Here's How to Generate and Insert Rel Canonical with Google Tag Manager

Posted by luciamarin

This post was originally in YouMoz, and was promoted to the main blog because it provides great value and interest to our community. The author's views are entirely his or her own and may not reflect the views of Moz, Inc.

In this article, we're going to learn how to create the rel canonical URL tag using Google Tag Manager, and how to insert it in every page of our website so that the correct canonical is automatically generated in each URL.

We'll do it using Google Tag Manager and its variables.

Why send a canonical from each page to itself?

Javier Lorente gave us a very good explanation/reminder at the 2015 SEO Salad event in Zaragoza (Spain). In short, there may be various factors that cause Google to index unexpected variants of a URL, and this is often beyond our control:

• External pages that display our website but use another URL (e.g., Google's own cache, other search engines and content aggregators, archive.org, etc.). This way, Google will know which one is the original page at all times.


• Parameters that are irrelevant to SEO/content such as certain filters and order sequences

By including this “standard” canonical in every URL, we are making it easy for Google to identify the original content.

How do we generate the dynamic value of the canonical URL?

To generate the canonical URL, dynamically we need to force it to always correspond to the “clean" (i.e., absolute, unique, and simplified) URL of each page (taking into account the www, URL query string parameters, anchors, etc.).

Remember that, in summary, the URL variables that can be created in GTM (Google Tag Manager) correspond to the following components:

We want to create a unique URL for each page, without queries or anchors. We need a “clean” URL variable, and we can't use the {{Page URL}} built-in variable, for two reasons:

1. Although fragment doesn't form part of the URL by default, query string params does


2. Potential problems with protocol and hostname, if different options are admitted (e.g., SSL and www)

Therefore, we need to combine Protocol + Host + Path into a single variable.

Now, let's take a step-by-step look at how to create our {{Page URL Canonical}} variable.

1. Create {{Page Protocol}} to compile the section of the URL according to whether it's an http:// or https://

Note: We're assuming that the entire website will always function under a single protocol. If that's not the case, then we should substitute the {{Page Protocol}} variable for plain text in the final variable of Step #4. (This will allow us to force it to always be http/https, without exception.)

2. Create {{Page Hostname Canonical}}

We need a variable in which the hostname is always unique, whether or not it's entered into the browser with the www. The hostname canonical must always be the same, regardless of whether or not it has the www. We can decide based on which one of the domains is redirected to the other, and then keep the original as the canonical.

How do we create the canonical domain?

• Option 2.1: Redirect the domain with www. to a domain without www. via 301
  Our canonical URL is WITHOUT www. We need to create Page Hostname, but make sure we always remove the www:
  


• Option 2.2: Redirect the domain without www. to a domain with www. via 301
  Our canonical URL is WITH www. We need to create Page Hostname without www (like before), and then insert the www in front using a constant variable:
  
  

3. Enable the {{Page Path}} built-in variable

Note: Although we have the {{Page Hostname}} built-in variable, for this exercise it's preferable not to use it, as we're not 100% sure how it will behave in relation to the www (e.g., in this instance, it's not configurable, unlike when we create it as a GTM custom variable).

4. Create {{Page URL Canonical}}

Link the three previous variables to form a constant variable:

{{Page Protocol}}://{{Page Hostname Canonical}}{{Page Path}}

Summary/Important notes:

1. Protocol: returns http / https (without ://), which is why we enter this part by hand


2. Hostname: we can force removal of the www. or not


3. Path: included from the slash /. Does not include the query, so it's perfect. We use the built-in option for Page Path.

Now that we have created {{Page URL Canonical}}, we could even populate it into Google Analytics via custom dimensions. You can learn to do that in this Google Analytics custom dimensions guide.

How can we insert the canonical into a page using Tag Manager?

Let's suppose we've already got a canonical URL generated dynamically via GTM: {{Page URL Canonical}}.

Now, we need to look at how to insert it into the page using a GTM tag. We should emphasize that this is NOT the “ideal” solution, as it's always preferable to insert the tag into the of the source code. But, we have confirming evidence from various sources that it DOES work if it's inserted via GTM. And, as we all know, in most companies, the ideal doesn't always coincide with the possible!

If we could insert content directly into the via GTM, it would be sufficient to use the following custom HTML tag:

But, we know that this won't work because the inserted content in HTML tags usually goes at the end of the , meaning Google won't accept or read a tag there.

So then, how do we do it? We can use JavaScript code to generate the tag and insert it into the , as described in this article, but in a form that has been adapted for the canonical tag:

And then, we can set it to fire on the “All Pages” trigger. Seems almost too easy, doesn't it?

How do we check whether our rel canonical is working?

Very simple: Check whether the code is generated correctly on the page.

How do we do that?

By looking at the DevTools Console in Chrome, or by using a browser plugin like like Firebug that returns the code generated on the page in the DOM (document object model). We won't find it in the source code (Ctrl+U).

Here's how to do this step-by-step:

1. Open Chrome


2. Press F12


3. Click on the first tab in the console (Elements)
   


4. Press Ctrl+F and search for “canonical”


5. If the URL appears in the correct form at the end of the , that means the tag has been generated correctly via Tag Manager
   

That's it. Easy-peasy, right?

So, what are your thoughts?

Do you also use Google Tag Manager to improve your SEO? Why don't you give us some examples of when it's been useful (or not)?

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Responsive Design is Killing Two-Thirds of Your Conversions. Here's How to Fix It.

