A blog is a place you can go to share your thoughts, teach others how to do things, and even rant about your latest pet peeve.  The hope is that people will find your blog interesting and bookmark it or pass it on by tweeting it, etc.

Here are the steps I usually take when writing a blog.

1.  Write from your gut.  When you start writing a blog, just write how you feel. Put down what your thinking. Don’t worry about perfection at this point, this is meant to be a rough draft.

2. Review your post.  Once you have your rough draft, go through the blog and clean it up and add keywords where appropriate.  Example… I have a Buffalo SEO Company.  My goal is to capture the attention of people who may be looking for my services. So I want to try to incorporate that keyword into various blog posts I write.

3. Link your keywords. Once you have incorporated the keywords into your blog, you want to link them to the page on your website the deals with your focus.  Example, if I am referring to my Buffalo SEO Company, I will link this to my SEO page, which focuses on how our company can help with SEO services.  My advice, however, is to be consistent.  If you start linking a specific keyword to one page, don’t then start linking that same keyword to a different page.  This could make things confusing for the search engines and could effect your rankings.

4. Tags and Categories. You are going to want to post your tags and select your categories.  Choose the category that reflects the overall feel of the blog post.  Example, this post is not only about learning how to post a blog, but I also reference my Buffalo SEO Company.  So, my categories will be both Buffalo SEO Company and Blogging Tips.  Tags should reflect those keywords that you believe are important.  I will choose buffalo seo company, posting a blog, blogging tips, writing a blog, etc.  These keywords can be found in the content of this blog post.

Finally, once you publish your blog, spread the news.  Share your blog post on Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn for starters.  I’ll get to bookmarking another time.

Blogging is fun.  It allows you to share your knowledge, emotions, experiences and more with others.  Oh…and did I mention that WordPress is FREE!

Have a wonderful 4th of July everyone.  Be safe and have fun.

I am a positive and happy person by nature and try to put a positive spin on most situations, but the situation in the Gulf has really caused me sorrow.  My heart breaks for the families who have been impacted by this disaster, the businesses that will suffer long term, the animals that are suffering and the overall impact on America.

In this what’s in it for me society, we often see people doing things for the money or for fear of losing the money. They often look at a situation and say “how can I spin this to make me look better.” Or, they don’t take steps for fear that someone will sue them.

What ever happened to taking the gloves off to fight to make things right?

I truly believe that many experts do not know the incredible impact this oil spill disaster is going to have. How can they? But what this country doesn’t need is more negativity on the subject.

I would love to turn on Anderson 360 and hear Anderson Cooper say “anyone who wants to help with the clean up can call 123-4567 and schedule your time to clean up. Once your scheduled, go to XYZ place and a bus will take you to an area where you can help with the clean up.”  Or “anyone who has a boat should call 234-5678 and  Mr. Jones (or whoever) will train you and give you the proper safety equipment to help clean up this mess.”

This disaster is going to need a lot of  hard work and elbow grease. Isn’t that what this country was founded on!

It’s very easy for people to sit back and point fingers in this whole disaster.  My opinion is, anyone who wants to help should help, with a sponge if necessary, to clean up this mess.  Regardless of who is at fault.

For those people who want to help, but can’t get to the Gulf Coast, perhaps they can make things and ship them to the Gulf that will help collect the oil. Just let us know what you need!

I know there is a lot to this and BP needs to determine exactly how much oil is leaking in order to gauge things properly, but that shouldn’t mean we sit back and wait.  If a clean up schedule is planned now and implemented for all Americans to be involved, then you can always add more volunteers if the leak exceeds their most recent estimates.

Let’s Just Get Things Done, Shall We!!

(Buffalo, NY – June 8, 2010) Fuel The Web is proud to announce the launch of a new website and SEO client – Schaper Associates.

http://www.schaperassociates.net

This is an exciting day for us and we’ve created a great working relationship during the design process with them.

Schaper Associates focuses on the Interior Design of new construction and renovations of residential and commercial interiors.

Over the next few days we will construct and admin Schaper Associates new social media presence and network with the additions of Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn accounts.

One thing small business owners have shared with me is the fact that they understand what I am talking about. That’s really important and exciting to me.  It should be important to you as well.

As a Buffalo internet marketer, I believe in explaining my seo and internet marketing strategy in a way that isn’t just a bunch of seo jargon they don’t understand.

