PageRank and Inbound Links

Thinking of PageRank as a popularity vote is a great way to understand how it works. If you read my post on "5 Easy to Follow Tips That Will Help Your Blog Rank Higher", I'm sure you noticed the number 1 item on that list was about incoming links to your site.

It's not just about any old incoming link though. You need good quality inbound links. Let's say you run xyz.com and you have a PageRank of 2. You published an article last year that featured homemade Halloween decorations you made. You're traffic went through the roof. Everyone was stopping by and visiting your blog, checking out your rockin' deco. This year, abc.com with a page rank of 8, features xyz.com in their article on homemade Halloween decorations. They provide a link back to your site. That, my friend is a quality inbound link and it's better to have 5 quality inbound links than 10 regular inbound links.

With that being said, any inbound link to your site will help. Just not as much as a quality one. Encouraging customers, bloggers, readers and subscribers to link to your site is a great idea. Here's a couple other ideas for link building:

Participate in Forums. Ask or answer questions on Yahoo! Answers and link back to your site with relevant resources. Link to a previous post you've done within your site when it's relevant. Link to your site in your email signature. Link to your site on social media platforms. Leave reviews on local businesses you've visited on sites like Yelp. Review related sites on Alexa to draw in related traffic streams. List your blog in blog directories. Email a couple friends when you have important relevant news asking them for their feedback and/or if they would mind referencing it if they find your information useful.

The possibilities are truly endless. Another thing to keep in mind is the way people are linking back to your site, including yourself.

If you are interlinking your posts, make sure you are using the proper link text. You want the link text leading to your article to be relevant to its content. The words "here" or "site" are not very detailed. The link text basically reinforces the main topic of that page. This is commonly known as Relevance Scoring. If you exchanged links with another Blogger, tell them how they should link back to your site. Many people are unaware that the link text is even important.

Four other things you should know about PageRank and Links:

1. Getting more sites to link to your site is a great way to Rank higher.

2. Links from pages that have a crap load of other links aren't that valuable.

3. If you link to another site it does not drain your PageRank. No matter what their rank is.

4. SEO is not only about Meta Tags because not all search engines use them as a way to determine page content and rank. Google and Yahoo use the full-page content PLUS page rank and link text to decide what keywords you page will score well for.

What ways do you build inbound links?

Looking Closely at Spring's Deadly Twisters

The carnage being dealt out in this deadly spring of 2011 is headed for the record books for death and destruction, possibly one of the worst on records.

The Numbers Say

Numbers from the National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) show there has been nearly 1,200 deadly twisters that have danced there way across the United States causing unprecedented damage and killing close to 500 men, women, and children. There have been 4 that have had winds in excess of 200 miles per hour rated EF-5 the highest tornado strength allocated.

Scientists have pointed to the fact there have been two climate factors that have been working against us since winter ended. A simple reason for all the deaths is that there are more people now living in the danger zones that twisters travel. Population shifts have moved south where a lot of this years deadly storms have traveled.

La Nina's Disappearance

Trade winds that have become cyclical in nature called La Nina cool the ancient waters of the Pacific Ocean.

Late in 2010 and early in 2011 when the US was under the influence of a very powerful La Nina it suddenly made an unexpected exit three months ago leaving weather scientists scratching their heads why this happened.

A claim made by a climatologist, one Bill Patzert, working in California for NASA's Jet Propulsion Lab states that if La Nina had remained strong and not disappeared he believes that there would not have been so many deadly twisters spawned.

What Is The Correlation?

How is it trade winds in the warm Pacific have a deadly effect in the central and southern US? We simply have to look at the jet stream, an upper level fence where dry, cool air comes in at the higher levels to meet moist, warm gulf stream air at the lower levels. These just happen to be two of the ingredients needed for severe deadly storms that spin out of control causing the death and destruction we have seen of late.

If La Nina had stayed around it would have pushed the jet stream to higher latitudes, up around the Canadian border, thus having a stabilizing effect on the US and the region. What we have now is a rogue jet stream that is undulating across the US slithering like a snake. Very uncommon for this time of year. Cool, dry Canadian air mixing with moist, warm southern gulf stream air is a deadly mix that has wreaked havoc so far this spring and caused unprecedented damage and loss of life. So far this year those two types of air have been to the extreme on both ends.

The Two Extremes

Climatologists stated because of the record snowfalls to the north the snow packs have made the Canadian air and the air in the Rockies especially cold. The especially strong La Nina has fueled the hot conditions we have seen in the southwest until recently.

