The search engines have been publishing their “Top Searches” lists for 2009, so far I’ve collected lists from Bing , Yahoo!, and Google. Other sites posting “top” searches are ESPN, Snopes, and my favorite, Yahoo’s Top Video’s (warning: time killer!). I set my alerts to catch these lists because they spark ideas for link bait and content development we can use to attract links.
All of the lists are valuable but IMO, the best list comes from Ask.com. Why? Because they list the top questions people used as search queries on Ask.com. The list is divided by category and includes the top ten questions asked. Here’s an example of one of the categories:
This kind of information is priceless when it comes to SEO and link building for a couple of reasons: …. (read the rest of the article here on Link Week/Search Engine Land)
Yes, that’s the idea Sarah – but – keep in mind once you write your article it will need to be promoted. The old “if you build it they will come” schtick doesn’t work online. Start looking for venues that host information and also host the demographic you sell to. Blogs, article directories, Dear John/advice sites, dating sites etc. The more people see it, the more will follow the links and link to it. Good luck!
Alright, I think I have it…so one of Ask.com’s top questions is, “what is true love?” I could create an article with the title, “What is true love? A diamond engagement ring.” If I repeat the keyword phrase several times in the article and it is in the title (in a natural organic way), I will generate traffic? That is what my site specializes in, engagement rings so I figured I could tie it in with the what is true love question.
People write content and place it on their blogs/sites as a way to capture attention and links. If you know what people are searching for or what questions they’re asking/typing into the search engines, you can create content in response.
The list of questions I focused on were what people were typing into Ask.com. Ask listed them as the most popular questions of 2009. They are divided into categories by topic. Ask may not have listed a category your site fits into. My recommendation is this: know what people are searching for, develop content around that search and publish on your site. Links and traffic will follow.
I did read the post and I just read it over a second time but I still don’t know how I can create content about questions that have nothing to do with my e-commerce site. I realize these are very popular topics but how does a jewelry site have any relevance?
Again, I am new to this and just trying to see the correlation.
LOVE YOUR POSTS by the way!
@SarahHarris My post is a lead in to another article written on Search Engine Land. Read the full post to answer your question
http://searchengineland.com/top-searches-can-attract-top-links-30867
I am sorry, I am somewhat new to this and I am trying to figure out how this pertains to the site I am working for. I work for a diamond jewelry website and I don’t know how that applies to the top ranking questions above about animals. How do I use that information to benefit the diamond jewelry site?
Hi!
Is that means that question also can be a keywords?
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Thanks
Very useful, been looking for an updated list. Thanks