“Should old acquaintance be forgot, and never brought to mind? Should old acquaintance be forgot, and old lang syne.”

Web design, blog management, social media marketing, search engine optimization, and a bevy of other topics have eloquently graced the resourceful pages of our blog throughout this past year.  While I enjoy creating topics that you will enjoy, there were a number of ideas that you, the readers and followers of us, have contributed.  With that said, it’s only right to celebrate our IMPACT blog happenings of 2010 (top blog articles), and warmly welcome with an excess of excitement the adventures that lie within 2011.  Without further ado, here are the top 10 posts of 2010:

Top 5 Backlink Strategies That Work

“Search engine optimization, whether you are talking about the Google algorithm or Bing’s new search results formula, revolves primarily around your ability to build backlinks. However, backlinks typically don’t just happen for new sites so we (IMPACT) want to provide you with the top 5 strategies to spike your backlink campaign.”

We start off our 2010 countdown with a fantastic article that was truly influenced and/or created by our audience.  We received a couple of comments on one of our search engine optimization posts about off-page SEO and how it takes too much time to create backlinks.  After I had heard that, I was determined to find a way to help you and all of our other readers understand that there are effective backlink strategies out there that truly do make a difference in your online reputation and online marketing campaign(s).  That said, this blog update kicks off our countdown at number 10.

Now, just imagine a Times Square-like crystal ball is starting to drop down a 50 foot tall beam standing atop our IMPACT offices on Hall Ave, and (yes) we do have Ryan Seacrest hosting the event!

Web Design Tips For The iPad

“With the emerging popularity of the iPad, web designers are forced to reconsider how they look at creating a positive user experience for website owners. Let’s take a look at the top 5 hints for designing websites for the iPad.”

Quite simply one of the most intriguing technological breakthroughs of 2010 was the introduction and rapid emergence of the iPad.  Yes, this device was unveiled prior to 2010, but the fact of the matter is that its largest impact to date has been in the last 10 months to the point that websites (as indicated in our post) have been altered and/or redesigned for iPad compatibility.  So, as our number 9 ranked article, take a look to see where you can make improvements to accommodate and ever-changing world of technology.

How To Use Facebook Statistics To Your Advantage

“Check out these statistics:

Impressed yet? Facebook has the largest and most active social network on the web which means that it is a phenomenal venue to market and promote your company. You have the ability to create pages, post comments, maintain discussions, and so much more to achieve an amazing online reputation through this one site alone. However, the only way to verify the effectiveness of what you are doing is through Facebook Page Statistics.”

One of the largest topics this year was Facebook (and Twitter), and how they can influence your business.  That said, the evolution of Facebook statistics has been absolutely staggering and fully beneficial to those people using the network for social media marketing, etc.  Of course, this means that this article takes on the role of the eighth most popular blog article for 2010.

Top 50 Places To Submit Your Blog

“No matter how good of a blogger you may be, nobody is going to notice you unless they know that you are out there with that great content. So, how do you get everyone in the blogosphere to notice you?”

Honestly, I am a bit shocked that this post didn’t rank higher than 7th most popular because we received a ton of feedback on how this article helped companies know where to submit their blog information to generate a higher amount of organic traffic.  However, with the steep competition to rank in the top 10, I can see how it was a tight race.  Now, as a self-explanatory title, I am hoping that if you haven’t had the chance to cruise through this article that you take the opportunity now and take advantage of the information that you have at your fingertips.

10 Minutes To Better Local SEO

“The applied science of search engine optimization (SEO) has become an increasingly difficult art to master, but has remained an unspeakably important aspect of owning a website. Along with this, the answer to the question “How do I get my website ranked in the top 10 for my keywords” changes all too frequently. Aside from the basic tips like constructing internal links and seeking out external links, there are a few quick steps that you can follow that have stayed constant in helping your local SEO rankings.”

Inching out the article competition to be ranked as our 6th most popular post for 2010, this local search engine optimization guide just missed out on a fifth place finish as well.  However, while the views did not take it to a higher ranking, the ideas and content drove a tremendous number of readers to analyze (or re-analyze) their search engine optimization techniques as well as strategies to capitalize on an up and coming SEO market.  If you haven’t tapped into local SEO at this point because you don’t understand it, then either contact us or start right here to learn like several other of your colleagues have!

