2011 will always be remembered as one of the best and exciting year for search engine optimization (SEO). We got an early push with not so favorable Panda/Farmer Update at Google. That update alone changed tons of stuff and gave lot to talk about the entire year.

But if you ask me, this this update was very much required. I did get hit on few of my personal sites which I was using for testing…but I think it was very much required. And not only this..Google kept on hitting us with lot of version..

Timeline for Google Panda Update (Google was really busy this year in cleaning up the mess which they should have done before)

• Panda/Farmer – February 23, 2011
• Panda 2.0 – April 11, 2011
• Panda 2.1 – May 9, 2011
• Panda 2.2 – June 21, 2011
• Panda 2.3 – July 23, 2011
• Panda Goes Global (2.4) – August 12, 2011
• Panda 2.5 – September 28, 2011
• Panda “Flux” – October 5, 2011
• Panda 3.1 – November 18, 2011

Here is the history of updates(apart from Panda) which really made the whole year interesting for us.

Overstock.com Penalty – January 2011
This was the 1st time we saw Google changing it’s attitude towards big brands..and we saw Overstock.com penalized for shady SEO practices. During the same period, we saw JCPenney got the same taste for doing similar stuff. This move by Google was appreciated by the community and made a strong statement about Google keeping the index clean.

• Google Penalizes Overstock for Search Tactics (WSJ)
• Overstock.com’s Google Rankings – Too Good? (WMW)

Attribution Update – January 28, 2011
This was the start of something new and big. Google rolled out an update to help better sort out content attribution and stop scrapers. According to Matt Cutts, this update affected about 2% of queries.

• Algorithm Change Launched (Matt Cutts)
• Latest Google Algorithm change (Search News Central)

The +1 Button – March 30, 2011
This one update must have been welcomed by many..esp how well it can be manipulated for their benefit. This was kind of desperate attempt from Google to try something where they can add some social thing to their search results. But I hope Google is not using this or plan to use as a ranking factor..

Schema.org – June 2, 2011
This update will play a major role in the coming years…but I will always call this of an lazy approach from these SE’s. They want us to help their bots by providing structured data. They also created a number of new “schemas”, in an apparent bid to move toward even richer search results.

• Google, Bing & Yahoo Unite To Make Search Listings Richer Through Structured Data (SEL) What is Schema.org? (Schema.org)

Expanded Sitelinks – August 16, 2011
This update was praised by many marketers..esp the way it will help to manage reputation management. After experimenting for a while, Google officially rolled out expanded site-links, most often for brand queries.

• The evolution of sitelinks: expanded and improved (Google)

Pagination Elements – September 15, 2011
To help fix crawling of pages and avoid duplication problem created by pagination, Google introduced the rel=”next” and rel=”prev” link attributes. Google also announced that they had improved automatic consolidation and canonicalization for “View All” pages.

• Pagination with rel=“next” and rel=“prev” (Google)

Query Encryption – October 18, 2011
This was inevitable esp they way everyone was talking about privacy. Google decided to encrypt search queries, for privacy reasons. Unfortunately, this disrupted organic keyword referral data, returning “(not provided)” for some organic traffic. So far the percentage of “(not provided)” in keyword report is growing fast and thus creating tons of issues for us.

• Making search more secure (Google)

Freshness Update – November 3, 2011
Google announced that an algorithm change rewarding freshness would impact up to 35% of queries. This update primarily affected time-sensitive results, but signaled a much stronger focus on recent content.

• Giving you fresher, more recent search results (Google)

2012 can be more exciting/challenging than 2011

There will be a new shift in marketing. We will notice a significant change in approach towards how sale is being made..and people will be more informed about your service and what to buy. Some of the important ones I see impacting our work are:

Privacy and No Data Headaches
We will have more updated geared towards privacy and thus more headaches as we will have less data to understand and work upon. We might end up with only SSL..

Intense Social War
Twitter and Facebook has already rolled out a new design update with a intention to create more engagement and make the user spent more time on their platform. I see Google getting more aggressive with Plus integration to it’s services. May be Facebook jumping into the Search space. That would be exciting.

Mobile and Tablets
We already know how more and more people are using these gadgets to surf web. This is the perfect time to start thinking about these users. As future will be mobile.

• People Now Spend More Time With “Mobile” Than Print Mags, Newspapers Combined

In my next post, I will cover some of the best post on SEO which was made in 2011. Stay tuned..and happy holidays.

Perfect timing..

I saw this Video yesterday…a good one…and no surprises here..

While email marketing may not get the attention many of the newer tools get, it’s still a great way for you to generate leads and convert more prospects for your business. With that in mind, I wanted to share some email marketing highest quality tactics you can use to generate more leads for your business.

1. Use Incentives to Improve Open Rates: When you include an incentive in your subject line, you can increase open rates by as much as 50%. “Free shipping when you spend $25 or more” and “Receive a free iPod with demo” are good examples of good, incentive-focused subject lines.

2. Stick to Not so many Than 3 Typefaces: The less clutter you have in your email, the more conversions you’ll experience. Don’t junk up your email with more than 2, or at maximum, 3 typefaces.

3. Continue to keep the Main Message and Call-to-Action Above the Fold: If your main call-to-action falls below the fold, then as a lot of as 70% of recipients won’t see it. Also, any call-to-action need to be repeated at least 3 times throughout the email.

4. Maintain Your Email 500-650 Pixels Wide: If you go wider than 650 pixels, then you’re asking users to scroll horizontally to read your whole message. That’s a no-no.

5. Put Your Logo in the Upper Left-Hand Side of the Email: Eye tracking scientific studies have found that people instinctively seem for logos in the upper left-hand side of emails. Put your logo in the upper left-hand side to guarantee it gets the most visibility.

