Ann Smarty - Practical Ecommerce

Articles by: Ann Smarty

Ann Smarty

Ann Smarty

Ann Smarty is the founder of Smarty Marketing, a boutique SEO agency based in New York, and Viral Content Bee, a social media promotion tool.

Ann's search engine optimization career began in 2005. She is the former editor-in-chief of Search Engine Journal and contributor to prominent search and social blogs, including Small Business Trends and Mashable.

Ann is also a frequent speaker at Pubcon and many other digital marketing events.

Contact Ann via email or LinkedIn.

Link Building
How to Earn Backlinks as a Quoted Expert

April 21, 2025 • Ann Smarty

Being quoted in reputable publications drives backlinks and topical authority as an entity.
Analytics & Data
How to Track ChatGPT Traffic in GA4

April 14, 2025 • Ann Smarty

Traffic from ChatGPT is low volume but often the most engaging referral source, even more than organic search.
Keyword Research
How Keywords Drive Helpful Content

April 8, 2025 • Ann Smarty

Keywords no longer guarantee traffic, but they do reveal prospects' needs.
Keyword Research
Search Volume Tools for Marketers

March 31, 2025 • Ann Smarty

Search terms rise and fall in popularity. Understanding the movements aids informed decisions.
SEO
Brand Visibility Is the New SEO

March 24, 2025 • Ann Smarty

Search engines drive brand discovery for genAI platforms and research for humans.
SEO
Bad SEO Advice: 5 Tips to Ignore

March 18, 2025 • Ann Smarty

Four common SEO recommendations that waste time, or worse.
SEO
‘Do’ Queries Are an SEO Priority

March 11, 2025 • Ann Smarty

Google's quality raters' guidelines suggest a new approach to searchers' intent: "know simple," "know," and "do."
SEO
Why Search Rankings Are Driving Less Traffic

March 4, 2025 • Ann Smarty

A drop in traffic usually stems from lower rankings. But what if rankings are unchanged?
SEO
How to Optimize for GenAI Answers

February 24, 2025 • Ann Smarty

Consumers increasingly turn to ChatGPT and similar channels for product and brand recommendations.
SEO
SEO Considerations for New Domain Names

February 17, 2025 • Ann Smarty

Shoppers are discovering brands on generative AI and then searching for them on Google.
On-page SEO
‘Helpful Content’ per Google’s Latest Guidelines

February 10, 2025 • Ann Smarty

Google's core search algorithm includes a "helpful content" component, making its definition of the term critical.
SEO Tools
It’s Time to Pay Attention to Bing

February 3, 2025 • Ann Smarty

ChatGPT uses Bing's index and search platform. And Bing's advertising program is growing.
On-page SEO
‘Your Money or Your Life,’ Defined by Google

January 27, 2025 • Ann Smarty

YMYL topics affect a person’s health, safety, financial stability, and well-being.
SEO Tools
How to Track Rankings with Search Console

January 20, 2025 • Ann Smarty

Google now blocks third-party organic rank-tracking tools. Here's how to monitor rankings in Search Console.
Technical SEO
What to Know about Meta Descriptions

January 14, 2025 • Ann Smarty

Here's how meta descriptions impact traffic but not organic search rankings.
Technical SEO
How Google Detects Duplicate Content

January 6, 2025 • Ann Smarty

Google seeks diverse search results and must choose when two or more pages are the same or similar.
On-page SEO
Google’s Site Reputation Abuse Policy, Explained

December 9, 2024 • Ann Smarty

Sites that publish unrelated third-party content abuse their reputation, per Google, and risk penalties.
On-page SEO
Content Optimization Checklist for SEO

December 2, 2024 • Ann Smarty

The best content for search engines and humans places keywords and concepts strategically and naturally on a page.
SEO
Action Steps for Bing’s AI SEO Guidelines

November 25, 2024 • Ann Smarty

Bing's newly published optimization guidelines are short on implementation tactics.
SEO Tools
How to Audit HTML Headings on Any Page

November 18, 2024 • Ann Smarty

H1, H2, and H3 headings are among the most important SEO elements on a page. Here are tools to identify, audit, compare, and more.
Keyword Research
Keyword Volume: Google vs. Semrush vs. Ahrefs

November 12, 2024 • Ann Smarty

Keyword search volume metrics are imprecise and vary among the three principal sources.
Product Pages
Structured Data Markup for Ecommerce Product Pages

November 4, 2024 • Ann Smarty

Structured data helps search engines understand a page's purpose and elevate its visibility in organic listings.
On-page SEO
SEO for Product Category Pages in 7 Steps

October 30, 2024 • Ann Smarty

The purpose of category pages is not just to attract traffic but to engage visitors into buying products.
Link Building
Is Your Site Vulnerable to a Google Update?

October 21, 2024 • Ann Smarty

No site is safe from a Google update, but some experience more ranking declines than others.
SEO Tools
My Top SEO Tools to Analyze Backlinks

October 14, 2024 • Ann Smarty

External backlinks, especially from trustworthy sites, remain a key ranking factor and generate clicks and engagement.
Analytics & Data
Handy Chrome Extensions for Google Analytics

October 8, 2024 • Ann Smarty

Here are three third-party extensions to create GA4 reports, add annotations, and access data quickly.
SEO Tools
Free SEO Spreadsheet for Better Rankings

September 30, 2024 • Ann Smarty

Here's how to create a detailed spreadsheet identifying the best-performing pages, missed opportunities, and areas of improvement.
SEO Tools
How to Compare SEO of Competing URLs

September 23, 2024 • Ann Smarty

Only Google knows most ranking signals, although some are public. Examples include keyword usage, content structure, and backlinks.
SEO Tools
Google’s ‘About this result’ Explained

September 15, 2024 • Ann Smarty

Google provides additional info on every organic search result behind the three dots to its right.
SEO Tools
Underused SEO Reports in Search Console

September 9, 2024 • Ann Smarty

Search Console is the free powerhouse for organic rankings. Yet some helpful reports are little used.

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