SEO Catalyst: The Basics of SEO

SEO Catalyst: The Basics of SEO

The Basics of SEO

SEO (Search Engine Optimization)

Define URL:
“Uniform Resource Locator”; an address that specifies the location of a file on the Internet

Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is a complex process that requires expertise to maintain long-term results.
Simply stated, an expert will get better rankings faster. You are good at what you do, and SEO gurus are good at what they do so why not let them do it for you?
Organic search engine optimization is a moving target, but there are some best practices your company can implement to improve your search engine rankings for a long period of time.
Chances are if you landed on this page, you're wanting to improve your website's impact on your bottom line.

You already understand that a search engine user is a highly receptive and targeted audience because you are trying to sell them on something they already want. They came looking for you and they want what you have to offer.
What is SEO anyway?
Search Engine Optimization (SEO for short) is a highly involved, somewhat lengthy, process designed to elevate an internet website’s major search engine ranking and/or positioning. The major search engines (Google, Microsoft Network (MSN), and Yahoo) make up greater than 70% of search traffic on the internet. This is a common way for people to find others, information, companies, potential business partners, etc. by entering a “keyword” or search term. Typically, the searcher will seek information on their keyword or search term and click on the top results. Thus the higher a site ranks for a given keyword or search term, the better its chances of attracting more visitors to its site.
Search engine optimization (SEO) is a foreign field to a lot of people. Rarely does a day go by when I don't get asked a few questions on the subject. So I've decided to post this FAQ article in the hopes that it will help people understand the basics, and make them a little more comfortable with the whole domain.

Q: Why are search engines important to me?

A: 85% of all website traffic is driven by search engines. The only online activity more popular than search is email. 79.2% of US users don't go to page 2 of search results. 42% of users click on the no.1 result. For the under-40 age-group, the Internet will become the most used media in the next 2-3 years.

Q: How do search engines decide on their rankings?

A: IMPORTANT: You cannot pay a search engine in return for a high ranking in the natural results. You can only get a high ranking if your content is seen as relevant by the search engines.
Search engines identify relevant content for their search results by sending out spiders or robots which crawl (analyze) your site and index (record) its details. Complex algorithms are then employed to determine whether your site is useful and should be included in the search engine's search results.


Q: Can't I just pay for a high ranking?

A: No. The biggest concern for search engine companies like Google and Yahoo is finding content that will bring them more traffic (and thus more advertising revenue). In other words, their results must be relevant. Relevant results makes for a good search engine; irrelevant results makes for a short-lived search engine.

Most search engines these days return two types of results whenever you click Search:
• Natural/Organic - The real search results. The results that most users are looking for and which take up most of the window. For most searches, the search engine displays a long list of links to sites with content which is related to the word you searched for. These results are ranked according to how relevant and important they are.
• Paid - Pure advertising. This is how the search engines make their money. Advertisers pay the search engines to display their ad whenever someone searches for a word which is related to their product or service. These ads look similar to the natural search results, but are normally labeled "Sponsored Links", and normally take up a smaller portion of the window.
Q: How do I get a high ranking?

A: There are four main steps:
Step 1 - Use the right words on your website
Step 2 - Get lots of relevant sites to link to yours
Step 3 - Use the right words in those links
Step 4 - Have lots of content on your site & add more regularly
Q: What is search engine optimization (SEO)?

A: Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is the art of creating a website which is search engine-friendly. This means:
• using the right words in your copy
• using the right words in your HTML code
• structuring your site properly
• designing your site properly
For more information on these 4 elements, download our free 'SEO Secrets' eBook from divinewrite.com/seosecrets.htm.

Many people use SEO to also describe the other ingredient in a high ranking, 'Link Popularity'.

Q: What is link popularity?

A: Think of the search engines as a big election. All the websites in the world are candidates. The links to your website are votes. The more votes (links) a candidate (website) has, the more important it is, and the higher its ranking. Link popularity is all about how many links you have, and how you can get more.
Links to your site tell the search engines how important your site is. They assume that if it's important enough for a lot of other sites to link to, it is important enough for them to display at the top of the rankings. Links are the single most important factor in ranking. Generally speaking, the more links you have to your site from other sites, the better your ranking.

Q: Are some links better than others?


A: Yes! The ideal kind of links are those that:
• come from relevant sites (sites which use the same keywords);
• come from important sites (have a high ranking);
• include your keyword as part of the visible link text;
• include varying link text (not the same link text each time); and
• come from a page that links to few other sites.
When a search engine sees a link which satisfies most or all of these conditions, it says, "Hey, this site must be credible and important, because others in the same industry are pointing to it."¨

Q: How do I get lots of links back to my site?

