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I was Featured in Manila Bulletin last July 9, 2007

• Posted by animo on July 11th, 2007 filed in Any Topics, Careers, Cars, Daily Blog, Gadgets (Tech), Google Products, Photography, Tutorials, Web Enterpreneur, Yahoo Products

I was featured in Manila Bulletin last July 9, 2007. Thanks Annalyn for the very nice interview.

Here’s the content of the newspaper:

Blog-O-Rama

INTERNET EXPERT ON SEO, DESIGN AND SEAMLESS HOSTING

By Annalyn S. Jusay

In having an online presence, the adage “knowledge is power” is most necessary. This we have noticed from top blogs and websites which know how to play with the “tagging” game so they can come out on top of results in search engines. Aside from coming up with quality posts, blog owners also aim to please the eyes of their readers by having an impeccable, web-compliant design. If you still think success in the internet is elusive, it might be worthwhile to talk to Internet professionals who will gladly tell you the do’s and dont’s of putting up a blog or website, how to gain more readership and even earn money from it .We certainly learned a lot from Junnel Animo, a 27-year old netrepreneur who willingly gave us his tips on SEO, design and making one’s online presence most effective. A computer engineer by profession, he works as a web designer for the Makati City government and maintains his own web development business, animomedia.com. Learn more in the following interview:

Q. Please tell us something about your site. Being in the business already, why do you still feel the need to maintain an internet presence through a blog. How important is this for you?

A. For me, blogging is one way of expressing yourself. I launched my technology blog last April, and I was surprised to see my traffic went up for a short period of time. So I decided to add more topics for my readers. My blog Animohosting.com primarily aims to provide technology news as well as latest news around the globe. It also provides web hosting services for Philippine companies and now even International Companies worldwide.

If you run a business, a blog can help your customers find you online, help you listen to them, and be more responsive than your larger competitors. The frequent you update your blog, the more your customer feels safe that you’re always there if they need your assistance.

Q. How does a blog differ from a website?

A. If you can send an email, you can blog. Most websites require technical skills. And if you want better search engine results , you need to blog. In fact, some people joke that “Blog” stands for “Better Listings on Google”.

If you have a family, a blog can improve your relationships by staying connected and letting your family know what’s happening to you. I also heard that even soldiers in Iraq are blogging about their experiences in war, just to let their families know if they’re doing fine or not.

What blogging does do is to make publishing on the web easier, without any technical skills. And therefore, they can do it more frequently. This allows some people to stay in touch and enhance their relationships.

Q. Can you share some observations about the common mistakes bloggers make with their sites?

A. The most common mistake that I see bloggers make is trying too hard to make money. I was surfing blog sites, what I found though is that a lot of blogs are just so blatant in their effort at slapping Google AdSense all over. Readers who already know Adsense will automatically exit out of your website.

Q. What do you think are the elements of a good blog/website? When can you say that a blog/site is successful?

A. A good blog/website provides useful information to readers. Your site should be attractive, having a clean layout will make your readers feel comfortable reading you blog post or your website contents. Flash effects adds more edge to your company website. Especially if your company is big, the site really needs to be competitive. Today, having a good website really matters.

Because it serves as your marketing tool, your reputation and your portfolio. And for me, it’s the cheapest marketing tool now. You can only say that your website is successful when you hear positive response from your client or visitors and if you have established good traffic.

Q. Where does web hosting come in? I’ve learned that good content is useless with an inefficient web hosting service. What are the points to consider in looking for a good web host?

A. You should look for a reliable web hosting with 100% uptime guarantee. Must have customer service that provides mobile number, YM, email where you could easily contact them when you need assistance. That’s the main thing you should consider. Before my clients switch to my webhosting service, they told me they have bad experiences from their previous web hosting companies, even a big hosting company can’t assist them well. They are having problems contacting its support team. So they ended up having expired domain names and they can’t retrieve their emails, their blogs, etc. Customer service is the main thing you should consider in getting a web host. Without customer service, you’re in big trouble.

Q. Basic SEO tips you’d like to share…

A. 1. Write useful contents on your website; update your website constantly, Google robots will easily find you if you constantly update your website or blog; participate in different community forums, add your url on your signature; if you have a website, adding a blog section is a must. The more you blog, the more chances of you to be seen by Google; insert keywords within the title tag so that search engine robots will know what your page is about. The title tag is located right at the top of your document within the head tags. Inserting a keyword or key phrase will greatly improve your chances of bringing targeted traffic to your site.Make sure that the title tag contains text which a human can relate to. The text within the title tag is what shows up in a search result. Treat it like a headline.Submit to the search engines yourself. Do not use a submission service or submission software. Doing so could get your site penalized or even banned. Here is the submission page for google: http://www.google.com/addurl.html . If you really have no time or you dont have knowledge about basic html, hire an SEO professional.

Q. How important is a good SEO ranking for a blog or website?

A. You’ll really make good money if your blog / website ranks well on Google or Yahoo. You will receive lots of inquiries asking for your services, etc. and if you provide good service, then that would be the start of something big. More referrals from your client , more income. You’ll be able to get clients internationally not just here.

Q. How about design… what’s the role of design in a blog or site?

A. Design makes your website look attractive. At first glance you’ll get the interest of viewers. Based on my experience, clients usually look for an attractive website layout with flash animation and it’s a big advantage. The design really plays a major factor because it provides a good first impression to your clients or website visitors. Your website represents you and your company.