This is Part #1 of a series. A list of all the other updates can be found at the bottom of this post.
Back To The Drawing Board...
If you are subscribed to my weekly newsletter (and if you’re not, please enter your email address into the sidebar on the right for exclusive updates not available on the blog!), then you will know that there have been no positive developments for Modeling For Kids since my last update. I have in fact decided to let that website lie for a period of time. I submitted a re-inclusion request to Google a couple of weeks ago, so will await a response before deciding how to move forwards.
If you are familiar with my style, you will know that I am not keen on simply giving up on projects, and that is certainly my attitude when it comes to Modeling For Kids. I do however have to be realistic – at the moment, the site is in a bad way, and its future is uncertain. I still hope that it will be a good money maker for me in the future, but I do also have to consider the big picture.
Onwards And Upwards!
And that means that I have time to spend on new projects. I actually have three pretty exciting things going on at the moment, but today I am introducing just one of them to you.
What is so exciting about this project? Well, it is an experiment of sorts. An experiment in complete white hat SEO. A long term project that may or may not be worth its investment, but will undoubtedly teach me (and hopefully you) a great deal.
Black Hat SEO Is A Dying ‘Art’
Make no mistake – the days of effective black hat SEO are numbered. Whilst people will probably always find loopholes in Google’s algorithms, the ease with which you can ‘game’ Google’s search engine results is decreasing, and has been for many years.
Gone are the days of keyword stuffing. Gone are the days of exact anchor match text overload. Gone are the days of being able to rank with ease using poor quality content. With each new algorithm update, doing things that Google frowns upon whilst still ranking highly is becoming more and more difficult.
Which Leads Me To My Experiment
This is a side project for me, and not necessarily something that I will pour a huge amount of time into. But I think it has the potential to reveal some interesting things about how Google operates and how we can work legitimately within its boundaries.
Here’s the deal – I am not going to be employing any black hat, or even ‘grey hat’, SEO techniques with this project. It is going to be as clear and pure as possible. I will however be employing every single legitimate SEO technique that I have time to. My new website will be an exercise in top-quality white hat SEO – the kind of stuff that makes Rand Fishkin over at SEOmoz very happy indeed.
All things being well, I plan for the site to become an absolute authority in its niche.
Anxiety And Panic Attacks
If you read my recent article, “How Overcoming Panic Attacks Helped Me Understand The Path To Success”, you will know that I have suffered from panic attacks in the past. For some time, I have been considering whether or not I could use my experiences as the basis for an authority website that would offer advice and guidance on how to deal with anxiety and panic attacks.
I did quite a lot of keyword research and found out that whilst keywords relating to anxiety and panic attacks offer some relatively low competition, high traffic potential, the commerciality of the niche is less convincing. Whilst the AdWords Cost Per Click (CPC) can be quite high, there seems to be a limited number of companies advertising for a lot of the related keywords.
So in terms of keyword research, it is a mixed bag. If I were approaching this niche cold, I would probably disregard it. But in spite of that, I have started work on Deal With Anxiety.
Wait…What?
Whilst I would love to make a good income from the site, I also feel like I can build something that is of value to people. That is a big driving force for me. I also think that the project will teach me a lot about what truly makes Google happy. And, it helps that I find it very easy to write about the topic– it is a piece of cake compared to writing about child modeling!
I really don’t know where I am going with the project, and there is a certain liberating feeling that comes with that. I do have some very strong ideas in my head as to how I want to approach things (i.e. in an entirely ‘legitimate’ manner), and in future updates I will be going into detail as to what white hat SEO techniques I will be employing in order to make the site a success.
Whether or not I can make a success of the site without spending a serious amount of time on it (as I mentioned, this is more of a side project), is open for contention.
I’m Thinking Long Term
This project is something I have no desire to rush. I am not laying down any fixed goals, and I have no strategy set in stone. This is a ‘fluid’ project – we will just have to see how it develops!
Now it’s over to you – let’s say you were in my shoes, and were building an authority website using only white hat SEO techniques. What would you do?
Read The Whole Series
- My First Authority Site: Deal With Anxiety
- Update #1 – The Value of Experience
- Update #2 – An Evolution
Photo courtesy of miltonmic
Thank you for posting this.
Hi Tom,
Just wanted to say I enjoy your blog and keep it up. I’m interested in seeing how this project develops and what your plans are for the site.
I’m quite new to online marketing and websites and still considering a few ideas for my first project, I will shoot you an email too.
Cheers,
Sam.
Hey Sam,
Thanks for your kind words
I’ve got your email and will get back to you ASAP!
Cheers,
Tom
I read your blog regularly and I do suffer from panic attacks!! Hope your niche blog will help me to ease out things
Great work and do keep us updated 
Well that’s certainly the idea Sudarshan
Although it will obviously take some time to build up a decent resource. I hope it can help you.
Dude, this is great timing. I’ve experienced the same thing. My Amazon sites that were bringing in $400/month…small victory in my book…got hammered by Penguin, so I started my first authority site – http://www.adultswithadd.net – which is in the same broad niche as yours.
I’m going to follow your progress closely and hopefully learn some things. So far, we’ve been focusing solely on content (specifically, guest posts and Q&As with experts) and Twitter (just saw your post on SPI…congrats btw).
Keep us updated!
-Brock
Hey Brock,
This is an old project – the site is still live and brings in traffic, but it’s not something I’m actively working on. I like the sound of your project though
Cheers,
Tom