SEO Guidelines

By Jeffrey Smith in SE Optimization

Search engine optimization also known by the acronym SEO is comprised of multiple facets. SEO is not a linear process, but rather a holistic evolution involving intricate layers, steps and cumulative stages which are equally as delicate as they are demanding to perfect.
However, there are fundamental SEO guidelines one can use to incorporate granular changes to improve coherence, functionality and visibility of a website by working in tandem with the metrics that search engines deem worthy and therefore reward with a higher relevance / optimization score.

On the contrary, if you deliberately or inadvertently neglect any one of the necessary characteristics of fine-tuning, then your pages could fall short of their goal which is to find the most suitable audience by way of reaching the most coveted top 10 spots for the contents primary keywords.

Rather than butchering coherence after the fact in an attempt to make a square peg fit in a round hole by editing content, links or the architecture of your website. It is better to start with the SEO goal in mind and building the platform to support it vs. just altering aspects of each after the fact.

With initiating any SEO campaign, you should give credence to:

Understanding your competition - There is a reason why the top 10 spots are occupied, take a look for consistencies so you can emulate certain characteristics if your website lacks them.

Determining the Gap - Determining the gap implies removing the obstacles between you and your objective. Time is the obvious ranking factor; hence, someone online for 5 years in a niche who has achieved keyword saturation and authority has an easier time maintaining visibility compared to a new website (who has not achieved a suitable reputation through peer review).

Before you just build links, your traffic and engagement for the site must be commensurate in order to get past algorithmic filters which can determine things like (1) link clusters from building links in automation (2) the ratio of inbound links to outbound links (3) engagement time / bounce rate factor (which are a metric of satisfaction and relevance) and (4) if there are other supporting topical areas within the site that concentrate internal links, subjects or landing pages to support a more competitive rankings.

Building Internal Authority - Authority is the objective; rankings are merely a side-effect (not the goal). With this in mind, it is more about acquiring a stake in market share that unmistakably positions your website in front of any search which corresponds to any of the terms, keywords or topics covered in your title, content or tags. The more authority a website has, the easier it is to rank for more keywords with less effort.

Gaining Validation from Citation and Peer Review - You can have the greatest website online, but without co-occurrence and other websites referencing your pages, it is merely conjecture. Granted, your website can eventually acquire authority in and of itself, but links from other related sites or websites already ranking for the keywords you are targeting are the fastest way to expedite the process of creating a site that is less dependent on external sources for validation and rankings.

Managing User Expectations - Since no two people think or search alike, you will need an array of landing pages to help direct them to the ultimate conversion objective. The wild card in this equation is the mood of the surfer. Landing pages are all about getting the right person in the right mindset to read the right message. If you can accomplish that with your SEO, there is virtually no limit to increasing user engagement (which is getting them to take the desired action).

Landing Pages are your websites means to an end, they are what keep you in business. With a landing page tailored to a specific array of keywords, the more relevance you can create between what a searcher expects and what a searcher discovers, the higher conversion rate your site will experience.

Landing Page Conversion - The first step in creating a successful online presence is having a page worthy of conversion. Conversion implying that it performs a specific function (sign up for a free download, sign up for a newsletter, subscribe to an RSS feed, purchase a produce, inquire about a service, etc.).

Instead of hemorrhaging user intent or overwhelming users with too many choices, the more refined and focused your value proposition is, the more likely it is that users will engage it. The key behind landing pages are (1) make it clear to the visitor what the VALUE IS TO THEM for engaging the offer, not just to your business and (2) if you have to go back and read anything twice or if a 4^th grader cannot understand the offer, then it’s probably too complex.

SEO delivers traffic, but the strength of your offer is what determines if people shop at your website and proceed to checkout or if they move on and use your site like a doormat for the next search result, which is more honed to their mental map of what they consider a superb offer.

The tasks and responsibilities of an SEO company is simple (1) fill the gap with relevant content (2) salvage the existing elements that are conducive to optimization (3) build off page reputation from link building and promotion and most of all (4) fine tune the on page elements that aid conversion until a suitable conversion rate exists.

For those offering SEO services that offer anything less is just theory. The bottom line is, SEO is about results, not just temporal rankings. So, as long as you stick to fundamental guidelines that are not dependent on fickle appearances or tricks but rather real content and real substance, changes in algorithms are the least of your concern, it’s only a matter of producing enough content, links or popularity to cross the tipping point.

