Search Engine Optimizationsearch engine optimization (SEO): The process of making a site and its content highly relevant for both search engines and searchers. SEO includes technical tasks to make it easier for search engines to find and index a site for the appropriate keywords, as well as marketing-focused tasks to make a site more appealing to users. Successful search marketing helps a site gain top positioning for relevant words and phrases. (searchenginewatch.com)
Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is the holy grail of the internet: how do I get high Google and search engine results for free? The answer is: you can't. A properly done Search Engine Optimization program can yield high natural search results that appear to cost nothing, but the campaign is either done by the business owner (costing a large amount of time and energy) or the professional Search Optimization Specialist (costing money). Neither is free.
Search Engine Optimization is the process of making sure that your website or page is accessible by the major search engines for the key search terms for your business. An integral part of Search Engine Marketing, SEO is a process that is both technical and creative, a combination of behind the scenes methods within your site that are important as well as outside the site, usually social media marketing and link building methods. Taken together and done in an authentic way, Search Engine Optimization can greatly increase your sites rankings on the search engines and drive sales. Like paid search campaigns, SEO utilizes key words that are researched for your industry or business. These keywords need to be weaved into the text of your site in a creative way that speaks to two audiences-the human reader of your web page as well as the search engine spiders. Search Engine Spiders, or Web crawlers (also known as a Web spider, Web robot, ) are programs that browse the World Wide Web in a methodical, automated manner. They index your site for the key words and phrases that they deem to be the most relevant information on your site. If you are not in the habit of updating your site on a regular basis the search engines will eventually lower your rankings due to your information not being kept "fresh". For this reason SEO is a constant tweeking of your site to first achieve the results you desire, but then maintenance to keep them. Some of the key elements of Search Engine Optimization are: Descriptive Title Tags You'll probably find the category of Title Tags (tags, links, and text) listed very high on the list of any reputable SEO guide. We're putting title tags at the top. The words in the title tag appear in the link that pops up in the search result. This is where you tell the search engine (and your prospective visitor) as succinctly as possible what needs to be known: company or publication name; relevant, targeted keyword or keyword phrase taken from the text of the page. Each page should have a unique title tag as Google ranks each page individually, not the site in its entirety. Page ContentThe order of the Big Three is very debatable, but really they work as parts of the whole; not one of them can be left out if the machine if it is work properly. In this case, you probably understand that content should be quality, however that is defined, but it should also be rich in the keywords you are targeting to drive search traffic. That doesn't mean just throwing them in there like you're cooking up a pot of SEO gumbo- Keyword use and keyword variation should be natural and not overstuffed. For the visual text part of the page, focus on working in the relevant words and phrases you want people to find you for. The best rule of thumb is still-what would be interesting for a human to read? If it works with humans, it'll stand a good chance of working with a search engine. Quality LinksOr more specifically, backlinks, links to your site from outside sources. Links are your letters of recommendation. If nobody's recommending you, or the recommendations seem phony, then it won't work. Authority links are weighted most heavily, of course, so try to get industry-related authority sites to link to your site. Quantity Links Authority (high quality) links are by nature more difficult to get, so you'll have to start somewhere else unless you already have the brand recognition you need from square one. Many SEOers propose "link-swaps" to each other and it used to be common trade to buy and sell links. But as Google demonstrated last Fall, you can't buy Google's love that way. In fact, you'll get the opposite of love. So, try to get as many links as you can from industry peers the good old-fashioned way – by promoting. Submit links to respected directories like DMOZ and Yahoo, as well. A large burst of low-quality, non-authoritative, or bad-neighborhood links, though, can do a lot more harm than good; so keep things natural.
Soal Marketing offers Search Engine Optimization packages for businesses of all shapes and sizes. We can provide a report of your current site that will give you next steps to implement to raise your rankings, or we can be hired to implement those changes on a monthly basis as your Search Engine Marketing Department. The outline and concepts above are a glimpse into the complex world of Search Engine Optimization. You can achieve good, high, quality results with a targeted, specific plan for optimizing your site for the search engines. Contact Soal Marketing to find out more about how we can help your business or non-profit achieve these results. |
