Eminent SEO Can Help with Marijuana Dispensary Marketing
The cannabis industry is one of the fastest growing industries in the U.S., but marketing has still proven to be a challenge for many medical dispensaries. So how can you raise brand awareness and get in front of the right people?
Learn how Eminent SEO is helping companies in the cannabis industry elevate their branding and marketing:
“One of the most common mistakes business owners continue to make is not allocating enough budget for marketing. Successful CEOs understand that marketing drives sales and therefore it is not an expense, but rather an investment into the future of their company.” – Jenny Stradling
Leads and Conversions Are Not Always the Same Thing
As digital marketers, it is our job to help our clients grow their brand presence, develop strong marketing messages and drive qualified leads to their website. However, the marketing process doesn’t end there. Oftentimes, a first-time website visitor is not ready to buy immediately.
By better understanding the buyer’s journey, your team can develop a sales strategy that considers the entire funnel, driving a much higher conversion rate.
Learn more about converting leads into sales by understanding the buyer’s journey through our recent blog article:
Wondering How Long SEO Takes and If It’s Really Worth the Investment?
We wouldn’t be in business if clients didn’t see the benefit and value of SEO. But, we won’t sugarcoat it: SEO is hard work, it takes time and it’s usually a bigger investment on the front end.
However, when you really compare the expense of organic search engine marketing to other digital channels – such as media buys and paid ads – SEO wins every time.
Still not convinced? Let’s let the data to do the talking…
Real SEO Case Study: Transitioning from Google Ads to an Organic SEO Strategy
In October of last year, an addiction recovery center came to us with a huge Google paid ad budget and a cost per admit that was higher than the price of treatment. We transitioned them to an SEO strategy right before the big Google AdWords smackdown, and now look at the data:
This organic SEO traffic would have cost nearly $200K in paid ad costs. We saved them hundreds of thousands of dollars per month on paid ads, and their ongoing organic campaign is a fraction of the cost with a higher conversion rate.
Winning!
Want more examples and a deeper look at the long-term value SEO can provide? Keep reading:
On our Facebook page, we’re currently running a poll that we’d like you to vote in! We’re asking what’s the worst SEO habit you could have as a webmaster in 2018.
The options are:
Creating a new webpage for each keyword variation
Purchasing bulk links from low-quality directories
Never running a backlink audit
Studying tracked keywords only
Not adapting to the constant changes in the industry
In your opinion, which one of those is the worst SEO habit to have? Please comment below.
CEO, Business Consultant, Researcher and Marketing Strategist
Jenny Weatherall is the co-owner and CEO of Eminent SEO, a design and marketing agency founded in 2009. She has worked in the industry since 2005, when she fell in love with digital marketing… and her now husband and partner, Chris. Together they have 6 children and 3 granddaughters.
Jenny has a passion for learning and sharing what she learns. She has researched, written and published hundreds of articles on a wide variety of topics, including: SEO, design, marketing, ethics, business management, sustainability, inclusion, behavioral health, wellness and work-life balance.
Eminent SEO has proudly served the addiction treatment care community for more than a decade. With the opioid epidemic sweeping the country, the death toll continues to climb. What can be done?
The truth is, there is a big void that needs to be filled. The government and private insurance providers only cover so much. There’s a gap when it comes to funding the vast ongoing needs of those in addiction recovery. Insurance may cover treatment, for example, but not housing, food and other necessities. Some have been out of work, and not everyone can afford even the most basic necessities.
That’s where The ECHO Foundation comes in. Longtime recovery professional, Jim Haggerty, founded this nonprofit in 2014 and dedicated the organization to educating, mentoring and providing tools and resources to individuals seeking addiction treatment. Eminent SEO joined the effort by offering to create the branding, develop the website and manage the marketing. Together, we know we can make a difference. View the beautiful new site and, if you feel inspired, please consider donating. Every penny counts.
“The greatness of a community is most accurately measured by the compassionate actions of its members.”
– Coretta Scott King
Our Website Highlights
Several of our addiction treatment center clients here at Eminent SEO have asked us about this news: “Exclusive: Google unveils vetting process for drug rehab ads.” So, we took to our blog to answer the most pressing questions stemming from this recent Google development.
There’s an intuitiveness to digital marketing that if your campaigns aren’t geared toward each platform uniquely, your advertising and social spends may miss your proposed target audience. Why? See our latest neuromarketing blog post.
SEO changes so often that even last year’s techniques can be outdated. As we progress into 2018, our team took a moment to reflect on some of the outdated SEO tactics of yesteryear to develop a list of our top five.
Out of the choices below, what do you think is THE WORST habit you can have as an SEO specialist in 2018?
1. Creating one page for EACH keyword variation.
SEO isn’t about tricking Google into serving up your site. Writing content that is valuable to your users should always be rule No. 1. Google rewards websites that provide a great user experience. No user wants to read 100 pages on the same subject. Sure, that used to work. Today, it will only hurt your rankings with Google.
2. Mass purchasing links from poor directories.
Look, links matter; if we are guessing right, they always will. It’s a world wide WEB. How else will Google connect the dots? Links help search engines find useful content, too. However, not all links are created equal. A huge increase in low-quality links will definitely raise a red flag with Google. Instead, focus on quality over quantity.
