Usability Consultancy, Website Reviews, Website Optimisation

With Social Bookmarking it is so easy to get it wrong and wind up finding your website rankings in a landslide to the dungeons of Google...

Ok, we're all getting into it - some more than others - and we're all find a use for one or two of the (not so new) social media networks out there, be it Facebook, MySpace, Squidoo, Twitter, or whatever is hot this week.

But, as our interest and in social bookmarking grows, you may be wondering which service offers the best opportunity for your business - after all, we are trying to promote businesses not just tell our friends what we had for takeaway last night - right?

There is a variety of social bookmarking sites and each offers some unique opportunities. However, choosing the best part of the social media networking & bookmarking pool to wet your feet in can be - to say the least - a tad confusing.

First you need to be using them it to get to know them

Fortunately, you can't really go wrong with any of the "big boys." Checking out one or two of the larger, more 'famous' and widely used social networks like Twitter and Facebook will certainly provide you with some valuable exposure to the process and will allow you to take a "hands on" approach to dabbling with social bookmarking tools.

Get in there and then we'll talk business!

Once you're in there, you will, without doubt, start to sniff out the economic value. Now I'm not a huge fan of exploiting everything 'good' in Internetland, but who says some of these things are so good anyway... Beside the point... If they build them we will come!

Getting your social bookmarking strategy right is far more crucial than getting your SEO right or getting your website search engine friendly from day-one. Mess up in social bookmarking and you will get more than a slapped wrist by Pappa Google and Co.

They See Everything!

Oh yes, every link you place out there in the social bookmarking sites will be found and followed (eventually) by the Google-Bot and if it finds too many all at once, it's going to smell a rat - and so it should. There is a whole range of software and (old) e-books out there that will, for $37 here and $97 there, show you how you can swamp the social networks with links to your website...

Be careful - it's old news.

In the UK we used to have a great way of using old news - we used to wrap fish-n-chips in it. And that, I'm afraid, is about the best thing you could be doing with a lot of the info out there that teaches you what was acceptable maybe 6 months ago but Google got wise to what's going on and slammed the door shut.

Do right for your business

Don't risk getting your website booted out of the Google index. Be careful, very careful, not to over-link to your website. Call me and I'll give you a few pointers about what works and what to steer clear of. In the meantime, I'm off down the chippie...