SEO Traffic Guide for non-SEOs: 2014 Edition

by Ana Hoﬀman
TraﬃcGenerationCafe.com

If you want to be found on the web,
yesterday’s SEO strategies are simply

not good enough today.

Problem is today’s SEO strategies
might be exactly what will boot

you out of Google search
engine rankings tomorrow.

Is there hope for us,
non-SEOs?

But ﬁrst,
let me see if I can
discourage you from
going after Google traﬃc
to begin with...

Google search engine traffic is great,
but NOT the only way to get targeted

highly converting website traﬃc.

You might be much better oﬀ not worrying about
Google at all and focusing on other much more
obtainable and reliable sources of traﬃc like:
referral traffic from other blogs
social media
content sharing sites like Slideshare, YouTube, etc.

Still want to learn how to get you
some search engine traffic?

7

Keys
to Getting More
Search Engine Traﬃc

“We all want the low-hanging fruit,
but let’s be honest – the low-hanging
fruit is rotten, bruised, and covered
with the grubby ﬁngerprints of all the
other spoiled brats pawing at it.”
~ Dr. Peter J. Meyers,
Moz.com

However, just any content
won’t do either.

However, just any content
won’t do either.
It has to be

BIG

“99% of you create mediocre content. If you think
you’re in the 1% who do better that’s proof you’re
really in the 99%.
There is nothing wrong with mediocre content. I can
turn out mediocre content with my eyes closed. I only
wish all my articles were in the 1%. So keep your
hostility in check. You’re not looking at some elitist
rant here. No one produces consistently great content.
No one.”
~ Michael Martinez,
SEO-Theory.com

3 ways to know your content is BIG:
BIG content takes around 40 hours to produce.
BIG content needs big concepts, but it doesn’t
have to be lengthy.
BIG content can turn your business into a thought
leader.

6 Practical Steps to
Writing BIG Content that Results in BIG Traﬃc
Establish a regular publishing schedule.
Focus on the quality of your posts.
Answer specific questions.
Improve your existing content.
Improve your post formatting.
Create resource pages.
Details at tgcafe.it/seo-guide-2014

“Write for a single person you have in
mind as the perfect person to read
what you write, almost like a letter,
even if they never will, or a person
who you're sure will read it because of
a connection you have to them.”
~ Matt Mullenweg,
Wordpress Founder

What is Google Semantic Search?

“Semantic search is Google's
growing ability to make
associations between things in ways
that come closer to how we humans
make such connections.”
~ Mark Traphagen,
Stone Temple Consulting

When you ask me, “How do I get to Market Street?“, I
might hand you a bus schedule.
I know that the bus schedule might contain the best
solution to your problem, even though your question
did not contain the words “bus” or “schedule.”

THAT’s Google Semantic Search in action...

Does it mean keywords don’t matter ?

“Marketers who invest in smart
keyword research will continue to
have a huge advantage over the
competition.The trick today is
turning those keywords into
concepts.”

~ Cyrus Shepard,
Moz.com

We need to write our content around
ideas/concepts instead of keywords.

What About On-Page Optimization?

What About On-Page Optimization?
On-page SEO is here to stay.

“On-page SEO: You can do it right
or you can do it over.”
~ Eric Enge,

6 Practical Steps to Optimizing Your Content in Light
of Google Semantic Search:
Know the intent of your user; look for the questions behind
the keywords.
Use on-page SEO.
Write for that perfect person to read what you write.
Use the language your clients use.
Develop a strong social presence.
Use Google Autosuggest for your keyword (idea) research.


“Rejecting Google+ because the
same friends and customers you
already have on other social
networks aren’t there is hugely
missing the point.”
~ Mark Traphagen,

If SEO is the king of your search
engine traffic, then Google+ is the
voice behind the throne.

“If you’re still sitting on the fence wondering
whether you should join “yet another social
network” I have this to say: the semantic
web and semantic search are a real
paradigm shift. If you’re not adjusting your
mindset as a marketer or as a business
owner to meet it, ﬁve years from now you
will no longer be in business.”

~ David Amerland,
Author of Google Semantic Search

I can’t put it any more clear than this:

I can’t put it any more clear than this:

Google+ = Google

5 Practical Steps to Leveraging Google+
for More (SEO) Traﬃc:
Optimize your Google+ profile to be found.
Connect your Google+ profile with your website.
Clearly identify your area of expertise.
Treat your Google+ posts as micro-blogging.
Build relationships with influencers.