3. Not conducting backlink audits EVER.
Even if you don’t buy links and work on “white-hat SEO” link-earning techniques only, that doesn’t prevent other sites from linking to you. Spammy sites that rely on scraped content, for example, can show up in your backlink index in huge numbers. Google holds you responsible for your backlinks, purchased or not. Monitoring them is key to avoiding a bigger issue.
4. Spending time looking at and studying tracked keywords ONLY.
We stopped reporting on keyword rankings as a primary organic marketing key performance deliverable years ago. Why? The data lies. Search results are now personalized, localized and even limited, depending on the device you search from. Rankings don’t tell the full story. Instead, use the amount of traffic, user engagement and quality of the leads to measure organic success.
5. Practicing SEO as if the industry NEVER changes.
If you follow SEO at all, chances are you know how fast this industry changes. As a team, we listen to podcasts, read articles, conduct studies and share new ideas on SEO daily. If you’re not making a regular effort to educate yourself on the latest news and best practices, you’re setting yourself up for failure. Education is power and, in this case, your key to success with SEO today.
CEO, Business Consultant, Researcher and Marketing Strategist
Jenny Weatherall is the co-owner and CEO of Eminent SEO, a design and marketing agency founded in 2009. She has worked in the industry since 2005, when she fell in love with digital marketing… and her now husband and partner, Chris. Together they have 6 children and 3 granddaughters.
Jenny has a passion for learning and sharing what she learns. She has researched, written and published hundreds of articles on a wide variety of topics, including: SEO, design, marketing, ethics, business management, sustainability, inclusion, behavioral health, wellness and work-life balance.
As your business is getting its feet settled in 2018, ask yourself these two questions:
How do I know if my current marketing is producing quality leads?
What types of additional marketing might I need?
If you don’t have clear answers to these two questions, Eminent SEO can help. We’ll start with a brand audit to let you know what’s already working and where you can make improvements.
If you want to move forward from there, we’ll develop a multi-channel marketing strategy to give your brand a boost on several fronts in 2018. This will help your business in the following areas:
There are several pertinent SEO developments that we must share. Net neutrality certainly must be addressed. Keep your SEO knowledge current by perusing these three articles:
There were some surprising recent findings on what Google indexes from your site, and what it does not. A UK-based technical SEO blog shares its discoveries.
Local SEO causes some confusion among businesses, and many simply aren’t doing it right. Here are 5 local marketing tactics to avoid as you try to make improvements.
Business & Marketing Tips
It may be one of the older digital marketing channels, but it remains one of the most fruitful for businesses. You’ve got to do it right, though. Check out this email marketing tip from our CEO, Jenny Stradling:
Highlights from the Eminent SEO Blog
A recent survey revealed just how many businesses are currently trying their hand at content marketing. The number is only going to grow, so here are 3 tips on fine-tuning your strategy and setting it apart from the competition in 2018.
As for one last SEO development, our very own Zach Ankeny wrote about a recent change he noticed in Google’s search engine results pages, specifically pertaining to rich snippets and knowledge graphs. Will these changes affect your website?
Happy new year from the Eminent team! Until next month’s newsletter, we invite you to visit our blog or stay in touch with us via social media (see the icons below) .
CEO, Business Consultant, Researcher and Marketing Strategist
Jenny Weatherall is the co-owner and CEO of Eminent SEO, a design and marketing agency founded in 2009. She has worked in the industry since 2005, when she fell in love with digital marketing… and her now husband and partner, Chris. Together they have 6 children and 3 granddaughters.
Jenny has a passion for learning and sharing what she learns. She has researched, written and published hundreds of articles on a wide variety of topics, including: SEO, design, marketing, ethics, business management, sustainability, inclusion, behavioral health, wellness and work-life balance.
Eminent SEO News: Team Eminent Goes to Space … Kinda
We’ve been able to let our inner nerd out so far this month! Not only was May the 4th a pretty big day at the Eminent office – thanks to “Star Wars Day” – but we went as a team to see the new “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2” the following day.
And the day after, many of us went to the Chris Rock stand-up show in downtown Phoenix! We would share a few photos from it but … we couldn’t use our phones in the venue because apparently the show was being taped for a Netflix special.
So that’s how our month has gone so far. How about yours?
What’s New in SEO: Google’s New ‘Project Owl’ Aims to Make Search Answers More Reliable
Try as it might, Google has its work cut out for it when it comes to fighting back against web content that’s misleading or outright false.
Recently, the tech giant launched “Project Owl” to minimize the amount of fake news and problematic content that shows up in search results. Perhaps the best news in this new campaign is the fact users will get to play a role in weeding out the iffy content that occasionally shows up for certain search queries.
According to Search Engine Land, Google’s new attention to “problematic searches” will target content that is:
Partially or entirely made up
Heavily biased
Based on rumors, conspiracies or myths
Offensive
Derogatory
Which Areas of Search Will ‘Project Owl’ Target?
Project Owl also aims to improve:
Autocomplete search suggestions
Featured snippet answers (the information that is prominently featured when you ask a very specific question in search)
The visibility of authoritative content
To accomplish this, Google is taking new steps to identify and boost authoritative content, as well as opening feedback forms for users to opine on search suggestions and featured snippet answers.