Posted by TaliaGw

Allow me to start with a quick summary of this article:

There's a 270% gap in conversions between desktop and mobile, because mobile websites suck and we're all doing it wrong. (Now that I've gotten that out of the way, I'll explain why and what needs to be done to fix this.)

At its essence, responsive design is supposed to make a cross-device world a more seamless experience by adapting your desktop design to a smaller mobile screen. Unfortunately, condensing all that desktop content into such a small screen has the exact opposite effect - it's actually causing huge loss in conversion rates. But how?

Responsive design clutters mobile sites with irrelevant content for on-the-go visitors. Built with a desktop user in mind, a mobile visitor who has different intentions and a different state of mind may not find what they're looking for, and leave your site feeling frustrated and confused. This is the source of your huge loss in conversions.

This isn't to say you should abandon responsive design altogether. Rather, you must think more specifically about the mobile web experience and the mobile visitor's state of mind instead of simply transferring the desktop design to a mobile one.

To develop a useful responsive mobile experience we must do two things:

1. Most importantly, consider why a mobile customer has come to your site;
2. And understand their intent.

(Here are 5 metrics you should follow to understand your mobile visitors better.)

These two parameters will help determine what you need to highlight, remove, or optimize on your mobile site and give greater clarity to what your responsive design should include. Below are the 5 basic elements you should consider when designing your mobile experience:

5 Steps for Optimizing Your Responsive Site

1. Optimize image scaling and consider value

Most images scale down with responsive design. However, an image that looks nice on a desktop can suddenly become a dominant and distracting part of a mobile site. Although images are scalable, depending on their value, they might not be necessary to mobile design. Consider the way an image appears within your responsive design. Is it an effective use of visuals? If the image is taking up the entire screen on a phone, or simply serves as nice centerpiece to the site, it's time to rethink how that image is used device-to-device. For example, Simpsons Solutions' desktop image doesn't scale well and overtakes the mobile screen, cluttering the design and making it hard to comprehend what's going on on that page.

Images (both logo and main image) that work well on desktop completely overtake the mobile screen, have almost no value on a phone, and make it difficult to understand the product.

Outdoor retailer REI's website, on the other hand, uses the same photo as a focal point on both mobile and desktop, but it scales to the appropriate needs of the visitor.

2. Simplify navigation

Perhaps one of the most important features a mobile site can include is a clear and functional navigation bar. Having a visible, easily accessible menu or search bar helps mobile visitors get where they're going quickly. Most mobile visitors are coming to a mobile site with a single objective in mind; they'll waste no time in finding the menu bar, searching for a keyword, and clicking to the page they need.

Analyzing what your mobile customers are doing on your site and searching for is integral for understanding how to tailor your mobile site to those needs. You may discover most mobile visitors use the search bar rather than click on your main call-to-action button; as a result, you might redesign your mobile site to feature the search bar more prominently, helping mobile visitors achieve their goals more quickly. In addition, understanding what people are actually searching for on the site will give you an indication to what's missing, what isn't clear, and what needs optimizing.

Because they're on the go, mobile visitors are often in need of a contact page, usually looking for an address or a phone number to easily reach your company. Brick-and-mortar businesses should be especially cognizant of this, ensuring they have an easy-to-find contact page directly via the site navigation or on the homepage itself. Customers are much more likely to complete an order, visit your physical shop, and leave satisfied with the experience if finding you is simple and straightforward.

3. Kill responsive pop ups, use mobile overlays

Overlays and pop ups built for desktop experiences on mobile tend to distract from a mobile visitor's primary purpose for landing on your site. Instead, guide them and focus them on a singular goal - their goal. Using a desktop solution for a mobile experience kills conversions. Since desktop overlays/pop-ups aren't designed to fit the 19,000 combinations of screen size and resolutions found on mobile devices today, it's wise not to use them on mobile. You don't want an overlay fit to the resolution and specs of a desktop - these won't scale down, making mobile navigation unbearable.

A bad overlay, like the examples below, completely take over the mobile screen, prevent you from seeing any other content, are hard to click out of, and do not fit the mobile screen (see how the email field is cut on the LastKings example).

Instead, studying how a mobile visitor behaves on your site can help you determine what your overlay should ask for, lead to, or even just what information should be included. Take into consideration both the mobile technical necessities and the customer's mobile behavior to design an overlay to the exact needs of your mobile visitors.

4. Less is more: simplify, shorten and optimize your text

While it might seem obvious, text is often one feature that very few brands take the time to develop for effective desktop (let alone mobile) sites. To avoid overcrowding and confusion, it's always better to keep text brief and to the point in terms of how many words appear on a site. This is where information hierarchy comes heavily into play. Your company can rearrange, rewrite, and reformat any headlines and taglines to feature only the most important information for a mobile visitor. This practice also ensures that the text isn't taking over a page with long and wordy visuals.

While all this text seems to work well on desktop, mobile is a completely different story. The text completely hides the page, is impossible to read, and all conversion elements (such as trust symbols and call-to-action buttons) have been pushed below the fold. This is yet another case of failed responsive design:

Another factor to consider is the automatic nature of scrolling on a mobile device. A desktop can capture a full message, words, and pictures in a single glance. While less people scroll when on a desktop, on mobile, visitors instantly begin scrolling hoping for something to catch their eye. This should influence how you write a headline based on where and how it scrolls. Text should be short and concise so it catches the eye and is valuable to the reader.