6. Write Compelling Subject Lines: A good subject line should contain no more than 30 to 50 characters. It should also establish a sense of urgency, and it should give readers some indication of what to anticipate once they open the email.

7. Use Auto-Responders for Opt-Ins: Be ready for your viewers to forget they opted in. Set up an auto-responder that reminds people they opted in to your email database. The auto-responder should be sent out 1 day, 5 days, and 10 days after the person registers. Each auto-responder email should include additional content or bonus material to reward the reader for opting in.

8. Closely Tie Emails to Landing Pages: Your landing page should match the email in terms of headline, copy, and content. The look and feel of your landing page should also match the email. And make sure you’re utilizing tracking tools to see which emails and landing pages performed the best.

9. Conduct a 5-Second Test: Send a copy of the email to a friend or business associate. Can they quickly tell what your call-to-action is? If so, you’re golden. If not, keep working.

There are a lot of different tools in a marketer’s tool chest that are getting a good amount of attention these days. But don’t forget about old, yet reliable and faithful tools that can still really help you get the most out of your marketing initiatives.

What are your experiences with email marketing? Do you have any tips you’d like to share?

Conversion Rate Optimization (CRO) includes numerous actions and techniques designed to enable Internet merchants and marketers to merely and consistently gain amazing increases in website conversions, and for that reason an increase in new business, ongoing clients, and/or site tests. Commonly used together with split-testing software, a CRO system will help you just like a domain and company owner to find out which to check on (and more importantly, items to change) since it helps guide you easier to design webpages that effectively convert your sites visitors straight into leads or sales.

The primary reason behind CRO is to help you in growing your website and reaching your goals in relation to revenue and profits, business or site membership levels. In the event you own and promote a distinctive interest website, most of your objective is most likely individuals of accelerating your customers list and membership. Therefore, conversion rate optimization data is founded on real business metrics, not basically on abstractions for instance click-through data and bounce rates. Presently, most Internet marketers using CRO just like a tool to produce better returns utilizing their online possibilities, agree that strongly growing website conversions works out to become the fastest and several reliable method of benefiting from the website site visitors you already may have.

Exactly What Are Some the simple Mathematics Connected with CRO?

The conversion rate from the domain or web site is the same as the share of site visitors who get a particular goal throughout confirmed time sequence. Usual goals include making purchases, requesting services and joining e-newsletter distribution lists. To have the ability to increase your landing page conversion rate by 25%, you need to accomplish a few 5% improvement including ten of individuals elements: company tagline, primary headline, introduction text, photographs and graphics, product and repair explanations, offers, usability, guarantees, site navigation, positive approach, site layout, prices, recommendations, and product return/refund recommendations only to title a few.

When undertaking a simple A/B test on the internet page, the Google Website Optimizer software does the mathematics to suit your needs.  Half of the website visitors will view Headline A while another half view Headline B. Each client will probably be proven another combination of site elements, for instance text, images, ads, prices, and deals. After, this program will compute typically the most effective undertaking site components. These results might be of great help in creating the very best dynamic presentation and Website for that site and business interests. This comprehensive method of site tests are known as multivariate testing.

Some other type of Testing common in CRO?

A number of testing and analysis are usually found in conversion rate optimization, like the following:

• Web statistics. The essential site overlay feature of Web statistics unveils whereby your site visitors click, where it normally will not click, so when they exit the web site. Basically, this useful feature reviews what your site visitors do.

• Usability testing. This impressive test enables you understand why site visitors perform some specific action.

• Eyetracking. This CRO component alerts you which site elements visitors see without clicking, and what items people don’t click since they simply don’t uncover their location. With this particular method, you will need particularly designed hardware. Presently, a startup group, GazeHawk, offers reduced eyetracking through the use of normal webcams.

• Clickmapping. You will discover two primary parts of this CRO activity, Crazy Egg and then Click Tale. Crazy Egg will help you monitor which parts of your website visitors choose to click and exactly how the page is aimed to the degree of their interest. Click Tale enables you to see flash movies revealing the individual activities of each visitor to your domain.

• Both customer surveys and cooperative competition (supplying the products and services of rivals available on your own domain, frequently becoming an affiliate) are additional good helps you to understanding the conversions accomplished due to your market competition. Live chat periods can also be eye-openers in this area.

What is the Role of CRO throughout SEO Campaigns?

SEO campaigns are focused towards targeted traffic from search engines to the website; the goal of CRO is always to enhance your conversions substantially. CRO can help convert your site visitors into a valuable client. Most online business marketers comprehend the primary areas of effective SEO-top end site construction by experienced content authors and designers. Additional resources such as top placement in search engine directories, use of Google Adwords and other online advertising and keyword aids, pay-per-click (PPC) ad campaigns, and building a presence via social networks like Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter and search engine social media sites like YouTube are highly efficient and proactive elements of expert SEO. However, in order to transform all the new traffic this finely-tuned SEO has driven to your site into conversions, what is then needed is the uniquely combined creative and scientific effects of CRO.

What CRO Techniques Are Commonly Recommended by Online Marketing Experts?

Almost all CRO system experts recommend various testing techniques to get the most accurate and productive approach to achieve greater website conversions. There’s, however, another thought process that’s centered on studying and reaching an audience by means of remarketing, re-messaging and retargeting (affixing cookies to site visitors to later serve these with site-and-product-related banner ads and messages extended after they have gone an online site without conversion). At this point in time, the general consensus is that while different varieties of behavioral targeting can lend a valuable boost to SEO-CRO campaigns, results of comprehensive CRO system testing will undoubtedly lead to the highest conversion rates possible.

Do share your experience with these tools…

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