question on facebook likes and SEO

mtnbiker

To get your site, or photos, rated higher in search engines it's clear that you need more and more links to your site...

looking at the link created through the new facebook "like" link under our photos I question if I am seeing any benefit with regards to search engines.

The links created on facebook don't really go back to my page, both point back to smugmug.

for instance the my newest "like" in the facebook newsfeed reads "Jon likes haunted bikes! from Kennywood: August 23rd on http://www.jonpratt.com."
and points two places, both links to smugmug....

http://www.smugmug.com/services/graph/gallery/13470718_gJzyb/980890819_kyfq5
and
http://www.smugmug.com/

how do either of these links assist me with SEO?

WinsomeWorks

mtnbiker wrote: »

To get your site, or photos, rated higher in search engines it's clear that you need more and more links to your site...

looking at the link created through the new facebook "like" link under our photos I question if I am seeing any benefit with regards to search engines.

The links created on facebook don't really go back to my page, both point back to smugmug.

for instance the my newest "like" in the facebook newsfeed reads "Jon likes haunted bikes! from Kennywood: August 23rd on http://www.jonpratt.com."
and points two places, both links to smugmug....

http://www.smugmug.com/services/graph/gallery/13470718_gJzyb/980890819_kyfq5
and
http://www.smugmug.com/

how do either of these links assist me with SEO?

I'm confused-- that first one is your gallery here on SmugMug, right? That's exactly what the FB & Twitter buttons are supposed to do-- bring people to your gallery. Say your Facebook friend sees your Smug gallery. He "likes" it. Now, the fact that he likes it will appear in your newsfeed and all of his other friends' newsfeeds. More of your friends may notice the existence of the gallery & go check it out. Or even if you like it yourself-- that fact will appear in your FB friends' newsfeeds, and now maybe some of them will check it out. I imagine it's the same on Twitter, except it is followers who will be most likely to see it.

Of course, at this point it's more effective probably for you to share a gallery link, or do the "be social" thing on your own FB page (because those methods have a thumb as well) rather than to like your own gallery. These new buttons are more for your friends' ability to share your gallery with their FB & Twitter friends, publicizing it that way... because they don't have quite as many other "share" options as you, the gallery owner, has without that button. They can now just hit a button rather then copying a url, etc.

mtnbiker

it is a forwarding link correct?

I don't have a gallery with a url that begins with http://www.smugmug.com/services/graph/gallery
If so, a search engine won't read through the forward.

WinsomeWorks

mtnbiker wrote: »

it is a forwarding link correct?

I don't have a gallery with a url that begins with http://www.smugmug.com/services/graph/gallery
If so, a search engine won't read through the forward.

Ugh-- I see what you mean now. But this is new since the other day. Something is screwed up today. I "liked" my gallery the other day to see what would happen. My FB page gave the link: http://winsomeworks.com which correctly took me to my gallery (I tried it out). Now, today the same link is there on that same "like" from the other day. But the link now takes my to SmugMug's homepage instead of my gallery.... especially odd, since I have a custom domain. Yeah, something's wrong with that. I don't know about what you call the "forwarding links" though-- but I see what you mean, and why SEO wouldn't be improved by this at all.

jfriend

mtnbiker wrote: »

To get your site, or photos, rated higher in search engines it's clear that you need more and more links to your site...

looking at the link created through the new facebook "like" link under our photos I question if I am seeing any benefit with regards to search engines.

The links created on facebook don't really go back to my page, both point back to smugmug.

for instance the my newest "like" in the facebook newsfeed reads "Jon likes haunted bikes! from Kennywood: August 23rd on http://www.jonpratt.com."
and points two places, both links to smugmug....

http://www.smugmug.com/services/graph/gallery/13470718_gJzyb/980890819_kyfq5
and
http://www.smugmug.com/

how do either of these links assist me with SEO?

The fact that the links are to smugmug.com are bugs in the FB Like feature. It will hopefully get fixed fairly soon. The links should be to your images/galleries.

As for SEO, I don't think FB Likes are going to help you much. The typical "person" who hits the Like button will be have the Like posted to the wall which is only available to their FB friends and not to search engines. FB Like is about letting your viewers spread the word for you to their friends. It's not really about SEO, though the more you get known, the more likely other public sites are to link to you so it could indirectly lead to better SEO, but not directly.

[Deleted User]

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