Mozak Design Blog

Plugins In Review: Redirection

Picture this, a potential client is searching on Google and finds a link to your site. They click on it and … yikes … a 404 page not found error! How embarassing …

One of the more useful Wordpress Plugins that I have been using on my Wordpress Website is something called Redirection. This handy little plugin helps to keep my site navigation clean and useful. Being highly configurable, Redirection provides many different options to help you keep your website navigation in check.

There are two specific cases when I turn to this plugin.

• First, in the event of a page url change or removal.
• Second, if I want to add an external website as a link in my navigation bar.

In the case of the first application, Redirection prevents visitor loss due to “page not found” errors (404s).  Instead, this plug in will redirect visitors to a specific page you select when the invalid URL is requested.

Additionally, Redirection tracks all “page not found” errors that occur on your site. This is important as it tells you exactly which URLs bring people to your site resulted in a 404.

The second application where I find Redirection comes in handy is the addition of and external site to my navigation. This comes in handy if something like a “calendar”, “event registration” or “homepage” exist on another site. To add these items to my navigation I simply create a page with the name I want to show up in my navigation. I then use Redirection to send visitors to the external URL I want when they click on the page name I created. It really is that easy.

Redirection is one of those gems of a Wordpress plugin that helps you gain more control over where your traffic goes because of errors. Installation is quite easy, and works with Wordpress 2.6 and higher.

Check out my video below to see how to install and use the plugin Redirection. (coming soon)

Good Copy Tip #3: Linking within your website

One opportunity that is often missed is linking to internal pages within your website.

This is valuable in several ways:

1. It enables easier creation of scannable pages.
2. It creates Google optimized, topic specific, pages.
3. It allows you to guide readers into older blog posts.

By linking deeper into your website you can provide a readers with simple lists that they can scan; with the option to learn more on that topic if they follow the link. In addition, linking within your website allows you a way to continue using older posts in your blog. Most blog posts are not looked at once they are about 5 posts old. By guiding readers to older posts and series you have written, you are able to maximize your imvestment in them.

Finally, linking deeper into your site helps to guide your guest through your site to the information that interest them the most. This is crucial as web surfers have little patience hunting for what they are looking for.

You can SEO iWeb Sites!

Have you even noticed that your iWeb site
never seems to come up in the Search Engines?

One of the biggest challenges for an iWeb Website is being found on a Google search. The main reason for this is iWeb by default favors turning everything, even words, into pictures. As you can imagine, Search Engines cannot read pictures.

While working with one of my Portland customers I discovered the following blog: http://allaboutiweb.com

I highly recommend all iWeb users check it out. He shares tips on how to transform your website into one Google will like.

Backlinks for SEO

While a well optimized website is critical for good SEO performance; it alone is not enough. Backlinking is a essential partner for success in the Search Engines.

Now, what is a backlink, you might ask. A backlink is created when your site is linked to from another site or a blog.

When your site has backlinks, search engines like Yahoo, Google or MSN recognize it as one having good quality content, the idea being that if someone has linked to that site, then it must be valuable. So, the more the backlinks, the more important your site. This helps it to top the ranks in search engine listings.

The anchor text in the link also plays a very important role in search engine listings. The visible text of a link that can be clicked is known as anchor text. Search engines try to determine what your site is about by checking out the anchor text. So it is a good idea to include the main keyword phrase wherever possible.

Let us look at some of the methods that can get backlinks for your site.

• You must offer your visitors quality content that is unique. Be innovative in your approach to writing articles. Your website content should be different and offer relevant information to the users. Anything controversial will increase the user’s curiosity level and they will link to your site for more.
• You can submit articles rich in content to some article directories. These will get published and appear on other sites with your link appearing in the Resource Box. You can even write regular columns for sites in your area of expertise.
• Other websites should be able to easily link to your site. Create a “Link to Us” page with html code that can be pasted directly to their site.
• Making an arrangement for trading of good quality content will earn both parties a backlink.
• Put up your site on free directories that cater to your area of expertise. Find some blogs where you can post comments and you may be able to earn some backlinks to your site.

Backlinks are critical to a website’s ranking in search results. Backlinks provide targeted traffic to your website that can translate into increased profits, especially for small businesses.

Craigslist – Advertising for Free!

Craigslist is one of the most popular websites on the Internet and presents you with a great marketing opportunity for your small business. The Internet has provided the world with a huge marketplace where people can advertise and market their goods or services.  Craigslist is a website that allows users to sell anything from furniture to real estate. It is a listing of classified ads that include job placements, personal ads, ads for home supplies, ads for pet food, ads for website designs for small business, etc. Craigslist is a flea market that is online and used by millions all over the world. 

People who visit Craigslist are looking for something that they want to purchase. If you advertise some product or service that suits their interest, you are bound to have an increased traffic to your website that converts to sales. For instance, a web design company based in Portland may advertise their services in Craigslist to expand their business worldwide.

Since the Craigslist site is conveniently divided into regions, it is very easy to place your ads in the city or country of your choice. Your ads will be displayed on the site for 45 days, but after that you can re-list them if you so desire.

Craigslist ads are given top rankings by search engines, especially Google. So, expect an increased flow of traffic to your site within a week of posting your ad at Craigslist. SEO web design for your web page ensures a good ranking at search engine listings. Make use of the same SEO techniques to design your ad by using the relevant keywords to ensure top-ranked listings.

There are a number of websites that allow you to post free ads. Posting ads at sites like Yahoo Classifieds, Backpage, Highland Classifieds or USFreeads will also help to increase traffic to your site. However, the volume of traffic generated through Craigslist posting is much higher than any of the other free classifieds sites available. This is the reason that Craigslist is so popular among net surfers.

Squidoo – It’s Truly Amazing!

There are numerous websites that allow you to create a web-page for any topic under the sun. One among them is Squidoo.com. It is a fairly recent site, created by Seth Godin, a marketing expert. The site is greatly popular among internet users for driving traffic to their own sites; in other words, it is a great marketing tool.

Squidoo web pages are known as ‘lenses’. Anyone can create a Squidoo lense. For this, you need not be a technical wizard, as you can have a lense of your own in three easy steps. The best part is that you can include all kinds of modules to make a site that is interactive and keeps your visitors involved.

Here are some examples of what you can include in your lense to SEO your small business:

• Creating Text Blocks enables you to make blog entries or post your articles.
• Setting up an interactive poll will keep your visitors involved in your business.
• You can keep your lense updated and active by allowing the visitors to give their comments. You may ask them to link their own lense to yours.

The best part of Squidoo is that it has the capability to drive appropriate traffic to your website, which in turn translates into large volumes of sales. Besides, you can also provide links to products sold on eBay, Amazon and other product vending sites. What’s more, you earn a commission for any sale that has taken place from these links!  And mind you, Squidoo.com is completely free!

Search engines like Google usually top rank long tail keyword phrases at Squidoo. You can thus create a network of lenses on Squidoo to target keyword phrases that will direct the search engines to your site. It is always a good practice to include some readable and informative content in the lense in order to target the visitors to your main site.

However, if the lense for your particular keyword is already in existence, you may need to get it transferred or purchase it. This is an ideal situation for you because you are getting a readymade lense without making any effort.

The early bird small businesses users of Squidoo.com are already earning the benefits. You can do it too. Since search engine optimization or SEO is the backbone of internet businesses, each relevant keyword phrase can have a squidoo lense devoted to it.