C3 2012 The A, B, and Cs of SEO - Duane Forrester

1. The Engagement of SEO

2. #C3ny
Who’s
the
speaker
today?
@duaneforrester
Bing
Webmaster
Tools
Speaks
at
shows,
runs
forums
and
blog,
provides
guidance
on
new
WM
tools
www.bing.com/toolbox/webmasters
Does
he
have
a
clue?
12+
years
as
an
inhouse
SEO;
ran
seo
at
MSN;
has
helped
Disney,
GAP,
Walmart
+
h,p://www.linkedin.com/in/dforrester
And
this
helps
me
how?
Blogging
since
2001;
owns
150
domains;
gets
monthly
Adsense
checks
($x,xxx)
h,p://twi,er.com/#!/DuaneForrester
what
does
duane
do
at
bing
Your
data,
always
fully
provided.

3. #C3ny
SEO
is
simply
a
marke6ng
tool
Throwing
rocks
Smoke
signals
MercanVle
shops
Mail
order
catalogues
Billboards
Television
Radio
Email
SEO
PPC
Trading
goods
Man’s
History
of
MarkeVng
Image
credit:
www.conducthq.com

4. #C3ny
History
of
SEO
Data
credit:
gossip.greenlightdigital.com/blog/the-­‐history-­‐and-­‐evoluVon-­‐of-­‐seo/
• Keyword
stuffing
all
the
rage
• SE
submissions
help
rankings
• Dawn
of
modern
search
engines
w/Altavista
• Death
of
SE
submissions
• SEO
soaware
works
very
well
for
#1
placements
• cloaking
makes
its
appearance
• Google
and
MSN
Search
launch
• Word
spreads
that
links
help
rankings
• DMOZ
launches
and
starts
directory
movement
• Google
Toolbar
shows
PR
–
drives
link
requests
• Google
fights
spam
with
Florida
update;
hurts
legit
sites
• Blogging
takes
off
• Text
Link
Ads
creates
network
link
buying
• First
paid
link
network
appears
• First
SEO
conference
held:
SE
Strategies
1994
1999
2012
2011
2010
1995
1997
1998
2000
2002
2003
2004
2005
2006
2007
2008
2009
• Universal
search
appears
• Text
Link
Ads
banned
by
Google
• Wikipedia
shows
the
future
–
domain
authority
through
content
depth
• Nofollow
tags
appear;
PR
sculpVng
follows
• G
Jagger/BigDaddy
updates
seek
link
spam
• XML
sitemaps
jointly
supported
by
all
engines
• Google
notes
the
“sandbox”
• Link
Farms
appear
2013
• Google’s
“Brand”
update
uses
“trust
signals”
to
restack
SERP
around
brands
• Bing
partners
with
Facebook
to
integrate
social
signals
into
SERPs
• rich
snippets
starVng
to
be
used
by
sites
• Canonical
tag
appears
• Caffeine
rolls
out
allowing
faster
indexing
–
“real
Vme”
search
is
here
• Tweets
integrated
showing
future
of
social
influencing
search
• Social
signals
conVnue
to
influence
SERPs
• Google
launches
G+
• G
launches
+1,
tells
sites
they
rank
beoer
displaying
it
• Bing
expands
social
inclusion
with
FB,
Twioer,
Quora
&
4Square
• Rich
Snippets
impacVng
SERPs

5. #C3ny
What
is
SEO?
+ Search
Engine
OpVmizaVon
(SEO)
is
the
process
of
improving
a
website
to
make
it
more
relevant
to
searchers
and
search
engines.
+ At
it’s
very
core,
SEO
is
about
improving
usability
on
a
website.
+ What
SEO
is
not…
• Fast
• Guaranteed
• Once
&
done
• Free

6. #C3ny
What
we’ll
cover
in
this
sec6on
• Understanding
the
Mindset
for
Success
• Covering
the
basics
• Compelling
content
• Your
niche;
your
voice
• Keyword
research
• Why
social
maoers
to
search
• Community
• Influence
• Sharing
• SEO
focal
points
• Content
• Links
• Social
• Crawlability
• On-­‐page
factors
• Site
structure
• Conversion
OpVmizaVon
• Bing
Webmaster
Tools
&
SEO

