SEOMatrix LLC Blog: Your Daily Ethical Search Engine Marketing Treats

I admit it. I’m a stickler. No, actually, truth be told: I’m downright anal retentive about punctuation. And spelling. But, go ahead and start a sentence with the word “and”; I won’t mind. Hey, it’s a stylistic thing.

No, not a Stylistics thing - this isn’t ’70s radio, you know! This is the internet… and no, “internet” doesn’t need to be capitalized. Neither does “web.” So there.

But before I take this where I was intending to go, let me say a word or two about literacy. Our national literacy rate is higher than it’s ever been. In fact, those amusing Wikipedia folks had the following to say about it:

“The literacy rate of the United States is estimated to be 99.7%.”

Call me cynical, but I can’t believe it’s that high. Oh, it’s pretty high, that’s a given… but 99.7%? That just seems… Gee - is it just me or does everything look kinda rosy to you, too? Oh, wait - let me take off these glasses…

Huh… 99.7%. You’d never know it, given the regular butchery of the English language that seems to be rampant these days. Granted, literacy has not a thing to do with being able to carry on a conversation in proper English.

It’s time we got back to basics regarding how to speak and spell and punctuate. That said, on to what I intended to say in the first place:

The manager of my grocery store hates me.

You’re probably saying, “Oh, go on, Rita… I’m sure he doesn’t hate you. What, do you use too many coupons? Try to sneak through with 13 items in the 10-or-less-items aisle? That sort of thing? No, no, nothing that mundane. And anyway, it should be “10 or fewer items.” GRRR!

No, he hates me (yeah, he really does!) because I shop with a red Sharpie. Honest. Wanna see? It’s right here in my purse somewhere… down at the bottom… amid those dingy bits of fluff that used to be KleenexTM-brand facial tissues (I’m not gonna mess with brand-name misuse, no-siree-bob, not this chickie!)… I just saw it there this morning…

But I digress…

It really is in there; trust me. And when I go into the Big Y grocery store (there, maybe a nice plug will appease the snarling, balding fellow a smidgen), I go armed with my Big Y card in my pocket and my broad-tip red Sharpie gripped in one sweaty little paw. My left one; I am “left pawed,” after all.

And I go hunting. But not for bargains. No, no, my friend. Some things are more important than two-for-one specials on the family-size box of Rice Krispies.

It’s there… I know it is. I can feel it in my bones… and in the red ink that doubtless surges through my veins. It’s only a matter of time before I find it. Sometimes, there’s more than one… and those are the days when I absolutely bellow in punctuation frustration or slip into an editorial coma right smack in the middle of seven varieties of mushrooms. Or 47 different cold remedies.

For there, among all the oh-so-tempting specials, it lurks, taunting me. Perched innocuously beneath the garam masala, wedged between the dehydrated minced onions and the crushed rosemary… a hand-lettered 4×6-inch sign proudly proclaims: “Parsley compliments potatoes!”

Aaaarrrrghhhhhh!

It lashes out with its would-be death blow to my editorial sensibilities. Fortunately, I’m made of hardier stuff than it anticipates - and I’m armed with my trusty Sharpie. <cue the blaring trumpets>

Don’t get me wrong. I’m delighted that the parsley has such splendid things to say about the potatoes (”That’s a lovely red skin you’re wearing,” I imagine one such compliment might be; yet another, “My, what firm but tender flesh you have…”). However, I’m fairly certain that what that sign was meant to convey is that parsley goes well with - complements - potatoes. That’s complements, with an E, not an I.

Oh, speaking of Es and Is… Do you know how Old MacDonald spells farm? That’s right: E-I-E-I-O.

Seriously, though… your fourth-grade teacher was right: Correct spelling and punctuation are absolutely key to effective communication! Think about it: If your website is riddled with spelling, syntax and punctuation errors, that reflects badly on your company. Your website represents you… shouldn’t it depict you in the best-possible light? Of course! That’s why - now more than ever - spelling counts.

