SEO
SEO (search engine optimization) is not nearly as complicated as some would have you believe nor is it as easily mastered as many people who offer the service tell you.
What is it really? SEO adjusts 50 or 100 values on each web page to make the resulting content both user and search engine friendly. That’s it, and in different words, SEO optimizes all the seen and unseen content on your entire website, making it (hopefully) easily understood by your users and the search engines.
At Organic Hat SEO we believe in radical transparency with our clients. What this means is that any questions you have about what we are doing on your behalf are gladly answered and we always use clear language in our explanations. We won’t hide or obfuscate the work and information you are paying us to do. If you don’t understand then we are not doing our best job
SEO – The Name of The Game
Search engine optimization is the name of the game when it comes to having your web page hit frequently. By designing your web page with search engines in mind, you will ensure more hits, better business and increase your odds of success. Many companies will promise you the moon, but the basics of building a web site that will attract search engines are simple, so before you hand over your hard earned money, consider doing it yourself.
Search engines use a number of techniques to search the billions of web pages available. Each engine has “bots” or “spiders” which are small programs that “crawl” or search through web sites. Once the site has been investigated, it can be indexed. Indexing assists the engine in finding the page quickly when it is requested. When the engine receives a request to search for specific data it utilizes its index to pull up all pages that have appropriate keywords. The engine then uses an algorithm to sort out which pages are most relevant and ranks those pages higher than others. Since all that takes place within nanoseconds, you want to optimize your odds of being listed first therefore; keywords are the essential component when designing your web presence.
Search engines consider two factors when they determine placement of pages in the results; popularity and relevance. Relevance determines how closely the page matches the request based on the frequency of keywords and phrases, especially in headlines or subheadings. Popularity is based on how many citations refer to your page. Search engines will also analyze the quality of the document with regards to numerous criteria including who is accessing your site and how often. Considering all these things might seem overwhelming, but there are some basic rules you can follow.
A website built strictly for looks and branding will not do well with search engines. While sites of this sort are pretty and have lots of interesting features to click upon and images to entice the eye, they rarely have much copy. Images slow down the process search engines employ when they are looking for keywords. The goal is to make sure that your copy has a high saturation of keywords that people are searching for, without making the text boring or repetitive. You want your content to be relevant, informative and helpful. It goes almost without saying that it should also be grammatically correct and spell checked.
Keywords will help direct customers to your site. The words or phrases potential clients type into the search bar when they call up Google or any other search engine are keywords. To encourage search engines to select your site early and often in their search process, you need to consider not only the most likely phrases used when discussing your business, you also need to include other alternatives that might be entered as well. For example, someone looking for pens may search pens, writing implements, writing utensils, specific brand names or any of a number of other phrases. The more of these phrases and words you use in your content, the higher your chances at being successfully found by a search engine. It is all a numbers game.
Don’t skimp on content. It may sound like a simple idea, but it is easy to get carried away with nice pictures, links and scroll bars. If you want search engines to find you, though, you need to make sure you have good, thorough content. Simply repeating your key words over and over may help draw clients initially, but they will likely opt to shop elsewhere if your content is dull. Relevant details connected to important keywords will not only encourage search engines to find you; they will help you attract and keep clients once they get to your site.
Search engine optimization will help you attract your future clients. Clients that already know your company name or website are going to go directly there. The real magic of search engine optimization takes place when potential clients are looking for your services, but have not yet seen what you offer. The number of individuals surfing the web on any given day who have never heard of your company is clearly larger then the number of people who already know who you are and what you provide. An effective site, using search engine optimization techniques will draw those new clients to you by placing your company higher in the list of found options. This will help your business grow.
Designing a website that utilized Search Engine Optimization isn’t difficult, but it takes a bit of forethought and planning. If you can pick your own name and hosting company there is no reason you can’t use the aforementioned strategies and create a site that will maximize the effectiveness of search engines.
Question: How Do I Know It’s Working? Answer: Any package of SEO services you buy must included detailed website statistics combined with detailed search engine results and these need to be deliver to you at least monthly with an easily understood explanation of the data. This is the best way to monitor results.
The One Hundred Free Directory Project List
there are thousands and thousands of link directories you can sign up with for free, trouble is many are not indexed within the search engines and they have a habit of disappearing shortly after you utilize your precious time. As I sign up with new directories and get approval I will add them here so everyone can save a bit of time. Note some of these directories are for just blogs and not web sites.
1. IndexKing
4. >Scoutle.com
6. Blog Bunch
7. Blog Search
8. Exact Seek
