The Maine SEO Blog

This will be my third year in a row creating a “best of the year” post; feel free to check out posts from 2010 and 2009, too.

This year, I’ve done the best at flyte: from our flyte blog, Maine SEO blog, and Florida SEO blog. Go ahead and browse the archives; enjoy!

flyte blog

1. 50 – Count ‘em, 50! – Creative Uses of QR Codes
2. Print Keynote Handouts Like PowerPoint
3. Post to your Facebook Business Page as you…and more!
4. What is a QR Code? What is QR Code Marketing?
5. What is a Facebook Landing Page and Why Do I Need One?

Maine SEO

1. What is a Good Bounce Rate in Google Analytics?
2. Facebook Fun | What Was Your Status Update On This Day Last Year?
3. Can I create a Facebook Business Account (or Fan Page) without a Personal Account?
4. How to Like a Facebook Fan Page…as a Fan Page
5. Allowing Pingbacks and Trackbacks on your blog: Is there any value back?

Florida SEO

1. Alt Tags vs. Title Tags for Images in WordPress: What’s the difference?
2. The Top 5 Most Liked Pages on Facebook and What We Can Learn From Them
3. How Long Will It Take to See Results from Search Engine Optimization?
4. How to Decrease Your Bounce Rate in Google Analytics
5. Welcome the Newest Member to flyte new media: Joan Woodbrey Crocker!

Photo credit: stockerre

I’ve been bad. Very, very bad…about blogging. This is the first post I’ve written in November.

You may have had a similar experience. Maybe you got busy with work. Maybe you haven’t had any great ideas. Maybe you feel like you’ve written about everything there is to write about. Fear not, my friend. Perhaps climbing out of my own blogging coma will help you conquer yours.

Luckily, the blogosphere is a forgiving world. You may have missed out on some traffic, but it’s ok. Go ahead and pick up where you left off.

You’re simply too busy

I understand, real work gets put ahead of blogging. But think about it this way: blogging is a form of marketing and another way to ensure you’ll continue having that work in weeks and months to come. Here are a few easy ways to get around the “time” issue:

Figure out what works for you. Is it easier to blog first thing in the morning? During lunch? At home? Over the weekend? Do you prefer writing just one post at a time? Or do you like to create several when inspiration strikes? Regardless, figure out the schedule that works for you…and do it!

Keep It Simple, Stupid. You don’t need a ground breaking, earth shattering blogpost every single time. Use resources like the questions your customers ask you every day for inspiration. Often times, the quick, easy, and simple posts are the best ones.

Now you’re just making things up. Most of us aren’t too busy to watch our favorite shows. Most of us aren’t too busy to catch the game. Try multi-tasking; if you can sit in front of the TV and watch the ball game and blog, then do it! Or, if you need peace and quiet, carve out 15 or 30 minutes and write your post. That’s why they invented DVR, right?

You don’t have anything to write about or you’ve written about everything

Inspiration isn’t going to hit every day of the week – and if it does, you’re lucky – but that doesn’t mean you can’t inspire yourself.

Use tools at your disposal. There are a ton of tools out there from Google Insights for hot, new keyword ideas to Google Alerts for daily or weekly updates about new articles, blogposts, and websites in your industry. There are hundreds, even thousands of these type of tools out there, but these two are my go-to’s.

Listen to what other people are saying. Lean on your favorite writers, bloggers in your niche, or even your competitors. My favorites for SEO are the SEOmoz blog, Search Engine Roundtable, and Search Engine Land. Whatever your favorite blogs may be, make sure you subscribe to them (be it via email or RSS) and read them as often as you can.

Find a new way to spice up old blogposts. Use tricks like checking out your Google Analytics or using a different blogging technique to resurrect an old post you created.

And there you have it. Now get out there and write! But first…what are your tips or tricks for getting yourself out of a blogging coma?

Image credit: xlibber

Nicki Hicks
Really, what’s cuter than a sleeping baby?

Recently, my friends and I have been hiking every weekend. It’s a great way to get some exercise in and it’s a fun activity to explore nature with friends. Not to mention it’s something that I can do with my dog on the weekend to give him a much needed energy release after being cooped up in the house all week. But, it wasn’t until I wrote a blog post for a client on Maine’s Waterfalls that I started to get really inspired.

