2 Questions: Australian Google search & Australian corporate blogs

ByLaurel Papworth

I’ve got two questions for you. And I have tried to get them answered in other places first – I just know that some of you readers are knowledgeable in a couple of areas where I don’t ace it (me? humble? neveh!) Question 1. Why does Google Search (Australia) hate this blog? If you go…

I’ve got two questions for you. And I have tried to get them answered in other places first – I just know that some of you readers are knowledgeable in a couple of areas where I don’t ace it (me? humble? neveh!)

Question 1. Why does Google Search (Australia) hate this blog?
If you go to google.com and search for social networks australia, this blog comes top. If you go to google.com.au and search for social networks this blog does not exist. And I do mean at all. My crappy world.com.au site comes up eventually but Laurel Papworth – Online Communities- Australia and Local doesn’t get a look-in. Ok, I’m being niaive but I thought that .com was internatonal and .us was US sites? As in ‘Blogspot/Blogger’ should be international?
My question – is there a way to get listed on Google Australia search? I asked in the Google forums and they told me to metatag my geo data (I did) but to no avail.

Question 2. Does Corporate Australia blog in a closet somewhere?
I’m going to ignore my own definition of blog here and say that comments don’t need to be enabled. Trevor Cook has a blog but then again he’s PR so he bloomin’ well should. 🙂 Who else blogs? I’m really looking for senior and not-too-geeky. So Frank Arrigo is out cos he out-geeks geeks, even at Microsoft. I can’t find any – and there must be. Please let me know if a corporate type is blogging their little heart out in a corner somewhere? Or am I just Google-challenged and there’s a vibrant culture of corporate blogging in Australian Business?

Thank you, my poppets.

24 Comments

  2. Thank’s John. 🙂
    I think my bloggy is coming up on blogsearch. It’s just not coming up as ‘Australian’. So people only find me if a) they use generic google.com (not AU) and then b)manually type in ‘Australia’. See the difference?

    But I changed the URL to blogsearch.google.com.AU/ping so lets see if that fixes anything. *fingers crossed*

    I’ve also asked Alexa to register me as Australian even though I can’t create a file on the blogger host like they want me to. In the meantime, people find me through tags and links and blogrolls and I so who needs Google huh? 🙂

    PS Mr Allsop sir, when can I tell the great smelly unwashed about *whispers* Web Directions South?

  3. Google associates domains with a country for determining country specific search results.
    The country is determined by the country extension of the domain; and/or the hosting server location.

    Your may be Australian – but the domain (blogspot.com) is USA; and it is hosted in the USA at IP 72.14.207.191 Therefore silkcharm.blogspot.com is classified as a US, not an Australian site.
    best
    Chris,
    Cogentis Search Marketing
    See you at Web Directions South

  4. Bugger. I had a feeling someone was going to say that. Ah well, that’ll learn me for moving across to a free hosting site back then. 😛

    Thanks Chris. Maybe one day Google will look at the metatags for geolocation and update appropriately. I don’t see how people could “game” the location – if they want to fake being in Silicon Valley, they just use a Californian web host right? If I remember correctly, Google has a Californian search engine too…

  5. Hi Laurel,

    Simon Baker of Realestate.com.au blogs (and uses YouTube, Flickr and wikis).
    If you’ll forgive a shameless plug, I’ve just launched a podcast series of case studies at the ZEST Digital website and Simon’s the first interviewee. He’s very good on the topic of social media for companies.
    And of course there’s the Telstra portal for its corporate blogs.

  6. I was looking for examples for a discussion paper I’m putting together for “The Board”.

    Nothing. Apart from Telstra’s Now We Are Talking, of course, and that’s hardly a shinning example.

    Hopefully, by WDS, I’ll have a prime example or two for you. Assuming you are into baby nutrition, of course 🙂

  7. I’m going to collect all these corporate bloggers like tehy are collectible dolls and pop them all on a flaky wiki I have over at world.com.au – feel free to add a page Pommie (or anyone) if you find more Corporate bloggers lurking around the place. I’ll even buy you a beer at WebDirections or WebJam or Weblogger Meetup or somewhere. Except that nasteh spammer who keeps trying to post up crap about ringtones. He gets NUFFIN’. Or email me or post here any others you find.

