Hello All,

I've been incredibly busy lately.

I wanted to give you a run down on how http://Kitten-Pictures.com is doing in the Search Engines:

Keyword Phrase: "Cat Allergy"

google.co.uk -> 3
google.de -> 10
msn.com -> 18
google.com -> 28
alltheweb.com -> 54
yahoo.com -> 115

I'm stunned by the results of "Cat Allergy". I have two short articles about the topic, that's it. The reason that put them on my site in the first place is because 'Cat Allergy', as a keyword phrases garners a higher PPC payoff rate than say 'Kitten Pictures'. I'm thrilled with a google and yahoo ranking -- something that I've not been able to get for the keyword phrase "Kitten Pictures".

Keyword Phrase: "Kitten Ascii Picture"
alltheweb.com -> 1
msn.com -> 6
google.com -> 93
google.co.uk -> 93
google.de -> 93
yahoo.com -> 291

"Kitten Ascii Picture" -- this is really wild. Again, I've got placements in google and yahoo and #1 on alltheweb and #6 on msn.

Keyword Phrase: "Kitten Drawings"
msn.com -> 11
google.co.uk -> 285
google.de -> 286
google.com -> 290
alltheweb -> 305
yahoo.com -> 689

Again, this was a single post of a Kitten Drawing and I've got #11 on MSN.

Keyword Phrase: "Kitten Jokes"
msn.com -> 14
google.de -> 537
google.com -> 538
google.co.uk -> 538
alltheweb.com -> 634

#14 on MSN, not bad.

Keyword Phrase: "Kitten Pictures"
msn.com -> 6
alltheweb -> 419
yahoo.com -> 648

No google yet. This has been a tough nut to crack for this Keyword Phrase.


I added a Word Press plugin this morning called "Adsense Deluxe" which is going to help me infuse google adsense ads in the posts more easily -- still setting it up.

It was also recommended that I put more text in with my daily kitten pictures. In addition, it was suggested that I might want to set a teaser, where I would give some text, but then have the visitor click on the individual post to see the picture. I tried that, sort of this morning. I put up a feature of an kitten rescue shelter on the west coast.

Oh, yes, I also added a WordPress pluggin called "Post Teaser" which gives me the functionality of displaying only part of the text -- where the visitor has click on a "more" link of sorts to see the rest.

I've also created a Black Hat blogsite called www.infotate.com, which hosts subdomains that are Feline themed. I'm using some software called The Blog Solution to drive it. What it does is it allows me to create blogs very easily -- I've got about 50 subdomain blogs there now. And the software will also auto-populate the blogs with RSS feeds at whatever interval I choose. So, I'm creating no more that 10 blogs per day and I update the content daily. The software is set to ping the 'ping' sites 2 times per week. I'm trying to make it such that the blogs look natural to the search engines. Each of my blogs has a link back to http://Kitten-Pictures.com. So, if I can get my infotate blogs ranked, that will really bolster my http://Kitten-Pictures.com site.

I don't know if I've made sense with this. Let me know if you want more detail and I can provide it. I don't know whether it's going to work or not, but it's worth a try. If it is successful, I will elaborate in much greater detail.

Each day, I've been adding original content to my http://Kitten-Pictures.com site. I ultimately think that this is the key to success.

All, I make money every single day on my http://Kitten-Pictures.com site. Look how simple it really is. Start your own blog site today. You can do it!

Make it a great day!

Search Engine Summary

First, here are my stats for http://Kitten-Pictures.com
msn.com -> 5 for keyword "Kitten Pictures"
msn.com -> 10 for keyword "Kitten Jokes"
msn.com -> 14 for keyword "Kitten Drawings"
alltheweb.com -> 18 for keyword "Kitten Ascii Picture"
google.co.uk -> 19 for keyword "Cat Allergy"
google.de -> 26 for keyword "Cat Allergy"
google.com -> 46 for keyword "Cat Allergy"
alltheweb.com -> 103 for keyword "Cat Allergy"
msn.com -> 197 for keyword "Pet Recipe"
alltheweb.com -> 229 for keyword "Kitten Drawings"
yahoo.com -> 229 for keyword "Cat Allergy"
alltheweb.com -> 470 for keyword "Kitten Pictures"
yahoo.com -> 487 for keyword "Kitten Drawings"

Kitten ASCii Pictures - I had know I idea there was even such a category - Ha! This is a good example of just throw it up there and see what happens.

