Business Management Consultant - Stuntdubl Search and Marketing Consulting

Due to the positive response in regards to an A Blueprint for Open Rank, I decided to grab OpenRank.org and toss up some community software for those that may be interested in helping out with such a project.

I am definitely not a technical person, but I’ve spoke with some great minds who are, and have explained to me what a difficult project this would potentially be. I think it also has the potential to be an awesome thing if the SEO/SEM community decides to get behind such an idea.

If you have some time, please stop by and register, introduce yourself, and leave an idea or two. From the feedback I’ve received so far, I think this could be a very positive project that would be very helpful to the community.

Tags: Link Development, Search Engine Optimization, Link Valuation, Openrank

SEO and web design had always had a very low barrier to entry for folks interested in the field. The best option is not to go to college and become a well-rounded person (as well as spend a bunch of money), but rather to learn all a person can about this specialized craft and plug away at it. This leaves the problem of a technical person running a business. It is really a “trial by fire” situation because the web designer/ SEO going into business for themself (or worse, hiring employees), has never dealt with the issues of small business management like accounting, staffing, sales forecasting, and the multitudes of other problems that can arise from these areas. Since many SEO / web design small businesses are just learning about these things, I figured it would be worth putting together a tool list to help them out.
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Technically, the Google Sandbox is keyword selection tool. Unfortunately, the name has also evolved into an incredibly ambigous term used to label a variety of SEO ailments. I’m not sure of exactly how the name developed, though it was thought by some that “Google Lag” or “litterbox” were better terminology for the phenomena. The “sandbox” caught on though to describe the lack of new sites showing up in Google’s results in early 2004.

Why does the sandbox exist? was asked early on (probably many times). There has been a multitude of speculation about the sandbox, and rather than add my own theory to this, I am just going to compile a list of information at this time.

The best roundup I’ve seen to date on the existence of the ever elusive sandbox comes from top notch link builder - Andy Hagans known as notredamekid on WMW. You’ll have to be a supporter to read it in it’s entirety, but this thread alone will be worth the price of the subscription. (more…)

Big thanks go out to SEGuru and Oilman for havin’ me on to talk a little bit about pre-sell pages. Hopefully it was a timely topic that was somewhat interesting to the listeners.

Shame Jake wasn’t around, but these guys put on some great shows. Webmasterradio.fm does a fine job and is an asset to the entire webmaster community. Thanks again guys…see ya in N’awleans.

Okay, I *DO* really understand *why* Google feels the need to bold face lie to SEO’s, but this post is more about wondering if it is really beneficial. As SEO’s, we all secretly understand that the big G regards us about as highly as the bubonic plague or typhoid fever. We are the parasites in their eyes that feed suckling from their golden juicy teet. Sergey Brin was once quoted (in Wired I believe) as saying something to the effect of regarding SEO’s about the same way that a mother bear regarded someone poking at her cub with a stick. So we understand WHY Google feels the need to lie to us, but is it really beneficial? Have the pre-IPO idealistic folks who started an exciting and innovative company really fallen into the realm of search copy-cat mediocrity and disinformation to maintain the status quo? (more…)

I am constantly discussing with folks the benefits of creating a dialogue in their industry’s online community. The SEO community is generally a great example that I use for relaying this message. There is an overabundance of communities for webmasters, consultants, affiliate marketers, and just about any specialized occupation that relates to the internet. In these circles, learning from an online community is a necessity. In many other industries that don’t relate to computers, online communities are being more slowly embraced. The web offers a unique medium for communication that allows anyone with knowledge to share that with the rest of the world. The paradox of the web is that you get what you give back. The more that you contribute to an online community, the more that you will be rewarded by that community. Find existing communities and start a dialogue and earn the respect of your peers within your industry. (more…)

SEO is often the lazy businessperson’s approach to internet marketing. You don’t REALLY have to measure…just cut a check every month to a good SEO that knows what they’re doing and *VOILA* customers appear magically. Tons more than from the yellow pages, or TV or print ads, or most other current media methods. The ROI is MUCH higher in more than a few industries. (Actually you can’t really deem it ROI when there is no investment or return measured).

I finally got the chance to read Knock, Knock…Seth’s Godin’s accompanying e-book to his new book “All Marketer’s are Liars” (which I’ll be reading shortly). It is a great read as I have come to expect from Seth, and even takes a paragraph aside in it to discuss SEO. The quick aside paragraph takes an almost apologetic tone. This little paragraph naturally got me sidetracked into Seth’s take on SEO. Since I have such a high respect for Mr. Godin’s views on marketing in general, his past mainly negative thoughts on search engine optimization have naturally intrigued me. (more…)