7. #C3ny
The
Secret
Sauce
The
Basics
• Build
social
followers
&
fans
organically
• Wall
posts/tweets
with
links
are
perceived
as
more
credible
and
useful
• Get
the
basics
of
SEO
covered,
then
focus
on
content
• Its
worth
repeaVng:
unique,
compelling
content
sVll
works
Make
sure
you
research
and
understand
the
basic
factors
that
influence
search
engine
opVmizaVon.
You
may
not
be
able
to
work
out
the
kinks
in
every
item,
but
you
should
be
able
to
cover
the
big
items
on
your
own.
Choose
your
host/plauorms
carefully
–
can
you
set
up
a
robots.txt
and
sitemap.xml
with
them?
Will
they
validate
webmaster
tools
for
you?
Look
for
plugins
that
will
help
with
SEO
basics
and
manage
elements
on-­‐the-­‐fly.
Avoid
the
temptaVon
of
auto-­‐follow
tools
and
tricks
to
gain
fans/followers
overnight

8. #C3ny
The
Secret
Sauce
Compelling
Content
• The
engines
really
respond
to
unique,
useful
content
• Your
visitors
respond
to
this
as
well
• It’s
a
wise
investment
of
your
Vme
• Don’t
take
shortcuts
–
limit
syndicated
content
SEO
is
only
one
part
of
the
equaVon.
CreaVng
content
that
users
want,
and
an
environment
they
enjoy
being
in,
can
go
a
long
way.
It’s
tough
to
create
unique
content,
but
that
doesn’t
mean
you
won’t
have
something
unique
to
say
about
your
topic.
Get
creaVve
on
adding
relevant
content
beyond
just
the
basics.
Get
feedback
from
your
readers
and
post
that
for
all
to
read.
The
booom
line
on
this
point
is
quality
content
is
what
the
search
engines
seek.
Successful
ecommerce
retailers
don’t
rely
on
generic
product
photos.
They
grab
a
camera,
shoot
all
angles
of
the
product,
create
videos,
describe
the
packaging
in
detail,
talk
about
warranty
coverage
and
more.
They
create
compelling
content
that
keeps
shoppers
engaged
and
makes
the
sale.
image
credit:
hop://mashable.com/2011/01/10/social-­‐content-­‐strategy/

9. #C3ny
The
Secret
Sauce
Niche
&
Voice
• The
Internet
is
B.I.G.
Slice
and
dice
to
find
your
niche.
• Plenty
of
niche
areas
to
explore/exploit
–
start
your
fight
where
you
can
dominate
• Choose
your
voice
wisely;
don’t
be
afraid
to
express
an
informed
opinion
• Watch
what
users
respond
to,
then
amplify
along
those
lines
There
are
plenty
of
unexplored
niches
just
waiVng
to
be
mastered
by
small,
authoritaVve
websites.
Finding
a
niche
that
you’re
passionate
about,
and
speaking
to
users
in
a
voice
that
resonates
with
them,
will
go
a
long
way
to
cemenVng
your
lead
in
your
chosen
space.
Start
small.
Trying
to
rank
#1
for
“recipes”
is
a
daunVng
task.
Ranking
#1
for
“texas
bbq
recipes”
or
“pulled
pork
recipes”
would
be
easier.
It
will
sVll
take
work,
but
when
you
are
ranking
well,
that
will
help
your
site
start
to
rank
beoer
for
those
more
generic
phrases
where
the
big
traffic
lives.
Keyword
research
can
help
you
slice
and
dice
your
topic
area
to
find
the
hidden
gems.
These
phrases
will
have
you
targeVng
the
topic
from
new
angles,
ranking
well,
driving
traffic
and
winning
the
minds
of
your
readers
as
an
authority.

10. #C3ny
The
Secret
Sauce
Keyword
Research
• Know
exactly
what
users
are
searching
for
• Data
can
help
you
uncover
new
niches
or
refine
your
focus
• Helps
keep
you
focused
on
creaVng
compelling
content
• Got
writers
block?
Check
your
keyword
research
for
inspiraVon
Don’t
be
guessing
at
which
topics
to
target.
Keyword
research
will
help
you
understand
which
phrases
people
search
for
most
frequently.
That
nugget
of
insight
is
criVcal
to
planning
what
you
should
blog
about.
Leverage
this
to
increase
your
relevancy
in
the
eyes
of
searchers.
Are
you
stuck
trying
to
decide
what
to
write
about
next?
Keyword
research
can
help
you
not
only
find
the
hidden
gems,
but
plan
your
content
producVon
in
advance.
This
makes
you
much
more
efficient.
Keep
your
keyword
research
data
fresh.
Changes
happen,
so
refresh
your
data
every
few
months.
Beoer
yet,
get
good
at
keyword
research
on-­‐the-­‐fly
and
integrate
the
process
into
your
blogging
effort.

