Could you briefly explain the PageRank algorithm?

PageRank Algorithm is a sequence of instructions which different Search Engines use for the calculation of the search result i.e. SERP which comes after every search we made for a specific keyword. No one knows exactly about that Algorithm but we know how it works and how it gives ranking for a site. For Google Search Engine as you know is the number one SE these days and it gives priority to different factor like Keyword Strength, Domain strength, Inbound link Score, user data, content quality score, manual boost etc.

Keyword Factors:

• Keyword in title tag
• Keyword in header tagsKeyword in document text
• Keyword in internal links pointing to the page
• Keyword in domain and/or URL
  

Domain Strength

• Registration history
• Domain age
• Strength of links pointing to the domain
• Topical neighborhood of domain based on inlinks & outlinks
• Historical use & links pattern to domain
• Inbound Link Score
  

Age of links

• Quality of domains sending links
• Quality of pages sending links
• Anchor text of links
• Link quantity/weight metric (Pagerank or a variation)
• Subject matter of linking pages/sites
  

User Data

• Historical CTR to page in SERPs
• Time users spend on page
• Search requests for URL/domain
• Historical visits/use of URL/domain by users GG can monitor (toolbar, wifi, analytics, etc.)

Content Quality Score

• Potentially given by hand for popular queries/pages
• Provided by Google raters (remember Henk?)
• Machine-algos for rating text quality/readability/etc

Will you use an ordinary html sitemap with Google?

Question: Will you use an ordinary html sitemap with Google?

Answers:
a) Any sitemap is OK to use it with Google.
b) No, I will not because it is duplicate content.
c) I'd rather use the special XML format that Google uses for sitemaps.

Right Answer is c
Explanation: c. is correct because Google has a special format for sitemaps, rather than the ordinary html format. For some of the other search engines a. would have been also correct but not with Google. b. is completely wrong - sitemaps are not duplicate content because they provide only links to pages, not the pages themselves.

How important are metatags today?

Question: How important are metatags today?

Answers:
a) Not important at all.
b) They have only minor importance, but it can be neglected.
c) Somehow important.
d) Very important, almost as much as keyword density.
e) They are the single most important SEO tool.

Right Answer is c
Explanation: The correct answer is c. Metatags are certainly not as important as keyword density but they still cannot be neglected completely.

When a site does not have substantial traffic from Google, what does this mean? Check all that apply.

Question: When a site does not have substantial traffic from Google, what does this mean? Check all that apply.

Answers:
a) The site is excluded from Google's index.
b) Google is down.
c) Searchers are not interested in your site.
d) Google is making changes to its index and you might have left the top of the SERP.

Right Answer is d/e

Explanation: a. and b. are wrong. a. is wrong because the fact that you don't have traffic from Google does not necessarily mean you are banned. b. if Google were down, which is probable in theory but has never happened (or at least for a very long period) until now so it, there would be no traffic at all from Google to your site (but if you don't have any traffic from Google, there are other more probable reasons for this, so when you don't have traffic from Google, don't think that the reason is that plain). c. is the most probable reason because if you users don't click on your listing in Google, then you will not have traffic from Google and very often the reason for c. is not an error on your site, but changes in Google's index.

When do you apply for reinclusion in a search engine's index?

Question: When do you apply for reinclusion in a search engine's index?

Answers:
a) When you have made changes to your site.
b) When you have changed your hosting provider and the IP address of your site.
c) After you have been banned from the search engine for black hat practices and you have corrected your wrongdoings.
e) When you are not happy with your current ratings.

Right Answer is c
Explanation: Correct is c. In all other cases, submitting a reinclusion request is either unnecessary (as in a. and b.), or even harmful (as in d.) because it can be regarded as spam. On the other hand, if you have been banned for black hat practices, it makes no sense to submit the site for reinclusion, if you have not corrected what was wrong. More about reinclusion can be found in the Reinclusion in Google article.

What are the advantages of submitting sites to search directories? Check all that apply.

Question: What are the advantages of submitting sites to search directories? Check all that apply.