The search bots seem to love WordPress 'categories' - which are the items that you see on right-hand side (http://kitten-pictures.com).

Google.com is really tough to get ranked for.

Some reading around that I did yesterday - here are some misc facts:

• Google is responsible for 60% of all internet searches - this means you've got to take Google seriously.
• Google uses a different ranking formula that Yahoo and MSN - no kidding. Look at my MSN ranking for "kitten pictures" keyword verses Google.
• MSN seems to give more weight to keywords than for link popularity - This rings true to me. My keyword usage on http://kitten-pictures.com is very good.
• Google places an emphasis on quality and quantity incoming links along with other factors - again, that seems true. One my sites weaknesses is link popularity. And the links that I do have are from a mixed bag of sites, not just animal related sites. Hopefully this will change with my use of "TheBlogSolution" software, which I'm testing. And, I'm adding good articles all the time.
  

Although Google is a tough nut to crack, it is worth the pursuit.

Link popularity and good keyword strategies are both very important.

Have you started your blog today? Do you want to, but lack the confidence to start? Why not give blogger.com a try - it's free and its easy to setup. Just pick a topic or range of topics you are interested in a write about those. You can do it. Then put some AdSense ads out there and start making some money. If I can do it, you can too, believe me!

If you have any questions about how to get started, please let me know.

As always, make it a great day!

Stan

New Site Rankings

Hello All,

It's been a couple days since my last post -- I've been very busy!

Okay, for the search engine stats for http://Kitten-Pictures.com

msn.com -> #5 for keyword "Kitten Pictures"
msn.com -> #12 for keyword "Kitten Jokes"
msn.com -> #18 for keyword "Cat Allergy"
google.uk.co -> #22 for keyword "Cat Allergy"
google.de -> #26 for keyword "Cat Allergy"
google.com -> #45 for keyword "Cat Allergy"
alltheweb.com -> #187 for keyword "Cat Allergy"
msn.com -> #198 for keyword "Pet Recipe"
yahoo.com -> #363 for keyword "Cat Allergy"
alltheweb.com -> #815 for keyword "Kitten Pictures"
alltheweb.com -> #889 for keyword "Kitten Drawings"

Stilling making money with http://Kitten-Pictures.com with Google Adsense. Some days are slimmer than others, but it's more than paying for its hosting!

I've whittled down my links page to include only those who are linking back to me.

I'm playing with the look and feel of http://Kitten-Pictures.com - let me know what you think. For a photo site, I like the black background, because it makes the pictures really pop.

One of the weakest parts about my site is getting external, one-way links to it. This is just very tough to do. If you have been looking at http://Kitten-Pictures.com, you'll see that I'm putting more and more original content posts/articles up. This morning, I wrote one to help someone give their cat's Pill-form medication.

I've also been working with a piece of software called "The Blog Solution", which generates blogs, as many blogs as you want (http://infotate.com) which will contain links that point back to http://Kitten-Pictures.com. I just started using it a couple of days ago and the jury is still out as to it's effectiveness.

I've asked this question all over the net and have not gotten an answer -- maybe one of you know. How can you tell, for a particular search engine, like Google, what keywords your site is ranked for?

Start your blog today! Blogger.com would be a great place -- it's free!

Don't know what to talk about -- talk about anything. Just talk and you'll find your voice. Make daily posts. Don't worry about the grammer so much. If you need any suggestions or help in getting started, please let me know.

Make it a great day!

Stan

Adsense Rates have Doubled

Hello All,

I hope you had a great weekend and are ready for a great week.

