Top 3 things to look out for when hiring a SEO company

Guest post by: Lyuben Georgiev

So you have a business and you want to develop it further by hiring a SEO agency to take care of your website’s performance. This is great but choosing the best company can be a little bit hard nowadays. I have heard complaints from different people saying they have a lot of bad memories from the last company they hired and they will never try SEO again. It is a shame that these companies give the whole industry such a bad name.

When hiring a company to handle SEO for you, beware of those things:

1. Splogging – In an attempt to generate more links for you so you can sign a long term contract, many companies use splogging. This is the kind of spam that usually affects blogs. An example of splogging is putting your website’s name and link on various useless pages that have absolutely no value, page rank or domain authority all over the web. Most of the times these companies would use programs to automatically make blogs and post your link somewhere surrounded with a bunch of words that don’t even make sense. That can not only bring no value to your website but it can also be pretty bad for your reputation.


2. Short term links – That definition comes from the companies that would link to your website from site they have created and own. This is generally not a bad idea if the website is one that has high authority. The problem comes when you are no longer happy with their services and want to end the contract. Then these companies will take your links off their websites. This can be very bad depending on how many links they have put there. What if it is a blog and they have posted a lot of articles with links to your website and they delete them all when you no longer have a contract? Beware of those situations as they can be very dangerous.


3. Comment spamming – Another form of spamming is comment spamming. A company that uses that method would go on different blogs and post useless comments (you will be lucky if the comment even says something that makes sense like “Thanks for the post”) and put your link there. These comments can be very bad for your reputation and you should avoid companies that spam in any way at all costs.

So, the only way to find out what these companies are up to on time is to ask for reports. Tell them that you want to see what they have been doing for your business and see where the links are coming from. It is your right as their client to know what they are doing for you and end the contract if you are not happy. You should take control and be on top of things because once it is too late you will regret it very much.

For more information about mistakes to avoid when choose SEO firm follow link.

Lyuben Georgiev works for one of the largest SEO companies in Europe - Outrider. He also blogs at popular blogs like Search Engine Journal and RINF.

Increase blog adsense revenue real case scenario

Here you will find my attempts to increase CTR (click through rate) of AdSense ad units on my blogger blog. So we can say this article is CTR AdSense case study on this blog. CTR is the ratio of the number of times the add appear in your website and the number of times peoples clicks it, for example if your AdSense ad unit was delivered 1000 times and 1 person clicked on it (clicks recorded), then the resulting CTR would be 0.1%. The higher CTR the better result, so I use CTR as a measure of successfully rate.
I tried different AdSense ad unit combination and position and decided to share my exprience. Now my CTR is almost 3 time greater then before I tried to optimize AdSense CTR.

My first AdSense combination

AdSense units - in first AdSense combination one Banner (468 x 60) (text & image/rich media ads) AdSense ad unit was placed on top of blog, below blog title and menu and above post title. Second AdSense unit was Leaderboard (728 x 90) (text & image/rich media ads) in the footer of the blog.

Duration of this AdSense combination: 12 months
Click through ratio - CTR: 0.10%

Second AdSense combination

In this combination Leaderboard (728 x 90) (text & image/rich media ads) was replaced with Medium Rectangle (300 x 250) (text & image/rich media ads) ad unit. Medium Rectangle (300 x 250) is one of recommended AdSense ad formats. Another Medium Rectangle (300 x 250) (text & image/rich media ads) ad unit was added after blogger post (below comments). Leaderboard (728 x 90) (text & image/rich media ads) is in the footer of the blog as in my first AdSense combination.

Duration of this AdSense combination: 8 months
Click through ratio - CTR: 0.28%
RPM : €0.73

Above the fold AdSene units vs. AdSense units in footer

When we compare Medium Rectangle (300 x 250) AdSense ad unit on top of blog (under blog title and above blog post) and another AdSense Medium Rectangle (300 x 250) unit below post with Leaderboard (728 x 90) in the footer we get this result:

• Medium Rectangle AdSense units get 92,31% of all clicks


• Leaderboard (728 x 90) in the footer get 7,69% of all clicks

Custom channel	Page CTR	Page RPM (EUR)
Medium Rectangle - top	0.26%	0.68
LeaderBoard - bottom	0.02%	0.05

Third AdSense combination

In this AdSense combination Leaderboard (728 x 90) (text & image/rich media ads) is placed on the top below blog title. Medium Rectangle (300 x 250) unit stays like in second AdSense comibnation.

