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I met a business owner at Vail Valley Partnership's technology gathering last night that was recently the victim of an SEO SQL Injection attack. His blog and website was successfully hacked about three weeks ago by a malicious band of Inter-web thugs. Within three days, Google had removed his domains from the search index. His company is now on a long and very costly road to SEO recovery. Everything on the web comes with a degree of risk - engaging in social media simply increases the exposure. The MyST Platform™ recently suffered a similar attack and our clients fared much better, but the threat always remains; it’s an arms race that will likely never end.
I don't typically engage in discussions like this for the purpose of selling our services; rather, it's an ideal way to learn more about business problems related to the Web. This roundtable reminded me of the challenges that small businesses face as they try to become more visible on the Web. Michaela Foucheux, the webmaster at 4 Eagle Ranch, expressed how challenging it is to just learn and do the basics; conversational content and social media (and all that comes with Web 2.0) is [another] overwhelming task to put on the pile. Deciding how to spin the story for greater findability is also difficult – which keywords are right? How do you find the right keywords? My Advice – get back to marketing basics – invite a focus group out to the ranch for a free hayride and a steak – than ask them to describe how they would search for the experience they’re presently having; now you how to spin your online content to attract more people like your focus group.
If you think about your business requirements with simplicity and logic, you will likely make some very good decisions concerning SEO and social media development. Think about your customers with an eye toward how they solve problems using your company and its services, and start small – keep it simple – grow your Web 2.0 strategy. If customers like your spin, search engines will too. This is the best guidepost for everything you do on the web. p.s. If you get a chance, take in the 4 Eagle Ranch experience; truly breathtaking scenery - some of the best in Colorado. | 
