I was certainly expecting this anticipated update to fly in like an eagle owl, late at night, with a highly tuned sense of its prey and clean up, leaving a trail of screaming keyword-rich domains and web 2.0 dressed linking farms counting the cost of depleting referring traffic revenues. As should have been expected, Google turns cool on it head and delivers us the Penguin.

The implications will be felt across all sectors but those high-value, resellable terms like “Loans” are as to be expected the first to be hit.

Here are two examples of this, as seen late in April, for Unsecured Loans and Bridging Finance – alerted to us by our Intelligence Platform

If we take a closer look at the Unsecured Loans chart we can see two clear examples of winners and losers, using our content diagnostics and performance tool we can look closer at the affected pages.

Penguin Losers

www.fastunsecuredloans.org.uk and www.circleloans.co.uk

Penguin Winners

www.totallymoney.com and www.uswitch.com

If we take a look at the return page SEO diagnostics it is clear to see that the sites with low authority and poor on-page optimisation scores have fallen. Those sites with higher PageRank (a good sign of stronger link quality) and with stronger page theming benefit from improved conversion positions.

So what is the lesson?

It’s too early to tell the long term implications (the positions may revert) but so far this could be the long awaited triumph for substance over spam. But like most things on the internet I hope this does not come at the cost of the emerging pretender looking to build authority and in turn position.

blinkbox

SEO has become extremely complicated with hundreds of factors contributing to a client’s organic visibility, more competition for top rankings and the continuous expansion of online market share.

This growing complexity led to the development of Intelligent Positioning’s new software product suite, an online Software-as-a-Service technology that provides search marketers with an enterprise-class platform and the support required to optimize search engine traffic.

IP’s new product suite will gather natural search data, improve internal reporting, drive competitive research and automate manual SEO activities. The integration of IP’s new software suite will enable Blinkbox to spend more time on strategic initiatives.

“We always look forward to using new software from IP. Through the Intelligent Positioning platform we have significantly increased our traffic and been able to target a much broader audience. We have seen substantial ROI year on year since starting work with IP in 2007.” Adrian Letts, COO and Founder blinkbox

Truly Global SEO

Intelligent Positioning is the unrivalled leader in global SEO technology empowering enterprise marketers to manage and improve their SEO efforts and deliver provable ROI. Now the company created the first truly global and real time, enterprise SaaS SEO technology solution, their new Application Suite, which helps marketers scale natural search, monitor competitive market share and boost revenue.

Companies such as Disney, BSkyB, Siemens, Alitaila and AXA rely on the company’s technology solutions and team of experts to continually measure and improve their natural search traffic and revenue.

Siemens Communications Appoints Intelligent Positioning SEO Platform across 7 countries Intelligent Positioning’s Platform will be deployed to cover seven separate regions in Europe, South America and Asia.

Intelligent Positioning with offices in St Albans, Brighton and Italy competed in a multi-agency pitch to land the account.

The remit for the analysis will cover Siemens UK, US, Germany, Belgium, Spain, China and Brazil. All technical work will be completed in Germany with central management in the UK.

Siemens Europe join a rapidly growing list of clients of Intelligent Positioning, that include BSkyB and AXA who benefit from the Intelligent Platform’s ability to analyse millions of sites and 100,000s of keywords.

Jon Earnshaw, Head of Search for Intelligent Positioning commented “We are extremely delighted to be working with a world leading brand like Siemens. Our multi-lingual intelligence engine, which has the ability to track search results anywhere in the world, fits in perfectly with the global needs and ambitions of Siemens.”

The appointment of Intelligent Positioning as a dedicated platform for driving the organic growth of Siemens Communications, adds to Siemens commitment to expansion of online presence and activities across Europe.

Again naming no names, the chart below highlights this dramatic fall from grace for a number of keywords – without a replacement URL. As, highlighted in the previous blog entry – placing a 301 redirect from the old URL to the new URL is vital as it passes over all the page value and backlinks to the new URL – permanently.

