranked from the new site bonus effect.
Treat the Sandbox stay as an opportunity to improve your site. Add as much fresh content to your site as possible. In the long run, Google always rewards content. Larger sites that feature more content pages will always rank highly as well. A fatal error for your website would be to stop adding content while under the Sandbox damper. That can happen to you if you think that your site was penalized, or will never rank well for your most important keywords.
Use the time in the quicksand to add incoming links to your website. If you intend to employ a link exchange strategy, now is a good time to do it. Seek out sites that are related to the main theme and topics of your website for cooperative efforts. Link out to interesting and helpful sites for your own visitors and potential customers. Linking to good sites can help, in the longer term, toward turning your site into a hub or an authority site. Since you have little to lose in the SERPs, the filtered time is a great time to start.
Submit to the various Internet directories, including The Open Directory Project, better known as DMOZ. Seek out useful directories as good sources of one-way links, additional PageRank, and potential visitor traffic. Because of the time lag between directory submission and inclusion, the Sandbox time period is an ideal time for directory submissions. Since not having the directory links isn’t hurting your site while it’s in the Sandbox, adding them will help your site make tremendous leaps in the SERPs, once the filter has been removed.
Develop other promotional and marketing ideas for your website to raise and maintain traffic levels during your time in the sand. Both online and offline promotional techniques will provide much needed visitors while Google is providing very limited numbers. An added bonus from this concept is your marketing and promotional activities will continue to boost your website visitor traffic in the long run, even when your site leaves the sand trap.
Since being placed in the Sandbox is inevitable, the best thing to do is prepare for the inevitability. Your goal is to lessen the damage, along with using the time to your best advantage. To keep the Sandbox filter from causing severe harm to your online, and even your offline business, be certain to plan ahead.
One technique, to avoid spending too long in the sand, is to purchase and register a domain name and park it. By placing the domain on a parked basis, some of the sand time will be run through the Google hourglass, by the time your site is ready for launch. During the time period of your parked domain, you can be preparing content when your site goes public.
Plan the time of your website launch to have the Sandbox time period passed when your site is needing high search engines rankings the most. If your site is a retail site, the last thing you need is to be filtered during the Christmas holiday shopping season. Plan for entering the Sandbox by putting your site live at least three months earlier than expected. By doing so, the dampening effect will already have been removed, in time for the busy retail season.
Carefully timing your website launch date is important for all seasonal websites. If it’s important that your site be topping the SERPs, during a special time frame, take the Sandbox dampening period into consideration.
Conclusion
Google has placed a dampening filter in its search algorithm, which holds back new sites for three or four months, following the initial fresh site bonus.
The so-called Sandbox Effect places new websites into a brief moratorium, where they will not rank well, if they appear at all, in the SERPs.
Because the Sandbox appears to affect every new website, the onus is on the webmaster to plan for it happening to them. To counter the Sandbox, website owners are encouraged to carefully select their launch date to limit the damage.
During the sojourn in the sand, a tremendous opportunity exists to add content and incoming links to your website. That time period affords you the chance to find additional links, optimize your site, and submit to the many Internet directories.
With a little planning, and using your time in Sandbox hiatus wisely, your site can burst forth from the filter to the top of the rankings for your keywords.
The Sandbox appears to be a reality. You must be prepared to dig in that sand to help your website.
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