Gaining a high Google ranking is all about building quality links, it has been claimed.

Patrick Altoft, director of Blogstorm, commenting on his e-consultancy column, explained that a newly-launched website is not trusted by Google at all, and that the site must attract links in order to gain trust.

However, according to Mr Altoft, the best links are not always to similar products or services.

Major blogs and news sites, alongside anything that receives a certain amount of attention from the mainstream press are more valuable, he claimed.

He explained: “These can also be quite relevant as usually the article linking to you is related to your niche - even though the rest of the site isn’t.”

Mr Altoft added that linking to already trusted sites is often a successful move, alongside submitting links to directories such as Business.com and the Yahoo! Directory.

Google is currently the market leader in search engines, performing 58.4 per cent of all US searches in December, according to digital measuring service comScore.

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San Diego, CA (PRWEB) January 28, 2008 — Leading search marketing software firm Engine Ready, Inc., announced the receipt of an industry coveted award recognizing their leadership in managing paid search accounts. Microsoft awarded Engine Ready with the exclusive “adExcellence” certificate signifying that Engine Ready has attained expert status in managing paid search accounts.

“We are very excited that Engine Ready has been granted the adExcellence Certification, in return for our contributions of testing, documenting, and providing feedback to Microsoft regarding their AdCenter technology,” reports Engine Ready’s Senior Search Marketing Manager Mike Poserina.

Designed especially for Microsoft’s advertisers, the adExcellence program is Microsoft’s official accreditation program that gives advertisers the opportunity to become a Microsoft adCenter expert.

The latest credential is added to Engine Ready’s “AdWords Qualified Company” certificate from Google and Yahoo’s “Search Marketing Ambassador” designation. These Internet marketing certifications compliment the firm’s strong knowledge in strategic search marketing and web analytics.

Even in a relatively new marketplace like Internet Marketing, old-fashion business rules still have their place. “Our backgrounds are rooted in web analytics”, comments Jamie Smith, CEO. “We have a strong affinity for numbers, and base all of our decision-making on in-depth analysis. It’s the combination of our depth of experience in search marketing and web analytics that makes us uniquely qualified to meet our client’s needs.”

About Engine Ready, Inc.
Engine Ready, Inc. is a recognized leader in providing online marketing services and software, helping organizations achieve unparalleled success on their web initiatives. Managing paid search accounts in excess of 15 million keywords, and just over $8.1 million in annual media spend, Engine Ready was the first organization to combine the power of website analytics with search marketing.

For More Information: http://www.engineready.com

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Source: By Stoney DeGeyter | Searchengineguide.com

Every day we get businesses coming to us looking to improve their search engine rankings. They want to talk about an SEO campaign but one quick look at their site and we see that SEO may not be the right approach for them. Usually in these cases the site needs a complete usability makeover.

These businesses, however don’t want to discuss website architecture, visitor usability, or even making their site search engine friendly. They want rankings and want them now.

These are small businesses looking to purchase a service that will get them near instant visibility and exposure. “We’ll take care of the rest,” is what they often imply. But therein lies the problem. SEO and SEM without good usability is like inviting people out to eat at a rat and roach infested restaurant. You may bring people in, but you won’t make them happy.

A real-world usability analogy
Lets take this restaurant analogy and extend it out a bit. Lets say that you own the restaurant. You start spending money on advertising and see more and more people trickling into the restaurant each night. But you notice something peculiar. Some who come through the doors turn right around and leave. Others come and eat, but you never seem them come back a second time.

You start running the numbers and find that each night about 300 people are coming through your doors but only 5% stay and eat. You’re selling about fifteen meals a night. You realize you have a problem. And the solution is… more advertising.

You know it’s the rats and roaches that are turning people away but you feel that if you just increase your advertising you’ll be able to sell more meals. It works. Each night more and more people come to your restaurant. Few stay but many more leave before they even taste your delicious cooking. Yet you are selling more meals so that’s a good thing.

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