PALM BEACH, FL –An interesting opportunity has arisen from new domain name registry company Donuts Inc., which operates roughly 240 new generic top-level domains (gTLDs). Although I am less than a huge fan of new gTLDs, there are industry veterans who do in fact use them in certain scenarios of ‘super premiums’, and you’ll have an opportunity to filter through a list of over 1.1 million names (previously on hold) now being released in a price-drop by the … [Read more...]
Gobble, Gobble: Google Wants To Steal Your Website’s Local Event Calendar Traffic Too
PALM BEACH, FL – No, its not quite Thanksgiving yet; there are still several weeks to go. I wasn’t referring to [that] type of “Gobble, Gobble”, with a turkey or thanksgiving or any of that. But Gobble, Gobble seems to fit the bill. Because if you were to ask Google, every day is like a feeding frenzy. I’m talking about Google’s insatiable appetite to steal all of your content so that there is little traffic left for you. In fact, I bet Google would much prefer if your … [Read more...]
Holiday Sites Start to Climb In Traffic As Shoppers Get Set for End of Year Spending
PALM BEACH, NY – It’s just about that time of year and before you know it, “Halloween” will pass, and America will officially enter into its early stages of the “holiday season” when ordinary business begins to slow, and recreation, time with family and friends becomes the focal point of many. You have probably noticed that it seems the holiday decorations are being setup in stores earlier and earlier - and for good reason. Retail sales are expected to top $1.1 trillion … [Read more...]
Say What? $60,000 Per Week Redirecting Traffic with “Domain King” Rick Schwartz
PALM BEACH, NY – It was another good show from Domainer.com.au run by Robert Kaay and Ed Keay-Smith, whom previously interviewed industry visionary Michael Castello from CCIN.com and Ron Jackson from Domain Journal. This latest show, another with lots of great advice and lots to learn was with Rick Schwartz, widely known as the “Domain King” for his immense experience and success in the domain business; Schwartz has … [Read more...]
Using Expired Domains and Domain Redirects to Increase Traffic & Rankings
PALM BEACH, FL – While I see domain name redirects in play - almost every day, rarely do I see them tied to an obvious tracking campaign as one I stumbled onto this morning. Most know, that it’s no secret using expired domain names as strategic acquisitions can be good for business. Just as in real estate, purchasing a good piece of commercial property will yield existing foot-traffic, likewise, purchasing an existing or expired domain name delivers its virtual equivalent … [Read more...]
Hallmark Continues to ‘Cash-In’ On Premium Holiday Web Name “Easter.com”, Or Does It?
WEST PALM BEACH – Originally registered in 1998, the domain name “Easter.com” redirects visitors to the Hallmark.com website where conveniently Easter cards and gifts are highlighted. This is a good use of a premium domain name, outside of development of course. Hallmark has owned this domain name since at least 2010 when it was highlighted by Domain Name Wire. Out of curiosity, I decided to visit it this morning to see what’s there. Screen-grab from Easter.com … [Read more...]
One Less Way to Monetize Your Domains As Chitika Network Plans Shut Down April 30th
WEST PALM BEACH – A popular alternative to Google Adsense has announced it will be shutting its virtual doors on April 30th 2019. Chitika, an online advertising network that grew quickly in popularity after hitting the market in 2004 is shutting down. On Wednesday, April 17, the company sent all publishers an email announcing the pending shut-down: After 15+ years in business and millions of publisher relationships, Chitika is hereby shutting down and closing its business. … [Read more...]
Google “Adds” Additional Layer of Domain Validation Before Monetizing Websites
WEST PALM BEACH – Google AdSense, once the greatest and easiest way to immediately monetize your domain or website, has added an additional layer of validation to the game, by requiring your domain name be approved before allowing you to run ads on them. One of the greatest things about Google AdSense, was, that in the past you could slap your ad code scripts on any web page, and relevant - targeted ads would immediately appear, assigning each click on an ad, to a … [Read more...]
Almost 10 Years Now Dealing With Google’s Ambiguous “(Not Provided)” Keywords
NEW YORK – I remember when reviewing my domains traffic statistics was not only informative, but fun. I loved to see how my SEO efforts led to pages bringing in more and more keyword traffic from search terms the pages ranked well for. Such is not the case these days as A) most of the free traffic has dried up due to ads, maps, local listings, etc; and B) Google has removed all the keywords that lead to page traffic (within statistics programs), so its not much fun … [Read more...]
Search Optimization or Sponsored Search, Which One Is Better for My Business?
NEW YORK, NY – Whether a company embarks on typical optimization processes or just gives in and goes straight for Google’s recently re-branded “Google Ads” program is probably a question best answered only by someone who has been watching both of them evolve over the years, because both of them do work, and both can be used to grow your business exponentially, but figuring out which one works better or which will cost more is something the average business owner just has no … [Read more...]
What Is Web Site Hosting and Why Do I Need It? Seems Like A Monthly Rip Off
NEW YORK – Once in a while I come across a person, customer or prospect that doesn’t understand what website hosting is and why they might have to pay for it. They seem to feel that hosting is some unknown, unexplained add-on which seems confusing at best or a rip-off at worst. The particular people seem to think a website just 'exists' out there on the Inter-webs or are somehow part of the World Wide Web; they have trouble understanding what website hosting is and why … [Read more...]