A: There are many possible ways to generate links. Some are dubious (like auto-generation software, and sites set up by webmasters simply to host links to their other sites) and I won't be discussing them here. Others, like those discussed below, are legitimate.
• Add your site to DMOZ & Yahoo Directories (and other free directories)
• Check where your competitors' links are coming from
• Article PR - Write and submit articles for
• Internet publication
• Swap links
• Partner websites
• Pay for links

Q: What do you think is the best way to get lots of links?

A: Article PR. Write helpful articles and let other webmasters publish them for free in exchange for a link in the byline. With article PR, you don't have to pay for the link, you determine the content of the page containing the link, you determine the link text, and the link is more or less permanent. A single article can be reprinted hundreds of times, and each time is another link back to your site!
For more information, read divinewrite.com/seoarticles.htm or visit ArticlePR.com.

Q: How do I write a good article PR piece?

A: See divinewrite.com/seoarticles.htm.

Q: How do I get a high ranking using free reprint content?

A: See divinewrite.com/Top_Ranking_Free.htm.

Q: How long does it take to get a high search engine ranking?

A: A long time! It's impossible to say how much time you'll need to spend generating links, but you can be sure it'll be a while no matter which method of link generation you use. You just have to keep at it until you have achieved a high ranking. Even then, you'll still need to dedicate some ongoing time to the task, otherwise your ranking will drop.

Q: What is the Google Sandbox, and is it real?

A: The Google Sandbox theory suggest that whenever Google detects a new website, it withholds its rightful ranking for a period while it determines whether your site is a genuine, credible, long term site. It does this to discourage the creation of SPAM websites (sites which serve no useful purpose other than to boost the ranking of some other site).

There is a lot of anecdotal evidence supporting the theory, but there is also a lot discounting it. No one has categorically proven its existence.

Q: What is the Google Dampening Link Filter, and is it real?

A: The Google Dampening Link Filter theory suggests that if Google detects a sudden increase (i.e. many hundreds or thousands) in the number of links back to your site, it may sandbox them for a period (or in fact penalize you by lowering your ranking or blacklisting your site altogether).

There is a lot of anecdotal evidence supporting the theory, but there is also a lot discounting it. No one has categorically proven its existence.

Q: What SEO companies should I be wary of?

A: Be wary of SEO companies that promise or guarantee results in a given timeframe, especially if they won't expand on their methods for generating links back to your site.

Q: What tools can you recommend?

A: There are many very useful tools to help with your SEO. The following are just selection. All tools are free unless otherwise indicated.
Q: What is keyword analysis?

A: The first thing you need to do when you begin chasing a good search engine ranking is decide which words you want to rank well for. This is called performing a keyword analysis. Keyword analysis involves a bit of research and a good knowledge of your business and the benefits you offer your customers. For more information, download our free 'SEO Secrets' eBook from divinewrite.com/seosecrets.htm.

Q: Do I need to submit my site to the search engines?

A: Theoretically, no. But I wouldn't risk not doing it - especially as it's free. As soon as you register your domain name, submit it to Google! Even if you haven't built your site, or thought about your content, submit your domain name to Google. In fact, even if you haven't fully articulated your business plan and marketing plan, submit your domain name to Google.

Q: Should I submit my site to the search engines more than once?

A: No need. Although some of the search engines allow you to do this, there's really no need.

Q: What are directories and should I submit my site to them?

A: Directories are websites (or web pages) which simply list lots of website and give a quick description of the website. Some are free and some require you to pay for a listing. Free directories are useful because you get a free link. However, the links aren't worth that much. Paid directories can be good if they're relevant, but they can cost a lot in the long term, so choose wisely.
ting to your site (link popularity), the more “important” the search engines will consider your site.
In the past all you had to do to get good rankings in Google and the other search engines was to trade links with several other web sites using your key words in the link text. Although this still holds true today, I have reason to believe sites are being penalized for not using a directory style link structure with no more than 25 links per page. Having a directory style links system on your site will make it more of a resource to your visitors and not just a bunch of un-organized links all lumped together on a single page.

There are of course other ways to attract incoming links to your web site without providing a link back or what's called a reciprocal link.

