!"# RESNET 11

Peter Troast

Founder/CEO of Energy Circle and Energy Circle PRO

Internet geek, student of marketing, SEO & social media, dad, husband, skier, organic heirloom apple hack, flailer of fly lines

CFM of my house pre-retrofit: 3442

CFM of my house post-retrofit: 2200

Fuel Oil Consumption pre-retrofit: 110 gallons/month

Fuel Oil Consumption post-retrofit: 59 gallons/month

Number of Electricity Monitors Measuring My House: 5

Our Electric Use Reduction Since Monitoring Started: 29-50%

December 2008 : $218.94 / 1377 kwhDecember 2009 : $ 123.86 / 779 kwh

December 2010 : $ 108.44 / 682 kwh

Followers on Twitter: 3237

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#6 Fish Where They Areaka Understanding Keyword Volume

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Understanding Keyword Volumes

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Energy Rating

Energy Assessment

Energy Audit

Energy Evaluation

Energy Auditor

Energy Auditing

0 10000 20000 30000 40000 50000

1600

6600

1600

49500

3600

9900

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Data from Google External Keyword Tool on 3.3.11

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Understanding Keyword Volumes

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home energy

solar energy

renewable energy

wind power

energy efficiency

home performance

0 80000 160000 240000 320000 400000

8100

110000

301000

246000

368000

110000

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Data from Google External Keyword Tool on 3.3.11

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Understanding Keyword Volumes

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Energy Star Homes

Energy Efficient Homes

Green Building

Net Zero Homes

Passive House

LEED Homes

0 30000 60000 90000 120000 150000

4400

12100

3600

110000

8100

9900

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Data from Google External Keyword Tool on 3.3.11

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Understanding Keyword Volumes

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duct sealing

air sealing

foam insulation

cellulose insulation

radiant barrier

window replacement

0 40000 80000 120000 160000 200000

165000

33100

22200

165000

3600

5400

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Data from Google External Keyword Tool on 3.3.11

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Understanding Keyword Volumes

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home performance

energy retrofit

weatherization

green remodeling

energy saving improvements

deep energy retrofit

0 10000 20000 30000 40000 50000

320

320

2400

49500

4400

8100

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Data from Google External Keyword Tool on 3.3.11

Friday, March 4, 2011

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Google External Keyword Tool

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https://adwords.google.com/select/KeywordToolExternal

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Keyword Research Takeaways

• Learn to love the keyword tool

• Keyword volume is a proxy for the mindset of the consumer

• Keyword data is one point in time--not where the world has been or where it is going

• Beware the “mile wide and inch deep” tendency

• To start, focus on 5-10 terms, and concentrate on 1-3

• Remember that your searches will likely be localized-- “Energy Audits, Topeka”

• Meta keywords don’t matter anymore (except to your competitors)

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#7 Ignore the Snake Oil Salesmenaka Learn a little SEO (Search Engine Optimization)

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What is SEO?

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Search engine optimization (SEO) is the process of improving the visibility of a website or web page in search engines via the "natural" or un-paid (“organic” or "algorithmic") search results.

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Sorting Through the BS

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www.seomoz.org

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Where to Focus

1. Incoming Links

2. Titles and Descriptions

3. Fresh Content with Smart Keywords

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Titles and Descriptions

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The Good

The Ugly

The Bad

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Best Practices--Titles & Desc.

Titles

Search Engine Imposed Limits

Less than 70 characters

Optimal Format

Primary Keyword - Secondary Keyword | Brand Name | Locationor Brand Name | Primary Keyword and Secondary Keyword | Location

Descriptions

Search Engine Imposed Limits

Less than 156 characters

Optimal Format

Write for humans first

Smart use of keywords

Unique to page/Relevant to content

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Thanks to SEOMoz

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Cool Tools--Title & Description

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Energy Circle PRO

SEO MOFOwww.seomofo.com

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#8 Does your About Us page suck?aka: the most important page on your website

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From Home to Where?

Dominant Traffic Flow

Home Page --> About Us

Home Page --> Services

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A Good About Us Page

• Use Photos

• Be Personal

• Share your Business Philosophy

• Show off your Credentials

• Demonstrate your Community Commitment

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http://www.energycircle.com/blog/2011/01/26/5-elements-of-successful-about-us-page-home-performance-businesses

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#9 Get Listedaka: the easiest and most important link building for local biz

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Just a Few Good Listings

Google Places

http://places.google.com/business

Yahoo! Localhttp://local.yahoo.com/

Bing Localhttps://ssl.bing.com/listings/ListingCenter.aspx

Ask.com Localhttp://city.ask.com/ - this is in Beta

Green Home Guidehttp://greenhomeguide.com/apply

HotFroghttp://www.hotfrog.com/

YELPhttp://www.yelp.com/

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Kudzuhttps://register.kudzu.com/packageSelect.do

DMOZhttp://www.dmoz.org/public/suggest

Energy Conservatoryhttp://energyconservatory.com/contractors/contractors2.htm

Mantahttp://www.manta.com/profile/my-companies/select?rl=http://www.manta.com/cr/mvrjhk3/1st-restoration&add_driver=company%20page-bar-header

Best of the Webhttp://local.botw.org/helpcenter/getlistedorg.aspx

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GetListed.org

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Contact

Peter Troast

Energy Circle PRO

207.865.3400

ptroast@energycircle.com

Twitter: @EnergyCircle

LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/petertroast

Energy Circle PRO Blog: www.energycircle.com/pro/blog

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