5. Reconsider and clarify your calls-to-action

A mobile site should have one clear goal that the call-to-action button should support. The call-to-action button should be the first element a mobile visitor pays attention to and it should instantly tell the visitor what to do. For example, Udemy, an online learning platform, puts a very clear call-to-action at the top of their mobile landing page that aligns with the company's overall goal. They know their customers have come to their site to learn, so to help them accomplish this goal instantly, they provided a button for finding courses and a search bar for enhanced navigation.

Create seamless design today

While the goal is to create a seamless experience across all channels for your customers, in order to increase conversions and create a better experience on mobile or any other device, companies must get to know their customers better, understanding their behavior and state of mind before choosing to implement the simple, common solution that may kill their conversions and experience. Remember to always have your mobile customers' specific behavior and needs in mind before designing your next landing page or site.

What mobile design tactics have worked for you? Let us know in the comments below.

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5 Actionable Talks from Conversion Experts

Posted by christinew603

[Estimated read time: 5 minutes]

As marketers, we can't turn a corner without hearing about how to generate leads with existing content. But CRO [Conversion Rate Optimization] is about so much more than just leveraging content in different ways; optimization is really the process of finding out and testing how to convert people on your site pages, landing pages, blog posts, and marketing efforts.

Don't know where to start? Listen to these five actionable talks from a few of today's top conversion experts. Hear directly from the landing page, copywriting, mobile, and conversion design experts on how to optimize your marketing for lead conversion. (And save your spot in a live Google Hangout with these experts and HubSpot on June 1st!)

---

1. Peep Laja – How to Turn Data into Insights & Customers

Bio via ConversionXL:

As ConversionXL founder, Peep is an entrepreneur and conversion optimization expert with 10+ years of global experience. He has extensive experience across verticals: in the past he's run a software company in Europe, an SEO agency in Panama, a real estate portal in Dubai, and worked for an international non-profit.

In this talk from TractionConf, Peep covers:

• 6 steps to thinking of conversion optimization as a process and not tactics


• Why “best practices” aren't necessarily the best ways to optimize your own blog posts and landing pages


• Digging into the formula for conversion success (hint: it starts with the number of tests run, the percentage of winning tests, and impact per successful experiment)


• Getting better data, not more


• Gathering qualitative and quantitative data to find out if your ideas are actually good


• Identifying problems and holes for conversion on your site

---

2. Oli Gardner – 4 Corners of Conversion

Bio via Inbound.org:

Unbounce's legendary Oli Gardner has seen more landing pages than anyone on the planet. His disdain for marketers who send campaign traffic to their homepage is legendary. He is a prolific webinar guest and writer, and speaks internationally about conversion-centered design where he is consistently ranked as the top speaker.

In this presentation from INBOUND15, you'll learn:

• Bull sh*t marketing and how to spot it on your own landing pages


• Conversion-centered design and utilizing psychology for conversion


• How to apply the 4 corners of conversion - copy, design, interaction, and psychology - in all forms of your marketing, not just landing pages


• Utilizing information hierarchy and ensuring your copy comes before design

---

3. Joanna Wiebe – 3 Undeniably Real Test-Proof Truths That Will Shake What You Know About Copywriting

Bio via Inbound.org:

As copywriter and creator of Copy Hackers, Joanna helps startups use their words so people fall in love with them, flood them in cash, tell all their friends about them, and name their firstborn after them. ("Buffer Anastasia McGillicuddy. That's got a nice ring to it.")

In this particular talk from CallToAction Conference 2014, she covers:

• How to approach “clever” copy and learning to write for conversion


• How to lead a headline: what we've learned from the advertising world of David Ogilvy and modernizing those ideas


• What color your buttons should actually be


• How to break patterns in language and copy when you're stuck


• Ideas for new tests to run on your pages

---

4. Tim Ash – Mobile Conversion Strategies

Bio via SiteTuners:

Tim Ash is the author of the bestselling book, Landing Page Optimization, and CEO of SiteTuners. A computer scientist and cognitive scientist by education (his PhD studies were in Neural Networks and Artificial Intelligence), Tim has developed an expertise in user-centered design, persuasion and understanding online behavior, and landing page testing. In the mid-1990s he became one of the early pioneers in the discipline of website conversion rate optimization.

At INBOUND15, Tim covered:

• Top 10 things to stop doing on your mobile pages


• How to manage navigation on mobile and prioritize content


• Setting expectations for your mobile users and acknowledging their attention spans

---

5. Angie Schottmuller – 7 Secrets to Drive Epic Conversion with Hero Shot Images

Bio via LinkedIn:

Angie is an inbound marketing thought leader skilled at wielding magnetic content optimized for search, social, conversion, and mobile. With over seventeen years in multichannel B2B and B2C experience in both agency and corporation settings leading successful marketing technology projects for brands like Nestle USA, Gerber, Red Wing Shoes, Andersen Windows, The Home Depot, and more, she's adept at harnessing online and emerging technologies to drive tangible results for improving business - social engagement, lead generation, sales conversion, customer loyalty, and brand advocacy.

At Conversionista Conference, Angie talks about:

• 7 hero shot persuasion factors to learn and test from


• How to say more in a visual than header text


• Connecting hero images in your marketing


• How to persuade through credible imagery and encourage prospects


• Staying away from “fancy” brand images and gearing hero shots for conversion

---

Want to see some of these experts in action? Learn all about how to increase your lead conversion in a live Google Hangout on June 1st!

