1. The SEO value of directories

Directories have always been a tested method to acquire inbound links to websites. Google’s index now filters inbound links that ignore links from directories. Though, this is limited to the listing of the inbound link in search results, it has not undermined the SEO value of directories.

Search engines consider every inbound link as a vote cast in favour of the website. The number of inbound links is how the popularity of a website is measured. Of even greater importance is the quality and relevance of the inbound link. If an inbound link is from a website that has a high Google Page Rank, its value will be much greater than a link from a website that has a low Google Page Rank.

It is desirable to secure inbound links from associations and government bodies in your industry. It is also desirable to be linked to related websites in your industry. This puts your website in the right neighbourhood and your website gets associated with the industry.

Directories – both general and niche – are a neutral source of inbound links. It is important to select directories with a high page rank and submit your website to the relevant category. The image below shows the sub-categories under the Internet Marketing section of the Yahoo! Directory.

2. Importance of Titles

The image below shows a typical directory listing in the Yahoo! Directory

The title of a listing is the link pointing to the website. The text present in the title (also called the linking text or anchor text) is the text with which search engines will associate your website. Having your most important keyword present in the Title improves the relevance of your website for that keyword. If your company is an established brand in your industry, you may want your brand name to appear in the Title.

3. Importance of Descriptions

The description is a short sentence about your website that is present below the Title. The proximity of keywords to the linking text plays a major role in SEO. It is important to have the most important keywords present in the description text.

4. Facts and Guidelines about directory submissions

a. Very few people actually refer to directories while searching for something. Their relevance is limited to their SEO value. As such, very few people are likely to see your listing in a directory and you are unlikely to get direct traffic from directories.

b. Neither the Title nor the Description is visible on YOUR website. The Titles and Descriptions are listed in the directory and the Title links back to your website.

c. Different directories have different limits for the length of the Title and Description. It is important to have a few options where the character limits vary before commencing your directory submissions.

d. When you have a presence in many directories with your most important keyword in your Title, there is a good chance that your website will begin to rank high in search results for the keyword.

e. Unlike the content in your website, variations of keywords do not work in the linking text or Title. It is important to have the exact keyword that you wish to rank for, in the Title of the directory listing.

f. Relevant keywords with the highest search volume should be selected for inclusion in the Title and Description.

5. One scenario explained

Contributed by Tushar Prabhu

Friday, July 17th, 2009

Author and technologist Nicholas Carr says, “Twitter is the telegraph system of Web 2.0.” The New York Times has mentioned that Twitter is one of the fastest-growing phenomena on the Internet. Only a few brands skimmed off profits from Twitter and others just tweeted about some direct marketing stuff. However, there are numerous ways you can leverage Twitter for your business and improve your bottom line. Here is the one-stop Twitter guide for business.

Get started

1. Create a Twitter account

2. Make sure, that you have selected a unique vanity URL for your Twitter account

3.  Upload an image and customize your profile image using this tool: http://walterhiggins.net/projects/twixenate.html

4. Include a link to your corporate website

5. Promote your Twitter presence on your corporate website, client emails, etc.

SEO juice – Recently, Google started indexing tweets; these tips could help you optimize your Twitter account.

6. Include your brand name as the title of your profile

7. Use the Google keywords tool and shortlist important keywords relevant to your products

8. Include those keywords in your bio

9. Use keywords in the first 30 characters of your tweets in order to be optimized by Google

10. Get re-tweeted and increase backlinks for your content

A “following” strategy – This will help you to connect with your target audience.

11. Identify your target audience based on their interests

12. Use hashtags “#” (Hashtags are a community-driven convention to add additional context and metadata to your tweets) to search for your target audience using this tool: http://wefollow.com/

13. Use more directories for search such as: http://www.twellow.com/, http://justtweetit.com/ etc.

14. Follow the influencers in your industry using this tool: http://www.twitalyzer.com/

Identify local Twitter users, or tweeple – If you are a company that serves only a particular location, networking with local tweeple will add more value to your business.

15. Follow influencers in your location using this tool: http://twitterholic.com/. This tool lists all the influencers on Twitter, based on the number of followers and location.

16. Enter keywords relevant to your product and use the “near this place” option in Twitter’s advanced search to identify tweeple who are interested in your product

17. Search for tweeple near your location using this tool: http://www.tweepz.com/

18. Network with local tweeple by searching for them with hashtags, using this tool: http://localtweeps.com/

How to make your tweets effective

19. If you prefer Web tweeting, use this tool: http://twitzap.com/ for advanced features

20. Download Tweetdeck for more power tweeting from your desktop

21. You can add additional Twitter accounts in Tweetdeck and control them using a single application

22. Schedule important tweets in advance using this tool: http://www.tweetlater.com/

23. Use: http://cotweet.com/ for collaborative tweeting

What to tweet on – Starting and joining the right conversation(s) will give you more exposure.

24. Post tweets based on the interests of your followers

25. Search for topics relevant to your product(s) and talk to influencers

26. Use hashtags to power the conversation

27. Post tweets about useful links and articles

28. Use: http://happn.in/ to talk about the trends in your locality.

Twit research – Twitter is a good source for market data as prospective customers are present there.

29. Finalize the sample size of the search.

30. List hashtags relevant to your research objective

31. Get secondary data for your research based on hashtags by using this tool: http://twubs.com/

32. Analyze hashtags  relevant to your research using this tool: http://www.trendrr.com/

Get feedback –As Twitter is a real-time medium, organizations use Twitter to get direct feedback from customers.

33. Get feedback from customers and other tweeple by replying and directly messaging them

34. Use hashtags to organize the feedback

35. Get feedback from local tweeple using this tool: http://nearbytweets.com/

36. Use: http://twtpoll.com/ to conduct a simple survey in Twitter to get real-time feedback

37. Post new product screenshots in http://twitpic.com/ and get instant feedback from your followers

Twit hiring – If you are looking to hire people for your organization, Twitter is another source to find the right talent.

38. Search for job seekers near your location using advanced search features in Twitter public search

39. Use hashtags in your tweets to reach active job seekers

40. Post tweets to announce benefits such as perks, allowances, etc. for the job(s) you offer

41. Use: http://twitpic.com/ to share corporate events to show job seekers your organization’s work culture

42. You can also use Twitter to conduct background checks on employees by using the Twitter advanced public search.

Tweetup – “Is an organized or impromptu gathering of people that use Twitter.” Tweetup is an excellent platform to promote products among local Tweeple.

43. Search for a Tweetup near your location using: http://nearbytweets.com/

44. Organize a Tweetup in your locality using  this tool: http://www.twtvite.com/

45. Pitch for influencers in your location by attending Tweetups.

46. Give away promo codes to attendees in the Tweetup to spread your product virally.

Follow your competition – This can give you insights on what your competitors are working on.

47. Follow your competitors on Twitter.

48. Use Twitter public search to get more insights on competitors’ activities

49. Analyze their Twitter account and follower patterns using: http://tweetstats.com/

50.  Compare your network statistics with competitors using: http://twitter-friends.com/

Friday, July 10th, 2009