Here's a great case study in how blogging can really crank up your search engine rankings:
Guy Kawasaki author of the brilliant book The Art of the Start, started his blog on December 30, 2005. In just five months, he has managed to gain a 7 pagerank (1 higher than his regular website), along with over 4000 inbound links (3800 higher than his regular website).
Now, go do a Google search for Kawasaki. You see at #1 Kawasaki USA, a company with $11 billion in sales globally. At #2 is Guy Kawasaki's blog, and at #6 is his regular site.
Now, let's compare pagerank and inbound links for Guy's Blog, online since the December 30, 2005, and Kawasaki.com, online since December 19, 1996.
PageRank:
Kawasaki.com: 6
blog.guykawasaki.com: 7
Inbound Links:
Kawasaki.com: 809 (8 per month, roughly)
blog.guykawasaki.com: 4040 (800 per month, roughly)
Traffic:
Again, this is not even a contest. Look what happened on the right side when Guy started his blog:
In the 4% of the time that Guy's Blog has been online compared to Kawasaki Motors, guy has a higher pagerank, and has managed to get five times the number of inbound links. My guess is that the only thing keeping Kawasaki USA at the top of the search is that they have the kawasaki.com domain name.
On another note, as I was searching through the Kawasaki USA site to get sales figures, I ran into their "linking policy" (I am not allowed to link directly to it without filling out paperwork):
If you would like to link to Kawasaki’s Web site, please read and comply with the following guidelines:
Any site linking to Kawasaki’s Web site:
* May link to, but not replicate, Web site content
* May display the Kawasaki Web site content in a separate browser window, but should not create a border environment around the Kawasaki Web site content or launch the Kawasaki Web site in a frame within the linking party’s content
* Should not imply that Kawasaki endorses the party’s site or products
* Should not misrepresent its relationship with Kawasaki
* Should not present false information about Kawasaki products or services
* Should not contain content that could be construed as distasteful, offensive or controversial, and should contain only content that is appropriate for all age groupsIf you would like to link to Kawasaki’s Web site, you must do the following:
* Print out the PDF file below
* Read and complete the entire Web site Linking Agreement
* Sign your name at the bottom of the agreement, By signing this document, you agree to be bound by the terms and obligations set forth herein
* Fax the completed Web Site Linking Agreement to (949) 460-5755
* Use the approved logos below
It's any wonder they managed to get 800 links.
