• National Media (CNN, Fox, CNBC, etc.)
• Video (YouTube)
• Sponsorship
• Local Newspaper
• City, County, or State
• Web Directories
• Organizations
• Wikipedia Backlink
• Linkbait Blog Post (i.e, Infographics, Top Ten List, Tips and Tricks, etc.)
• RSS Directory Submissions
• .edu, .gov, or .org Websites
• Existing Relationships with Suppliers and Trade Associations
• Digital PR – Press Releases, Product Reviews, etc.
• Guest Blogger
• Chamber of Commerce
• Trade and Civic Associations
• Advocacy Groups
• Support Groups
• Professional Fraternities and Sororities
• Better Business Bureau
• Trade Magazines
• Social Media

The above list only scratches the surface when it comes to link building strategies. For more information on link building, please read Jason Acidre’s post on “Link Building in 2012″. Jason, thank you for taking the time to share your link building techniques.

There are tons of things happening and changing in the link building game since the start of the year, from the finer value being given to social signals, changes in the search results (primarily with Search plus your World and continuous roll out of different versions of Panda update), expected demise of link networks, to the improvements made by Google in interpreting the use of anchor texts to determine relevance.

Most of these changes clearly denote that we all have to adapt and evolve as well with how we market, brand and make our websites more visible through link building.

Ethical link acquisition has grown more significant, especially nowadays, wherein the practice’s results affect and encompass other areas of online marketing if done in large scale and targeted approach, such as:

• Referring click-through visitors
• Building brand signals
• Keeping the site regularly crawled and indexed by search engines
• Improving search rankings
• Lead generation

But of course, we always have to remember that link development is only one part of the pie – and an important one that makes SEO as a whole – considering that to really be efficient in getting great results from link building requires a well-optimized site/landing page (for search, UX and conversions). Marrying a solid on-site and off-site campaign is the key to attaining ROI-driven results, as always….More at Link Building in 2012: Scalable Link Building

Incorporating link building strategies as outlined in this post will definitely help increase your website’s page ranking with search engines. Remember, natural links are the way to go in optimizing your website for 2012 and beyond.

More Reading

• Linking 2012 – Effective Link Building Techniques in 2012
• Linklove Boston 2012 Recap
• Interview with Link Building Expert Wil Reynolds
• LinkLove London 2012 – Round Up

For more information about our services, please visit Search Engine Optimization – SEO.

Yes, prospecting for link building opportunities and reaching out to webmasters to drive new links back to your website can be done for free – but there are plenty of great tools out there that can make the process much easier and much faster!

Check out any of the following options if you need a kick in the pants to take your link building campaigns to the next level:

Tool #1 – Majestic SEO

Majestic SEO is a website browser that allows you to see which sites are linking to your competitors’ pages, allowing you to both determine how difficult it will be to beat them in the SERPs and identify new opportunities to build links back to your own site.  The program offers a free report for any site you control (which can be especially useful in ensuring link sources are still linking back to your website), though to access the full spectrum of data this site provides, you’ll need to upgrade to the paid version.

Tool #2 – Open Site Explorer

The SEOMoz Open Site Explorer offers similar features as MajesticSEO, although you’re able to access slightly more information with this program’s free version.  Enter your competitors’ websites into the tool and pay special attention to their Inbound Links, Linking Domains and Anchor Text – all of which may help inform your own link building strategy.  For even more access, including data on social shares across Facebook, Google+ and Twitter, consider upgrading to the paid version of the tool….More at 15 Best Link Building Tools

We highly recommend evaluating the fifteen (15) link building tools mentioned in Sujan’s article. Using link building tools will undoubtedly help cultivate authoritative links for your website.

More Reading on Link Building

• Content Strategy vs. Link Building
• Outreach Letters for Link Building [Real Examples]
• Content Auditing for Link Builders – Why You Should Do It, Tips, and a Spreadsheet

For more information about our services, please visit Search Engine Optimization – SEO.

After Google finally took down a few blog networks, I think we can all sleep a little bit better knowing that what we’ve been telling our clients all these years & what we’re now seeing in the SERPs is starting to look a lot more similar.