Well some good news. For http://Kitten-Pictures.com -- my adsense earnings have doubled. Why, because I started targeting more valuable keywords -- in particular 'Cat Allery'. This little gem has more than paid for itself.

This is classic, "see what the market wants and give it to them". I looked for a keyword related to my blog that was in demand (had a low R/S ratio -- if you don't know what that is, read some of my earlier posts) and had a higher cost-per-click (again, explained in earlier posts).

Anyway, I wrote an article about 'Cat Allergies' and put it in a category (on Word Press) called 'Cat Allery' - and here are the results (so far):

www.google.co.uk - 18
www.msn.com - 18
www.alltheweb.com - 270
www.yahoo.com - 865
www.google.de - 26
www.google.com - 45

Not bad for a puny article -- it's actually pretty good.

Now, these rankings are super-impressive, but just think if I wrote another article or two about the subject and put them under the same category. The irony about this is that I wasn't intending to rank at all for 'Cat Alergy', I was just wanting to have some more expensive ads show up on the site, so this is truly a bonus.

I've been cutting my link exchanges through Link Metro down -- I've really cleaned up my link page. I don't like the non-related links, but at this point, I don't know whether it hurts me or helps me. I'm only considering links from sites that have a PR3 or better -- or the site has be directly related to my audience's interests.

Another spot of good news is that I've moved up on MSN for 'Kitten Pictures' - I went from 18 to #6 over the weekend. In case you didn't know, I started this as a blogger blog and the transferred it to a regular domain blog later. Well, at the the time, http://kitten-pictures.blogspot.com was #1 on MSN. So I had to build up http://Kitten-Pictures.com. So, #6 is on the 1st page!

One of the problems that I've had with Kitten Pictures is that there really isn't a lot text for a search engine to grab a hold of. I put the words kitten pictures in the tags of each of the photos, but that's about it. Also, I put the word Kitten, Kitty, Cat in the Post's title - which on Word Press is an H2 tag. Anyway, I wrote a little piece about 'Kitten Pictures' -- really as a way to attract comments, but primarily for the search engines.

I did a total rework of the site using a different WordPress template called 'adsminded' -- the jury is still out on whether it's going to help my conversion ratio -- I'll keep you posted on that. I still have some more tweaking to do. I'm also looking to create a more professional banner that's nice to look at.

I could go on and on...

Have you thought about starting your own blog? Are you hesitating because you don't know what to 'talk' about? Just write about some subjects you have opinions about or topics you know something about. Most of us, me included, underestimate the power of what we know. The beauty about blogging is that it is informal -- it's not like writing a research paper. Then you do some keyword research to determine what people are wanting to know. But, you've got to get started -- take that step! Create a free blog account in blogger.com. Contact me if you need some help -- I'd love to assist.

Also, please spread the word about this blog!

Make it a great day!

Stan

'R/S' Expanded

Hello All,

I was reading a piece yesterday that talked about targeting keywords based upon really low R/S ratios (If you are not sure what an R/S ratio, read some of my other recent posts where I go into great detail about that). We are talking about 'R/S's in the single digits level like 1 through 9 or even lower.

Especially if you are starting out - these are really easy words to dominate and get ranked for. The traffic isn't huge for 'R/S's that low, but if a person searches for one, make sure they visit your site on Google instead of another's site. Now this type of 'R/S' searching may be tedious without a tool like Keyword Elite - you may want to consider making the plunge.

At last count, http://kitten-pictures.com/ for the keyword phrase "kitten pictures" is still not ranked on Google or Yahoo. My ranking for MSN continues to shift around a bit - currently at 19. I may need to write an article about "Kitten Pictures" and submit that to the article sites, like articlecity.com. So much to do, so little time.

My links page is full of links with PR0 sites - and I'm wondering if that is hurting me. Anyone have any thoughts on that. I read a lot conflicting material on that. I've got a couple of link requests in linkmetro.com from sites that are A) unrelated and B) PR0. I've been trying to figure out the cost of this to me. The upside is if a site goes big and they have my link on their page, then I benefit - I know that for sure.