For example, this is the form you can access if the search engine delivers a featured snippet for your query:
Google is on record saying these “problematic searches” only occur 0.25 percent of the time, but that still adds up to more than 1 million such occurrences each day. Let’s hope Project Owl elicits a better search experience for all of us, and don’t let your blog posts or website content get caught in the owl’s wrath!
Featured Service: High-Quality Blog Post Production
You don’t want to churn out blog content that will be flagged as “fake news,” heavily biased or problematic. If your business could use help with producing informative, engaging blog articles, talk to the experts at Eminent SEO.
Not only are our blog posts image-rich and highly optimized for search, but each article we produce is well-researched and aimed directly at one of the client’s target audiences. We also use the best linking practices (inks to highly authoritative sources, not too many links per page, etc.) when writing, which helps with search rankings in a number of ways.
To find out more about how we can take your blog and start using it to build up your search engine rankings and overall web presence, give us a call at 800.871.4130 today or visit our Blogging Services page.
Consumers demand choices, more than ever before. With Generation Z moving into the forefront of retail business owners’ minds (as they should), the face of the retail online shopping experience is only part of the larger picture.
There are a handful of different avenues a link builder can take, but the end goal is the same: to get a certain page or website to rank higher in the search results than those belonging to similar competitors.
Thank you to all our readers and subscribers! Until next month’s newsletter, if you’d like to stay in touch with Eminent SEO, please visit our blog or use the icons below to find us on social media.
Eminent SEO provides strategic SEO campaigns with measurable results along with expert website design, development, pay per click, content and social media and organic website marketing. 800.871.4130.
Thanks to some new clientele and additional projects, the Eminent SEO team is rapidly expanding. In the middle of January, we added another member to to team, and we plan to have at least five more people start this month!
Meet the newest member of our staff here:
Jacqlyn Cvitkovich – Social Media Strategist
Jacqlyn is the newest asset to our social media team. She is responsible for maintaining and expanding our clients’ social media presence on all major platforms through compelling visual and written content. With a background in music and an affinity for pop culture, Jacqlyn looks to develop unique social strategies to drive traffic to clients’ websites.
What’s New in SEO: Google Clears Up What Crawl Budget Means
If you’ve ever heard the term “crawl budget” when talking to your web department or a digital marketing agency, you may have had trouble figuring out exactly what they were talking about.
Don’t sweat it: It’s not an easy concept. To clarify what crawl budget really means, Google recently released a blog post on the topic. In the very first sentence, Google department head Gary Illyes acknowledged that he’s heard many definitions floating around for crawl budget.
Illyes continued to say that he’s not certain what crawl budget means to different SEO experts and marketing agencies, but that he set out to clear up what the term means for Googlebot, Google’s web crawler that peruses websites for new pages and content to index for the search engine.
Illyes then stated that most websites don’t have to worry about their crawl budget. Sites with “fewer than a few thousand URLs” will be crawled efficiently, most of the time, he wrote. Very large websites, however, need to take their crawl budget into account.
Highlights of the Google Blog Post
So, what exactly is a crawl budget? Here are the key takeaways from Illyes’s blog post to help you understand what crawl budget means:
Crawl rate limit determines a threshold for how often and how fast Googlebot can crawl your website without overloading your server.
Crawl demand refers to how often Googlebot should return to your website to crawl its pages, based on popularity, new content, etc.
Crawl budget, thus, is a combination of crawl rate limit and crawl demand. Essentially, it’s how many pages Googlebot can crawl on your website and how frequently it should crawl the site.
If you want to learn what your site’s crawl budget is AND set your crawl rate limit, all you have to do is use Google Search Console. Keep in mind that if you set a higher crawl rate limit, it doesn’t necessarily mean Googlebot will crawl your site more often.
We started off January with a different kind of blog post, one that explains how our company is pitching in to help a local business that suffered a major setback last year. Also on our blog, we offered an in-depth look at progressive web apps, a new technology that combines the best features of a phone app and a mobile website.
The January highlights of our blog are as follows:
Last year, Think Graphics & Printing Solutions lost its downtown Phoenix office when a fire overtook the building. When we heard the heartbreaking story, we felt called to help this fellow Arizona business! Find out how we are helping Think Graphics raise money to rebuild its office, plus how you can pitch in too.
Have you been exploring the ways that a mobile app could promote your business? Well, read this blog post first, because there’s a new alternative. Learn all about progressive web apps, a Google-developed technology that brings app-like features to mobile websites.
Our Commitment to Ethical Marketing
When you enlist Eminent SEO to help out with your website, your social media accounts, your email marketing or any other channel, it’s important to point out that we are committed to ethical hiring and marketing practices.
We don’t use black hat tactics to help your site climb up the search engine rankings, and we don’t cut corners when producing content on your behalf. We pride ourselves on transparency, and team works closely with yours to expand your brand’s reach and drive traffic to (and conversions on) your website.
To learn more about our ethical marketing practices and how we can customize a strategy to expand your digital presence, talk to us today at 800.871.4130!
Eminent SEO provides strategic SEO campaigns with measurable results along with expert website design, development, pay per click, content and social media and organic website marketing. 800.871.4130.
