The Importance of Search Engine Optimization

Search Engine Optimization is a key to any successful internet marketing strategy. There are numerous definitions and interpretations as to exactly what Search Engine Optimization means. It is the process in which the careful and strategic placing, analysis, and wording of keywords of text on a particular website to enable optimum search engine rankings, this definition comes from www.pixelphoria.com/glossary.php. There are several ways in which this process can benefit internet marketing strategies.

When creating or updating a commercial website, the reason is typically to make the products more attractive to viewers, while at the same time creating the ability to gain more exposure with a broader audience. While most websites have a target audience, it is this ability to gain a larger, broader audience that they are all searching to gain. The Search Engine Optimization process allows for the creation of a higher page ranking when a potential viewer is using a search engine to find specific websites based upon the searchable keywords they will enter. This process identifies those keywords that will benefit a particular website and uses them in such a way that it gets a higher page ranking when those keywords are searched. For example, if “internet marketing” was searched for in Google, the more times the phrase “internet marketing” is included within the website, potentially the closer to the top the page will be displayed.

In this time of maximum Internet usage, many searchers only use first page displayed websites on their searches because this is where the pages with those higher page rankings are displayed, which translates into these pages find the highest relevance to their keyword searches. Please do not make the mistake of thinking that these websites are the only ones out there that will have the relevant search information, it just means that these websites have better marketed themselves to be located when specified keywords are searched, which is the exact benefit of Search Engine Optimization. This makes it even more critical that each website understand the importance of and the knowledge necessary to adapt their websites to benefit from Search Engine Optimization.

As should be understood by this point, it is imperative that an understanding of and taking advantage of Search Engine Optimization will provide the website a higher profile in the world of search engines. By taking advantage of optimization techniques, more searchers will gain faster access to the particular website. If the website has something worthwhile to offer in the world of ecommerce, then is a strategy that should be employed immediately.

Online reprint rights granted as long as the article is published in its entirety, including links and resource box. © John Doetsch 2005.

John Doetsch is founder of Websition.com where you will find additional articles and free web content written by the Internet’s most gifted authors. Visit his site at http://www.websition.com

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July 22nd, 2008 Leave a comment posted in Computers and Internets

Search Engine Marketing Ethics Don’t Believe The Hype

Getting to the top of the search engines, and staying there, is an ongoing process. This does not mean it is expensive to stay at the top. In fact, in most cases, it’s rather affordable. But beware, there are pitfalls along the way to search engine Zen.

The old adage, “If it sounds too good to be true”, applies to SEO (search engine optimization). There are many companies that will promise top results using less than ethical methods. Including slick salesmen that will convince you that all the top sites cheat the search engines in order to stay on top. You will run into web site owners that mask keywords to get top positions making it sound very tempting to follow in their foot steps.

Don’t be fooled by such hype. These are short term solutions that can lead to a permanent ban in the top engines. Once you are banned in Google, Yahoo, MSN or ASK, you may as well dump your site and start over. If you’re looking for long term success on the internet, don’t cheat the search engines.

One of the cheats I have been seeing lately is masking content with “noscript tags”. The noscript tags are used to define an alternate content (text) if a script is NOT executed. People have been taking advantage of this and filling it with content that visitors don’t see, but the search engines do. While this does work, it is short term and believe me when I say, you will be caught. You will have no warning, no second chances. You will wake up one day and your site will not be found.

There is no phone number to call, your emails go unanswered, and traffic to your site drops off overnight. Your income dries up and it’s all over. It can take six months or more to undo the damage and, in some cases, it’s permanent. The major search engines are always on the lookout for new cheats. When found, they will program the search engines to drop the sites using these methods. Without warning, you’re gone. Also, don’t forget, your competition watches your site and is looking for ways to rank higher than you. Your competition may report your unethical methods to the search engines.

