First Page or Bust: 95% Come From Page One

“The company I work for just released a study on SERP (search engine results pages) click rates, and found that the sites surveyed received more than 95% of all their non-branded natural search traffic from page-one results pages across all three major engines.

Read more: http://www.mediapost.com/publications/article/122670/#ixzz1kIRKCQbD“

This article is about the importance for your website to be on the first page of results for your keywords. Being on second page of results means your site will be exposed to 95% less people than possible from the first page.

I hope this article helps your SEO efforts! If you have questions please contact us!

Jacob Hines — HikeMySite.com

Online, Local Exposure for Small Businesses — SEO, Web Design

Facebook IPO Hitting in Late May [REPORT] -- HikeMySite.com

"Facebook‘s long-awaited IPO is likely to come in late May, according to a report." Continue reading here.

This article talks about Facebook's upcoming IPO. It appears that its IPO may have been over-estimated.

Jacob Hines — HikeMySite.com

Online, Local Exposure for Small Businesses — SEO, Web Design

20 of the Best SEO Plugins for WordPress -- HikeMySite.com

"With more than 120 million blogs in existence, how do people find YOUR content on the Internet? The key starts with great search engine optimization (SEO), which is an art and a science that helps search engines discover your content and understand how relevant it is to specific search queries.

You can blog your heart out, but if you don’t have good SEO, ...." Continue reading here.

This article outlines the top twenty most useful Wordpress Plugins for SEO. Whether your business is in the restaurant industry or SEO consulting, these plugins are hand-selected to get your blog exposure on the internet.

Jacob Hines — HikeMySite.com

Online, Local Exposure for Small Businesses — SEO, Web Design

SEO Search engine optimization infographic -- HikeMySite.com

Blogged by HikeMySite.com

Source: datadial.net via Erik on Pinterest

Jacob Hines — HikeMySite.com

Online, Local Exposure for Small Businesses — SEO, Web Design

Search Engine Optimization Graphic -- HikeMySite.com

All you ever wanted to know about Search Engine Optimization -- HikeMySite.com

This "infographic" breaks down the complex conversation of content for search engine optimization. It begins with talk of Google's organic traffic, social media and branding, and the predicted value of search factors. Great resource! - HikeMySite.com Search Engine Optimization and Web Development

Jacob Hines — HikeMySite.com
Online, Local Exposure for Small Businesses — SEO, Web Design

How will SOPA affect your business and personal life? -- HikeMySite.com

"What the SOPA protesters should say is that even if SOPA goes down in flames, it's not over. It's never over. Further, the public can not rely on mainstream media to warn them of this sort of legislation. This is doubly true when the legislation is supported by the same organizations that own the media." SEOmoz Daily

If you're unfamiliar with Sopa, please watch this video:
Protect IP / SOPA Breaks the Internet

"SOPA + PIPA are real threats to Internet freedom, commerce, content and the marketing profession not just in the US, but worldwide (another troubling and terrifying issue that Moz isn't really the place to discuss). We support all those helping to keep the web the amazing place it's become and will put our names, our votes and our dollars to use stopping those who'd legislate against web freedom to help the wallets of self-interested non-innovators." Read more from SEOmoz here.

This article takes the SOPA and PIPA into perspective for internet marketers. Businesses of other industries will also be put into a position to restructure.

Jacob Hines — HikeMySite.com

Online, Local Exposure for Small Businesses — SEO, Web Design

Hidden Facebook messages

"Facebook – that very website you rely on to keep you in touch with friends, family and important messages like these – has been deciding on our behalf which personal messages we are likely to want to see, and which it thinks won’t be of interest to us. The messages we receive notifications for on a daily basis have been..." Continue reading here.

This article shows a behind-the-scenes process that Facebook does for its users. Since spam on Facebook is so prevalent, Facebook filters some of your messages automatically. It is very unlikely that your friends' personal messages to you are being deleted; however, it is likely that game requests from people you may know are being "dumped" in this hidden folder.

This article is useful for common Facebook users and especially social media managers. It can be essential to a marketing campaign to understand where some of your messages to potential clients could have gone. (Remember, don't spam! No one will like you. No one will trust you!)

