| LED Digest 2343: Web Page Naming Strategies |
|
|
|
================================================== The LED Digest Moderated Discussion List "Effective Online Advertising, Since 1997" Data > Information > Knowledge > Wisdom pair Networks: The LED's Web Host Hosting and Domain Registration from a Trusted Leader pair.com for Hosting | pairNIC.com for Domains ================================================== List Moderator: Published by: Adam Audette LED Digest adam, led-digest.com http://www.led-digest.com .............................................. February 8, 2007 Issue no. 2343 .............................................. .....IN THIS DIGEST..... ====== NEW ===================== --== SEO File Naming Techniques ==-- ~ B.S. "Do the search engines apply any ranking differences based on web page naming format?" ==== CONTINUING ================= --== European Sales ==-- ~ Ron Coble "...you cannot be complacent in what you use to evaluate the validity of an order..." ~ Becky Neilson "...the credit card companies should be doing these checks." --== Best Practices for Testimonials ==-- ~ Derek Andrews "It can in fact be a good source of additional keyword content." ~ Beth Earle "...is [permission] really always necessary?" --== Profiting from Domains ==-- ~ Steve Birk "[Webster's Dictionary] defines cybersquatter..." ~ Kerry Branham "I place more weight on a post if I can look up the poster's website..." ==== BULLETIN BOARD ============= --== Search Summit Australia ==-- ~ Michael Motherwell ========== NEW =================================== From: B.S. Subject: Question About Web Page Naming Greeting LEDer's, I am in the process of revamping my website and have a question for the "experts" regarding web page naming. Do the search engines apply any ranking differences based on web page naming format? Which of the following is preferred when naming pages: Magnetic-Card-Readers.htm Magnetic_Card_Readers.htm MagneticCardReaders.htm Magnetic Card Readers.htm Also, is it worth the time and effort to submit key pages to the Google "Site Map"? Thanks in advance, B.S. I wish to remain anonymous for the moment. ======== CONTINUING =============================== From: Ron Coble Subject: International orders I debated all week about adding my 2 cents to the subject of International sales because this post could easily evolve into being being a book sized post. But a large order from South Africa prompted me to jump in with some comments and suggestions. Our international trade marketing services business attracts fraudulent orders like moths to a light on a summer night. The primary reason for these orders has been the directories we offer that contain the contact information for importers around the world with about 12% of them having email addresses. The fraudsters (as I like to call them) attempt to use one form of fraud (credit card) when purchasing our directories which they then use to email their infamous "Nigerian" scam emails (which are no longer limited to Nigeria but still primarily centered from countries on the African continent). Our "fraud flood" actually started about 5 1/2 years ago and hit the $150,000 mark sometime early last year when I stopped keeping a tally because we were literally receiving 5 fraud orders for every 1 legitimate order. The order the sparked me to post this came from South Africa (becoming a fast 2nd or 3rd to Nigeria). It was for two Mexico Business directories with a total cost of $1,390.00. The order upon initial review, looked fairly legit, spelling was good, the first and last names were not reversed (an easy sign to spot from new, not to educated fraudsters). The email was a free email,that is a definite security flag but the IP address on the order checked out for South Africa - things were looking fairly positive. Let me divert for a moment - in regards to the IP address capture. I installed this little bit of script on our order forms in September 2006 and almost overnight it reduced our fraud order rate from about 5 to 1 by about 90%. I 'guess' because their IP address shows on the order form as they are filling it out and they cannot change it that it scares some of them away? By the way, http://whois.sc is about the best and fasted IP checker I have found on the Internet - just copy the IP from the order and visit whois.sc and paste and hit enter - very fast and more details than any other I have used yet. The next check was the first 6 digits of the credit card with our merchant services bank lookup. The 2nd BIG security flag is raised. The bank is in Mumbai, India. I then request the customer submit a faxed or scanned copy of the front and back of their credit card via fax or scanned attachment to an email and the "TOP" portion of a recent billing statement so we can verify the billing address he has submitted (we emphasize the top portion because we don't need to see their transactions - just their address). This morning, I have a two page fax waiting for me. The first page goes on to assure me that because he is currently on travel and does not have a