Search Term as a Domain Name - Need ideas for basic installation | Using WordPress and Thesis as a Content Management System (CMS) | Forum

Everyone,

I have identified several search terms that are common for the topic I am working with.  I am thinking that I should create 4 or 5 basic, basic web sites for these search terms that then point back to my 3 primary web sites.

(I understand that such a technique may have some controversy.  But I think my situation is unique.  Whenever I check the web tools that analyze search terms, they come back and say that the volume is so low that they can't measure it.  I don't think I will get penalized because overall it will help the quality of the search results.  Basically, I can have more pieces of a very, very small pie.

If it was car insurance or toner cartridges, I don't think it would work.)

I am wanting to set these up with a basic cookie-cutter format.  The only difference will be the content that is specific to that search term and maybe the color.  The rest of the web site will be the same – nav menu, headers, footers, sidebar layout, plugins installed, etc.  I don't need anything like eStore or eMember.  These web sites will basically be souped-up landing pages.

With that in mind, what do you recommend?

Plugins?  Menu structure?  Layout?

Again, thank-you everyone for your help!

Reece

Post edited 7:51 pm – January 30, 2012 by Reece Morrel

Rick,

Believe it or not, I agree 100% with you.  "Content is King".

I have some clients that have done exactly what you describe.  One client in one year made over $250k – with no college degree or high school diploma.  (He had only figured out how to turn a computer own about 3-4 years before.  He decided to buy a PC from QVC.  Only in America!)  A few years later, he gave back his house and motorcycle, and owed the IRS a bunch of money.  All he owned was what he could put in his Honda.  Last I heard, he has moved back into a house and is close to breaking even.  A very risky, risky proposition.

I agree 100% that in the end, the guys in the white hats will win and the guys with the quality content will win.

Yes, I fear the power of the almighty search engines.  I have seen first hand what happens to my clients when Google/Microsoft/Yahoo re-index their search results.  That is why I am being very protective of how "involved" my primary sites will become.

Thought #1.

To put it in context, I have enough information on one of my primary web sites that it easily covers over 50 separate topics – I can look at my tag cloud and tell that.  In looking at my web traffic, certain search results are more popular/common than others.  Also, I am using Google Alerts and this reinforces my observed traffic reports.

So I thought what I would try, is to pull the information about a specific topic and dedicate a web site to just that topic.  I consider it a quick start guide for just that topic.  That way the visitor doesn't have to sift through the other 49 topics he doesn't care about.

Thought #2.

What do I have to lose?  As I mentioned in my original post, the traffic on my topic is so low that most of the tracking stuff can't even measure it.  So, if Google/Microsoft/Yahoo penalize me.  I drop from what, #2 to #9?  I am still on the first page.  I used one of the $100 coupons that Blue Host sent me to try out Google AdWords.  I must have selected 100+ different combo's of related search terms.  Basically, I cast a very wide net.  It has been running a week now, and I haven't been charged anything against my $100.  No kidding.  The traffic is that low!

Thought #3

Would I recommend this crazy idea to anyone – absolutely not.  But, in this one isolated instance it just might work.  Moreover, this is such a risky proposition, that I have decided that once the cookie-cutter part is nailed down, that I cannot spend more than 1 day on any one topic.  The risk v. reward is just not there.  What work I put into it is limited to cut-and-paste from the information contained on my other web sites.

Let me give you a concrete example.  Casino Win/Loss Statements.  Lazy, naive and misinformed gamblers and tax professionals want to use these instead of keeping the proper records required by the IRS.  Check out the tax-related forums – lots of questions.  In a recent issue of a gambling magazine, one of the the authors "reminded" everybody to start gathering up their win/loss statements.  Another person was surprised to learn that the casinos don't automatically mail these out like W-2's.

So, I went and registered the domain name CasinoWinLossStatements.com.  A couple of court cases, 4 or 5 posts, sample language from my collection of win/loss letters and I am done.  Is the content king?  You bet!  Everything you ever wanted to know about win/loss statements in 1 spot.  The advantage is that a visitor doesn't have to sift through the other 300 court cases or 3 dozen articles I am loading onto my primary web site to find the information that they are wanting.  And, oh by the way, if the want even more information they can check out 1 of my other primary web sites.

Does this violate the "do no wrong" ethos of the search engines?

Please do not get the impression that I am upset or offended.  Far from it.  I was just wanting to provide a better explanation of what I am trying.  Will it work?  I don't have a clue.  But, we will give it a try on a couple of topics and see what happens.

Sorry for the long post.

It is a tough question.

My thought is that I would actually have very few links back to the primary sites – maybe 1 each.  Maybe another link to any appropriate court cases.

The rest would just be unlinked text that says:  "You need to use a Lady Luck Gambling Diary" or "More information is available at the Gambling Tax Institute."

Hopefully, the intrepid gambler would then be encouraged, but not forced, to do their own search for these terms.

If I was a spammer with 100's or 1000's of such sites, the anti-spammers would easily sniff me out anyway since out the sites are coming from the same range of IP addresses.

My hunch/guess is that if I have less than 10 such sites nobody will care.

Interesting experiment, huh?

Post edited 9:27 am – February 3, 2012 by Reece Morrel

Okay,  here is an update.

As an experiment, I purchased the Genesis Framework with the "Minimum" child theme.

The time stamp on the file says that it was downloaded @ 8:46 pm local time.  I started typing this post @ 11:40 pm.

Without reading the Genesis instruction manual – I printed it off at the office using our super-duper color duplex printer, and forgot to bring it home – this is what I have come up with in just under 3 hours:

http://www.CasinoWinLossStatement.com

Remember, I have just sketched out an outline to see if I like it, and the "flow."  If I decide to keep it, then I will go back and finish writing the pages and posts.

Some minor things I like about it over Thesis

* The date in the header – I never could figure out how to do this in Thesis.

* Studio Press provides a plugin called Simple Edits – makes it very easy to change the copyright stuff in the footer.

* Somewhere I came across the instructions to allow multiple blog streams – unfortunately I didn't bookmark the page.

Things about Genesis that I noticed

* I haven't found a way to change the width of the web site, content or side bars

* I haven't found an easy way to edit the byline – I don't want the date of the posts or pages to show.

*Thesis has a much easier way to change the Favicon – the web site is still using the Genesis "G" – although I thought I saw a Studio Press provided "favicon uploader" plugin

– but hey, I have only been @ it for 3 hours without a manual!

Don't rush to any conclusions just yet about whether Genesis or Thesis is better.  Remember this is a single topic web site for a single purpose:  to rank very high on any searches that use "Casino" and "Win" and Loss" and "Statement" – that's it.  It is technique commonly used by spammers, but I am trying really hard not to look "spammy" and get blacklisted.

It is almost a kamikaze type of one-way mission.

We will see if it works.

Reece