With the number 5 post, IMPACT’s New Year’s glass ball is now at halfway down til the fireworks and confetti shoot out at the millions reading this blog…better get a broom and dustpan ready to clean up all the silly-string as well!

Four Fantastic Brochure Layout and Design Ideas

“Internal and external marketing, like the relentless winters are to the Northeast, are an inevitable piece of each and every company. No matter the medium you choose to utilize, there are always techniques and strategies to help you take the next step to business success. In fact, today we will take a look at four different ways that you can design and/or layout your brochure to stay one (or two) steps ahead of your competition.”

Again, as one of our most popular posts (5th most raved about), I cannot take credit for the topic of this post as it was generated from a conversation that I had with a member of the Hamden Chamber of Commerce.  This particular individual was looking for new ways to design his company brochure and didn’t know where to start so I figured I would pick up right from there and help the community with this article.  With that said, if you are looking for design ideas for your brochures for 2011 feel free to start right here with this publication and then contact us for more information on how to make that idea a reality.

The Benefits of Testimonials

“If you’re selling a product on your website, customer testimonials can be a key content element because they are unbiased comments that prompt visitors to buy. By using testimonials in text, audio or video formats on your site you introduce content that will promote your product in convincing fashion.“

Our fourth ranked post of 2010 came to fruition due to the comments and suggestions from our clientele and readers.  Some of you had responded to a few posts and taken the time to ask us about the influence testimonials have on webpages.  We took it one further and looked at how testimonials can be used throughout your entire business.  Take a look and have fun with this article!

By the way, this is where the proverbial ball starts flickering and blinking with those Tiffany Co. decorations as we are rapidly round the second half of our countdown.

QR Code — The New Kid On The Block

“HTML, CSS, and JavaScript; I’m sure that you have heard of all those types of codes.  However, have you heard of QR Code before?  If you haven’t, you are definitely not along, but it is yet another way for you to gain an immediate competitive advantage.”

We near the end of our countdown with the number 3 most popular post of the year, and I am not surprised at all by this ranking for the infinitely growing realm of the QR code.  As one of the most rapidly growing technologies, real estate, pharmaceuticals, research labs, and a significant number of other businesses have come to use QR codes to their advantage.  If you haven’t seen these already, it is high time you take a look at what a QR code can do for you!

Will Google Me Overcome Facebook

“If you talk with any web developer or social media expert, they will tell you that the world revolves around Facebook and Google. While Facebook covers the full spectrum of social networking venues, Google is the authority of website development and ranking (amongst other things). However, in the very near future the folks at Google may be challenging Facebook directly with the release of ‘Google Me’.”

Similar to the ball dropping in Times Square, I know that you are waiting to hear what number 10 is for our countdown, and the good news is you are almost there with our number 2 blog article.  With the battle of Facebook vs. Google being a heavyweight fight like Evander Holyfield vs. Mike Tyson, it is no surprise that this article ranked higher than most of our publications.  Of course, as the information unfolds for the Google Me (r)evolution, we will cover any pertinent information and how it can influence you and your company so that you can stay well ahead of the game.

And now the ball starts it’s final descent…

Difference Between Digg, Delicious, Stumble, and Mixx

“It’s no surprise that social media websites are some of the most frequented sites on the web. However, with so many sites out there it is important to know the different features, purposes, and basic differences between them.”

And our countdown reaches the number 1 ranked IMPACT post for 2010 with a social networking update and educational article that helped a significant number of people in 2010 and will continue to help our readers understand some of the most popular social networking platforms available to them.  This post takes a great look at the features of all four networks and how those features can help you establish a more effective online reputation.

With the New Year’s officially upon us, I (and the rest of the IMPACT team) send our best wishes for you, your families, and your businesses throughout 2011 and well beyond!  Please continue to think about and appreciate the things that you have in your life.

Remember, it’s a great accomplishment to be happy with what you currently have, but never cease to strive for the next level of success in any aspect of your life!

Need Help?

If social media marketing, search engine optimization (SEO), and blogging are something that you are interested in but don’t know how to get started, contact us today to schedule your free marketing analysis.

Sources:
“The Essential Step-by-Step Guide to Internet Marketing”-E-Book
SlideShare.net
Image Source: HubSpot, “The 2011 State of Inbound Marketing”, E-Marketer.com