At their annual awards benefit, the VFW Post 1943 honored WildFireWeb for their support and service. WildFireWeb sponsors, hosts and maintains several websites for Veterans  including VFWpost1943.org, sonomacountyvetconnect.org and a site for Veterans Legal Education. 2 other media providers, The Sonoma Sun and Sonoma News were also honored along with awards given for Police and Firefighter of the year followed by selected readings from the 2011 student essay competition also sponsored by the VFW. Thank you Dan Parker and everyone else at the VFW. We are honored to be able to give something back to those that have given so much for all of us.



VFW Post 1943 Commander, Dan Parker with Blaine Transue of WildFireWeb

At WildFireWeb, we have designed and built hundreds of websites, so we understand the evolution of the process very well. We know that everyone wants everything, we know that because we want everything. Should we all have a website as good as Apple®? Of course we should. Do we all have the same budget for our website as Apple? Of course not.

Your website is your presence, it is the public face of you, your calling card, your single best marketing tool, your shingle on your storefront. Businesses need to consider the value placed on that idea as it relates to them.

As business owners, when it comes to marketing, and let's be honest, websites are marketing, we need to ask ourselves these questions every day. What is that sign on our store front worth? What does it do for my business? How well does it reflect the nature of what we do? What is the value of a newspaper or magazine ad or the difference between a text listing and a display ad in the Yellow Pages?

How many times have we walked into a store because of the signage, how many times have we walked past one for the same reason?

Just like that sign on your storefront, in many cases, your website IS your first impression. New clients will see it before they see you, and through it must immediately engage and connect with who you are, what you do and why they care.

The challenge for us then is to realistically match our clients vision with their budget. The good news is, we happen to be very good at that.

Blaine Transue
Cofounder, WildFireWeb Inc
http://wildfireweb.com

(707) 938-7677

The Most Important Google Ranking Factors, According to SEO Experts

Chris Crum | June 9, 2011 @ 10:27am

Rand Fishkin and SEOmoz polled 132 SEO experts with data from over 10,000 Google search results, and have attempted to rank the importance of ranking signals. It’s not confirmed fact, obviously. Google won’t provide such information, but I suppose the next best thing is the collective opinion of a large group of people who make their livings getting sites to rank in search engines, and Fishkin has put together an impressive presentation.

You can view the entire presentation here, but I’ve pulled out a few key slides that basically sum up the findings.

The factors are actually broken down into the following subsets, where each is ranked against other related factors: overall algorithmic factors, page-specific link signals, domain-wide link signals, on-page signals, domain name match signals, social signals, and highest positively + negatively correlated metrics overall.

The results find that page-level link metrics are the top algorithmic factors (22%), followed by domain-level, link authority features (21%). This is similar to the same SEOmoz poll for 2009, but there is a huge difference in the numbers, indicating that experts are less certain that page-level link metrics are as important. In 2009, they accounted for 43%.

Page-specific link signals are cited as metrics based on links that point specifically to the ranking page. This is how the results panned out there:

Link to the original article here

Original Source, Mashable
Stan Schroeder Stan Schroeder – Fri Feb 25, 1:19 am ET

Google has announced a major algorithmic change to its search engine, subtle in nature and perhaps unnoticeable to many users, but one that should dramatically improve the quality of Google's search results.

With this move, Google is targeting content farms -- a common name for low quality sites whose main goal is to attract search traffic by piling up (mostly) useless content, usually by producing large amounts of low-quality text or by copying it from websites with original content.

Google did not go into details of the change, which should impact 11.8% of Google's queries (currently only in the U.S., with plans to roll it out elsewhere over time), but it does say that it will affect the ranking of many sites on the web.

"This update is designed to reduce rankings for low-quality sites -- sites which are low-value add for users, copy content from other websites or sites that are just not very useful. At the same time, it will provide better rankings for high-quality sites -- sites with original content and information such as research, in-depth reports, thoughtful analysis and so on," explain Googlers Amit Singhal and Matt Cutts in a blog post.

While the change will surely have many website owners up in arms (complaining that their website was unfairly ranked lower than before (we're sure that in some cases they will be right), it's a very welcome one.

The popularity of Google's search engine is still second to none, but Google has been plagued by black hat SEO practices and content farms for a while now, with the complaints from users slowly mounting over time. If Google manages to put an end to content farms or at least significantly reduce their influence in search results, it will be an important step in regaining the trust of its millions of users.

To all of our valued customers, Please Read!
 
A message from WildFireWeb Co-Founder, Blaine Transue

In recent months there has been a surge in email from often unethical companies promising to improve your SEO rankings. Unfortunately, in an era when businesses are trying to do everything they can to improve their bottom line, many businesses fall prey to these self proclaimed SEO experts who may actually do more damage than good to your SEO rankings. Most of these solicitations are from companies who are only after your money and do not have your best interests in mind.

