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Search Engine Optimisation - The Current Situation

by Jason Kendall on May 7, 2010

Search Engine Optimisation is an ever changing discipline. It works to maximise a website’s ratings on the ‘natural’ search lists on major Search Engines. When we search for anything, up come the natural search lists. They’re different from the ads that companies have paid for. The PPC (paid) entries tend to feature at the top and right side of the page. Whereas the free listings are taken from the main index. The Search Engines look at a site’s relevancy and value when establishing its position in the hierarchy.

We want to be right up there where we can be seen. Nobody will know we’re there if we’re way down on page eight! It’s impossible to know about all the SE’s rank determining factors. They don’t want us to know.

As a result, we now have a very skilled bunch of professionals focused on optimisation. And so we have on one side Google and Bing purposely patenting different technologies. (Which leads to much confusion of course!) Then to challenge that on the other hand is a growing SEO (optimisation) sector. This uses empirical testing and measuring of various factors to determine which ones are the most important.

There are two sides to SEO: ‘On-Page’ factors & ‘Off-Page’ factors. Additionally, demographics have an influence, but SEO doesn’t cover off-web factors. (We will cover off page optimisation in a separate article.)

On Page Optimisation

On-Page SEO is all about changes you can make directly to a site to make it more Search Engine ‘friendly’. This is actually a fairly clear-cut process. Factors like: The correct use and density of keywords and internal linking; H1 and H2 header tags and meta tags.

Which may well sound like a foreign language to you! On-Page optimisation is now known to have the smallest affect on your page rank. To be blunt, some would say it hardly has any effect at all. Many years ago, you used to be able to dupe the SE’s with lots of on-page factors. However, those days are long gone.

The only time that ‘on-page’ becomes important is when you have taken care of ‘off-page’ and have a lot of inbound ‘back-links’. In that circumstance, some On-Page tweaks and internal links can have an impact.

A Few Handy Pointers… Do not START to SEO with phrases that yield millions of results. For instance, if you typed into a Search Engine the term Car insurance, seventy million results would be listed for the UK alone. It’s not rocket science to realise that competing in this area wouldn’t be productive.

But… A much smaller list (300k) comes up when I enter ‘Southampton car insurance’. (Which could be useful if I sold car insurance in Southampton!) This still seems quite a large amount, but it’s actually not in search terms.

The extended phrase makes all the difference. In actual fact, it takes very deep pockets to get a premier listing for a term like ‘car insurance’. The competition would be fierce. So not a great idea - especially, in fact, when there are much better ways to go about it.

Therefore, we’re looking for phrases that yield less overall results - but quite accurately sum up what we do or what we offer. In Search Engine terms, these phrases (which can have a number of keywords) are referred to as long-tail. If your market’s very competitive, you could be selecting seven word phrases. Generally we use 3 to 4 words.

We prefer to begin optimisation strategies with phrases that bring in less than five hundred thousand results. Occasionally we’ll accept bigger numbers, but only if the results at the top haven’t been optimised well. As time goes on, we’ll benefit from an automatic improvement on the bigger terms as well. We can go for some of those after several months if we’ve SEO’d well. A plan like this is more strategic to start with. We go for the phrases that people who are looking to buy would use.

It’s also useful and wise to build back-links to individual sub-pages on your website, not just your home page. We call this ‘deep-linking’ - and Google in particular likes this. Category or Product Group pages are a good example. These pages are usually linked to particular product pages. This means it can be very productive to drive search terms directly to them. So don’t limit the back links to one page. The SE’s are becoming increasingly interested in how a site’s individual pages are listed.

Copyright 2009 Scott Edwards. Navigate to Jason Kendall or www.evolvesem.co.uk.

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Microsoft IT Study - Insights

by Jason Kendall on March 17, 2010

CompTIA A+ consists of 4 training sections; you’re seen as A+ competent when you’ve gained exams for 2 out of 4 subjects. This is why most training providers only teach 2 specialised areas. In reality you will need the teaching in all areas as many positions will demand knowledge and skills of all four areas. Don’t feel pressured to complete all 4 certifications, however we’d advise that you take tutorials in all 4 subjects.