But at the same time, another issue is on the horizon. These seemingly public outings of these blog networks have many SEOs realizing that Google isn’t just ignoring some of these network links – they’re penalizing webmasters for them.

Google Bowling, which I now call Negative SEO, isn’t new. There’s even a service for it (quote from their site: “we only use legal means to ensure your competitors get banned”. It’s hard not to laugh at that).

The real issue here is that people are sharing their alerts from Webmaster Tools showing that Google is detecting unnatural links, a direct result of the blog networks they’re a part of. And since these networks are now publicly known to be bad, and that they don’t cost much time or money to get links from, some are drowning their competitor’s link profiles in them….More at After Deindexing, Negative SEO Becomes A Major Issue

At SacWebDesigner, we encourage our clients to practice SEO techniques in accordance with Google’s Search Engine Optimization and Webmaster Guidelines.  If you manage your SEO Campaign following the guidelines, you will never have to worry about receiving a penalty notice from Google.

More Reading about Google Deindexing Blog Network Sites:

• An Opinion on the Google “Deindexing Blog Networks” News
• Google Cracking Down on “Unnatural” Links, Deindexing Blog Networks
• Unnatural Link Warnings and Blog Networks

For more information about our services, please visit Search Engine Optimization – SEO.

Here’s the list of our Top WordPress Plugins for 2012

WP-Optimize - Definitely one of the Top WordPress Plugins for 2012. WP-Optimize is an excellent tool to help keep your database clean by removing all post revisions and auto draft posts, cleaning marked spam and unapproved comments, and optimizing your website’s database tables.

Contact Form 7 - Are you looking for a contact form plugin for WordPress? If you value simplicity and flexibility, Contact Form 7 is a great choice. It allows you to flexibly design the form and email it. You can manage multiple contact forms as well. In addition, it supports many features including AJAX submitting, CAPTCHA, Akismet spam filtering, file uploading, etc.

Google XML Sitemaps - This is one of the Top WordPress Plugins that generates a special XML sitemap which will helps search engines like Google, Yahoo, Bing and Ask.com to better index your blog and website.

Easy Columns - Easy Columns provides the shortcodes to create a grid system or magazine style columns for laying out your pages just the way you need them. Using shortcodes for 1/4, 1/2, 1/3, 2/3, 3/4, 1/5, 2/5, and 3/5 columns, you can insert at least 30 unique variations of columns on any page or post. Quickly add columns to your pages from the editor with an easy to use “pick n’ click” interface!

WP YouTube Lyte –  YouTube audio and video embedding in your pages and post.

Google Analyticator - Adds the necessary JavaScript code to enable Google’s Analytics. After enabling this top WordPress plugin, visit the settings page and enter your Google Analytics’ UID and enable logging.

WPtouch Pro - WPtouch Pro is one of the Top WordPress Plugins we use to build mobile websites tailored for Apple iPhone / iPod touch / iPad, Google Android, Blackberry Storm & Torch and other touch mobile devices.

WP Super Cache - WP Super Cache is a static caching plugin for WordPress. It generates HTML files that are served directly by Apache without processing comparatively heavy PHP scripts. By using this plugin you will speed up your WordPress blog significantly.

WP Realtime Sitemap - Adds a sitemap to your WordPress blog that is always up-to-date.

Share Buttons by Lockerz / AddToAny - Helps people share, bookmark, and email your posts & pages using any service, such as Facebook, Twitter, Google, StumbleUpon, Digg and many more.

TinyMCE – Javascript WYSIWYG Editor – One of the Top WordPress Plugins, TinyMCE Javascript Editor is a platform independent web based Javascript HTML WYSIWYG editor control released as Open Source under LGPL by Moxiecode Systems AB.

NextGEN Gallery - NextGEN Gallery is a fully integrated Image Gallery plugin for WordPress with a slideshow option.

Facebook Social Plugin Widgets - Adds three facebook social plugins as WordPress widgets: Facebook Recommendations, Facebook Activity Feed, and the Facebook Like Box.

Newsletter Sign-Up - Adds various ways for your visitors to sign-up to your mailing list (checkbox, widget, form).

