Newsletter14
EzSEO Newsletter # 14
Andy Williams ez SEO
ez-search-engine-optimization.com
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DEATH OF A PC
What a nightmare week. I sent you the last newsletter (number 13) a day early last week - maybe a premonition. On the Sunday when I should have sent it, my computer crashed when I first booted it up. There were problems with the graphics, it would not recognise my second hard disk etc etc. In short, my PC was knackered. This was my beloved development machine where I do all my online work. Sure I have a backup PC and a laptop, but neither of them had my Software Development suite on them, and none of them had up to date versions of my web sites.
I took the machine in to get repaired (the machine was only a few months old). That was last Monday. On Thursday, I got a phone call saying my PC was repaired - it had been the motherboard failing, but all was fixed now. I picked up my PC at 7pm from the shop, took it home, and tried to install Windows Me on a new hard disk (I wanted to check all was well before plugging my work hard disks into the machine). Windows Me would not install. Errors all over the place.
7:30pm I was back at the shop. They thought it might be the graphics card. Went to the shop the next day, and they told me it was the CPU. They would have it fixed that evening. At 7:30 on Friday evening, I went back to the shop. They had tried changing the processor, but still the same problem when trying to install Windows Me, 98 or even 95. However, they said that it installed XP without a problem. In fact they even put a copy of XP Professional on the hard disk for me (in Spanish). Anyway, to cut a long story short, I have installed an English XP upgrade (that I bought from Amazon) over my Windows Me work hard disk and all seems to be well for now (Andy searches for wood to touch).
The moral of the story? Not sure really. But one thing is for sure - keep backups of your work. I was lucky this time that my hard disks were not corrupted (like the crash I had on this machine a few weeks ago), however, I am convinced there must be an unresolved hardware problem preventing Windows Me from installing. Time will surely tell, but I am going to buy some software this week to make an entire copy of the hard disk (exact snapshot of all data, boot area etc), which can be re-installed on a new hard disk at a moments notice, should I get hard disk failure.
R-Drive Image from http://www.drive-image.com/ looks good for creating an exact replica of your hard disk. I had looked at others but found technical support lacking when I asked a question. If anyone has recommendations for this type of software I would love to hear them.
One final thing before we get on to the newsletter. Because of the problems I have had this week, I have lost a week of work. That means that there will be a delay in the release of my SEO Web site Builder software (http://seo-website-builder.com), and my SEO eBook. Originally pencilled in for an early December release, I am putting the software release back until January.
I know some of you have been anxiously waiting for this release, but my reasons are simple. In less than two weeks, my wife & I are going to the UK to spend Christmas with my family. I don't want to have to think about work or customer support during this time. I owe it to my wife & family - the latter I have not seen them since last Christmas. If I released the software now, it would mean a working Christmas.
I am going to be giving a free copy of the software to one subscriber on the release date. This subscriber will be generated randomly from a complete list of everyone who wants to be in for the draw. See later on how to enter, but for now, today's article.
DON'T GET GOOGLED WITH RECIPROCAL LINKS
With Google introducing a new algorithm change recently, many webmasters are wondering how to make sure they don't get penalized. If you had not noticed, thousands of sites were penalized in the November upgrade to Google. One affiliate member of a forum I read said their earnings went from $17,000 a month down to approx. $3000 a month after the change - OUCH!!
The new algorithm appears to have introduced measures to penalize over-optimized sites.
Last week we took a humorous look at what may have started all this off at Google HQ. Some of you wrote to me after that asking what to do to prevent a Google penalty. Well, my first advice is to re-read last weeks newsletter. There was golden information inside the Google HQ "sketch" and the rest of the newsletter.
I am going to be doing some more research this week (now I have my PC back up and running) into the Google changes (I need to update my SEO eBook to take into account the findings) and will report back some of that info in this newsletter. However, for today, I want to mention one other thing that I think Google may be penalizing web sites for.
We have discussed reciprocal linking in the past. This is where you swap links with other webmasters. They link to your site and you link to theirs. This is in an effort to increase Page Rank and Link Reputation (discussed in earlier newsletters).
However, the whole idea of Page Rank originally was to help Google identify important sites. So, what makes an important site? Well, Google thought that the more links a web site had coming in to it, the more important that site was - a bit like a one link = 1 vote system. Sounds like a good assumption, doesn't it? After all, a good site will naturally attract links to it from other webmasters, or will it?
Webmasters quickly cottoned on to the idea of one incoming link equating to one vote for their site. The whole reciprocal link industry arose with the general plan as follows:
1. Swap links with other webmasters in order to..
2. gets more links to your site, which would...
3. increase your PR, and...
4. make your pages rank higher.
The fatal flaw in Google's PR logic was not thinking how this system could be abused.