– a peripheral or alternative definition could be — ethical search engine marketing is about unearthing the clients’ goals and understanding how to most efficiently achieve them.

…i’ve had a few requests to differentiate between blogs and forums:

Forums are open discussion boards, usually on a wide variety of topics, that are generated by numerous posters, contributers, or members - Forums typically have moderators that can filter information at their discretion.
Blogs are usually the thoughts of an individual which are laid out in frequent, chronological posts.  The entries are ”commented” on by people reading them. Blogs are more “stream of consciousness” type journal entries.

sample blog:  http://txsasquatch.blogspot.com/
sample forum: http://www.bigfootforums.com/

New York Times:
Technology article on driving safety and wireless access

Thought this would be valuable following my last A/B Testing post:

Landing Page Optimization: Improving Conversion 50-60%

I assume Scarlett Johannson has an e-mail address. I assume she also may be internet savvy. I assume she just might have a gmail account. So, I e-mailed her - scarlettJohannson@gmail.com and scarlett.Johannson@gmail.com as well as missjohannson@gmail.com (a long shot, i know). So far, nada, zilch, zippo, no response — no “hiya” no “hehe” no avatar smiley face — nothing. What’s going on:

1) Those may not be her actual e-mail addresses
2) She may not like receiving e-mails from me
3) She may have tried to e-mail me back (went right to the spam folder of course)
4) She is on location and doesn’t have WiFi or access to an internet cafe
5) Ryan Reynolds promptly deleted the correspondence

The difficulty in deciphering her lack of engagement is similar to my A/B website testing. For those marketing newbies who aren’t familiar with Robert McNamara’s system of analysis, A/B testing is breaking down a system into individual elements to test which variables are really a decisive factor within the system (remember the grade-school correlation vs. causation logical reasoning, as well). A/B testing or split testing changes one element at a time, so as to isolate single factors or variables.

I mainly use A/B testing for two purposes:

I test web site landing pages to determine which elements are critical in marshaling a website action or conversion. I also test web site pages to discover which on-site or off-site elements may be changed to affect search engine rankings. Either way, breaking the system down, element by element, is the critical theme of my message here. If multiple variables are changed at the same time, the true measure of what caused the change is difficult to discern.

Testing for website conversions is a relative no-brainer — as long as I have a sufficient amount of data or visitor actions to analyze in a somewhat controlled environment. Testing Google’s ranking system is a bit more difficult, because the formula for ranking websites changes often (Mr. Brin doesn’t like to remain status quo for too long). Anyway, A/B testing for dynamic systems (like Google’s algorithm) can give you some information; but a significant amount of guesswork still enters the arena. I can empirically change factors one at a time and record my results… but, in the back of my mind, I will still be wondering: Was it my change that resulted in the ranking change, or was it Google’s algorithm change? The more control I have over the experiment, the more reliable and predictable (and profitable) my results become.

Google may agree with my first application of A/B testing as they created their own website optimizer www.google.com/websiteoptimizer chock full of A/B testing features. They haven’t gotten around to creating a Google organic ranking optimizer just yet, only general guidelines.
In a similar vein, Scarlett hasn’t gotten around to e-mailing me back as yet; but, before I consider any other factors involved in her lack of communication, I will check my spam folder now… and will keep everyone updated.

Finally – one site with “insider” info
for auto buyers and sellers alike

InsiderTradingSite.com gives dealers and buyers pertinent tools to do business

For those who realize there’s more to selling cars than just pushing a few nifty options and making a sales pitch – but aren’t quite sure how to do it, Ted Lindsay offers proven auto sales techniques.

Ocala, FL (August 21, 2008) – There’s more to buying a car than just kicking the tires and making sure the stereo system has sufficient wattage. Far more.

For that matter, there’s way more to selling a car than just hyping the standard features and pushing an options package or two.