Maine has a crazy amount of beauty and so many things to discover. But, the caveat to that is, in order to see a beautiful waterfall or awe inspiring mountain view, you first have to make the hike to do it. Hiking is NOT easy. In fact, many of the trails that are required to get to these Mountain Tops can cause you pain and exhaustion. However, once you hit that apex you get to stroll down and the endorphins kick in and it was all worth it.

But, the more you hike, the easier it gets. You develop your muscles, strengthen your heart and lungs and build endurance. In the end, it becomes more natural and more enjoyable.

SO, what does this have to do with web marketing success? EVERYTHING!

Social media doesn’t come naturally to everyone. I can’t count how many times we hear clients say that they didn’t know it was going to be so much work.  Blogging is work, creating content is work, posting updates takes time and imagination and it all has to be valuable and interesting information for your audience.

Waterfalls were my inspiration, what’s yours?  What is going to get you excited to put the work and effort in to get the web marketing and social media results that you want? You can look for inspiration for your posts in many places, did someone say something to you today that sparked an idea, did you hear something on the radio, did you read a blog or magazine article that got you thinking? Anything you hear, read or do can be used to spark an idea for a blog post or Twitter update.

Like with starting a workout or starting to hike, it takes time to adjust and adapt to your new activity until it becomes easier or a habit.  This also goes for web marketing.  Right now it may not seem like it fits in your schedule or it may not feel natural to you.  But, the more you do it the easier it becomes.  Create an editorial calendar for yourself and stick to it. Commit to posting one blog post a week or making 3 updates on Facebook a day. Do that until you master it and then add on the next phase of your web marketing plan.  Like with taking a hike, the first trail is the hardest and with every new trail (or marketing step you take) the easier it becomes.

Results! We all do this because we want the web marketing results.  With a hike it’s an amazing view, endorphins released from exercise, fresh air or a waterfall, with web marketing we want to get our message to the right people resulting in our end goal.  Whether that goal be more leads in the sales funnel, more people attending your event, more traffic to your website or better customer service web marketing and social media are just our tools to help us achieve those goals.

So, what are you waiting for? Find your inspiration, make the commitment, and take the first steps.

If you’d like help developing a social media plan for your business, or a personal trainer for your social media marketing to help you stay with it, flyte can help. Just contact us to get the ball rolling.

Joan Woodbrey Crocker
Hiking Web Everest

This is one of my favorite blogging tricks and regardless of whether you’re running out of ideas or not, this little tip is great wayto re-kindle some traffic and re-inspire using your most popular posts. That said, let’s get right to it.

Start by logging into your Google Analytics account and going to Traffic Sources > Sources > Search > Organic.

If you’re looking at statistics for just your blog, then you’ll probably already see some great ideas for blogposts. Regardless, change the number of rows shown to the maximum number (500), then continue scrolling down for more keyword ideas.

You’ll start to see limited searches for the same term (1, 2, maybe even 3). These longtail search terms are the perfect start for additional blogposts. Sure, people already use these to find you, but why not use what works? Here’s a quick snapshot:

I might take some of these keyword phrases and create posts like:

• The 100 Most Like Pages on Facebook (similar to this post)
• Alt Tags and Image Descriptions in Facebook (similar to this post)
• How do Alt Tags Help with Google Image Search? (similar to this post)
• What’s the Difference Between an Alt Tag, Image Title, Description, and Caption? (similar to this post)
• Analytics Decreasing? Here’s Why.
• My Bounce Rate is Really High. I think… (similar to this post)

More often than not, I get questions about what to do when you haven nothing to blog about, but what if you have too many post ideas? What if you’re so inspired that you’re overwhelmed with ideas? [Don't laugh. It's a serious medical condition and researchers are currently looking for a cure!]

Having too many post ideas can be just as troublesome as having no ideas at all. It could lead to long, drawn out posts that no one will spend the time to read. It could lead to losing some of those ideas without making the right arrangements. Never fear, there are a few easy ways to manage all of these ideas!

Write them down

Sounds pretty simple, right? But I can’t tell you how many times I’ve been driving or at the gym and thought of an idea for a blogpost that I ended up forgetting because I never wrote it down. Having a running list of ideas is a great way to have some inspiration for those times when you are feeling less than inspired. Whether it’s just an idea for a post, the title of the post, or even some notes on what it will include; you’ll never regret jotting your ideas down!

