Thomas Watson

This could be the single best breakdown of why link building costs so dang much. If you want better backlinks, you have to have the budget for it. And no, it's not $300 to $500 per link.

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Why SEO Execs Are Often More Skilled Than SEO Gurus. Something I run into regularly online is my own content. My images, my ideas, my thoughts. Except...it isn't mine. Someone took the thoughts or images, altered them slightly (or greatly), and published them as their own. With the emergence of more tools that support this, along with 'guru' encouragement, the sheer speed and scale of copying are at an all-time high. I don't mind this. I get inspired all the time by the content of others. The problem is that you end up with people providing insight they never experienced and earned. All for likes and followers. This is the SEO hustle club. Just because they talk like an SEO and act like an SEO online does not mean they are able to do SEO. In reality, thousands of SEO execs work in the trenches, doing more 'day-to-day' work than many of these gurus. "But they've done the SEO work?" Really? Are you sure? This is why I'm so passionate about SEOs (who are in the trenches) finding their voices and sharing their hard-earned insights, knowledge and experience. In fact, it's these posts that get my attention online. Not another long flow diagram of 100 things the SEO made up that they do for clients that you can 'steal' from them. Or the snazzy slide deck of content formats that drove £1 billion in revenue (Dr Evil laugh included for free). Make no mistake. There are thousands of SEO grafters with zero followings who are doing the hard work for clients while gurus plan their next YouTube video or webinar to sell you coaching, paid links, or any other get-rich-quick idea. SEO is about showing up daily. Doing the work that compounds in value. Winning ground in inches, not miles. That's why most of the SEO content I find of value, is written by those without followings. Because they pour their heart and graft into the content they create. And are doing it for the industry, not to build a following.

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I've come to the conclusion that the SEO industry is being found out. We must do better. When I say this, it's not that good SEOs and agencies don't exist. They do, and I know many. It's just that it appears there are vastly more bad ones. Right now, I'm inundated with leads where it's not just bad SEO that's caused site issues; it's either non-existent SEO or SEO that is utter madness. And this isn't a case of small agencies struggling to survive. It's across the spectrum. It's huge agencies, well-known gurus, and consultants. Are the victims difficult clients who won't let SEOs do their stuff? No. I've seen technical advice written that is not just plain wrong, and that has led to large sites tanking. Is it incompetence? In some cases. Over promotion of staff before they were ready? Probably. Are these agencies set up by entrepreneurs who are just filling roles, winning clients and delivering mayhem? Yes, there's a lot of that going on. Is this saying yes to things that SEOs and agencies should say no to? Of course. Some of this is clear. SEO boomed after COVID-19 as people realised the importance of being online. And with that, agencies and SEO consultants grew out of nothing. But right now, it's clear that these agencies are being found out. Today, I've had the following: An SEO agency from India reached out for advice because the UK agency that outsourced their work hasn't paid them. I've spoken with a prospect who has spent the best part of £30k on SEO and the site doesn't even seem like it's being crawled. And that's just today. In truth, I do not know what the solution is to this problem. But I've never seen the sheer scale of the incompetence within SEO that I'm seeing at the moment. Being a successful freelancer or agency might be judged by many through money or size. It's not about that. It's about accountability. I have more respect for those that turn down work because they aren't the right fit. I have no respect for those who sell what they can't do or deliver. We have to change this industry...the question is how? Food for thought.

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Technical SEO Can Destroy Your Website in Minutes. I do not consider myself a Technical SEO. I'm a Tactical SEO. I make brands money through organic search and do what needs doing, fix what needs fixing...only if there is a financial need. And yet, more lately I continually see technical SEOs destroying sites. Either through terrible advice that gets passed to devs to implement or wasting massive budgets on vanity metrics. Sure, some devs wreck websites for search. But generally its the SEOs giving bad advice. I've seen bad technical SEO cause a loss of 7 figures in revenue at least 3 big brand websites. I've seen 6 figures of waste on chasing nonsense fixes. Why does this happen? 1. A lack of training. 2. A lack of commerciality. 3. Agency selling things they can't do. 4. Zero testing mentality. 5. Hubris. 6. Agency wants to offer technical SEO when they don't have a good technical SEO. One of the best technical SEOs I know, is good, not because of his ability. But good because he knows his ability. In fact he rated himself a 6 out of 10 to me. That complete honesty is what people need from their technical SEOs. Of course, the above can apply to any area of SEO. Be honest about your ability. Seek help and advice for things you don't know. Realise you can't know everything. I seek help from others. I have trusted advisors. I admit what I don't know. Technical SEO can work miracles. But it can destroy a business. Perhaps SEO Tactician needs to be the new role in search. Regardless, be careful with tech SEO advice and delivery. There is a lot of bad advice out there.

