Category: Google

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Canonical URLs: The WWW Quandary

To help improve your organic search placement it is important to let Google and other search engines know how you want your links returned and how they should index your website. Should it be linked and named as http://McCordWeb.com or http://www.McCordWeb.com? Specifically I mean in the example is there a www or no www in the URL. Deciding which way you want your links to show and be indexed is just another aspect you should address when you get serious about organic search placement. This issue is called canonical URLs.

I personally like URLs with the www. In all my content, all my links, all my code, I am consistent. I always use a www. You may prefer no www, and that is fine, just make sure that everything you do reflects this decision. The key is to be consistent everywhere. In the Google Webmaster Control Panel, you can tell Google how you want them to link and index your website URLs. This is key to making sure that the do not index both version of your website.

Additionally if you are on a UNIX server I install in the .htaccess file a script to rewrite URLs to my preference. Here is the script to add using my domain name as the example. Make sure to change to your own domain when you do the installation.

RewriteEngine On
RewriteCond %{HTTP_HOST} ^mccordweb.com
RewriteRule (.*) http://www.mccordweb.com/$1 [R=301,L]

I have found a great article that very clearly explains this topic on www.searchengineoptimizationx.com and recommend it to you for further reading. This is an important issue for search engine placement and so really deserves your further consideration and action.

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Add a Star or +1 on Your Google Searches to Share What You Like

Google has made some pretty cool updates on their search engine recently namely the +1 and the star option. These new enhancements to personalized your search results allow you to highlight what you like and then share the information with others in your social network.

As for stars, you don’t have to keep track of the things you star, Google does. In fact when you star something Google synchs it with your Google Bookmarks and Google Toolbar. Once you star something, the item will appear at the top of your search window allowing you to find the information you want to revisit quickly.

Google says: “With stars, you can simply click the star marker on any search result or map and the next time you perform a search, that item will appear in a special list right at the top of your results when relevant,”

Pretty cool! With stars you are actually ordering your search results the way you want! I am seeing stars now on my Google.com search pages already. Another thing Google rolled out recently was the +1. Now this enhancement I have not seen yet, but it looks powerful. The +1 is kind of like stars on steroids. Here, your social network will be able to see what you have +1’ed. Websites will even be able to add +1 buttons almost like Facebook Like buttons.

What I find interesting about both new enhancements is that Google will be using this aggregate information to move search results higher on the Google.com organic placement page. Based on that information, you’ll want to keep an eye on stars and +1 activity as this new technology matures and becomes more widely used on the Web.

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Get An Early Invitation to the Google +1 Website Button

Plus-OneDon’t be left behind, you can use our link to be an early embracer of the Google +1 website button. Google announced this past week that it would be rolling out this new enhancement to allow you to +1 website searches and share them within your Google social network, but now you can get on the waiting list to be an early embracer of +1 for your website.

To find out how the +1 button works you can watch the video from Google. Google says that not only will the +1 be seen on search results on Google.com but will even appear on search ads that you or others in your network have clicked. +1 allows you to receive a personal recommendation from others in your network, which we know will carry more weight in regards to buying decisions.

Personally I feel that the +1 button is big news and will be an early embracer of the technology. Google has also stated that the aggregate information supplied via the +1 button will impact organic search results. So get in the queue before others do, visit our link to get an early invitation for the +1 button for your website now.

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Google Places – Don’t Steal An Account

This blog post is especially pointed to consultants or agents who share the same office. Did you know that only one person in your office can own the Google Places account tied to your physical location, and that person really should be the corporation not an individual agent? Here’s an example, let’s say you are a real estate company, did you know that the first agent who claims your Google Places account tied to the office address, will own it? That means no other agent in the office can create a Google Places account using that address even with a different suite number and for that matter neither can you the legitimate business owner.

If an agent has tagged your Google Places account, you the real owner, cannot claim it and other agents in the office are at a real disadvantage due to the agent who has grabbed it who will then not share potential leads. You as the legitimate business owner do have the right to ask the agent to relinquish ownership of the Google Places account so you as the corporation can then claim it and then share leads throughout the entire office.

To do this the agent simply needs to go into their Google Places account click edit and then click delete this places account with the selection that this account has been linked to you in error. The main office can then claim the account rightfully.

If you are an agent who has claimed the office account be aware that if you are paying a service for Google Places services you will lose your money that you have invested as the account was never really rightfully yours to claim. You may benefit from its use initially, but if asked you WILL have to relinquish access. So just be careful and take this as a word to the wise.