With so much emphasis placed on PR, many webmasters just refused to have outgoing links on their sites unless they were affiliate links that make money, or the link was reciprocated (and from a high PR site). The idea that webmasters would link to good sites soon evaporated as the financial benefits of conserving PR became the driving force for successful web sites.
Reciprocal linking has been a major fly in the ointment for Google. The pages that actually get the highest PR (and therefore are the most "important") are often the sites that have had extensive reciprocal linking campaigns done for them.
What will Google do about this, or should I say, what are Google doing about this already?
Let's visit Google HQ again:
======================GOOGLE HQ================================
Google Boss - Page Rank was our crowning glory. It took millions of dollars in development to get it right, and now these pesky webmasters are manipulating it to their own financial gain. We need to put a stop to this, but how?
Google Gal - Let's look at how these webmasters manipulate their PR and put a stop to it by introducing penalties, or just ignoring those manipulated factors.
Google Guy - Yes, reciprocal linking is a major way they abuse the system. Let's ban all sites that reciprocate links!
Google Gal - I think a ban is a bit hash. There would not be any pages left in our index if we banned every site that took part in reciprocal linking.
Google Guy - I say we should still ban them.
A wicked smile spreads across Google Guy's face.
Google Gal - I think we need to take it a step at a time. Let's provide penalties or why not just ignore links that are reciprocated? If we find a link from Site A to Site B and a link back from Site B to Site A, let's ignore those links. Reciprocal linking will become ineffective, and Page Rank can once again be restored to its former glory and provide information on which site is important.
Google Boss - ..and the only links that will count towards PR are the unreciprocated ones. Like our original dream where webmasters would link to good sites, and we could assume that one link equalled one vote for a site. I like it.
Google Gal - Great
Google Boss - Splendid
Google Guy - I suppose that sound fair (a disappointed look spread across his face).
===================EXIT GOOGLE HQ=============================
So. Does Google penalize or ignore reciprocal linking? I cannot give you a definite yes or no here, but common sense suggests that if Google are to restore PR as a major factor in ranking pages, they will need to combat the abuse of reciprocal linking. It will probably not be taken as a lone factor, but perhaps combined with another factor such as link text of those reciprocal links.
e.g. Which looks more like PR manipulation to you:
Site A has 100 reciprocal links with other site. 95% of the other sites use the linking text "Barbie dolls" to link to site A.
Site B has 100 reciprocal links, only 10% use the linking text "Barbie dolls".
If I was Google, and wanted to impose a penalty for over-optimization, I would certainly penalize Site A much more harshly than site B. Wouldn't you?
WHAT CAN YOU DO?
Links pointing to your site will probably remain very important in Google's ranking algorithm. However, if reciprocal links do eventually get ignored (or are already being ignored/penalized), how can you avoid wasting your time and make those incoming links count?
I think the answer to this is fairly simple, at least in theory.
Get unreciprocated links with other webmasters,
I.E. link your site A to another webmasters site X, but don't get him/her to link back to your site A from their site X. Get him/her to place a link to your site A from their site Y instead.
If you only have one web site. Maybe it is time to get another on the same subject. Link your site A to your site B but not site B to your site A. This will ensure that site B gets indexed. Then you can offer unreciprocated links to other webmasters, and eventually remove your link to site B from site A - severing the connection that hints that both sites might belong to the same person.
Instead of the usual e-mail:
"If you link to my site A from your site X, I'll link to your site X from my site A"
Try this one:
"If you link to my site A from your site X, I will link to your site X from my site B."
This way you can build up incoming links, and at least for the time being, Google will treat those links as proper votes for your pages. If you want to be really clever, get your two domains hosted in different parts of the world so that each will have a different IP address. That way Google will not associate the two sites as belonging to the same person, and not become suspicious of linking strategies between them.
Although this is just a hypothesis at the moment, I really cannot see Google putting up with the manipulation of PR through reciprocal linking strategies. Reciprocal linking can easily be identified, so why not penalize those sites that do it? It makes good sense, since reciprocal links came into being as a way to artificially inflate the importance of a site - something that Google created PR for....
AND FINALLY...
OK, before we go, to enter for the prize draw - a free copy of SEO Website Builder to the winner, plus a couple of other prizes, all you need to do is send me an e-mail with the subject line of the e-mail PRIZE DRAW.
The draw will take place on the day of release of SEO Website Builder, and the winners will be notified immediately. Their names will be published in the newsletter following the draw. However, don't worry if you don't win. You will be able to get a discounted copy of this software for a short period of time - only available to subscribers of this newsletter.
OK, that is enough for now. Until next week...
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If you enjoyed this newsletter, please recommend it to your friends. Also if you have any tips of your own, questions or comments, please send then to me at webmaster@ez-search-engine- optimization.com. Any tips or questions & answers I print in this newsletter will also be put up on the web version of the newsletter with a link to your site if you want it. That's extra free traffic for your site as well as an incoming link to your site.
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