Keep it simple stupid.  No disrepect here, but if you use the KISS moto, you may not always impress the CEO of a company, but Mr. Johnson, who just opened that hardware store, will certainly appreciate it.

Know your audience.  If you are trying to reach small business owners on their level, just be real.

• You don’t have to talk about the analytics, refer to it as the traffic reports.
• Don’t just throw at them that their ROI will increase.  Explain that by investing money in their online marketing, they will get more business.
• Don’t just say you want to optimize their site.  Explain it to them.  Search engine optimization is the process of getting your website ranking high on the search engines, such as Google, Yahoo and Bing.

Make sense?

On the other hand, I have spoken with small business owners who really know their way around seo and internet marketing, which is cool.  In that case, you can put your seo hat on and talk the talk.

Just remember, the whole point of being an internet marketer is to try to help people understand why seo and internet marketing is so important.  Don’t lose them trying to impress yourself.

As a Buffalo SEO company, we understand many small business owners are hesitant and unsure about SEO and internet marketing.

When we are asked to provide our small business clients with SEO and internet marketing services, we often suggest they take babysteps. You don’t have to dive into everything all at once.

Here’s what you could do.

• Have your website optimized and monitor it’s success/failures. A good Buffalo SEO company will sit down with you and make sure they understand what your goals are.
• Once you are happy with the work your SEO company has provided and are seeing results, take the next step. Start a blog or begin a social media campaign.

It’s basically up to you how you would like to progress. They key is hiring a good Buffalo SEO Company that will continue to move you in the right direction.

Don’t get me wrong, if you want to get things rockin right away, that’s great.  Our concern, however, is that you are confident and secure with where your hard earned money is going.  If you are going to spend money to get more business, then before moving forward, make sure you are seeing a return on your investment.

I’m sorry for the tease, but now that I’ve got your attention, let me explain.

The point of this heading is simply to get your attention. That is exactly what you want to do for your business and a good internet marketing company will help you get your message out there.

If I was looking for baked goods and ran across “Free King Size Chocolate Chip Cookie  Yummy”, you can be sure I would click on it.  That’s the 1st step.

Now that you’ve got them on your site, don’t lose them! They clicked on the link because they want a free king size cookie.  Don’t make it impossible for them to qualify to get it.

I’m not saying lose money on the deal, but make the draw something that is within reason.  Keep it simple. A good internet marketing company will not only help you get the traffic you want, but they will also work with you to help you make sure the deal is sweet, too.

Once they land on your page, make the offer clear. Example: “With every order of $30 or more, you will get one of our King Size Chocolate Chip Smiley Face Cookies, Free”.

Woo Hoo!  Dude, I’m there.  I want that cookie!  Where do I order? Can I order more King Size Chocolate Chip Smiley Face Cookies?  Do you have smaller smiley face cookies? Yes, of course (the answer should be).

Your landing page should have good content for search engine optimization, as well as a great photo and video.  Also important, make it easy for them to place an order. The goal is to ultimately sell those King Size Chocolate Chip Smiley Face Cookies!

I have so many ideas to sell these cookies, but unfortunately, I’m on chocolate chip overload. It’s only 9 a.m., but I have a hankerin’ for chocolate chip cookies.  Want one?

Over the years I have been approached by many companies who, in one way or another, claim to be the “Magic Fairy”.  They claim if you come on board with them, they will guarantee you number one organic placement for a specific keyword in Google.

Really?  My reply is usually, “No thanks, but feel free to tell the Magic Fairy to pay me a visit when she has a chance.”

I cannot stress enough that SEO is not a magic trick.  You know that, right?  The Magic Fairy is not going to suddenly make your SEO world perfect and move your listing to the top of Google.

Often times a salesman will take it a step further and stress that they are different than other companies, which is fine. I’m here to tell you that anyone who comes to you and guarantees organic rankings is just blowing smoke up your rear-end.

So, what are a couple of things to watch out for?

• Unreasonable pressure. Anyone who pressures you to give them an answer or the deal will not be there in the morning is full of bologna.  If the deal is there today, then it will be there tomorrow.  If for some reason it’s not, then they are not the company for you. Their deadline isn’t your deadline.
• Misleading traffic reports.  Ask them to provide you with proof of their success.  This can be in the form of how their rankings have increased other clients sales/leads.  I would caution that if they only provide you with the number of visitors, this can be misleading.  Example, say they give you stats that say when they started with Company X, they were getting 1,000 visitors a month and now they are getting 3,000.  That’s great, but where are they coming from and are they staying or bouncing off right away. There is much more to it than that.

