Archive for Google

16 Free Online Tools For Checking Backlinks

August 21, 2010 / David Redfern / No comments

In order to rank #1 on major search engines such a Google, Yahoo! and Bing, a link builder needs to know the back link profiles of their competitors and industry allies. Having this kind of knowledge makes link building easier, more efficient and most all more effective.

The tools listed below will not only help you discover your competition’s backlink profiles but will also provide ways to obtain relevant back links yourself.

  1. Backlink Watch – The Backlink Watch Tool a very simple way to check a website’s back link URL’s, anchor text and total OBL’s (outbound links) on the same page as that link.
  2. Analyze Backlinks – Another gold mine for exploring a competitor’s back links. This one provides more valuable options that allow you to filter out same domain URL’s and to search for factors such as target keyword mentions surrounding the links.
  3. Yahoo Site Explorer – Not really a linking tool, but you could quickly check a site’s inlink count and it’s top 10-1000 back links. Although this tool isn’t much more better than the previous 2, it does show the title of the linking pages and allows you to track you own websites if signed in and verified ownership of site.
  4. Google Search (link:yoursite.com) – No different than the one above except for the fact that the number of back links according to Google’s search engine is ALWAYS considerably lower than Yahoo!’s results. But the links that made it to Google’s results are assumingly affecting the search rankings.
  5. Alexa Backlink Checker – You can see total domains linking to a website and which domains they are. This Alexa tool also provides other great website data.
  6. Bad Neighborhood Text Link Tool – Great way to see what type of links a website accumulates, whether it be yours or a potential link partner.
  7. SoloSEO Link Search Tool – Quite possibly the easiest way online to find relevant back links, that are fairly easy to obtain.
  8. Webconfs’ Back link Anchor Text Analysis – Compare the top ranking site’s text links to yours. Is there a difference?
  9. Webconfs’ Back link Builder – Enter a keyword. Copy whole list(s), paste into excel. Filter.., or, get to work.
  10. Webconfs’ Backlink Summary – A quick summary similar to the results delivered by Analyze Backlinks & Backlink Watch.
  11. SEO for FireFox Plugin – Besides being able to provide you with on-demand access to data of the top ranking site’s instantly, the SEO for Firefox Tool also provides a great feature that highlights nofollow links (in red), so it’s easy to identify which inlinks count and which don’t.
  12. Google Webmaster Tools – Besides getting the best perspective of your website through the eyes of Google, the Google Webmaster Tools also tells you the links they’ve found, and their anchor text.
  13. Link Harvester – This tool is toward the end of the list because it provides the type of data far beyond what the basic linker needs. Nonetheless, it’s a oldie, but goodie.
  14. Search Combination Tool by We Build Pages – Not really a link building too at all. But adding phrases like “resources”, “links”, “favorite sites”, “suggest url”, etc. could add some fun to it.
  15. Recip Links – A tool that spiders a site (or list of sites) and checks to see if they are links to a specified domain.
  16. Link Appeal Tool – Is a link from your website really worth it? Find out with this tool how valuable your website is based on several factors. Aim to get links from sites of higher value than yours.
Category: Branding, Google, Latest News, SEO, Social Media / Tags: , , , , , , , ,

Google Searches Experience Some Improvement Tweaks

April 26, 2010 / David Redfern / No comments

There is little doubt that Google is the dominant force in today’s search engine market. This does not mean, however, that they should sit back and relax. Luckily for many users of the popular search engine, Google believes in improvement, as evidenced by some recent tweaks made to improve the usability of its search engine that were announced on the company’s blog on Friday, April 16.

In all, there were three major improvements added to Google’s search engine capabilities. The first improvement comes in the way of localized Google Suggest. Although localized Google Suggest was introduced to users last year, it was done so only in a manner that would suggest localized sites on a per-country basis. For example, users in London might see different suggestions than users in New York.

This time around, however, users in the United States can experience a more enhanced version of localized Google Suggest that will offer results based on the largest metropolitan area they are closest to. So, if a person in San Francisco types in “bart,” they could likely be searching for information on the region’s Bay Area Rapid Transit system, rather than sites related to the popular TV character, Bart Simpson.

Another example would be a web surfer in Miami who begins to type “dolphin” into the search form, which would now yield suggestions related to the area’s local football team, rather than the animal itself. These localized suggestions, new to users within the United States, should definitely add a little speed and ease to searches, and might help them find what they are looking for in a more streamlined manner.

The second major improvement to Google’s search engine revolves around spelling enhancements for names. As of right now, users in the United States will be the first affected by the name spelling improvements, with more enhancements coming in the near future for global users. The name spelling enhancements were made due to the fact that several people have names that are difficult to spell. With that in mind, Google has added some extra clues within their suggested search queries to help users find what they are looking for.

For example, a suggestion such as “matthew devin oracle” could be given, with “oracle” added at the end as a possible clue or suggestion to the user. Another example could be “simon tung machine learning,” with “machine learning” added to the end as a specific suggestion to the searcher. Considering the difficulty with spelling many names, these added enhancements should help users when searching for people, as they give added clues for the context in which the search is being performed.