billing statement but assures me that he is the owner of the card (we emphasize in our email requesting this data that it is meant to protect legitimate credit card owners as it does us). Now what was interesting about the copy of the credit card was that it had the number, expiration and name imprinted on it but you could not see any bank info, logo or other details? On the back side the number in the signature area and the CVV number matched but the card was not signed and again, none of the other info you normally see on the back of a card was there, nothing?? The icing on the cake came when I got a call from this individual shortly after reviewing the fax. He was asking how quickly he would get his order, whether there was a download link where he could get it rather than waiting for a CD to arrive. Very, very anxious. Enough flags, I called the issuing bank in India and believe it or not they helped me by advising me the card's billing address was in India, not South Africa. I usually do not bother replying to these fraudsters but I sent him an email telling him what I learned and advised him that we would only accept payment via Western Union. I am sure (based on a lot of experience) I will never hear from this slug again since he has crawled back under the rock from where he came and will be looking for his next fraud venture. The main point for making this long post is to 'hopefully' pass along some of the experiences we have had over the years and some of the ideas and resources we use to help combat this growing problem. It is also meant to alert those to the fact that you cannot be complacent in what you use to evaluate the validity of an order because as you can see from this post, they may very well have adapted or have a means of imprinting cards? If anyone has ever seen a credit card like I described here, I would be very interested in hearing about it? My thoughts were that the actual owner may have been on travel in South Africa and had a card copied at a hotel or something and the copy was used with us? It is a new one so any feedback would be appreciated. Hope this helps someone avoid getting burnt. Ron Coble Coble International Marketing Services http://www.importexporthelp.com <Moderator Comment> Great info, Ron. I've published it as a Featured Post: http://www.led-digest.com/content/view/1739/172/ -Adam -------- new post - same topic -------- From: Becky Neilson Subject: International orders > I still feel that it would be a lot more helpful, particularly > as international commerce increases, for card companies > to provide these checks across borders themselves, > rather than expecting the merchant to cobble together > a way round the problem! - Emma Mackintosh, LED Digest 2340 - http://www.led-digest.com/content/view/1736/55/ I totally agree with Emma that the credit card company should be doing these checks. I am a sole proprietor and don't have the time to be doing all these checks and run my business. So I just opt out of even accepting credit cards from most foreign countries. Most of my foreign orders use paypal as an option so I seem to be getting the sales. The only countries I seem to get repeated request for credit cards (that I have refused) the last two years have been from Nigeria and all seem to be scam artists. Becky Neilson -------- new post - new topic -------- From: Derek Andrews Subject: Testimonials > If we agree that more detailed customer information is > more likely to affect new customers, how much information > can we post without contacting the customer? - Chuck Donner, LED Digest 2340 - http://www.led-digest.com/content/view/1736/55/ I think that one needs to provide some privacy to the writer of a testimonial. I don't believe they are expecting others to contact them to confirm what they wrote. On my site I use initials and State. I always check with customers that what they wrote to me in an email or letter is ok to use as a testimonial. They may not have expected you to use it as a testimonial - they might just be expressing their thanks to you. I have never had a refusal though, but even so if they can take the time to write to you, I think it is only polite to seek their permission to publish their words. So I will always write back, and quote the part of their letter I will use, plus show them how I will use their name. Once I have their permission and it has been added to the website, I write back thanking them and give them the URL where it can be seen. A real identity is not the only way that a testimonial might be perceived as genuine. Many of the ones on my site are written in a style quite unlike my own. The vocabulary they use and the ideas and emotions they express are often quite different than anything I write in the page content. It can in fact be a good source of additional keyword content. Derek Andrews http://www.seafoamwoodturning.com -------- new post - same topic -------- From: Beth Ann Earle Subject: Testimonials > It is *always* a good idea to contact the customer > and get permission to use their testimonial. Think > of it like a