Adding to the extremes is the increase in the Gulf of Mexico temperatures on the surface making it warmer than the overall average. Climatologists remind us that moist, warm air from the gulf is like oxygen to a fire, it is the perfect fuel to cause extremely severe thunderstorms that spawn the death and destruction we have seen.

Horrifying Results

When these two very extreme temperatures meet in the atmosphere, combined with windy conditions we have almost every spring, the warm air rises to meet the cold air causing turbulence to occur, and usually resulting in very powerful thunderstorms running on a front long and wide spawning little circles of death that sometimes reach a mile wide with winds reaching over 200 miles per hour.

These spinning tops, with winds in excess of 200 mph, destroy almost everything they come into contact with on the ground leaving the paths of destruction we have seen in Joplin, Mo. and Piedmont OK. recently. There have been 4 of these dancing devils that have been classified EF-5 this spring resulting with over 500 deaths and property damage into the billions. They are still finding bodies in Joplin as I write. In stark contrast to this number there were only three EF-5 designated tornadoes in the last 12 years according to the weather channel.

Conclusion

Everyone has agreed in the science of weather community that this spring has been one of the most deadly and violent on record. Not meaning to generalize, but it seems when we have long cold hard winters to the extreme with lots of snow pack we also have conditions in the spring that lend itself to the extreme causing much damage and loss of life. This is a reality that has gone on for a long time in North America and effects no other continent like it does here. With populations growing in the tornado alleys of the south and Midwest there will be even more death and destruction coming in the near future with more long hard winters being predicted. There is one thing for sure that is going on. Climate change is here and nothing man can do will change it.

A Grand Dad, His Grand-Kids and His iPad

I was blessed enough in the sixth decade of my life to have been able to purchase an iPad 2 when they first came out. I can honestly say that it has been an enjoyable journey that continues to this day. The learning curve wasn't so bad since I owned an iPhone about three or four years prior.

Granted the iPad can't do all the things I was doing on my desktop and laptop (I was a PC guy), but that wasn't a big problem. And my iPad just lets me be mobile in ways I couldn't with a laptop. Try telling your 2 year old grand kids to wait while your laptop turns-on or shuts-down, when they're ready to go.

Speaking of the grand kids, my 2 year old grand daughter has become quite a navigator on grandpa's iPad. It's great to see her little fingers sliding around the screen, she knows how to get to her games and childrens movies I loaded on it. But the really cool part is when she gets stuck on something, then looks at me and speaks in tot-oneese "papa hep". That's when my whole world stops for a moment. We can sit there side by side and look at the screen together and find a way to solve or learn or just have a good time scrolling the screen looking for something else to do.

Sure we play in the back yard with the cats and dog. Or I turn on the bubble machine and let them run through the bubbles. We have a rabbit we let out in the back yard and play hide and seek with. But when grand dad needs a break, the iPad comes out and most times it's all good.

Finding games/apps that will keep the kids content is not a problem. If you look hard and long in the App Store you will find appropriate entertainment for the kids in all of us. And boy are there a lot of apps that can be found in the AppStore. Lots of free apps teasers, these are the ones that are free to try, then to get to higher more difficult levels there's a small fee. It's not a bad thing since it gives you a chance to see if the kids or you like the free app before you spend money on it. There are iPad learning apps for children and learning game apps for all ages. My other grand daughter had trouble with the letters 'b' and 'd'. A couple sessions using an alphabet app and she got it down, the interactive, fun and easy way.

I just have to say it's been an awesome time playing with the iPad and the grand-kids. I know it's a great tool, but it's also a grand kid magnet, and that's a pretty good thing!

Selling Stuff On EBay - Tips And Suggestions On How To Start

One of the most important selling on eBay tips that you can use as a newcomer to auction sites is to get a feel for the system by buying something of your own. Participating in an auction or two is a great way to see how things work. This will also help you to develop an understanding of how people really feel when making these types of purchases, which is vital for keeping the clients that you do gain happy.

Determine what you will sell. This often sounds a lot easier than it really is. Some people simply offload their own unwanted goods and then run off to the thrift store or to yard sales to buy more. The people who make the most profits online actually take the time to find a specific area of the market to target. They become experts on the goods that they have to offer and they create knowledgeable and valuable online content to market them.

Learn your market and the best ways to approach new prospects. Once you know what you will be selling it will be important to get an understanding of the people that are most likely to buy it. Getting a good feel for your market is essential for creating effective headlines for your listings and setting feasible prices.

Find a trustworthy supplier that can help you get goods at a reasonable cost. In order to sell lots of stuff you need to be able to buy and stock a comprehensive inventory first. Wholesale companies are the preferred option among most eBay sellers because their prices are reasonable enough to allow for profitable mark-ups.