Save me a seat!

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What You Should Know About Accessibility + SEO, Part I: An Intro

Posted by Laura.Lippay

[Estimated read time: 4 minutes]

Do you know anyone who is visually impaired? Maybe they have low vision or color blindness, or are fully blind. Think about how they use the Internet. Close your eyes, or at least squint really hard, and try to find today's news or interact with your friends on Facebook. It's a challenge many of us don't think about every day, but some of what we do in SEO can affect the experience that people with visual impairments have when visiting a page.

Accessibility and the Internet

Visually impaired Internet users are able to navigate and use the web using screen readers like VoiceOver or Jaws. Screen readers, much like search engine crawlers, rely on signals in the code to determine the structure and the context of what they're crawling. The overlap in what search crawlers look for and interpret versus what screen readers look for and interpret is small, but the idea is the same: Where are the elements of this page and how do I understand them?

The SEO overlap

While it's important to understand where SEO and accessibility (a11y) overlap in order to optimize correctly for both, it's also important to note that optimizing for one is not necessarily akin to optimizing for the other. In other words, if you've optimized a page for search engines, it doesn't mean you've necessarily made it accessible - and vice versa.

Recently, web accessibility expert Karl Groves wrote a post called The Accessibility & SEO Myth. Mr. Groves knows the world of accessibility inside and out, and knows that optimizing for accessibility, which goes far beyond optimizing for the visually-impaired, is very different overall, and much more complex (strictly from a technical standpoint) than optimizing for search engines. He's right - that despite the ways SEO and a11y overlap, a11y is a whole different ballgame. But if you understand the overlap, you can successfully optimize for both.

Here are just some examples of where SEO and accessibility can overlap:

• Video transcription


• Image captioning


• Image alt attributes


• Title tags


• Header tags (H1, H2, etc)


• Link anchor text


• On-site sitemaps, table of contents, and/or breadcrumbs


• Content ordering


• Size and color contrast of text


• Semantic HTML

If you're developing the page yourself, I would challenge you to learn more about the many things you can do for accessibility beyond where it overlaps with SEO, like getting to know ARIA attributes. Take a look at the W3C Web Content Accessibility Guidelines and you'll see there are far more complex considerations for accessibility than what we typically consider for technical SEO. If you think technical SEO is fun, just wait until you get a load of this.

Optimizing for accessibility or SEO?

Chances are, if you're optimizing for accessibility, you're probably covering your bases for those technical optimizations where accessibility and SEO overlap. BUT, this doesn't always work the other way around, depending on the SEO tactics you take.

Thankfully, the Converse site has a pretty descriptive alt attribute in place!

Consider a screen reader reaching an image of a pair of women's black Chuck Taylor All-Star shoes and reading its alt attribute as "Women's black Chuck Taylor All-Stars buy Chucks online women's chuck taylors all-stars for sale." Annoying, isn't it? Or compare these page titles with SEO and accessibility in mind: "Calculate Your Tax Return" versus "Online Tax Calculator | Tax Return Estimator | Tax Refund/Rebate." Imagine you just encountered this page without being able to see the content. Which one more crisply and clearly describes what you can expect of this page?

While it's nice to know that proper technical search engine optimization will affect how someone using a screen reader can contextualize your site, it's also important to understand (1) that these two optimization industries are, on a bigger level, quite different, and (2) that what you do for SEO where SEO and a11y overlap will affect how some visitors can (or can't) understand your site.

Marking the 5th Global Accessibility Awareness Day https://t.co/QiJyAM8xGW 05/19? Let us know how Globala11yawarenessdayAtGmailDotCom #gaad
- GblA11yAwarenessDay (@gbla11yday) March 14, 2016

For Global Accessibility Awareness Day on May 19, I'll be collaborating with some experts in a11y on a post that will go into more details on what aspects of SEO + a11y to be keenly aware of and how to optimize for both. I'll be sure to find as many examples as I can - if you've got any good ones, please feel free to share in the comments (and thanks in advance).

Educational resources & tools

In the meantime, to learn more about accessibility, check out a couple of great resources:

• W3C Techniques for WCAG 2.0


• ARIA attributes


• Web Accessibility Evaluation Tools List


• Web Accessibility Tools & events from the Paciello Group, a well-known accessibility agency


• Also check out The Paciello Group's blog. It's digestible bits of good info


• Ted Drake's “css toys for professional web developers“ blog, heavy on accessible dev & accessible infographics!

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Quick Pro Marketing located in Orlando - Central Florida is a search advertising expert - that offers varied services such as Orlando seo serviceslocal SEO, Orlando Google Adwords and Reputation Consulting Orlando.

Your Business Will Reach Maximum Success In Minimum Time When You Learn Great Search Engine Optimization Skills!



If you have previously owned a website, you know that part of your success is dependent on how well your site ranks on various search engines. This article will give you ideas on how to get higher search engine rankings.

A quick grounding in the basics of search engine optimization should come first. Where sites rank would be decided by the public in an ideal world. Instead, site rankings are determined by automatic, computer-based methods. SEO is what needs to be done to make the search engines view your site as important.



First off, it is necessary that you decipher what SEO entails. Your website's rank is not determined by real people. Programs determine how relevant your website is. By using search engine optimization you can use methods that will benefit you.



