|
Everything I learned about Search Engine Promotion I learned here.
Search engine promotion is a continually changing industry. Taking classes and getting some sort of degree for the field would be about as useful in day-to-day life as my English Literature degree.
To combat this, online communities have formed to help people who want to learn about this field. Discussion boards have been created that have massive amounts of information. Some of these forums have been going on for years.
In complete honesty, without these forums, I wouldn't be writing to you today. Virtually everything I know today has been a product of spending hundreds of hours at these forums.
While you might not have weeks of time to dedicate to learning about search engines, you likely will find information in these places that will be highly beneficial for helping in your Internet success.
Here is my rundown of some of the best places to check out:
Search Engine Forums
http://searchengineforums.com/
This is where it all started for me. The moderators and owner, Jim Wilson, are outstanding. There is no such thing as a 'dumb question' when you head over here. Everyone is very kind and extremely helpful. If it is or ever was an issue about search engines you will likely find the answer here.
Webmaster World Forums
http://www.webmasterworld.com/
You will notice some similarities between Webmaster World and Search Engine Forums. However, my opinion is this forum is probably equivalent to 'Advanced Placement' when it comes to search engine promotion research. Many of the people that spend time here are the true cream-of-the-crop in the industry. They are very interested in statistics and serious details. This is not to say a beginner couldn't get a lot out of this forum. Again, the moderators are extremely helpful and will do everything in their power to find answers to questions. I've seen more than a few times where they have gone away, researched data and come back with amazing solutions. Also, the owner, Brett Tabke, is highly respected in the web marketing industry. He has pushed our industry to levels never before seen. Just between you and me... this is the place I like hanging out these days.
Audette Media -
http://www.audettemedia.com/lists/isearch/summary.html
This isn't a discussion board. It is an email-based newsgroup that is always packed with the most up-to-date, pressing issues of the Search Engine industry. Emails are sent in a digest format so you won't get barraged with too many emails. It is highly worth signing up to. This way you won't have to remember to check out the latest news. It will be delivered right to your inbox.
MarketPosition.com
http://www.marketposition.com/
This forum is hosted by the company that produces WebPosition Gold - a major piece of software used in search engine placement. They too have a lot of information. It is a very traversed forum. Unfortunately, I've found the format a bit difficult to use. So it isn't my most used forum. But every once in a while I'll stop by just to see what is happening.
Search Engine Matrix
http://searchenginematrix.com/
BEWARE! This one is used a lot by people in the adult entertainment industry. It is not as highly used as some of the others. But I have found information here that I never found anywhere else. The adult industry is a great place to learn about search engine promotion. They are continually pushing bounds to the next level. Take this one as you will.
Last, but certainly not least:
Search Engine Watch
http://searchenginewatch.com/
OK... this isn't an online community. But it is a wealth of information. Danny Sullivan, the site editor, is known as the quintessential expert in the search engine promotion industry. His site has a free side and a subscription side. After taking in all of the information he has available for free you would do well to signup for a subscription. His information is always up to date and highly useful. The benefit of his information is that it is all very organized and easy to reference when you have a question. Pretty much, when Danny says it's so... it's so.
There are certainly others out there. But these are some of the most useful online communities for the search engine industry. It is a lot of information to take in but if you are interested in learning more I can't think of any better places to start.
If you liked this article, consider signing up for our information newsletter. All of our articles come directly from our newsletter we send out every other week on Tuesday. Consider signing up. It's free and easy.
Subscribe to SageRock.com Killer Web Marketing Newsletter by entering your email address in this form and click "Join"
|
