This is a step by step tutorial about optimizing a link directory site. I’m doing this for my one and only link directory which starts to grow old in a world of social media domination.

First of all, a basic Google Analytics metrics shows a very high bounce rate. This is understandable as users arrive, submit a site and never look back. I admit it, I do the same. That’s why I need to either motivate the user to come back, at least once – this way I’ll double my traffic – or further optimize the directory in order to make it more search engine friendly.

So, as my link directory was properly optimized for SEO, headings, metadata, paragraphs and all, I decided to research and develop new features.

I should note that I use phpLinkDirectory 2.2. If you are wondering why this old version, when phpLinkDirectory 4 is live, it’s because I worked hard for the theme and I implemented lots of mods into it. Also, I updated the phpmailer module, the Smarty template engine and the ADODB database wrapper. I don’t need the overhead of a bulkier directory engine, and I’m happy with what 2.2 does and feels like. These optimization may well be applied to other link directory scripts, as today I’m discussing ideas and concepts rather than copy/paste scripts and tutorials.

I first added some pages, like “About us”, “The importance of submitting your web site” and “Articles”. The “Articles” page resembles a mini-blog page with 4 or 5 articles. Stuffed with keywords, this page is bound to get more traffic.

I, then, optimized all categories descriptions and keywords. I have a total of 130 categories, so this optimization will pay off at the next bots visits. I did this using some template hacks and some new database fields. Pretty simple if you know what you’re doing. Do not mess with the title slug! Remember, the trick here is to improve not to change. If you touch the title slug, search engine will send traffic to non existent pages.

Adding descriptions and keywords to categories is a lengthy process, as you need to write a short, concise phrase for each category and add several keywords, other than the name of the category. Let’s say I have the category “Business and Investment”. I’ll obviously not add “business” and “investment” as keywords. I’ll find some synonyms.

The next phase was to use some .htaccess tricks and rewrite features in order to get rid of the URL parameters like “?p=d”. I replaced those with the actual name of the page. While this is good for keywords SEO, it is also good for statistics. Knowing what exact page was visited is better than having a bunch of “index.php?p=219″.

It seems that before the optimization, Google’s Intelligence report estimates less visits than I receive. That’s a good thing.

I have finally installed the new Google Analytics asynchronous code.

Now, I only need to measure the new changes.

Based on my latest reports, it seems that users type the web address or even the site name directly into the search engine. For example, typing youtube in Google will return a list of results. The first one is http://www.youtube.com/.

The first improvement you can bring a web site is a search function (obviously, if the site did not have one). Half of all users are search-dominant and will usually head straight for the search function. This is especially true on large web sites that update their content regularly. If the site has a search function, try to improve it and to emphasize it for your users.

The second improvement is to reduce the loading time. There are numerous plugins for Firefox that help seeing slow loading elements and suggest ways to fix them. Make your images smaller and use correct formats for them. For example, use 8-bit PNG files for icons and buttons, 24-bit PNG files for transparency and opacity based images or graphic elements, and JPG files for photos.

The third improvement is a correct and valid web structure, and a scannable page. Remember that reading a web page is not like reading a book. Use headings, paragraphs, ordered or unordered lists, bold and italic sentences.

The fourth improvement is correct link design. Either nice, shiny, coloured, glossy buttons or standard blue links, Your web site should present links in a smart manner, and lead the user through them to the landing page. Non-link text should be made bold or enlarged so that it stands out – don’t make it a different colour. Graphic-based links should be adjacent to text-based-links or have text embedded in them. A graphic that refers to, and is adjacent to, a text-based link should be a link itself.

The fifth improvement are 404 pages. Smart and simple, they should exist either by web site script functions, or by .htaccess declarations. The page should be self-explanatory and tell the user that the page does not exist. Also, provide a search engine and a list of possible destinations. A large heading with 404 error will make them hit the back button and go to the next search result. I’ve seen it.

The sixth improvement is something I don’t really use, but you should do as I say not as I do. Use all CSS link states, especially the visited ones. Visitors may find it useful to know where they have already been, especially on a large site with many links.

The seventh improvement is getting rid of an old school technique of assembling a web site, frames. Or iframes. There’s no point in explaining why frames are deprecated and why you should replace them with divs with AJAX calls, or redesign your site. Contact us, we might help you. We will definitely help you.

The eighth improvement is a smart navigation system and breadcrumbs feature. Disable current page links in order to help the user know where he is, and emphasize it in the breadcrumbs. If site visitors click on a link that takes them back to the same page it wastes their time, they may doubt whether they were really at the location they thought they were at, and they may become confused, particularly if the page is scrolled back to the top.

The ninth improvement is getting rid of large images and backgrounds and replacing them with tileable textures and small icons. Text downloads and renders on the screen first, followed by images. There can sometimes be a sizable time gap between the text and the last graphic appearing on-screen, especially for those graphics towards the right and bottom of the screen. The faster the page loads, the faster the user reaches the landing page. And that’s what you want, right?

The tenth improvement is never to go against design conventions and standards. Coloured and Javascripted scrolling systems, unusual icons and cursors, wacky navigation, even an unusual web page structure may confuse the user to the point of no return.

Watch out the bounce rate of your visitors and take care of your web site the way you should. Make it usable both for modem and for broadband users. Use smart innovative features and provide help where it is necessary. Do a lot of beta-testing for your web site before launching it. Use your friends and your family. Non-technical people can be more valuable regarding usability feedback, than a skilled webmaster.

The Christmas holiday is coming fast, and then the New Year, and then comes a “dead” period. This is how we call it. No contracts, no clients, no work. This is the perfect time to work and add more content and value both to your blog and to your readers.

You also have more time to upgrade all your web sites, make them even more SEO friendly, and promote them. This is what I am going to do. Other of my projects include creating more WordPress themes, create even a themes repository (this is still WIP), upgrading my scripts and doing a lot of promotion. It’s time to build some more authority for each of my web sites. I just opened a third web directory, this time it’s for local restaurants, clubs, cafes and casinos. My first local link directory is doing pretty fine, as it has grown to more than 700 quality web sites this year.

Butterfly Media Romania is going to double (at least) its assets in 2009.

Darren Rowse gives some interesting advice for the future, find ways to expand and improve your blog, track your statistics and improve upon them, work hard and work smart, and a few more. I should add check all your income sources and try to improve their placement and their behaviour.

Just keep me posted of what you do and I’ll share with you my progress.

So you decided to create a lot of web sites to make money out of them. You are the administrator of almost 10 web sites (static, dynamic, CMS, whatever). You want more because you think more web sites will bring you more money. Actually, more web sites will bring you more trouble IF you don’t get over the second phase with them.

Read more »

Back in April, Yahoo acquired IndexTools, a provider of analytics software based in Hungary. Today, that service has re-emerged as Yahoo Web Analytics, and is being offered as a limited beta to customers of Yahoo Small Business – the company’s suite of tools for helping small businesses market and sell products online. Additionally, the tool will also be made available to select Yahoo advertisers.

As you might expect, Yahoo Web Analytics includes integration with other Yahoo products. For example, you can analyze the effectiveness of Yahoo search marketing campaigns and track how well individual products within your e-commerce shop are trending. The product will naturally be compared to Google Analytics, the free offering from Google that has similar integration with AdWords.

While it may be late to the party, Yahoo Web Analytics is apparently a big upgrade for Yahoo Small Business customers.

Source: Mashable