You can learn how to apply SEO strategies to improve your website when you understand how it works. The search engines use formulas and algorithms, because there are millions of websites to rank. There is no way for the search engine to review your site and know that it is the top site in your niche market. The search engines use a complicated set of factors in order to determine where your site should be ranked. That's why webmasters break out the SEO. Search engine optimization helps you speak the search engines' language. This can lead to them ranking your site much, much higher!.

The Best of 2015: Top Posts and People of the Year

Posted by FeliciaCrawford

We've got another year under our belts, and that means it's time to continue an annual blog tradition. Yes, that's right, folks — the Moz Blog Best of 2015 is hot off the presses! (This makes me wish we had real presses. We don't. I think there's a 3D printer somewhere around here, though...)

We’re going to highlight just what hit it off with you fantastic little blog readers, you. We'll slice and dice the top posts of the year a few different ways, take a peek at what dominated YouMoz, check out which comments drove the collective convo, and highlight the community members that contributed the most-liked and most-often-liked commentary.

(Spoiler alert: You went absolutely nuts for Rand this year. He holds a lot of top ten real estate, across multiple categories. Maybe I should get his autograph or something...)

Buckle in and get comfortable, friends, ‘cause we’re about to take a wild ride with this data.

Table of contents

1. Top posts by 1Metric score
2. Top posts by unique visits
3. Top YouMoz posts by unique visits
4. Top posts by number of thumbs up
5. Top posts by number of comments
6. Top community comments by thumbs up
7. Top commenters by total number of comment thumbs up
8. Top commenters by top number of average thumbs/comment

1. Top posts by 1Metric score

You may have heard mention of this mysterious 1Metric score in the past. It's a proprietary metric we developed a few years ago to measure content marketing success. We use this score regularly to check up on how our content’s doing.

The theme encompassing this year's highest-scoring posts seems to be centered around sparking discussions, debate, and new ways of thinking about quotidian tasks. That, in and of itself, is immensely exciting to me — it's the essence of what makes our community so flippin' vibrant and innovative.

Here’s the full rundown for your reading pleasure:

1. The Web Developer's SEO Cheat Sheet 3.0 by Cyrus Shepard, May 18th
Introducing the new and improved Web Developer's SEO Cheat Sheet. Download info on SEO best practices for online marketers and developers. Updated for 2015.

2. Why I Stopped Selling SEO Services and You Should, Too by Ryan Stewart, October 7th
It's no longer just about optimizing your website for Google. It's about optimizing your presence across the web. SEO has tentacles that extend well beyond your website, so it's important that you begin to think of search holistically, taking into account all of the areas that can be optimized.

3. Why Effective, Modern SEO Requires Technical, Creative, and Strategic Thinking - Whiteboard Friday by Rand Fishkin, August 7th
While SEO is a different field than it once was, technical chops are still required to do things really well. In this Whiteboard Friday, Rand pushes back against the idea that those skills are no longer necessary.

4. Why Good Unique Content Needs to Die - Whiteboard Friday by Rand Fishkin, May 22nd
If we're talking about creating "good, unique content" and are hoping for it to rank in competitive SERPs, we're not setting the right bar. In this Whiteboard Friday, Rand shows us what we should be going for instead.

5. How to Write for the Web—a New Approach for Increased Engagement - Whiteboard Friday by Dan Petrovic, October 30th
16%. That's the percentage of people who read everything you write word-for-word. That number hasn't changed in two decades, which tells us that we've never really learned how to write for the web. In this Whiteboard Friday, Dan Petrovic illustrates a new approach to writing for the web to increase reader engagement, and offers some tools and tips to help along the way.

6. Stop Ghost Spam in Google Analytics with One Filter by Carlos Escalera, August 2nd
Don't be distracted by web spam. A simple, easy-to-use filter could remove the majority of your worries surrounding spam.

7. Why We Can't Do Keyword Research Like It's 2010 - Whiteboard Friday by Rand Fishkin, June 12th
From selection to the actual research, keywords simply aren't the same beast they were five years ago. In this Whiteboard Friday, Rand shows you how to do keyword research in 2015, ensuring you don't harm your site with obsolete tactics.

8. Google Keyword Planner's Dirty Secrets by Russ Jones, December 1st
Google Keyword Planner has some pretty scary skeletons in its closet! Learn about all the dirty secrets that should make you think twice about relying on Google's volume estimates.

9. The Absolute Beginner's Guide to Google Analytics by Kristi Hines, June 24th
If you don't know what Google Analytics is, haven't installed it on your website, or have installed it but never look at your data, then this post is for you.

10. Announcing the 2015 Search Engine Ranking Factors Study by Cyrus Shepard, August 11th
We're excited to announce the results of Moz's famous Ranking Factors study. The study helps to identify which attributes of webpages and sites have the strongest association with higher rankings in Google. Ready to dive in?

2. Top posts by unique visits

Unique visits are a big deal. This metric throws around more weight than any other, because it indicates how we’re driving traffic to the rest of the site. Check out what brought the most new eyes to the blog this year, and compare it to the top posts by number of thumbs below.

1. 15 SEO Best Practices for Structuring URLs by Rand Fishkin, February 24th
It's been a long time since we covered one of the most fundamental building blocks of SEO — the structure of domain names and URLs — and it's high time to revisit.

2. How to Stop Spam Bots from Ruining Your Analytics Referral Data by Jared Gardner, March 18th
Don't give spam bots a free ride on your website. Create an inhospitable environment for the invasive pests in a few simple steps.

