What Are Search Engine Spiders?

A spider, also known as a robot or a crawler, is actually just a program that follows, or "crawls", links throughout the Internet, grabbing content from sites and adding it to search engine indexes.

Spiders only can follow links from one page to another and from one site to another. That is the primary reason why links to your site (inbound links) are so important. Links to your website from other websites will give the search engine spiders more "food" to chew on. The more times they find links to your site, the more times they will stop by and visit. Google especially relies on its spiders to create their vast index of listings.

Spiders find Web pages by following links from other Web pages, but you can also submit your Web pages directly to a search engine or directory and request a visit by their spider.

Why Are Links Important?

Links Are Like Footnotes In Books

During the development and evolution of the Internet, it has become routine for site owners to give credit to other sites for the material or content they publish. Website owners do this by putting a link on their site to the web page of the other site. One could consider links to act like a footnote in a research paper, as a way to reference the work of someone else. Before, there used to be a time when links didn't matter, though at least not like they do today.

A few of the search engines looked at back links for a portion of their algorithms, but it didn't carry the same weight as it does today. Now, in order to be competitive in nearly any online industry, back links are essential. Back links do not only give the search engines a barometer of a site's popularity, they also aid in determining the topic, and relevance of a site in relation to its targeted keywords. Though the art of SEO is, and will always be very important, gathering relevant back links is steadily increasing in importance.

What are Feeds? What is RSS?


This video does a good job describing how feeds work.


Below is similar information, in a boring textual format.

Offline Subscriptions

In the offline world we subscribe to our interests by

• paying for magazine subscriptions
• watching TV channels and shows that interest us at the same time each week
• reading all books created by a favorite author

Online vs Offline

Online individuals and companies create a vast sea of content. Too much content perhaps. To keep up with all the new content every day I could visit SeoBook.com, sethgodin.typepad.com, SearchEngineLand.com, SEOMoz.org, Shoemoney.com, TropicalSEO.com Wolf-Howl.com, and a bunch of other great blogs and news websites.

Or, to keep myself organized, I could subscribe to feeds from all these great sites and access them all from one place. Feeds allow you to subscribe to information you find relevant and useful, and be notified when your favorite websites are updated

Instead of needing to visit all the above websites every day you could just go to Google (Google Reader or iGoogle), My Yahoo!, or Bloglines and read all the news at any one of these sites. You do not need to visit all 3 sites to read the news. Just pick your favorite one and subscribe to a bunch of your favorite sites. If you are an avid online reader using RSS subscriptions to keep track of the news can save you hours a day.

So what exactly is social networking?

Social networking is a topic that has been gaining much interest and publicity lately. It seems that social networking will be a common part of our lives. A huge benefit of those utilizing social networking is connecting with others that have the same interests or are part of the same industry.

So what exactly is social networking? Simply, social networking is a way to seek connection and bond with others. A very well known social networking site is the hugely popular Friendswin. Although the field of social networking is a broad one, it basically consists of two areas: socializing with friends and professional networking. The true power of social networking is the unhindered connection of people with similar interests. It is about meeting those that have like interests and being free to express yourself. It has become a part of people's identities.

Joining a social networking site enables you to gain introductions to many people who you would not otherwise be able to gain access to. Social features provided by most community sites are blogging, email, groups, classifieds and forums. One of the amenities provided by some community sites are free chat rooms or conference rooms. It is the easiest way to share photos, journals and interests with a growing network of mutual friends. And you thought social networking was all about text-messaging among bored teenagers. The goal of virtual networking is to get noticed, to meet people and to develop relationships on your own time and in your own space.

If you haven joined a social networking site yet, I highly recommend that you try one today. The friends that you can make are just one of the many benefits to social networking online. To join a social networking site, you will have to go through a registration process. To start finding new friends, you must create a profile first and tell others a little about yourself. Without a personal profile, it is difficult or impossible to tell what your interests are. Just remember that although online communities are a great place to meet other internet users, they can also be dangerous. One way to protect yourself, is to only use your first name in your profile. In your profile if you are required to list the city and the state that you live in, you may want to think about using a nearby city or town, especially if you live in a small town. In addition to the above precautionary measures, it is advised that you do not post detailed information on your children, the location of your home, your income or when you will be gone for awhile.

Gerald Franklin
You Google Me

Why is Visualization important in internet marketing?