In August, one of the worst things that could happen to a business owner came true: A fire ripped through the office overnight, rendering the space useless.
That’s what happened to Randy Phillips of Think Graphics & Printing Solutions in Phoenix. He’s not sure how the fire was started, and the official investigation is ongoing.
Think, as they like to call themselves, has currently lost its esteemed spot on the hallowed Roosevelt Row in downtown Phoenix. Think’s workshop was right in the center of a monthly event known locally as First Fridays, perhaps the preeminent recurring cultural event in all of Arizona. First Friday is where local artists gather to sell their wares to thousands of visitors.
Luckily, Think has an office in the Tempe suburb where it could host the displaced Phoenix employees for the time being. But with its Phoenix office in tatters, Think is missing out on the opportunity to capitalize on the huge Friday audiences and become more embedded in the local arts scene.
The Fire Catches Our Attention
Members of Eminent SEO show off their “Think Phoenix” T-shirts, which go toward helping Think Graphics & Printing Solutions rebuild its downtown Phoenix office.
When the Eminent SEO team first heard Think’s heartbreaking story, we started devising ways to help out and turn Think’s fortunes around. Many of our employees have a strong passion for art, especially local art, so the news about Think’s burned-down shop hit close to home.
“When we found out about the fire, we knew we had to help!” our CEO Jenny Stradling said.
Under our CEO’s direction, we have been vigilant about building partnerships locally and supporting Phoenix-area businesses, artists and more.
“Phoenix is our home, too, and we know that by helping Think Graphics, we are helping good people, artists and our own community,” Stradling added. “They are going to reinvest in Phoenix, and that is important to us all. We believe artists are the heart and soul of Phoenix, and we want to prove it by supporting our partners when they need us most.”
Think Graphics’ Campaign
To help get its downtown Phoenix office rebuilt, Think Graphics launched a T-shirt campaign. The Phoenix graphics firm created a new, one-page website for the ongoing fundraiser, offering various T-shirts with designs from local artists. The campaign is called “Think Phoenix” and it encourages Phoenicians to take some hometown pride and support local vendors and businesses.
Think’s goal is to sell at least 2,500 T-shirts. Prices range from $25 to $30, and each design is available in several different colors. Think is periodically adding new designs to the page, as contributed by local artists.
Eminent SEO’s Contributions
So how did we decide to help? For starters, our boss bought a T-shirt for every person in the company, letting us choose which design and color they wanted. We even submitted two T-shirt designs, which Think now offers on its campaign website.
Meanwhile, several members of our team began shooting a short video to promote the “Think Phoenix” campaign. We interviewed Think’s owner on camera and captured footage (including some with a drone and GoPro) of the burned-down Phoenix shop.
See the “Think Phoenix” campaign video here:
We have also begun running strategic marketing campaigns to build up Think’s visibility online. It’s a mutually beneficial partnership, too, as Think is receiving more attention to its fundraising campaign while we were given the chance to refine our emerging video production capabilities in addition to working with a client outside of our usual realm of businesses.
How YOU Can Help
No matter where you are in the country, YOU can help Think Graphics raise money to rebuild its downtown Phoenix shop, too!
Team Eminent SEO geeks out in their new “Think Phoenix” T-Shirts.
It’s easy: All you have to do is visit http://www.thinkphx.com/ and buy a T-shirt (or two). There are several styles and colors from which to choose. Share the page with your family and friends and see if they want to pitch in too. You get a cool shirt out of the deal, plus Think will give you a coupon code for a custom shirt on Tendollarshirtstore.com for your purchase!
Another option you have is to visit the GoFundMe page created for Think Graphics. There, you’ll have a chance to donate whatever you’re comfortable with – and you can make the donation anonymously if you desire. Think is aiming to raise $50,000 with the GoFundMe page.
If you’re a local artist and you want to contribute to the fundraiser in another way, you can submit a “Think Phoenix” design to art@thinkpro.com for the chance you see your handiwork on a custom T-shirt.
To learn more about Think Graphics & Printing Solutions, visit the company’s main website.
Thanks for your consideration in helping out a Phoenix business that would truly appreciate your support in 2017.
Eminent SEO provides strategic SEO campaigns with measurable results along with expert website design, development, pay per click, content and social media and organic website marketing. 800.871.4130.
On this Eminent SEO blog, we generally offer marketing advice, website and social media tips, as well as SEO and tech news. On this go-round, however, we’d like to slightly deviate from our usual offerings and talk about an issue that more closely relates to something many of our clients would usually cover: addiction.
But we’re not here to talk about addiction to drugs, alcohol or other harmful habits that quickly come to mind. Instead, what we’d like to look more into is excessive online surfing, aka internet addiction.
Internet addiction is real, and it’s not spectacular. Studies show that it’s not all too prevalent now, but given the web-usage habits of millennials on down, it will likely become more common in coming years.
In this post, we’ll take a look at:
The characteristics of internet addiction
How common this type of addiction is
The risks and consequences of excessive web usage
How alleviate one’s own internet addiction
What Characterizes Internet Addiction?