Courses in A+ computer training cover fault-finding and diagnostics - both through hands-on and remote access, as well as building, fixing, repairing and having knowledge of antistatic conditions.

Should you be thinking of taking care of computer networks, you should add Network+ to the CompTIA A+ training you’re doing. This qualification will enable you to command a more senior job role. Other ones that might be interesting to you are the route to networking via Microsoft, in the form of MCP’s, MCSA or the full MCSE.

Considering the amount of options that are available, is it any wonder that the majority of career changers don’t really understand the best career path they could be successful with.

How can we possibly grasp what is involved in a particular job when it’s an alien environment to us? We normally don’t even know anybody who is in that area at all.

Getting to a well-informed answer really only appears from a thorough analysis covering many varying criteria:

* Your personality type and what you’re interested in - the sort of work-centred jobs you love or hate.

* Why it seems right stepping into IT - maybe you’d like to overcome a long-held goal like working for yourself maybe.

* Where is the salary on a scale of importance - is it very important, or is job satisfaction a lot higher on the scale of your priorities?

* Some students don’t fully understand the time demanded to gain all the necessary accreditation.

* You will need to appreciate the differences between the myriad of training options.

The bottom line is, your only chance of investigating all this is via a meeting with a professional who understands the market well enough to give you the information required.

Sometimes, people don’t comprehend what IT means. It is electrifying, revolutionary, and means you’re doing your bit in the gigantic wave of technology that will impact the whole world for generations to come.

Technological changes and communication on the web is going to radically shape the direction of our lives in the near future; remarkably so.

The average IT employee throughout Britain will also earn significantly more money than employees on a par outside of IT. Standard IT wages are hard to beat nationally.

Experts agree that there’s a great country-wide requirement for certified IT specialists. It follows that with the constant growth in the marketplace, it appears there’s going to be for the significant future.

Those that are drawn to this type of work are usually quite practically-minded, and don’t always take well to classrooms, and poring through books and manuals. If this could be you, opt for more involving, interactive learning materials, where learning is video-based.

Studies in learning psychology have shown that long term memory is improved when we involve as many senses as possible, and we put into practice what we’ve been studying.

Top of the range study programs now offer easy-to-use DVD or CD ROM’s. Real-world classes from the instructors will mean you’ll find things easier to remember through the demonstrations and explanations. Then you test your knowledge by interacting with the software and practicing yourself.

Each company you’re contemplating should be able to show you some examples of their courseware. Expect video tutorials, instructor led classes and a wide selection of interactive elements.

It doesn’t make sense to choose training that is only available online. With highly variable reliability and quality from all internet service providers, you should always obtain CD or DVD ROM based materials.

Can job security truly exist anywhere now? In a marketplace like the UK, with industry changing its mind on a day-to-day basis, we’d question whether it does.

In actuality, security now only emerges through a swiftly escalating marketplace, pushed forward by a shortfall of trained staff. This shortage creates the appropriate setting for a secure market - definitely a more pleasing situation.

With the computer industry for example, a recent e-Skills study showed massive skills shortages in Great Britain of over 26 percent. To put it another way, this clearly demonstrates that Great Britain only has 3 trained people for each 4 positions that exist currently.

This one notion alone shows why the United Kingdom urgently requires so many more workers to get trained and become part of the IT industry.

Unquestionably, now, more than ever, really is the very best time to join IT.

Copyright 2009 Scott Edwards. Hop over to HERE or www.computer-networking-courses.co.uk.

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MCSA-MCSE Training Providers - News

by Jason Kendall on March 13, 2010

Because you’re looking at information about Microsoft MCSE’s, you’re most likely in one of the following categories: You could be considering a dynamic move to the world of IT, and your research tells you there’s a huge demand for properly qualified people. In contrast you’re currently an IT professional - and you should formalise your skills with an MCSE.