The art of visualization is a subject that may not be widely advertised on the internet, but it is one area that I think must be pursued for a person to become success either online or offline. Visualization marketing is the simple process whereby a person visualizes the success of an online opportunity that they are pursuing, thus setting up the key elements in life geared to producing those results in real life.

Many mental masters throughout history knew and wrote about the importance of visualizing what is desired to come into a person's life. This simple act of quieting the mind and thinking about the success of a certain element in life, such as a healthy body, more money, obtaining that job or that new car...all these thoughts that are rampaging through our consciousness 24/7 can be directed to our ultimate harm...or our ultimate good.

The choices that we make today were quite possibly thought about years ago and are just now manifesting themselves into reality today.

If a person is constantly worried and fearful about losing their health, it is an all too often occurrence that happens that they lose that good health. If one feels fearful about an event that they think is going to happen, it probably will.

Conversely, we as human beings are able to project good thoughts in place of those bad and start visualizing what we want to accomplish. We may think about making money, or good health, or losing weight...whatever the reason...when we begin to visualize the act happening, it will happen at some point in the future

Certainly there is no way to predict when the actual event will take place, but it will happen with consistent visualization practices

The art of visualizing what you want to accomplish is very simple.

Before arising in the morning...simply take a few moments to think about and imagine what you want to accomplish that day. If you want to make money...see the money coming to you...taste the money...smell the money...rub the money all over you. You have just set into motion the very techniques that I use every day in my life. It works every time like clockwork. I know that it will work for you
Gerald Franklin
You Google Me
423-426-5141

Here is some other great info on the art of writing an effective press release:

Press Release Format Guidelines FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Headline Be creative and keep it to one sentence.

Capitalize the first letter of all words but do not use all caps

Exclamation marks (“!”) only sell your release as advertising, not news.

Paragraph 1 City, State, Month, Day, Year – Begin with a strong introductory paragraph that captures the reader’s attention and contains the information most relevant to your message such as the five W's - who, what, when, where, and why.

This paragraph should summarize the press release and include a hook to get your audience interested in reading more.

Paragraph 2, 3, 4, … These paragraphs should contain more detailed important information, and make up the body of the release.

Make sure you use correct grammar so as not to affect your credibility negatively.

Use quotes or information about businesses, and most importantly have an angle that will appeal to journalists (often by connecting your release to current events or issues).

Effective releases usually utilize a strategy known as the inverted pyramid, which is written with the most important information and quotes first.

The body of your release should be more than one paragraph.

The final paragraph should restate and summarize the key points of your release.

Additional 1 Provide avenues for the reader to obtain additional information, demos, samples, etc., but please DO NOT include Internet links.

Additional 2 Trademark acknowledgment, product or event timelines, availability, logistics, etc

Additional 3 Background information about the company featured in the release, if appropriate, as well as any applicable safe harbor statement. ### (end with these characters) A FINAL NOTE: With an effective release, it should be possible to cut off the bottom half of the release and still provide journalists with sufficient information.

Writing good effective press releases is one of the most important aspects of internet marketing.

A press release, when properly written will often come to the top of a search engine relatively quickly. Here are a few guidelines to follow when approaching this often overlooked, but highly effective means of getting one's website noticed.

1. The first lines of your press releases shall include: "FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE" (or FOR RELEASE Dec 25, 2002) and "For more information, contact:" followed by your contact information.

2.Craft a compelling headline. The headline makes your release stand out. Keep it short, active, and descriptive. If you don't know how, read a number of compelling headlines till you get some idea.

3.Hook reader with the first paragraph. A first paragraph shall summarize the five W's: who, what, where, when and why. In fact, most readers will give up if you haven't "hooked" them in the first few lines.

4. Put the most important information at the beginning. This is a tried and true rule of journalism. Never hide golden points to the end.

5. Don't sell but answer questions! Making over-inflated statements is helpless to your business. Write a release that answers questions about your business, rather than piling flowery adjectives without saying why.

6. Don't say it, show it. Avoid saying something is "unique" or "the best". Instead, show how people will benefit - i.e. save time, save money, make their life easier, etc.

7. A 'non- biased' source like university professor or software reviewer is very helpful.

8. Provide all possible contact information including mail address, telephone, fax, e-mail and web site (especially for online business).

