Google Authorship – Why it Matters and How to Set It Up

Authorship and Content Creation

The Project – Authorship

by Rob Seaver

I know.  You are thinking “when will this whole Google Plus thing tank?”  Not so fast…

The President of my company asked me a few months ago to research Authorship and its impact on content and page rankings.  It didn’t surprise me, yet another term had cropped up in this constantly changing world of digital marketing and search.  So I set off to do a little homework.

What I found was a somewhat cryptic, not so ubiquitous answer.  Seems Authorship isn’t something you simply “turn on” and it works.  There’s a bit more to it.  A lot more when it comes to content, search engine results and yes… Google Plus.

By now, we all know content has taken a center stage in search.  The days of keyword stuffing and paying for links have gone away.  Panda and Penguin aren’t just animals you will see on your next zoo visit.  They are the latest algorithms Google has put in place to ensure consumers their search results will be as relevant as possible.

Companies (like Hubspot) have been beating the drum educating everyone how blogging and content creation is essential to SEO and high page ranking, for years.  The explosion of blogging over the past two decades has only gained in popularity and seems to be a continuing trend.

Google rewarding websites for quality content is part of it but, there’s more to just what is being said, WHO wrote it starts to be as important.  Voilà Authorship!

So what is Authorship?

June 2011, Google announced they had started a program to support authorship of content authors.

“Today we’re beginning to support authorship markup—a way to connect authors with their content on the web. We’re        experimenting with using this data to help people find content from great authors in our search results.”

Basically, they’ve developed a tag any author can use to promote the content they are generating. More importantly (for Google), they link this content back to the G+ profile on record for that author.

This is HUGE for bloggers and content writers. In fact, if you do a simple search on almost any topic today, you will see page one results, from writers with G+ profiles (i.e. Authorship).  This is an important step in establishing yourself as an authoritative writer on the content you like to write. It is also a big step in helping Google ensure the search results are as relevant as possible.

Setting up Authorship for your content is a bit tricky.  I’ve outlined the basic process below, however you will need to pay attention to the details on each step as you go.

• Create a Google + (G+) account that (preferably) uses the same email address you will be using for the content you intend to write and publish online.
• Setup your G+ profile with Google Authorship.  This includes sending a confirmation email from the Google Authorship setup page.
• You should have  received an email from Google verifying you have successfully linked your Google Authorship account to your G+ account.  Click on the link in this email to tell Google this is in fact you.
• Ensure the content you generate is properly linked back to the G+ profile you have associated with Google Authorship.  There are several ways to do this explained in detail on Google’s Authorship setup page.
• The final step is to verify everything has been setup properly.

Assuming everything goes as planned, your work should start gaining traction in the Search Engine Rankings Page.  You should also start seeing the benefit of how Google rewards you –  a great Author!

One last note – There is a blog I ran across that has an excellent breakdown of the process to sign up and implement Authorship in a much more detailed process… It should answer a few more questions.

Overall, Google is just in pursuit of quality content delivered to an ever-demanding consumer. (Oh yeah, and maybe along the way make Google Plus a platform here to stay)

This is certainly a step in the right direction for all bloggers and content writers out there.

Content, SEO, Uncategorized

Authorship, Blog, blogging, Content, Search, Search Engine Results, SEO, SERP, writers

August 13, 2012

4 Comments

8 Simple Steps to Writing A Killer Blog

8 Simple Steps to Writing a Killer Blog

by Rob Seaver

Writing a blog seems like it would be easy.  Just sit down, pound something out and get on with your life.  This might be the way some (or a few…ok…maybe one in a hundred) people do it, however, to many bloggers, writing even a short post can be extremely difficult.

Part of the problem when you’re learning how to write a blog post isn’t just your post…it’s the amount of time your visitor will spend on your site.  Let’s face it.  Readers have a difficult time concentrating and actually reading almost anything.  According to Google Analytics, the average amount of time a visitor spends on a website varies from 33 seconds to 5.29 minutes.   So, even if your visitor is at the higher end of the spectrum, you have a very short amount of time to grab their attention.  What does this mean when you’re learning how to write a blog post?

Learning how to write a blog that commands attention and, even better, generates traffic and gets read can be frustrating, however, by following a few steps that work in any niche, and any subject, you can quickly start generating blog posts that engage your reader and have them returning for more.

Here are 8 tips that you can use when creating a blog post that gets read:

