Kristi Hines - cognitiveSEO Author

We've been talking a lot about competitor analysis, link building, content strategy, and other various online marketing topics. But let's back up for a post and look at the foundation of any online marketing campaign, whether it is content, search, or social. Keyword research is absolutely essential - if you don't know what keywords to target, then you might be throwing money into marketing without getting the results you want. Here are some tips for keyword research that should help you find th [...]

Once you've completed your competitor research and found some Google friendly link building opportunities, your next job will be to contact website owners to request your links via guest blogging, inclusion in a piece of content, or addition to a resource page. The link request is probably one of the most crucial parts of link building. If done correctly, you will ultimately get your link. If not, then you will lose the opportunity. The following are some tips to make sure that you get the li [...]

We all know that Google's algorithmic changes have impacted the way we do link building. But we also know that in some industries, there are plenty of competitors who are using risky link building techniques to rank well for their targeted keywords. So while you are doing your competitor analysis, ask the following questions about various sites that competitors are using to see if they will be Panda / Penguin friendly opportunities. Photo Credit: Matti Mattila on Flickr How to Evaluate G [...]

Have you ever wanted to know what your competitor's overall link building strategy was without having to look link by link through their backlink profile? If so, then you're in luck. The inBound Link Analysis tool allows you to take a quick snapshot of one website's backlink profile along with a few competitors to see what kind of links have been obtained for each website. This is a great way to see what you need to do to catch up with competitors as well as give potential clients an overview of [...]

Once you have decided on the keywords you are targeting for your search engine marketing campaign, your next task will be to do a little competitor analysis. This is where you look at the top websites in your industry to see what they are doing to rank highly in search. In this post, we're going to look at defining your competitors in search and what you should look for to determine your next course of action. Who Are Your Competitors When working with a new client, they will supply a few piec [...]

Anchor text has always been a hot topic of discussion, but it's not more important than ever thanks to Google's algorithm changes that have affected link building. While most have known a natural link profile doesn't equal a majority of links with targeted keyword based anchor text, it hasn't stopped many SEO's from pursuing keyword anchor text heavily in their link building efforts for clients and many times, by the client's own request. What Might Be Considered Natural Anchor Text While ther [...]

There is a lot of talk about Google’s continued algorithm changes, particularly Google Panda and Google Penguin. Most of the talk seems focused on what not to do or what strategies to employ to avoid being affected by these algorithm changes, but there are still plenty of people who don’t quite get how or why they are losing their rankings or what to do about it if they are. Today, we would like to rundown the past, present, and future of how Panda and Penguin affect your website and your bu [...]