Always make sure you prove conclusively that your provider is actually training you on the latest Microsoft version. A number of trainees get frustrated when they realise they’ve been learning from an out-of-date syllabus which now needs updating.

Look out for computer training companies who’re only trying to make a sale. Always remember that purchasing a course to qualify for an MCSE is much like purchasing a vehicle. They’re very diverse; some will be fantastic, whilst others will constantly let you down. A valid provider will offer you time, expertise and advice to check you’ve got the correct course. When providers are proud of their courses, you’ll be shown samples of it before buying anything.

Commercial qualifications are now, without a doubt, beginning to replace the older academic routes into the IT industry - why then is this the case?

With university education costs increasing year on year, along with the industry’s recognition that accreditation-based training most often has much more commercial relevance, we’ve seen a large rise in Adobe, Microsoft, CISCO and CompTIA based training courses that educate students at a much reduced cost in terms of money and time.

Typically, only required knowledge is taught. Actually, it’s not quite as pared down as that, but the most important function is always to master the precisely demanded skill-sets (including a degree of required background) - without trying to cram in all sorts of other things (as degree courses are known to do).

When it comes down to the nitty-gritty: Commercial IT certifications let employers know exactly what you’re capable of - the title is a complete giveaway: as an example - I am a ‘Microsoft Certified Professional’ in ‘Managing and Maintaining Windows Server 2003′. Therefore an employer can identify just what their needs are and what certifications are required to perform the job.

We need to make this very clear: It’s essential to obtain proper 24×7 round-the-clock instructor and mentor support. You’ll definitely experience problems if you don’t.

Don’t accept study programmes that only provide support to you through a message system outside of normal office hours. Training schools will defend this with all kinds of excuses. But, no matter how they put it - you want to be supported when you need the help - not when it’s convenient for them.

We recommend that you search for study programmes that incorporate three or four individual support centres around the globe in several time-zones. Each one should be integrated to provide a single interface and also round-the-clock access, when you want it, without any problems.

Never settle for anything less. Direct-access 24×7 support is the only kind that ever makes the grade with technical learning. Maybe burning the midnight-oil is not your thing; usually though, we’re out at work at the time when most support is available.

Don’t get hung-up, like so many people do, on the certification itself. You’re not training for the sake of training; you should be geared towards the actual job at the end of it. Stay focused on what it is you want to achieve.

Avoid becoming part of the group who choose a training program that seems ‘fun’ or ‘interesting’ - only to end up with a qualification for a job they hate.

Stay tuned-in to what you want to achieve, and build your study action-plan from that - avoid getting them back-to-front. Keep on track and ensure that you’re training for an end-result you’ll enjoy for years to come.

You’d also need help from a professional that can best explain the market you’re hoping to qualify in, and who can give you ‘A typical day in the life of’ outline for that career-path. These things are of paramount importance as you’ll need to fully understand if you’re going down the right road.

One area often overlooked by new students thinking about a course is the concept of ‘training segmentation’. Essentially, this is how the program is broken down into parts for timed release to you, which completely controls where you end up.

Most companies will sell you some sort of program spread over 1-3 years, and send out each piece as you finish each section. On the surface this seems reasonable - until you consider the following:

What happens when you don’t complete every single section? What if you don’t find their order of learning is ideal for you? Without any fault on your part, you mightn’t complete everything fast enough and consequently not get all your materials.

The very best situation would see you getting all your study materials sent to your address right at the beginning; every single thing! This prevents any future issues from rising that will affect your progress.

Copyright 2009 Scott Edwards. Check out Click HERE or MCSE Training.

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Training in Networking Support Considered

by Jason Kendall on March 12, 2010

These days, industry would struggle without assistance from support workers mending networks and computers, while making recommendations to users on a constant basis. Because we’re all becoming progressively reliant on technology, we additionally inevitably become more dependent on the skilled and qualified IT professionals, who keep the systems going.

Typically, a new trainee will not know to ask about a vitally important element - how their company segments the courseware, and into how many separate packages.