The new website is up and running and does not yet feature anywhere within Google, Yahoo! or Live. This results in traffic being deployed more evenly to the remaining URLs on page one. The benefits of a 301 redirect are endless!

301 to a 302

A website that performs well for a keyword term that has a 301 redirect pointing to it is extremely important for good positioning – providing that the first website has good page value. One mistake that some people make is downgrading a 301 redirect to a 302 redirect. It is recommended that if website A needs to redirect to website B on a permanent basis – a 301 redirect is used and is not changed. This issue is highlighted in the chart below:


For more Self Help SEO and Hints and tips keep posted.

Redirects come in various types from the temporary redirects to permanent redirects, which can be implemented at page level or server level. Implementing redirects is quite an easy task, all you are doing is informing the search engines of the new page location, whilst instructing the server or internet browser to navigate to a new url upon landing on the old url.

A redirect is used to point the old destination to the new destination at page level or domain level, which means you can setup a redirect on single pages or a group of pages, or you can redirect an entire domain. Redirects are versatile and very useful and are a must for anyone looking to change the website structure or domain name.

Lets look at redirects at their different levels:

When implementing a redirect, there are many different things to consider, such as, is the new destination page in a better location then it was previously?. When redirecting one page location to another, it is important that the following factors are considered:

• - Is the destination domain the same or is it a new domain?
• - Is the destination domain brand new or does it have some age behind it?  (only if domain has changed)
• - Is the destination URL friendly (i.e. not excessive in length or keyword usage)
• - Has the destination URL been used for any other pages previously (Conflict of content theme)
• - Has the destination URL been involved in any link development or bad link practices?

Since the domain is the foundation for a website in the natural search index, just swapping it with another domain is not a good idea, especially if the new domain is less than a year old and has no back links, the knock on effects can involve a loss of rankings.

Changing a domain should only be done when absolutely necessary or if the previous domain is very young and hasn’t built up any credibility. Redirects help save a lot of credibility when moving URLS/Pages, however, the changes in website structure can still have a positive or negative effect in Google depending on the redirection used among the changes in content, page text and more.

So what redirect is right for me?

Temporary 302 Re-direct:

A temporary redirect should be used when the URL structure changes but only temporarily. This is used on websites that are under development and are still undergoing page and url structures. For example, if we wanted to put a temporary redirect on a product page because it was placed in a different destination from what it would be if the website was complete then we would place a 302 redirect on the old destination towards the temporary destination, for example:

• - www.mywebshop.com  > Website (being built, still in progress)
• - www.mywebshop.com/products/toys/cars > (Toys section, this was the URL used at one point)
• - www.mywebshop.com/toys/cars > (New projected destination, still under development so temporary url used)
• - www.mywebshop.com/temp/products/cars > Temporary toys section.
  The temporary redirect should go from the old url to the temporary url until the new section is complete.

There are hundreds of different situations that are ideal for temporary redirects. It is very important that temporary redirects are not used for a long period of time as they do not stand strong ground in Google’s natural search. Because the redirect is known to be temporary, Google knows that the URL structure is likely to change again, therefore its importance is reduced for being returned in natural search.

How can I tell if a redirect is temporary or permanent?

Temporary redirect header codes are returned as a code “302”, using a server header checker you can see what code is returned, if you see a 302 code then the redirect is temporary. Use the following URL to check the servers header code:

http://www.seoconsultants.com/tools/headers.asp

When is it ok to use a temporary redirect?

Temporary redirects are ok for short term URL restructures, for example, if the URL changes because of a website design change or site structure change then a temporary redirect is ok for short term use. Typically, many people that implement the 302 redirect leave it in place to long which is detrimental towards search engine rankings.
Temporary redirects are for temporary use, if implementing, ensure that the temporary redirect is only used for a short period of time, typically 4-6 weeks at the longest.

Why are temporary redirects risky to a websites ranking?

Google and other major search engines use the URL structure as a foundation in the search engine index, but only on the basis that the URL’s indexed are not frequently uprooted and changed. When implementing a 302 redirect search engines know that the URL redirected isn’t permanent, as a result this can cause unreliable results which search engines typically avoid.