And when there isn’t a piece of paper handy…

Record them

These days, most phones have a recording application on them. I find that while driving tends to be the perfect time to record ideas – or even full posts – to later write down. Thinking out loud is a great way to get your thoughts together, or maybe it’s easier for you to…

Outline, outline, outline

A great number of blogpost ideas may start out general, with no direction, and have to be whittled into something far more specific. Having been a slave to thinking I have the perfect post, only to realize it’s far to vague or far too long; it’s best to outline your thoughts beforehand to see where this post is really going.

Break them up

If you find that your post ideas are going to be upwards of 750 or even 1,000 words, that’s great news! Why? You’ve got yourself more than one blogpost, my friend! Break your post idea up into 2, 3, 4…however many parts it takes and now you have a series.

Nicki Hicks
More is better, but only if you prepare

A few weeks ago, I was accepted as one of Examiner.com‘s examiners: the Jacksonville Social Networking Examiner. Based on what you write and how often, you actually have the opportunity to make money from your content. This got me thinking: what other websites offer you money for your content and, more importantly, are they really worth it?

Examiner.com

To start, you must submit work, and why you want to become apart of Examiner.com. It can take up to a week to be approved. From there, you’ll receive the power to create content from within their platform. They like to keep things local, so make sure your content covers topics specific to the location you’re assigned to. Since I haven’t done much with my account so far, I can’t tell you whether you’ll make much from this particular site.

Ready to sign up? Go here now.

Podcasting

According to this article in the Social Media Examiner, setup is key. Choosing the right host, the right platform (like PowerPress), setting up your feed and analytics will ensure you have a successful podcast. Last, but not least, pop your work on iTunes and start making money. The important takeaway though? Make sure you’ve crossed your t’s and dotted your i’s first.

Yahoo Contributor Network

Similar to Examiner.com, the Yahoo Contributor Network offers you the chance to get paid for the content you create for them. Set up more like an actual news desk, the Yahoo Contributor Network offers both the option to create your own content as well as assignments. The assignments are varied and many are of a more creative nature (short stories, essays, etc.). What’s more is you’re able to share more than just copy; you can also share your videos and photos as well.

Skyword’s Skywriting

Skyword promotes allowing writers to create search and social content for large, well known brands. Without joining, it’s hard to learn more about the program and all of the perks.

Seed.com

Similar to the Yahoo Contributor Network, Seed.com offers opportunities to not only provide content and get paid like our other examples, but also includes current assignments to give you a specific rundown of what they’re looking for.

All of these – and many more – websites offer great opportunities to make money on the content that you create. Whether they are worth it or not, that will have to wait for a little more experimentation! If you’ve had experience with these or other networks, please share in the comments below!

Nicki Hicks
Make Money Blogging

You already know that you should be blogging (or at least you do now), or at least creating content somehow. But sometimes, it might feel like you’re posting the same kind of blogposts over and over. Never fear, my friends, there are some fun and easy ways to spice up your content creation.

1. Videos

It’s all about video right now. [Rich recently created a few killer blogposts about video (like Killer YouTube Tactics For Your Business and What Kind of YouTube Channel Should You Have?) so make sure you check them out!]

A video doesn’t have to be long (short and sweet is actually better), and it doesn’t have to be a big production. Here at flyte, we create everything from talking head videos with screenshots to videos shot with an iPhone. The bonus for video is that it’s often far more engaging than plain old text.

2. Pictures

One of our clients, J&E Riggin, posts nothing but images on Wednesdays, a day they’ve coined Wordless Wednesdays. There, they’ll share gorgeous photos from their trips out at sea.

For a little more SEO value, it’s helpful to include some copy around the image and even alt tags. However, from a pure content standpoint, a day where you simply post a photo is brilliant. What an easy way to create content!

3. Mashups

Mashups are one of my favorite rainy day blogpost ideas. Be they a culmination of posts over time or a resource list, mashups are a quick, easy way to put content together without having to reinvent the wheel.

4. Dear Abby posts

Whether someone actually asked you the question or you make up your own, Dear Abby posts are a great way to spice up your content a little. In every industry, we all get asked the same questions time and time again; here’s the perfect opportunity to put those questions to good use!

5. Interviews

Whether it’s someone local (like a customer) or an important person in your niche, interviews are great for a number of reasons. Not only are they an interesting way to create fresh content, but it also adds a fresh, new voice to your blog.

6. Recaps or Live Blogging

Some of the most retweeted posts have been from pseudo live blogging. I took notes I would’ve created anyway and simply put them online. Take it a step further my adding your own .02 and spinning off from what you learned!

