Search Engine
Quick Links
|
|
In Review: Search Engine Fast Start!
by Dan Thies
Review by Kamau Austin
With
well over 15 million business web sites competing for over 300 billion
dollars in On-line revenues, it is becoming increasing important for Internet
businesses to stand out from the myriad of rival sites. The old perennial
business adage "location, location, location, location" to the
Internet business and web marketer, translates more into a mantra like
"AOL, MSN, Yahoo, and Google". These major four, in addition
to Hotbot, Alta Vista, Netscape, and Teoma navigate the majority of web
traffic today. Therefore, getting a top twenty ranking on these sites
is of course critical to ones business survival. In the storming vortex
of opinions on web - Internet - and e business marketing appears Dan Thies,
a search engine guru and sage web marketer.
Search
Engine Optimization (SEO), and its related fields of search engine ranking
strategies, are cryptic and esoteric by nature of the major search engines
and directories keeping their criteria and listing algorithms (methods)
private. The search engines are being secretive to avoid manipulation
of search engine lists by opportunistic marketers. Dan Thies, in his make
it plain style E-book "Search Engine Fast Start", hazards a
foray into the mysterious cyber-world of search engine optimization. Since
the majority of sites (93%) on the web, receive just a few visitors a
month, any e book that can illuminate and bring clarity to this complex
subject, is a welcome addition to Internet promotion in my book. Especially,
if it can do so in an easy to digest fashion (as Dan's Book does). From
this vantage point Dan Thies' Search Engine Fast Start certainly delivers.
In short, this is an Outstanding Search Engine Book.
"I was Able to Obtain 10
Top Twenty Rankings in
the Search Engines Applying the
Principles in this Book!"
Search
Engine Fast Start (SEFS), is written for the average person running an
e business who does not want to spend a lot of time deciphering geek speak
and techno-babble. There is plenty of info, in plain talk, for the up
and coming netpreneur or experienced web business owner, to glean from
reading this PDF format e book. SEFS, is only 77 pages in length. Mr.
Thies starts his book with a synopsis of his overall SEO strategy: "Select
the right keywords, build a content rich web site around them, optimize
the individual pages, and work to improve 'off-the-page' factors like
link popularity".
As
you would expect, after giving an overview of the book, the author starts
out explaining how search engines work. He then explains the regular topics
for SEO type info like spiders, how your page gets indexed, and link popularity.
Then his writing really gets interesting and insightful with the explanation
of hub and authority sites, and themes in relation to SEO. Optimizing
Your site for theme based search engine algorithms is the premise of his
book. Subsequently, he explores a gem of a subject, especially for Internet
marketers, on "How people use Search Engines and Portals". This
tidbit of information alone for me was worth the $30 dollar price tag.
With these insights I was able to teak my web pages and metatags further
in a way to attract more site visitors with both my pay-per-click and
SEO promo tactics.
Dan's
position that "by working with the search engines instead of against
them, you'll win in the end" exudes integrity. I understand that
he may have learned this hard lesson after getting one of his web site's
banned from the search engines. He therefore suggests caution and integrity
when dealing with the search engines. His keyword strategy, explanation
of web site hierarchy, tiered web design, info on Internet directories,
and insights on reciprocal linking are concise as well as illuminating.
Some
of Dan's perspectives are definitely contrarian in that it goes against
conventional SEO beliefs. For example he counsels that one should not
submit to the search engines but instead optimize, create great content,
and aggressively do off the page things like reciprocal linking. He also
suggests that a Yahoo listing is probably not worth the investment. I
concur with him on many of his points because, I have always been listed
on Google and Yahoo (via Google) in top rankings using these types of
tactics.
One
short coming in his book is the brevity of covering the importance of
pay-per-click search engine advertising (although he does mention it in
a couple of chapters). Within a couple of months of applying his strategies,
I obtained top twenty rankings in ten different keyword combinations from
Yahoo and Google. Furthermore, my mentor John Payne, Publisher of the
well respected Web Marketing Ezine, managed to break into the top 10 for
the keyword web marketing using the concepts of the book! What makes this
incredible is that web marketing is one of the most difficult keywords
in which to get a high ranking.
Overall,
Search Engine Fast Start!, is an indispensable book for any serious e
business person looking to optimize their sites for the search engines
(especially for newer site owners). It is certainly, this Editor's choice,
for one of the most relevant web marketing books to presently be on the
market. You can pick up a copy by clicking on my affiliate link click
here. I read a lot of Internet related books, but only recommend those
of the highest quality and most effective information to my readers. This
e book definitely falls into this category.
Coming Soon Book Reviews
of Top SEO Books: The Nitty Gritty
of Writing for the Search Engines by Jill Whalen, Search Engine
Visibility by Shari Thurow, Dr. Wilson's Plain Spoken Guide to
Search Engine Optimization by Dr. Ralph F. Wilson, Search Engine
Fast Start by Dan Thies, Maximizing Your Web Traffic by Robin
Nobles and Susan Alexander, SEO Book by Aaron Matthew Hall, Search
Engine Optimization on an Extreme Budget by Non-stop Internet, and
others to be announced.
|
|
