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1. Compress images.
2. Clean up your HTML code, removing inline javascript and CSS blocks that are more than 5 lines to external .js and .css files.
3. Install caching for whatever platform your own - WordPress, etc.
4. Get your site up and running on a CDN. It's easy, and it makes a huge difference.
5. Turn on GZIP compression on your server or on the CDN.
6. Set up expires headers in the far future for 'static' files, so that browsers cache stuff.
7. Optimize the way your site (assuming it uses e-commerce or some kind of CMS) accesses the database. Preferably, use some form of disk caching.
8. Set up code caching, as well: Most languages have a way to cache compiled versions of the scripts executed on the site. For example, in php you can use the PHP accelerator.
9. Make sure the database and site are on separate servers.
10. Make sure you've got a good outgoing 'pipe'.

Hi Brian,

Change 'this page' to 'this subdomain'. Unless I'm misunderstanding - that'll give you a report showing all links to all pages on the domain.

Ian

Hi Ausaf,

I wouldn't have the home page be the 404 page. Create a separate page. The odds of something getting mixed up are far too high.

Remove any links that are even remotely spammy. That includes all the links you have with 'classic radiator cabinets' as the link text - you're far too optimized to that term and Google's bound to pick up on it, if they haven't already.

I'd need to see the PHP redirect code. But in CURL it all looks OK.

Make 100% sure that your PHP code is set up with the lower case 'header' command, like this:

header("HTTP/1.1 301 Moved Permanently"); header("Location: http://www.site.com"); ?>

Hope this helps.

Oh, I'm concerned. But if you have spammy links incoming from other sites, you have to clean it up. Otherwise, eventually, you're going to get hit.

Are you sure this is a Penguin penalty? If so, the only fix is to find and remove all incoming links that appear even remotely spammy, and it doesn't sound like you've done this yet. Penguin is all about incoming links, not onsite structure.

I believe EGOL answered this one:

http://www.seomoz.org/q/noindex-follow-is-a-waste-of-link-juice

However, I wonder - can't you just use rel=canonical. That works cross and intra-domain.

I hate to answer a question with a question, but: Are you concerned that removing the spammy links from your site is going to somehow damage the site's authority? Your domain authority is fairly low, so you don't have that much to lose. I'd get the site 100% legit, no matter what harm comes to your overall authority. Long term, it's the only way to go.

Your blog will have a 'hook' where scripts can automatically insert comments to your site. Check your server logs - you'll probably see one form or another getting hit, a lot, or a script like xmlrpc.

If it's a form, add CAPTCHA, and that'll stop the scripts from auto-submitting.

If it's something else, consider changing permissions so the whole world can't hit it.

It's cool, but it feels like Bing trying to grab a little attention. I doubt they're at a point where they can process link data for a Penguin-style smackdown the way Google can.

I do wish Google would do the same. In spite of the fact that it might lead to some abuse. Right now I could basically run a blackmail scheme against legitimate webmasters by pointing crappy links at their sites, then telling them to pay me $500 to take them down.

A few immediate tips:

• Get rid of the stock photograph. It's a total turn-off, and the headline is obscured against the photo background. Try other images, or go for something simpler.
• Make the limited offer the main headline on the page.
• Use a separate landing page (not your home page) so that you can:
• Remove the navigation
• Reduce the brand and emphasize the offer.
• Check your writing. "Specialists" doesn't have an apostrophe, and if I'm going to trust you with my case, I need to know you're legitimate. Little errors reduce that legitimacy.

After that, you need to get an A/B testing regimen set up, and start trying different combinations of imagery and writing to get the best result.

If you're going to redirect it, then take it down and set up a 301 redirect in its place. I may have misunderstood but that's what it sounded like you were planning to do.

Google specifically states that having a single site that responds to mobile versus desktop (aka - 'responsive design') will help you just as much. Plus, you won't have to build two sites.

http://www.seroundtable.com/google-mobile-seo-official-15264.html

I'd go with the Gazebo Shop domain. The exact match domain isn't that great. If it were 'Gazebos.co.uk' I'd think differently.

Here's what I'd do:

1. Clean up the link profiles, first. At least a little. One thing I've seen is that if you set up a 301 redirect from one domain with low-quality links to another domain with low-quality links, that can trigger an algorithmic cluster$#@!*@.
2. When you rebuild GazeboShop.co.uk, try to maintain the same URL structure. If that's really impossible, then redirect old individual pages to their new equivalents wherever possible. Don't redirect individual pages to categories unless you must. I'm thinking more of user experience here - if I click on an old link to a product, I want the product, not the category page.
3. Launch the new site.
4. Redirect relevant individual pages on the exact match domain to relevant individual pages on the new domain.
5. Redirect category pages the same way.
6. Redirect the home page of the exact match domain to the home page of the new domain.

Hope this helps,

Ian

Excellent. Keep me posted? We do much the same on our site as far as the address, and haven't had any issues (yet).

My gut says put it on every page. From a local SEO standpoint that has to help, since it means more pages with location data on them.

I don't know any best practices though - I doubt there's a specific number of mentions that's better or worse.

On the contact us page itself, do what makes sense. To me, that means having the schema markup attached to both the footer and the 'main' address.

Because it does make sense, and it's not like you're shoehorning the content in there, you should be fine.

No way. Google may care about DNS repoints, but that's something else entirely.

Google barely cares about shared IPs and 'bad neighborhoods' at this point - so I doubt the IP address matters. Plus, we have several clients using hardware load balancers that do exactly what you describe, and it doesn't hurt them.

As long as your web site isn't hosted inside the DMZ it shouldn't have any huge effect.

There is one way a DMZ can affect SEO: If you have lots of folks at your office, all using the same shared public IP via a DMZ or other forwarding, and you all use a tool like the SEO Toolbar, you could start seeing CAPTCHA warnings from Google.

Oh, and if you are hosting your site inside a DMZ and haven't tunneled/forwarded it to its own, separate public IP, you should.

I can't say exactly why, but it's an unnecessary level of complexity that just makes my eye twitch a little bit.

I wouldn't do two sites - while there's still some argument about this, most international SEOs say that's no longer helpful.

I would:

1. Write localized English versions of your content for each region.
2. Use location markup and microformats on each page.
3. Use language markup per this post: http://googlewebmastercentral.blogspot.com/2011/12/new-markup-for-multilingual-content.html - even if you're using English, it can help to indicate regional dialect.
4. Try not to have 100% duplication. Be sure to re-write content to match local idioms, show the right pricing and shipping info, etc.

That should get you started.

It happens