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Why Won’t My Web Page Rank High In Google? –
For anyone working online in the organic market (the “make money online FREE” market), it is imperative that you understand back links and utilize an effective and an efficient back linking strategy. I can’t tell you how many emails and forums posts I read with questions about this. Bottom line is – if you are going to make web pages on the internet, you MUST understand links and how they work… and most importantly, what they mean to Google.
Back Links and Google
Here is a VERY common scenario, whether it is a forum post, an email to me, or anywhere within the internet marketing arena…
“I made a great Squidoo lens. It’s really good looking….reads nice, too. I spent a LOT of time making it, but it still won’t rank in Google!!! What did I do wrong on my web page??”
Did you know that getting a web page to rank well in Google takes about 20% effort ON that page and 80% effort OFF that page? Yes, you have to get OFF your web page or lens to do things to help your lens rank highly.
So, let’s back up for a minute, ok?
Let’s all STOP being internet marketers for a moment.
You are now a restaurant owner
POOF! I just waved my magic wand and made you the proud owner of a brank new Italian restaurant ( for the record, I am using an Italian restaurant here because I am hungry and I am SO in the mood for spaghetti and meatballs! Yum!!! ==>>>>)
So, you have your business plan, you hired a contractor to build you the BEST Italian Restaurant EVER. It is a FABULOUS eatery with all kinds of whistles and bells…. great service…the whole she-bang.
You open the doors on your Grand Opening day and…
No one shows up. Yup, total ghost town with tumbleweeds blowing by and all…
Well what the heck happened? You spent all this time making the best restaurant EVER…and no one comes to eat? How can that be?
Even in the “real world” you have to get OUT of your place of business and go TO the customers….or else they don’t ever know about it. For our example restaurant, we’d probably put something in the paper, advertise in other local publications, call our friends, put flyers on cars, and maybe even doing a neighborhood mailing, too. You have to get out there and TELL people about your business or else they will never know it is the best Italian Restaurant EVER – and then tell OTHERS about you.
Now, if you can follow along with my weird way of thinking here…. each ad you placed, every phone call you made, every flyer you put out and each postcard you mailed is like a LINK to your restaurant. It enabled people to know about you…to FIND you…. and,best yet, to be able to tell OTHERS about you.
I can’t tell you how many SEO clients I have talked with that have spent 10’s of thousands of dollars for someone to build them a FANTASTIC website…..and it’s gets absolutely NO traffic. These clients think their web developer ripped them off or something when nothing is further from the truth.
Just like you would hire a contractor to build your restaurant, you hire a web designer to build your website. Neither the contractor nor the web designer is in charge of getting customers for you, right? Right.
Ok, Now.. Let’s Talk About Google
If you’ve ever read the history of Google (and you SHOULD read this), you will learn some things about the original intention of the (now-called) Google algorithm and it’s patented Page Rank formula. I want to point out one very important little snippet from that history:
“Convinced that the pages with the most links to them from other highly relevant Web pages must be the most relevant pages associated with the search, Page and Brin tested their thesis as part of their studies, and laid the foundation for their search engine”
Google is a very fancy, and very complicated, popularity contest.
So, answering why your lens or web page isn’t ranking well in a very simple way…
You don’t rank well because you’re page isn’t popular enough in the eyes of Google.
Ranking Well in Google
If you want your lens or web page or article to rank well in Google, you gotta get some back links. Here is a simple rule:
1. Think of the keyword phrase you want your lens or page to rank for in Google.
2. Build links TO your lens or page with those words as the anchor text (the words someone clicks to get TO your lens or page).
If we take away everything complicated, it IS as simple as that. Build a page, put 20% of your effort into that page. Get OFF your page and go get some back links.
How Many Back Links?
Naturally, the next question is… “How many backlinks do I need?” Sorry, but there is no ONE answer for that question. Every single individual search query has a different answer. As I talked about in Keyword Research – How I Do It, when doing my keyword research I find out who my real competition is. Then, like I showed about in Did Google Drop Your Lens?, I let you see how I figure out how many back links I will need to rank well for a specific search query (keyword phrase).
I do it like this:
1. Keyword research
2. How Many Links Do I Need?
3. Make Lens
4. Get Links
5. Move on to next project
Yes, it is that “simple” if you don’t over-complicate it….and if you’re patient. Very little happens over-night in Google-land. Set your pages up and let them “simmer” while you work on something else. I can 100% pinky promise you that staring at a lens, staring at Google, or cleaning up your lens over and over will NOT work to make anything happen faster.
I Uncovered The Bigger Problem
Thing is, I say how “simple” this is… and tell you to “go get back links” and many, many of you are still lost. The basic fundamental understanding of backlinks is missing. This is absolutely necessary knowledge to cut it in internet marketing – you must understand back links – all the types of them. You must understand WHY you are doing them and how to do them properly.