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There's been so much SEO news lately. This is a nice roundup of important updates to be aware of! I also like to read Search Engine Roundtable daily to keep up with the latest. https://lnkd.in/ezvwfEbu

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Bonus SEO Tips: When Land Clearing in Texas Meets SEO 😂🌳 Some SEO nerd humor. I got a chuckle of this when I came across this page: https://lnkd.in/eexmcQVV In case you haven't noticed: check the "Bonus SEO Tips:" at the end? #SEOHumor #SEO

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🤔 My personal view on the “30 harsh truths for SEO in 2024”. Inspired by Chris Tzitzis. The original post by Samy Thuillier So here it goes (keep in mind, these are my own views and thoughts): 1.) Big sites will outrank you, but I wouldn't put them all in the “shit content” bucket, where a lot of affiliates like to put them by default. Mostly they are just salty cause of the algo shift. But yes, even “shit” content will get them there, cause of authority and brand being the dominant factor…today. 2.) Don`t start any niche site at all. That model is dead, unless you already have a (personal) brand to boost it up. 3.) There are still people linking out for free. Just had a 100% AI site get 4 organic links (even DR61) from relevant domains. But I was a shocked as the next guy, that it actually happened 😀 4.) Agreed. Especially if you are clearly exploiting the loopholes. 5.)Branding is getting more and more important, but even without brand you can still get heaps of organic traffic. 6.) All depends on brand, authority, budget, etc. But yes, starting something from 0 is hard and will take a long long time. 7.) Yes. 8.) Agreed. High-quality is a very subjective term. 9.) Agreed. 10.) CTR manipulation has been a thing for over 5 years. “Traction” is only the result of “gurus” making it public 🙂 11.) Again, very subjective what “good content” is. 12.) It is not crucial. It does help to a degree. 13.) Agreed. 14.) I am pretty sure people have done single-variable testing to disprove this. Maybe Kyle Roof can shed some light on this? 15.) Agreed. Length is not important. (#giggles) 16.) Agreed. Especially, if you start doing it after uploading 10k images. 17.) It is just one of the ways… 18.) Agreed. But I believe people over-exaggerate how it “should” be done. 19.) If the expired domain is related yes, otherwise it`s super hit-or-miss. 20.) No clue. But logic would state, if something is fake and numbers are blown up and clearly bots are following and commenting, it has the reverse effect. 21.) Agreed. 22.) Link exchanges? Dear lord. I mean, if they are from the same domain and not a “3 way” (#GigglingAgain) it`s just dumb. 23.) The benefits don't outweigh the risk. 24.) Same as 20. 25.) It is a trick, which seems to work. Especially if its actually highly related. 26.) No clue. Never tried it, or seen any case studies. 27.) And many of them battle it like Don Kihot did the windmills, because it keeps getting taken down. Not worth the hassle. 28.) Snitches get stitches. I believe in karma, so off with their heads! 😀 29.) Reverse engineering has always been the go-to strategy, but make sure to add your own “tricks” to the mix. 30.) Probably so. Will gladly debate any of the 30 in the comments :D Thanks again Chris Tzitzis for the poke, to make this happen. My 2 humble Euro cents.

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I just got this nice email trying to sell me backlinks! John Mueller would you like a honeypot of sites selling backlinks? I'll put the google sheet links in the comments for you to see the hundreds of sites selling guest posts. Oh and there is the contact information for the kind fellow that is making SEO look like garbage. These slimy link slingers are the antithesis of what a law firm (or any business) needs. And the more charlatans there are like this pushing their backlinks as a (falsly) legitimate way of growing your SEO presence, the more people will believe this is actually the right way to grow. Don't believe the hype. Build real backlinks through organic outreach and the creation of really helpful content. At Consumer Attorney Marketing Group, Inc. (CAMG) we write educational and helpful content, then have a team of over 40 outreach specialists that handle your digital PR to share the content with relevant websites. This is a simple but highly resource-intensive undertaking. But it is how you can legitimately grow your brand and search visibility. If your SEO team/agency is buying backlinks from Riddi Lahari or the countless other scammers pushing guest posts, you're doing it wrong.

