As noted last week

For websites who continually update their content on a regular basis, this is fabulous news. Because Google is updating their index in real time, they are always going to be looking for the freshest, most relevant content for any given search phrase.

What does this mean for website owners who are not updating their content on a regular basis? It means that over time, you just might find your site is getting replaced in the SERPs by those websites that do have a steady stream of content that they are publishing every day or every few days.

So, the biggest concern website owners have about Caffeine is how they are going to keep fresh content flowing to their website on a regular basis. I mean, it’s hard work to write fresh content each day around some topics like log homes, barns, or drawer slides.

If you have an SEO company to help you, this job is much easier. They should be willing to generate fresh, new content for you, or at the very least, provide a road map that will show you how to do it yourself. If you choose to do this yourself, you should spend some time finding a great, SEO friendly, content management system such as Wordpress. This will allow you to quickly and easily add new content to your website as often as you wish.

It is also important to remember that Google and the other engines also index social media sites that you should be adding content to on a regular basis. Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and others are great examples of sites that rank well in the SERPs. By adding content to these sites frequently, you can use their authority and credibility to start ranking well for the terms your potential customers are searching for. Then, through your profiles on these sites, you can funnel that search traffic to your website.

If you need some help getting started, here are some ways to keep adding new and refreshing content to your website and other social properties.

1. Blog, Blog, Blog – Blog every single day if at all possible.
2. Write and submit legitimate press releases.
3. Set up a Facebook page and link to it from the home page of your website. Invite your visitors to become a fan, now known as “Like” and add content on a regular basis.
4. Set up a Twitter account and start tweeting like a mad man!
5. Grab a Flip HD camera, or any video camera of choice, start shooting video about your products or services and load them up on your YouTube account.
6. Post pictures about your company on Flickr. You can add pictures of your employees, parties, corporate offices, products, or anything related to your company or industry.

I’m sure you get the picture.

One important thing to remember when trying to rank well in the SERPs is, that even if you are publishing content to your site on a regular basis, there is still going to be the competition factor. If the content you are creating is of poor quality or is super boring, someone else might be producing content that is high quality and exciting. This content will always deserve to rank higher and most likely will. So don’t be tempted to just add a bunch of nonsense to your site just to get the freshness factor, you should always build content with the end user in mind. Doing so will not only help you rank well, but help convert your visitors once they reach your website.

1. Drink Link Juice.

Link building and link bait should be critical to any blog. Try to get links to and from your blogs and include internal linking (linking to previous posts you wrote or other pages withing your site).

2. Cut Unhealthy Habits.

Edit your posts in the same way you would nix donuts from your diet. Others will catch your mistakes and will likely let you know about it. Also, do not use two words when one will do, as we all like short workouts.

3. Spotting is Necessary.

If you want to drive traffic to your blog, you need to do something for others, too. Comment on their blogs, but make sure your comments have substance. Support your fellow bloggers, tweet other blog posts, and they will be more inclined to return the favor. Be sure to follow up with comments on your own blog. This is like wiping down the equipment after using it. The people who comment before and after you will be grateful for your attention to detail.

4. Wear Proper Attire.

You want your blog to look good. Use flash sparingly (it’s not good for search engines), and make sure your blog posts are scannable (easy to read). Use bullet lists when you can, and do not use large blocks of text. It hurts our eyes, much like neon spandex that some feel is okay to wear to the gym. It is not, by the way.

5. Have a Regimen.

Be consistent. Whether you post once a day or once a week, you will increase traffic when you post regularly. This is where you will start to see results. Also, be consistent with your style. If you break form during a workout, you can hurt yourself. With SEO, it is your rankings that will be sore in the morning.

6. Eat Healthy.

Be careful of the words you take in on your blog posts. You want to use rich keywords, but if you litter your post with them, you will have a cumbersome blog that will alienate your readers. And remember: there are not many healthy diets out there that include SPAM.

7. Stretch.

Try new things and don’t be boring. With this in mind, do not go outside your limits and try to lift 100 pounds when you have been lifting 10. If you blog about business, but randomly decide to post about your cat Kibbles, we will not be amused (unless you can somehow relate cat kibbles to business success).

8. Don’t Sing Along to the Songs Over the Speakers in the Gym.

Ok, so this isn’t related to SEO or blogging. But it’s in good taste. Please, I beg of you.

Did I miss any healthy blogging tips? Let me know!

Image via CrunchBase

A minor tempest in the research industry teapot erupted today on Twitter and elsewhere.  A SageCircle blog post entitled "Forrester tells analysts no more personal blogs with interesting implications for analyst relations" sparked a fair amount of dialog about Forrester and the rights and independence of analysts.  SageCircle shared rumors that a change to Forrester blogging policies would prevent analysts from having personal blogs and would aggregate analysts’ posts into Forrester-branded role-based blogs. 

I thought I’d share a few thoughts from my perspective as a newish Forresterite and a long-time blogger.  First of all, the term “personal blogs” deserves a bit of definition.  Forrester is not interested in limiting employees’ involvement in Social Media or their ability to blog on personal subjects.  I can blog to my heart’s content about travels, cats, politics, music, movies or any other topic of a personal nature. 

But there are changes coming to the ways analysts share information, ideas, and observations about the areas they cover.  Forrester is still developing its policies, but it is in the process of rolling out a new blog platform and will ask analysts to share their industry-related thoughts within this new platform.  So, there are elements of truth to SageCircle reports, but there’s more to the story.  For example, SageCircle speculated that the aim of the policy was to “restrict analysts’ personal blogs works to reduce the possibility that the analysts will build a valuable personal brand leading to their departure.”  This would be incorrect on a couple of different fronts. 

First of all, Forrester analysts will all have their own blogs within the new platform, and this will continue to furnish a platform for sharing our insights and building our individual reputations.  I will have my own Forrester blog, the contents of which will roll up into a blog focused on the needs and interests of Interactive Marketers. 

More importantly, the hint that Forrester might want to restrict individual brand building is quite the opposite of my own experience during my first three months in the organization.  If anything, Forrester demonstrates a strong and active desire to have analysts build their reputation and brand;  for example, there are discussions about how analysts can best “build their franchises.”  So strong is Forrester’s vision for its analysts that at times I can feel more like a self-employed specialist working within a loose collective than an employee;  I like this feeling, and it is one of the things I’ve enjoyed most about Forrester thus far.

Am I thrilled at the prospect of giving up Experience: The Blog, my personal/professional blog?  Well no—it’s become part of my digital identity and represents thousands of hours of time and effort.  But I also understand Forrester’s reasons for the changes.  There are obvious benefits to the company of aggregating intellectual property on Forrester.com, including Search Engine relevance and creating a marketing platform that demonstrates the breadth and depth of analysts’ brainpower and coverage. 

Furthermore, it would be silly to believe that readers will recognize and understand the distinction between Augie, the guy who shares thoughts about marketing on his personal blog, and Augie, the Forrester analyst who covers the marketing industry.  There is only one Augie, and the thoughts I share on my blog are now based upon the research I do, the people I meet, and the information I am given access to thanks to my role at Forrester.

I’ll be sad to see Experience: The Blog go, but I’m also looking forward to digging into the new Forrester blog platform.  There, I will continue to do what I’ve been doing for years on my personal blog:  Sharing news, offering insights, connecting with others, asking for input, and—most importantly—continuing to build my reputation within my field.