Portland Oregon’s Leading SEO Company

/0 Comments/in /by

a picture of OWS Logo horiz color SEO company

Portland’s Best SEO Company

Now being as I am an SEO company myself, you would have to know that it is a true compliment for me to mention another. Oregon Web Solutions is definitely one of those companies. I know who they were trained by and there are the best in the nation. Take there local area for example. There are some Portland SEO companies that have been there for 10 years and OWS came in and out ranked them for their own keywords in 6 months! That alone should tell you enough. These guys are the real deal and I am lucky enough to know both Seth and Matt who are the owners.

The world of search engine marketing is tough as if you are not always on your game, you fall off. Things change so much in the world of SEO that every 6 months there is typically a new update and everything changes. This is good because it keeps stale sites and old information from being stuck at the top.

With all of these updates it is even more crucial for you to have a knowledgable search engine optimization company on your side. Now as I do most of my work out of the Seattle area, I don’t mind throwing a few bones to my friends in Oregon. In return, they do the same for me so it is a win win. With that being said, they truly are some of the best. Not just because I know them, because their results speak louder then words.

When you can outrank your competitors in just 6 months, think what they can do for your business!

One thing about Oregon Web Solutions is that they don’t work with just anyone. They have a higher standard of clientele as they only work with a select few to keep quality. For example:

  • You must have an established business (no start ups)
  • They do not promote adult themed material
  • They do not work with get rich quick schemes
  • You must have product of services that you are currently selling
  • You need current paying clients or customers

The reason for the requirements is that they take businesses to the next level. It is not worth your time or theirs to help start ups as they are best with bigger and more established companies. This isn’t to say they don’t work with smaller companies as they do, just not startups. If you are looking for a quick SEO fix and something under $500 or $600, they probably are not going to be the right fit for you. The great thing is that if they can’t help you at your current stage, then they will do there best to give you a good referral to who can help that will be good. You can see why I am a fan. Check out some of there videos on their Youtube channel.

The are geared up for people who are stuck on page 2 or worse for really tough and competitive keywords. This is where their training kicks in and they can help you get to page 1 for high dollar keywords that will bring in good revenue for your business. Mapping out a plan to get you a positive ROI is part of what they do. Again, if they can’t help you get a good looking ROI, then they will be honest and let you know. Sometimes  people have them rank what they want anyway, but at least they know what they are getting into ahead of time.

Where it becomes hard to give a positive ROI is in food services where the profit margins are low, or where customer values are low like in a nick nack store. On the opposite end a plastic surgeon’s client value will be immensely higher and easy to show a great ROI based on simple traffic numbers.

I will say there are times when they will take on a smaller client for paying referrals  in return. Basically they will rank a keyword of your choice for free if you refer them (X) amount of clients (client referral numbers are based upon difficulty of keyword). Matt and Seth both agree that referrals are the name of the game. They want you to feel good about referring someone and profit as well. Win win.

So if you live in the Portland Oregon area and would like to learn more, you can visit them at: http://www.oregonwebsolutions.com/portland-seo-company/

I will also include one of their main video’s below so that you can learn a little more about what they do below:

Best SEO Advice That You Will Ever Get For Free!

/2 Comments/in /by

a picture of free seo advice

The Best Free SEO Advice

People ask me for SEO advice all the time, and for the most part I tell them all the same thing. Build better links and write quality content. When you think about it these are no brainers so why beat people over the head with it over and over again. Today I’m going to give you some SEO advice that you can truly benefit from if you put them into play. It’s not a blue print to SEO, just some good old fashion encouragement, which, believe it or not some people really do need, including myself. Some of you might think this is a little harsh, but that’s just the way I am. Anyway, read, take heed, and enjoy.

Two Heads Are Better Than One:
Ever heard the term “Man can only do so much alone”?  This is especially true in the field of SEO. If your doing SEO on your own and still can’t get over the hump then don’t you think it is time to start seeking the help of a professional? Clearly you have brought your site as high as you yourself can bring it and from the looks of things it doesn’t appear you can do any better. If this is the case then professional help is your only option.

