If there is one thing that all bloggers share - yes, even personal finance bloggers - it's that we are all really keen to see our blogs rank highly in the major search engines.

So I've followed Matt Cutts' RSS feed for some time hoping to taste some crumbs that might fall from his Google plate. Maybe he might pass on some part of the magical algorithmic puzzle that makes Google the most popular search engine.

But as I have read and waited I've realised that Matt Cutts doesn't work that way. He's not about to divulge how Google's proprietary PageRank works or which variables affect SEO because it just wouldn't work if we could all manipulate the algorithms.

What Cutts does though is counter all irrational arguments that he finds bloggers purporting as fact. If someone claims that by doing x Google will penalise them for it and their rankings will slip back into SE oblivion, he reaches for his blogging wand and helps the nervous people calm down, like Prozac for bloggers.

So, I thought maybe I could claim some really stupid facts (obviously Matt won't know that they were stupid) and then Matt would write a counter post claiming that these were not part of the algorithmic mix and it would tighten my grip on what actually does have an effect. Much like Cluedo!

So here they are;

1. Never have your blog served by a host located in the Bahamas. Do I need to add any more to this?
   


2. Keep your total domain name (including the 'www') to under 21 characters. The periods can be counted as a half character each. Longer domain names can get caught in the filtering process much the same as a semi-trailer would get stuck in a hairpin tunnel and can cause all sorts of traffic blockages. And everyone can see whose fault it is as they drive by cussing and shaking their head.
   


3. If you want to have your blog rank highly in another country (let's assume France as an example) ensure your meta keywords are in French. Don't try to play too many games and inadvertently use the wrong keyword which in Swahili means "loser blogsite"
   


4. The next point is similar in that if you want to rank highly for "Tyres" in America you need to use the word "Tire" instead, especially in the domain name. You may become even more unstuck when you use tyred instead of tired.
   


5. When registering a domain name consider it like a mortgage and take it out for 25-30 years. Google looks at bloggers who register their domains for 12 month periods as renters who are hoping to shift as soon as possible.
   


6. Any site that has no images is considered a MFA (Made for Adsense) site. Any site that has 20 images on a page is considered competition.
   


7. When using images never resize them to global advertising specs such as 468x60 or 728x90. Google just disses these as adverts. Even trying to flip them makes no difference.
   


8. And finally, it makes no sense trying to goad Matt Cutts into sharing any Google secrets. He's just not going to do it.
   

Posted by Stuart at 1:30 PM | Permalink

Two days ago I wrote a post titled I'm in the top 10% of the world's wealthiest people and ended up having the second most popular post on Pfblogs.org for that day.

Yesterday, I followed that up with a rant about something that is financially crippling our teenagers - ringtone providers and recieved only 1 click.

So, I started perusing my pfblogs.org entry listing to see if any light could be shed on what makes one post a success while another is lost to oblivion.

People are more interested in themselves than others

Here's some of the titles that have had the most success from pfblogs;

What does your car say about the real YOU? (16 Clicks)
Are we heading for another Great Depression? (23 Clicks)
Stick to your personal financial plan like superglue (13 Clicks)
7 traits of an astute investor (17 Clicks)

while these ones flew under the radar;

Training your teenagers to handle money
Another Billionaire Dies (1 Click)
Giving your kids a better credit history

The most researched post does not equal a winner

My I'm in the top 10% of the world's wealthiest people post took only 5 minutes to write based on a post I had seen elsewhere. On the flip-side yesterday's post had been brewing for a couple of weeks and I had been on a fact-finding mission for the same period.

Linkbait is well and truly alive

Just ask Brian from CopyBlogger. Your post could be the most amazing piece of literature the world has ever seen (not that I'm saying my posts even fit that genre) but if it's not packaged correctly, no-ones going to look in the box.

People are natural voyeurs

We love to see what other people are doing in their lives - especially those who might be doing it better than we are. Find open windows and doors to lead people through so that they can analyze from a distance how their idols do what they do.

Posted by Stuart at 5:32 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)