3. Technical Site Audit Checklist: 2015 Edition by Geoff Kenyon, January 19th
Back in 2011, Geoff wrote a a technical site audit checklist, and while it was thorough, there have been a lot of additions to what is encompassed in a site audit. He's gone through and updated that old checklist for 2015.

4. The Web Developer's SEO Cheat Sheet 3.0 - Moz by Cyrus Shepard, May 18th
Introducing the new and improved Web Developer's SEO Cheat Sheet. Download info on SEO best practices for online marketers and developers. Updated for 2015.

5. 9 Things You Need to Know About Google's Mobile-Friendly Update by Cindy Krum, April 6th
Cindy Krum and her colleague Emily Grossman wanted to cut through the noise and bring online marketers a clearer picture of what's in store when it comes to Mobilegeddon. In this post, you'll find answers to nine key questions about the update.

6. Subdomains vs. Subfolders, Rel Canonical vs. 301, and How to Structure Links for SEO - Whiteboard Friday by Rand Fishkin, February 6th
Subfolders or subdomains? 301 redirect or rel canonical? What about optimal link structures for SEO? Some of the basic questions are the ones that crop up the most frequently, and in this Whiteboard Friday, Rand tackles those three.

7. The Alleged $7.5 Billion Fraud in Online Advertising by Samuel Scott, June 22nd
Online advertising is often based around the idea of an "impression," but few of us actually know what that means. We assume it means some sort of interaction with a human being, but as it turns out, we're quite wrong. We dive into some staggering statistics with Samuel Scott.

8. How to do Keyword Research in 90 Minutes by Jeremy Gottlieb, January 28th
Using a hypothetical client, Jeremy Gottlieb shows you just how much keyword research you can get done in 90 minutes (and walks you step-by-step through how to do it).

9. Spam Score: Moz's New Metric to Measure Penalization Risk by Rand Fishkin, March 30th
Moz's Spam Score metric helps quantify the relative risk of penalization/banning by search engines using a series of correlated flags. This post helps explain where you can find Spam Score, how to use it, and the R&D behind its development.

10. Why Good Unique Content Needs to Die - Whiteboard Friday by Rand Fishkin, May 22nd
If we're talking about creating "good, unique content" and are hoping for it to rank in competitive SERPs, we're not setting the right bar. In this Whiteboard Friday, Rand shows us what we should be going for instead.

3. Top YouMoz posts by unique visits

YouMoz is a wondrous, magical place where our insightful community members may submit their own ideas for blog posts. When they go live, they can even be promoted to the main blog to share with an even bigger audience. The majority of the posts below may have gotten bumped from YouMoz up to that big blog in the sky, but it’s a testament to how well they did.

1. How to Stop Spam Bots from Ruining Your Analytics Referral Data by Jared Gardner, March 18th
Don't give spam bots a free ride on your website. Create an inhospitable environment for the invasive pests in a few simple steps.

2. How Hashtags Work on Twitter, Instagram, Google Plus, Pinterest, Facebook, Tumblr, and Flickr by Ann Smarty, February 15th
Hashtags, which make it easier to find, share, and curate content on social platforms, can be an invaluable tool in your marketing arsenal.

3. Why I Stopped Selling SEO Services and You Should, Too by Ryan Stewart, October 7th
It's no longer just about optimizing your website for Google. It's about optimizing your presence across the web. SEO has tentacles that extend well beyond your website, so it's important that you begin to think of search holistically, taking into account all of the areas that can be optimized.

4. Stop Ghost Spam in Google Analytics with One Filter by Carlos Escalera, August 2nd
Don't be distracted by web spam. A simple, easy-to-use filter could remove the majority of your worries surrounding spam.

5. 9 Simple Tips For Making An About Us Page That Works For Your Brand by Ben Austin, March 15th
Your brand's About Us page is prime real estate for prospects looking to do business with the company. Reward visitors for their efforts by showcasing an engaging, insightful page.

6. 14 Ways to Find Any Email Address in 10 Minutes or Less by Freddie Chatt, March 26th
Content promotion and amplification are the lifeblood of content marketing, and it all starts with outreach. Don't allow the lack of an email address to hold back your outreach efforts.

7. Everything You Need To Know About Sponsored Content by Chad Pollitt, January 20th
Has your business considered sponsored content? Research says it can be a worthwhile addition to your business's marketing efforts.

8. A Beginner's Guide to Google Search Console by Angela Petteys, September 1st
If the name "Google Webmaster Tools" rings a bell for you, you might already have an idea of what Google Search Console is. This post shows you how to successfully set up Search Console for your site.

9. Case Study: How I Turned Autocomplete Ideas into Traffic & Ranking Results with Only 5 Hours of Effort by Jamie Press, July 14th
Don't sleep on Google Autocomplete for helping you uncover some low-hanging-fruit content ideas.

10. Become Intelligent: Use Google Analytics Intelligence Alerts to your Advantage by Martijn Scheijbeler, February 25th
Use Google Analytics Intelligence Alerts to help you more effectively recognize changes to your website's performance.

4. Top posts by number of thumbs up

Just take a moment and think about where we’d be without thumbs. No rocket science, no masterpieces of human creativity, no spaces between the words in our sentences, and definitely no raw indication of just what you folks liked in 2015 on the Moz blog! Thank goodness for thumbs. Here are the top posts by thumbs up, as indicated by anyone with a favorable opinion and a community account.

