The Big Chair Will be Empty for a Few Days

Hey allthe big chair

I’m typing this from Phoenix airport, looking out the window at a gorgeous sunset over the mountains. I’m on my way to Oklahoma City (from Christchurch) and have been traveling non-stop now for 24 hours with another 5 to go.

Thanks to jet lag, a severe lack of motivation and a desire to consume copious amounts of alcohol over the next few days, I won’t be in the blog chair for a short while, but will leave you in the capable hands of Sarah, Andy, Jacqueline and Nick.

Continue to send your questions through and I’ll get to them when I can.

Search Industry Job of the Week: SEO Strategist

Job Title: SEO Strategist
Job Reference #: Unknown
Position Type: Full Time
Name of employer: Hyatt Leader
Location: New York, NY
Date Posted: 22 September 2008
Position description:

SEO strategist will be responsible for driving strategy, planning and execution of SEO projects for various clients. Candidate needs to be a thought leader in developing innovative ways of improving client rankings and visibility in the search engines and be able to execute and enhance firmwide SEO/SEM marketing approach.

Candidates should possess thorough understanding of search engine marketing industry, ranging from day to day tasks (keyword research and analysis, site audits, content audits etc) to defining and implementing strategic components (SEO reviews, user analysis, keyword targeting models) for the clients. Candidate will be responsible for conducting extensive reviews and provide recommendations to enhance client websites standing in natural search listings. Candidates must be detail oriented, team-oriented, possess effective written and exceptional verbal communication skills and be willing to travel from time to time to support client projects. Candidate will join a growing marketing strategy team and assist in expanding the search engine marketing and interactive marketing activities for clients.

Required Experience

  • 4-5 years work experience in technical development or interactive marketing with a minimum of 2-3 year of search engine marketing experience.
  • Must demonstrate advanced knowledge of technical, usability and content related aspects of a website and their impact on natural search visibility.
  • Advanced knowledge of organic/natural search algorithms and principles.
  • Ability to work with major web analytics solutions and ability to leverage the data to drive goals and enhance ROI.
  • Experience in working with various departments (technology, creative, user experience) to develop assets and plans for testing (A/B and multivariate tests).

Nice to have:

  • Technical implementation and tracking experience for major web analytics packages.
  • Intermediate level understanding of related search components including email marketing, display media, and social media marketing.
  • Paid Search management experience.

To apply for this position please email your resume directly to: Brian McCaffrey at bmccaffrey[at]hyattleader.com

Salary range: Unknown
Closing date: Unknown
More info from: [www.hyattleader.com]
Contact: Send resumes to bmccaffrey[at]hyattleader.com

For search for more search industry position vacancies visit Search Engine College Jobs Board.

How to Make Money From Your Blog (and get rid of people at parties)

The party pick upIf I’m in a social situation where people ask me what I do for a living, I try to avoid the whole *SEO* explanation.

First you isolate people who have a phobia of anagrams. Then, if people do stick out the conversation, by the time you get to “META Tags” their eyes have glazed over and they’re desperately looking for someone, anyone, to provide them with an escape route.

Of course, this can work to your advantage if you want to get rid of someone. In that scenario, I’ve got my fav SEO definition at the ready. “SEO? What’s that?” they ask. And I say: “Bionic, fibulous conglomeration of random search algorithms resulting in superior ascensionic ranking and visitation abilities.” Poof! They’re gone. Sometimes being a geek is fun. And of course Geek is Sexy, as my fav t-shirt states.

But if I’m not in geek mode, I usually respond to the “What do you do?” question with “I’m a blogger”.  It’s amazing how many people get excited when they hear this. They’ve either got their own blogs, like to read particular blogs, or are are simply fascinated with the idea that people can earn a living from blogging. Darren Rowse’s infamous post The House that Blogging Built back in 2005 changed Australian attitudes towards blogging almost overnight.

Another question I get asked a LOT is “How do you make money from a blog?”. So here’s my answer. And now for a practical example:

If you enjoy this blog or it has helped you in any way, please buy me a coffee. Lesson over!

Like this post? Prove it! Please press the big feed button at the top left. Thanks.

Q and A: Can you submit individual pages of a web site separately to the search engines?

QuestionDear Kalena…

Can you submit individual pages separately of a website to
the search engines – if so – how? My URL is: http://freewebs.com/jazzlist

Thanks
Cy

Hi Cy

Technically it is possible but you need to understand the way search engines index web sites in order to fully understand why this is often considered the wrong way to approach site submission.