Duration of this AdSense combination: 3 months
Click through ratio - CTR: 0.26%
RPM : €0.68

Custom channel	Page CTR	Page RPM (EUR)
Medium Rectangle - top	0.17%	0.42
LeaderBoard - top	0.09%	0.26

Yahoo search direct - new feature

Yahoo! Search Direct is a new feature introduced on March 23 2011. Search Direct contributes to users finding answers and navigating the web using fewer keystrokes. Yahoo! Search Direct delivers answers and direct access to websites before you complete a query or click the search button. Here you can try how Yahoo search direct works: search.yahoo.com.

How Yahoo! search direct really works?

When user type a search query in the search box, Search Direct displays a dynamic tray below the search box using the following layout:

• The left-side part displays phrases that were used as search queries across the Yahoo! network. These queries combined with search term popularity and other relevancy factors are used to select these suggestions.



• The right-side displays answers and rich content from Yahoo! properties or other websites and resources. When mouse over any of the terms with your pointer, on the left-side, displays new content on the right-side. You may see answers, enhanced links, or rich content, including icons, images, and related information on the right side.

Yahoo! search direct very closely mimics Yahoo's own Search Assist, launched in November. Yahoo Search Direct predictive-search technology comes several months after Google Instant.

Few words about Google Instant

Google Instant is a relatively new search enhancement that shows results as user type search query. With Google Instant user can adapt his search on the fly until the results match exactly what he want. Google instant is available to Google users.

Benefits of Google Instant

• Faster Searches: By predicting user search and showing results before he finish typing, Google Instant can save 2-5 seconds per search



• Smarter Predictions: Even when user don’t know exactly what he looking for, predictions help guide his search. The top prediction is shown in grey text directly in the search box, so he can stop typing as soon as you see what you need.



• Instant Results: Start typing and results appear right before user eyes. Until now, user had to type a full search term, click return, and hope for the right results. Now results appear instantly as use type, helping him to see where he is headed

Yahoo! search direct vs. Google Instant

I am using Google as a primary search engine and find Google Instant very helpful. Yahoo! search direct is a nice new feature but in my opinion Google instant is better designed and more easy to use. At this moment I try search.yahoo.com with a search term: "direct search". First term offered by yahoo is: "yahoo direct search" with a suggestion for top sites: "How do I turn off Yahoo direct Search?". It is not a very good sign for this new technology :)

Blogger and AdSense

Blogger provides a simple way to make money with AdSense. Blogspot requests access to your AdSense account in order to allow creating and placing ad code on blogger page through layouts and template tools. If you don't have an AdSense account, you can sign up for it right from Blogger. Enter a valid email address, choose a password, fill in some contact information and then Blogger will register your account for you right away. If you do have an account already, just use the "sign in" link instead.

Where to put AdSense ad units on blogger for best results?

For this question check the heat map. One of the most commented positions is AdSense unit just below post title. Find more about this position on the end of this article.

If you want to learn from my own experience how to increase AdSense Click Through Rate follow the link.

There are two ways to put Google AdSense ad inside your blogspot blog:


• 1. create AdSense ads directly through blogger
• 2. create AdSense ads through Google AdSense site and place ad code inside HTML/jscript gadget

First method is simpler to implement but in my opinion second method is better because when you create AdSense ad code through Google AdSense interface you have more powerful methods to track performance of every specific AdSense ad and find way to optimize it.