11. #C3ny
The
Secret
Sauce
You
• Be
realisVc
–
this
is
a
business
aaer
all
• Set
goals
and
plan
your
work
• There
are
no
failures,
just
learning
opportuniVes
• Write
like
you
mean
it,
be
thoughuul,
helpful
and
informed
Too
many
websites
fail
because
their
owners
don’t
realize
they
are
operaVng
a
business.
Don’t
worry
about
that
feeling
of
being
alone,
like
no
one
is
reading
because
you
don’t
see
comments.
Watch
your
analyVcs
and
see
how
traffic
looks.
It’ll
take
some
Vme,
but
within
that
first
year
you’ll
see
traffic
increasing.
Find
your
voice
and
adjust
to
see
what
resonates
more
with
your
visitors.
Passion
maoers
–
write
what
you
know,
know
what
you
write
–
be
an
authority

12. #C3ny
6
major
investment
areas
for
SEO
• Crawlability
– Xml
sitemaps
– NavigaVonal
structure
– Rich
media
cauVons
– Graceful
degradaVon
– URL
structure
– Robots.txt
• Site
Structure
– Links
– URL
structure
and
keyword
usage
– Clean
URLs
–
no
extraneous
parameters
(sessions,
tracking,
etc.)
– HTML
&
XML
sitemaps
– Content
hierarchy
– Global
navigaVon
–
springs
form
hierarchy
planning
+
style
of
nav
(breadcrumb,
link
lists,
etc.)
– Rich
media
–
don’t
bury
links
in
Javascript/flash
/silverlight/AJAX
• On-­‐Page
– Head
copy
• Titles
–
unique,
relevant,
60
characters
or
so
long
• DescripVons
–
unique,
relevant,
grammaVcally
correct,
160
or
fewer
characters
(Google
shows
up
to
160
characters)
– Body
Copy
• H1,
H2
and
other
H
tag
usage
• ALT
tag
importance
&
usage
• Keyword
usage
within
the
content/text
–
see
“Perfectly
OpVmized
Page”
image
• Anchor
text
–
using
target
keywords
to
support
other
internal
pages
• Content
– Build
based
on
keyword
research
– Down-­‐level
experience
enhances
discoverability
– Keep
out
of
rich
media
and
images
– 250
words
per
page
or
more
– Produce
new
content
frequently
– Make
it
unique
–
don’t
reuse
content
from
other
sources
– Content
management
–
using
301s
to
reclaim
value
from
reVring
content/pages
– <LINK>
canonical
to
help
engines
understand
which
page
should
be
indexed
and
have
value
aoributed
to
it
– 404
error
page
management
to
help
cleanse
old
pages
from
search
engine
indexes
• Links
– Plan
for
incoming
&
outgoing
link
generaVon
– Internal
&
external
link
management
– Content
selecVon
–
planning
where
to
link
to
– Link
promoVon
via
social
spaces
–
direct
traffic
&
seo
value
– Managing
anchor
text
properly
– URL
structure
can
help
insert
keywords
where
they
are
needed
• Social
– Build
your
community
– Interact
oaen
– Share
useful
content
– Be
consistent
and
useful
– Grow
facebook,
twioer,
etc.

13. #C3ny
• Don’t
try
to
extrapolate
from
this
graph
• Importance
is
relaVve
• Use
as
a
guide
–
no
item
is
unimportant
Where
does
SEO
fit
in?
Content
Social
User
Experience
Link
Building
SEO

14. #C3ny
Search – you’re trying to solve…
QUALITY TIMELINESSPOPULARITYTRUST
When
opVmizing
your
site
for
search,
you
invest
in
these
major
areas
Content
Links
Appearance
Authority
Usefulness
Resource
Traffic
Repeat
Visits
Links
Current
Fresh
Relevant

15. #C3ny
Search – we're trying to solve…
ComScore and Microsoft Internal Analysis

16. #C3ny
Time
Spent
on
Sessions
by
Length
Queries
Over
Time
0-­‐3
mins
9%
3-­‐10
mins
12%
10-­‐15
mins
10%
15-­‐30
mins
23%
>30
mins
46%
Almost
50%
of
all
Vme
spent
searching
is
on
sessions
>
30
minutes
Almost
50%
of
queries
are
returning
to
previous
tasks
New
Queries
51%
ParVal
Repeats
30%
Exact
Repeats
19%
Moving Beyond Queries to Sessions
Increasing Use for More Complex Tasks
Search Sessions are Long and Repetitive…