“Inﬂuencers & leaders of knowledge are in
good supply on Google+, whatever your
ﬁeld you have an unprecedented opportunity
to hobnob with the rich & powerful on this
score. Just as importantly, you also have the
opportunity to become one.”
~ Joshua Berg,
RealSMO.com

4

Google Authorship
& Schema Markups

Google Authorship is the glue that pulls your
content together from across the Internet into
one singular identifiable author.

The benefits of Google Authorship for SEO
traffic are numerous, but the truth is this:

it’s so essential and easy to do that
it’s a shame not to do it right now.

“Trust me. Just do it. Now.”
~ Eric Ward,
Link Moses

What About Structured Data Markup?

Structured Data Markup (aka Schema.org markup) is a
string of code added to the pages on your site so that
Google can better understand the data it contains.

Do you have to have structured data on
your pages? Two options:
1. Yes, because it’s easy to do (instructions in post).
2. No, because even if you don’t, Google Semantic
Search’s got your back.

“Links are the fossil fuel of search
relevancy signals. Polluted. Not
getting better. And yet, that's
what Google Hummingbird
drinks most.”
~ Danny Sullivan,
SearchEngineLand.com

Don’t forget the real reason links existed
in the first place: to drive traﬃc.
Don’t build links for Google;
do it for traffic.
Bratwurst... yum!

With that in mind,
how do we build links in 2014?

With that in mind,
how do we build links in 2014?
Short answer: honestly.

“Create valuable, compelling content of the
kind that webmasters will want to link to
and it is more than likely that you will then
get the links you expect to have in order to
rank. Try to game the system and, well …
you know what’s coming.”
~ David Amerland,
Author of Google Semantic Search

“Stop Taking Link Building Ideas from SEO
Websites – It should be obvious by now that
if you read about a great linking idea or
resource on a forum or blog that it will be
quickly crushed by overuse, laziness, and
irresponsibility. And then the spammers will
move in on it.”
~ Michael Martinez,
SEO-Theory.com

Instead of link building, we should rather
focus on link earning.

8 Practical Steps to
Earning Links that Result in More Traﬃc:
Write content others would want to link to.
Build relationships ON your blog.
Build relationships OFF your blog.
Leverage different forms of content.
Let anchor texts happen naturally.
Relevance is the New PageRank.
Speaking of PageRank: it’s alive and kicking.
Quality over quantity.


Ready or not, Mobile SEO is becoming an
integral part of our quest for Google traffic.

Kelsey Group has projected that by 2015 there will be
more local searches coming from smartphones than
PCs in the US.

7

Use Ignore
Google Analytics

Avoid obsessing with Google Analytics.
I am not saying don’t track your work at all;
just take the “less is more” approach.

“Analytics are not useless, but
they ARE overused.”
~ Michael Martinez,
SEO-Theory.com

8

One More for the Road:

Keep up with
Marketing News

I do realize that our sincere desire to keep up with the
news and the fact that 24 hours per day just refuse to
stretch no matter how much we want it to, here are

helpful resources to help you do a better job of it.

1. Stay on Top of Marketing News with

Weekly Marketing Skinnies
(every Saturday morning at Traﬃc Generation Café)

2. Join Me on Google+

+Ana Hoﬀman

I share the latest marketing news daily on
my Google+ profile (+Ana Hoﬀman).

3. Create Alerts to Notify You
of Fresh Marketing News

(...wanted to give you an option that didn’t involve
me spoon-feeding you the best marketing news - just
in case you insist on doing the legwork yourself...)

You can do it with:
Google Alerts
Talkwalker Alerts

SEO Traﬃc
Marketing Takeaway

No matter how I look at it, if you really want to get
any search engine traffic now or in the future,
here are your options:
1. Follow SEO Traffic Guide for Non-SEOs
at Traffic Generation Café.
(no guarantees, but doable)

2. Become an SEO expert and REALLY learn
what it takes to stay on top of
your search engine rankings.
(unrealistic, considering you have a business to run)

3. Hire a REPUTABLE SEO company.
(not cheap, but might be worth it if it increases your
bottom line, right?)

4. Follow SEO Traffic Guide for Non-SEOs.
(no guarantees, but doable)


tgcafe.it/seo-guide-2014
Click on the link now

SEO Traffic Guide for non-SEOs: 2014 Edition

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