Create AdSense ads directly through blogger

There are three various methods to create AdSense ad units in blogger:


• using Monetize tab, Customize/Add Ads


• using AdSense gadget


• using configure blog posts screen

Using Monetize tab, Customize/Add Ads

The most simplest method to add AdSense ads to blogger is to:


• go to Monetize tab in your blogger interface


• under AdSense overview tab click Customize/Add Ads link
  
  
  











• now, you just need to pick one of four option that best suit your needs. Options are: display ads in sidebar and posts, display ads in sidebar or Display ads below posts
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
• after last step you have installed Google AdSense ads on your blogger blog

Using AdSense gadget

Another option is to place AdSense ads through blogger AdSense gadgets:


• Go to Design tab, click Page elements and pick Add a gadget box where you want to add AdSense ad in Edit Layout window
  
  
  










• In Add a gadget window select AdSense gadget



• In Configure AdSense window pick AdSense format and color and click on Save
  
  
  




















• after you finished listed actions you have new AdSense ad unit on your blogger blog

Using configure blog posts screen

For those who want to show ads between posts answer is to go to Template --> Page Elements tab. Then, in the Blog Post section, click on "Edit".

In configure blog posts screen there is a Show Ads Between Posts check box, you can check this check box and choose format and color of AdSense ad unit.

Create AdSense ads through Google AdSense site and use AdSense generated ad code on blogger

You can generate AdSense ad unit on AdSense site and paste generated code on your blogspot blog.

After you copy AdSense code you can easy paste AdSense ad unit code in HTML Javascript gadget where you want Adsense unit to appear.

But Gadgets in Blogger Design mode in some cases will not achieve all your requirements. What if you want AdSense ad unit to appear after a post title?.

To make Adsense appear after post title on individual Post follow this link. In linked article is described how to add AdSense unit code by changing blogger template.

Create AdSense ads with AdSense interface

In this short article you can learn how to create AdSense ads through AdSense web page.

Follow next steps:


• First click My ads tab and click New ad unit button
  
  
  








• On Create new ad unit screen pick a:
  
  
  • name for AdSense unit
  
  
  
  • size (300 x 250 Medium Rectangle, 336 x 280 Large Rectangle) ...
  
  
  
  • ad type (text or image/rich media ads)
  
  
  
  • ad style
  
  
  
  • custom channels (custom channels allow you to track the performance of specific groups of ad units.)
  
  
  
  • backup ads - the ads that you'd prefer to show when Google has no targeted ads available.
    
    
    




















• click Save and get code button, get code and paste on your web site

How to track specific AdSense ad

Let's say you have a web site and three AdSense ad unit on your site. You take a look at Google AdSense page to track how well your Ad Sense ads are clicked. With a few clicks you determine summary of clicks and money earned in time interval but you want to find results for each AdSense ad unit individually.

In this short tutorial you can learn to find out how many clicks or earnings get every specific (unique) AdSense ad on your site. On new Google AdSense start page visitor can easily find out how many clicks get all his AdSense ads, but it is also possible to get clicks per specific AdSense ad.

Example in article is based on presumption you want to define number of clicks of BigForBottom AdSense ad unit and that BigForBottom is created through AdSense interface (to create AdSense ad through AdSense interface go to My Ads --> Ad units --> New ad unit).

To determine clicks on unique AdSense ad you should:


• go to new Google AdSense web interface


• Click menu item My ads --> Custom channels
  
  
  










• on Content > Custom channels frame click New custom channel
  
  
  










• In Add new custom channel box enter name of custom channel and add AdUnit you want to track through this Channel unit and save it - for example on picture is created BottomBig channel and BigForBottom ad unit is added to BottomBig channel
  
  
  
  










• After those steps you can track clicks and earning for specific Ad unit, in example you can follow number of clicks of BigForBottom through BottomBig channel. You can make multiple channels for each AdSense ad unit



• next day after you create channel you can get Performance report for that channel, click Performance reports tab and than click Custom channel
  
  
  










• Next step is to choose channel to see performance chart and click button Chart, in the example BottomBig channel is checked and chart for only AdSense ad BigForBottom is generated
  
  
  

This is only one of tips you need to know to increase Google AdSense earnings.

Tips for increase google adsense earnings

In this article you will find a few tips to increase adsense earnings on your web site. To earn more adsense money first get focus on size type of ad units. After you pick your AdSense ad format size you must to decide where to place AdSense Ads. Also, you must track how well your Google AdSense units perform.

Best choose of Google AdSense Ad Formats

It is wise choice to pick some of recommended ad formats.