17. #C3ny
A Changing “Web of Objects”
Real-Time Firehose Services
Devices MultimediaPlaces/Things
People

18. #C3ny
A Changing Web of Your Objects
Schema.org
is
your
friend

19. #C3ny
Search - Evolved
Deliver
knowledge
by
computa@onally
understanding
user
intent.
“home
gym”
• Purchase
• Install
• Sell
• Set
fire
to
• Impress
friends
• Who
• Where
• Others
• SemanVc
• Research
Content
Services
Media
Real
Time
+
UX
“Linda”
Query
Intent
Detec@on
Task
Deriva@on

20. #C3ny
How social impacts search
Hover

21. #C3ny
The
Case
for
Social

22. #C3ny

23. #C3ny
Humanity is leaving its traces…

24. #C3ny
More than just traces, a collective convo…
hop://www.facebook.com/notes/facebook-­‐
engineering/visualizing-­‐friendships/469716398919

25. #C3ny
Twitter on NYE 2010

26. #C3ny
Why
social
maUers
to
search
• Signal
of
topical
authority
• Real-­‐Vme
–
engines
want
fresh
content,
fast
• Integrated
social
signals
influence
click
acVons
of
searchers
• Social
signals
remain
only
a
few
of
thousands
of
signals
for
organic
ranking
As
social
becomes
integrated
within
search
results,
the
signals
those
placements
send
to
users
-­‐
and,
by
extension,
the
signals
of
user’s
interacVons
with
those
placements
–
will
impact
click
results
and,
potenVally,
rankings.
The
placements
themselves
don’t
impact
ranking.
ParVcipaVng
in
social
alone
doesn’t
impact
ranking.
How
users
click
on
your
results
can
impact
rankings
and
when
we
show
cues
like
your
Facebook
friends
with
results,
click
rates
can
be
impacted.

27. #C3ny
Conversion
op6miza6on
• Different
sources
must
be
handled
differently
• Organic
traffic
is
building
trust
• Paid
traffic
is
ready
to
open
their
wallets
• Email
traffic
is
ready
to
buy…now
Each
source
of
traffic
to
your
website
requires
a
slightly
different
approach
to
ge~ng
the
conversion.
People
using
search
are
researching
and
need
to
build
trust.
Those
clicking
on
paid
ads
are
typically
much
closer
to
a
purchase
decision.
Traffic
from
valid
email
lists
is
usually
ready
to
buy
immediately,
though
respond
best
to
special
offers.
Users
clicking
on
banner
ads
are
driven
by
offers.
In
all
cases,
strive
to
ensure
your
conversion
path
is
short
and
sweet.
No
surveys,
no
extra
opVons.
Get
them
to
the
thank
you
page
cleanly.
Off
the
shelf
carts
can
usually
be
tweaked
to
gain
improvements
in
conversions.

28. #C3ny
Tools
should
enable
doing
Found
@
Google
WMT
Found
@
Bing
WMT
crawl
data
crawl
rate
configure
sitemap
submissions
parameter
handling
link
data
for
your
site
traffic
stats
keyword
data
messaging
block
URLs
fetch
as
bot
crawl
data
crawl
rate
configure
sitemap
submissions
parameter
handling
link
data
for
your
site
traffic
stats
keyword
data
messaging
block
URLs
fetch
as
bot
organic
keyword
research
rank
stats
index
stats
index
tracker
canonical
alerts
SEO
reports
SEO
analyzer
link
explorer

29. #C3ny
Organic
keyword
research
tool
revisions
Select
mulVple
countries
for
the
same
languages
True
organic
data
from
Bing
Search
Research
mulVple
keywords
at
once

30. #C3ny
Fetch
As
Bingbot

31. #C3ny
Link
explorer
Explore
internal
and
external
links
Explore
links
on
your
site
and
other
sites

32. #C3ny
Wrapping
up
• Content
is
the
reason
• Keyword
research
is
a
beacon
• Quality
is
your
watch
word
• Authority
is
your
goal
• Niche
is
your
starVng
point
• User
Experience
is
your
religion
+ …and
use
the
tools
provided.
+ Thanks
for
your
Vme!
Duane
Forrester
+ Sr.
Product
Manager
-­‐
Bing
+ @duaneforrester

33. #C3ny
33