If you want to keep your online activity to yourself, it’s time to move beyond your browser’s built-in privacy mode. In this Digital Life Hack, Kim will show you a few options to stay hidden, including alternative browsers and a search engine that won’t track or sell your info. But the one trick to really protect your privacy? Watch to find out.
Have a website? Run it through these free online tests
© Duangphorn Wiriya | Dreamstime.com
You could spend a lot of money designing the perfect website. But if you don’t have the right back-end systems in place, your website will go nowhere. Unless it’s intended to be a private website where only a select few can see it.
Most people can’t understand why they only get a handful of hits a month while competitors get heavy traffic. There is usually a good reason for that, and it comes down to your website not being optimized.
Drag-and-drop website builders have some built-in tools to put you on the right path, but they aren’t nearly comprehensive enough to make things perfect. So, if you want to ensure that your website is accessible to as many people as possible, try the following helpful tools presented by our sponsor, LinkedIn.
Hiring for your business? LinkedIn is the place to do it. Find qualified candidates faster and easier than ever before. Post your first job for free at LinkedIn.com/Kim.
Connect your website to Google Search Console
It is always good to take advice from internet search and optimization kings. Google provides this free tool to help you monitor, maintain and troubleshoot your website’s presence in Google Search results. There are several reasons to plug your site into the console, but most importantly, it tells you how the search engine finds and crawls your site.
RELATED: How to create and host a simple website for $20 a year
The tool tells you if there are indexing issues with pages, and you can request re-indexing if new content has been added that doesn’t show up on search results. It also provides valuable information on your visitors’ browsing habits, like search terms they used to find you or how often your site appears in search results.
Use Link Checker to check website fluidity
You might have a flashy design, but if you have broken links or links that redirect, that isn’t good. Link Checker is a beneficial tool that scans website links and gives you a summary of their health.
It provides more information on any 200-errors (“Some of the links to this resource point to broken URI fragments”), 404-errors (“The link is broken. Double-check that you have not made any typo or mistake”), or any links left out from robot exclusion rules.
Google Search alternatives that respect your privacy
© Alexandersikov | Dreamstime.com
Between Google Search, Gmail, Google Maps, and all the rest, the tech giant knows a ton about you. Let’s not forget about YouTube, the second-largest search site behind Google.
I recently showed you how you could take control of what appears when you search for yourself. Here’s my guide to doing an exhaustive search. Once you find what’s publicly available about you, take steps to delete anything that doesn’t sit well with you, from images of your home to personal photos.
Remove your personal info from Google
What if the wrong person gets hold of your details? Here’s how the search engine giant is enhancing your security, in one minute.
This sentence-polishing app keeps the grammar police at bay
StackCommerce
Ask anyone who’s ever had to learn English as a second language and they’ll tell you it’s is full of quirks. These idiosyncrasies are a part of what gives the English language its charm — even if it can be a real headache for ESL learners or sleep-deprived freelance writers in search of a metaphor.
Find nearly anyone online
Do you want to connect with old friends? Perhaps a long-lost classmate from your childhood or a former neighbor or co-worker who moved on years ago.
Whatever the reason you wish to track down an old acquaintance, searching on Google or Facebook might not always bring up the best results you want. But I found a cool website that could be a better way for you to find people online.
3 ways to remove your image from Google
Embarassing pics show up in Google’s search engine? Here are the ways to take them down, in one minute.
Win $2 million, Fitbit catches killer, search engine secrets
Fitbit helps convict husband of murder, Apple offers a $2 million wager and the shocking costs to bring internet to rural communities. Plus, the best way to buy and sell coins, safety tech for kids and the best-kept search engine secrets you need to know.
Luxury EVs, smart mirror shopping, search engine risks
Ditch the dressing room. Use the smart mirror that guesses your size. Here’s how it works. Plus, I’ve got all the details on electric cars from Mercedes and BMW. You’ll also get the inside scoop on Amazon’s plans for new smart home tech. (Hint: They involve augmented reality.) You also need to know the dangers of Googling. When you type these words into the search bar, you’re putting yourself in danger.
Google is dying
Is Google’s search engine a waste of time? Listen to this one-minute podcast for a few reasons why Google is losing the very thing that made it indispensable.
SEO 101: How to get more traffic to your website
If you have a website, you want it to show up on the first page of Google for as many different search terms as possible. How can you get there? SEO, or search engine optimization, is the secret sauce that stands between you and ranking highly. Kim chats with SEO expert Steve Wiideman about the insider secrets to boost your rankings and make more money online.
Tech Refresh: Smartphone warning, car rental scams, new private search engine
It’s time to upgrade your phone. Issues are plaguing iPhone and Android models. Plus, a new privacy-focused search engine just launched to take on Google and DuckDuckGo. Should you use it?
SEO 101: How to get more traffic to your website
If you have a website, you want it to show up on the first page of Google for as many different search terms as possible. How can you get there? SEO, or search engine optimization, is the secret sauce that stands between you and ranking highly. Kim chats with SEO expert Steve Wiideman about the insider secrets to boost your rankings and make more money online.
3 things you should never Google
Everybody goes to Google when they have burning questions. But you shouldn’t use it for these specific queries. Here are three things that you should never search for on Google or any other web search engine.
SEO secrets: How to get more web traffic, more leads and more revenue
There are few words that strike fear into the hearts of digital professionals quite like the term SEO. It stands for “search engine optimization,” and it’s the secret that stands between you and website traffic. In this episode, Kim sits down with SEO expert Steve Wiideman. He’s worked with tons of brands — think Applebee’s, IHOP and Skechers. He knows how to launch a brand online, and he’s got the insider secrets to help you transform your website into a traffic magnet.
SEO tips to get your website to the top of Google search - How a baker turned her passion into a successful business
Kim Komando talks to Heather Lloyd-Martin, who’s been featured in Forbes and Entrepreneur magazine and many others about using Search Engine Optimization to get to the top of Google’s search results. How a lady turned her passion for baking into a business that makes over $200K a year. Plus, hot tips to hack-proof your life.
3 ways to search the web without Google tracking you.
Google saves your search history and tracks what you click online. If you need a break from the surveillance, you have options. You can use a search engine that does not mark your every move. Click here to listen to my free Komando on Demand podcast for three ways to hunt the internet that you may find refreshing.