Interlinking Blog Posts For Better Search Engine Optimization

In the last post i talked about SEO (Search Engine Optimization) and more to the point the lack of SEO on many blogs.In this post we will look at how simply linking within your blog can have a very positive effect on how your blog performs in search.Once again we have to remember Google love links and like the little guy from Pac Man following the dots the Google bot crawls around following every link it finds.You will often hear people talk about the importance of links to your blog from other sites and in the same manner links within your blog have a positive effect.Another important factor in links to your blog is how those links are formatted.The anchor text of a link helps Google index the linked page.So when you write your posts you should be creating 2-3 links to pages from within your blog using relative anchor text.It's very easy and  adds one minute to the time it takes to write a post.

Interlinking Your Blog Posts

Anchor Text - Anchor text is the text that makes up a link, the actual words people click on.On many blogs i see people create links with the text Click Here.You should however be using Keywords that describe the destination of the link.If for example i wanted to link to the last post i mentioned above called "Best SEO Tips And 150 Free Backlinks Every Day" i would create the link with text like this, Best SEO And Backlink Tips not Click Here.By adding keywords and describing the page linked to we help Google index that page.There is a bit more to it than that but you get the idea.You can just pick one or two words in a sentence and turn them into a relevant link, remember the goal is not to get people clicking these links but to get Google following them.

As well as linking to posts you can link to labels pages, this is something i regularly do on Spice Up Your Blog.If you have a second blog you can link to that blog within your post.Once you have links throughout your blog you are sending 'Link Juice' right through the heart of your Blogs archive !

Lets imagine Google crawl you latest post and follow a link to a previous post, on that post they follow a link back to another post, there they follow a link to a labels page, they follow the most recent post using that label and so on.Be careful and don't stuff every post full of links as this can be seen as spam.

A Live Demo ? - Apart from the example link i created in the second paragraph  i have added 4 links to this post.Two links to labels pages and two links to posts, i didn't change the post in any way to accommodate the links but just used the natural relevant key words.Check out more of our Blogger SEO posts.

Drop Your Comments, Views And Questions Below.

Best SEO Tips And 150 Free Backlinks Every Day

You may be surprised to learn that i read a lot of blogs that are not tech or design related.I often find myself on personal blogs, cookery blogs, activity blogs and all sorts of general fun well written blogs.There are now millions of Blogs online and among the rubbish, spam and uncountable "Tried it for 3 months and quit" efforts are some real gems.I often follow a link from a comment on Spice Up Your Blog to see the blogs of people that leave a comment or if I'm really bored and have 10 minutes to spare i have found myself clicking the Blogger 'Next Blog' link in the navbar.As i adventure through these blogs the one thing that Screams Out is how poorly they are set up for SEO (Search Engine Optimization).Some of the best blogs i have found are so poorly set up for SEO that you could put Sherlock Holmes on the back of the Google Spider and he wouldn't find them.

I'm currently working on a Complete Blogger Ebook that i hope to release in 2011 and among the content will be lots of SEO advice.But i have already published many tips to help get your blog performing much much better on Google and the other search engines.In this post i will point you in the direction of these posts and also share you will a service i have been using for a few months that automatically generates back links to your blog Absolutely Free.

Backlinks are vital when it comes to SEO, every link to your blog is seen almost like a recommendation in the eyes of Google.I go deeper into this subject in possibly my most in dept post on SEO - Use Do Follow Blogs For Back Links And Page Rank.Other posts you Must check out to improve your blog in search include :

- Add Meta Tags And Description To Your Blog

- Submit Two Sitemaps Of Your Blog To Google

- Submit A Sitemap To Yahoo, Bing And Ask Search Engines


You can find more SEO tips in our SEO Tips Category Pages.I plan on focusing on more SEO tips in the upcoming posts.Now to creating a genuine 150 links to your blog every day.

Free Automatic Backlinks With ImAutomator

Note this site is no longer free, as of Janurary 2012 there is a minimum fee of $2.99.In my opinion this was a great free service but i personally would not pay for it.Thats just my opinion it's up to you.

IMautomator is a Bookmark submission tool that automatically submits your blog posts to various Bookmarking websites.With a free account you can add 10 Links every day, these ten links are submitted to 15 Bookmark directory's (10x15=150 easy math even for me).I have personally used the service and it works a treat.The sites it bookmarks on are not the most popular or highest PR but it takes seconds and is totally free.There is a paid option but you never need to avail of this.

