Ryan Moran

About every year, Google goes through a bit of an algorithmic change that gives weight to a new aspect of search engine optimization (where the heck you show up in Google).

For example, a few years ago, Google started giving an insane amount of weight towards Web 2.0 properties like Squidoo and Hubpages. It was almost unfair – you could you put up a post on one of these sites, and it would dominate Google in as little as a few hours (I once did this to earn a #3 listing WITH NO LINKS for the search term ‘buy HGH’ – wowza!).

Every once in a while, one of these ‘loopholes’ shows up. In fact, back in 2004, there was a switch to favoring content instead of links; when this happened, spammers CRUSHED it by throwing up crappy content and putting Adsense on it. Read this PDF for the full scoop on these Google loopholes.

Recently, there has been heavy weight given toward sites that are built in WordPress. Because of this, I have personally converted ALL of my sites over to a WordPress platform. Every single one. It’s been clear that Google has preferred the WordPress platform when it comes to ranking sites, which has been very convenient, since it’s a very easy system to use. (In fact, Wealthy Affiliate now has a system that auto-installs WordPress platforms to give you turn-key websites.), but only recently has it become apparent WHY Google prefers this platform. Here’s why:

There is a shift happening in which Google is giving heavy weight towards ACTIVITY on your website, rather than what’s on your site or who links to your site. All these elements are very important, but activity is becoming more and more important.

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There was never a dull moment for marketers in 2009.

In 2009, we (myself included) were slapped by Google, and tens of thousands of Adwords accounts were shut off overnight. In December, the FTC rolled out their new regulations on our industry, requiring us to disclose “typical” results and limiting our ability to use honest social proof. Moreover, the so-called recession has become a buzz-word, scaring a lot of people out of our community.

With all of the crotch-shots that internet marketers have taken in 2009, it’s easy to jump on the bandwagon of thinking that things are just getting too hard.

This year, I have heard more whining and complaining from internet marketers than ever before, and we’re already a pretty whiny group.

At the same time, the downturn in the economy has caused many to look for new income streams and/or new ways to promote their businesses. This has thrown many into the internet marketing community, and the new blood (I predict) will be the most profitable group of “newbies” ever to enter our market.

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It was almost a year ago that I first heard Frank Kern rave about InfusionSoft, the all-in-one solution that combined email marketing, ecommerce, affiliate marketing, and customer relationships, and shopping cart technology into one simple application. When I heard about it, the price tag was as much as $5000 to start and $497 a month, and it appeared to be just another system to learn, and I cast it aside as too steep a price and unnecessary for my business.

Over time, more and more internet “gurus” began to herald InfusionSoft as a robust, perfect solution for internet marketers, and the social proof began to get my attention. When my good friend Matthew Bredel gave it a try and spoke of its benefits, I gave in and decided to give it a try. The cost for the intermediate package: $3,500 to start and $299/month… no chump change by any stretch of the imagination.

Matt had warned me about the learning curve, and I was not keen on having to get comfortable with yet another piece of software that I thought would only complicate my life. But if it would increase my bottom line… yadda, yadda… you know the thought process.

After getting inside, I began to see why there was such a learning curve; after spending years with Aweber, I expected a user interface that was… well, rational. When I want to send an email to my list in Aweber, I choose the list and hit “Send Broadcast.” In InfusionSoft, you go to People > Send Broadcast > Email > Compose New > Compose Draft > Choose Recipients, and then you browse through your different tags to choose who you want to see the email, and then send.

Sheesh. Then you have to take a nap.

Similarly, in Aweber, if I want to see my open rate, then I login and scroll about an inch to see the stats from my latest broadcasts. In InfusionSoft, you would never find your reports unless somebody told you how, because you need to go to Reports > View All Reports > Marketing Reports > Broadcast Conversion > and then search by date and look for your specific email. Then, take nap #2.

Initially, InfusionSoft was such a headache that I spent more time learning the application that I actually spent running my business… and this was for something that was supposed to actually automate my business.

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