Terms like:
1 way links
2 way links
3 way links
Natural Links
Web Directory Links
Link Exchanges
Social Bookmarking Links
Article Directory Links
Blog Network Links
Buying Links
Press Release Links
Link Bait, and
Linking Services
should ALL be part of your vocabulary – and you need to know which are good links… and which are BAD links to have. You also need to really understand anchor text and deep links and internal links. I can’t even put words on how important it is that you have this education.
It will carry you a LONG way and make ranking in Google so much more understandable….and easier.
Best Way To Learn About Back Links
I went on a hunt to find the absolute best resource for learning this very important information so I can be assured that all my readers have access to it. Nope, I can’t make you read it…and I can’t make you learn it, either…haha!
BUT, if you email or contact me asking:
a. Why won’t my lens/web page rank in Google? , or
b. How many back links do I need?
I will simply refer you to this post =) So, if you got this post as a response from me, know two things – one, this is the answer to your question, and two – the solution is right here. Up to you what you do with it.
I found the best link information I could get my hands on – something that takes you from basic understanding all the way through how to do it properly, and you can get it right here in this link building report.
This is knowledge you must have. I can’t make it anymore clear than that 🙂
No matter WHAT kind of web pages you are putting online – whether it’s Squidoo lenses, blog post, articles, or your own websites, you need to know this in order to succeed with Google. And, considering Google has what, 85% or so of the online search market, you need Google.
If you’re doing all this as more than a hobby, get the education you need. I PROMISE you that it will make a world of difference!
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This will definitely help clarify most of my link building questions.
Thanks!
It’s a really good report on link building. This report, and Your One Week Marketing strategies will take a newbie in SEO to page one rankings.
Your OWM customers should start thinking outside the “squidoo”-box, since OWM works on any webproperty.
And:
– Promote the promotors
– Anything with an RSS-feed can be pinged, PING IT!
Yes, Patrik… you are 100% correct! So wonderful to hear someone say that =)
Thanks all for reading!
Jennifer
~PotPieGirl
It isn’t just backlinks, it is getting keyword anchored backlinks that really moves a site up the rankings.
The more the better but you also want to vary them so that you get lots of crossover juice from google.
Fantasticly written! It IS that easy…gotta love that. 😉
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Jennifer, you are reading my mind. I have been working on getting backlinks to some of my lenses and in some cases, I think I have been hurting my rankings. I was just thinking that I really have to learn more about what Google wants for links. Then you posted this. Thanks!
nice article and good comments too
hi potpie girl. you have a really nice site. thanks for the posts/ they are really informative.
Hey Jennifer,
I was just wondering if you have a certain link strategy percentage in mind as you lay out your linking plan.
For example, do you strive to have 30% from Article directories, 20% from articles from other blogs, 5% paid links, etc.?
Lastly, is there a tool that you use to keep up with all of your links?
Thanks.
Hi jenn,
I do social bookmarking and it really helps alot in getting back links. I’ve also tried creating squidoo lenses for my site thanks to you :)..You provided substantial information regarding link building.
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I am going to read the link building report it looks like it will help me out, thanks.
A useful article -and- a great way to quickly answer questions you’re sick of. Nice way to kill two birds with one stone PotPieGirl 🙂
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I bought the e-book from Josh. I have other products from him that I really like. This is not my favorite. He has a lot of great knowledge but he did not give out his step by step in this book. I would rate it a do not buy.
Rick
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Thanks for the great info on back link building! This is the area I am working on now for my new blog.
I will purchase the ebook you recommend!
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Thanks for another great lesson – I love your site. Keep up the good work!
The Italian restaurant example, a classic case of if you build it they (won’t) come.
I come across a number of people that make the mistake that once they set there business/site up that’s the job done.
The job hasn’t even started…
Jennifer,
One thing that you didn’t talk about in this post are the unhelpful (sometimes hurtful) ways in which over enthusiastic back-linking can actually hurt your site (google blacklisting). I’ve never in fact experienced this, but I’ve read plenty of horror stories of this happening to others.
In your experience is this fear justified? Or is it an over-exaggeration of the short-term effects of some backlinking strategies?
Thanks for all of your efforts!
Christian
Have you received my emails (plural) regarding OWM?
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Thank you so much for a really informative post, this has helped me hugely as I do link development and it always great to hear other views and things on this, I have booked marked this page for further reference.
Thanks for the help, PotPieGirl.
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Great info for increasing your rankings in Google. Keep the great posts coming.
Eric Transues last blog post..Why Did My Site Disappear from Google?
If it’s so important why wasn’t backlinking an emphasized and well explained step in ur owm book that I bloody paid for.
This is great. As I’ve been learning and reading more about getting traffic to my site I’ve realized that most people seem to overcomplicate it. There is a lot of different types of links and ways to get them, but I think your advice is great. Keep it simple and just do it. 🙂
(I just found your site, btw, and think it is such a great resource!)
awesome loved your this post (bookmarked for further reading)
Precautions-While Making Backlinks
” If it’s so important why wasn’t backlinking an emphasized and well explained step in ur owm book that I bloody paid for.” haha definitley english “bloody hell”
Great suggestions and examples, especially for a newbie like myself who lacks a natural sense of web design.