What is SEO? And how can it benefit you in 2014?

By now, I’m sure everyone has heard how SEO (Search Engine Optimization) can be beneficial to your businesses and brands, but nobody has a full understanding of what it really is and how it works. We all hear various theories, practices, and even get direct advice from some of our friends and business relationships all to help us generate more leads on our websites. But the truth is, there are many aspects of SEO that are in the gray area and undefined.

The first and most important thing to consider is, you want to register your company on as many directories as possible; this will give your company the base it needs to build a great SEO campaign off of. The next step is going through your websites keywords, Meta tags, and Meta descriptions and appropriately set them up (you can Google tips and advice on how to select the most effective words for your industry).  I know there is an argument going around in the tech world in regards to this, how it’s not effective since Google changed their algorithm, but I say,  “It can’t hurt!” And last but probably the most important is to Blog, blogging keeps you relevant, informative, and if done with strategy can generate hits on your site.

This is a very general introduction to SEO, how it’s done and to what extend is an art form on its own, as nobody has a step-by-step playbook of exactly what to do and how to do it. SEO companies will try to sell you on all sorts of promises, collect thousands of dollars without having to prove anything, because as we all know, SEO is not instantly obtained. Moving up in Google’s organic search takes time, commitment, and repetition and hopefully you’ll see some results within 6 months to a year.

Be careful who you hire for your company’s SEO needs, consider doing it yourself is probably the most effective route. The one thought I would like to leave our readers with is this, Interview several SEO companies, really pick their brains about exactly what they will be doing for you? How many times a day/week/month? Where are they submitting your blogs? And last, do your homework on their clients, maybe even try to reach out to them and see if you can get some information.

Good luck everyone, and we’ll see you on the Net.

Allure Apps Team

Join Allure Apps and partners in helping the victims of Typhoon Haiyan (Philippines)

Join Allure Apps and partners in helping the Philippines and victims of Typhoon Haiyan

Our hearts go out to the millions of Filipinos who have been dislodged from their homes by this catastrophic disaster that is Typhoon Haiyan. News of this devastation hit worldwide Friday afternoon but it is only the beginning for the 600,000+ surviving victims distressed with no food and minimal water resources. To make matters worse, immediate relief efforts were obstructed due to roads and bridges being damaged or containing copious amounts of wreckage and debris.

Super Typhoon Haiyan, whose winds reached 195-200 miles per hour destroyed about 75% of infrastructure in its path as it raged through the Central Philippines. More specifically, the town of Tacloban was hit the hardest and the desolation of the typhoon has left them struggling on their own since food distribution is overwhelmed by the large crowds of survivors outnumbering the manpower to help aid the typhoon victims. Donations have been pouring in through all outlets of media where people can donate via text to Relief Programs such as the Red Cross.

Allure Apps has partnered up with several local businesses and non-profit organizations to gather goods such as food and supplies; A well renowned shipping company LBC has volunteered and offered to ship various donations of clothes, food and supplies at no cost in an effort to expedite relief efforts.

HOW YOU CAN HELP:

You can do so by going to any of the following locations and there will be a box set up for you to drop off goods into. Deadline to donate / drop items off at the following location is November 22, 2013.

Rosenthal Estate Winery
http://www.rosenthalestatewines.com/visit
18741 Pacific Coast Hwy
Malibu, CA 90265

Pedraja Law
http://www.pedrajalaw.com/

Mr.Scissors
http://www.mr-scissors.com/
18404 Ventura Blvd
Tarzana, CA 91356

Ballin for Peace
http://www.ballinforpeace.org/

Like a Bause
http://likeabause.com/

LBC Express
www.lbcexpress.com
13758 Roscoe Blvd
Panorama City, CA 91402

Or

126 S. Vermont Ave
Los Angeles, CA 90004

It is truly heartbreaking to see the aftermath of this natural disaster. If you would like to donate money, you can do so through www.redcross.org.ph. The Red Cross is just one of the many charities and non profit organizations who are responding to the disaster that Typhoon Haiyan has done. Every penny counts and will make a difference. Our prayers are with the victims and families affected by Typhoon Haiyan.

 DEADLINE: NOVEMBER 22, 2013

Apple reveals the iPad Air and iPad mini, What’s NEW though?

After releasing the iPhone 5s and the iPhone 5c, it only makes sense for Apple to tackle the iPad tablets next. On October 22, 2013 they did just that, revealing the new generation iPad Air and iPad mini.

