Introduction to Search Engine Optimisation
http://www.oz-e-wahm.com/articles/30/1/Introduction-to-Search-Engine-Optimisation/Page1.html
By Lucie Battaini
Published on 05/12/2008
Search Engine Optimization is a viable way to get more traffic to your website through natural searches on MSN, google, and yahoo. For more information take a look in this article.
Search Engine Optimization is a viable way to get more traffic to your website through natural searches on MSN, google, and yahoo. Your goal is to get your page listed on the first page of the search engines for the keyword terms in your niche that people are searching for.
You can find loads of information on SEO in books and on the internet. We also have a whole area dedicated to Search Engine Optimisation in our Learning Centre so be sure to stop by that area of the site. We don’t have that kind of time or space here, but we’ll try to give you an overview without overwhelming you.
How can SEO help you get traffic?
The goal with any website is to get targeted traffic. The beauty of search engine traffic is that the people who come to your site are actually looking for what you have to offer.
For instance, if you go to google.com and type in “Dog Food for Poodles” – you’ll actually get results. So, if you were looking to buy “Dog Food for Poodles”, you’d likely have your credit card out and be ready to make a purchase for dog food for your poodle.
THAT is the kind of visitor you want coming to your website. Not a poodle lover, but someone who is looking and is ready to make that purchase or to find information on your niche (or your websites area of expertise).
If you have an information website, the same rule applies. Assuming you want information about “Training Miniature Poodles” just go to google and type in that term and you’ll find websites that will help you teach your unruly poodle some manners.
Stop and think about what your website is about. Actually, what each page of your website is about. You’ll want to set up each page of your website to be sure to let the search engines know exactly who to send you.
Where to start?
Since this is a very simple overview of Search Engine Optimization, we’ll just cover the basics. There are two factors that determine how much traffic the search engines will send you. First is the information you have on your own website. Second is how many other websites are linking to your website. Those are the two areas you’ll want to work on in order to crawl up higher on the search engines for your niche.
On your website be sure to use the keywords for your niche. If your page is about “Marathon Walking” then be sure to use the term “Marathon Walking” as your title and in the body of your article. It’s quite simple.
Your offsite goals are just as easy. Work on getting other people to link to your website. You can do this by writing and submitting articles, posting comments on other people’s blogs, writing press releases or even posting on forums.
A Closer Look At SEO On Your Website
Search Engine Optimization seems to strike fear into the hearts of many webmasters and even many of the more seasoned Marketers. However it really isn't as difficult as it seems.
The following focuses on ways you can make your site 'friendlier' to the search engines. In order to really climb to the top of the search engine rankings, though, you’ll also want to read further on about 'off-site' ways to climb through the search engine rankings.
Keywords
Be sure to include your keywords or key phrases on your page. You don’t want to go overboard, but you will want your page title to be very descriptive.
Bad SEO Title: “Why I’m Having a Crummy Day”
Better SEO Title: “The Effects of Acne on Self Esteem”
Bad SEO Title: “Lessons I Learned on the Subway on a Trip to the Zoo”
Better SEO Title: “Disciplining Your Child in Public”
Assuming these articles are written with the same content, the search engines will understand the “Better SEO Title” more.
There are tools you can use to find keywords that are being searched.
• Wordtracker – Provides a tool that displays the number of people searching for a term, as well as the competition. Wordtracker offers a free trial so you can test their service.
• SEO Elite – As of this writing, this website offers a free ecourse about Search Engine Optimization from one of the leading SEO Experts, Brad Callen. The software itself is highly recommended by many of the top Internet Marketers.
• Overture – This free resource will give you ideas for keywords. It doesn’t have a lot of bells and whistles but is a good place to start.
Where to include your keywords
Now that you have an idea of which keywords you’re using, you’ll want to stay consistent.
Meta Tags: Here’s where we start to lose people. Hang in there. We promise to make this simple.
If you peek into the html of a new page you’ve created, you’ll see something like this –
All you need to do is to replace the text between the two
The other tag in the meta section that you should really alter is the Description tag. It will look something like this and fall immediately after the
You can find loads of information on SEO in books and on the internet. We also have a whole area dedicated to Search Engine Optimisation in our Learning Centre so be sure to stop by that area of the site. We don’t have that kind of time or space here, but we’ll try to give you an overview without overwhelming you.
How can SEO help you get traffic?
The goal with any website is to get targeted traffic. The beauty of search engine traffic is that the people who come to your site are actually looking for what you have to offer.
For instance, if you go to google.com and type in “Dog Food for Poodles” – you’ll actually get results. So, if you were looking to buy “Dog Food for Poodles”, you’d likely have your credit card out and be ready to make a purchase for dog food for your poodle.
THAT is the kind of visitor you want coming to your website. Not a poodle lover, but someone who is looking and is ready to make that purchase or to find information on your niche (or your websites area of expertise).
If you have an information website, the same rule applies. Assuming you want information about “Training Miniature Poodles” just go to google and type in that term and you’ll find websites that will help you teach your unruly poodle some manners.
Stop and think about what your website is about. Actually, what each page of your website is about. You’ll want to set up each page of your website to be sure to let the search engines know exactly who to send you.
Where to start?
Since this is a very simple overview of Search Engine Optimization, we’ll just cover the basics. There are two factors that determine how much traffic the search engines will send you. First is the information you have on your own website. Second is how many other websites are linking to your website. Those are the two areas you’ll want to work on in order to crawl up higher on the search engines for your niche.
On your website be sure to use the keywords for your niche. If your page is about “Marathon Walking” then be sure to use the term “Marathon Walking” as your title and in the body of your article. It’s quite simple.
Your offsite goals are just as easy. Work on getting other people to link to your website. You can do this by writing and submitting articles, posting comments on other people’s blogs, writing press releases or even posting on forums.
A Closer Look At SEO On Your Website
Search Engine Optimization seems to strike fear into the hearts of many webmasters and even many of the more seasoned Marketers. However it really isn't as difficult as it seems.
The following focuses on ways you can make your site 'friendlier' to the search engines. In order to really climb to the top of the search engine rankings, though, you’ll also want to read further on about 'off-site' ways to climb through the search engine rankings.
Keywords
Be sure to include your keywords or key phrases on your page. You don’t want to go overboard, but you will want your page title to be very descriptive.
Bad SEO Title: “Why I’m Having a Crummy Day”
Better SEO Title: “The Effects of Acne on Self Esteem”
Bad SEO Title: “Lessons I Learned on the Subway on a Trip to the Zoo”
Better SEO Title: “Disciplining Your Child in Public”
Assuming these articles are written with the same content, the search engines will understand the “Better SEO Title” more.
There are tools you can use to find keywords that are being searched.
• Wordtracker – Provides a tool that displays the number of people searching for a term, as well as the competition. Wordtracker offers a free trial so you can test their service.
• SEO Elite – As of this writing, this website offers a free ecourse about Search Engine Optimization from one of the leading SEO Experts, Brad Callen. The software itself is highly recommended by many of the top Internet Marketers.
• Overture – This free resource will give you ideas for keywords. It doesn’t have a lot of bells and whistles but is a good place to start.
Where to include your keywords
Now that you have an idea of which keywords you’re using, you’ll want to stay consistent.
Meta Tags: Here’s where we start to lose people. Hang in there. We promise to make this simple.
If you peek into the html of a new page you’ve created, you’ll see something like this –
All you need to do is to replace the text between the two
The other tag in the meta section that you should really alter is the Description tag. It will look something like this and fall immediately after the