1. 15 SEO Best Practices for Structuring URLs by Rand Fishkin, February 24th
It's been a long time since we covered one of the most fundamental building blocks of SEO — the structure of domain names and URLs — and it's high time to revisit.

2. Why I Stopped Selling SEO Services and You Should, Too by Ryan Stewart, October 7th
It's no longer just about optimizing your website for Google. It's about optimizing your presence across the web. SEO has tentacles that extend well beyond your website, so it's important that you begin to think of search holistically, taking into account all of the areas that can be optimized.

3. Technical Site Audit Checklist: 2015 Edition by Geoff Kenyon, January 19th
Back in 2011, Geoff wrote a a technical site audit checklist, and while it was thorough, there have been a lot of additions to what is encompassed in a site audit. He's gone through and updated that old checklist for 2015.

4. 10 SEO Myths that Friggin' Tick Me Off by Cyrus Shepard, March 9th
Most non-SEO folk you talk to are generally very nice people. Then, though, there's the non-SEO "expert" (loosely defined as someone who has a cousin in marketing). Well-intentioned but misinformed, they believe SEO is urban legend, no better than a Ponzi scheme. In this post are a few of the worst offenders.

5. Spam Score: Moz's New Metric to Measure Penalization Risk by Rand Fishkin, March 30th
Moz's Spam Score metric helps quantify the relative risk of penalization/banning by search engines using a series of correlated flags. This post helps explain where you can find Spam Score, how to use it, and the R&D behind its development.

6. 10 Predictions for the Marketing World in 2015 by Rand Fishkin, January 6th
The beginning of the year marks the traditional time for blogger prognosticating, and Rand's created a tradition of predicting the big trends in SEO and web marketing over the last decade.

7. Subdomains vs. Subfolders, Rel Canonical vs. 301, and How to Structure Links for SEO - Whiteboard Friday by Rand Fishkin, February 6th
Subfolders or subdomains? 301 redirect or rel canonical? What about optimal link structures for SEO? Some of the basic questions are the ones that crop up the most frequently, and in this Whiteboard Friday, Rand tackles those three.

8. A Universal SEO Strategy Audit in 5 Steps - Whiteboard Friday by Rand Fishkin, January 30th
Starting your SEO strategy with questions only works if you're asking the right questions. In this Whiteboard Friday, Rand covers the five that'll lead you in the wrong direction, and the five steps you should be taking instead.

9. How to Provide Unique Value in Your Content - Whiteboard Friday by Rand Fishkin, January 9th
Marketers of all stripes are hearing more about providing unique content and value to their audiences, and how that's what Google wants to show searchers. Unique content is straightforward enough, but what exactly does everyone mean by "unique value?" What does that actually look like? In this Whiteboard Friday, Rand illustrates the answer.

10. How Hashtags Work on Twitter, Instagram, Google Plus, Pinterest, Facebook, Tumblr, and Flickr by Ann Smarty, February 15th
Hashtags, which make it easier to find, share and curate content on social platforms, can be an invaluable tool in your marketing arsenal.

5. Top posts by number of comments

It's always thought-provoking to see the differences between top posts by thumbs and top posts by comments; they don't always overlap. Maybe these had a shade of controversy to them, maybe a particularly interesting discussion ensued, maybe a group of rebels broke community guidelines, got off topic, and posted the lyrics to their favorite Neil Diamond songs (I wish). Regardless of the reason, these posts generated the most conversation in 2015 — read through to find out why, and maybe add your own here and there!

1. How to Stop Spam Bots from Ruining Your Analytics Referral Data by Jared Gardner, March 18th
Don't give spam bots a free ride on your website. Create an inhospitable environment for the invasive pests in a few simple steps.

2. Why I Stopped Selling SEO Services and You Should, Too by Ryan Stewart, October 7th
It's no longer just about optimizing your website for Google. It's about optimizing your presence across the web. SEO has tentacles that extend well beyond your website, so it's important that you begin to think of search holistically, taking into account all of the areas that can be optimized.

3. Local Search Expert Quiz: How Much Do You Know about Local SEO? by Cyrus Shepard, January 13th
Last year, Moz introduced the SEO Expert Quiz, which to date over 40,000 people have attempted to conquer. We're proud to announce the Local Search Expert Quiz. Written by local search expert Miriam Ellis herself, the quiz contains 40 questions to completely challenge your knowledge of Local SEO.

4. Subdomains vs. Subfolders, Rel Canonical vs. 301, and How to Structure Links for SEO - Whiteboard Friday by Rand Fishkin, February 6th
Subfolders or subdomains? 301 redirect or rel canonical? What about optimal link structures for SEO? Some of the basic questions are the ones that crop up the most frequently, and in this Whiteboard Friday, Rand tackles those three.

5. Spam Score: Moz's New Metric to Measure Penalization Risk by Rand Fishkin, March 30th
Moz's Spam Score metric helps quantify the relative risk of penalization/banning by search engines using a series of correlated flags. This post helps explain where you can find Spam Score, how to use it, and the R&D behind its development.

6. Stop Ghost Spam in Google Analytics with One Filter by Carlos Escalera, August 2nd
Don't be distracted by web spam. A simple, easy to use filter could remove the majority of your worries surrounding spam.

7. 10 SEO Myths that Friggin' Tick Me Off by Cyrus Shepard, March 9th
Most non-SEO folk you talk to are generally very nice people. Then, though, there's the non-SEO "expert" (loosely defined as someone who has a cousin in marketing). Well-intentioned but misinformed, they believe SEO is urban legend, no better than a Ponzi scheme. In this post are a few of the worst offenders.

