6 Reasons to Get Stoked for SearchLove New York

Going to industry conferences can be hit or miss. Some are just traps vendor set to trick you into sitting through sales pitches that somewhat resemble presentations. Distilled's SearchLove conference in New York City will be anything but a trick, despite taking place over Halloween. Here are six reasons I'm stoked to be going to one of the highest quality SEO conferences out there.

1. The SEOMoz/Distilled Connection - I've been in search for a few years now, and cut my teeth in the industry thanks to blog posts, guides and Whiteboard Fridays by the likes of Will Critchlow, Tom Critchlow, and SEOMoz CEO and Co-Founder, Rand Fishkin. Seeing them all speak under one roof is going to be a real treat.
2. Top-Notch Session Quality - Previous Distilled events have received top marks from attendees, with average ratings of speakers and presentations ranking impressively in the upper 80's and 90's. Close to 90% of previous Distilled conference-goers also assessed the subject matter as not being too simple or too advanced. SearchLove promises to be just right.
3. All-Star Cast of Search Experts - As if the SEOMoz and Distilled crew wasn't enough to be impressed, SearchLove also boasts speakers such as Wil Reynolds, Michael Gray, and Rhea Drysdale. Every session promises to enlighten, educate and entertain.
4. Time for Fun and Networking - After a day of great information, what will be better than engaging in conversations about the conference at the networking events planned for after each day's sessions? All hopped up on new SEO insights, search marketers will no doubt be taking over Manhattan come SearchLove!
5. This Conference is Made in New York City - I worked and lived in NYC for about eight months back near the turn of the century and loved every minute of it. The City is amazing and I can't wait for the excitement of a premium search conference to meet the energy of one of the greatest cities in the world. 
6. SearchLove's Reputation Precedes It - SearchLove New York is next week, but today marks the start of SearchLove London, which completely sold out. I'm taking this as a great sign that the folks in London know a great opportunity when they see it. I wouldn't be surprised if SearchLove New York was sold out by the time it starts next week as well.

If you're still on the fence, see here and here, then go book yourself a ticket. I hope you decide to go and that we have a chance to chat either at the conference or one of the great networking events. SearchLove New York promises to be an amazing chance to learn, connect and have fun with other search professionals.

In Search of MN Search Marketing Professionals

I've been working in the search engine marketing industry in Minnesota for a few years now. During that time I've attended a number of conferences and marketing meetups in the Twin Cities. While I meet a wide variety of marketers and creative folks, running into another SEO profesional isn't that common. 

It might be that I'm not going to the right events, or it might be that there just aren't a ton of people in the Twin Cities SEO market. I'm not sure, but it can be frustrating. I'm contacted frequently by people looking for SEO services, and I always know of a good SEO agency position or in-house job opening. (In fact, at this very moment I know of two excellent opportunities for full-time positions). It bugs me that I often run out of people to recommend when these things come up.

Are you an established or aspiring SEO in the Twin Cities? Let's connect! You can contact me directly for more details if you're looking for an SEO job in the Twin Cities, or find me on LinkedIn (jlbraaten at gmail.com) if you'd simply like to add me to your network.

How to Add Google Webmaster Tools to Squarespace

Your strategy for adding new content to your blog or website should constantly be evolving. The web is measurable, so why continue to blindly do things the same way? Why not see how people react to the content you create using web measurement tools and then leverage those insights to drive future content creation projects? Google Webmaster Tools is one such measurement tool. Let's take a look at the benefits of Webmaster Tools and how to install them on Squarespace.

What is Google Webmaster Tools?

When you think of online measurement tools, you probably think of web analytics tools such as Google Analytics that measure the traffic you get to your website. These tools are important, but can only do so much. Google Webmaster Tools shows how Google sees your site on the web and provides a handful of reporting and administrative tools that provide many benefits to webmasters that use the free service.

Installing Google Webmaster Tools on Squarespace

If you use Squarespace to manage your blog or website, follow these simple steps to claim your website on Google Webmaster Tools. If you use something else, the steps are similar but slightly different for most web publishing tools, so it can't hurt to follow along.

Start by heading over to Google Webmaster Tools (you'll need to log in or create a Google account). Find the link to Add a site and enter the website you wish to claim (e.g., www.shellysremodeling.com). Select Continue.

If you're using the same Google account for both Google Analytics and Google Webmaster Tools, you can simply select the Verify option within the Recommended method tab. If not, click on the Alternate methods tab.

Select the option to Add a meta tag to your site's home page and copy the verification code within the block of text that appears in the instructions.

Now log in to your Squarespace website and select Website Settings from the Website Management menu.

Click on the Code Injection tab and paste your Google Webmaster Tools verification code in the code injection text box for your website header code. Hit Update Information to save the changes.

Go back to your Google Webmaster Tools window and press the Verify button. You should see a screen like this.

Select the Continue link to visit your Google Webmaster Tools menu and begin supplementing your web analytics data with the extra insights GWT provides.

Google Webmaster Tools can show you which search terms drive traffic to your site, which sites on the web are linking to you, and many, many more insightful nuggets for improving the content of your website or blog. Spend a few minute installing Google Webmaster Tools on your Squarespace site, then come back and share your thoughts on Google tool for website owners in the comments.