-Follow this link (Not a referral link) to Imautomator and set up your free account.

-Once you have verified your account you can get to work.Log in and via the Bookmark submitter you can add links to be submitted (See Video Below).

What Should You Submit ?

First up there is the obvious links, your blogs home page and your posts with ten a day you could start adding your archive.Why not add you label pages ? Every label you have on your blog has it's own page.Basically you can add any URL connected to your blog including Bookmarking Bookmarks ! If you Bookmark your blog on Digg add the Digg URL.You should also take a look at the Top 20 Do Follow Bookmarking Websites.

That's it look out for more SEO tips and the Blogger Ebook (Don't Hold Your Breath Until About Mid Summer).Remember no matter how intelligent Google crawlers become you will always have to help them help you !

ImAutomation Intro Video



Check out more of our Blogger SEO posts.

Add Your Comments, Views And Questions Below.

Back in November 2010 i published 5 unique Social Bookmarking gadgets using the 'Sexy Bookmarks' arrow message and some Very Cool Social Icons.The Bookmarking gadgets were created exclusively for Spice Up Your Blog readers and i have seen them on lots of blogs since.The first of these gadgets was 'Share The Knowledge' and the other four are listed in that post.Today i have another great social bookmarking gadget that i created especially for a Job i was hired to do on Two Great blogs.The two blogs have a Creative Theme so the message 'Share The Inspiration' requested by the author and was perfect.

Screenshot :



Live Demo - Click To See Demo : Share The Inspiration Bookmark Gadget.

Add The Share The Inspiration Bookmark Gadget To Blogger

Step 1. In Your (New Design) Blogger Dashboard Click The Drop Down Menu For Your Blog > Choose Template > Then Edit Html > Now Proceed as shown in the video Below :

Step 2. Find the following piece of code in your blogs Html : (Click Ctrl and F for a search bar to help find the code - More Info)

If you cant find that code look for

Step 3. Copy and paste the following code Directly Below / Under

Awesome New Fixed Scroll Follow Us On Twitter Badge For Blogger

It's unlikely you will find a blog that does not have a link to their Twitter page.In fact many blogs i now visit have a Follow on Twitter image fixed to the side of the page that stays fixed as the reader scrolls.The image most blogs have fixed on the edge of the page has become standard and i actually published a post back in January 2010 with that Fixed Follow On Twitter Image.But with every blog using the same image it becomes invisible to readers.So in this post i have an awesome fully transparent Follow on Twitter image i know you will love.The image has the Twitter bird on a branch with a small Follow Us On Twitter board Below.The image will really catch the eye of visitors to your blog and get more people following your blogs updates on Twitter.We will add the image to the right side of your blog and as i said it will stay fixed in position as the reader scrolls.Lets look at the screenshot and Live demo.

Screenshot :



Live Demo - Click To See The Demo : Fixed Follow On Twitter Badge

Add The New Transparent Fixed Follow On Twitter Image

Step 1. In Your Blogger Dashboard Click > Design > Add A Gadget > Choose Html/Javascript.







Step 2. Copy and paste the code below into the html/javascript gadget

paulcrowepro" target="_blank">

Fixed Twitter Gadget

Important - Change the twitter Username in red To Your Twitter Username.

With the code in place save the gadget and your Follow us on twitter image will be fixed on the side of your blog.I'm sure this will help you get more Twitter followers following your Blogs updates.Make sure to Follow Us On Twitter and check out more of our Twitter Tips and Tricks.

Drop Your Comments, Views And Opinions Below.

Survey Competition - Win A Cool Blogger Tee Shirt

The Blogger team are once again looking for your help to improve the Blogger Service.This time Blogger want you to take a quick survey (10-15 questions, Takes 3 Minutes) on Monetization options within Blogger and general making money from your blog.You don't need to be currently making money or trying to make money from your blog to take the survey.Everyone that takes the survey is entered into a draw with a 'Bunch' of blogger tee shirts for the winners.So why not take the survey, you will be helping Blogger which helps your blog and you could be proudly sporting a Blogger shirt.



To take the survey and be entered in the draw follow this link - Blogger Monetization Survey.For more information check out the official Blogger Buzz Post.