model release for a photograph. You > wouldn't use someone's photo without a signed > release from them, right? (Right.) - Reid Neubert, LED Digest 2341 - http://www.led-digest.com/content/view/1737/55/ Wellllll ... yes, it's always good to get permission to use a testimonial, but is it really always necessary? Especially if you're not identifying the person who provided the feedback? Whenever I write a complimentary note to a business or vendor, it's always with the understanding that it could be used as a testimonial. If I want the comments to remain private, I make sure to indicate so in the note. Obviously, not everyone is so forward-thinking / paranoid, but it seems to make sense that a company that receives positive feedback would want to share that with its customers and prospects. Of course, if you're planning on identifying someone by their full name and location, obtaining their permission is important, not to mention well worth the extra email or call required to secure the writer's approval. But identifying someone by their initials hardly seems to be the same thing as publishing the person's photo. With LED'ly regards to all posters and lurkers, Beth Earle www.pilotfishseo.com -------- new post - new topic -------- From: Steve Birk Subject: Domains As David Yancey points out in LED 2342, > Steve Birk uses the long-time favorite derogatory > term "cybersquatters" to describe those who register > a name hoping to hold up some huge company > when it wakes up... I used the term "cybersquatted site" when referring to a site such as ford-sucks.com or paypalsucks.com. Actually Webster's New Millennium Dictionary of English defines cybersquatter as, ------------------- "... a person who buys one or more commercially viable domain names for the purpose of reselling for a profit." Source: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/cybersquatter ------------------- So I guess I used the term "cybersquatted site" out of context when referring to a site who registers a domain name with a company name with "sucks," "stinks," etc. after it. They are clearly not doing that for reselling it for profit, they are doing it to vent against something bad that occurred between that person and the company. The point of my original post, and David goes on to explain it much better, is the importance of securing your domain name along with some of the possible variations before someone else does. Regards, Steve Birk http://medcenternews.com -------- new post - same topic -------- From: Kerry Branham Subject: Domains In regards to the anonymous post about domain hoarding. I found it an interesting read, but do not put much weight in what was said, because the person is reluctant to identify him / herself. Why is the person unwilling for us to verify his/her credentials, or look at his / her work or website(s)? I place more weight on a post if I can look up the poster's website and see what their business is. I could post anything, and spout any figures I want - true or not. If I don't identify myself I'm not in jeopardy of any backlash or verification of my facts and figures. I would highly recommend no post to this digest be presented unless the person is willing to identify themself. Kerry Branham K-S Marketing kib, ksmnet.com ==== BULLETIN BOARD =============================== From: Michael Motherwell Subject: Search Summit Conference - Australia On Thursday and Friday, March 1 and 2, 2007 at Sydney's Luna Park, Australia, Search Summit will focus on basic training as well as strategy and advanced tactics for industry pros, and an industry stream for the Search amrketing community. Featuring over 90 individual presentations on everything from how to research keywords to optimising your website architecture. With 40 speakers from the US, UK, and Australia, Search Summit aims to bring to Australia the type of quality conference that is common in the northern hemisphere, but has been sorely lacking in Australia. Some of the sessions include a Keynote by Chris Sherman of Search Engine Land, as well as a lunch with the team from Google Webmaster Central, including Search Evangelist Adam Lasnik, Product Manager (Crawl Systems) Dan Crow, Developer Support Engineer (Webmaster Central) Maile Ohye and Engineering Manager Peeyush Ranjan. To find out more and register, visit http://www.searchsummit.com.au/ Michael Motherwell ------------------------------------------------------- The LED Digest is sponsored by pair Networks: pair.com for Hosting | pairNIC.com for Domains The Archives: http://www.led-digest.com/content/view/126/120/ Subscribe: http://www.led-digest.com/content/view/52/77/ Unsubscribe, Change Email, or Hold / Resume Delivery: http://www.led-digest.com/content/category/4/17/86/ (c) Copyright 1995-2007 Orange Wheel, LLC. All Rights Reserved. ----------------------------------------------------------------- "I must first know myself, as the Delphian inscription says; to be curious about that which is not my concern, while I am still in ignorance of my own self, would be ridiculous." - Plato, The Phaedrus |
