Apr
21
What’s Anchor Text ?
Anchor text is the visible hyperlinked text on the page. Here’s an example:
<a href=http://www.daily-seo.com>Your Anchor Text</a>
Here’s how it looks on the page:
Instead of using only hyperlinks, anchor text is used for linking to other sites, and also for internal linking. It is a part of natural linking. Let’s use a short paragraph to compare each case:
1. Using regular hyperlinks for linking:
I have purchased a book named Insider’s Guide to SEO which is located here: http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0875730515/qid=1114100690/sr=8-1/ref=pd_csp_1/102-4269811-0605718?v=glance&s=books&n=507846 I love Amazon and I buy all of my books from Amazon, visit Amazon http://www.amazon.com/ .
2. Using Anchor Text for linking:
I have purchased a book named Insider’s Guide to SEO . I love Amazon and I buy all of my books from Amazon .
Using Target Keywords in Anchor Text
Using anchor texts have several advantages such as; visually it looks good, it’s a natural linking practice, and so on. But most important part is getting maximum profit from Anchor Texts by using your target keywords in it.
Apr
20
Google Search Engine Patent 125
Filed Under SEO | Leave a Comment
SEO professionals were very excited when Google’s Search Engine 125 Patent was approved.
There are 63 claimed points in this patent application. Each one has its importance, and some has brought big discussions on SEO forums.
Some claims also have clarified some specific confusions. As an example we can use the "Link Aging" . Here’s the related claim:
54. A method for ranking a linked document, comprising: determining an age of linkage data associated with the linked document; and ranking the linked document based on a decaying function of the age of the linkage data.
Claim 54 clarifies and supports that, "link aging" occurs in Google Search Algorithm. So, to explain it basically; a backlink to your site which has been placed 2 years ago is more valuable than a backlink which is placed last week.
This is another action Google has taken against spammers who can create tremendous number of artificial backlinks for short term success in the SERP’s.
You can find a list of "Approved Patents" related to search engine technologies here .
Apr
20
Image Optimization SEO
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Image Optimization is a piece in SEO puzzle which many webmasters do not give proper attention.
Here are some tips for Image Optimization
Use small file size images
Try to make your images as small as possible in file size. Large size images can affect your website’s performance in different ways. Your page’s file size will increase affecting SEO negatively. Also many visitors will not wait too long for the images to load on the page.
Use keywords in image names
When naming images try to use your keywords, instead of using picture123, you can use Daily-SEO-banner etc.
Use hyphens in image names
The idea is similar to the one we’ve talked about in Using Hyphens in URL article. Name your images accordingly. Good naming example:
Washington-DC-Building.jpg Empire-State-Building.gif SEO-logo.gif etc.
Use alt tags for image optimization
Always use Alt Tags. Try to have a brief description of the image if possible, by using your page’s keywords. Here’s an example of Alt Tag Usage
<IMG SRC="/images/insider-seo-book.jpg" HEIGHT=327 WIDTH=291 ALT="Insider’s Guide to SEO">
By optimizing your images you might get some decent traffic from Google Images and other image related search engines.
Here’s a recent discussion about Optimizing Images at DigitalPoint Forums.
Apr
19
Google My Search History Beta
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Here’s a new release beta version from Google Labs.
My Search History lets you easily view and manage your search history from any computer. This feature of Google web search enables you to find information you thought you lost. And over time, you’ll see an increasing number of relevance indicators in your search results that help you find the information you want.
Powerful Search Options
Search your web search history, including full text search of all the pages you found with Google.
Relevant history while you search
Get more useful information in your web search results, like the last time you saw a page, how often you’ve seen it, and more.
Intuitive Browsing
Use the calendar to quickly navigate to any day of your search history, and see similar searches you’ve done via automatic related history detection.
Manage Your Search History
Learn how often you’ve done web searches on a given day, and even delete individual searches and results clicks.
You can visit Google My Search History and try it.
It can be a very useful tool for SEO consultants who does professional research, and also college students who use Google for academic research.