New Blogger Related Posts With Thumbnails Below All Posts

We all know the importance of Displaying Related Posts below each post on your blog.Displaying a list of Related Posts not only keeps readers on your blog clicking through your archive but they are also crawled by search engines.But to get readers clicking through the related posts you need them to be eye catching and that's where the related posts with thumbnails works so well.The related posts with thumbnails lists a selected number of posts and also grabs an image from each posts to display.The gadget we have in this post is similar to the popular Link Within Related posts but with some great extra features and options.

I have re sized the thumbnail and title so you can display more posts.Link Within Limits you to 5 posts with this gadget you can show as many as you like.This related posts gadget displays related posts using the labels, so it will list posts with the same labels as the posts it is below.You can add some extra customizations to this gadget and i will list them below the tutorial.

Screenshot 



Live Demo - You can see this gadget below all posts on this blog.

Add The new Blogger Related Posts To Your Blog

Step 1. In your Blogger Dashboard Click > Design > Edit Html > Tick The Expand Widget Templates Box







Step 2. Find the following piece of code in your blogs Html : (Click Ctrl and F for a search bar to help find the code - More Info)

Step 3. Copy And Paste The Following Code Directly Above / Before

Make Your Blogger Blog Fully Interactive For Mobile Users

Did you know more people use the Mobile Internet than the Standard Internet ? In a survey by the IDC (Interactive Data Corp) it was revealed there will be over 1 Billion people using the mobile Internet by 2013.The number of mobile Internet users passed the number of 'Desk Top' computer users in 2008.And now with a fantastic new Blogger feature you can take full advantage of this and make your blog fully interactive for these users.Until now you had some options to make your blog "Mobile Friendly" but with Blogger Mobile Templates your blog will be fully functional on Mobile Devices.This will include the ability for visitors to your blog on Mobile Devices to Leave Comments, Some Gadgets are supported, AdSense can be displayed to help your earnings, Videos Can Be Viewed and more.

"...We know many of you like to view blog posts on your smart phones. However, it can be difficult at times because of the small screen size. This is why we are excited to announce our first launch of mobile templates! Initially available as opt-in functionality on Blogger in Draft, mobile templates will re-format your blogs for smart phones to enhance your readers’ viewing experience. In order to activate mobile templates, simply go to Dashboard > Settings > Email & Mobile tab, enable the mobile template option and then save settings..." - Blogger In Draft

How To Add Mobile Template Option To Your Blog

Like all new features Mobile Blogger Template are at first only available in Blogger In Draft.Follow this link and log in to your Blogger Account in Blogger In Draft.

Go To Your Settings > Email & Mobile > Mobile Template.

Tick the "Yes, On mobile devices, show the mobile version of my template." option and don't forget to scroll to the bottom of the page and Save.

That's it, Blogger will detect Mobile users and automatically display your blog with a mobile template to those users.This in my opinion is one of the best features added to blogger making blogger a leader in Mobile Blogging and giving you a Huge advantage over rival blogs using other Blog platforms.

Comments, Views And Questions Can Be Left Below.

New Script Add Images And Colored Text To Blogger Comments

In this post Macro Raman shares a fantastic script he created that allows people for the first time to add images, different color text and scrolling text to comments on Blogger.Here on Spice Up Your Blog we have made great strides in improving the Blogger comments with tricks like Adding Replies To Blogger Comments and Adding Smileys and Emoticons to Blogger Comments.This script will bring the comments on your blog to another level allowing readers to use different colors, share images and just for fun use Marquee scrolling text when they comment.

Live Demo - Click To See The Demo : Blogger Comment Images And Colors

Macro writes his blog in Tamil but has done a great job in Writing this post in English to share his new script with Spice Up Your Blog Readers.I will summarise the steps and show you how to add a message above the comment form to let readers know of the options below Macro's post.

Note - This post and script can not be republished on other blogs by request of Author, if you want to share this you may link to this post.

New Blogger Scrip Display Images And Colors In Comments

Guest Post - By Macro Raman

We do see many of them chats with shorten words, symbols, smileys and more to tell in short form. Now its a time of zero typing where image speaks a lot more than words. Let us imagine there is a colorful animated new year greeting post where you like to greet the author the same way.You know greeting pictures speak Louder than words,so you too created a splendor greeting picture for the blog author but the blog restrict you to post images. Then?

Of course, Blogger.com restrict the readers to post images in their comments column.We know It is possible to posts picture comment in wordpress blogs by adding just tags. then what is the solution for the blogger's blogspot? Here I introduce new javascript which try to minimize the maximum extend of this restriction. and be aware of it that it doesn't work in script disabled browsers.