Remember, content is KING. Write, and write often. Practice with your own blog. Register it on blogger.com - if you have trouble, give me a shout and I can try to help you out.

If you are benefiting from the blog, please spread the word -- thanks! Even better, give a link on your site. I would appreciate it very much. Also, any questions, comments -- please feel free to leave them in the comment section on the blog post.

As always, Make it a great day!

Stan

I guess I should have checked my search engine rankings earlier -- they can really swing from one day to the next. For the keyword phrase "kitten pictures", for http://kitten-pictures.com, I've moved from 43 to 17 on MSN.com since the weekend.

Also, I just got a couple of hits from MSN.IE (Ireland) where I'm ranked #1 for "kitten pictures".

And I got a hit from MSN.CO.UK (United Kingdom) where I'm ranked #3 for "kitten pictures".

Every little bit helps. Google is still my goal!

A big dive in MSN.com

Hello All,

As you may or may not be aware, I started my Kitten Picture blog under a blogger.com account (http://kitten-pictures.blogspot.com), but then decided to move it to my own private domain (http://kitten-pictures.com). Anyway, I had been ranked in the top 4 on MSN for my blogger url, but I just took a big dive. The blogger url, at this time is doing little more than redirecting traffic to my http://kitten-pictures.com site.

Even with a ranking in the top 4 on MSN, I wasn't really experiencing any significant search engine traffic. Everything that I've read seems to suggest that MSN is good, but Yahoo is very good and Google is great. I'm really aiming for Google at this point. I could get listed in Yahoo a little quicker by paying a yearly fee of about $200/year, but I'm being a little cheap right now.

This weekend, I took down a bunch of links on my links page - links that I was pursuing via linkmetro.com. I'm amazed, but many people, even in a link exchange program were not responding to my link request, positive or negative, they just weren't responding. Anyway, I've removed a bunch of those that were 14 days old. I decided that 14 days was probably long enough. I still have mixed emotions about having links on my link page that have nothing to do with Pets, whatsoever.

I just wrote an article for http://kitten-pictures.com called Pet Insurance - An introduction - here is the link if you want to take a look http://kitten-pictures.com/152/pet-insurance-%e2%80%93-an-introduction/. Why did I pick that topic. Well, mainly because the keyword phrase "Pet Insurance" serves up some more expensive AdSense ads. I research what keywords pay the most/best and then write the article.

The more that I think about it, the 'easiest' way to have high Page Rank sites link to your 'newbie' site is to have great content. They are starved for great content for their visitors.

Make it a great day!

Stan

Getting Links

Hello All,

Trying to get links, as a new an unknown site (http://Kitten-Pictures.com), I'm finding, is a difficult and arduous process. It really takes time commitment and tenacity -- just giving you fair warning.

As far as I understand, the best links to get are one-way links -- links where other sites are linking to your site, but you are not linking to theirs. This is the kind of link you get when a site links to you because your content will enhance his own site's visitors experience. Did you catch what I said about 'Content' -- Content is King, yet again.

There is a linking scheme called 3-way linking. This where you set up two sites. One is your main site (we'll call it site 'A') and the other is your linking site (we'll call it site 'B'). You solicit a link exchange (this is where you trade links) from another site (we'll call it site 'C') where you set it up like this:

Site 'C' links to Site 'A'
Site 'B' links to Site 'C'

This may or may not be an attractive offer for site 'C', depending on the page rank of site 'B'.

There is also a lot of SEO talk about getting links only from relevant sites, only. If I’m a pet site (which I am – http://kitten-pictures.com), I should only solicit and accept links from other pet sites. In other words, don’t accept a link from a health insurance company. Then others say, get whatever links you can. I’m not sure who’s really right here.

Also, some say to only put your links on the front page. I’ve taken a hybrid approach. I’ve created a links page – http://Kitten-Pictures.com/links for my links that are either direct competitors for my site (other Kitten Picture Sites) or other non-directly related sites (Sites about Dogs, Fish, Insurance, etc). The other sites that are complimentary, I put those on my front page – sites about Cats or Kittens. In my mind, I need to serve my readership first and it’s in my readership’s interest to give the easy access to relevant links on the front page.