Internet addiction isn’t yet considered an official disorder, but it’s listed in the U.S. as a condition that warrants further study. This condition is characterized by spending too much time on a computer or web-enabled device to the point where it starts to affect an individual’s relationships, finances, employment, health and more. People with “addictive personalities” are at-risk for becoming a little too attached to their internet-connected devices.
Like many other forms of addiction, internet addiction can cause excess dopamine in the brain, meaning it can give the user a sort of “high” when online. But once the person goes offline, he or she may feel withdrawal symptoms, such as anxiety or depression, when away from the computer. When an internet-addicted individual is not on the computer, he or she may spend most of the time itching to get back online again.
Not only is an internet addict’s relationships and job and school performance suffering, but the individual will likely lose interest in non-online hobbies or pursuits. Additionally, the internet addict may become defensive or angry when someone else comments on his or her behavior. Internet addicts may even go out of their way to hide the extent of their usage.
Which Online Activities Are They Addicted To?
Certain online activities are ripe for becoming a timesuck. If one is not careful, one or more online pastimes may become the centerpiece of a person’s life.
So what are the activities that internet-addicted individuals are spending so much of their time on? It could be one or more of the following:
Online gaming
Social networking
Gambling
Trading stocks
Online forum and chat room usage
Reading and leaving comments on favorite blog and news websites
Dating site interaction
Online shopping
Pornography
How Widespread Is Internet Addiction?
Despite the increasing exposure to the internet and the ability to get online from virtually anywhere, internet addiction doesn’t appear to be an epidemic … yet.
It’s hard to gauge how common internet addiction is, and how to measure it, but here are a few stats that attempt to paint the picture:
A 2010 study in “The American Journal of Drug and Alcohol Abuse” found that the prevalence rate of internet addiction was as high as 8.2 percent among Americans and Europeans.
“Internet Addiction: A Handbook and Guide to Evaluation and Treatment,” published in 2010, estimated that more than 18 percent of college-aged internet users may be addicted.
In 2010, the University of Leeds in England surveyed people between the ages of 16 and 51 and found only 1.4 percent of respondents were bona fide internet addicts.
According to Daily Mail, data published in late-2014 said that 7.1 percent of the population in Asia is addicted to the internet, a figure which includes 24 million children in China.
According to a 2014-15 survey in Taiwan, the prevalence rate of internet addiction among 1,100 respondents (mostly female) was 10.6 percent.
Drawing from all of the studies above, it’s probably safe to say that internet addiction affects less than 10 percent of people worldwide. However, you can also estimate that a reasonably higher percentage of young people would qualify for being internet addicted.
More on China’s Internet Addiction Problems
China is particularly seeing an affliction of internet addiction, especially among young males. In 2008, the most populated country declared internet addiction a clinical disorder, becoming one of the first nations to do so, according to Voice of America. Three years earlier, China had already begun combating the problem, opening its first of many military-style internet rehabilitation camps.
China’s threshold for what qualifies as internet addiction might seem quite low to some. When it was first categorized as a disorder, internet addiction in China meant someone spent more than six hours online (not work- or study-related) each day and felt bad when unable to access a computer. While that may seem like a low benchmark, China is nonetheless not joking around when it comes to the problem. It is just one of many countries that has been taking steps to curb heavy web usage, with South Korea being another prominent example.
Risks and Consequences of Internet Addiction
Although the internet offers ways to connect with people all over the world, the interactions are often superficial and rarely a substitute for real-life relationships. Besides potentially hurting relationships, finances and job status, internet addiction can negatively affect people in other ways, such as exacerbating or giving rise to mental health issues.
Back in 2008, Dr. Jerald J. Block conducted a study that concluded that 86 percent of internet-addicted individuals exhibited other mental health disorders. The mental health conditions that are sometimes linked with internet addiction include:
Depression
Anxiety
Social isolation
Psychosis
Hostility
Insomnia
Impulse control disorder
Substance use disorders, such as abuse of alcohol or prescription and illegal drugs
Suicidal thoughts
People who are addicted to the internet may also become malnourished due to poor eating habits, such as not eating often enough or consuming unhealthy snacks and meals that don’t take too much time away from the web and can be eaten while sitting at a computer. As you can imagine, since sitting or lying down is the most common position for internet surfing, someone who spends hours and hours online each day will see their physical health start to slide as well.
More on Depression and Internet Addiction
Medical experts have had trouble determining if depression leads to internet addiction or vice-versa. Either way, the worse the addiction gets, the more one’s depression is exacerbated, in most cases.
This can become a vicious cycle. Depression can tempt someone into retreating to a computer or internet-enabled device and staying there for hours on end. In other cases, the allure of the internet can keep a newer user online for hours to the point where they’re doing it every day, but as their connections and relationships with others start to fade, depression can begin to seep in. If a person’s internet usage is making depression worsen, it’s time to pull them out of the cycle and begin some form of therapy.
More on Suicidal Thoughts and Internet Addiction
You don’t have to search too hard on the web to find stories of people wearing diapers (especially for gaming) to keep their internet usage uninterrupted and others who have physically harmed themselves to try to pull themselves out of the digital timesuck.
These are unfortunate situations, but they hint at something direr than simply depression. Not only does web addiction closely relate to depression, but it gets even more serious: suicidal thoughts and actions.