1. Focus…focus…focus!  You might have a lot to say about your subject.  That’s great.   But don’t say it all in one post.  Create a spreadsheet of future ideas, then focus on idea per post.  By honing in on that one idea, you will create a shorter post and your readers won’t get bored.
2. Keep it short.  Most of your visitors have a very short attention span.  They also are multi-tasking…doing many things at the same time.  They might have multiple browsers open or they’re looking for certain information.  If your blog post doesn’t instantly capture their attention, your visitor will vanish as quickly as they arrived.  Your blog post needs to be short and to the point.
3. Use bullet points.  People like to read short, to the point posts and, often, bullet points are easier to write and will help keep you on track.
4. Don’t preach or talk down to your readers.  Some bloggers take the role of teacher, preacher or parent when they’re writing.  Avoid this at all costs.  Your visitors are voluntarily coming to your site and if they’re offended, they will just as quickly voluntarily leave.
5. Spelling and grammar are important.  Occasionally you’ll post something with a spelling or grammatical error, however, if it’s constant, your visitors might believe that you don’t know what you’re talking about.  Something as small as typos or grammatical errors can impact people’s perception of your knowledge.  And it’s so simple to correct.  Spell check is built into virtually all word processing programs.  You can also ask a friend, co-worker or family member to read your post and double-check for errors.
6. Use humor (where appropriate).  OK.  Sometimes it’s simply inappropriate to make a joke, however, often your subject matter can use a touch of humor.  People like to be entertained — and YOU get this unique platform to do it.  So when you’re learning how to write a blog, interjecting humor might be just the thing to keep your visitors coming back for more.  (Just a note — most people won’t appreciate humor made at other people’s expense,. vulgar or racist humor.)
7. Keywords are important.  When you’re learning how to write a blog post, remember that blogging is different than other types of writing.  When a search engine spiders your site, it’s looking for particular keywords and uses them to rank that page by subject.  But the search engine algorithm also looks for surrounding keywords that make the post “intelligent”.  If you try to “game” the post by using too many of the same words, the search engine will catch it.  Most experts agree that using .5-1.5% of keywords in a post is best.
8. Use a call to action.  Everyone enjoys having their opinion heard, so invite your visitors to post a comment, complete a short survey or in some other way interact with you and other visitors.  By engaging them, you’ll create more buzz, more traffic and even possibly create more ideas for additional blog posts.

Now that you’ve gotten some ideas on how to write a blog post, promote it by using social media (Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Pinterest or Instagram) to let everyone know it’s there.

Content, SEO, Social Media, Uncategorized

Blog, Blog Post, Content, SEO, Writing

August 12, 2012

1 Comment

Finding a job with the help of LinkedIn

LinkedIn

by Rob Seaver

Right off the bat, I want to say I’m not sure anything I write will help you get hired.  But, I have found that LinkedIn was THE major tool in successfully landing me a decent (and potentially rewarding) job!

Oh sure, I’ve been promoting and pushing my friends and co-workers to use this tool for some years now.  And, I’ve been using it on and off for the same period of time, but after finding myself unemployed for the better part of last year, I knew I needed to try something different… AND FAST!!!

A friend of mind pointed out that she looked up my “social footprint” and found my story wasn’t being told.  What she meant was, what I was saying wasn’t matching up with the person she knew I was.  And, the one area she felt I needed to really spend more energy “fixing” was LinkedIn.  At the time she first told me, I didn’t fully realize the impact this one site could have (not only) on my job search, but eventually me finding a job!

I wanted to share a few quick and simple tips I did that had tremendous impact.

Here’s what I have done:

• A Great Tagline – Come up with something short and catchy that really says who you are and what you are looking for.  For me, I needed to emote my marketing experience and ability to generate leads.  “Creative Marketing Guru / Lead Generator Extraordinaire”  (sure I know it’s corny, but it immediately generated comments from my connections)
• Frequent Updates – This is something I recently saw the cause and effect.  Every time I made a change to my profile (no matter how small), the number of people who would view my profile dramatically increased.  This resulted in not only increased exposure for me, but also an increase in people contacting me directly.  Some of the comments were “Wow…It looks like good things are happening”, “Maybe it’s time we should talk”, “I’ve noticed you have a lot going on”
• Be Relevant -Make sure your profile and experience match the target audience.  If you worked at a printing company, but want a marketing position, say something about direct marketing instead of print.  Also ensure you list any software (online or offline) you are comfortable working with.  Show actual accomplishments.  If you grew business through your efforts by $1,000.00 maybe say “I’ve grown that division of the company by 400%”
• Grow Your Network – It’s been said you can handle really only 150 members in your network.  If this is true, you should really be selective about who you invite.  Do a search for leaders and management in companies you would like to work for and see if you can get them to connect with you.  Once again, only do this when you believe your profile matches who you are and says what you want them to hear.
• A Great Photo – This might be the single most important part of your of your LinkedIn profile.  No matter how badly we want to believe appearances shouldn’t matter, believe me they do!  I’ve been in meetings where management quickly does an online search for the applicant online to see “what they look like”.  The comments “He’s too old”, “She’s too fat” have unfortunately been said all to many times.  So make sure when posting your photo (and I believe you must have one) spend a little money and have a professional take both a “corporate” shot as well as a “fun” shot of you.  Something that says who you are as much as what you look like.  One final note: no photo = no interest.

Overall, these tips are quick and easy.  They aren’t everything you could be doing, like blogging and using Facebook and Twitter in tandem with LinkedIn, but they have worked for me.  I just landed a new job at a fortune 500 company… all through my LinkedIn page.

Happy Hunting!

Social Media, Uncategorized

employment, Facebook, Finding a job, getting hired, Job, LinkedIn, Social Media, Twitter

February 16, 2012

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