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#1 out of 1,570,000,000 results on Google with NO keywords!

Posted by DeadRooster • 5/12/08 • Subscribe to this Discussion [RSS] • Report This Topic
Topics: authority, hits, how to get traffic, page views, search engine, SEO, traffic

I recently did a blog post about how beginning bloggers can immediately start getting traffic to their site:

Hot Blonde Reveals Cruel Method to Increase Blog Traffic
deadrooster.com/blogging/hot-blonde-reveals-cruel-method-to-increase-blog-t...

While I was writing that post I did a little research (believe it or not) and learned something very interesting: it's possible to rank #1 on Google for specific keywords, even if those keywords do not appear anywhere on your page, and even if there are OVER ONE BILLION search results!

The secret, as I'm sure most of you SEO types already know, is backlinks--more specifically, though, it's the ACTUAL WORDS used in the backlink itself. For example, if you type "click here" into Google you will get 1,570,000,000 results and the #1 spot is a link to the Adobe Reader download page. What's interesting is that the words "click here" do not appear anywhere on that page! There are so many links to that page using the words "click here" that it gets a ton of juice.

So, how many of you are getting backlinks but not making sure they link using relevant keywords?

User Comments

5/12/08

timethief

An interesting post.

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1. 5/12/08
  
  DeadRooster
  
  Thanks!
5/12/08

jackpayne

Fascinating.

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5/12/08

DeadRooster

After posting this, I got to thinking about how one would go about using this information to their advantage. Obviously, if your domain is something fancy like, www.deadrooster.com, you are going to get the majority of backlinks from other blogs linking thru the keywords "Dead Rooster".

I can tell you that the number of people typing "Dead Rooster" into a search engine every day is roughly the same as the human population of a medium-sized crater on the dark side of the moon.

So, what's the solution?

Well, I think it's something I've already been doing: make sure you use relevant keywords in your post titles! That way, if someone links to one of your specific posts (as opposed to your front page) you will get the correct juice.

I know a lot of you are saying, "Duh,who doesn't know that?" But, I've seen LOTS of blog posts with titles like, "look what happened to me today," and then go on to describe an elaborate fist-fight with a mime.

Something to think about.

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5/12/08

shelleyk

I am so not with it and cannot understand the backlink thing you mentioned above...but I did read your post...the avatar change is a major key! Great blog!

[reply]
1. 5/12/08
  
  DeadRooster
  
  Thanks!
5/18/08

clangallacher

Have you repeated the process to confirm it happens again, I will be very surprised if the Rank No1 again, after the index to your site you will loose that No1 spot.

[reply]
1. 5/18/08
  
  DeadRooster
  
  I originally posted this discussion 5 days ago and it's still #1. I imagine you could go back in 6 months and it would STILL be at #1.
5/18/08

clangallacher

What was the search optimised keyword or keyword phrase, so I can check it out as that is the only way you can be found by visitors even at the No1 Spot.

[reply]
1. 5/18/08
  
  DeadRooster
  
  I'm not exactly sure what you're asking here, but in the example I used above the keyword was "click here" which puts Adobe at the #1 spot. The keyphrase "click here" does not appear anywhere on Adobe's page, yet they still have the #1 spot for that keyphrase.
5/18/08

Svelmoe

Yeah - that is one of the SEO "secrets 101".
The link text is very important when linking. That is how so called "Google Bombs" basically works as well.
Use relevant and informative link texts which contains the keywords.

[reply]
1. 5/18/08
  
  DeadRooster
  
  Googlebombs are a GREAT example!
5/18/08

rearvumirr

I'm fairly curious - how many searches does google get for 'click here'?

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1. 5/18/08
  
  DeadRooster
  
  Right. But, that's not the point--the point is that you can still rank high on Google organic search without having your page stuffed with keywords. I just used that as an example because I'm pretty sure that keyphrase is going to put Adobe at the #1 spot for years to come without having the keyphrase anywhere on their page.
2. 5/18/08
  
  DeadRooster
  
  I also used that example because they rank #1 out of over a BILLION search results. Without the keyphrase on their page.
5/18/08

clangallacher

I now understand what your saying. I will do a little research into why this happened and hopefully came back with the solution.

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5/18/08

rearvumirr

found the answer

onward.justia.com/2006/06/index.html

same thing you already said

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5/18/08

clangallacher

rearvumirr,

Nice find explains why in a nutshell. "Good Work"

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5/19/08

ericdknapp

This is important - Google rank is not 100% keyword driven, it is a combination of keyword and the relevance of backlinks. My blog is fairly new and google adwords cost a fortune for this reason. The keyword weighting is good, but there simply aren't many links to my blog, and most of those are something like "check this out" ...

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5/19/08

ccRicers

This was the principle behind driving George W. Bush's own personal page up to the #1 result for "Miserable Failure". A lot of people conspired and collaborated by adding links with these words and it turned somewhat of a joke that was spread by e-mail.

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5/19/08

ericdknapp

Okay - now all I have to do is organize a movement for everyone to add a link to my blog that is full of relevant keywords. Not 'miserable failure', though, I've got enough of that without help :-) ... my book could be a best-seller in no time!

[reply]
1. 5/19/08
  
  DeadRooster
  
  I'm running a little behind, but I am reading your book and will be doing a review at www.deadrooster.com sometime this week (I'm thinking Thursday-ish).
4/05/09

cocoy000

Haha.. now I'm getting more interested with this SEO stuffs and breaking GOOGLE's code. I'ts just funny how the search engines work though. Like Google, if you try searching the word "search engine" you won't see the big names on the first page buy "Altavista" ranks very well. Now the question is why?

Secrets to getting into the first pages of searches here: (www.squidoo.com/seo-artist)

[reply]
1. 4/05/09
  
  pointlessbanter
  
  comment removed by the community.
4/13/09

garret35

Great post. Backlinks are sometimes easy to get and sometimes impossible.

I remember in my beginning stages I "bought" them.....bad idea, the site I had at the time was delisted so badly that it never got back up lol.

Nowadays, I do seo by the book and it works nicely.

Well written and informative post.

Thanks for the share.

Garret
need-to-get-some.blogspot.com Number 2 out of 2.1 billion searches on Yahoo. Thanks to backlinks and relevant info.

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