Search Engine Optimization - Learning the Basics of SEO
Read this SEO book online and/or get the free download
SEO - Search Engine Optimization - the key to higher rankings and traffic. Search Engine rankings are directly related to Search Engines, like Google and MSN. Directories, such as Yahoo! And Overture are also affected by your SEO. So, how do you find the right choices for the best results?
The process of search engine optimization [SEO] includes design, writing and coding your web pages in order to increase SE positioning for chosen targeted keywords. Through various marketing techniques, the online business can maneuver it's way to the top. Many "so-called" SEO experts will claim to have "reverse engineered" the search engine algorithms and can therefore guarantee a top ten ranking. Despite these claims, the basis of a successful SE campaign has not changed and are presented here in this ebook.
The essentials needed for a long-term search ranking and traffic comprises these components:
- Keyword Optimization
- Source Code Optimization
- Content and Navigation Optimization
- Robots & .htaccess files
- Marketing: Link Popularity
- Importance of Design & Layout
- Other Marketing Methods
All the Major Search Engines [AltaVista, Google, Lycos, MSN Search] use these components as part of their search engine algorithms. Note that Yahoo! is a directory, not a search engine. Although the term Search Engine is often used to describe both Directories and Search Engines.
Summary: Search Engines basically search the world wide web, indexing sites according to their keywords and relevance. Internet surfers don't have the time, nor the resources, to surf through thousands of websites to find the information they are looking for. Search Engines make it easier by indexing their web search results in a cohesive format.
What is a Search Engine?
A search engine is simply a collection of servers dedicated to indexing website pages and returning the stored results in a list matching keyword phrase queries. Indexes are generated using "spiders". These spiders continually "crawl" the web returning to "base" with changes, updates and new pages to index.
Search Engines have their own criteria for indexing a site and each is slightly different. It is therefore important to optimize your site for the best results in most of the top Search Engines.
Ranking vs. Traffic
The first question I receive from potential clients is "How can I get higher rankings?" In honesty, they are asking, how can I drive more potential customers to my site? Let's first examine the process of ranking.
Back in the early days - search engines were, for lack of a nicer word - stupid. They collected information based on keywords and content. Now that is not unlike today, but back then you could repeat the keyword 100 times - and that gave you more prominence and presto - higher rankings! Today, that tactic is called " keyword stuffing " and is considered spam . Not only will it NOT work, but it could get your site banned!
Focused Pages vs. General
The best way to help the spider is to create each of your web pages about a specific topic. Many sites try to tell everything they do on one page; to try and capture their entire target audience in one swipe. What they fail to understand is that web sites are not like brochures or books. Surfers do not always enter a website from once central point and move methodically and logically through the pages. A surfer could, and will, enter your site at any given page and that's why each page needs to be designed as a separate piece of a whole site - with each page focussing on a small set of keywords.
For example. You have a site about widgets - you sell widgets, tell the history of widgets and the uses of widgets. But you also talk about "togets" - a companion of widgets, but their uses are entirely different. And you also mention your favorite electronic camera and flower shop. Now, you don't want to lose the widget or togets customers, so you ramble on about both on your page - targeting both terms. The more your webpage rambles on about 4 or 5 topics, the more confused the spider gets. First it thinks your site is about widgets, then togets, now about flowers. In despair, the spider doesn't know how to index the site properly, makes note of the confusion of your page and moves on.
To promote your site successfully to the search engines try to understand you are dealing not with man against man, nor man against machine. You are dealing with a complicated and highly efficient "being" - the Search Engine Spider . Now they come by many names, but with the same intent - to "crawl" from website to website, gathering code, and then moving on to the next site.
To better help the Spider, focus the content for each of your pages. Break up long content when possible, to one-topic pages with a minimum of 300-500 words per page.
The more focused and clear the content of your page, the better your chances or ranking higher in the SE for your keyword. This is based on how clear you make your Title, Metatags, Headings and Body Text.
NOTE: To describe the next few important points, you will need a brief glossary lesson. HTML [Hypertext Markup Language] is the coding that creates the pages for spiders to index and viewers to see your pages. Inside the HTML coding, called the Source Code, are important tags the spider views to determine how to index your page. These are called Meta Tags and include Title, Description and Keywords. There are many more Meta tags, but these three are the most important.
To learn Basic HTML visit:
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Read this SEO book online and/or get the free download