How to add image?

This is just simple, you need to start with [im] and end with [/im] place your image address in between of it.Like This :

[im]http://domain.com/folder/sample.jpg[/im]


How to install?

This is the code

Snow Fall Blog Gadget

Note - To change the color of the snow fall just edit the color highlighted in red within the code.You can change it to basic colors (blue, green, black etc) or Html hex colors.

That's it save the gadget and your color snow effect is on your blog for a great Christmas feel. More Christmas design for your blog ? We have a transparent Christmas Corner Banner and 10 Spectacular Falling Christmas Objects For Blogger.

Drop Your Comments, views And Questions Below.

New - Use Read More Summary's In Blogger Rss Feed

Blogger today added a very interesting new feature to the Rss Feed settings on all blogs.Since the Blogger team added the Read More Jump Break in September 2009 many blogs has used the option to display the latest posts as a summary on the home page with a read more link.Now you can also add a summary and read more link to your Blogs Rss Feed.Until now you could display a full or short version of your posts in your feed but you had no control over the size of the short feed.With this new setting you can choose to display exactly the same summary in the feed as on the home page with the read more link.

"...The challenge with feeds is that it’s never been possible to control exactly how much content is delivered. Up until now, the options have been “Short” and “Full”. Short produces a feed that contains around the first 400 characters of the post, with HTML and images removed. Full produces a feed that contains everything in the post, including HTML and images. But what about those instances where you want to give your users a taste—an image or two with some introductory text—and then have them visit your blog to see the full post? Well today we’ve launched a third option that lets you do just that using Jump Breaks..."

You can enable this feature via your blogs Feed Settings.

Read More Rss Feeds On Blogger

1. In your Blogger Dashboard Click > Settings > Site Feed > Allow Blog Feeds Drop Down.


2. Choose 'Until Jump Break' and save.

Your Blogs Rss Feed will now only display a summary and any images used until the jump break.If your thinking "Paul Whats A Jump Break ?" you can get all the details here - Blogger Jump Break Read More.

A very interesting option and as far as i know Totally unique to Blogger, you can see the official post by Blogger here - Take Control of Your Site Feed.Check out more Of  The Latest Blogger News And Rss Feed Tips Here On Spice Up Your Blog.

Drop Your Comments Views And Questions Below.

Awesome New Blogger Numbered Page Navigation Gadget

Back in July i published a popular post showing you how to add a numbered page navigation gadget below your posts on Blogger.The Numbered page navigation is a must have gadget, making you blog much easier for readers to navigate and keeping them on your blog longer looking at more of your content.I'm sure you have seen page nav on many blogs, basically it's below all posts with 'Next Page' Previous Page' and numbered pages for the reader to choose from.

The script for the page navigation i published in July has since caused a lot of trouble often only working some of the time and in some cases not working at all.So i have worked at getting a new script with a much easier format that will work on all blogs all the time.I have also hosted this script myself to guarantee it wont let you down.

Adding the navigation gadget to your blog is also easier with this new script as you don't need to add a huge chunk of Css to your Blogger template.Just a small piece of code added to a html/javascript gadget and your done.So lets look at the screenshot and demo then add this great new gadget to your blog.

Screenshot



Live Demo - You can see The New Page Nav On Our Blogger Templates Site : Blogger Page Navigation Gadget

Add The New Blogger Page Navigation To Your Blog

Step 1. In your Blogger Dashboard Click > Design > Add A Gadget > Choose 'Html/Javascript' From The Pop Up Menu :







Step 2. Copy The Code Below And Paste It Into The Html/Javascript Gadget :

Important - I have set the posts per page at 10 (In Red Above), you can increase or decrease this however you must match this in your Blogger settings.So once you save the gadget go to your Blogger settings > Formatting > Set the posts per page to the same as the number in your page navigation code (See Image Below).Basically if you leave the number at 10 make sure your posts per page setting is 10, if you change to 8 make sure your posts per page is 8 and so on..



Step 3. OK just to keep your design page in proper order i recommend you drag and drop the gadget below the posts section.

That's your new numbered page navigation widget in place below your posts, if your comfortable with changing the code you can change the colors used.We have lots more Blogger Widgets and Blog Design Posts for you to check out.

Drop Your Comments, Views And Questions Below.