What are the most effective SEO methods for online communities and forums?
-
My company has a global online community of over 350,000+ members. We allow users to submit articles revolving around the scrum and agile framework. Sometimes the submissions become overwhelming and I am curious if there is anyone out there who may have experience with this same scenario.
I don't want to place meta data on every single article that comes in, because I don't have the resources nor time to optimize each and every article. Does anyone have techniques or suggestions in regards to either leaving the meta data untouched or customizing each individual piece?
Any thoughts or ideas will be extremely helpful.
Thanks
-
I agree that the easiest way is to build in SEO features to your submissions. Making sure that the title translates into an H1 tag, etc. One of the reasons why YouTube became such a success, pre-Google purchase, was because every time you upload a video to YouTube, you do some SEO work: tagging the video, upload a transcript (if prompted), adding a description, etc. If you make the user interface easy to do this, you'll be ahead.
When it comes to complex schema data, I wouldn't worry as much. Most forum/article submissions rely on long tail traffic. Spend time optimizing the best traffic drives or the pieces that get the highest social shares, which might also work great on searches. It's okay to cherry pick the work when you don't have time to do it all.
-
In addition to the on page optimization suggestions above...
I work in an online forum with 70,000+ members and have found that it still requires me to think of new discussions and posts in terms of "what search is this discussion a good response for?" Without relevance to a search opportunity (keyword research), it won't perform to it's potential. Of course, with user-generated content, not all of it fits with an opportunity. So, I try not to think of it as an orphanage where I have to get each discussion adopted/search productive.
I've also had to be careful with submitted articles, which are often duplicate content first published somewhere else. There are ways of dealing with this that still allows for good content to be posted, even if it is duplicate. Of course, if not dealt with already, it can be a huge drag on your site.
Finally, I would pay some attention to site architecture. If one's own site does not link to important pages (thus, seeing them as important and passing the link love), why would Google think they're important? So, some internal linking strategy is necessary.
Good luck!
-
well...then again (this is the programmer in me speaking!) you could always "force" submission compliance by building in scripting to ensure that ALL those items are completed by the submitter themselves - else the SUBMIT button remains grayed out....
would work. have built them myself. you could eLance or oDesk it too....
-
You could basically ensure that those who are submitting these articles are optimizing the work for you. Am referring to basic on-page optimization on at-least having an appropriate:
- meta title, which that would be the article name, or the first 40 characters of the article name + your forum name.
- Heading 1, which it will be the name of the article
- Heading 2 will be the sub headings, etc
- If the user is adding an image he can add some text to describe the image (thats you alt tag)
I believe the above are the very basic things you could ensure that your submission template does for you by default. Now as for the link coming to this page 'article page' make sure its keywords based link, article name for example.
Browse Questions
Explore more categories
-
Moz Tools
Chat with the community about the Moz tools.
-
SEO Tactics
Discuss the SEO process with fellow marketers
-
Community
Discuss industry events, jobs, and news!
-
Digital Marketing
Chat about tactics outside of SEO
-
Research & Trends
Dive into research and trends in the search industry.
-
Support
Connect on product support and feature requests.
Related Questions
-
Need Definitive Source on Wordpress SEO
I am a longtime practitioner of classic asp. I build sites with SEO built-in and administer largely to sites I have built. I have, up til now, had a policy of not working (SEO) on Wordpress projects because - I don't presently build Wordpress sites Am unfamiliar with how SEO could be implemented on CMS I have a long time client who wants me to do contract SEO work on various Wordpress sites on his servers. Can someone point me to a definitive source on the latest methods for Wordpress SEO. I am very proficient in SEO with conventional web sites - I just need to know how to implement it in Wordpress. I don't see how plug-ins can implement serious SEO, but my mind is open.
SEO Learn Center | | dcmike0 -
SEO Stratergy for new ecom site
Hello Experts, I need expert advice for my ecom site. My site is www nsale dot in , domain is 2 years old, we just revamped the site. Its currently under testing. Dev activity will be complete in another 2-3 day and product addition will start in a week. we are targeting all major categories of product. I am not sure about how to start the SEO and social media marketing. Can someone help on how to plan and execute inorder to get targeted traffic and also steady increase in traffic ? Targetted traffic is India. PR is currently 0. Thanks in advance.
SEO Learn Center | | nsale0 -
Online Marketing Strategy book wanted!
Hi mozzers, I am trying to develop some real online marketing strategies for my clients. I am really looking to build some great content that will make my clients, users, and the search engines happy! But for that, I need some guidance and was wondering if you had any suggestions for a book(or any other useful resources) that focuses on how to develop a great online marketing strategies? I saw this book but not sure who this guy is: http://www.amazon.com/Web-3-0-Startups-Strategies-ebook/dp/B00BYZB68U/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1365798109&sr=8-3&keywords=online+marketing+strategy Thanks
SEO Learn Center | | Ideas-Money-Art0 -
Best X-Cart SEO Solutions / Modules?
We recently acquired an e-commerce client that uses X-Cart. We have no previous experience with this platform and it's hard to find any good / helpful info regarding SEO functionality online. Right now I need to figure out how to handle mass redirects of 404 errors, friendlier URLs, resolving duplicate content, XML sitemap generation, robots.txt generation. The functionality built into the platform so far is terrible and all of the modules are pricey. Any recommendations, general or specific, would be insanely helpful if anybody out there has experience with this particular platform. Thanks!
SEO Learn Center | | MichaelWeisbaum0 -
Difficult Boss: Does anyone know of a SEO quick reference?
I am dealing with a boss who does not understand all the aspects of SEO and its value. He thinks if I just plaster keywords on a page, we'll rank. He thinks I'm wasting my time blogging, link-building, ect. I'm wondering if anyone knows of an article or blog post that has been published that BRIEFLY explains the value of these things. What I am looking for is NOT an article about the basics of SEO. I don't need something that is written for a beginner SEO just starting out who wants to learn how to do it. I need something that is written for a business owner who isn't technically-minded, so he can understand why and how each aspects helps rankings. Does any such reference exist?
SEO Learn Center | | UnderRugSwept0 -
Is SEO Certification.org Worth Having?
I am new to SEO and I am trying to get properly trained. Have the SEO Certification.org professional is worth it? What's your think? Are there any other certifications to have that will properly train you? I know google has one.
SEO Learn Center | | AppleCapitalGroup0 -
After purchasing the 2011 MozCon Video Bundle how long will it be available online?
I bought the MozCon Video Bundle - how long will I be able to access it online? And how do I access it online - keep clicking the promo icon?
SEO Learn Center | | CeCeBar0 -
How cool is this Q&A Forum!
I love it, it's brilliant. You get to peruse through the questions to see real world examples of SEO issues, and help with things you do know the answers to, as well as learn loads from seeing others answers on things you don't know the answers to... I'm getting addicted to coming on here! The instant-ness of it all makes it much better than any other SEO forum out there in my opinion.
SEO Learn Center | | SteveOllington6