hey up forum, I have a question regarding google webmaster services to ask....hopefully its in the right section...looked around and couldnt seem to find one that seemed more appropriate... i'm new in the SEO and webmaster game. my scenario is this: i'm working as an odd-jobber / web marketer for a new start up, who are also hiring a web design team to create a site for them. recently, i sent the web design team guys the code for google webmaster tools so i could use them...and they seemed pretty worried. they advised that i don't use the services as, if used wrongly somehow, it could ruin our site's search rankings. instead they offered to keep on the company payroll for devoting about 4 (i think they said 4) hours a month to SEO and keeping up to date our sitemap and such.... i thought i'd ask, since im still trying to get familiar with this stuff, if it really isn't the kind of thing i could learn to handle...how long that might take....what i could possibly screw up....what the design company might do that'd be so good that i couldn't do myself... so yeah, a fair few questions....i hope someone could help! thanks a ton in advance! David
I guess four hours a month isn't that bad, how much per hour do they charge? It would be better for you to start to learn on your own.
I think they don't know what they are talking about saying that using the code could hurt their rankings. But I recommend just reading this forum for lots of information. Use the search feature. It's your friend. Thanks
Recently I said that I would be buying a car and learning to operate it. My driver told me that cars are extremely dangerous, and if not used properly, they can ruin your life. This firm told you these things because they would very much like your company to pay them for 4+ hours a month. If they see a fork in the road between taking your money and not taking your money, they're going to urge you down the first branch. And in the ISV/IT game, scope creep is the rule. What begins as 4 hours morphs into 14 and then 40. The risk associated with using Google Webmaster Tools, and even Google Analytics, is that you'll know more about your site and its relationship to Google. For example you'll know the searches you're coming up for. You'll know which ones people are clicking into your site and which ones they aren't. You'll know (some fraction of) which sites are linking to you, what text they use in their links. You'll know which page has the highest PR and how it's distributed across your site. You'll know how many 404 errors GoogleBot found, and how often he visits your site. Sounds dangerous, doesn't it? Knowing these things could ruin your business. In reality, not knowing them is a detriment. What could you screw up? By using Google Webmaster Tools, not really much. By taking on other SEO work, potentially getting the site banned, but only if you follow the absolute worst SEO b'advice available. For most people, the vast majority even, the worst thing is you might not be super effective, and your SEO could stagnate. Not really so bad. Especially when it sure sounds like the people who want your money for SEO services don't sound like the type of company you want to trust fully. Personally I recommend spending time reading and asking questions in this forum to decide whether you have the aptitude for SEO.
Hmm.... I'd be very suspicious of anyone who is warning against google web services - yes, it can hurt your ratings if the designers have put in hidden links, hidden text and other black hat seo type stuff. You should learn how to look for this stuff and make sure that it isn't being utilized by underhanded designers. Lisa
You should only be worried about using any of Google's tools if you are practicing black-hat seo techniques. If you aren't hiding text or playing other games, there should be no affect on your rankings using their tools. However if you are utilizing the ways of the dark side, expect Google to know about them more readily if you put analytics or any other Google javascript on your site.
thanks for all the replies so far, this has been a huge help. i'm talking to some people about this on friday about it so i guess i'll see.... is there anything anyone can reccomend i ask them then? thanks again for being so generous, lots of good karma coming your respective ways!
try this http://theworkingwebmaster.com/tools/searchenginespider/index.php put in your web address and it will show you a summary of the text on the page, links on the page and source code etc., makes it easier to see if there's hidden text or links. good luck. Lisa