Marketing & SEO Discussion List - LED Digest

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From: David L. Spahr

Subject: Meta Tags Count!

> ... no one is looking at meta tags anymore...

        - Trudy Levy, LED 2009

I keep reading this on this forum that no one is looking at meta

tags. How do myths like this get started? This is completely

incorrect. I have the incontrovertible proof.

MSN for instance, uses meta keywords, meta description, and top text

for their listings. I offer as proof the search "stereoviews" which

brings up my site stereoviews.com at #1 showing both meta keywords

and meta description with no top text. My site is #2 as well showing

top text. My site stereoviews.info is at #7 with a combination of

meta keywords, description, and top text. My site

antique-photography.com is #8 and shows just top text. MSN is

looking at all of it.

The same search on Yahoo shows stereoviews.com at #1 showing top

text. Stereoviews.info is #2 and shows both meta description and top

text. #3 is me again with just top text. Yahoo does look at meta

tags.

The same search at Google brings me up at #1, #2, and #3. Surprised?

Stereoviews.info at # 3 shows meta description. Google looks and

shows it too!

There it is folks. In particular, meta description appears to be

quite powerful. I am glad that I always stuck with my tags and

continued to add to, and refine them. I have lived at the top for

almost 8 years.

This myth is busted!

Let no SEO consultant ever say this again (without egg on their

face). If they do, get someone else. Meta tags count!

David L. Spahr

Stereoviews.Com

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From: Robin Estlin

Subject: Dublin Core

> I am not sure how one would use DC meta tags inappropriately.

> Dublin Core is merely a standard for descriptive metadata...

> Can you provide a link to the reference that you quoted.

        - Trudy Levy, LED 2009

In response to Trudy Levy's question, the reference I quoted re.

spamming can be found at

http://dublincore.org/resources/faq/index.shtml under the FAQ "What

search-engines support the Dublin Core Metadata Element Set?"

Robin Estlin, Owner/Projects Manager

YellowDawg Web Design

www.yellowdawg.com

Search Engine Optimization/Management Specialists

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From: Martha Retallick

Subject: Ebooks

 > ... what is the best way to sell these books?

        - Brian Rotsztein, LED 2007

Dejan Bizinger made a very good point about purchasing with PayPal

when he said that some people can't make a purchase with it.

Case in point: A couple weeks ago, another business attempted to pay

me via PayPal. Since I haven't had a PayPal account for many years,

I had to re-register with them.

Completing the signup process involved clicking on a link in a

confirmation e-mail that was to be sent to me right after I finished

with the registration form.

Unfortunately, I still haven't received that confirmation e-mail. As

near as I can determine, my ISPs sh-pam filters intercepted it.

So, alas, no PayPal for me. Instead of getting paid by the Pal, I

had to send a snail-mail invoice to the business that owed me money.

Martha Retallick

Western Sky Communications Web & Graphic Design

http://www.westernskycommunications.com

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From: John Smart

Subject: Ebooks

We have been researching self-publishing, and found a surprising

resource. Café Press will bind a book for $7.00 plus $0.03 pages

($10 for a 100 page book). Printed on demand - no minimums to meet.

They offer many sizes (and also offer other binding types).

Not a solution for all, but may be useful to some, so here is the

link: http://www.cafepress.com/cp/info/sell/products/books/

John Smart

InternetDesign.com

-------- new post - same topic --------

From: Kathryn Martyn

Subject: Ebooks

> I have been writing and publishing ebooks for some

> time now and publish them on the Amazon.com edocs site. ...

        - Val Waldeck, LED 2008

I like the way you offer a PDF "smaller" version of your paperbound

book. That gives one the opportunity to experience your writing and

decide if they want the "full meal deal." Excellent marketing idea.

I recently purchased a book which was offered as a PDF at $3.95 or

bound at $16.95. I got the PDF, spent about an hour printing it,

then bound it, now I'm carrying around this huge binder while I try

to read it, and I'm wishing I'd have just bought the bound copy.

My suggestion (or plea?) to anyone writing and wanting to publish

online is to please, if it all possible, create both an electronic

and a bound version and you'll convert far more sales.

Warmly,

Kathryn Martyn, M.NLP

Ending Emotional Eating, One Bite at a Time

http://www.onemorebite-weightloss.com

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From: Steve Pronger

Subject: Linking

> So, let's dispense with the myth of "reciprocal linking

> is necessary in competitive searches".

        - Michael Martinez, LED 2009

Agreed! I don't know why I didn't think of this before. All you have

to do is become one of the following:

- a company with a chain of restaurants worldwide, a globally

recognized brand name and a marketing budget of millions of dollars:

Wendys - top ranked site for "hamburgers". 1,490 Google backlinks

(we all know the real figure is much higher)

Pizza Hut - top ranked site for "pizza". 3,370 reported backlinks.