Jacob Hines — HikeMySite.com

Online, Local Exposure for Small Businesses — SEO, Web Design

Sopa: Sites go dark as part of anti-piracy law protest

"Thousands of internet sites are taking part in a "blackout" protest against anti-piracy laws being discussed by US lawmakers.

The Wikipedia encyclopedia and blogging service WordPress are among the highest profile pages to remove material......" Continue reading here.

Large websites are taking a stand against Sopa. Whether you think this is a legitimate way to show lawmakers or think it is childish action, it affects internet users. If you are a webmaster (have your own website) this "Sopa" business can be a very big deal. For example, since HikeMySite.com has a blog, if similar legislation passes, we will be forced to monitor our content very closely. As a business owner/webmaster one must also consider the actions of the "internet-giants" that we all rely on: Google, Wordpress, and Wikipedia. If any of these giants take further drastic measure, it could potentially us. Stay tuned for updates related to Sopa-like legislation.

Jacob Hines — HikeMySite.com

Online, Local Exposure for Small Businesses — SEO, Web Design

What Are the Benefits of Pay Per Click Advertising?

"Pay per click advertising is intimidating to some. They do not completely understand what PPC is and they fail to see the benefits of using something like this for their own business. Pay for click is a great way to grow a business online and to increase the return on investment. PPC is simple, once you really get an understanding for...." Continue reading here.

This article is about pay per click advertising. Many are not up-to-date with PPC ads and are unsure whether it is cost-effective for their business. PPC can be a great addition to search engine optimization for organic search results. Taking advantage of PPC advertising for your "keywords" as well as optimizing your site for organic searches allows your website to show up in the two places that users look.

I hope this post helps settle some confusion about PPC.

Jacob Hines — HikeMySite.com

Online, Local Exposure for Small Businesses — SEO, Web Design

SEO Advice: Writing useful articles that readers will love

"My advice is not to start with an article about porn/pills/casinos/mortgages–it’s better to start with a smaller niche. If you become known as an expert on (say) configuring Linux or hacking gadgets, you could build that out with things like forums to create even more useful content. Look for a progression of niches so that...." Continue reading here.

This article is from mattcutts.com and is a very practical outline for writing articles related to your business. At its center, this article proves that niche writing is the most noticeable and useful for both your business and your readers. Read on!

Jacob Hines — HikeMySite.com

Online, Local Exposure for Small Businesses — SEO, Web Design

Don't be Fooled! Learn & Destroy the 6 Biggest Marketing Myths

Hello marketers!

Don't get stumped by marketing fantasies and myths. Dan Zarrella digs into three of the most pervasive and dangerous myths that could be endangering your marketing effectiveness right now.

Download the Marketing Myths ebook. http://bit.ly/MarketingMythsBusted

Three of the best myths this ebook busts are:

1. Marketing on the weekends is bad.
2. It's better to send less email.
3. “Please ReTweet” doesn’t work.

(This article is from Hubspot)

Google’s Results Get More Personal With “Search Plus Your World”

"Google’s search results are undergoing their most radical transformation ever, as a new “Search Plus Your World” format begins rolling out today. It finds both content that’s been shared with you privately along with matches from the..." Continue reading here.

The above link is yet another article on Google's new policy on searches for 2012. What will this mean for your business/website? Check it out and please leave comments and thoughts! We love hearing from our customers.

Jacob Hines — HikeMySite.com

Online, Local Exposure for Small Businesses — SEO, Web Design

Google Merges Search and Google+ Into Social Media Juggernaut

"Now we know Google’s master-plan for integrating Google+ ever more deeply into the Google ecosystem: Pour the whole thing into Google search. Starting today, Google+ members, and to a lesser extent others who are signed into Google, will be able to search against both the broader web and their own Google+ social graph. That’s right; Google+ circles, photos, posts and more will be integrated into search in ways other social platforms can only dream about." Read more here.