The aforementioned Taiwanese study looked closely at the link between suicide and internet addiction. When comparing the internet-addicted respondents to the non-addicts, researchers found that internet addicts have:
A 47 percent higher rate of suicidal thoughts within a week
A 23 percent higher rate of lifetime suicide attempts
A 5 percent higher rate of suicides attempt within a year
Unsurprisingly, the same study also found that web-addicted individuals have a 65 percent higher rate of psychiatric morbidity, which means both physical and psychological decoration due to a mental condition.
How to Get Help for Internet Addiction
You’d be surprised at the number of ways you can treat internet addiction now, whether at home or in a professional environment. You don’t even have to fly to China to enter one of its rehabilitation boot camps!
If you know someone who exhibits many of the signs of internet addiction, don’t be shy in trying to redirect their attention to other hobbies or to help them seek professional treatment. As you just read, the consequences can even be fatal, in rare cases.
At-Home Options and Strategies
Software is available to help keep internet usage to a certain time constraint. Most of it is available for download online. It’s usually intended for parents and schools, but it will work for you if you’re trying to help a loved one with his or her web usage. Just do a search for “software to limit internet usage,” and you can read reviews and choose a product that works with your budget.
Also, if you’re a close friend or family member of someone who’s addicted to the web, it helps to model a healthy internet behavior to them. If you are on the web for several hours in a row too, or if you can’t finish a conversation with your loved one without checking your phone, it’s going to be hard to convince him or her to cut back. So, not only model appropriate web-usage behavior, but also try to encourage the person to frequently join you for social events, physical activities, etc.
Medical Treatment
Depending on the situation, a doctor or psychiatrist might prescribe certain medications to treat web addiction, such as antidepressants or anti-anxiety drugs. Prescription drugs such as Lexapro, Vivitrol (an extended-release injection), Wellbutrin, and a Celexa-Seroquel combination all are options for treating internet addiction.
Counseling and Therapy
The internet addict should go through his or her insurance in order to find and start seeing a licensed psychiatrist. The struggling individual could also join a therapy group. Some 12-step programs do accept internet and tech addicts, by the way. Of course, group sessions should take place in person, rather than in chat rooms or other online areas.
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) has proven to be very effective when treating this type of condition. Led by a therapist, CBT helps replace addictive behaviors with something more positive and healthy. CBT can change thinking and behavior patterns, as well as give the patient some tools that will be useful throughout life.
Inpatient Treatment
If the situation is that grim or if group therapy isn’t working, you may want to look into residential treatment. Some hospitals and drug rehab centers offer programs for internet addicts. It’s still a relatively new process, but there should be a residential rehab center that will offer a little getaway from the digital world as well as expert guidance toward a healthier lifestyle.
Please share this article with your friends and loved ones to help spread awareness of the dangers of internet addiction.
Eminent SEO provides strategic SEO campaigns with measurable results along with expert website design, development, pay per click, content and social media and organic website marketing. 800.871.4130.
One month after our sixth anniversary, we signed a lease and got the keys to a bigger and better office space! We’re currently in the process of moving just few miles down the road, and Mesa, AZ will continue to be our home base. If you’re in Arizona, be on the lookout for an open house invite to our new office near Country Club Drive and Baseline Road.
In other Eminent SEO news, we hired a new member to our team: Steven Russo, Fulfillment Associate. As we upgrade our office space, we’re going to be looking to add a few new members to our staff. Keep an eye out for those announcements in the next couple of months. In the meantime, welcome, Steven!
Steven helps manage Eminent SEO’s inventory assets as well as clients’ website and marketing orders. He assists with on-page optimization, website content, link building and various other digital marketing tasks on behalf of Eminent SEO and its clients. Learn More About Steven
What’s New in SEO: Major Changes to Google+ and Google My Business Pages
The redesign of Google+ appears to have left local business pages as a casualty. According to multiple reports (and simple observation of current Google+ pages), Google’s social network no longer supports several features on businesses’ pages. The following features, among others, have disappeared:
Reviews
Stars (ratings)
Maps
Directions
Hours of operation
Phone numbers
Some features, however, like reviews and hours, can still be seen if you come across a business in Google Search. A Marketing Land report speculates that Google appears to be giving up on encouraging small businesses to maintain a presence on Google+.
Unless your business has gained measurable traction on the the platform, you may not have to worry about continuously posting to Google+ from now on. However, all we have is speculation at this point when it comes to the future of Google+. It IS clear, however, if you have a local business (a place of business with a physical address other than a P.O. box), then a properly optimized and managed Google My Business page is needed if you want to rank higher on the search engine result pages for local search queries.
In November, we paid homage to the month’s many big events, good and bad: Daylight Saving rollback, Veterans Day, Friday the 13th, Paris attacks, Thanksgiving and more. We also chimed in on Twitter’s switch from stars to hearts (aka “favorites” to “likes”) that left many users fuming. Check out the best of our November social media shares from our various accounts:
Looking for some marketing advice that will help boost your business, particularly in the areas of social media, marketing during the holidays, and developing your brand identity? We’ve got you covered! If you missed out on the November posts on our Eminent family of blogs, check out the “best of” below. Also, don’t forget to subscribe to the Eminent SEO blog so you don’t miss out on upcoming offerings.