    And what’s “The Board”? Sounds very Opus Dei. Quite scary – you aren’t some secret progeny of the Priory de Sion are you? 🙂

  8. Hi Laurel,

    You can try two ways to achieve local australian indexing:

    1) Although your blog is with blogger.com, you can have the blog hosted on your own domain with the extension .au, and all existing traffic will be diverted back to your site with the .au extension. This will localise your site.

    2) The other way is that you need more SEO work on your site. You need to increase your keyword density for australian terms on your posts in this blog, and even perhaps have aussie terms within your metatags and keyword description. I have taken a look at your description and only 2 keywords refer to Australia, namely Sydney and Australia, among the other keywords. Also you have specifically mentioned Global as well in your metatags.

    From the aspect of search engine optimisation, it would be good for you to have australian keywords at the beginning of your articles frequently, and also ending your articles with australian keywords that you wish to optimise for. By constantly doing so, the spider bots that come avisiting your blog will recognise that it is a site emphasising on australian subject matters and can index you within the Australian index. At the same time, you can also put up your Google sitemap within Google Australia, so that there is relevant indexing in Google Australia. Sometimes it takes more than just letting the search engine spider bots to visit – contrary to popular opinion, it may be neccessary for you to submit your site for indexing with Google Australia, rather than letting the spider bot to come and do its work.

    Just some suggestions for you to think about. Hope you have better chances of being indexed locally.

  10. I have the same issue. I well indexed on Google, but my references in Australia are secondary references from indexes such as Australian Blogs and the Adelaide Index. Onward in the quest to promote Aussie Blogs. Down with the US Centric Internet.

  11. Hey Colin, I registered as Australian at Alexa as well. Go to Alexa.com, put your url in, click on Overview, see the empty contacts details? Click edit details.

    Unfortunately they either want a verified email from silkcharm.blogger.com or they want a file at silkcharm.blogger.com/alexa unfortunately the most we can do on blogspot blogs is put up HTML widgetty things. Hopefully they will change this soon. I emailed them anyway, we’ll see. 🙂

  12. I had been so frustrated beacuse We couldn`t resolve this problem. I quickly found your site in the search engines as well as problem is resolved. Many thanks!

  13. Today, I went to the beach with my kids. I found
    a sea shell and gave it to my 4 year old daughter and said “You can hear the ocean if you put this to your ear.”
    She placed the shell to her eear and screamed. There was a heermit crab inside and iit
    pinched her ear. She nevfer wants to go back! LoL I know this is totally off topic but
    I had to tell someone!

  16. Take those to where the kids who like to share some of the
    player actually starts to ran. This is an gaming sites action RPG was a level.
    ‘ Cards like this. So, stop waiting and look at Naga Series of Poker games.
    How about the online retailer has made the web is teeming with a large maze.
    The make up is the double jump combo. Unfortunately, this game a social
    experience. The player then there are two or something and then in first.

  17. Hi, i believe that i noticed you visited my weblog so i came to
    go back the prefer?.I’m trying to in finding issues to enhance
    my web site!I suppose its good enough to use some of your ideas!!

  18. Thanks for your marvelous posting! I actually enjoyed reading it, you happen to be a
    great author.I will be sure to bookmark your blog
    and definitely will come back down the road.

    I want to encourage you to definitely continue
    your great job, have a nice day!

  21. Hello there, just became alert to your blog through Google, and found that it is truly
    informative. I am gonna watch out for brussels. I will be grateful if you continue this in future.
    Lots of people will be benefited from your writing.
    Cheers!

  24. Slip on your comfy pajamas, and slip onto
    your Andre Sofa and call it a day. Sometime issues comes with tall women’s, actually mostly dresses are created for average heights.
    For kids and teenagers and older people they like necklaces
    bracelets and that such with charms and colors.

Comments are closed.