Nivo Slider - The Nivo Slider is world renowned as the most beautiful and easy to use slider on the market. Completely free and totally open source, there literally is no better way to make your website look totally stunning.

WP e-Commerce - WP e-Commerce is a robust WordPress Plugin suitable for anyone who wants to start selling products, downloads or services online.

Top WordPress Plugins Summary

There are over 18,000 plugins available on WordPress’s website.  Having spent the last year evaluating plugins for our client’s websites, we feel the above list is definitely one of the Top WordPress Plugins list for 2012.

For more information about our services, please visit WordPress Design or Search Engine Optimization.

NVS Consulting Group, Inc. (NVS) is an Information Technology Provider designing and maintaining state of the art information systems and network technologies throughout California and the U.S. From a modest beginning in 1999, they have grown to be the preeminent Technical Services/Consulting group in California.

Project Overview: Our Agency Partner - The Big Idea Group, brought us in on the project to create a custom WordPress content management system website for NVS Consulting Group, Inc.

Team Involvement: Al Golden - The Big Idea Group  (Website and Graphic Design); Gino Creglia (WordPress)

For more information about our services, please visit WordPress Design.

Established in 1959, The Stagecoach Inn is a treasured landmark. It is the oldest family-owned and operated steakhouse restaurant in Boise, Idaho.

Project Overview: We are excited to be working with one of the top agencies in Northern California – The Big Idea Group. Combining their clever design and our WordPress expertise, we created a custom content management system website for the Stagecoach Inn Restaurant.

In addition, we performed an in-depth SEO Site Review and Audit, Onsite WordPress SEO Customization, and Google Analytics & Webmaster Tools setup.

Results: Website currently on page one of Google’s SERPs for 12 keyword phrases.

For more information about our services, please visit WordPress Design or Search Engine Optimization.

Here is the link to the article Out of Darkness | A bright future for the blind.

Frosted Pink Weddings is a professional bridal consultant that’s certified by the Association of Bridal Consultants. It is one of the most highly respected wedding planning companies in the Rocky Mountains and is gaining attraction around the rest of the world, especially after having been listed in the Style Me Pretty Little Black Book and The Best Wedding Vendors.

Provided the following SEO services: In-depth SEO Site Review and Audit, Onsite & Offsite WordPress SEO Customization, Google Analytics & Webmaster Tools setup, and education on Link Building.

Results: Website currently on page one of Google’s SERPs for nine keyword phrases.

Team Involvement: Gino Creglia (Search Engine Optimization)

For more information about our services, please visit Search Engine Optimization – SEO.

● Establishing an inbound link from Google, Yahoo, and Bing to your website.

● Ensuring information displayed (i.e., name, address, telephone number, etc.) for your business is current and accurate.

● Adding products and services to the business listing will improve ranking potential in organic, blended, or local search results.

● Controlling your reputation management by commenting on reviews from customers.

To help you get started, here are the links to Google, Yahoo, and Bing’s pages to claim your business listing:

Google Places – http://places.google.com/business

Yahoo Local Listing – http://listings.local.yahoo.com

Bing Business Portal – http://www.bing.com/businessportal

For more information about our services, please visit Search Engine Optimization – SEO.

Over the last couple of weeks, we reviewed many local business listings and created SacWebDesigner’s “Top Local Business Listings for 2012.”

Remember, one of the key ranking factors for positioning your company in the “seven pack” of local search engine results is creating a listing on the below websites.

Tip #1 for Google Places:

Does your business provide services to customers at their locations? If yes, you need to select “Yes” under “Service Areas and Location Settings” in your Google Places business listing:

Also fill in the “Distance from one location” and “Service area within” fields to let potential customers know the distance you will travel to provide services. You can also “List the areas served” by clicking the “Add” button (i.e., Sacramento, CA or 95828, etc.).

For the self employed working from their homes. Check off “Do not show my business address on my Maps listing” if you don’t want potential customers visiting your residence.

For more information about our services, please visit Search Engine Optimization – SEO.

Neurolink Chiropractic is an advanced and unique full service Chiropractic Neurology Clinic in San Mateo, California that offers the most contemporary services in his industry, including: brain based chiropractic applications, spinal decompression therapy, digital x-ray services, cold laser therapy, physiotherapy treatments, nutritional and functional medicine evaluations, and exercise rehabilitation services.