Jeffrey Smith is an active internet marketing optimization strategist, consultant and the founder of Seo Design Solutions Seo Company http://www.seodesignsolutions.com. He has actively been involved in internet marketing since 1995 and brings a wealth of collective experiences and fresh marketing strategies to individuals involved in online business.

Truth About Search Engine Optimization

Rebecca Lieb’s The Truth About Search Engine Optimization

Rebecca Lieb’s new book was briefly mentioned in our interview with Kevin Lee. In this video however, we have the entire rundown on her book, The Truth About Search Engine Optimization.

Rebecca describes her book as being “conceptual” as opposed to “geeky.” It contains 51 short chapters with information marketers need to know in order to effectively do SEO.

The book is geared toward marketing managers and chief marketing officers, but Rebecca says that it contains usable information for anyone wanting to be found on the Internet. Rebecca included all the recent hot topics such as social media, video, online PR, and blogs and how they interact with search engine optimization.

Also in the video above, Rebecca discusses the importance of building online communities. Your business not only needs to have a consistent presence on Web, but it also needs to have a consistent presence in the area of social.

Social media has been a running theme at recent shows and it is not going to go away. Leveraging social media and online communities provide more value to your business now than they ever did, due to the economic downturn and marketing budget cuts.

For more information on social and search engine optimization, check out Rebecca Lieb’s book.

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Social Media Mistakes

By Jennifer Horowitz in Featured

With so much talk about social media these days, everyone is jumping on board and trying it out. We are seeing some common mistakes out there and I thought it was important to address these mistakes to help eradicate them in the future.

Don’t get me wrong, there will be a learning curve - we all went through it (and I met some great people that helped me, and that I helped along the way) but the key is to learn up front to minimize errors!

So, here we go…

Mistake One: Completely Ignoring Social Media

Believe it or not there are still some people out there that are ignoring social media. They may be unsure of how to participate or maybe they just don’t have time to get involved. No matter what the reason, this is a big mistake. Social media continues to grow in popularity and in importance to internet users - the exact users you are trying to reach.

Mistake Two: Bare Profiles

If you don’t bother completing your profile people won’t be able to get to know you. It is also a sign to other users that you aren’t serious about participating on that site. Many spammers don’t bother to complete their profile and a blank profile has become a red flag.

Your profile should include a custom background when possible, a photo, contact information, and a list of interests to help people get to know you better.

Don’t be afraid to show some personality and let people really get to know you and your company and what you stand for.

Mistake Three: Faking It

We’ve all seen companies being ripped apart for trying to fake it in the social media world. They either hire someone to pretend to be them (it’s OK if staff, colleagues or team members participate, but to hire an unknown to play you, not cool!), or they make up personas or even fake customers posting positive feedback.

The truth is if you can’t invest the time to create an authentic social media profile, you shouldn’t bother creating one at all.

Mistake Four: Trying to Sell Users Instead of Listening

Social media isn’t about you selling, selling, selling. You are here to network, build trust, listen to what customers and prospects have to say. You want to hear customer concerns, to learn about them, to find out what gets them excited, what they like about your product, what they still want, etc.

Remember to be a good social media participant, which means listen before you speak. If you don’t, you risk being written off as yet another company that doesn’t know how to use social media and who is only interested in promoting themselves. Remember, you always have to add value to the communities you’re participating in - just remember its value for your customers, not yourself.

Mistake Five: Recycling

Don’t recycle old content and marketing materials on social media sites. Start new conversations, create new information to share. Granted, you’ll have some content that falls in the “oldie but goodie” category and that’s OK to share. Just try to keep things fresh.

Mistake Six: Launching, then Ignoring

Social media is similar to search engine optimization in that you can’t just set it and forget it. You need to participate and remain active, otherwise you have wasted your time initially setting things up.

If you want your customers to stay engaged, you have to keep producing great content yourself. Keep writing Blog posts, creating widgets and being active in the community. Social media is real work but when done properly it’s worth the effort.

So review your social media practices and make sure you aren’t making any of these mistakes. If you are, change course quickly and get yourself back on track.

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Jennifer Horowitz is the Director of Marketing for EcomBuffet.com. Since 1998 Jennifer’s expertise in marketing and Search Engine Optimization (SEO) has helped clients increase revenue. Jennifer has written a downloadable book on SEO and has been published in many SEO and marketing publications. Jennifer is the editor of the popular Spotlight on Success: SEO and Marketing newsletter. Follow Jennifer and stay current on SEO, marketing, social media and more. http://twitter.com/EcomBuffet