Permanent 301 Re-direct

Permanent Redirect:

A permanent redirect is used to change the URL of a page on a permanent basis. Because of its header code, search engines understand that the moved URL will be moved permanently. Because the URL is moved permanently, search engines can update their index with the new URL in place, unlike temporary redirects, search engines class permanent redirects as a safer option since this prevents unreliable results.

How to check if a redirect is permanent:

Visit the URL below and enter the URL to check. If the code returned is 301 then this means that it has been redirected permanently.

http://www.seoconsultants.com/tools/headers.asp

Page by Page Redirects:

Redirects can be implemented site wide or page by page. When redirecting single pages whilst keeping the site structure is unlikely to have any impact on search engine rankings. Implementing page by page redirects is quick and easy to do and is a popular choice for those either redirecting one or more pages.

Sitewide Redirects:

Implementing site wide redirects is a riskier job as changing the whole URL structure can have a temporary knock on search engine rankings. When uprooting the whole URL, search engines have to update their indexes. When doing this, its advisable to create an XML sitemap and submit it to Google webmaster central. Its then important to keep an eye on webmaster central to ensure there is no index problems, or no loss of rankings caused by other issues.

An example of a 301 re-direct:

Below is a successful 301 re-direct implementation for a client of ours. The keyword and URLs are hidden to protect the identity of our client, however the modification was made towards the end of 2008. Future posts will concentrate on how to successfully implement a 301 re-direct, whether it be using php or if your website is hosted on IIS.

As you may have seen in digital and marketing Press, Intelligent Positioning has been appointed as the lead SEO agency for Sky.

Sky.Com and its separate product departments are using Intelligent Positioning as its leading natural search and SEO agency.

Using Intelligent Positioning’s unique tools and intelligent based reccomendations Sky are looking to increase their natural search hits and increase online brand awareness.

The appointment was made without a pitch, as Intelligent Positioning was already working alongside Sky’s in-house team.

Charlotte Robertson, head of marketing for Sky Online, said: “Online is increasingly important to Sky as we continue to deliver a richer online experience to our customers.

“In choosing Intelligent Positioning we have an agency with the ability and technology to match our online ambitions.”

Sky receives 7.6m unique users each month to its group of sites.

Sky’s recent online activity has included the launch of a dedicated Shopping site and a relaunch of Sky Motorng, Sky.com is already supported by established online brands such as Sky Sports, Sky News, Sky Showbiz and Sky One.

Jon Earnshaw, head of search at Intelligent Positioning, said: “We are delighted to have been appointed to work with Sky.com and the wealth of great content across all their sites.

“We look forward to working closely with them by using our unique Intelligent Positioning technology to organically maximise the visibility of their sites.”
For more information please do not hesitate to contact us.

Woolworths – Company Focus. Woolworths has obviously had a bad time of things lately.
With the company going into administration and the 1000s of employees facing unemployment just weeks before Christmas, it’s not been happy reading. Woolworths Decline.

However, one shining light for the Woolworths brand over the last 12 months has been their online presence. Whether or not they have been selling products through their website is another discussion, but their positioning in the search engines has been good –

and for certain keywords, it has been excellent.

But then this happened:

The Reason: Woolworths Website holding page throughout the site

This appears on every page linked to. So all the readable content has gone, all meta and all internal links. This blank page is all Google sees. Furthermore bounce rate is therefore 100% and we all know what that means.

Woolworths' keywords fell off a cliff in mid November in Google UK

Previously Woolies was in the top five SERPS for “Toys” “Outdoor Toys” “camp Rock” and many other children’s related purchases. At Christmas, these would be searched millions of times and the purchase rate is for many retailers better in December than for the rest of the year put together. So why did they take the site down?

As you will see above from our Keyword line tracker Woolworths.co.uk the effect of the maintenance page is stark. Woollies online has now taken the same hit as its fellow High Street Stores have – and fallen off a cliff.