This article is relevant to Google's policy changes for 2012 on searches. Including Google Plus information to help provide users with more accurate search results emphasizes the importance of social media management. Including social media information, including demographic information, to searches makes local keywords a more relevant topic. For example, a Chicago restaurant should pursue keyword marketing for "Chicago restaurant." Users with a Google Plus account will be directed more accurately to local results.

Jacob Hines — HikeMySite.com

Online, Local Exposure for Small Businesses — SEO, Web Design

What's an Entrepreneur? The Best Answer Ever

"This classic 25-word definition pares entrepreneurship to its essence and explains why it's so hard. And so addictive." -- Inc Article

This article can do one of two things:

a) Explain what an entrepreneur is, how he/she works, and why he/she does it.

b) Help you understand yourself--why and how you became an entrepreneur without even knowing the definition of "entrepreneur."

Jacob Hines — HikeMySite.com

Online, Local Exposure for Small Businesses — SEO, Web Design

Mark Cuban's 12 Rules for Startups

"Anyone who has started a business has his or her own rules and guidelines, so I thought I would add to the memo with my own..." Read more here.

This article is helpful to see a simple breakdown of essential tips to starting your own business. Remember: practicality beats aesthetics.

Jacob Hines — HikeMySite.com

Online, Local Exposure for Small Businesses — SEO, Web Design

RSS – Blog Directories (long list)

This a list of the submission urls for RSS and blog directories that you can submit your blog or RSS feed to. This is very helpful for search engine optimization (SEO.) When over forty websites are willing to link to yours with the simple investment of your time, it is worth it. HikeMySite.com did a list of bog submissions for its blog. These submissions gave Google a "better impression" of my blog and rated it higher for related keywords. When more websites are linking to your website or blog, Google sees your website as more important and ultimately relevant.

What this means for your website? If you're a do-it-yourselfer, start submitting your blog to the hundreds of directories. If you don't feel like doing this yourself, contact us. We can talk about optimization and blog contracts.

Jacob Hines — HikeMySite.com

Online, Local Exposure for Small Businesses — SEO, Web Design

Tips On Making Money With Search Engine Optimization

To give SEO a great boost, whenever possible use off-site links to quality content. This is a very important part of linking. Relevant links to other websites are more valuable from a SEO perspective than the links that interlink your website. In order to make your rank higher, you should...(continue reading here.)

This article gives good advice on creating backlinks. It also emphasizes the importance of linking to good content throughout your articles/posts. These tips will help ensure great content on your blog/website!

Jacob Hines — HikeMySite.com

Online, Local Exposure for Small Businesses — SEO, Web Design

What Everyone Needs To Know About SEO

Search engine optimization takes time and you might be slow to see results. It’s human nature to look for immediate gratification for the hard work you put into something. Creating and maintaining a successful website requires a true commitment of your time and devotion. Even when things don’t seem to be happening fast enough, it’s important you stay on track. Eventually, your hard work will net dividends and you will...(continue reading here.)

This article shares some time-reveled secrets about search engine optimization. Some insights are only learned with experience, such as not seeing immediate results. Keep this article in mind if you are a do-it-yourselfer and are trying to undertake your own SEO. If you have any questions please contact me at jahines.uh@gmail.com.

Jacob Hines — HikeMySite.com

Online, Local Exposure for Small Businesses — SEO, Web Design

This Is Why You Were Friended or Unfriended

While some Internet interactions are online-only relationships, the most common reason we add friends on Facebook is because we know people in real life.

According to recent research from NM Incite, for 82% of Facebook users, knowing someone offline is....(read more here.)

This article helps us understand why people reach out to others on Facebook. These statistics are helpful if you are devoted to social media management or if you are just a common user.

Jacob Hines — HikeMySite.com

Online, Local Exposure for Small Businesses — SEO, Web Design

SEO – How Do You Get People To You Website?

You should center your articles around keywords and phrases to improve search engine rankings. Putting the right keywords in your articles will make search engines respond positively to them. Therefore, it’s easier for readers who may be trying to locate your articles. The keyword you want to focus on should...(continue reading here.)

This article is very useful for web design and search engine optimization do-it-youselfers!

Jacob Hines — HikeMySite.com

Online, Local Exposure for Small Businesses — SEO, Web Design