9. Proofread & Proofread! Do remember to proofread your press release for typographical errors before you send them out.

10. End your press release with "###" (without the quotation marks) after your last lines of text. This symbol lets the editors know they have successfully received the entire release.

11. Use good relevant and original content in your press release. This is NOT the place for copying and pasting...search engine spiders can tell the difference...

12. Don't do what everyone else does...never SELL in a press release...just put good information and approach this area as if you are funnelling people to where you want them to eventually land

13. Think differently about your project. You simply cannot sell anyone anything at any time. Once you begin to understand this, the process becomes simple.

Gerald Franklin
You Google Me
423-426-5141

Why Blog?

It seems everyone these days is talking about blogging. Everywhere I go, I find articles and forums devoted to this craze. I also have heard from many home business owners who are trying to figure out what a blog is and how they can use one to their benefit.

The term "blog" is short for "weblog", which just means an online journal or "log". You can jot down personal thoughts and notes, post articles you've written or keep track of interesting websites you find. The sky is the limit, it seems, when it comes to blogging. A blog is something entirely of your own creation and you can use it to share your thoughts with the world, well?.with anyone you can get to read it anyway.

One of the main debates going on about blogs is whether blogging can be done to improve Search Engine rankings for businesses or to create a buzz about business websites. Both of these can be true if the blog is used correctly. Many resources show that once a blog is created, many times it is listed in Search Engines within 48 hours.

These are many ways to create a blog. The easiest by far is to use one of the free tools available online, such as Google's Blogger. You can create your blog for free using their online tools and templates(nothing to download). After you have created the blog, you can then publish your blog through them and "Wa-La" ? your blog is posted online for the world to see.

Once you've created your blog, you will need to decide how you will use it. Will it be a personal blog, full of thoughts and comments for yourself alone or maybe your family? Or will it be a business blog, with articles and tips for potential customers? If you want your blog to be found by others, blogging experts recommend that you begin by setting the title and descriptions for your blog. These are similar to the the title and descriptions you set for your website. Try to make them meaningful because they are what people will see when your blog is returned in a Search Engine. If your description is simply "my blog", you may not draw the attention you'd like.

If you are blogging in the hopes of attracting customers, make sure to use wise use of words and links in your blogs. Try to avoid the "click here" link. Instead, opt for links within descriptive sentences. Add the HTML link within the sentence and attach it to the words that are closely related to the page or site you are linking to. For example, to link to my website I would not use "click here" as my link. I would say, "Please visit You Google Me."

There are many ways to get your blog noticed outside of optimizing them for Search Engines. For instance, there are entire websites devoted to listing blogs dedicated to any topic that you can think of. You can also use free tools such a FeedBurner.com to track the traffic on your blog and to create a dynamic title box that can be used to display your blog headlines on your website or even in your email signature. Each time you update your blog, these headlines are instantly updated.

There are many ways to use a blog for either personal or business use. If used correctly, a blog can be a terrific tool to inform potential customers of your business. Be sure to update your blog at least once a week so that the content remains fresh and you remain in the Search Engines.

Gerald Franklin
You Google Me

Online Branding Strategy

No matter what you sell, this is one of the most important aspects of your business. What am I talking about? Your online branding strategy. It is one of the most basic components of all companies, and is so important, that it could in fact make the difference between succeeding and succumbing to your competition. But what exactly does it mean? And how do you make sure yours is what it should be? Read on to learn more.

Your brand is what makes you and your company different from anyone else’s. While it might be more of a perceived difference than an actual one, its significance is vital nonetheless. Why should a customer buy your product instead of the one sitting right next to it on the store shelves? Why should they walk into your store instead of the one across the street? The answers to these questions lie in the brand that you are promoting.

You need to position your company in a certain way that will make it stand out from the rest in the industry. Do you want to be the young, innovative, and edgy company? Or is yours more of a traditional and trustworthy company? Are you out to offer the customer value and low prices? Or is yours for those who are willing to pay more for higher quality goods? These are all questions you need to have the answers to before you can get your company’s brand on track.

Think of your online branding strategy as the way in which you are going to communicate your brand to the market. How are you going to get your message across? Who do you want to reach? Where and when are you going to distribute your messages? And, finally, what exactly is that message? You need to be sure of these questions before you begin, because consistency is one of the key elements of a successful strategy.