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📢 As Facebook referral traffic continues to drop for publishers, news organization should definitely be investing more of their resources into Facebook Groups. 📢 Facebook favors Groups and when your content is posted and shared, it will get the reach you're seeking. Here’s why this strategy works: 👀 𝐈𝐧𝐜𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐞𝐝 𝐕𝐢𝐬𝐢𝐛𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐲: Groups are designed to gather like-minded people, making them perfect for targeting specific audiences. And high-quality content is favored in Groups, increasing the likelihood of your posts being seen. 🚀 𝐄𝐟𝐟𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐃𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐢𝐛𝐮𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧: Join Groups related to your content. If you're a business reporter, join groups focused on small business in your community. If you write about families and parents, join moms groups in your area. 📈 𝐃𝐫𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐓𝐫𝐚𝐟𝐟𝐢𝐜: One of the keys is to not treat a Group as just a place to get traffic. Participate in the Group, answer questions and ask questions. When you share a link it will be more natural because you are already contributing. 🎯 𝐂𝐡𝐞𝐜𝐤 𝐄𝐧𝐠𝐚𝐠𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐋𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐬: Look for active Groups with frequent posts and engaged members. Make your posts conversational. Avoid purely promotional content. ✨ 𝐓𝐢𝐩𝐬 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐝𝐨 𝐩𝐨𝐬𝐭 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐢𝐧 𝐚 𝐆𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐩 When it's time to promote a story you would like to get shared, it's important for it to come across not too promotional but valuable to the Group. Here is what to do and not do: • Bad: "Tony’s Taco Truck, the area’s latest new food truck, is set to open on May 1." Good: "It’s been Tony’s dream to open his own food truck. On May 1, that dream comes true with Tony’s Taco Truck." Great: "I thought the group would enjoy this story about a local guy making his dreams come true by opening a food truck downtown." By sharing your stories in the right way, you connect with your audience more effectively, driving engagement and readership and eventually, traffic back to your site. 📧 I'm a huge believer in Groups and believe they not only offer pretty big traffic upside but they allow news organizations to engage with local communities, provide useful information and target niches important to your mission. I'd love to help you with a Facebook Group startegy. Connect with me at [email protected]. #Journalism #ContentStrategy #SocialMediaTips #DigitalEngagement #Socialmedia #Facebook #FacebookGroups

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SEO 2024 is not what people think. There are opportunities for brands of all sizes, small and large. High CPC, business-relevant keywords that are easy to rank for with a few site changes. In particular, I've never seen so much potential out there for professional services. Revenue-generating traffic opportunities galore. Why? Well, a lot of 'blogs', which were basically lead gen/ affiliate sites created by SEOs, are gone. Marketing managers...don't miss out on this. Message me to book your free SEO consultation. There's a huge opportunity to rank and rank fast! Don't let others beat you to it. (and yes...the image is a client's traffic).

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I like geeking out on the technical stuff. Sitting at the nerds' table. But I've learned it's often more impactful to run it back to first principles. Tons of information you can consume about SEO. But what are we trying to do? Reach and resonate with target users, map to G's ranking incentives, convert searchers into subscribers, leads, or customers. Easy to get lost in the abundance of opinions, algo leaks, and whatnot. This comes from a panel I did with CAKE.com. Super fun convo. Full video here: https://lnkd.in/e-YNYXnB

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Content pruning can be one of the most helpful tactics for SEO when done right

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The SEO game is changing...In fact it has been for a while. ❌ Old Definition: Search Engine Optimisation ✅ New Definition: Search Everywhere Optimisation The future of SEO isn’t about ranking higher on Google alone—it’s about being discoverable EVERYWHERE YOUR AUDIENCE is searching. 🌐 Need help with your communication strategy for 2025 ? Let’s connect! Hi, I’m Sherrie Alvarez, professional wordsmith with 16+ years' experience in international marketing. My Expertise:  Helping clients Win With Words ! 📈 SEO Consulting, Content & Copywriting 🌍Translation & Transcreation (French ➡️ UK English) 📑 Bid, Grant & Proposal Writing

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Big article about #Google came out this week (https://lnkd.in/gCD3Zx9N). Key finding by Rand Fishkin, one of the godfathers of #SEO: "If you care strategically about the value of organic search traffic, but don’t have much use for the technical details of how Google works, this section’s for you. It’s my attempt to sum up much of Google’s evolution from the period this leak covers: 2005 – 2023, and I won’t limit myself exclusively to confirmed elements of the leak. 1. Brand matters more than anything else Google has numerous ways to identify entities, sort, rank, filter, and employ them. Entities include brands (brand names, their official websites, associated social accounts, etc.), and as we’ve seen in our clickstream research with Datos, they’ve been on an inexorable path toward exclusively ranking and sending traffic to big, powerful brands that dominate the web > small, independent sites and businesses. If there was one universal piece of advice I had for marketers seeking to broadly improve their organic search rankings and traffic, it would be: “Build a notable, popular, well-recognized brand in your space, outside of Google search.”"

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