Provided the following SEO services: In-depth SEO Site Review and Audit, Onsite & Offsite SEO, Implemented a WordPress Blog which included SEO customization using the SEO Ultimate plugin, Google Analytics & Webmaster Tools setup, and education on Link Building.

Results: Business website climbed from page four to page two of Google’s SERPs within two weeks of SEO work being completed; website currently on page one of Google’s SERPs for several keyword phrases.

Team Involvement: Gino Creglia (Search Engine Optimization)

“I hired Gino to develop search engine optimization for my business website. Gino explained in-depth the goals, strategy, and expectations with optimizing the website prior to beginning. He stated that we would be working closely and relayed to me my job responsibilities during the process. I must say that once we got started, it was so much fun to work together. He is quick to produce, is very timely, and well-organized. I felt it was my job to keep up with him to produce at his level. Most importantly, when the job was complete, my website started on page four of Google and within two weeks I was on the top of page two for San Mateo Chiropractors. My website is currently on page one and needless to say, I am extremely happy with the results and the services provided. The cost of the service was priceless and I would not hesitate to hire Gino again for any website needs. I would highly recommend him for your website and SEO needs.” Dr. Paul Quarneri, Chiropractic Neurologist

For more information about our services, please visit Search Engine Optimization – SEO.

The studio provides wedding, portrait, and commercial photography services to customers in the Sacramento Metropolitan area.

Project Included: Redesigned and reengineered the studio’s website using a WordPress Framework Theme while incorporating current Google SEO methodologies and guidelines. Created company’s new “SEO Checklist” for use on future SEO consulting assignments.

Results: Currently on page one of Google’s Search Engine Result Pages (SERPs) for forty (40) keyword phrases.

Team Involvement: Gino Creglia (Website Design, WordPress, Search Engine Optimization, and Photography); Allison Hopkins (Content Creation)

For more information about our services, please visit Website Design.

Suba is collaborative in design and construction, continually exploring new ideas, sustainable materials and cost effective building techniques. The architecture firm works closely with clients to interpret their vision and set achievable goals. Each client brings a unique set of circumstances fueling the process for original design.

Project Included: Designed a new WordPress website for the client (to replace existing one); search engine optimization; graphic elements; and logo design. Completed project within one month.

Team Involvement: Gino Creglia (WordPress, Website Design, and Search Engine Optimization (SEO) ; Liz Colley (Graphic Design)

“This is not the first time that I have had the pleasure of working with Gino. In fact, he is on my short list of “go to” people in order to get things done. Gino is a delight in every sense of the word. He is very knowledgeable in his field. He is passionate about his work, easy to be with, and he is professional in every detail. He listened to my thoughts and worked with me in creating a new WordPress website with search engine optimization (SEO) capabilities that exceeded my expectations. I highly recommend him.” Suanne Bassett, Architect, suba

For more information about our services, please visit Website Design.

Sacwebdesigner has completed its first realtor website design, a successful and very technical project that involved writing, photography, online forms, and real time listings. The project commenced at the beginning of December 2010 and launched just two months later.

Victoria Witham’s website is very user-friendly, enabling current clients to easily find resources and potential clients to search for listed homes and quickly fill in forms that are divided for buyers, sellers, and short sale sellers. With instant emails sent directly to Victoria with the specifics of each potential client’s information, she is able to quickly respond and begin assisting them.

The website also includes a blog, where Victoria will be keeping readers informed and educated about important issues in the realty world.

“Gino created the exact look and feel I was hoping to achieve for my website. He is very straightforward and focused in his approach and with my hectic schedule this was a critical aspect to the successful completion of my website!  Working with Alli is also a pleasure. I felt comfortable working with her from the very first meeting. She just gets it done and I appreciate her prompt response. She continues to help out with several ongoing projects for the website.  The two of them as a team complement each other and made the whole process seamless. I am looking forward to creating phase two of my website! Thank you Gino and Alli for being there in the beginning and I am excited about the future phases and projects we will work on together.” Victoria Witham, Witham Real Estate Group

For more information about our services, please visit Website Design.