With regards to your own web site http://freewebs.com/jazzlist there would obviously be an argument for individual page submission due to you not having a dedicated domain of your own and as your web site is not located in the root directory of the hosting site, there is little to suggest that submitting http://freewebs.com/index.html would have any bearing on your own web site’s performance.

The argument for submitting to search engines seems to have been around longer than the search engines themselves!

Some say that you need to submit only your homepage, usually index.html or similar and that the search engine will then index all links from this page and over time your site should be completely indexed.

There are variations on this theory the most common is submitting a properly formatted and structured sitemap alone to the search engine of your choice. the search engines then index all links from this sitemap alone. Formats vary but most popular are sitemaps written in xml, this version in particular is favoured by Google.

For further information: Google friendly site map protocols

Others say that you don’t need to submit any pages or sites to any search engines at all, instead you are better to create keyword rich and optimised content that, if written well enough should attract Google and the others along through social bookmarking sites and articles linking to your sites, a lot of people out there prefer this method as it is often considered a more honest approach to site submission.
I know of several websites that have never been submitted to any search engines but if these sites change content or write a new article then Google indexes this within 24 hours, proof indeed that if your content is rich and your site is attractive to the search engines then your site will become more successful based on its own content and merits alone.

The thought that you could submit a single page is a perfectly valid one but before you do this ask yourself this simple question…why do I need to do this?

The answer lies in the hosting and structure of your own website and your choice to follow a free/shared hosting option, this decision may have been made for any of several reasons. The truth is that as long as your site is hosted on a free, shared hosting solution your site will most likely struggle to achieve its full potential as you will no doubt come across issues when trying to optimise this kind of hosting solution.

The advantages and full control offered by a dedicated host/domain solution far outweigh any cost restrictions and in my opinion should always be the way to go.

I appreciate some people and businesses out there want to create a website for little or no outlay but as these are often clearly charging for what they provide perhaps they should consider what their visitors will think and how they will be perceived and judged in relation to their business acumen when the free hosting option is taken instead of creating a professional presence on the web.

Best regards

Andy Watson
Wildcat SEO

Search Industry Job of the Week: SEO Copywriter

Job Title: SEO Copywriter
Job Reference #: Unknown
Position Type: part time
Name of employer: 123 Print, inc
Location: Frederick, Maryland, USA
Date Posted: 15 September 2008
Position description:

Company Overview:

123Print, Inc., a nationally-recognized, web-based direct-to-consumer printing company is expanding its marketing team to keep up with a fast-growing business. They are currently looking for an SEO Copywriter in their Frederick, Maryland office.

Job Description:

As an SEO Copywriter you will join their team to help conceptualize and create compellingly effective content for their ecommerce website, search engine optimization projects, marketing campaigns and products. Media is primarily focused on web, email and direct marketing. Members of their team are expected to be comfortable working in a fast-paced environment under multiple, often tight, deadlines.

Responsibilities:

As an you will join their team to help conceptualize and create compellingly effective content for their ecommerce website, search engine optimization projects, marketing campaigns and products. Media is primarily focused on web, email and direct marketing. Members of their team are expected to be comfortable working in a fast-paced environment under multiple, often tight, deadlines.

Conceptualize, Write and Present:

  • Email campaign copy
  • Search-optimized promotional, selling and merchandising copy for ecommerce
  • Product names
  • Product content text
  • Instructional copy
  • Targeted journalistic/editorial search-optimized website content
  • Press releases
  • Internal communications
  • Other external and internal marketing and communication pieces as needed.
  • Conceptualize, Write and Present

Benefits

  • Competitive Base Salary
  • Health/Dental/Vision
  • Long/Short Disability
  • Paid Holidays
  • Paid Vacations
  • 401K Plan
  • Sick Leave

If you are interested in this position please send resume and salary requirements to tdriscoll[at]123print.com.

Requirements:

  • 1-2 years experience in an in-house department, agency or equivalent
  • BA or BS in communications, journalism, marketing, advertising or other related field
  • A portfolio that speaks for your skills and accomplishments
  • An understanding of branding, products and customers
  • Ability to write compelling headlines, copy and subject lines with continuity in all media
  • Ability to work effectively and efficiently under tight deadlines
  • Ability to work as a team with Designers, Programmers, SEOs and Managers
  • Ability to proof your work and the work of others

Salary range: Competitive base salary plus benefits
Closing date: Unknown
More info from: [www.123print.com]
Contact: Send resumes to tdriscoll[at]123print.com

For more search industry job vacancies visit Search Engine College Jobs Board.