1. There are thousands of forums out there that will allow your links in a short signature file at the end of each post. Join forums that are related to your subject matter and take part in the discussions. Make sure you use your key words in you signature file link and not just your URL. For a short list click on the following blog link http://www.bigmoolla.com/2005_03_06_archive.html

2. Submit your site to as many directories as you can. There are thousands of directories out there that will post your website into there directory for free and also some that charge a small one time fee. Again your title or link text is key. Make sure you are using your key words in your link text or title. For a short list click on the following blog link http://www.bigmoolla.com/2005_03_06_archive.html

3. Writing and submitting articles like this one with a small resource box at the end is also a good way to attract one way links back to your site. When you submit your articles to the many article directory portals you are getting links from the portal site, plus people will search for and use the articles from the portal site on their own sites. If you write just 1 good article and submit it to 10-20 portal sites you could end up with 100's of back links over a very short time. For a short list click on the following link http://bigmoolla.com/submissions.html

4. Writing and submitting press releases work almost the same way an article works. You write the press release and submit it to PR sites. The PR site will submit it to the major search engine for a small fee and your press release could end up on Google and Yahoo news search the next day. People are also looking for free news feeds to syndicate on their web sites and blogs. If you write a good news piece it could end up on 100's of blogs and other news sites around the web. Again make sure your web site link is in the news piece some were. For a short list visit the following blog link. http://www.bigmoolla.com/2005/01/write-and-submit-press-releases.html

5. Free classifieds may not provide you with much traffic but you can create hundreds of back links to your web site with a little time and effort. For a short list visit the following link. http://bigmoolla.com/classifieds.html

6. There are also web sites that will place your link on their front page as a sponsored link for a small fee. For this to work thou you need to make sure your links are up for more than a month or two. If the search engine picks up your link one month but its gone the next it won't do much good.

So for those of you who concentrate entirely on reciprocal links and are wondering what has happened to your Google ranking, you may want to consider a few or all of the above linking techniques.
What is Page Rank?
Page Rank is Google’s proprietary algorithm for determining a site’s importance. It’s expressed as a value from 1-10 with 10 being the most important and most desirable. The algorithm was designed by Larry Page, Google’s co-founder. Page Rank is affected by things such as the number of links pointing to your website, and the amount of unique and relevant content on your website.
Links to your site are one of the key components of Google's PageRank technology. With a high page rank, you get higher position on the search engine results page, resulting in more visitors to your site and improving your chances of earning a living online.

As the founder of articlemarketer.com, I would be remiss if I failed to mention that writing articles results in a ton of links to your site. Of course it does.

But there's a trick to it.

Many of the internet marketers who submit free reprint articles go about it all wrong. They fail to take advantage of Google's linking algorithm and they lose some of the power of their articles.

What is Google's linking algorithm? 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, the googlebots are spidering the web, seeking out content, classifying and indexing the billions of web pages available to web surfers.

This results in a standard "Bell Curve" of links to your article around the web. A few links begin to appear within a few days, rising to a peak at about 8-10 weeks, and then tapering off over time. That's the Google linking algorithm at work.

Over time, Google eliminates many of the links generated by a given article. Some call this the Google "Duplicate Link" penalty. I wouldn't call it a penalty. It's just the way things work on the web. And with a clever approach, you can take advantage of it.

You can keep your links high using the Article Marketer Bonanza approach. Our authors use it all the time. That isn't to say that you can only use it if you're an articlemarketer.com subscriber. I'm giving you the approach here and now, absolutely free. You can use the Article Marketer Bonanza approach if you use phantomwriters.com, Article Announcer, or even if you submit your articles manually.

What is the Article Marketer Bonanza approach?
The Article Marketer Bonanza approach keeps your links high by taking advantage of the Google linking algorithm. Google wants fresh content and they begin to "penalize" (although I still wouldn't call it a penalty) you when your content becomes stale. With the Article Marketer Bonanza approach, you never rely on stale links to drive new traffic.

Article marketing is just like every other form of advertising. Coca-Cola and McDonald's don't run just one television commercial and expect a continuing stream of customers to buy their products. Of course, they have the benefit of zillions of dollars and the resources at their disposal to continually buy new commercials.

Your resources are a bit more limited. You have less money and fewer people. Time is of the essence. That's what makes the Article Marketer Bonanza approach so successful.

Most internet marketers can produce a quality article in about an hour (it took me exactly 27 minutes to write this one.) That includes spell checking and everything. But let's say it'll take you more than twice as long to write 500-700 words on your favorite topic.

Write a few articles. How many? Let's say you write 3 articles. If you write them and submit them all today, Google's linking algorithm will give you a few links over the next couple of days, a lot of links over the next 8-10 weeks, and then they'll taper off. It's like turning off the faucet.