8. How Hashtags Work on Twitter, Instagram, Google Plus, Pinterest, Facebook, Tumblr, and Flickr by Ann Smarty, February 15th
Hashtags, which make it easier to find, share and curate content on social platforms, can be an invaluable tool in your marketing arsenal.

9. 9 Simple Tips For Making An About Us Page That Works For Your Brand by Ben Austin, March 15th
Your brand's About Us page is prime real estate for prospects looking to do business with the company. Reward visitors for their efforts by showcasing an engaging, insightful page.

10. Technical Site Audit Checklist: 2015 Edition by Geoff Kenyon, January 19th
Back in 2011, Geoff wrote a a technical site audit checklist, and while it was thorough, there have been a lot of additions to what is encompassed in a site audit. He's gone through and updated that old checklist for 2015.

6. Top community comments by thumbs up

These comments were good. If these comments were ancient Roman gladiators, they would definitely be spared. We've got a healthy mix of advice, humor, TAGFEE, and pure humanity in this year's batch — reading these, I know I couldn't be prouder to be involved with this community. Here are 2015’s top comments by number of thumbs up.

Bonus points: See if you can divine the identity of our enigmatic "mystery guest"...

1. Gianluca Fiorelli | June 12th
Commented on Why We Can’t Do Keyword Research Like It’s 2010 - Whiteboard Friday

2. Rand Fishkin | January 6th
Commented on 10 Predictions for the Marketing World in 2015

3. Rand Fishkin | October 7th
Commented on Why I Stopped Selling SEO Services and You Should, Too

4. Phil Nottingham | July 21st
Commented on Moz Local Officially Launches in the UK

5. Rand Fishkin | April 22nd
Commented on 7 Days After Mobilegeddon: How Far Did the Sky Fall?

6. mystery_guest | January 6th
Commented on 10 Predictions for the Marketing World in 2015

7. Rand Fishkin | August 7th
Commented on Why Effective, Modern SEO Requires Technical, Creative, and Strategic Thinking - Whiteboard Friday

8. Erica McGillivray | August 20th
Commented on Is Online Marketing Gender-Diverse?

9. Sarah Bird | August 20th
Commented on Is Online Marketing Gender-Diverse?

10. Samuel Scott | May 29th
Commented on Is Brand a Google Ranking Factor? - Whiteboard Friday

7. Top commenters by total number of comment thumbs up

Writing thoughtful, discerning commentary is more valuable than just contributing to the discussion at hand and supporting the betterment of the online marketing industry as a whole. Heck, the best comments earn thumbs up, and writing the best comments time and time again will net you some serious MozPoint cheddar. I present to you today the one percenters of the Moz blog commenters from 2015.

1. Samuel Scott, username SamuelScott
MozPoints: 3324 | Rank: 25

2. Peter Nikolow, username Mobilio
MozPoints: 1330 | Rank: 81

3. Umar Khan, username UmarKhan
MozPoints: 1671 | Rank: 64

4. Marie Haynes, username Marie Haynes
MozPoints: 5739 | Rank: 6

5. Matt Antonino, username MattAntonino
MozPoints: 3623 | Rank: 21

6. EGOL, username EGOL
MozPoints: 19,316 | Rank: 1

7. Nick Stamoulis, username Brick-Marketing
MozPoints: 1087 | Rank: 104

8. Bill Slawski, username billslawski
MozPoints: 1117 | Rank: 102

9. Eric Enge, username EricEnge
MozPoints: 2099 | Rank: 44

10. Kelsey Libert, username KelseyLibert
MozPoints: 1140 | Rank: 98

8. Top commenters by average number of thumbs/comment, 20 comment minimum

Here's another way to showcase some of our most consistently prolific commenters whose words strike a chord with the community. These are the folks with the highest average number of thumbs up per comment, who have contributed at least 20 total comments over 2015. To all our commenters and silent, lurking readers thumbs-up-ing everything, we thank you for sharing your wisdom, your wit, and your critiques all — you make this blog a good place to be.

1. Peter Nikolow, username Mobilio
Total comments: 131 | Total thumbs: 489

2. Martin Pezet, username mpezet
Total comments: 20 | Total thumbs: 73

3. Samuel Scott, username SamuelScott
Total comments: 272 | Total thumbs: 965

4. Brady Callahan, username BradyDCallahan
Total comments: 26 | Total thumbs: 88

5. Igal Stolpner, username Igalst
Total comments: 22 | Total thumbs: 73

6. Bill Slawski, username billslawski
Total comments: 42 | Total thumbs: 136

7. Angular Marketing, username Angular
Total comments: 30 | Total thumbs: 92

8. Marie Haynes, username MarieHaynes
Total comments: 102 | Total thumbs: 286

9. Mark Traphagen, username MarkTraphagen
Total comments: 40 | Total thumbs: 101

10. Matt Antonino, username MattAntonino
Total comments: 76 | Total thumbs: 191

This is a salute to you — the hard-working, generously-contributing, tirelessly thoughtful Moz blog community. Where would we ever be without you? Our heartfelt thanks for all you do and say. Here's to a 2016 that's even better!

Allow me to give a huge shout out to Trevor, Tori, and Cyrus, without whose help we would all be lost — especially me, when compiling all these numbers. Thanks for everything!

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