A couple months ago I shared one of my Google secrets, since that secret no longer worked. 
Specifically, it was how to obtain a list of the most important web sites according to Google.
Now, surprisingly, this little trick appears to work again (it stopped working in 2003), thanks to a bug introduced into Google’s algorithm. Two months ago, a search for http would have revealed results like HTTP - Hypertext Transfer Protocol Overview and Welcome! - The Apache HTTP Server Project. Today, these sites appear nowhere near the top of the results. Instead, the top results are occupied by a “who’s who” list of highly important web sites — sites that don’t include the word http anywhere in the text of the page.
As already noted by blogger Nathan Weinberg, this same phenonemon occurs when you search for www.
One thing I found curious is that http and www Google queries return different results. Now these results are NOT in order of PageRank score, at least not the PageRank scores as revealed by the Google Toolbar. You can verify this to be the case yourself simply by using SEO Chat’s PageRank Search tool. Indeed, it’s a well-known fact within the SEO community that the PageRank scores served up by the Google Toolbar servers are not the actual PageRanks used by Google in the ranking algorithm. PageRank debate aside, perhaps this list offers us a (now) rare glimpse at some of Google’s Chosen Ones — the most important sites on the Internet according to Google.
What makes me say this is due to a bug in Google? For one thing, these results are NOT relevant to the search query. Secondly, I’ve uncovered another bug newly introduced into Google’s algorithm, namely that the inurl: query operator does not work properly, and I think these two bugs might be related. For an example of this second bug in action, search Google for site:blogs.msdn.com scoble inurl:msnsearch and the top search result is currently blogs.msdn.com/mikehall/archive/2004/11/10/255417.aspx. Note there’s no msnsearch in that URL!
I’ve compiled a list the top 1000 results for each of the two queries for your convenience. You’ll see, they do vary quite dramatically:
(more…)
Filed under: Blogs SEO Web Marketing
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US telecommunications giant Verizon already has 5 million pages in Google and 7 million pages in Yahoo! but Netconcepts President Stephan Spencer says there is room for improvement. It is all about making sure every page is indexed by the search engines as his company devotes six team members to the job.
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There is an interesting and amusing thread over at SEW. A punter asks, on the surface, an innocent question as to why his mate’s site has dropped out of Google.
A bunch of the regulars offer some suggestions for possible problems, and then on the second page, GoogleGuy appears and really wades in, revealing the site is linking to some very bad evil affiliate spammers.
Interesting that GoogleGuy would take the time to do some research on the site. Interesting that SEW allow such specifics to be discussed. Interesting that a good number of other SEO’s didn’t catch the real problem. And amusing that the punter gets his butt kicked from very high up in such a public manner. At least he had the good grace to admit he’s been a bad boy.
The lesson here people, is to be careful who you link to and who they link to in turn. Reciprocal linking is bad, you don’t know who else they have requested a link from. And do you have the time and skills to research those link properly. It took GoogleGuy to find the real problem and a bunch of professional SEO’s missed it.
Filed under: Blogs Link Building
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Most companies don’t even realize their competitors are “eating their lunch” online - ranking higher in the search engines, getting more traffic, converting more visitors into buyers and enjoying better returns on their website investment. They simply don’t know how well their website is performing. And they are missing out on valuable e-business opportunities.
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Filed under: Articles Web Development Website Audits
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AmCham Breakfast — Auckland, New Zealand
Four speakers from leading companies give you the good oil on how to succeed in the USA!
Speaker #1: Neville Jordan, Executive Chairman, Endeavour Capital
Neville Jordan, CNZM, is the Executive Chairman of venture capital company Endeavour Capital. He founded Lower Hutt-based MAS Technology in 1976, growing it into a $100 million-a-year exporter which successfully listed on the NASDAQ in 1997. Neville was recently inducted into the NZ Hitech Hall of Fame. As an entrepreneur who has “been there and done that” in the US market, Neville will share practical hints and tips on selling into, and doing business with the US.
Speaker #2: Dr Paul Cossum, CEO, Proacta
Dr Paul Cossum is CEO of Auckland start-up cancer drug developer Proacta, which was named Biotechnology Company of the Year in the 2004 Westpac New Zealand Hi Tech Awards. Paul has 20 years of drug development industry experience in the US. He was most recently Executive Vice President of Drug Development at San Diego-based NewBiotics Inc. Paul will offer insights on attracting investment from US companies, as well as outline some of the pros and cons of setting up shop in the US.
Speaker #3: Stephan Spencer, Managing Director, Netconcepts
Stephan Spencer is the founder and managing director of Netconcepts, an online marketing and web development company specialising in e-commerce, website auditing and search engine optimisation. With headquarters in Browns Bay, Auckland, and offices in Madison, Wisconsin, Netconcepts delivers interactive services to US clients such as AOL and Verizon. Stephan brought Netconcepts to NZ from the US in 2000. He has successfully grown operations in the U.S. and is in an ideal position to provide, from an American’s perspective, unique insights for NZ businesses on how to best operate and market themselves in the U.S.
Speaker #4: Nigel Kirkpatrick, CEO, Industrial Research Limited
Nigel Kirkpatrick is the CEO of Industrial Research Limited, New Zealand’s leading industrial scientific research company. Nigel has substantial international business development experience. Before returning home to New Zealand in 2002 to head up IRL, he was the Zurich-based global innovation leader for DiverseyLever.
The US is a key market for IRL and one where it has been successful in winning key contracts.
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Verizon’s Superpages.com may be #1 in the search engines for online shopping, but Netconcepts feels there is room for improvement. The company has scored a deal with the US telecommunications giant to improve its rankings in the search engines.
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MarketingProfs virtual seminar series — online (webcast)
Imagine an online ad that costs you nothing per impression, guarantees both a local and worldwide audience actively seeking your products and services, and offers 6 times the click-through rate of a banner ad… a search engine listing.
Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is the ultimate targeted, low cost and high return weapon in the e-marketer’s promotional arsenal.
Learn how to maximize your reach through the “organic” (unpaid) results in the search engines:
- Which search engines to target
- Keyword research tools and tactics
- Writing copy that “sings” to the search engines
- Benchmarking against your competitors
- Link building strategies that work
- Optimal search engine architecture
- Best practices to emulate
- Scams exposed
- Case studies - including the “inside scoop” on what worked and what didn’t
- Making your e-commerce or database-driven site “search engine friendly”
- Measuring the return on your search engine marketing investment
- Developing a search engine marketing plan
- Criteria for selecting a search engine marketing agency
- Online tools and resources
Filed under: Copywriting Link Building Seminars SEO Webinars
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Links are important to Google, Yahoo and MSN in determining where your site is placed within the search results. The more links, the better you will do.
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Filed under: Learning Center SEO
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“We felt that Netconcepts’ understanding of search engine rankings would give Superpages.com a distinct advantage over other online directories.”
“My job is to make my boss look good, and when SecureWorks hired Netconcepts for SEO I expected them to make me look good - and they definitely did.”