Answers:
a) Submitting to search directories increases your rating with search engines.
b) By submitting to a search directory, you get a backlink to your site.
c) By submitting to a search directory your site gets certified.
d) When your site is listed in search directories, this increases the chances that search engines will index it sooner, compared to when it is not listed.
e) Submitting to search directories is a good Web marketing initiative.

Right Answer is b/e
Explanation: Correct are b., d. and e. because submitting a site to search engines is a good Web marketing initiative that increases the chances of having your site index and when your site is listed in a search directory, you list its URL as well, so you actually get a valuable link. a. and c. are wrong because the sole fact of submitting your site to search directories neither gets you a higher ranking, nor gets your site certified.

What is necessary to do for optimizing Flash sites? Check all that apply.

Question: What is necessary to do for optimizing Flash sites? Check all that apply.

Answers:
a) Put the most important items in a Flash presentation on the home page
b) Add descriptive metatada to the Flash presentation.
c) Provide alternative pages that describe the contents of the Flash presentation.
d) Have a good keyword density in the Flash presentation.

Right Answer is b/c
Explanation: The correct answers are b. and c. Although metatada might not be as important as a couple of years ago, skipping it for Flash sites is not recommended. Alternative html pages must be provided not only because they are text that can be indexed by search engines, but also because there are users who might not be willing to see the Flash movie. a. is the ultimate SEO killer, so this is something that must be avoided always, when possible. d. is also wrong because no matter what the keyword density in a Flash presentation is, since it is not accessible to search engines, it is irrelevant.

From a SEO point of view, which is better - one big site or several smaller? Why? Check all true answers.

Question: From a SEO point of view, which is better - one big site or several smaller? Why? Check all true answers.

Answers:
a) If you have enough content in the same niche it is better to have it in one big site because first, this way the site is easier to maintain and the great number of pages is good for ranking high in search results.
b) One big site is better because search engines favor big and established sites more than smaller startups.
c) When you have many small sites, each dedicated to a different topic, you can link them heavily and this will boost your ratings.
d) Many small sites allow to focus on specific niches, therefore compete for different keywords.
e) When you have many small sites with a similar theme, you can exchange a couple of links between them.

Right Answer is A /d

Explanation: b., and c. are wrong. b. is wrong, because although the Age of Domain matters, search engines do not favor older and established sites with no recently updated content. c. is wrong because linking them heavily might lead to trouble, rather than boosting the search results. And when the sites have different themes, the value of backlinks is not that high. e. is correct because when the sites have a similar theme and you don't link them heavily, this is good for SEO. a. is true, when the content is in the same niche. When the sites are not in the same niche (d.), it is better to have the content separated and have a different domain (preferably with the keywords in it) for different niches.

A webmaster of a site, similar to yours, has offered you to sell you links from their site to yours. Will you accept the offer? Check all th

Question: A webmaster of a site, similar to yours, has offered you to sell you links from their site to yours. Will you accept the offer? Check all that apply.

Answers:
a) Yes, if they are cheap, I will buy them in bulk.
b) No, thanks, I am not buying - I already have 100 inbound links from other sites and this is enough.
c) I will check if the site is a link a farm and if it is, I will not buy. If it isn't, we can start negotiating.
d) What?! To pay money to a competitor?!
e) No, thanks. Why pay for links, when I can get them as a barter?

Right Answer is C
Explanation: c. is correct. The offer looks a bargain but you need to check if the site does not have a bad reputation. The other answers are wrong because buying in bulk will not help you to get high rankings, if the links are not quality ones – i.e. the anchor text is irrelevant. b. is wrong because 100 quality links are not that much. d. shows a major misunderstanding of SEO principles. The site can be similar to yours but it is not a competitor in the sense of competition in offline terms and a quality link from there could do miracles for your ranking. e. is also wrong because if you have many exchanged links, this is also not a help for higher rankings but could be considered as cheating.

What is “page swapping”? .

Question: What is “page swapping”?