- an official site for a national association:

Realtor.com - 8,720 reported backlinks and 25,200 pages

- a globally recognized pop star with an official site

- BBC News or CNN (who ever heard of them?)

- Amazon.com (didn't they have a mildly successful affiliate

program?)

Those guys get links simply because of who they are. But back in the

real world of (really) small business owners like me, things aren't

quite the same, are they? I'm not a pop star (well, I did play in a

garage rock band in my teens) or a global authority on world news. I

adopt low or no-cost, time-efficient strategies that give the best

results. Simple really.

But you don't have to go too far down those search results to find

sites who clearly DO employ a reciprocal linking strategy:

http://www.realestate4.com/partner.htm

http://www.britneyzone.com/links.php

No doubt there's more, but who has the time? They may not be #1 but

they're on page 1 for a highly competitive keyword.

Steve Pronger

http://www.stevepronger.com

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From: Ed Clark

Subject: WinFix 2005

Hi gang,

What do we know about WinFix2005? Somewhere in my travels on the

Internet, I have picked up this tricky program more than once. It is

a real bear to get rid of... and for some without the ability to

restore to an earlier time... almost impossible.

Strange thing is that this program appears at cNet and other

shareware sites as a download.

What it does is steal your browser. I do not know where I am

visiting to pick up this devil... but I am tracing my steps

carefully to find out. Any knowledge which might be passed on

through this forum will be valuable to all of us.

Ed Clark

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From: Paul Baugher

Subject: Email apps

In regards to all the anti-Microsoft rhetoric being flung around…

I am also a full-time web-programmer (since 95) who has not had a

virus and I run Internet Explorer 6 and Outlook as my primary

internet tools. Telling people that somehow Firefox makes them less

vulnerable is just not true. The open-source cronies love to hate on

Microsoft and that's all there is to it.

If you look at the facts, Mozilla is just as susceptible to hackers

and virus's as any other client… and I would argue it's even more

susceptible because of its OPEN SOURCE nature. It's many times

easier for hackers to find vulnerabilities in a program when you

have the source sitting in front of you.

If you doubt this, maybe look in to the track records of Linux and

Firefox and open source apps based on PHP.

http://www.osvdb.org/searchdb.php?action=search_title&vuln_title=php

http://www.osvdb.org/searchdb.php?action=search_title&vuln_title=linux

http://www.osvdb.org/searchdb.php?action=search_title&vuln_title=firefox

There is the point of contention that Microsoft is the big bully and

owns 90% market share and therefore are the target of the majority

underdog-hacker-types and this is true… but spreading false

information is just as detrimental to the masses.

When / if you ever succeed in converting the masses to Firefox

(doubtful if it will even survive IE7), Microsoft will then be less

the target it is today and Firefox will be the new target… what

then? For me and 90% of the rest us, you're better with the Devil

you know. (add in some anti-virus for those of you with a

trigger-happy mouse fingers)

Just for the record, I have nothing against open-source, its great

if you're a communist (or just a starving artist). Just remember

that more often then not, you get what you pay for.

Paul A. Baugher, Director

http://www.digitalskyline.com

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From: Rob Marlbrough Jr.

Subject: Email apps

Regarding Tom's response about continuing to use anti-virus

software, I would agree, and offer some additional thoughts

regarding security.  A recent trend still being formed is the evil

hackers of the world attacking weaknesses in the anti-virus software

itself!  They then use that as a foothold to disable it and then

continue on in attacking the PC further.

While using Firefox and such reduce the risk compared to other

program's known security problems, Microsoft is being more focused

on security than ever before, and when they attack a problem, they

use the sledgehammer approach, which in the security field I think

is a good thing.

I'd also clarify that anti-virus software is just one "anti" program

you should be running, as the anti-spyware programs are even more

important than ever these days, with more spyware infections being

seen than virus infections, possibly in the tens- or hundreds-fold.

Which raises another problem of people installing the "anti-spyware"

program that is spyware itself!

The point being, if you run any software, it has security holes.  If

you want a 100% secure PC, disconnect it from the Internet, and then

turn it off.  Until then, be very careful what you install, use only

known trusted programs that are regularly updated, backup your vital

data daily, and block attacks with firewalls and the usual "anti-"

programs, and enjoy your level of up to 99% security.

BTW, these points are encompassed in Microsoft's new OneCare

service.  From my use of the beta so far, it looks like a great step

forward in providing a basic level of security and protection for

the public Windows market:

http://www.microsoft.com/windows/onecare/

http://beta.windowsonecare.com/

Robert Marlbrough, Jr., Owner

Web Wizards

http://www.WebWizards.Net/

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