If you’re planning to be around for the long haul and want some success on the internet, then you need to be ethical in your promotion. Unless you have daily time dedicated to studying SEO and making the needed changes, you should contract with a reputable SEO company. You need a company that studies the SEO industry on a daily basis to keep on top of what it takes to rank at the top for the long run. A company that is above cheats and quick fixes. A company that offers solid optimization that can keep you on top of the search engine results. A company that will take the time to target your specific audience to get you visitors that are interested in your product or service.

Many SEO companies will promise thousands of visitors a day. Unless those visitors are interested in what you have to offer or ended up at your site and did not find what they searched for, they will remember you. They will remember that you did not have what they wanted. They may leave disappointed and your good name will have a black mark next to it. Don’t get sucked into damaging your image by slick salesmen.

When looking for a company to handle your SEO, first and foremost, be comfortable with the people you will be directly working with. They will need total access to your web site and server to make the needed changes. At times, the verbiage of your site may need minor changes. A word or two may need to be changed to improve keyword density. You need a company you can trust with your company’s image.

In today’s business world, you must have a web site. After all, your competition does. Your site must be marketed ethically and monitored daily. Changes must be made ASAP when conditions change. Hire a professional to handle SEO. When your business is booming, it’s too easy to put SEO on the back burner. Before you know it, your rankings will have dropped from top to bottom, as well as your bottom line.

About the Author:

Mark Hochhaus co-owner of Technet Internet Marketing has been developing web sites and optimizing for search engines since the early days of the Internet. To keep abreast of his latest articles, visit: Technet’s SEO News Blog: The Optimizer

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June 13th, 2008 Leave a comment posted in Computers and Internets

The Modern Day Search Engine

The first task most netizens do when they log on to the internet is to visit their favorite search engine to find information on various topics. Over the past few years the search engine has evolved to do more than list available websites on an entered subject. The modern day search engine has tools to help the user accomplish a vast array of everyday task.

Search engine is a common term to describe a tool used to find relevant webpages on an entered subject. But, there are actually two types of search engines, the indexers like Google and Alta Vista that actually search the internet based on keywords, and the directories like Yahoo and Exactseek which provides a list of sites based on predefined categories. These two types of search engines provide the bulk of searches requested by users.

These engines help the user find everything from small sites like RecoveryPets.Com, who specialize in the global recovery of lost pets, located at http://www.recoverypets.com, or larger sites like WebMD who provide medical information for patients and doctors, and their website is http://www.webmd.com. But, these are just the basic services that these engines provide, and the everyday web surfer relies on the more advance features to successfully navigate the web.

Directories such as Yahoo that offer services for every age group of surfer, from chat groups to their find people services aimed at helping the surfer locate people they have not been in contact with for awhile. They also provide discussion groups to relate ideas with others that may share the surfers interest, and mail free mail services so that everyone on the internet can have a email address.

Indexers like Google provides their uses with a vast array of tools also, and the most used of these is their groups section that enable others to share ideas on different subjects and topics. The newest of these services offered by this indexer is Froogle, which is an online merchant center that allows users to find various products listed within their service, and finally is their images that allow you to enter a search term and view only the images of the term entered.

These search engines are user friendly so that the most novice of internet users can successfully navigate the web, and the most savvy internet surfers can use their advance features to accomplish the task they set out to do. Even though these are the most known search engines, there are thousands of smaller engines that are user specific on everything from family to travel planning, it is up to you to support these engines so that they can continue bring us the services we use.

Although this is just a small listing of the services provided by search engines, and every engine is different, we suggest that a wide variety of engines be visited to find out the services they provide. As is evident the modern day search engine has evolved greatly from just a site listing service, and with time they will be able to bring searchers more services that aid the everyday netizen in the quest to navigate the internet more efficiently.

Thaddeus Collins is the owner of RecoveryPets.Com and they specialize in the global recovery of lost pets using a unique tracking number. For more information visit http://www.recoverypets.com

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March 26th, 2008 Leave a comment posted in Computers and Internets