What ways do you add interesting content to your blog?

Nicki Hicks
Outletting creatively one post at a time

I just got back from a radio interview where they asked for my Top 5 Blogging Tips. Since I’m a strong supporter of business blogs, and our own web marketing blog generates so much search engine traffic, I figured I’d share those tips here on the Maine SEO Blog.

Own Your Own Domain Name

Make sure that you own your own domain name for your blog. That means you want to blog at mycompany.com/blog or mycompanyblog.com, but not mycompany.typepad.com or mycompany.wordpress.com. Two reasons for this:

1. When you blog on a domain owned by someone else (i.e., wordpress.com or blogspot.com) you’re building up trust for that domain, not for your own. Why would you want to blog for the man when you can blog for yourself?
2. If you ever need to change platforms (we did a couple of years back, moving from TypePad to WordPress) you will lose all of your inbound links if you didn’t first establish your own domain name. All those links to mycompany.typepad.com/whatever? They don’t get to come with you.

Blog so That the Search Engines Can Find You

That means starting with a keyword analysis to determine what keyword phrases your audience is using at the search engines. Then using those keywords in your blog post title, headers, in the first sentence or two, and sprinkled throughout your post. Also drop them in your meta-description, meta-keywords, tags, categories and alt-tags.

Create Keyword-Rich Links Back to Your Website

For many of us, a blog is the place where we establish our credibility and engage with our audience, while our website is where we do our sales. If this is the case for you, you should link your keywords in your blog post to appropriate pages on your website. For example, if you wanted to promote your web design skills you might blog about the top 10 web design mistakes and then link the words website design to the page on your website where you talk about your mad design skills.

Engage Your Audience On and Off Your Blog

If someone takes the time to comment on one of your posts (unless their “name” is SEO India, Whiter Teeth, or Natural Cialis) then you should respond to their comments. Likewise, you should be active in social networking on sites like Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn as applicable for your business, and engage your network; ask questions, answer queries, and promote their stuff as well. They will be more receptive and interested when you post a link to your most recent post.

Be Patient and Persistant

Blogging is not like PPC ads on Google; you don’t get page one results from day one. Instead, it takes time to succeed. I’d recommend 2 – 3 posts a week for six months before you start to get the results you’re looking for. Although that may seem daunting, those posts continue to drive new qualified leads to your site for as long as you have your blog. I have posts from 2006 that still bring in hundreds of new visitors every month. Now that’s return on investment.

Rich Brooks
Top 5 Lists Are Easier Than Top 10 Lists

Photo credit: WoodleyWonderWorks

Dear Maine SEO,

We’re trying to decide whether we should set up a business blog or do pay-per-click advertising. Which will provide a better return on investment?

–Marketing in Maine

Dear Marketing,

We’ve never recommended putting all your eggs in one basket, be they proverbial or free range. Both blogs–which help with your organic search rankings–and pay-per-click (PPC) ads–which appear on page one–can help deliver qualified traffic to your website.

One way to look at this is the difference between cooking in an aluminum pan vs. a cast-iron pan. The aluminum pan heats up quicker, but it also cools off quicker.

PPC advertising is a lot like that aluminum pan. If you need to get page one results on Google or Bing, you just need to pay them and your ads will start running immediately. Same day results. That’s fantastic for sites that may not otherwise do well in the organic results, such as new sites or sites that rely heavily on Flash.

However, the moment you stop paying them–whether because you hit your daily budget or you’ve decided that PPC is no longer for you–that traffic stops just as quickly. You’ll get no more benefit out of the money and time you’ve invested.

Compare this to blogging: you may not enjoy much search engine visibility for the first few months of your blogging and you’ll be putting in a lot of work…we’d recommend 2 – 3 keyword-rich posts a week of 300 words or more. However, once you’ve established your blog and built up trust and inbound links, your blog stays hot like a cast-iron pan.

In reviewing the top ten traffic generating posts this month at our web marketing blog, five of the posts are at least a year or two old, the oldest one was written in 2006! Five years later and it’s still pulling in hundreds of new visitors each month…that’s a much better payoff than most PPC campaigns in our opinion.

So, if your budget allows it, we might recommend setting up a small budget for PPC, but develop develop a business blog for your long term success.

Rich Brooks
Now You’re Cooking with Gas

Photo credit: Jeremy Noble