Google Say’s Don’t Buy Domains for Past Rankings; Knows When They Change Hands
NEW YORK, NY – In an article that came out in Search Engine Roundtable the other day, long-time search marketing expert Barry Schwartz points out that a Google employee named Aaseesh, tasked with monitoring Google’s Webmaster Central Help Forum, posted a comment which suggests that Google zaps a domains ranking juice, not only when the domain expires (which most have already suspected), but also when the domain merely changes hands or is sold. This adds a new layer of … [Read more...]
Lights Out for Broadway Ticket, GEO Domain Site NewYork.com Over Legal Dispute
NEW YORK, NY – While researching some GEO domain names last night I discovered that NewYork.com has now disappeared. It was a huge site I was quite familiar with as I had some past affiliate dealings with them, but today it appears its gone offline and parked at Godaddy.com. This was initially very hard to believe as last time I visited the site it seemed bustling with traffic and activity similar to its New York City streets in which it ‘virtually’ represented. This … [Read more...]
Gargiulo Reiterates Necessity for .COM in New Forbes Domain and Branding Article
NEW YORK, NY - Michael Gargiulo, owner of VPN.com, a group of virtual private network consultants, is also part of what Forbes Magazine calls its “Forbes Technology Council”, an invitation only community for senior technology executives. Gargiulo, who I have begun to follow for his ‘straight-shooter’ domain advice, writes periodically for Forbes Magazine and certainly believes in the value of a great domain name, indicated by his decision in 2017 to purchase VPN.com for … [Read more...]
27 Ways to Increase Website Traffic in 2018
NEW YORK, NY - I remember when Internet marketing was easy. Back then, it did not take 27 things, it took more like three. For me, it was all about: Knowing who I was trying to reach by doing some initial keyword research, then Optimize my web site for particular keywords and phrases my research showed traffic for, and Find links to point to my site including related keywords and keyword phrases in the anchor text of the links. Basically, I could do those three … [Read more...]
Here’s Why You Shouldn’t Purchase an Ngtld Domain Simply for Search Rankings
NEW YORK, NY – Many who read this site will be familiar with the out-of-the ordinary sales of a few new gTLDs recently, one of which was Vacation Dot Rentals. I stumbled onto an old post about it over at Ricks Blog [I enjoy Rick's ramblings and story telling as I am sure many others do: The post was called "Fake site on a Fake GTLD Sale? The tale of “No Results Found” at Vacation.Rentals" - I'm sure you all read it.] I wanted to see where the site was ranking today … [Read more...]
Shortcut to GDPR Preparation for Sites and Services That Do Not Target EU Users
NEW YORK - As you are probably well aware due to the number of emails you are receiving, by next Friday, May 25th, 2018, the EU General Data Protection Regulation (“GDPR”) will go into full effect. You should be preparing to update your Privacy Policy even if your site does not target EU users. I wanted to share what I have learned so far as I prepare to update some of my United States websites. I urge you to seek out your own advice and council on what to do to bring your … [Read more...]
More Bad News for Monetization with AdSense; Introducing Lazy-Loaded Ads
NEW YORK – According to a discussion from users over at Webmaster World, it has been found that Google is now utilizing ‘lazy-load’ technology to only load AdSense ads when they are in a user’s actual device view-point. Not only have I personally noticed continual drops recently, but a frustrated colleague who has been monitoring his website decline in AdSense revenue called me up yesterday and pointed out this forum thread detailing the find - which I finally had time to … [Read more...]
Ad Revenue Down? Here’s the Latest Things That Could Be Affecting Your Revenue
NEW YORK – You might say that declining ad revenue is becoming a typical part of the business; if you feel like you are constantly trying to find new ways to build both revenue and traffic on your domains while increasing the number of channels and ad networks you rely on, you’re far from alone. Publisher revenues are being squeezed across the board, and while sometimes you might even feel that the more web traffic you build, the less it pays out – you’re probably correct in … [Read more...]
Got Traffic? There’s a New Sheriff in Town
NEW YORK, NY – If you have become accustomed to following my Internet ramblings, you’ll have heard me talking about overall declining Google Traffic and the heavily improving Facebook referrals I see while monitoring websites. Today, I figured I would share an example with you, because often ‘images speak louder than words’, and while I find myself with some extra time today, why not share a screenshot? If you are not yet focusing your efforts on Facebook and are still … [Read more...]
The “Super Secret” to Appraising Your .com Domain Name for 2018 and Beyond
NEW YORK, NY - There have been many changes over the last five years when it comes to Internet domain names. I will say that this pertains to the average domain (web address), not so much a super-premium domain name, but your average .com two or three word domain name. For the most part, pricing has gone down, for whatever reason. Some changes you may have noticed such as: The EMD Penalty: Where Google will not simply rank the domain at the top of search for its exact … [Read more...]
Search Engine Optimization (“SEO”) for “CEOs” – ln Layman’s Terms
NEW YORK, NY - About twelve years ago when “search engine optimization” was beginning to get popular, a competing news publisher invited me to lunch at his restaurant to brainstorm about collaborating. It never materialized, but while there and after getting to know each other for a little while, he then turned to me, changed his posture in his chair a bit, sort of gathered his thoughts, and asked me straight out, “sell me on search engine optimization”, “what is it” and “how … [Read more...]
