Only three lessons left in your "7 Deadly SEO Mistakes" course and this time, as promised, we're taking it off-site.
Mistake #5: Cache date of linking page not verified
Read this part of the course online, and get (you guessed it) another case study video specially selected from literally hundreds of candidates
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Watch the video and read Part 5 online at the link above, or save the video for later and read this part of the course below:
Acquiring quality links to a site is a major part of any SEO effort. Therefore, a lot of effort is made and budgets are spent in acquiring links. Simple enough. It is true that most serious SEOs take great care in acquiring links. The days of randomly acquiring huge number of links are long gone.
How do you take "care"? By making sure the following things are true:
- The linking page is not from a "bad neighborhood"
- The number of links on the linking page isn't too high
- The linking site is relevant to your topic
- The link anchor text is relevant to the keywords
- The linking page enjoys a good PageRank
In general, the pedigree of the link is established through several parameters, just as would be done if it was a marriage proposal. That's good, and that's the way it should be.
When it is decided that the link passes all tests and is worth acquiring, before you pull the trigger, make sure you check the cache date. Often, we go to great lengths to make sure the site is a real link, that it looks good, and isn't "spamming"...that we fail to ensure Google is actually spidering the page.
Because if they aren't, the link is essentially worthless. This is probably the most vital step that too many Webmasters fail to check.
Think of the cache dates as a carton of milk in your fridge. Milk is generally good for about three weeks. Beyond that, you start running into "problems," right? The same is true for indexing. If a page goes longer than three weeks without being spidered by Google, there's a problem.
If it's been a couple of months, there is a MAJOR problem.
It's easy to check the cached date of a page. Just put its URL in the search box and if it is indexed it should show up at the top of the search results. Below the snippet you will find the link to the cached version of the page. Click on it and you will be able to know when it was last cached.
That's it. That's all! Yet legions of link builders omit this step and end up linking to pages that have no link juice to offer.
Recommendation: Before you spend a lot of effort in determining the pedigree of a linking page, do a quick check of the page's last cached date. If it is not very recent don't bother enquiring further and move on to the next option.
Bonus Step: Check for Spam Links - especially in a Blog.
With malware infections becoming more and more common online these days, sites and blogs are being "compromised" without the Webmaster even knowing it. Typically, the Spammer will place dozens, hundreds, or even thousands and links "hidden" in the code to their Viagra, Casino, Porn, etc. sites.
How can you check? It's pretty simple.
Just do a site command in Google. For example:
site:patioshoppers.com casino
This will check the domain for any reference to the word "casino." If you get a few hundred pages returned and you are NOT in the casino business, chances are VERY good you've been hacked.
Other phrases you should check would be:
porn
Viagra
cialis
casino
Just check those four and it will take you less then two minutes to run the check. If you're in the SEO business, and you find evidence of a hack attempt on a prospect's site, guess what? You've probably just landed their business.
For future searches, I would highly recommend setting up a Google Alert. (NOTE: You can see my fellow StomperNet Faculty Member Dan Thies explain this in this video.)
I think it's possible that you've just saved yourself days of wasted time and effort (weeks if you're like me). Now that you know what link leads are worth pursuing (and which aren't) you're head and shoulders above 90% of your search competition.
But we won't stop there. Let's go back into your website once more to look at a trap a LOT of webmasters are falling into these days.
And it's hiding in your IMAGE tags.
But you'll have to wait until Part 6 to see. Don't worry! It's coming very soon!
Until next time,
Keep Stomping!
~Andy Jenkins and the
StomperNet Faculty and Staff
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