If you run your own SEO Company this also applies to you. I know of alot of SEO firms out there closing people down yet producing 0 results. If your having problems ranking your clients then you might want to take some of those spam emails you get from outsourcing companies into consideration. The bottom line here is that while you might be good in one area it doesn’t hurt to get help for the ones your lacking in. As good as I am at SEO I have no problem going out to the forums and seeking some advice. That’s how I learned most of what I know now and I’m sure other would agree.

Don’t Be Afraid To Fire Your SEO:
It just amazes me how people refuse to fire a person or company who is producing absolutely 0 results. I understand that sometimes you might be working with a friend or someone you think is a good person. But that is no excuse to keep them around, if they are not producing then they got to go, and that is all there is to it. They might have done wonders to get you were you are now, but if your site is at a stand still then most likely they have run out of gas and it is time to start looking for a replacement. If you don’t want to fire them then at least give them some help by hiring a few more SEO guys to complete what they can’t. Remember, it’s your business and if you want to succeed then you need to have the best people on board at all times. So don’t be afraid to hand out the pinks slips when rankings aren’t climbing.

Get More Aggressive:
I don’t know about you, but I don’t like losing rankings. My goal is to rank as high as I can for every keyword I’m targeting, no exceptions. If your rankings have dropped lately don’t be so quick to blame the Google update, chances are your competitors have stepped it up a notch. If you think that your the only one interested in your current ranking position I can promise that you are wrong. There are thousands of sites waiting to take that spot from you and some of them aren’t to far behind. If you want to continue to be where you are or climb higher then it is time for you start stepping up your game. Don’t just sit around and watch your ranking get took, do something about it. Build more links, buy more links if you have to, do whatever it takes to make sure that your site doesn’t get pushed around by some new hot shot who probably isn’t even as smart as you in terms of SEO. He or she is just more aggressive,  and you better jump on board as well, or get left behind.

Don’t Believe Everything You Read:
There is so much misinformation about SEO out there that it is almost impossible to find out what really works. Funny thing is that people teach this stuff like it’s the Gospel without ever even trying it themselves. If you want to know for sure what really works then your going to have just do it yourself. I have found that the best way to do this is by creating a throw away site that targets just one keyword and then slamming the hell out of it with every trick I can think of, but one at a time. This is the best way to see which tactic works and which doesn’t, it’s a little time consuming but you learn alot in the process.

Buy Some Software:
If you really think that you can do everything manually and produce better results then I’m all for it. However, some of these can in fact be automated and bring no harm to your website. The trick is finding the right program that fits your needs. Don’t be afraid to grab a few of these and give them a spin, it just might get you over the hump you been stuck on. Now there are a ton of programs out there and all claim to be the best, I won’t tell you which ones I think are better so don’t ask, you’ll have to discover that on your own. What I will tell is that which ever program you choose make sure that it really fits what you are looking for. You might have to test a few before you find the right ones, but once you do it will be well worth the investment.

Beef Up Your Backlinks:
If your not linking to your own backlinks by now then you better get with the program. Consider this, your site is ranking pretty well based on the links you have now. If you are in the top 10 then I would say you probably have some pretty strong links pointing at your site. Why not add more strength to those links by linking to them from other sources? Remember, rankings are based on authority, the stronger the links pointing at your site the stronger your site becomes, and the higher you rank. Not only is this a powerful method for boosting your own links, it also helps hide your footprints from competitors. I’m sure you heard people complaining about someone out ranking them with only 5 links, now you know why.

And Finally – Stop Being Cheap:
To many people think they can fly to the top of the search engines just by using all of the free services they can find, or going with the cheapest SEO Company in the city. While this might be true for less competitive keywords, you’ll never get there doing this for the terms that are the most important or that produce the most sales. If you want to be a dominate force in your market then you need to pay to play. If your not investing a few hundred bucks a month to improve your rankings or hold the ones you already have then you deserve to stay at the bottom. There is nothing wrong with forking out some cash to get you ahead of your competitors, how do you think the top companies got where they are today? I can promise you it didn’t happen for free. I know, I know, you can get people to do the same thing I do for cheaper. Well I can also build my own race car, but it doesn’t mean that I’ll win the Indy 500. Remember you get what you pay for, I’m not saying you can’t throw in a few cheap services here and there, but if your only dropping $50 or $60 into your site every 6 months and see little results, then again, you deserve to stay at the bottom. The point is, if you can’t afford to truly compete in your market then my advice is that you switch to one that you can handle. There’s no point drooling over a market you’ll never taste.