And the man who knows that better than practically anyone is Ted Lindsay. Ted Lindsay has spent more than 35 years of his professional life working on both sides of the automotive industry (from the factory end to doing retail sales in car dealerships); and in that time, he’s seen just about every gimmick and sales technique known to salesmankind.

Armed with three dozen years of insider knowledge, Ted wrote his first best-selling book, Insider Trading (along with co-author Larry Bush). Released in February 2007, Insider Trading is both a how-to guide for the automotive sales professional and encouragement to car buyers to experience the fun – nay, the utter joy – of buying a car.

Two months later, in April 2007, Ted Lindsay struck gold again with the release of his second top-selling book, The Encyclopedia of Selling Cars. Like its predecessor, The Encyclopedia of Selling Cars is a kind of compendium of information for the successful car salesman – indeed, anyone involved in the art of salesmanship… from mindset techniques to the step-by-step process of professional sales.

This isn’t just another tired, old, dry-as-sawdust tome about the mechanics of selling. Endorsed by some of the auto industry’s top sales organizations, it’s a dynamic, information-packed, fun-filled excursion through the world of professional sales – and how to do it right. But be warned: When you pick up this book, get ready for a personal-growth spurt! This book will leave you changed… for the better.

In addition to Insider Trading and The Encyclopedia of Selling Cars, Ted Lindsay has assembled his years of automotive-industry sales knowledge into a professional automotive sales training package. He conducts these intensive, one-day seminars (on-site, if requested) for those already involved in the car-sales field as well as those who wish to enter the automotive-sales industry.

This one-day seminar covers every facet of professional car salesmanship, leaving participants armed with the knowledge they need to take on the top sellers at any dealership in America. And for the automotive-sales newbie, this seminar provides every tool you need to immediately land a position in the highly competitive and profitable field of professional automotive sales.

If a one-day seminar doesn’t fit into your plans, Ted Lindsay is also offering his industry expertise in electronic format… as a CD-ROM set. This complete sales training course provides everything you need to know about the automotive sales industry – in one convenient audio set. Broken down into manageable segments, you can learn at your own pace.

For immediate access to Insider Trading, The Encyclopedia of Selling Cars, the intensive one-day training seminar and the CD-ROM training course, visit his new website at http://insidertradingsite.com/, call (352) 817-5032 or email Ted Lindsay directly at tedlindsay@insidertradingsite.com.

About InsiderTradingSite.com: InsiderTradingSite.com offers car buyers and sellers alike the kinds of inside information that is critical to getting the most car for your buying dollar. Ted Lindsay has spent 36 years in all aspects of the automotive buying and selling industries. His new web site is a prime source for the information garnered from those three dozen years. For further information about Ted Lindsay and his “InsiderTrading” web site, please visit http://insidertradingsite.com/.

Area’s premier carpet retailer named
“authorized dealer” for six major labels

City Carpet tapped by Shaw, Masland, Stanton, Couristan, Gulistan & Pergo

Six major flooring manufacturers have designated City Carpet as authorized dealers for their products. Because of their great location, many manufacturers selected City Carpet as their flagship shop.

Fairfield, NJ (August 12, 2008) – When the folks at City Carpet say they cover the tri-state area, they really mean it!

Six of the nation’s top floor-covering manufacturers have just chosen City Carpet as authorized dealers of their flooring products. The six manufacturers include Couristan, Gulistan, Masland, Pergo, Shaw and Stanton. In addition to these six new designations, City Carpet is an authorized dealer of Mohawk flooring products.

The owners of City Carpet, Eric and Sabina Olgun, pride themselves on their excellent selection, competitive pricing and superior customer service. Among their best-selling brands are Mohawk, Stanton and Couristan.

Many of the floor-covering manufacturers for which City Carpet is an authorized dealer have even selected City Carpet as their flagship shop, given the retail outlet’s reputation and prime location in the tri-state area.

“This is really a big step for us,” said Sabina Olgun. “These manufacturers recognize that City Carpet is a major retailer in the Northeast and they’ve selected us because we can offer excellent exposure – both in our brick-and-mortar locations and through our website.”