Get some ideas here on how to make your business stand out during the holidays and tap into the spending craze. But first, take a look back at the holiday numbers of 2014 to get some ideas on where to focus your efforts this year.
Is your business on YouTube? For one, it should be. Secondly, did you know there’s a process to help your videos show up higher in YouTube’s search tool (and even on Google)? Find out how to optimize each and every one of your videos in this article.
You’ve probably seen several infographics that claim to have the answer to the best time for your business to post to social media. The problem is many of the infographics contradict each other or, at least, the “best time to post” simply changes every few months. The solution for you is to only worry about what works best for your company. Find out what that entails.
Should Your Company Include .com in its Logo Design and Brand Identity?
Several companies, large and small, have “.com” in their official name, and many of the most recognizable brand names got their start by doing this. See the rationale behind including a domain extension in one’s brand identity, and then decide if your company is a candidate for such a rebranding tactic.
Featured Service: Organic Link Building
Even though Google has undergone several algorithm changes in recent years, the search engine still values backlinks, perhaps more than ever. However, there’s an increased focus on quality backlinks, and not the sheer quantity of backlinks.
What is a backlink? It’s when another website links to your website using a hyperlink within their content, making it easy for the user to hop from the hosting site to yours, if desired.
Why do you need backlinks? Google views links as votes, and when important sites link to you, it acts like a vote for your website. The more high-quality “votes” you have, the more of an authority you become with search engines.
Organic link building is one of Eminent SEO’s longest-running services. We have a team of experts with many years of experience in custom link acquisition, social link bait, business citations and other related link building tactics.
We don’t market your website from link farms and other low-quality domains. Instead, our team works swiftly and diligently to secure natural links from authoritative websites on behalf of our clients, which helps their sites, in turn, build authority in Google’s eyes.
Eminent SEO provides strategic SEO campaigns with measurable results along with expert website design, development, pay per click, content and social media and organic website marketing. 800.871.4130.
Have you noticed any changes in website traffic? No? It’s not a surprise that many webmasters have not noticed Panda 4.2 officially rolling out, because this one is a slow rollout: It could take months before it is complete. With that being said, a lot of us didn’t even notice this refresh that started rolling out on July 17, 2015.
What We Know About This Google Refresh So Far
Not a full algorithm update, just a Panda refresh
2-3% of queries are being affected
A smaller refresh in comparison to older Panda refreshes; the previous refresh is affecting 3-5% of queries.
Unsure of how long this refresh will be rolling out for
The first Panda refresh in 10 months
Take a look at the MozCast data from the week Panda 4.2 began rolling out:
You’ll notice a difference with Friday being cloudy, because that’s the day Google began rolling out the Panda refresh. It still doesn’t look like a huge spike, though, which is why a lot of people were unaware.
What Can I Do to Avoid Being Negatively Impacted by the Panda Refresh?
At this point, if you make changes to your website to reduce the repercussions of Panda, it’s not going to prevent this refresh from impacting your site. Once a refresh begins rolling out, you want to make sure your website is already equipped with high-quality content that is not duplicate or “thin.” Any time your website is not abiding by the Google Quality Guidelines, it could see a negative impact from an algorithm refresh or update, especially Panda, which specifically targets websites with thin content.
What you can do is run a quick crawl report for your website. If you notice any canonical issues causing duplicate content, get those fixed immediately.
Another step you can take is run a duplicate content test for internal site-wide content as well as a test for other sites on the web. Make sure there isn’t much common content on your site or worse, duplicate. You want your content to be mostly or entirely unique and high in quality.
The last thing you could do is make sure there isn’t any content on your website that’s lacking in invaluable user experience. If there are any doorway pages on your site, these could harm its search rankings.
How Do I Know if My Website Has Been Impacted?
If you’ve recently seen a sudden decline or incline in organic traffic, it could be that your website has been impacted by the newest refresh. Not many websites are showing much movement yet, but if you’ve noticed a drop within the last week and a half, that could be related to Panda 4.2. If you believe your site has been negatively impacted, read more here on how to recover from a Google penalty.
Looking to find out if your website has been impacted by this algorithm refresh? Our SEO experts can weigh in. Just give us a call to learn more about our website audits and pricing: 800.871.4130.
Eminent SEO provides strategic SEO campaigns with measurable results along with expert website design, development, pay per click, content and social media and organic website marketing. 800.871.4130.
Here in Arizona it’s been a little chilly… but nothing like you East Coasters! We hope you are staying nice and warm by the fire!
The end of the year is always a lot of fun, but this year December was especially exciting. Here’s what we’ve been up to:
Annual Company “Ugly Sweater” Holiday Party
This year we found a super cool spot in downtown Phoenix called The Duce for our holiday party. The place is fun and eclectic – offering everything from unique drinks and food to shopping, dancing and even a boxing ring! We all enjoyed each other’s company and laughed at the ugly sweaters everyone was wearing:
Secret Santa Gift Exchange
Of course we also had our annual Secret Santa gift exchange. Shopping for a co-worker with a $20.00 budget cap is harder than it looks! It’s a fun challenge though and between the thoughtful gifts and homemade potluck we all had a great time.
