What is 'domain authority'?

[torbett]

IN seomoz, it mentions domain authority but it doesnt define it. what does domain authority mean?

[ClaytonJ]

Moz provides a definition of Domain authority at this link.

https://moz.com/learn/seo/domain-authority

It may take a little time to wrap your mind around Domain Authority.  But think of it like any sport except 100 is the maximum points you can get!  Your goal is to get your website as close as you can to 100. So a virgin domain, never played sport before starts with a domain authority of 1 - whereas google has the top Domain Authority of 100.

Some people cheat to try to get to a 100 - but google is hunting them daily and will penalize them, and likely kick them off the team (you do not want that) or you follow moz/rand - and you get there by hard work and training..  (and lots of training)

Let me know if this is as clear as mud!  or have more questions.

[torbett]

Yes, clear as mud..

So the domain authority number is just a combination of Moz Metrics used as a snapshot (1-100) to tell how ur domain stuff is working.

I am looking for a knowledgeable SEO person to manage our sites. We keep getting people that are worthless, they declare they know how to set things up properly but inevitably we find out they haven't a clue.  Do you have a suggestion on where we can locate an ethical company/person we can hire?

[ClaytonJ]

Yes, in short that is what a domain authority does.

What country are you based in?  The first step is to organize a site audit/s. It is 100% best to be done - by someone currently external to the websites. Then you find out what is working and what needs work.

Think of SEO as a bit more complex than hiring a person.  If you equate SEO to your health, at various stages in your life you may need to see a doctor. Sometimes you see a general practitioner and other times a specialist. It is dangerous for your health to see an eye doctor to fix a problem with your foot. SEO works the same way. SEO has many facets and sometimes needs different specialist to solve the problem. Like the human body, SEO is complicated and one change can affect the other, so be careful.

Still clear as mud!

[torbett]

Yes, I totally get what ur saying, that's why I've pointed out that I have been screwed by several 'SEO' declared people. We don't want just any SEO, we need someone ethical and understands that websites must be built from SEO design and requirements first. The architecture must be in place before the site is built. The people we have worked with just throw spaghetti on the wall hoping something sticks. I haven't yet figured out how to tell if someone is legit or not. The last guy lasted 2 weeks till we figured it out. Others as much as 6 months wasted. If we had someone results oriented and wanted a long term relationship I guess we wouldn't be on Moz. Still searching for SEO guru.

We are in Atlanta USA, we use Magento E-commerce platform. We have 5 sites.

Do you have any references we could pursue?

Thanks

[JordanRailsback]

You could certainly consider checking out the folks on our recommended list of SEO consultants here: https://moz.com/community/recommended

[torbett]

Oh, I didn't know about this.. thanks. Can you tell me if Moz 'audits' these recommended people in any way to ensure their knowledge/professional level and ethical standards?

thanks

[ClaytonJ]

Torbett

There is no audit process for seo experts. That is one of the significant problems in the industry and one you are facing now. Your "gut" as you say is the best instinct you have got. In fairness we have similar issues with clients who do not understand the seo/internet.  So in part it is a two way street. Our company has a general rule and does not act for companies where the head of Digital reports to the Head of Marketing. They are two separate functions of equal importance and though they are intertwined from an seo perspective we have found that marketing rarely understands digital.

On your platform - if it is a typical magento built site and we see a few - you will find the magento specialists (as they all claim) have built a great shopping site - without an eye to SEO. It is very normal. As a positive fundamentally & generally the sites are sound, need some on page optimization and hardwork. If you want a genius from your backyard - Michael Cottam - does consulting somewhere over there is the US. Very practical, first rate & should be able to make a referral if cannot do the job. You should find his details on this site. If you pm me the website link can have a quick look.

[torbett]

Thank you again for the kind response and support!

Yes, I totally get that digital is diff from marketing, but 'intertwined'. Before the Internet, it was posed to me 'what is the difference in sales and marketing'. Many confuse the 2, but they are both intertwined.

Our main site is www.kitchenstuff.com (90,000 items) domain name owned since 1999, our other sites are listed in footer (2 are x-carts moving to Magento). We have put a lot of effort into a smaller site www.blodgett-parts.com (3,000 items) thinking that if we can get it to SEO perform then we can take the same 'format' and apply to the others. We get a dismal 2 orders a day on it and this is THE oven you'll find in over 50% of commercial kitchens in the USA (schools, hospitals, military bases, hotels, restaurants etc). We are an industrial parts site in the foodservice industry. We are B2B, not 'retail' type site. Many SEO people cant understand this since they work primarily with b2c. We have worked with such companies like National Positions.

I will look up Mr Cottam and thank u much for the info. Yesterday I sent requests to several companies posted on MOZ.

When you get down to it, good SEO architecture will make the 'cash register ring'. That's the metric that says it all. We have never found a company that could do that, everything stays the same after their work is administered. No increase in visits/sales. I do what people tell me. (I don't want the finger pointed at me if it doesn't work). They take the money and run. I can find no SEO firm that will guarantee their work but they brag about how great they are and flash their big name clients in front of me. If their so good why don't they guarantee it at some level, even just an increase in traffic of 10%? But no, nothing.

Because of our failure to find good SEO work we rely heavily on Adwords (the poor man's SEO). BTW, we have an in-house sales team that fields calls. Calls come from the websites, and if I turn Adwords off and try to let the SEO injections work (I do this to test the SEO work from time to time) the phones go cold.

I will look for Mr cottam and would like to keep you informed of our current journey if you'd like.

Torbett

[ClaytonJ]

Sounds good.

I have had a brief look at both sites.  Both have relatively low Domain authorities. https://moz.com/learn/seo/domain-authority For google to find you highly relevant to a searchers intent you likely have to improve your domain authority.

A technical audit should happen regardless - however in the interim you could start looking for quality backlinks - they take alot of effort to earn or achieve.  Alot of articles on how to get them.

The higher the domain authority - the less reliance you will have on adwords.

Secondly no blogs or news.  I am not sure how you communicate with your data base, but a monthly newsletter including news links to your site or articles on your area can be highly beneficial for improving rankings.  A couple of things to consider on your path towards adwords freedom...

Michael is gold.  Take careful notes and if he lets you tape the conversation.  Go get em.  And yes love to hear about the journey.

[eLab_London]

I always see it as your online 'popularity score', based on various items such as off page (blogger outreach, online partners and PR) and on page SEO (engagement, behavioural, tech etc.)