The Article Marketer Bonanza Approach - Step by Step:

Bonanza Step 1: Submit one of your articles today. This allows the algorithm to begin working. Watch your links increase.

Bonanza Step 2: Submit the second article next week. Google goes to work on that one. You just added several new links, and you're not near the peak yet. Now you've got two articles climbing the charts.

Bonanza Step 3: Submit the third article the following week. Again, Google gets busy. More links on top of the growing links from article two, which have been added to the large number of links that are already pointed at article one. You've set things in motion.

Bonanza Step 4: Ok, it's been three weeks, it's time to write a few more articles. Set aside a few hours and capture your wisdom on paper.

Bonanza Step 5: Submit your articles, one per week, over the next three weeks. You've now got six articles in the market place, and you haven't yet reached the peak. Your link count is going crazy.

Bonanza Step 6: It's now week 10. Your first article is dropping off the charts as Google "settles in" on the links it'll keep. That's ok because article 2 and 3 are holding your link count high, and you've got three more climbing the charts.

Bonanza Step 7: That's all there is to it. You keep submitting new content and Google rewards you with a permanently high link count. You can keep this going indefinitely. Your link count will never drop.

Depending on how prolific you are as an author, you could submit your articles faster - two or three per week. If you love writing and you write articles on several topics, you could submit new articles every day. You'll always have new fresh content bringing new links to your site

See, it's not always about resources. With the Article Marketer Bonanza approach, you'll be doing something Bill Gates wishes he could do - you'll be staying one step ahead of Google!

What is a Keyword?

A keyword is a typical word or phrase you’d expect people to use when searching for your site. That’s about as simple as we can explain it.

What is Keyword Density?

The number of keywords you use on a particular page in relation to the number of total words on that page. The more keywords you have peppered throughout the page and site, the better your site may rank for that particular term. You must be careful not to load a page with too many keywords, however—that is considered keyword “stuffing” or spamming and is frowned upon by the search engines.

The only activity that should preface keyword research is the brainstorming you do to come up with list of potential themes for your website. Think about things that you find interesting, are passionate about or that leverage your skills. Once this is done you are ready to find out which topic on your list will be the most profitable to pursue.

Keyword Research

Keyword Research will reveal answers to 3 critical questions:

1. Is there a demand for what your site offers? If not, you need to keep moving down your list until you find something that people are already looking for.

2. How are people searching for your topic? For example, if your theme is "Japanese food" how are people searching for information? Are they typing in "Japanese recipes", "low sodium miso soup", "history of Japanese food", "Japanese food in NYC", etc. This part of the search will allow you to build up good topics for your site pages and provide keywords that you will use to optimize your pages to become a search engine magnet.

3. How many sites will you be competing with - does demand outstrip supply or vice versa? Right now your job is to build huge lists of high-demand, low-competition keywords. Be thorough and exhaustive in looking for phrases that people might use to find your site.

You cannot cut corners at this stage of the process or your business will suffer. This can be slow, tedious work but fortunately there are some good tools to help you automate your keyword research and help find the most profitable keywords to build your content around. There are some good free tools to help you make light work of this including Good Keywords, Search It! and Overture. A more comprehensive tool that provides demand, supply and profitability data is Wordtracker.

Keyword Optimization

You may have heard the terms "search engine optimization (SEO)", "keyword optimization", "page optimization", etc. Basically, they all refer to the same thing - making sure your pages have the right amount of keywords, placed correctly, to effectively get your site "spidered" or found by the search engines, such as Google.

Repeating keywords throughout a site is just as important as choosing the right keywords. If you use the keywords too often the search engines will ignore them; if you don't use them enough the search engines will not find and index them properly.

The main keyword, in our example "Japanese food", should be used as part of the domain name and in the title tag of the HTML code for the page. It should also be used in the heading of the page using size h1. Also, most SEO experts agree that it is best to put your keyword in the first and last sentences of your page.

As for the body copy, there are some good rules-of-thumb that help you achieve the correct "keyword density" or keyword repetition. Many experts say you should use the 4% - 7% rule (approx. 25 words in a 500 word document). However, don't use a single keyword over and over or your copy will seem forced. Instead, weave in some variations of the keyword (e.g. plural forms, synonyms) to ensure your content flows well and makes sense! Simply filling up a site with your keywords will not fool the search engines; rather, it may be considered spamming and your site can get banned!