Bottom line, follow your gut.  If it sounds too good to be true it usually is.  If you are uncertain, err on the side of caution and wait.  You’ve worked hard for your money.  Waiting a couple of days and doing a little research is well worth it.

Remember..there is no SEO Magic Fairy.

Search Engine Strategies  2010

I was fortunate enough to attend Day 1 and 2 of the Search Engine Strategies Conference in New York City.  It was my first SES conference, so I really didn’t know what I was getting into, plus it was my first time in NYC. I came with high expectations that I was going to learn a lot about search engine marketing.

The great thing about this conference was you got a very good feel for where you are in the scheme of things.  There are some very brillant people out there and some not so brillant people.

Loved, loved loved Avinash Kaushik.  He used a common sense approach to explaining keyword research and analytics.  He actually had me crackin up with his great sense of humor.

The thing I didn’t like at the SES Conference is the fact that I felt like I was in with a herd of cattle going from one session to another.  Not only that, but some of the sessions just didnt’ capture the attention of the people in the room.

Maybe I just didn’t get the overall intention of the conference. I certainly left with some direction on where to go to do more research into what I should do, but  I would have preferred to have learned what I should do…make sense?

There were some very dynamic keynote speakers and I enjoyed the roundtable discussions very much. Unfortunately, the session speakers had limited time to talk and just when things were getting good with some, time was up and then on to the next speaker.  I found myself frustrated at times and wanting more.   

I loved the people who didn’t refer to notes and just talked from the gut. There were some speakers who were simply dull and referred to notes.  These people really shouldn’t be speakers, because frankly, they suck at it.

High Rankings Seminar 2006

I attended a High Rankings seminar in Dallas in 2006 and it was pretty great because they talked specifics. It wasn’t about their philosophy on things, but actual meat and potatoes. They gave me so much information that I could really chew on.

I went into the High Rankings seminar with many dots that needed to be connected and I left with a complete picture.  Also the great thing at the High Rankings seminar was the fact that at the luncheon we actually sat with the speakers and got to pick their brain and talk shop.   

I do understand that things have completely changed since 2006, however, the idea of learning the tips and tricks to blogging, twitter and video, etc. could have been taught better at the SES Conference if they used the same intimate approach.

Bottom line is when I left the High Rankings seminar in 2006, I went back to work and was a machine.  When I went back to work after the Search Engine Strategies conference 2010, I went right back to doing my own reasearch to find out the answers.  Don’t get me wrong I did get direction and am grateful, but I have a lot of research to do yet people.

My focus when attending these seminars is to learn as much as possible and then implement those ideas into my business and help others.  Although I understand that I was at a different level with each of these conferences, my expectations were still the same and I believe the SESNY conference fell short.

Fuel the Web, a Buffalo SEO and website design company, is pleased to announce the launch of our newly redesigned website.

We wanted to provide our visitors with information about the company, our services, and a quick contact form, which will enable us to get things rolling quickly.

Our company qualities include not only our focus on providing you the website design you have dreamed of, but we believe in an honest and ethical approach to search engine marketing and optimization.  We will work with you to ensure your goals are met.

Our approach is simply this…be honest, work hard and develop a product our clients can be proud of.

If you are looking for help with your online marketing campaign, or need a website redesign, Fuel the Web can put together a strategic plan to help you accomplish your company goals and objectives.

Is your SEO company leading the way, or are you trying to play catch up by following the crowd?

To be a leading seo company, you need to understand what your clients want.  What are their goals?  What is their reputation?  Do they need a new image?   Are they looking for leads or sales?  There are so many questions to ask and the key is to listen to the answers and draft out a game plan.

By leading the way, an SEO Company will research their client’s competition, analyze data and then put together a plan for success.  It’s not just about optimizing a website.  It’s about the big picture. It’s not about copying what your competition is doing, its about analyzing it and then incorporating the right moves into your clients plan.

Being a true leader in the seo arena means being honest and having integrity. No SEO company likes it when their client’s rankings aren’t as high as they’d like them to be, or that they haven’t received the number of leads they had hoped for. The worst thing any SEO company could do is lie to your clients about it.  Be honest, always.  Work with your clients to make things better.

SEO is not an exact science and there is no guarantee. If, however, you do things the “right way”, it will all come together in time and your clients will appreciate you and they will be clients for years to come.