As it stands right now, http://Kitten-Pictures.com has 27 links from sites with a Page Rank (PR) of 0, 1 link from sites with a PR of 2, 2 links from sites with a PR of 3, 1 link from a site with a PR of 6, and 1 link from a site with a PR of 7.

Do you see my weakness here? My link count is okay, especially for how old the site is. However, most of my links are from non-known sites (PR=0). Google doesn’t regard those types of sites very well – and my Google ranking shows it. I need to solicit more sites with higher page rankings. How am I going to do that? With great content! Content is King.

Have you created your own blog site yet? What are you waiting for? Are you nervous that you don’t having anything to say. I’ve got a secret – start a blog at www.blogger.com and just start writing something you know something about. Write about model airplanes, your dog, politics, how you built your last computer – write about anything. Once you get in the mode of writing, it will become more apparent to you what topics and interests are easier to expound on. If you find that your interest are outside of the scope of the blogsite you’ve started, you can erect another blog site with the new theme and either disband the old or keep it going.

If this blog has helped you, please leave comments and tell others – that would be awesome.

Anyway, that’s it for now.

Make it a great day!

Stan

Articles, Articles, Articles -- Write them!

Hello everyone! I've been busy writing articles, articles, articles and rearranging my site (www.Kitten-Pictures) to help bolster my search engine rankings.

http://Kitten-Pictures.com is a blog site – really more of a picture site designed to attract visitors who will enjoy the site, but who will click on the Google AdSense ads. I chose a picture site, because I was copying the efforts of Jonathan Leger, who runs a similar feline pictures site also – I’m not trying to reinvent anything here.

So now, the site is up and running and getting respectable traffic on a daily basis. I spend a lot of time promoting it. One of the things that I’ve been noticing is that with the AdSense clicks that I’m getting, I’m only making a few pennies each time. And, what a thrill it is to make some money at something, do you know what I mean – it’s a move in the right direction. However, I’m ready for a bit more income. I’ve decided to start adding content to the site in the form of blog posts (I initially started to add them as pages, but in Word Press, I couldn’t figure out how to categorize the articles – but with posts you can) which I put into various categories. Well, how am I deciding which articles to write – it’s certainly not by chance that I’ve written what I’ve written.

Well, go to http://Kitten-Pictures.com for a second – this is a little easier to explain if you are looking at the site.

Notice on the right hand side, I have a section called “Kitten Categories” and underneath that heading, WordPress software list of the blog posts that I’ve put into various categories. The Kitten Pictures, I’ve listed as “Kitten Pictures …”. But look at some of the others, like “Cat Trees” – this is an post/article that I wrote last night. How did I come up with that? Well, I did some keyword research and determined that “cat trees” is paying about $2.62 per click by Google Adwords advertisers and that there about 5,000 searches done each month. Not a ton of traffic, but I would mind a share of that $2.62 per click either.

Do you see what I’m doing; I’m letting my research drive the content of the site. As you watch, you will see more and more articles/posts that focus on profitable AdSense click rates – this is not a hobby for me, this is a business and I’ve got to try to maximize the value of every visitor ‘visiting’.

Creating the articles and fresh content is work, but I believe it is the best way to ultimately win in the Search Engine wars. There are sites going up all around that are directory-only sites that have junk for content – how long are they going to last? Do they really add any value to the internet experience for people? How long before Google figures out a way to get them all de-listed? Why even go there and play that game.

All, take action today. If you’ve not started your own blog site, please get started. Write about anything. The weather, your travels, anything. Write about something that you are passionate about – keep it very ‘G’ rated. Once you start this site, send me an email and tell me about it. I’ll do what I can to get you as far as I have come. You can be sure, as I learn new things, I will post and share.

There is no real change in my search engine rankings just yet – they are about the same as they were yesterday – you can see them on yesterday’s post.

Well, that’s it for today. Enjoy!

Make it a great day!

Stan