If you are receiving such notices and are concerned about your SEO and search rankings, we would request that you take the following steps.

1) Call Us! 1 (707) 938-7677. We're always here to help. At WildFireWeb we have integrated tools directly into your website that you can use to improve your SEO. Visit our Help Site for additional information and instruction. We also realize that, even though many of our customers love having the ability to do this themselves, there are others who simply don't have the time of manpower to dedicate to it. Please know that we are here and available to help you with your SEO. For a very reasonable fee, we will analyze your website and enter the information necessary to improve your SEO.

2) Don't fall prey to unethical email marketing campaigns. No one can guarantee you a #1 ranking on Google, but don't take our word for it, read what Google has to say on the issue.(below)
 
The following excerpt is taken directly from Google's website with regards to this very matter.
 

While SEOs can provide clients with valuable services, some unethical SEOs have given the industry a black eye through their overly aggressive marketing efforts and their attempts to manipulate search engine results in unfair ways. Practices that violate our guidelines may result in a negative adjustment of your site's presence in Google, or even the removal of your site from our index. Here are some things to consider:

Be wary of SEO firms and web consultants or agencies that send you email out of the blue.

Amazingly, we (Google) get these spam emails too:

"Dear google.com, I visited your website and noticed that you are not listed in most of the major search engines and directories..."

Reserve the same skepticism for unsolicited email about search engines as you do for "burn fat at night" diet pills or requests to help transfer funds from deposed dictators.

No one can guarantee a #1 ranking on Google.
 
Beware of SEOs that claim to guarantee rankings, allege a "special relationship" with Google, or advertise a "priority submit" to Google. There is no priority submit for Google. In fact, the only way to submit a site to Google directly is through our Add URL page or by submitting a Sitemap and you can do this yourself at no cost whatsoever.

 
Click here to Link directly to Google's information and read what they have to say on the subject
 
4) Don't uproot your website and run off with one of these fly by night scammers just because they have you scared, in fact, doing so may be the worst thing you can do for your search engine rankings.

Your business is very important to us. At WildFireWeb we value each and every one of our customers and are here to help you in any way we can.

Call us, we have all the tools you need to improve your SEO, whether you choose to do it yourself or have us do it for you, please contact us before making decisions about your website that could adversely affect your search engine rankings. We will listen to your concerns and provide you with the guidance you need to make the right decision about your SEO.

1.707.938.7677 or email us at support@wildfireweb.com

Sincerely,

Blaine Transue, Co-Founder
WildFireWeb Inc.
wildfireweb.com

SEO is an acronym for "search engine optimization" or "search engine optimizer." Deciding to hire an SEO is a big decision that can potentially improve your site and save time, but you can also risk damage to your site and reputation. Make sure to research the potential advantages as well as the damage that an irresponsible SEO can do to your site. Many SEOs and other agencies and consultants provide useful services for website owners, including:

• Review of your site content or structure
• Technical advice on website development: for example, hosting, redirects, error pages, use of JavaScript
• Content development
• Management of online business development campaigns
• Keyword research
• SEO training
• Expertise in specific markets and geographies.

Keep in mind that the Google search results page includes organic search results and often paid advertisement (denoted by the heading "Sponsored Links") as well. Advertising with Google won't have any effect on your site's presence in our search results. Google never accepts money to include or rank sites in our search results, and it costs nothing to appear in our organic search results. Free resources such as Webmaster Tools, the official Webmaster Central blog, and our discussion forum can provide you with a great deal of information about how to optimize your site for organic search. Many of these free sources, as well as information on paid search, can be found on Google Webmaster Central.

Before beginning your search for an SEO, it's a great idea to become an educated consumer and get familiar with how search engines work. We recommend starting here:

• Google Webmaster Guidelines
• Google 101: How Google crawls, indexes and serves the web.

If you're thinking about hiring an SEO, the earlier the better. A great time to hire is when you're considering a site redesign, or planning to launch a new site. That way, you and your SEO can ensure that your site is designed to be search engine-friendly from the bottom up. However, a good SEO can also help improve an existing site.

Some useful questions to ask an SEO include:

• Can you show me examples of your previous work and share some success stories?
• Do you follow the Google Webmaster Guidelines?
• Do you offer any online marketing services or advice to complement your organic search business?
• What kind of results do you expect to see, and in what timeframe? How do you measure your success?
• What's your experience in my industry?
• What's your experience in my country/city?
• What's your experience developing international sites?
• What are your most important SEO techniques?
• How long have you been in business?
• How can I expect to communicate with you? Will you share with me all the changes you make to my site, and provide detailed information about your recommendations and the reasoning behind them?

