Optimizing Classroom Blogs for Search Engine Exposure Part 2: Search-conscious Blog Setup and Authoring
Blog Setup and Authoring
1. Include keywords in blog URL.
http://temple-english-arthurian.blogspot.com
2. Create keyword-rich post titles; these can translate to SE friendly URLs (e.g. in WordPress and Blogger) and also SE friendly page titles.
A post entitled “Gawain Reading Assignment” becomes http://temple-english-arthurian.blogspot.com/2006/02/gawain-reading-assignment.html
See how a SE friendly title helped in this search for “google videos.”
3. Choose meta keyword, title, and description tags carefully (usually in a header template).
The contents of the description tag (see this search) is what people will see as the entry description in search engine result lists.
4. Configure your blog to ping search services.
http://weblogs.com (Blogger blogs use this one)
5. Offer an RSS or Atom feed (Wikipedia definition) and link to it from the blog home page; some search engines use these to crawl your posts.
Commonly displayed as a clickable icon leading to the RSS feed.
6. Provide a way for SE crawlers to move easily from page to page, e.g., “next” and “back” links; category links; archive links.
7. Enter your blog in directories.
8. Update content regularly, using important words, phrases, and links to other sites.
9. Register your blog with Technorati BlogFinder and select tags (topics on which you commonly write) to identify your blog. Try a BlogFinder search for blogs covering “Philadelphia.”
10. Use the author’s or instructor’s actual name rather than “admin” as the display name for authored posts (very commonly overlooked).
11. Assign posts to WordPress style categories and/or include Technorati tags (becoming more critical). This helps with Google and Technorati (see example search.)
Also, keep an eye on the EduGlu project
in which tagging will be a critical component.
12. If you have multiple blogs (or sites), link blogs together and/or create a “parent” blog where they can all be linked.
Seton Hall Executive Ed.D Program blog links many blogs together
13. Link from class wiki to blog and back.
Drexel CoAS E-Learning blog linking to wiki and back
14. Now keep that blog! (helps reduce setup time, and search engines will already know about your blog next term)
Presentation Page Menu
Page 1–Introduction and Background
Page 2–Search-conscious Blog Setup and Authoring
Page 3–”Soft” Techniques
Page 4–Take Advantage of Third-Party Sites