Is there a way back?

The Woolies site was getting some very good positons, and closing it down like this, before the business has properly shut-up shop, seems premature. Furthermore, the site itself had a PageRank of 5, certainly a sellable asset to anyone in retail.

But what we can conlude from this is that links, by themselves, will not get you good results.

In a recent news release John Lewis stated it has achieved record figures for online sales:

“Internet sales were driven by demand for gifts, Christmas decorations, furnishing accessories, home electronics and toys.” The Release stated, But how do they get on in the SERPS?.


The John Lewis website is of a high standard, in both design, content and for many keyword related searches. It ranks highly for a wide variety of keyword searches, reflecting its diverse product range.

Using our tools we can see how John Lewis has done for those sectors stated, within Search. John Lewis does well for “electrical appliances” – one of their stated successful terms, but do not perform well in the other areas offering no real consistency. In fact for some, they have even taken a drop over the last few months.

The first chart shows Johnlewis.com performance in Google UK, for the selected keywords over a period of 6 months, from position one to positon 100.

Competitors such as Tesco Direct, perform much better across these diverse product areas showing consistency and generally keeping on page one and two.

Chart 2 shows direct.tesco’s progress in the Google UK.

John Lewis obviously achieves results on the back of its brand equity and from online shoppers who have already experienced the high quality of service. Traffic and repeat custom would rise if they performed better in the SERPS. Having a successful SEO service would undoubtedly help.

For more information please do not hesitate to get in touch.

The travel sector is one of the most competitive arenas on the Internet and for the most successful sites it’s certainly one of the most lucrative.

The Internet has perhaps changed the travel industry more than any other. We no longer need to visit the travel agent to help us book a holiday and a flight. We conduct the research ourselves and regularly buy separate flights either for a city break or business trip.

With the advent of budget airlines such as Ryan Air and Easy Jet, price has become one of the main purchasing factors for the online user, and the airlines and online travel agencies know it. Unlike almost any other industry, the word “cheap” is one of the most sought after and prized keywords. (“Cheap” on Google)

Dominance and Fluctuation
As you can see from the chart below, Skyscanner and CheapFlights, two of the biggest names n online travel agencies have been consistently in the top 10 over this period. Travel supermarket has enjoyed similar success other than a slight blip in November 08, a fall that Easyjet also succumbed too. What did Google dislike at that time?

Keyword: cheap flights, search engine: Google UK | period: 01/04/2008 - 14/12/2008

More gradual success has come for flights.monarch which has been climbing since it went through a URL rename in the Summer of 2008, losing ground from its previous high before that time. Most surprisingly is Ryanair, who has not appeared in the top 100 of Google UK since July for this keyword.

The dramatic drop for Ryanair may be connected to this policy to punish 3rd party screenscrapers (Screen Scraping article).

However there are other reasons we have identified that have and will continue to significantly effect their positions until modified.

Ryanair.com – Line Tracker

url: www.ryanair.com, search engine: Google UK | period: 30/06/2008 - 31/07/2008

It is interesting to note that a few similar search terms on Ryanair produced very similar trends, a climb in early July and then a drop on 24 July. This would suggest that there is a site wide issue.

Bumpy Ride
Looking more closely at the November fluctuation, we notice that a lot of brands took a hit on 8/11/08 and then more so on 12/11/08. What was Google looking at?

Keyword: cheap flights, search engine: Google UK | period: 25/10/2008 - 26/11/2008

Google Trends

Google Trends
Below shows that “Cheap Flights” as a search term has a similar search rate as “Airlines”. This shows that the market as a whole has split into two sectors. The conventional carriers tend to position themselves in the Airline section, and the travel agents and budget airlines fight it out for “cheap flights”.

What we can tell from this data however is that both keywords are on the decline from their peak in 2006. One factor could be the fact that today the online searcher is more knowledgeable and undertakes more a descriptive search hoping to get a more accurate return.

If you would like to find out more and to receive a PDF of the IP-SEO Travel Sector watch, please contact us.