While writing this I did a search for the 10 Commandments of SEO, just to see if anyone had it already, and of course someone did. So for further reading and motivation I highly recommend that you check out Eric On Search and his Ten Commandments of SEO. I was gonna swipe it, but I didn’t want to break the 7th Commandment :) .

Well that’s it for now, as always, thanks for reading and if you need some SEO Service just let me know. “May the Serps be with you”.

Is Rand Fishkin A Prophet?

/0 Comments/in /by

A picture of Rand Fishkin

Prophet Rand Fishkin

Ok I just had to post this. Mainly because I’ve been doing a lot of dooms day talk with people on various forums and stuff. Anyway, I came across a Lisa Barone article about “The New Periodic Table of SEO” which is a very good read if you want the quick details about what’s going on over here at SMX Seattle. In her coverage of Rand Fishkin she reports the following:

In reference to this question “What do SEOs believe will happen with Google’s Use of Ranking Features in the Future?“

Rank Fishkin replies: “Exact keyword match domains will fall, anchor text in external links will fall, prominence of ads vs content will increase, usage data will increase, social signals will increase, perceived valueness will increase.“

Does that sound like an SEO Doomsday or what? Slow down Rand, the people can only handle so much at once. These are some pretty powerful prophecies and I’m sure there are alot people panicking over this. And I do agree with some of these prophecies, especially the one regarding “Exact keyword match domains will fall”, I’ve been trying to hint at this for awhile as well. People just don’t seem to get it, keywords are not brand names.

I highly recommend that you take these prophecies of Rand Fishkin pretty serious, this guy seems to know what he is talking about. Therefore, let us take heed to the words of the prophet and make the necessary changes to our site lest we too be punished by the god of serps.

To see the latest prophecies of Rand Fishkin please visit the Search Engine Ranking Factors report which was just published on the SEO Moz blog.

As always, thanks for reading and may the serps be with you.

Navigate back to our home page Online Marketing Advisors.

Will Google Ever Back Off Web Directories?

/0 Comments/in /by

a picture of google vs web directories

Google VS Web Directories

If you have been running a web directory for the past 3-4 years or longer then you most likely have noticed a lot of changes in the way google now views your directory. When you first started it looked as though google loved everything you were doing, they granted a nice page rank with good search rankings and fast indexing of new pages. But as time went on google started treating the site differently, they started dropping your pr by 1 point at a time, then they stopped indexing your new pages as well as dropping your rank. And for what reason?

Is it the directory markets fault that they did as instructed? Google demands relevant links in order to keep their search results clean, yet at the same time they are quick to punish your site for this as well.  It appears that if you own a web directory and have a bunch of links from other web directories then Google see’s this as some form of spamming, or that you are just buying up a bunch of links to point to your website. Google clearly has no respect for some of the older directories unless they are part of some huge company. As it stands now the only way to stay under the radar is to create a new directory that google knows nothing about. I say this because I have been seeing alot of this lately, seems like Google has no problem granted a nice page rank to new directories. Maybe it is because those sites are not receiving to much attention, or maybe Google is just testing them to see what they will do. In either case, I guess the best way to go about it now is to create a web directory with some funny domain name and then buy a bunch of high pr links to point at the site, seems alot harder for google to detect you this way.

I just wish they would stop playing this little silly game they have been playing with directories. Clearly the directory market is not going anywhere, more and more directories are still popping up every day, mostly from dropped domains which already have page rank, but most of us know those when we see them. Do they really think that directory owners are just going throw everything they have been working on in the trash? Some owners have thousands of dollars invested into their directories so you can bet that these guys are not going to just roll over and die.

Moreover, webmasters will never stop using them as a way to build links, and google will never stop crawling them. So again, everything that google is trying to do to kill the market is really just a waste of time. If they think that by dropping the page rank of well established directories is going to kill the market then they thought wrong. After all, most webmasters have stopped looking at the page rank of directories and now seem to focus more on the age and reputation of the site. This actually works in favor of those who have been around for awhile. But hey, no matter what we say google will be google and that is failing to understand that this market will never die. I could go forever about this but I’ll stop here. As always, thanks for reading and may the serps be with you.