Many people say that content is king, but in fact, it's content that is keyword rich that is king. It is absolutely critical to find your best keywords and use them in the right way to attract targeted traffic. It takes some time and practice but if you persevere your website will be built on a strong foundation.

What is a Sitemap?

A sitemap is basically an inventory listing of all of the pages on your site. It tells the search engines how to get around your site and also how many pages there are on your site. It can be made visible to your visitors, but it doesn’t have to be. Uploading an XML file directly to the search engines is a generally accepted best practice for optimizing your search engine rankings.

What is a Spider?

Search engines utilize small programs to surf and inventory sites all over the internet. These are called spiders, and they follow links from site to site to gather their inventory to report back to the search engine. They are also referred to as crawlers or bots from time to time.

What is a Meta Tag?

A meta tag is an HTML piece of code which provides information about that particular page or document. These don’t provide formatting information or any actionable code—they are there for the search engines to catalog your site and the pages contained on your site.

What is a Blog?

A blog (short for weblog) is a news or journal type of site which is frequently used more for opinionated type of entries and is typically updated frequently. It is intended for general consumption but has become a valuable tool for all types of users to spread information and awareness of their websites.

Need more blog information? We've got you covered.

Why Should I Write Articles for my Website?

Articles are a great way to increase the amount of unique content on your site as it pertains to the keywords you desire to rank well. There are numerous websites that publish articles, and it is common practice for the authors to include a link in their by-line back to their website. This creates an inbound link to the author’s website which in turn increases its popularity. It’s also a good way to increase awareness aside from the linking benefits.

What are Directories?

Directories are databases containing listings to websites based on categories and sub-categories. Many of the search engines access directories to crawl their links to learn of new sites. Directories are an invaluable resource for search engines and can often serve to improve a site’s ranking depending upon how important the search engine weighs the directory in question. Directories may provide a link to your site often without requiring a return or reciprocal link on your site.

What to look for in a potential SEO partner

Some of the things we caution our customers to consider include:

• Avoid guarantees of quick results
• Know what you're wanting to accomplish with your SEO efforts
• Have a budget in mind before you start.
• Know the competitiveness of your market

Things to Consider before Embarking on an SEO Initiative

1. How long have you been in business?
2. How long has your website been “live?”
3. How much traffic does your website generate per month?
4. Have you submitted your site to all of the major search engines?
1. If so, when was this done?
5. Have you submitted your site to any directories?

1. If so, which ones?
2. Is your site still listed on those directories?
5. Who are some of your potential linking partners?

1. Friends
2. Co-workers
3. Clients
4. Similar businesses which aren’t competitors
5. Business journals
6. Local chambers
7. Complimentary products/services
8. Affiliates/distributors
9. Suppliers

More Things to Consider (continued)

1. Do you currently distribute press releases about your business?
2. Do you currently distribute articles on topics related to your business?
1. If not, do you know of anyone within your organization that may be a good candidate for writing these types of articles?
2. Do you have case studies or white papers you could share?
3. Does your company have a blog?
4. What other forms of advertising and marketing does your company utilize?
5. How much have you budgeted for an SEO Program?

1. Is this budget specific to the SEO effort, or is it a percentage of your overall marketing budget?
5. What are your plans should an SEO program not produce immediate (1-3 month) results?

The SEO Process

1. Data Gathering

Current rankings for desired keywords
Google
MSN
Yahoo

Google Page Rank
Home/Main Page
Sub-pages

Link Popularity according to each major search engine
Google
MSN
Yahoo

Accessibility
Indexed pages by engines
Review current meta tags

Depth of website
Uniqueness of offerings
Likelihood of increasing rankings

Competitive Intelligence
Titles
Keywords
Descriptions
Page Rankings
Links

2. Analysis & Recommendations

Meta Tags
Keywords
Descriptions
Titles

Sitemaps

Linking & traffic generation strategy
Directories
Reciprocal linking partners
One-way inbound links
Pay-per-click programs

Content & Offline Exposure
On-page content optimization
Article development
Article submission
Blogs
Press releases
RSS feeds

3. Implementation

Meta Tags
Titles
Keywords
Descriptions

Site Submissions
Directories
Search Engines
Linking partners

Development
Links
Reciprocal partners
One-way inbound
Three way partners

Sitemaps

Content
On-site/page based
Articles
Blog entries
Press releases
Testimonials
Pay-per-click (PPC) programs

4. Ongoing Monitoring

Search Rankings
Linking Partners
Competitive Intelligence
Site Popularity
Directory listings
Status Reports