Working with 'Query deserves Freshness (QDF)'

The QDF algorithm isn't a new element for SEO strategists to observe and appeal to. As a keen blogger, I started to notice review blogs getting incredible rankings especially when writing about an event where the date/time was key to the content. Initially the results could be almost disproportionately positive; almost like Google local a few updates later the algorithm had been tweaked and traffic levels seemed more modest.

Writing non-commercial, objective online content forms part of a good long term SEO platform, no doubt about it. However so many companies ignore it and plough money into SEO agencies administering fairly average link building which will take you a fair way but the reality with this approach is a traffic plateau. By creating content that targets the QDF algorithm you make your link profile work in your favour in all sorts of terms - long tail and generic SERPS.

Targeting QDF in a way that gets you high converting traffic is the goal...and for obvious reasons it doesn't always work out that way. By categorising or tagging your articles you will make your content areas more sticky. By integrating products and services smoothly into these articles (amazon.com are the masters in this area) you can make massive conversion improvements. Contextual internal links within articles are both good for business generation and the search engines.

This is the note I want to conclude on. Think about the most likely terms relevant to your industry where you could target QDF and then provide content that is unique and useful. Provide a tangible conversion path for users that also enhances your internal linking structure. You will get results!

Is social media part of SEO?

If you are running your own SEO campaign and have limited time then you should prioritise on great content, site architecture/search engine accessiblity and great natural links. However the growing phenomenon that is social media is becoming increasingly linked with the Google algorithm.

So is it part of what will push you up the SERPs? The honest answer from any SEO has to be no as we can only look logically at potential contributing factors and make some educated guesses. Since the Vince update in 2009, big brands have hoovered up higher levels of 'their' traffic. It makes sense that Google could easily use a popular Twitter account or a Facebook business page as a positive brand indicator. So how much of a factor could it be?

It has been suggested that the recent Google places additions in the future could well have considerations for location base marketing tools such as Foursquare or Facebook. As good social media is good practice marketing and common for big brands I am convinced that it will be of increasing importance.

My advice with social media is to treat it in the same way as the initial Internet revolution. You claimed your company URL, you invested time into creating a platform that reflected your brand and generated as much content as your resource levels allowed you to. Therefore, claim what is yours! Whether you are a multiple location retailer or a business without social media platforms, register some accounts that have your brand terms and/or keyword terms. Create messages on whatever frequency you feel is possible and appropriate. Link them to your main website and generate traffic for free...it is all great practice.

Blog creation for SEO and traffic generation

Regular blogging is a great discipline to get into and indeed can be very enjoyable especially if you find your subject matter genuinely interesting. Most companies will build the blog into their main website which is the most common way to do it - it protects your brand and enhances the percentage of original content within your website (this is supposedly a Google algorithm factor).

However, it has been increasingly popular for SEO strategy to include blog creation. This in many cases involves cluttering up cyberspace with small blogs offering little user value and then generating a relevant but mediocre back link to your website.

So when writing this article I asked myself 'how could this be done better'? What is the best practice in digital marketing terms with external blog creation?

Getting the most out of your external blog - a basic guide

- Build steady, regular high quality blog content over time. Fortnightly, weekly or daily blogs are all fine - if you can try and make as many of them between 500-2000 words in length this should allow you to give blog readers a great insight into your area. Statistically it also maximises the chance of someone linking to your article.

- Don't make the blog an advertorial for your company - blogging in my view is social media activity so this shouldn't be too salesy. There is nothing wrong with a product reference, but try to make a rule that 2-3 out of 10 blogs will have that direct reference.

- Remember that this blog can only 'vote' for your site once...I would do this with one site wide link in the blogroll area meaning that each time you blog, you get a another relevant back link. Excessive linking to your main website isn't advisable - you don't want to the blog to look for users or search engines as a 'feeder site'. In Google's eyes, this will help build authority for the link to your site.

- Build links to your blog. By doing this you will raise it's prominence and put in long term foundations to both your blog and in doing so your main website.

- Syndicate links to your content via Facebook and Twitter. A no-brainer - let your fans know if you are generating genuine, quality content.