Originally opened in 1980, City Carpet offers a range of flooring applications for home, office and industrial environments. From area rugs and commercial carpeting, City Carpet offers the finest commercial and residential carpeting solutions, including broadloom, modular flooring (carpet tile) and area rugs.

Plus, despite their limited-sounding name, City Carpet also stocks a full line of hardwood, vinyl and laminate products. Laminate flooring is an excellent, low-maintenance and cost-effective option for both residential and commercial applications.

“When it comes to versatile and durable flooring options, laminate flooring is hard to beat,” Sabina Olgun said. “It’s long lasting and easy to care for. Manufacturers today make products that closely resemble hardwood – so much so that it lends a comfortable warmth to your home or office.”

To the untrained eye, she added, laminate flooring could easily be mistaken for hardwood. Some of the laminate flooring products they carry are truly realistic looking – with superb wood-grain texture and knotting effects, and true-to-life colorings.

To learn more about City Carpet and their full range of floor-covering products for residential, industrial and commercial applications – or to find the City Carpet location near you, visit them at www.CityCarpet.com or call (973) 276-0039.

About City Carpet: City Carpet was founded in 1980 in Brighton Beach (Brooklyn), New York by Eric Olgun. City Carpet opened a second location in Fairfield, New Jersey in 2007. They specialize in commercial, residential and industrial flooring solutions and are authorized retailers for Couristan, Gulistan, Masland, Mohawk, Pergo, Shaw and Stanton flooring. For further information about City Carpet, please visit www.CityCarpet.com or call (973) 276-0039.

In the beginning, there was nothing. And then there was everything. Out of this everything came thousands, millions of pages, all promising to contain the information you were looking for. Naturally, this meant that it became difficult to actually find what you wanted. There were places one could go in the attempt to sort the wheat from the chaff, but more often than not this proved to be a fruitless exercise.

And then along came Google. It was September 1998 - President Clinton was in office, Iraq was just a place a long way away (admittedly, one that didn’t want the U.N. to look at its weapons) and Brett Favre - remember him? - was the reigning Superbowl-winning QB. Two guys from Stanford secured funding for a new and innovative kind of search engine, one that ranked pages partly on the number of links those pages received from other, similar, pages.

In the decade between then and now, the Internet has become arguably the premier source for every kind of information, and searching for that information has become so entrenched in everyday culture that ‘Google’ has been turned into a verb. The challenge for businesses now is to ensure that they appear in the search engine results, in a high enough position that potential customers can be enticed to visit a website.

Given that you have found this blog, I have to assume that you have at least a passing interest in search engine optimization (SEO). However, there are so many conflicting articles and blogs around it can be fairly easy to get confused. In the early days of the Internet, SEO consisted mainly of making sure you had keywords and descriptions on your page, getting a shedload of links, and that was pretty much it. With the rise of Google, though, the algorithms that are responsible for indexing pages have gotten more and more sophisticated, so these approaches will no longer work. In fact, it’s likely that your site could even get ‘blacklisted’ if you persist with these methods. Research has shown that more than half of all clicks in a search engine go to those sites ranked either 1 or 2.

Percentage of Total Clickthroughs and Position in SERPs

So, what should you do?
The answer is straightforward;
find a SEO | SEM company  with an expert team of extremely competent, intelligent and business-savvy professionals who will take the time to learn your business, your market, and your competition. Now, you’ll be well on the way to increasing your online visibility.

But that isn’t all - turning that visibility into real sales or phone calls - “conversions” is vital; it’s no use finding new potential clients if the chain stops there. That’s why a search engine optimization company should be aware of your requirements and expectations of a bottom-line increase. A website that makes no money is worthless, whether there are 10 visitors or 10,000 a week.

If you would like to arrange a free consultation with one of SEOMatrix’s web strategists, please call 203-777-3407.