Answers:
a)An ethical SEO practice, which allows sites to serve content, tailored to the need of users in particular regions.
b)A blackhat SEO practice for getting ranked for one page and then replacing it out for another.
c) This is another name for a “site redirect”.
d) The process of replacing duplicate content.

Right Answer is B
Explanation: B. is correct. There is no particular term for a., c. and d. and they are just wrong.

Which of these keywords will you optimize a pets site for?

Question: Which of these keywords will you optimize a pets site for? The site provides information about different breeds and also fundamental facts about breeding pets at home. It does neither sell pets, nor is interested in wild animals. The main audience are adults. If we have decided that pets and breeds are the most important keywords, is it necessary to optimize the site for “breed”, “pet ” and “breeding pets” as well?

Answers:
a) Yes, because despite the fact that we have already optimized the site for “pets” and “breeds”, these three words - “breed”, “pet ” and “breeding pets” are different, so we'll optimize for the three of them as well.
b) Not necessary to bother. Search engines use word stemming algorithms, so having the site optimized for “pets” and “breeds” is enough.
c) We'll optimize only for “pet”.
d) We'll optimize only for “breed”.
e) We'll optimize only for “breeding pets”.

Right Answer is E

Explanation: E. is the correct answer because “breeding pets” has a very special meaning in the case of a pet site that focuses on breeds and breeding. “Breeding pets” can be regarded as a keyword phrase that can't be skipped. Sure, there are other important phrases as well, like “pets breeds” but out of the three - “breed”, “pet” and “breeding pets” - “breeding pets” is the most important. a., d. and e. are wrong because search engines really use word stemming algorithms, so actually it is enough to optimize for “pets” and “breeds” only and this covers “pet” and “breed” as well. b. is wrong because it is not absolutely certain that word stemming algorithms go that far and we can't afford to skip a keyword of vital importance.

ASP .Net Development Vs Java Development

The debate whether .NET Development is better or Java Development is better continues unabated with fans of each technology pronouncing the decline of each other.
Java being the predecessor of all other programming languages is open source and on top of that is platform independent. Being platform independent has made it the preferred choice of amateurs and professionals alike. Being open source, Java API’s can easily be accessed by developers unlike .NET which is proprietary software and whose API’s are not accessible. Java, being open source, users do not have to grapple with hefty license fees each year, something which is mandatory in case of proprietary software.

Java being a very old technological platform is being taught in universities for a number of years. Therefore, there is an abundance of talent when it comes to developing applications in Java. There is however a significant shortage of developers who are acquainted with the .Net platform in the developed world. You would need to offshore your application development work to a low cost location like India where you would find a significantly higher number of developers acquainted with .NET technologies.

Some developers are of the opinion that ASP. NET is just an improved version of JAVA and has been developed by overcoming the short- comings of Java. Supporters of .NET technologies claim that java is a language while .Net is language independent. Opting for .Net does not bind you to a single language as .Net supports multiple languages. It even supports Java as J# is very close to Java.

Another major advantage of using .Net is the ease with which it allows the exchange of data between various software applications. This occurs because the dot net platform allows different programs to exchange data via a common set of exchange formats, to read and write the same file formats and to use the same protocols. Such features make ASP.NET the preferred programming language for developing database driven websites and applications. .Net proves to be useful when applications stored on remote systems have to communicate with each other through standard internet protocols like XML, SOAP.

In my opinion, you should always develop applications on such a platform which does not get obsolete in the next five or even ten years. In simple words, you should avoid the upgrade treadmill offered by proprietary software’s who ask you to upgrade every few years.

What is the midrange cost of SEO?

Choosing a top level SEO company will be a costly procedure for you. I have seen companies touting claims of top positions on Internet for only $99. This is the Wal-Mart mentality at work. They are simply going to take your site, add it to some automated service, and you will be left holding the bag. True search engine optimization by qualified masters of marketing will cost money. There is no doubt that I am not going to conduct a legitimate seo campaign out of the goodness of my heart. My SEO ratings on Google speak for themselves. When you hire me for search engine optimization and top rankings, you will be hiring the best, therefore, you will pay. You will receive my knowledge and expertise in literally every are that I pursue. I have spent years in the process of learning seo and work incredibly hard to provide needed assistance in marketing effectively on the Internet.

