Skybox Creative Blog

Understanding SEO can be quite a task, and making it work is even more challenging. We’ve compiled a list of the top 10 best free SEO tools to help you understand your site, how it ranks against competitors, and the power of keywords, anchor text and back links. Watch this quick video and start crafting a strategy to boost your rankings on search engines!

SEO Tool #1 Google Keyword Tool
www.adwords.google.com/select/KeywordToolExternal

Research is key, this step requires a bit of time, but it’s worth it’s weight in gold. Provided by Google, this tool allows you to research your industry keywords to learn about local and global traffic statistics.

Now, what does your site look like to search engines in terms of SEO?

SEO Tool #2 SEO Website Grader
www.websitegrader.com

SEO Tool #3 SEO Blog Grader
blog.grader.com

SEO Tool #4 Check Backlinks & Anchor Text
www.bluebacklinks.com

SEO Tool #5 Search Engine Spider Simulator
www.webconfs.com/search-engine-spider-simulator.php

SEO Tool #6 Alexa Ranking (Worldwide Rank, Search Analytics, Audience Stats, Etc.)
www.alexa.com

SEO Tool #7 SEO Book – Free SEO Tools (These SEO tools can be used for ongoing website analysis and stats.)
www.tools.seobook.com

Next, it’s a good idea to asses what your competition looks like. (You can use the tools above as well as the tools below for this purpose)

SEO Tool #8 Spy on Your Competitors (Learn About Competitor Keywords & AdWords)
www.spyfu.com

SEO Tool #9 Search Engine & Directory Submission Tool
www.ubl.org

Once your ready to move forward with an SEO strategy, these tools will hep you with search engine & directory submission as well as PR article distribution.

SEO Tool #10 Press Release Article Distribution
www.prnewswire.com

Knowledge is only half the battle! Once you understand the status of your current site and have a better understanding of what you need to do, it’s time to hire experts to handle the workload so you can get back to business.

Overwhelmed with information? We’re here to help. Contact us today for a free SEO quote.info@skyboxseo.com or call 619.865.8881

Top 10 Best SEO Tools for 2011

Sifting through the maze of SEO information can certainly be a challenge, Organic Search Engine Optimization can be a full time job for multiple people depending on your goals. Luckily there are simple ways to educate yourself through a variety of free SEO tools offered online. Below we have compiled a list of the 10 best SEO tools for 2011 to help you understand your site, research your competitors, keywords and create a strategy to dominate the search engines. Because of the natural evolution of technology, we will likely have to update this list before 2011 is over, but here it is.

Initially, we hesitated to publish this list because these resources are that valuable… but we like to share! So here goes:

First things first, you have to understand what your site looks like in the eyes of search engines from an SEO perspective.

SEO Tool #1

SEO Website Grader
www.websitegrader.com

SEO Tool #2

SEO Blog Grader
www.blog.grader.com

SEO Tool #3

Check Backlinks & Anchor Text
www.bluebacklinks.com

SEO Tool #4

Search Engine Spider Simulator
www.webconfs.com/search-engine-spider-simulator.php

SEO Tool #5

Alexa Ranking (Worldwide Rank, Search Analytics, Audience Stats, Etc.)
www.alexa.com

SEO Tool #6

SEO Book – Free SEO Tools (These SEO Tools tools can be used for ongoing website analysis and stats.)
www.tools.seobook.com

Next, it’s time to asses what your competition looks like. (Use the tools above as well as the tool listed below for this purpose)

SEO Tool #7

Spy on Your Competitors (Learn Competitor Keywords & AdWords)
www.spyfu.com

Now it’s a good idea to set aside a good chuck of time for research. This elaborate tool provided by Google allows you to research your industry keywords to learn about local and global traffic stats.

SEO Tool #8

Google Keyword Tool
www.adwords.google.com/select/KeywordToolExternal

Once your ready to move forward with an SEO strategy, the tools below will hep you with search engine & directory submission as well as PR article distribution.

SEO Tool #9

Search Engine & Directory Submission Tool
www.ubl.org

SEO Tool #10

Press Release Article Distribution
www.prnewswire.com

Overwhelmed with information? We’re here to help. Contact us today for a free SEO quote. info@skyboxcreative.com

Skybox Creative, Inc. – Elevate your business with award-winning brand + web design.

Skybox Creative, an award-winning branding and web design firm, attended the San Diego SEO Meetup Group in Clairemont Mesa last night, and we wanted to share some of the quick and easy WordPress SEO tips we learned. (One of the most important themes of the evening being that WordPress is an EXCELLENT tool for SEO, so if you aren’t familiar with the open source blogging software/content management system, we suggest you get on the bandwagon!)

1. Use a question in your blog post titles. Why, you ask? Because when people are searching for information, they are often asking a question in their search.

2. There are thousands upon thousands of plug-ins for WordPress out there, but beware. Older plug-ins often don’t work with the most recent versions of WordPress (which is on 2.9, but getting close to launching 3.0). There are some great SEO plug-ins however, such as the SEO All-in-One and Ping Optimizer (Check out: WordPress Plugin Directory)

3. Utilize Blog Directories and Social Bookmarking Sites. They can be really great ways to drive traffic to your site, and the more niche the directory, the better!

Check out:

StumbleUpon
Mister Wong
Delicious

4. Don’t be a victim. Read up on WordPress Defender so that you can figure out the best methods to secure your blog from hackers. Always make sure you’re using the most recent version of WP and downloading all security updates are good starting points.

5. Blog at least once a week. An inactive blog doesn’t help anyone – especially you or your business. Blogs are meant to have fresh and changing content on a regular basis.

SIDE NOTE: Did you know that the word “Twit” comes from the English? (You Monty Python fans out there no what I am talking about).  Actual meaning is a drunken, upper-class Brit – happy tweeting!