Make sure to get a sales tax number. This is definitely the first step towards becoming a legitimate online business. It also helps you to gain access to more wholesale companies. There are a lot of these businesses that will not deal with online sellers unless they have their tax numbers. You can usually contact a local branch of your state franchise tax board to learn more about this process.

Read through as much of the available information for buyers on eBay as you possibly can. There really is a lot to learn about using this online auction site to make major profits. Although several truly good selling on eBay tips can help you to generate a substantial amount of profits, the more time that you spend researching this platform and the best ways for using it as a seller, the more optimal your sales will be.

Top 5 Ways of Monetize Your Forum

In the present age of technology, the internet has emerged as one of the best friends of man. Internet friendly people are glued to the computer screen. Many of them are own different online forums and spend a good amount of their time there. Hence, it is going to be extremely helpful if there are ways to monetize forums. This can help them make money from their pastime, thus making the leisure profitable. Besides, running a forum also costs some money. Hence, it is always great if you can earn a few bucks from the forum itself. However, some specific ways need to be followed for monetizing forums. This article discusses some of the ways to monetize forums and ensure that you earn from your pastime activities.

Sell Spots for Advertisements

One of the best and easiest ways of monetizing your forum is by attracting advertisements. You can sell spaces of your website at some specific rate to the interested advertisers. You may directly approach the potential advertisers with your proposals.

Place Advertisements at the Best Place

Ensure that the advertisements in your websites are placed in the places that catch attention easily. This will help to increase the clicks on them and, in turn, generate revenues for you. Besides, if they get a place on the page that will be profitable for them, the advertisers will themselves be interested to invest in your page. Proper placement of advertisements is one of the most important steps needed to monetize forums.

Provide High-quality Content

The advertisements provided by Google on your website depend on the quality of the content provided in the page. Hence, you need to maintain content of excellent quality to get the best advertisements on your website.

Know Who Your Target Audiences Are

Most of the websites usually have a specific type of target audience. It is important to know who your target audience is. In that case, you can attract only those advertisements that are going to interest the visitors to your website. This will result in increased number of clicks and thus, help you maximize revenues.

Provide Paid Membership Options

If you are sure to interest a good number of people with your website, you can make registration in it a paid one. Thus, when people will want to browse your forum or participate in discussions in it, they can pay you and do so.

You can follow these steps to monetize your forums and ensure that you make even your leisure profitable.

Video Content Marketing: Sharing the Value of a Video

It shouldn't come a surprise that video content marketing has drastically increased in popularity of late. As we all know, our society in general has a remarkably short attention span. This is undoubtedly the result of our modern fast-pace culture created by the internet driven information era. The addition of video to your website or blog content can drastically improve you relevance in both the eyes of Google and your target audience. Visitors to your blog or website are far more likely to stay longer if your written content I paired with a relevant and informative video.

Video Content Marketing: Syndicating Videos

One of the easiest video content marketing strategies is syndication. As I mentioned before, including a video in your blog posts can help immensely. Not only are viewers far more likely to stay on your page for an extended period of time, but they are also more likely to comprehend your message.

As a video content marketing strategy, you should initially post your video on a popular hosting website like YouTube. Videos posted on YouTube are ridiculously easy to embed into your blog post. In the world of internet marketing, social sharing is incredibly valuable. Generating a social buzz around some content you produced is essentially free marketing. By creating a video relative to your written content, you are far more likely to have your information shared with additional parties.

Video Content Marketing for SEO Purposes

SEO, or search engine optimization, is specific way to present your content to gain attention from popular search engines; most notably Google. As you may already know, there are both on-page and off-page SEO strategies. While the on-page process consists f creating content around a targeted keyword, off-page SEO is rather different.

The majority of off-page SEO consists of creating backlinks. When evaluating the relevance of your site to a search query, Google considers both the number and quality of backlinks your website has. Because of video's increasing online importance and YouTube's global popularity, backlinks from this social media giant are considered highly valuable. In other words, by simply pairing each of your blog posts with a video posted initially on YouTube, you can gain an additional high PR backlink for each article written.

Video Content Marketing: Additional Social Media Platforms

Video is considered to be a very sharable form of content. It is simply much easier to get someone to watch a video than read an article. Because videos have viral tenancies, establishing an online presence within various social media platforms can be incredible for video marketing. In case you do not already now, Facebook and Twitter are two of the most trafficked websites online.

After building a decent online following and joining niche-relevant groups/fan-pages, you will have an audience to share your videos with. All major social media platforms provide video viewers with the option to share the content with those in their social circle. Because of this, video content marketing on social media websites can increase your traffic exponentially.