Best performing AdSense formarts are:
• 300 x 250 - Medium Rectangle
• 336 x 280 - Large Rectangle
• 728 x 90 - Leaderboard
• 160 x 600 - Wide Scyscraper

Listed AdSense ad formats perform more click through rate then other ad formats. Did you know that 300x250 medium rectangle typically performs much better in terms of revenue than a 250x250 square. Optimize for AdSense means to earn as much as you potentially could.

So, in Google AdSense interface choose one of recommended AdSense unit size as on the image:

Here are how best performing AdSense ad formats appear:

300 x 250 - Medium Rectangle

336 x 280 - Large Rectangle

728 x 90 - Leaderboard (click to see real size)

160 x 600 - Wide Scyscraper (click to see in real size)

You can watch short movie about this topic:

Best location for Google AdSense ads

If you want to learn from my own experience in increasing AdSense Click Through Rate follow the link.

Heat map illustrates the ideal placing on a sample layout. Certain locations tend to be more successful than others. The colors fade from dark orange (strongest performance) to light yellow (weakest performance). Ads located above the fold tend to perform better than those below the fold. Ads placed near rich content and navigational aids usually do well because users are focused on those areas of a page.

What is above the fold? - used for describing the part of an Internet document that you see without moving the page downward. It is considered the most important part of the page because everyone who goes to that document sees it.

Definition of below-the-fold : used for describing the part of an internet document that you cannot see without moving the page downwards. It is considered the less important part of the page.

Optimize the AdSense ads on blog

To increase the likelihood that your readers will see and click on your Google AdSense ads, blend your ad units into the background of your blog. Choose a bold color for the ad title to help draw attention to your ads and be sure that the background and borders of your ads are the same color as the background of the area where the ad is placed. You can find more tips for AdSense on blogger by following this link.

Show and view hidden folders and files on Windows 7

Some folders on Windows 7 are hidden by default. For example you can't find folder Usere\[UserName]\AppData. No, this folder is not missing it is just hidden. In this guide you will find brief step by step tutorial how to find, show and access hidden folders and files.

To view hidden files and folders you need:


• open windows explorer


• click on the Organize button and then select "Folder and Search Options" from the menu
  


• Choose View tab


• under View tab click "Show hidden files and folders" in the list
  
  

Now you can see hidden folders on your PC.
This article is answer on questions:

• How to find folder MSOCache
• Can't find folder ProgramData
• Folder Program Files\Uninstall Information is missing
• Where is C:\Users\Public\Favorites
• Can't find C:\Users\Public\Libraries
• How to access C:\Users\Public\Desktop
• Show C:\Windows\Globalization\MCT folder - for this you need to check Hide operating system files

Related topics:
Where you can find cookies on PC

Moving image on my web site

On this page you will find how to implement next three moving effects on your web:

• walking Santa Claus
• walking polar bear
• hunter escape from bear

You can implement same functionality like you see in the demos very easy. You just need to put this code inside your HTML:

<div id="animatedImage" style="position: relative;">
 <img src="[PathToImageFile]" alt="animatedImage" />
</div>
<script type="text/javascript" src="[PathToJsFile]"></script>

You need to replace :

• [PathToImageFile] - with URL path to image
• [PathToJsFile] - with URL path to javascript file

To get [PathToImageFile] and [PathToJsFile] you should:
Click on button bellow and get download for a tweet:

OR

You can choose and fill the survey and instantly unlock download to zip archive with guide for falling effect with custom shapes. You can go to the survey by clicking here.

ShareCash web site pay for every filled survey average 60 cents to person who upload files on ShareCash. Simply upload files and get people to download them, and earn an average of 60 cents per download. For those who want to try to earn money on ShareCash there is a link: Earn money on donwloads.

What you will find in MovingEffect.zip

It is important to say that to get effect like in the demos it is enough to implement code from top of this article with [PathToImageFile] and [PathToJsFile] replaced

When you get MovingEffect.zip by one way or another in zip you will find:

• links you should use to replace [PathToImageFile] and [PathToJsFile]
• GuideMovingImage.pdf with links to images moving santa, polar bear, hunter escaping from bear and javascript for moving left to right and javascript for moving from top left corner of the screen to bottom right corner of screen
• 3 image files of moving santa, polar bear and hunter escaping from bear
• HTML file example of moving effect