A Member of Team Eminent SEO Got Married
As of November 15th our long-time team Eminent SEO member Amanda Sisk is now officially Amanda Greenwood! Congratulations Amanda and Jesse! Their wedding was beautiful and so sweet. It’s so fun to celebrate these special times with our team family!
Good to Know in SEO (RIGHT NOW)
If you are in the industry you already know that 2014 brought a LOT of Google algorithm changes and updates. With so many updates it’s hard to keep up! So, we thought we would recap the year in updates for you. Here it is:
Confirmed Google Algorithm Updates in 2014 – A Complete List
Page Layout #3 – February 2014
A refresh to Google’s page layout algorithm, some people call it “top heavy”. Penalizes sites with too many ads above the fold.
Payday Loan 2.0 — May 2014
Targets especially spammy queries.
Panda 4.0 #26 — May 2014
The update targeted sites with low quality content.
Payday Loan 3.0 — June 2014
Official statements suggested that 2.0 targeted specific sites, while 3.0 targeted spammy queries.
Authorship Photo Drop — June 2014
Google announced they would be dropping all authorship photos from SERPs.
Pigeon — July 2014
An update that drastically changed which factors Google uses to determine local rankings.
HTTP/SSL Update – August 2014
Google announced they will now give preference to secured sites and that adding encryption will provide a “lightweight” boost.
Authorship Removed — August 2014
First Google removed authorship photos, come August 28th they announce they would also be removing authorship markup. By the next morning all authorship disappeared from the SERPs.
Panda 4.1 — September 2014
A Panda update, with an algorithmic component.
“In The News” Box – October 2014
A display change to News-box results that resulted in an expanded news site SERP presence.
Penguin 3.0 — October 2014 with continuing changes until December 6, 2014
A slow moving update came with the release of the new Penguin. This update was probably data-only.
Pirate 2.0 — October 2014
This one was to fight the media piracy. Obviously targeted and affected only a small set of sites.
WHEW! That is a lot of Google updates to keep up with! Were you impacted by any of the algorithm or SERP changes this year?
December Eminent SEO Social Media Roundup
December brings with it a bit of fun and whimsy. Enjoy our monthly social media roundup. Which post was your favorite?
“If everyone is moving forward together, then success takes care of itself.” – Henry Ford
It was a rainy day today, but the rain did not take the sunshine from our team!
We might not get snow here in Mesa, Arizona, but we can pretend, right? What’s in your Winterland?
Words do matter. Choose them wisely.
Where you invest your love, you invest your life.
December Marketing Blog Roundup
What does 2015 have in store for your website and marketing strategies? These helpful blogs will guide you into a successful new year. Read on!
You, your business, your website, your products and services, your budget and your team are unique! Shouldn’t your website marketing strategies ALSO be unique? Here are 5 BIG reasons why your website needs a custom marketing strategy.
How To Use Google’s Display Campaigns To Build Your Brand
Need a quick way to build exposure for a new product? With Google’s Display Network, you can quickly reach your target audience and tell a story with your ads. Here’s how.
As the New Year approaches, a lot of us are thinking of ways we can improve ourselves as individuals. As marketers, we should be thinking of ways we can improve our digital marketing campaigns for our clients. Here are some New Year’s resolution ideas for your campaigns.
See Ya Online!
It’s official, 2015 is here and we are already ROCKIN! While everyone else is laying low for the holidays we were busy developing new strategies and kicking off new campaigns. It’s not too late for you to do the same! If you’re ready for a new approach to marketing your business in 2015, just give us a ring at 800.871.4130 and let us create a killer plan for your business this year!
CEO, Business Consultant, Researcher and Marketing Strategist
Jenny Weatherall is the co-owner and CEO of Eminent SEO, a design and marketing agency founded in 2009. She has worked in the industry since 2005, when she fell in love with digital marketing… and her now husband and partner, Chris. Together they have 6 children and 3 granddaughters.
Jenny has a passion for learning and sharing what she learns. She has researched, written and published hundreds of articles on a wide variety of topics, including: SEO, design, marketing, ethics, business management, sustainability, inclusion, behavioral health, wellness and work-life balance.
View the beautiful new site and, if you feel inspired, please consider donating. Every penny counts.
Several of our addiction treatment center clients here at Eminent SEO have asked us about this news: “Exclusive: Google unveils vetting process for drug rehab ads.” So, we took to our blog to answer the most pressing questions stemming from this recent Google development.
There’s an intuitiveness to digital marketing that if your campaigns aren’t geared toward each platform uniquely, your advertising and social spends may miss your proposed target audience. Why? See our latest neuromarketing blog post.
Google is on record saying these “problematic searches” only occur 0.25 percent of the time, but that still adds up to more than 1 million such occurrences each day. Let’s hope Project Owl elicits a better search experience for all of us, and don’t let your blog posts or website content get caught in the owl’s wrath!
Internet addiction isn’t yet considered an official disorder, but it’s listed in the U.S. as a condition that warrants further study. This condition is characterized by spending too much time on a computer or web-enabled device to the point where it starts to affect an individual’s relationships, finances, employment, health and more. People with “addictive personalities” are at-risk for becoming a little too attached to their internet-connected devices.