As always, we suspect certain things when Apple gives us a new product, but the main speculation is usually the same; what is the difference between the new stuff and what I already own? Retina display is the highlighted feature that many have anticipated and now will have on their iPad mini’s. There are other changes under the hood, so join us as we break down the spec sheets of each and see how they compare to against the last years models.  

	iPad (late 2012)	iPad Air
Display	9.7-inch Retina display	9.7-inch Retina display
Resolution	2,048 x 1,536	2,048 x 1,536
Pixel Density	264 ppi	264 ppi
CPU	1 GHz dual-core Apple A6X	64-bit Apple A7 with M7 motion coprocessor
Memory	1GB	TBD
Storage	16GB/32GB/64GB/128GB	16GB/32GB/64GB/128GB
Front Camera	1.2-megapixel	1.2-megapixel
Rear Camera	5-megapixel iSight camera	5-megapixel iSight camera
Cellular	GSM or CDMA, HSPA+ / LTE	GSM or CDMA, HSPA+ / LTE
WiFi	Dual-Band 802.11 a/b/g/n	Dual-Band 802.11 a/b/g/n
Bluetooth	4.0	4.0
Accelerometer	3-axis	3-axis
Gyroscope	3-axis	3-axis
Dimensions	241.2 x 185.7 x 9.4 mm	240 x 169.5 x 7.5mm
Weight (WiFi)	652 grams (1.44 pounds)	469 grams (1 pound)
Weight (Cellular)	662 grams (1.46 pounds)	478 grams (1.05 pounds)
Battery	42.5-watt-hour lithium polymer	32.4-watt-hour lithium polymer
Ports	Lightning, 3.5mm headphone	Lightning, 3.5mm headphone
Location (WiFi)	WiFi, Digital Compass	WiFi, Digital Compass
Location (3G / LTE)	aGPS, GLONASS, Cellular, WiFi	aGPS, GLONASS, Cellular, WiFi
Minimum Price	$499 WiFi-only, $629 Cellular	$499 WiFi-only, $629 Cellular
Details accurate at launch

	iPad mini	iPad mini with Retina display
Display	7.9-inch LED-backlit IPS LCD	7.9-inch Retina display
Resolution	1,024 x 768	2,048 x 1,536
Pixel Density	163 ppi	326 ppi
CPU	1 GHz dual-core Apple A5	64-bit Apple A7 with M7 motion coprocessor
Memory	512MB	TBD
Storage	16GB/32GB/64GB	16GB/32GB/64GB/128GB
Front Camera	1.2-megapixel	1.2-megapixel
Rear Camera	5-megapixel iSight camera	5-megapixel iSight camera
Cellular	GSM or CDMA, HSPA+ / LTE	GSM or CDMA, HSPA+ / LTE
WiFi	Dual-Band 802.11 a/b/g/n	Dual-Band 802.11 a/b/g/n
Bluetooth	4.0	4.0
Accelerometer	3-axis	3-axis
Gyroscope	3-axis	3-axis
Dimensions	200 x 134.7 x 7.2mm	200 x 134.7 x 7.5mm
Weight (WiFi)	308 grams (0.68 pounds)	331 grams (0.73 pounds)
Weight (Cellular)	312 grams (0.69 pounds)	341 grams (0.75 pounds)
Battery	16.3-watt-hour lithium polymer	23.8-watt-hour lithium polymer
Ports	Lightning, 3.5mm headphone	Lightning, 3.5mm headphone
Location (WiFi)	WiFi, Digital Compass	WiFi, Digital Compass
Location (3G / LTE)	aGPS, GLONASS, Cellular, WiFi	aGPS, GLONASS, Cellular, WiFi
Minimum Price	$299 WiFi-only, $429 Cellular	$399 WiFi-only, $529 Cellular
Details accurate at launch

Apple unveils OS X Mavericks 10.9 as a free download today

Only weeks after the folks in Cupertino released the newest version of the desktop OS for developers, Apple has just released the newest OS X Mavericks. This download from Apple is available now at no additional cost to you. If you are running Snow Leopord or later will be available for free via the App Store. This release includes iBooks, Maps and a revamped Calendar, interactive notifications, finder tabs, among much more. For more information,

check out http://www.allureapps.com/2013/10/22/apple-unveils-os-x-mavericks-10-9-free-download-today/