Weekly SEO news: 18 August 2009
Welcome to the latest issue of the Search Engine Facts newsletter.

This week, we're taking a look at link building through directory submission. Does it still work? A small case study has some answers.

In the news: details about the effects of the Yahoo/Microsoft deal, Google adds a new feature to Google Insights for Search, further information about Google Caffeine and more.

Table of contents:

We hope that you enjoy this newsletter and that it helps you to get more out of your website. Please pass this newsletter on to your friends.

Best regards,
Andre Voget, Johannes Selbach, Axandra CEO
1. Case study: are Internet directory submissions still a good SEO method?

Most webmasters know that high rankings on Google and other modern search engines can only be achieved if a website has both optimized web page content and good inbound links.

While it is relatively easy to optimize the content of a website, it is more difficult to get good inbound links. A relatively easy way to get inbound links is to submit websites to Internet directories.

But do these Internet directory links still have value when it comes to search engine rankings? Can you increase the position of your website in Google's search results by submitting your site to Internet directories?

directories

A case study

An internet marketer tested three pages that were orphaned within the normal navigation structure of the website. These three pages were created to provide valuable content to search engines.

The three pages were submitted to some high quality paid directories (Yahoo, BestOfTheWeb, Joe Ant) and free directories.

About 45 days after the paid directory links went live, the web pages had increased visibility on search engines. Visits and conversions also increased and the tracking of the marketer indicated that at least 50 percent of the results could be attributed to the directory links.

The final results that were attributed to the directory link building included:

  • a lift of traffic to levels that other highly visible site pages receive within 90 days
  • an increase in monthly conversions for the business line of 45 percent year-over-year

What does this mean for your website?

Getting links from Internet directories should be a fundamental part of any search engine optimization strategy. You should submit your website to all big Internet directories and to Internet directories that cover your niche.

IBP's directory submitter can help you to submit your website as efficiently as possible to all important directories.

Links from Internet directories are only one way to get links from other sites. If you want to outperform your competitors, you also need links from websites that are related to yours. Links from blogs will also help. IBP will help you to get these links.

Don't forget to optimize your website content before building links. The better your website content has been prepared for search engines, the better the links to your website will work.

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2. Search engine news and articles of the week

Gap
The gap between Google and rivals may be smaller than you think

"comScore found that for the combined Yahoo-Microsoft, 'searcher penetration,' or the percentage of the online population in the United States that uses one of those search engines, is 73 percent. Google’s searcher penetration is higher, but not by that much: at 84 percent."

Editor's note: the exact numbers can be found here.



Google's Varian: search scale is 'bogus'

"Varian, currently on leave from the University of California at Berkeley to serve as Google's chief economist, thinks a lot of the arguments advanced by Microsoft in justifying its 10-year deal for Yahoo search are, in a word, 'bogus.'"



Google InsightsNew features and languages for Google Insights for Search

"We're also introducing a forecasting feature for some queries based on an extrapolation of the historical trends and search patterns. And to help you visualize these changes and trends, we've also added an animated map so you can watch how search interest changes over time in different locations."



 New Google is the old Microsoft

"Google is supposed to be an unbiased search engine, but they are hurting consumers by using their dominance to become a king maker for their own, increasingly inferior products. [...]

Without the fear of another DOJ suit, Microsoft would have snuffed Google out faster than you can say 'Netscape.' And Google can snuff out competitors with their dominance too."



 Google Caffeine: what it really is

"As it invites the world to play in a mysterious sandbox it likes to call 'Caffeine,' Google is testing more than just a 'next-generation' search infrastructure. It's testing at least a portion of a revamped software architecture that will likely underpin all of its online applications for years to come. [...]

'The new infrastructure sits 'under the hood' of Google's search engine,' read [Matt Cutts'] blog post, 'which means that most users won't notice a difference in search results.'"



Search engine newslets

  • Google LBC: new link to coupon feature raising visibility of coupons?
  • The fallacy of the link economy.
  • Yahoo veterans launch Rocket Fuel, a "hybrid" ad network.
  • Most common words in Google, Yahoo, Bing, and Ask, with Google Caffeine.
  • Google thinks all New Yorkers who fly into JFK speak Arabic.
  • Get bulk uploads verified in Google Maps Local Business Center.
  • Bing Shopping takes off.

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3. New IBP 11.5 now with Google's keyword tools

Based on user feedback we have improved the keyword manager in IBP 11 so that it now supports the Google AdWords keyword suggestion tool in many different languages.

IBP 11.5 - now with Google keyword tool

In addition to the unique keyword database of KeywordIndex.com, IBP 11.5 now also supports the keyword tools of Google AdWords. That means that you can now get the number of searches for keywords in many languages, including English, German, Spanish, French, Italian, and more. Click here to get IBP 11.5.

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4. Success stories

Terry von Dijk"Traffic numbers are up 300% and we spend less on advertising."

"A bit over 6 months ago we purchased the iBusinessPromoter software to lift our profile and search engine ranking. At that stage we were hardly to be found in SERP's, especially Google.

Within 1 month after we started the software we saw significant change in our rankings and now we are ranked in the top 10 of nearly all important key phrases.

Traffic numbers are up 300% and we spend less on advertising. We will continue to use IBP to improve rankings. It is user friendly and more importantly gets results."
Terry van Dijk, Managing Director i-Law l Find a Lawyer



Wim Botha"Money well spent."

"Just to let you know I invested in Axandra 4 years ago and today I can say that SEO forms 80% of the income of my Internet business. Axandra put Porto Imagem Internet Solutions on the map with clients on 5 continents. Money well spent for the best SEO software with virtually immediate results"
Wim Botha, www.optix.co.za


200,000 readers will see YOUR website

Let us know how IBP has helped you to improve your website and we might publish your success story with a link to your website in this newsletter. The more detailed your story is, the better.

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5. Previous articles

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