Drop-shipping your training elements stage by stage, taking into account your exam passes is the normal way of receiving your courseware. This sounds logical, but you might like to consider this:

With thought, many trainees understand that their providers standard order of study doesn’t suit. It’s often the case that varying the order of study will be far more suitable. And what happens if they don’t finish within their exact timetable?

In an ideal situation, you want everything at the start - so you’ll have them all to return to any point - at any time you choose. This allows a variation in the order that you move through the program as and when something more intuitive seems right for you.

Being a part of progressive developments in new technology really is electrifying. You personally play your part in shaping the next few decades.

We’re in the very early stages of beginning to see just how technology will affect our lives in the future. Technology and the web will massively transform how we see and interact with the world around us over the coming years.

And don’t forget salaries either - the average salary in the UK for a typical man or woman in IT is significantly greater than average salaries nationally. It’s a good bet you’ll make quite a bit more than you would in most other jobs.

Demand for professionally qualified and skilled IT workers is guaranteed for many years to come, thanks to the ongoing growth in the marketplace and the vast skills gap still present.

Can job security honestly exist anymore? Here in the UK, where business constantly changes its mind whenever it suits, there doesn’t seem much chance.

Where there are rising skills shortages coupled with growing demand of course, we almost always reveal a newly emerging type of security in the marketplace; driven by the conditions of constant growth, organisations are struggling to hire the influx of staff needed.

A rather worrying British e-Skills analysis brought to light that over 26 percent of computing and IT jobs cannot be filled because of a chronic shortage of trained staff. That means for each four job positions in existence in Information Technology (IT), we have only 3 certified professionals to do them.

Accomplishing in-depth commercial Information Technology accreditation is consequently a fast-track to realise a continuing and gratifying profession.

Because the IT sector is developing at such a rate, there really isn’t any other sector worth looking at for your new career.

You have to make sure that all your exams are current and also valid commercially - you’re wasting your time with programs that only give in-house certificates.

If your certification doesn’t come from a big-hitter like Microsoft, Adobe, Cisco or CompTIA, then it’s likely it could have been a waste of time and effort - because no-one will recognise it.

Written by Scott Edwards. Go to Computer Courses or Click HERE.

Technorati Tags: advice, career, computer, education, Games, hobbies, home, Money, self improvement, shop, Software, technology, Web, work

Networking Careers Training - Update

by Jason Kendall on March 3, 2010

If it weren’t for a steady stream of knowledgeable network and PC support staff, commerce in Great Britain (and around the world) would inevitably be brought to its knees. There is a huge requirement for technicians to support systems and users alike. With the increasingly complex nature of technology, growing numbers of qualified workers are needed to run the smooth operation of functions we’ve become dependent on.

Sometimes, folks don’t catch on to what information technology can do for us. It is thrilling, changing, and puts you at the fore-front of developments in technology that will affect us all over the next generation.

We’ve barely started to get a feel for how technology will influence everything we do. Computers and the web will massively transform the way we view and interact with the rest of the world over the coming decades.

Incomes in IT are not a problem either - the income on average in Great Britain for the usual man or woman in IT is considerably greater than in other market sectors. It’s a good bet that you’ll receive quite a bit more than you’d typically expect to bring in elsewhere.

As the IT industry keeps emerging at an unprecedented rate, it’s looking good that the need for appropriately qualified IT professionals will continue to boom for the significant future.

Kick out the typical salesman who recommends a training program without performing a ‘fact-find’ to better understand your current abilities and experience level. Make sure they can draw from a generous range of products so they’re able to solve your training issues.

Of course, if you’ve got any work-experience or certification, then it’s not unreasonable to expect to start at a different point than a student who’s starting from scratch.

Working through a foundation module first will sometimes be the most effective way to start into your IT programme, but really depends on your level of familiarity with computers.

You have to make sure that all your qualifications are commercially valid and current - you’re wasting your time with programmes that only give in-house certificates.

The main industry leaders like Microsoft, Cisco, CompTIA or Adobe have globally acknowledged skills programs. These big-hitters will ensure your employability.

Always expect accredited simulation materials and an exam preparation system as part of your training package.

