Customer Reviews
Welcome to the Magic Circle - By: Mr. P. Stewkesbury, 21 Jun 2008 
Search Engine Optimisation has acquired a status which might be regarded similar to that of the magic circle:
It's secretive - only thosein the circle really know the tricks
There's an element of magic - SEOs do things we don't understand
It's competitive - we all want to get to the top
It's closed - those within the circle do not disclose all the tricks
They even categorise their tricks as good & bad with the terms "white hat" & "black hat"
Well,in this excellent new book David Viney has let us all into the circle, & what we learn is that it's not magic!
However, I should like to follow that statement by immediately saying that it is plainly not easy either. Also, by the very nature of the fierce competition for the top spots, it will always be competitive, & you will always have to work at it.
What this particular magician sets out for us all here is a structure & a method which we might follow to improve our own success.
The author uses the analogy of cookery; there are ingredients, recipes to follow - & I would add, a great deal of time needed to be spentin the kitchen!!
You will be surprised to learn the breadth of things that you will need to do to bein with a competitive chance. The book covers the many factors that contribute to your ultimate success. I was surprised at just how many areas contribute to a site becoming successful,in 240 pages David Viney covers a lot of ground.
The title is so clever; Step 1in David's plan focuses on finding the "phrases that pay", & sure enough, the title of his book is of course just one such example - nicely wraps-upin a phrase what the book is all about AND is what we are all searching for!
As other reviewers have written here, the book strikes an excellent balancein readability, suitable for reading & use by other professional SEOs & equally works very well for the novice.
The seven step procedure does categorise the areas of focus well, & does give a guide to chronology, but it's not his intention that you should remainin a step until you have done everything you possibly can, more that you need to do a wide number of things, & that over the longer period you will need to track back & forth through the steps & re-visit activities.
The book does a great job of illustrating the size of the market, the strength & importance of Googlein that market, & the potential prizes available to the top of page one winners.
"Having your sitein the top 10 is like having your store right on Main Street or near the entrance of the largest shopping mallin human history. Being outside the top 20 is like having a corner store on the very outskirts of town."
You should buy & read this book before building your website, probably even before naming you business. The tips within it on subjects such as targetting a niche, phrases that pay, finding & targeting keywords, domain names, hosting locations, etc. are all key considerationsin the choices you should makein the very early days.
But there's no need to worry if you are already well into the life of your business & your website, there is plenty within this book for all to heed & follow.
I would strongly recommend the book to anybody interestedin getting their website "to the top on Google", you will learn a great deal, & will be able to take action based upon the guidance within the book.
However, go into this exercise with the awareness that it is a long game. You may read the bookin just a few hours, but you will need to work persistently at your website's optimisation continuously to reach the top & stay there .........The prizes are Great. It is fiercely competitive. The web is continuously evolving. Your competitors will read this book too.
This is probably the best book on this subject that you can buy.
Take the first step, buy & read the book.
Then keep it next to your computer, keep dipping into it, follow its recommendations.
Then, be prepared to buy an updated version or follow-up next year, with more & new recommendations for you to implement!
The Mother of all SEO Books - By: Liam Wood, 16 Jun 2008 I want to keep this short & sweet as copywriting is not my strong point. If you are looking for a book that spells out the key issues on SEOin an order that actually makes logical sense - then this is the book for you. Rather than a book full of information (although it is very informative) - its best used a step-by-step tool to any SEO project. I can understand why one of the reviewers read it twice.
I had purchased SEO for Dummies but that was really a 'bits n pieces' kind of book & left me unguided. This book follows a chronological path & makes you stick to it.
I shall be using it on every SEO project from now on.
5/5
Buy IT! BUY IT! - By: Mr. C. J. Brooks, 19 May 2008 I have read this book from cover to cover TWICE!!! Then I bought my collegue a copy for his birthday so he wouldn't keep taking mine!!
This is full of practical knowledge to get you up & going & also a great reference book for the more knowledgable. BUY IT NOW!!! You wont be dissapointed!!
A book that covers EVERYTHING finally.... - By: Niall G. Fagan, 15 May 2008 I have to admit, I couldn't wait for this book to come out so I purchased a few other before hand & wasn't too impressed! When the book arrived I said to myself that I would read it through once quickly & then go over itin more closely 2nd time round. Well, I just finished it for the 1st time & it took me 2 weeks LOL - I just had to test everything as soon as I read it!
This book is by far the best of 6 SEO books I have read (not going to name the others) - I can't recommend it enough, you will gain so much from reading it - right, i'm off to start it for the 2nd time - kudos to David Viney aka "LEGEND"
Handy guide to being first on Google search results list - By: Rolf Dobelli, 08 May 2008 The informationin this very specific book can help you increase the effectiveness of your Web efforts & gain better visibility among the Web search results on Google & other search engines. David Viney shares his expertisein Search Engine Optimization (SEO)in helpful detail. Have you wondered if you need professional inputin this area? Read here to find out how expert guidance, copywriting, site design & Web master services can supplement your efforts, & boost your visibility & sales. Viney explains how to assess your current results. He tells you how to make sure your Web page appears among search resultsin productive positions, but he doesn't overpromise about what you can accomplish. Much of his information is quite detailed & technical, but relatively accessible & applicable. However, it is somewhat vulnerable to becoming outdated,in places, if Google alters its current parameters. getAbstract expects future editions to handle that little problem quite nicely.
