| I was kinda one of those guys. I never used ALN (Authority Link Network), but I used smaller-tier services. And I ranked well for quite a while in my low-to-medium keywords -- things that I loved, used, and believed in (and still do). Never touched crap like HCG or Acai. So here's the truth: It took me exactly 3 years to get back to the pre-Penguin traffic levels. Only difference is, this time I've done it with an actual brand and legitimate content: Breaking stories, researching things never heavily-researched, getting quotes from sources, and exposing scams and scandals as well. Building a small brand is a chore, and we still have tons to do, but it's SO worth it. This isn't some-scumbag-domain.com - it's a real brand that has its own personality, fanbase, and return visitors who regularly come back to read new stuff and use our services. People Google for our brand more every month... We even have our own haters!! That's like the highest honor! Branding is hard work, but it's FUN. Repeat: it's FUN. I still get emailed and asked about SEO frequently. My simple advice is this: blow the lid off of something. If none of your content isn't worth real people legitimately sharing... if none of your content isn't worth an experienced user from a niche forum reading it and saying "wow"... then you might as well not even waste your time. Who needs to build links when you can write (or code) so damn well that people build them for you?! What's better than that?! Thankfully, when I was doing well, I wasn't stupid with my money. I invested into the future, and was able to handle the downturn without getting a job. The lessons learned from this: 1. Many entrepreneurs make their most serious money in SHORT bursts of time. No matter what it is, it can dry up, so don't go buying cars just yet. Get financial help from someone who knows what's up (not easy to find) 2. If people aren't searching for YOUR brand name, then you're not doing "SEO" right, or you have ways to go. 3. Despite all this social media stuff, Google still controls some of the most valuable traffic. Don't do things that piss them off! 4. You can have your filler content, but on frequent occasion, you must write full-tilt content like this article here - fresh, insightful, and worth sharing and posting to a number of sites and forums. Otherwise, you don't have a real content strategy. You have a WOMBAT strategy. (Waste Of Money Brains and Time) 5. You can hustle for short-term money, but if you do that, you MUST re-invest it into the long-term game. If you don't, you'll just turn into that old guy spinning and hustling until the day you die. And at that point, you're not an entrepreneur, you're just a hustler. Dang, maybe I should get back into blogging. So much to say... |