Confirm that the practice exams aren’t just asking you the right questions on the right subjects, but ask them in the way the real exams will structure them. It really messes up people if they’re faced with unrecognisable phrases and formats.

Clearly, it’s essential to ensure that you’ve thoroughly prepared for your commercial exam before taking it. Rehearsing simulated tests adds to your knowledge bank and will save a lot of money on wasted exam attempts.

Copyright 2009 Scott Edwards. Try Networking Courses or Networking Certification.

Technorati Tags: advice, career, computer, education, Games, hobbies, home, Money, self improvement, shop, Software, technology, Web, work

Database Courses In The UK - Update

by Jason Kendall on March 3, 2010

Everybody is busy these days, and usually if we desire to advance our future prospects, taking a course alongside a job is the only option open to us. Training tracks certified by Microsoft can be the way to do it.

Perhaps you’d like to talk to industry experts, who could offer counsel on which job role would suit you, and the kind of tasks that are suitable for an individual with your character and ability.

Training courses should be designed to match your current skills and aptitude. Hence, once you’ve decided on the best kind of work for you, your next focus is the most applicable training course that will equip you for the role.

The old fashioned style of teaching, utilising reference manuals and books, is often a huge slog for most of us. If this sounds like you, look for learning programmes which have a majority of interactive, multimedia parts.

Research into the way we learn shows that much more of what we learn in remembered when we use all our senses, and we take action to use what we’ve learned.

Find a course where you’re provided with an array of CD and DVD ROM’s - you’ll begin by watching videos of instructors demonstrating the skills, and be able to use virtual lab’s to practice your new skills.

You really need to look at some example materials from the company you’re considering. You’ll want to see that they include full motion videos of instructors demonstrating the topic with lab’s to practice the skills in.

Some companies only have access to online training only; sometimes you can get away with this - but, imagine the problems when you don’t have access to the internet or you get intermittent problems and speed issues. It’s preferable to have DVD or CD discs that don’t suffer from these broadband issues.

The area most overlooked by those considering a training program is ‘training segmentation’. This basically means the method used to break up the program for delivery to you, which vastly changes how you end up.

Often, you will join a program requiring 1-3 years study and receive a module at a time. It seems to make sense on one level, but consider these issues:

With thought, many trainees understand that the trainer’s ’standard’ path of training isn’t as suitable as another. You may find that a slightly different order suits them better. And what if you don’t get to the end inside of the expected timescales?

For future safety and flexibility, many trainees now want to request that all their modules (now paid for) are delivered immediately, and not in stages. That means it’s down to you how fast or slow and in what order you want to finish things.

Let’s face it: There really is absolutely no personal job security now; there’s really only industry and business security - any company is likely to let anyone go when it meets the business’ business needs.

We can however find security at the market sector level, by searching for areas that have high demand, together with a lack of qualified workers.

Taking a look at the IT market, a recent e-Skills analysis showed a 26 percent deficit in trained staff. It follows then that for every four jobs that are available throughout IT, employers can only source trained staff for 3 of the 4.

Acquiring in-depth commercial Information Technology exams is accordingly an effective route to a continuing as well as pleasing living.

Undoubtedly, this really is a fabulous time to consider retraining into IT.

Proper support should never be taken lightly - look for a package offering 24×7 direct access to instructors, as anything less will not satisfy and will also hold up your pace and restrict your intake.

Email support is too slow, and phone support is usually just a call-centre that will chat nicely with you for 5 minutes to ask what the issue is and then simply send an email to an instructor - who will call back over the next day or so (assuming you’re there), when it suits them. This is no good if you’re stuck with a particular problem and have a one hour time-slot in which to study.

Keep looking and you’ll come across the top providers that recommend and use direct-access support at all times - no matter what time of day it is.

Never make do with anything less. 24×7 support is the only kind that ever makes the grade for computer-based training. Perhaps you don’t intend to study during the evenings; usually though, we’re working while the support is live.

Copyright Scott Edwards. Go to Database Training Courses or CLICK HERE.

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