Do Facebook and Twitter Endorse Black Hat SEO?

Black Hat SEO has become a hot topic in the last year within mainstream society. Stories about Overstock.com, J.C. Penney and others have further muddied the public's perception of search engine optimization as a respectable profession and legitimate way for companies to earn new business. And as social media continues to influence search results more and more, there are now two big players in social media who may be openly encouraging black hat SEO tactics. Specifically, it now appears that Facebook and Twitter may be endorsing black hat social SEO.

What is Black Hat SEO?

SEOs know that the most important factor in our profession has traditionally been the number of quality links from other pages on the web that point to our websites. Google sees links as votes, and rewards the most popular pages with the coveted spots in the top of the search results.

Black Hat SEOs have tactics that typically involve creating links (or votes) artificially as a way to trick Google's algorithms. Buying links is like buying votes in an election. It's easy to see how they would be considered artificial.

But other types of artificial links are less intuitive. Overstock.com didn't actually buy any links, but rather gave universities' students big product discounts that the colleges could post on their websites in the form of links to the Overstock product pages. Overstock gave college kids 30% discounts in return for nearly doubling their average monthly web traffic from around 10 million to 20 million visitors per month. Ultimately there was a quid pro quo, discounts for links, and Google stepped in and penalized Overstock (and others).

(Click on image to visit Quantcast.com, a web traffic measurement company)

So Then What is Black Hat Social SEO?

Search engines confirmed they are using signals from social media in the search algorithms. The number of Likes and tweets containing links to a particular page are making a big difference in the search results. It stands to reason that Likes and tweets are being looked at by search engines more and more just like links in terms of importance. And yet the tactics behind acquiring Likes, tweets and links are quite different.

Search engines discourage getting links in any way that is deemed fake, paid or spammy. On the other hand,  Facebook currently permits compensation in exchange for a Like of a page. From their Promotions Guidelines:

"You must not condition registration or entry upon the user taking any action using any Facebook features or functionality other than liking a Page, checking in to a Place, or connecting to your app."

In other words, you can't ask people to do some things, but compensate people all you'd like for Likes.

And Twitter's guidelines aren't much different. While they discourage repeated tweets, it's perfectly acceptable to ask someone to link to a page and include a hashtag in return for entry into a contest.

Do Facebook and Twitter Endorse Black Hat SEO?

This is where it gets tricky. Facebook and Twitter have developed their own user communities and customs over the courses of their respective histories. Facebook has obviously found something that works for them, as their users number well past 750 million. And Twitter's no slouch either at around 150 million users. They've got a good thing going on, so why should they have to change?

On the other hand, shouldn't there be the same level of authenticity on the social web as what Google attempts to drive within the search results? Astroturfing is disapproved of as a way to get fake attention in social media. Should it be just as taboo to get paid attention through contest Likes and tweets?

What do you think? Should social media sites continue to condone compensation for tweets, Likes and other social engagement, or should Google's concept of an authentic vote drive a change in Facebook and Twitter's black hat SEO-friendly contest rules? Share your thoughts in the comments.

Performing Squarespace 301 Redirects for SEO Success

We've all had to change the structure of our websites from time to time. Our domain name changes, we add/remove things from the blog URL structure (e.g., the month/day) and we move around pages per the new plan. But if search engine traffic is important to you, you'll want to know about an important SEO tool used when content moves on your Squarespace site. You'll want to know about the 301 redirect.

What is a 301 Redirect?

If you've ever moved houses, you may have went through the effort to fill out a Change of Address form with the United States Postal Service. The post office had an updated record of where you lived and was therefore able to send your mail to your new address instead of your old one. The Change of Address form is like a 301 redirect.

When you move content around on your website, your content is changing addresses on the web. A 301 redirect provides a map from your old URLs to your new ones. When someone tries to visit a web page that has been 301 redirected, they are automatically taken to the new page.

Why Should I 301 Redirect for SEO?

When people link to your web pages, you're building SEO equity for that page and your website as a whole. The more links you have to your site, the more likely you are to rank for key search phrases. 301 redirects are the only way to retain SEO equity when URLs change on your website. If you think someone may have linked to a page you plan on moving, perform a 301 redirect.

Performing a 301 Redirect in Squarespace

Squarespace makes it pretty easy to create a 301 redirect. In fact, they automatically redirect your old content to your new Squarespace site if you use their blog importer. And for those redirects that you'd like to create manually, they provide an easy 301 redirect utility. Let's take a look.

To use the Squarespace 301 redirect tool, select the URL Shortcuts link from the Website Management menu.

Enter your old URL into the shortcut URL field and the new URL into the existing URL field. Select 301 Redirect from as the navigation method and then select Update information. 

That's all there is to it. When someone tries to visit your old URL, they will be automatically redirected to your new URL. And the SEO equity you've built to your old page will pass through to your new page as well.

The scenarios for 301 redirects are endless. Moving web pages, changing publish dates of blog posts with dates in the URLs, changing blog URL structure to no longer contain dates at all... these are all great times to use a 301 redirect in Squarespace.

What questions do you have about 301 redirects? Be sure to leave your thoughts and questions on 301 redirects in Squarespace in the comments section below.