Did everyone see that update on your Facebook “Home” the other day? 100 million active users on Facebook, and no, this is not an Austin Powers reference. This social networking platform has consumed a population that is one-third the size of the United States. The more amazing part of this new fact is the “active users” part. This number does not include those fly by night posers that just sign up for an account and never return to that beautiful blue bar again. Now, what if we took a little liberty and substituted the word “users” with the word “viewers.” Suddenly we all see the dollar signs.



Think about the demographic that Facebook has captured. Traditional advertising has been fighting for this culture group for years. Want middle to upper class, 18-24 year olds? They’re on Facebook, and it makes sense when in fact the Facebook creator and world’s youngest billionaire, Mark Zuckerberg, is only 24 years old. You might say that he speaks their language.

So what does this have to do with us, Internet marketers? This is obviously a major platform for exposure to one of the most impressionable and profitable demographics online. Time magazine even discovered that Facebook is more popular than porn with college students. How is that even possible?

So how do you get the stage for this audience?

Facebook advertisment is certainly one way to approach it. These have proven to be some of the most successful ad campaigns in the history of social networking (which I suppose is not that long). Every user has a “Home” page that gives them news and updates about their various friends, updates on Facebook changes, as well as short little ads. The most successful of these ads are the ones that make announcements about new products or offer some kind of update for users. You will also find image and text ads on the right side of profile pages, specifically targeted for certain demographics. In fact, in the Facebook ad creation form, you can actually designate the age group you would like to reach, where they are from, and specific keywords that might be found in their profiles. This is truly amazing ad control.

Also, most online marketers have long realized the importance of viral participation in major social networking communities. This is an excellent way to get your brand in front of target markets without beating them over the head with advertisement language. Company Facebook profiles and groups can accumulate quite a following, especially if there is useful or interesting information being posted, videos being uploaded, or other incentives for users. Most Internet marketers have barely tapped the surface of creating a Facebook presence but have already realized results. Facebook can produce citations/references, brand awareness, community interaction, and yes, even links.

If your company is not involved on Facebook, I hope these numbers give you a kick in the pants to get started. Take it step by step. There is no need to be afraid. Start by signing up and creating a profile, NOW!


About the Author: Peter Hamilton is the Project Manager in charge of the Seattle office of ArteWorks SEO. His interest and experience in search engine marketing is largely focused on the social media optimization and multi-media facets of exposure. To learn more about search engine optimization, visit www.arteworks.biz.

I am sick and tired, tired and sick of potential clients asking me how many directories I will submit their site to. “But in this proposal, they said directory submissions are essential!” For most of us in the SEO world, this beast has been dead and buried for some time, but how do we get the word out that directory submissions are no longer the super highway to link building success? (as if they ever really were) I suggest that every SEO company include a blog post on this very subject. It would be great to be able to throw down 15 links to all the major agencies talking about the myth of directory submissions boosting your link juice.

So obviously this will serve as my post. When considering all of the wonderful things that actually create valuable link juice, it is easy to see that most directories have none of these things.

1. Content – It is the king, and directories often have very little of it. There might be a few 200 word blurbs, but as far as valuable or entertaining content creation on a regular basis, directories are extremely lacking.

2. Indexing (with verified sitemap) – Upon closer look, you might realize that many of the interior pages of directories are not even indexed in major search engines. In fact, you might be submitting to be included on a page that does not even exist to Google, Yahoo, or MSN. (might want to check on that)

3. Relevance – Are these directories really relevant to your industry? When your website is submitted to hundreds, if not thousands, of directories, how do you know the relevance of those directories? Any time you talk about doing a hundred or more things at one time I start to get a bit nervous.

4. Incoming Links – Who links to a directory? Seriously, most directories have very little link flow themselves, which is why their PageRank usually matches. So why does it make sense that a link from a directory with no PageRank is valuable link juice?

5. Outgoing Links – How many sites are these directories linking out to? Any PageRank that a directory might have attained is then immediately dispersed to the several hundred sites in their listings, giving a client’s website a very small piece of the pie.

Now with that said, there are a couple of directories that can be useful for referral traffic, such as Yahoo Directory and Business.com, and even beyond those, some niche directories have their place. However, these are not the type of directory submissions SEO companies are peddling. Clients can easily submit their websites to these directories themselves, and each should be individually considered. Even if an SEO company claims to manually submit to directories, you must again consider all of the factors listed above and seriously debate the value of submitting to any directories, especially if your goal is search engine optimization. I think you will find that 95% of the time the link juice just is not there.

About the Author: Peter Hamilton is the Project Manager in charge of the Seattle office of ArteWorks SEO. His interest and experience in Internet marketing is largely focused on the social media optimization and multi-media facets of exposure. To learn more about this search engine optimization company, visit www.arteworks.biz.