Most home business owners will not see instant results when hiring a qualified SEO firm. It is safe that say that the overall success of any website can and will take upwards of six months to one year to gain solid ground. There are no quick fixes on the Internet. The whole process is based on consistency, effort, writing original copy, building backlinks and several other elements that need be laid into place for maximum effort..

Search engine optimization techniques are in a constant state of flux. What works today, may not work tomorrow, but will work the next day. It is all about testing, innovating and trying new techniques that are effective. There is one solid rule of thumb to follow on Google. That is the fact that content is the king. When you accomplish writing the best original content, with the best elements of website construction laid solidly into place, then your efforts will see marked notoriety and presence. Google is all about good information. When you place good information, benefits and solutions firmly where there is traffic, then you have a very good chance of seeing responses to your business.

Will I make sales if I hire an SEO company to take over my online promoting?

No credible SEO firm operating on Google today will make that sort of claim. It is a known fact that even if top positions are obtained, there is no way to predict whether the site visitor will choose to contact, or buy, your product or service. SEO is all about getting qualified visitors to your site. From there, the ball is in their court. If you have a stable product, a good business plan, a reliable company and a known state of effectiveness, then you might stand a good chance of making sales. Conversely, if your product or service is vague, not needed and simply represented to be the latest and greatest widget on the planet, then you may not make sales, even with a top position on Google.

Is my affiliate site promotable on Google?

I would say that I have never seen an affiliate website that contains even the most basic elements needed for a top position on Google. I have seen businesses that cost upwards of $4000 that had the absolute worst affiliate sites that I have ever seen. They had no title, no metatag descriptions, no keywords, and bad ad content. I would suppose that buyer beware comes into full play when thinking about joining an online business?

What sort of traffic can I expect by hiring an seo firm?

Traffic is not the issue involved in pure seo. You want visitors who are viewing your information with interest. I care not how many people surf to the site, I am only concerned with visitors that are searching for your particular niche. This is where sales will be made. I am sure that you have seen the emails that claim one million visitors to your site for only $39.95. This is nothing more than these people submitting your sites to some FFA pages automatically. People are not looking at these links. This is just another way that people remove money from your pocket, while you think that you are really accomplishing something great for a really low price. Anyone that advertises top rankings on Google within 72 hours, needs to be totally disregarded by you.

How long does it take to get a top position on Google?

This is a question that cannot be answered. Typically, a new website domain will need to go through a testing phase on the Internet, before any position is obtained at all. This is called the Google Sandbox. It is simply a way to test the url to see if it is going to contain good information, or conversely, harmful material. This testing phase can take several months. You see, a domain needs to age before it is truly effective. Older domains that have been in circulation are much more effective than just purchased ones.

What is a backlink?

A backlink is simply another live link on the Internet that directs back to the site that is being promoted. The ultimate goal of an seo campaign is to create many backlinks, therefore causing an increase in notoriety and presence for the site. Backlink production takes time and a hands on approach to accomplish correctly. These backlinks should be produced by writing press releases, ezine articles, blog posting and forum posting. Any seo company that uses some automated software secret program is not the real deal.

What makes a good marketing website?

This question is simple and complex in nature. A good marketing site contains the necessary elements that the search engine spiders look for when they place information on top positions. The basic elements that need to be reckoned with are:

a. Title

b. Metatag Description

c. Keywords

d. Ad Content

When you arrange these simple elements correctly, then, and only then, are you ready to begin the quest for a top position. Any qualified seo firm should be totally aware of these elements, and if they are not, you should take your business elsewhere. I have dealt with some of the top webdesigners in the country, and undoubtedly, most of them do not even consider these critical elements. They are more concerned with the look and feel of the site, and not with the essential ingredients found within that site.