While SEOs can provide clients with valuable services, some unethical SEOs have given the industry a black eye through their overly aggressive marketing efforts and their attempts to manipulate search engine results in unfair ways. Practices that violate our guidelines may result in a negative adjustment of your site's presence in Google, or even the removal of your site from our index. Here are some things to consider:

• Be wary of SEO firms and web consultants or agencies that send you email out of the blue.

  Amazingly, we get these spam emails too:

  "Dear google.com,
  I visited your website and noticed that you are not listed in most of the major search engines and directories..."

  Reserve the same skepticism for unsolicited email about search engines as you do for "burn fat at night" diet pills or requests to help transfer funds from deposed dictators.

• No one can guarantee a #1 ranking on Google.

  Beware of SEOs that claim to guarantee rankings, allege a "special relationship" with Google, or advertise a "priority submit" to Google. There is no priority submit for Google. In fact, the only way to submit a site to Google directly is through our Add URL page or by submitting a Sitemap and you can do this yourself at no cost whatsoever.

• Be careful if a company is secretive or won't clearly explain what they intend to do.

  Ask for explanations if something is unclear. If an SEO creates deceptive or misleading content on your behalf, such as doorway pages or "throwaway" domains, your site could be removed entirely from Google's index. Ultimately, you are responsible for the actions of any companies you hire, so it's best to be sure you know exactly how they intend to "help" you. If an SEO has FTP access to your server, they should be willing to explain all the changes they are making to your site.

• You should never have to link to an SEO.

  Avoid SEOs that talk about the power of "free-for-all" links, link popularity schemes, or submitting your site to thousands of search engines. These are typically useless exercises that don't affect your ranking in the results of the major search engines -- at least, not in a way you would likely consider to be positive.

• Choose wisely.

  While you consider whether to go with an SEO, you may want to do some research on the industry. Google is one way to do that, of course. You might also seek out a few of the cautionary tales that have appeared in the press, including this article on one particularly aggressive SEO: http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2002002970_nwbizbriefs12.html. While Google doesn't comment on specific companies, we've encountered firms calling themselves SEOs who follow practices that are clearly beyond the pale of accepted business behavior. Be careful.

• Be sure to understand where the money goes.

  While Google never sells better ranking in our search results, several other search engines combine pay-per-click or pay-for-inclusion results with their regular web search results. Some SEOs will promise to rank you highly in search engines, but place you in the advertising section rather than in the search results. A few SEOs will even change their bid prices in real time to create the illusion that they "control" other search engines and can place themselves in the slot of their choice. This scam doesn't work with Google because our advertising is clearly labeled and separated from our search results, but be sure to ask any SEO you're considering which fees go toward permanent inclusion and which apply toward temporary advertising.

• What are the most common abuses a website owner is likely to encounter?

One common scam is the creation of "shadow" domains that funnel users to a site by using deceptive redirects. These shadow domains often will be owned by the SEO who claims to be working on a client's behalf. However, if the relationship sours, the SEO may point the domain to a different site, or even to a competitor's domain. If that happens, the client has paid to develop a competing site owned entirely by the SEO.

Another illicit practice is to place "doorway" pages loaded with keywords on the client's site somewhere. The SEO promises this will make the page more relevant for more queries. This is inherently false since individual pages are rarely relevant for a wide range of keywords. More insidious, however, is that these doorway pages often contain hidden links to the SEO's other clients as well. Such doorway pages drain away the link popularity of a site and route it to the SEO and its other clients, which may include sites with unsavory or illegal content.

• What are some other things to look out for?

There are a few warning signs that you may be dealing with a rogue SEO. It's far from a comprehensive list, so if you have any doubts, you should trust your instincts. By all means, feel free to walk away if the SEO:

• owns shadow domains
• puts links to their other clients on doorway pages
• offers to sell keywords in the address bar
• doesn't distinguish between actual search results and ads that appear on search results pages
• guarantees ranking, but only on obscure, long keyword phrases you would get anyway
• operates with multiple aliases or falsified WHOIS info
• gets traffic from "fake" search engines, spyware, or scumware
• has had domains removed from Google's index or is not itself listed in Google

If you feel that you were deceived by an SEO in some way, you may want to report it.

In the United States, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) handles complaints about deceptive or unfair business practices. To file a complaint, visit: http://www.ftc.gov/ and click on "File a Complaint Online," call 1-877-FTC-HELP, or write to:

Federal Trade Commission
CRC-240
Washington, D.C. 20580

If your complaint is against a company in a country other than the United States, please file it at http://www.econsumer.gov/.