The value of a brand lies in the very fact that it is something that should always be with your company. If you are changing your company’s brand every month, then you might as well not have one. A brand needs to be consistent so that it can grow over time. That does not mean being inflexible to the changing times, but rather staying on course.

Brands allow your customers to get a sense of your company before they ever step into your store or buy your product. That intrinsic value can often propel companies to the top almost overnight. Just take a look at Coca-Cola and Nike, two of the most powerful corporate brands in the world.

If your company is going to succeed out there in the fiercely competitive market, it is going to need a strong oline branding strategy. Get a solid grasp of what you want your company to be about, who you want to reach, and what makes you special and different from the rest. Without that, there is no hope of ever rising to the top.

Gerald Franklin
You Google Me

Branding Yourshelf

Branding yourself is a concept that represents everything about your business or company. It sets your business and products apart from the competition. Only the businesses who communicate the real value of their product in today's world of high expectations will accomplish everything they want. So, what makes you and your product different?

The main goal of branding yourself is to own a product category. By branding yourself, you are identifying and defining everything from packaging to public relations. Your brand should epitomize the personality of your company.

Since it will have a huge impact on your bottom line, it is very important that you create a solid brand for yourself and your company. When your targeted customer becomes loyal to your brand, price will become less of an issue for your company.

There are many different elements that go into making a successful brand. First, there is relevance. Do your target customers believe that they need your product in their life? Will it make a positive difference in their daily life? Will it make their life easier? Will it make them feel good about themselves?

Another element is differentiation. What makes the benefits of your products or services different from the competition? Next there is brand awareness. Do your potential customers even know that your company or products exist? Brand awareness will lead to a preference for your brand because it will be the first thing that comes to mind when they think of your product or service.

Lastly there is consistency. If you are inconsistent in your business communications and products, then your potential customers will be confused and it will have a negative impact on your brand identity. This makes it important to define who you and your business are to set yourself apart from the competition.

What happens once you know who you are and you have branded yourself? Once you have defined yourself and your company's products, then you need to focus on the above issues to help separate yourself from your competition. Your logo should help your potential customers define your product at a glance. Make sure that you create the best image to represent your company and its products. You should create a tag line. A tag line is a sentence or phrase that describes your products or services and helps your customers identify it anywhere.

Careful and controlled branding can result in an increase in sales, more customers, and an ability to increase the value, and thus, the pricing of your products or services

You Google Me

The Importance of Online Branding

When was the last time you bought a can of cola online? A television? Signed up for legal representation? While internet marketing (Google) is a great way to drive traffic to your website to generate sales or leads, there are still many people who either won’t or can’t purchase online. However, many of these people will do research online before going a bricks and mortar store to make their purchase or before picking up the phone to make an appointment. That is one reason why more and more businesses are actively using the internet to get their brand in front of a growing number of targeted eyeballs.
Branding helps because:

• It is your identity
• It communicates your message to others
• It builds reputation and trust * It separates you from your competitors
• *Your online brand should be aimed at your target audience on Google And Yahoo.
  

Keep in mind that your online brand is more than just your website. Consider all the other online avenues that your company and others use to publish information about your brand. Information within your control such as press releases, company blogs, articles, etc., can all find their way into Google and Yahoo search engine results. Information out of your control such as product reviews and customer opinions can also find their way into the results. Because there are external factors involved, many organizations are now monitoring what people are saying online about their brands.

A growing group of brand advocates on – individuals who are inspired spokespersons on behalf of a brand, are rapidly gaining the attention and consideration of many businesses. Businesses are learning to nurture these advocates by feeding them the latest news, providing advance knowledge of updates, and most of all, listening to their opinions and ideas regarding products, services, advertising, and other aspects of the company-client relationship. These brand advocates can make or break the success of online brands.

The development of advocacy creates increased opportunities for the branding message to be passed on virally or by word-of-mouth. Web 2.0 or social networking sites play a pivotal role in the rapid spread of consumer related information about brands. These types of sites were developed so that individuals could communicate with others who shared similar tastes or outlooks.

Online Branding can no longer be thought of as something that can immediately be transferred from offline to online. Online branding in the Web 2.0 age requires a change of focus away from the company’s branding message towards the message formulated by the consumers of the brand. The strongest online brands are built on a foundation of brand advocacy coupled with a solid, consistent branding message from the parent company.

Gerald Franklin