What kind of strategies do you mainly implement for backlinks? What do you think about link buying, link bait, and other specific back link strategies

For back link I do directory submission, article submission, link building, and classified adds. These are all methods which I prefer for back link. I start usually for a new site with free directory submission because at that time no body wish to exchange links with that site so when it becomes older n older then its ranking also increases and people also wanted to exchange links with that site so it becomes easier at that stage.
Article submission is the best way to get back links and its very useful too, I have heard lots of SEO Expert saying that Search engines gives more wait age to this type of back links.
Link building is the another method through which we get backlinks there are three ways to do that first one is one way link building there is so many methods to obtain one way link like article submission, classified adds, press releases, forum submissions, free directory submissions, blogging and yahoo answers these all methods are very helpful. Search Engines gives more waitage to oneway back.
Another method is Two way Or Reciprocal link building when we exchange links with the similar theme web pages then it is called two way link building. Another method is three way link building in this method we get back links from a site but we gives link to that site on another site this is called three way link building.

Link Buying is the paid methods to obtain back links for a site as you know there are so many sites and directory which give paid back links.

Link baiting is to create something that naturally attract back links for your webpage by getting people to talk about it, discussing it on forums, blogging about it, posting it on Social bookmarking sites like del.icio.us, stumble upon, Digg etc and linking to it from their sites. It also attracts a lot of visitors.

Here is a list of ideas:

* Make a valuable resource (lists, special reports, history of, how to, etc.)
* Interview (e-mail/phone) prominent people and publish it.
* Build a useful tool
* Write an interesting article
* Run a newsworthy ‘event’ such as a contest
* Test something new that has not been done before
* Be the first in doing something on the internet
* Write something controversial
* Be the first to write the latest news in your niche
* Be the first to expose a scammer
* Disagree with an authority
* Write some funny humor
* Make an interesting picture
* Be the first to research and document something
* Make a theme, plugin or piece of software
* Make a tool that others can put on their sites but that links to you
* Make a joke about a known person
* Make a resource that is just in time for a major event
* Write an outrageous theory and back it up with logics
* Write useful comments on something that is happening
* Give something valuable for free
* Coin a new acronym in your niche and get people to talk about it
* Become an expert in your niche and write valuable information

What is the Importance of Blog in terms of SEO? Or why we use Blog for the web promotion of a site, when we have already a site?

As you know Blog are search engine friendly and we can update our blog regularly. Also we can post whatever we wish to post on a blog and in return people can gives there comments on those topics. In this manner we can interact with our blog readers too. We can promote a blog by submitting that blog to various directories which are given below and in this manner we can promote our site through blog by placing our site link on that blog which interms will immprove our ranking on the search engine, as you know in this way we will have an backlink too. SO blog is realy very important thing for the web promotion of a site.

What are the most important elements of SEO?

The Most Important Elements of SEO are Keywords Analysis, Competitors Analysis, Content Quality, Back Links Strategy, and Web Analytics Study.

Keyword Analysis: - This is the starting point and the most important part of Search Engine Optimization. We evaluate carefully the market and competing websites and then we proceed to pick those keywords which are relevant to a particular site after that we make a list of keywords and we use two or three-word phrases instead of single words, pairing general keywords with more specific ones. Some time we Use a combination of distantly related keywords, misspelled related terms, service region specific keywords and long variations of the keywords for the web promotion of a site.

Competitors Analysis: - I think competitor analysis is very important and I always prefer to see first industry and competitor for a new site which I will have to optimize. Because it gives an idea how much time it will take to optimize a site and which keyword should be targeted, its first step to analyze.

Content Quality: - “Content Is King” it’s really important to have a very unique and informative content on a site. Content should be Keyword Rich and Search Engine friendly on a site which improves its ranking.

Back Link Strategy: - I think its another factor which is also very important for the web promotion of a site as you know Search Engines gives more wait age to those sites which have more back links but that also depends upon the quality of those back links.

Web Analytics Studies: In this study we track sites and analyze visitor information, Conversion rate, bounce rate, how visitor got to the site and where from visitors are coming i.e from which geographical location. This help in web promotions of a site.