The third and final search enhancement comes in the form of spelling auto-correction. While in the past Google used the “Did you mean” link at the top of results in the event of a misspelling, the search engine will now send users directly to the intended spellings’ results. This will happen when there is an extremely high probability that the user misspelled the word, saving them time by omitting the need to click the “Did you mean” link at the top. This correction has been made globally, spanning 31 different languages.

Despite its current dominance, it’s nice to know that Google’s minds are still churning out new ideas for improvement that should not only help them retain their current market share, but also keep users satisfied.

Category: Google, Latest News / Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Google arguably has an unrivalled willingness to try new things.

March 17, 2010 / David Redfern / No comments
From space and energy programs to virtual worlds and online hard drives, Google arguably has an unrivalled willingness to try new things. That’s not to say they’re all a success and a few, such as its Twitter-esque Jaiku have been deemed a failure and closed down. Knol however is one of the success stories and is still going strong more than a year after its launch.

This proliferation of traffic and scale raises an interesting question about how Google’s own tools can be used to increase your search engine visibility.

An important point to recognize when conducting a search engine optimisation campaign is that your success or failure does not necessarily depend on the web site itself appearing at the top of the search results. Think about SEO more as a chance to drive targeted traffic and raise online awareness (both pay offs of a good search results position) and you’ll begin to see why the use of other web sites and online properties can deliver that very same result. To my mind, that’s where Knol and Google’s other platforms come into play.

1. Knol

With a tag line ‘a unit of knowledge’, it seems that Knol was always intended to rival Wikipedia. An amalgamation of research and how to articles, Knol references social media in a big way. Material posted on Knol can be discussed by the community, reviewed, tagged and graded. Individual authors can collaborate with colleagues working in their field and even edit the work of others.

Benefits to your SEO Campaign:

As with all Google properties, it boasts an incredible PageRank (7), which makes it great link fodder.

As a collection of authoritative material about a particular topic, it’s also a very worthy showcase for research papers or white papers, helping to establish yourself as an expert in your field. This goes back to the principles of article marketing.

More importantly, the huge network of pages means it’s cropping up more and more often in Google search results. It isn’t displacing Wikipedia listings at the top of the page as yet so there’s no advantage to be gained in that sense but, it is another route through to your site from the higher echelons of the search results when your own site is languishing at the bottom of the pile.

2. YouTube

YouTube needs no introduction to the seasoned search engine optimizer. 99% of videos returned in Google Video results are YouTube based. Most publishers will only be able to dream of such dominance but, it’s easy to cash in and secure your own five minutes of fame with a prominent position for your brand. Simply create a YouTube account and upload your own videos.

Benefits to your SEO Campaign:

The best way to leverage this for search engine visibility is by using product demonstrations and how-to-programs. Steer away from marketing pitches and sales presentations.

YouTube has so much traffic going through it that you’re likely to find your target demographic searching for video related to your particular area of expertise. Reward that with helpful, useful footage and their next stop could be your web site or your store.

YouTube’s dominance in the video search results gives instant Google exposure, again shoring up your search engine presence if your own URL is not yet making an appearance in the top 10.

3. Blogger

If not already the largest online blogging platform, it surely can’t be long before Blogger camps out in the top spot permanently. This blog site is super easy to use with a friendly, problem-proof interface for the novice and more advanced branding and appearance options for the seasoned used.

Benefits to your SEO Campaign

It’s PageRank of 8 makes it excellent link fodder, just make sure that you abide by the core principles of SEO and build links around good quality content. As always the aim is to direct the search engine spiders and the end user back to the most relevant page on your site so deep link and use keywords in the anchor text to secure a double whammy.

You can keep the posts in an FTP sub directory on your own site, meaning you can use your blog postings to supplement site growth. This is hugely important, not just to show the search engine’s that you can keep your site up to date with relevant content but also to present readers and other bloggers with interesting pages to link to. This snowball effect will deliver more links and more inbound traffic.

Searches on most keywords will display a blogger.com URL somewhere in the search results. Again, this is a valuable route into your site for users who may not otherwise know your brand; if for example your own web site is not on page 1.

4. Local Search

Any location specific search will always trigger a Google Maps result at the top of the page. This enables you to get directions or more significantly, find a local business or store. Unlike Knol, Google does play favorites with Google Maps, always awarding it pride of place at the top of the page. Getting your business included in this section is a must if you have a physical storefront location.

Benefits to your SEO Campaign

Any business with a physical location can add their addresses and pictures to Google Local. When search users input keywords plus a state or zip code, your site will show up along with any images you’ve added to your listing. This is an invaluable opportunity to appear at the top of the SERPS, reinforcing your brand identity even if you have other page 1 listings.

Google Maps are a popular mobile search function as commuters search for directions or a restaurant / store nearby. This gives extra exposure for your web site, directing not only virtual traffic but physical foot traffic to your place of business.

Your listing is reinforced with images or a company logo, adding an extra note of interest to your web presence.

Category: Google, Latest News, SEO / Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
 
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