Rand Fishkin of SEOmoz, Danny Sullivan of Search Engine Land, and Michael H. Fleischner, author of SEO Made Simple, talk with Christopher Null about SEO basics. Null focuses the post on optimizing sites through picking keyword terms, spelling correctly, reducing the amount of Flash on the site, and making title tags central to SEO efforts. The experts also suggest being aware of how others link to your site, using word clouds, and resisting the urge to post duplicate content. Null also provides insight into a tool that lets you automatically submit a page of content to more than …

The outcome of an Interflora and Marks & Spencer lawsuit could change the way online advertising works in the United Kingdom, according to Paul Smith. The flower delivery firm claims the retailer sponsored the word "'Interflora' (and several obvious spelling mistakes)" as search engine keywords in Google's AdWords program, he writes. Smith explains that Interflora claims Marks & Spencer took unfair advantage of Interflora's brand, in breach of trademark laws. The lawsuit asserts that when users searched for Interflora, advertisements for Marks & Spencer and Flowers Direct appeared as sponsored links.

Put in place a solid reporting framework, revisit keyword lists to determine "must haves," and develop content tools to gain more inbound links. That's some of the advice Julie Batten provides to marketers as it becomes increasingly important to stretch budgets in tough economic times. While online has become the "measurable and cheap sister" to conventional marketing, Batten reminds us it still takes optimization to get the best results from investments. She also suggests marketers "stop the love affair with Google" and sink some of the budget into other search engines. "While Google has the highest market share, …

Search engine rankings may take bounce rates into consideration, according to Eric Enge. Among other definitions, Google Analytics defines a bounce as when site visitors view one page on a Web site and either click on a link to a page on a different site, close an open window or tab, type a new URL, click the "back" button to leave the site, or don't do anything and lets the session time out. There are other definitions, of course, but questions and hypothesis discussed in the post support Enge's view on a new study from SEO Black Hat …

With a little tongue-in-cheek humor, Michael lays it on the line with 10 SEO predictions for 2009. From Danny Sullivan, to Rae Hoffman, he takes a jab or dig at some of the finest in the SEM/SEO industry. For example, Michael writes, "after thousands and thousands of twitters, Rae Hoffman will get a personal letter from Biz asking her to 'Chill' & explaining that by their calculations 1 out of 3 times, her rants are the actual reason why the server slows and twitter users are displayed the 'fail whale.'"

Incorrectly using "noindex" tags to prevent a search engine robot from indexing a particular page on a site, or "nofollow" tags to prevent the passing of page rank through a particular link to the linked-to page, could "do as much harm as good," according to Andrew Shotland. Shotland provides examples and steps through the process of when and how to use each technique.

Before you slash your SEO marketing budget, ask yourself how many people turn toward one or more of the major search engines to find phone numbers, addresses, product information on business Web sites. Pay-per-click campaigns not only give your business increased visibility when potential clients go searching for information, but you only pay when they click. Jon Sanderson reminds us of the beauty of the Web: You can track PPC campaign from the first click to the last and analyze the data to determine what initially drove that potential buyer to site. "All you have to do is …

What's your liability when linking to content? Sage Lewis provides a comical viewpoint on "how the Wal-Mart Grinch stole black Friday link love," and suggests you be careful when linking to stuff that potentially infringes on copyrights. Why the warning? Seems that Wal-Mart had insisted that SearchAllDeals and TechCrunch take down links to Black Friday Deals that weren't supposed to be out before Nov. 24. SearchAllDeals and TechCrunch didn't publish the content. They just linked to it, he writes.

With MediaPost's Search Insider Summit in full swing, Cindy Kerber Spellman encapsulates the first of a three-day adventure in the mountains of Utah. Gord Hotchkiss opened the conference with a town hall analysis of the search and online marketing in the Barack Obama/2008 presidential campaign. Session discussions then looked at the role of analytics and data in search, and best practices in today's environment of SEO and paid search. Spellman notes that day two and three promise to deliver debates about Google, emerging platforms and their relevance to search, and discussions about in-house search marketing. "I'm …

Google Chief Legal Council David Drummond made the announcement last month that Google had pulled out of the search advertising deal with Yahoo. Now we know why. Sanford "Sandy" Litvack, the prosecutor hired by the Justice Department to head the case, told The AM Law Daily that the government was only three hours away from blocking the deal, in news initially reported in TechCrunch. Nate Raymond puts the legal jargon into perspective. "The complaint would have sought a preliminary injunction to stop the agreement from going forward," he writes, explaining that Litvack acknowledged Microsoft and other companies lobbied to …