Search Engine Optimization Techniques That Work
Does it really matter how great your website looks if nobody sees it?

Search engine optimization is an essential part of both the development and maintenance of your website. Though it may sound complicated, it really just means designing, writing, and html coding your website so that it’s more likely to appear at the top of search results when prospective customers type in keywords and phrases that relate to your business. How do you make that happen? By considering the search engines and directories that offer the greatest amount of potential traffic, such as Google and Yahoo, and creating the necessary conditions to attract their attention.

1. Keys to Success

Search engines and directories identify your website’s content by matching keywords frequently used in your site to those entered by an individual doing an online search. So, if you sell home furnishings and specialize in Italian leather chairs, you need to be sure that your home page and pages throughout the site include as many words like “Italian leather”, “chair”, “chairs”, “leather chairs”, “Italian design”, “furniture”, “European furniture”, “home furnishings”, etc. as often as possible. Of course, a mishmash of keywords at the expense of a good, clear sales message isn’t going to help. You need good marketing copy (text) that sounds great, emphasizes benefits and uses keyword phrases. There’s an art to this, so be sure to get professional support.

SEO strategies keep web statistics on the rise

2. Right Tags – YOU’RE It

If you want to promote sales of your Italian leather chairs, it’s safe to say your competitors want to, too — and they’ll probably use a lot of the same words to do it. So how will a search engine or directory decide whose site to list first? They’ll look beyond keywords to html tags placed on images and text within your website. These “tags” are markers that contain keywords in the actual source code of your website to support prominent ranking on search engines and directories.

3. The Elevator Speech

Directories such as Yahoo categorize websites. When your website is submitted to the various search engines and directories it is vital that the site description (a sort of “Elevator Speech” for your website) clearly identifies a type or classification that best represents your business so prospects will look for it in their online search. So, the site description for your home furnishings business might read, “Italian leather chairs, sofas and high quality European home furnishings, retail, Montreal, Toronto and Vancouver”.

4. Directing Traffic

Create an XML or HTML Sitemap to ensure that all the pages on your website can be found and indexed, particularly those that are located in the lower levels of the website as these are not as easily reachable by direct linking or navigation. Today’s new tools enable SEO specialists to prioritize the content, insert appropriate title tags, and recode web pages to make them increasingly search engine friendly.

5. It’s All About Who You Know

Just as when someone is famous, a lot of people know about them, when a website is important, more pages will link to it. Reciprocal linking between websites is an important part of the search engine optimization process. Google, for example, uses link popularity algorithms to rank website relevancy. It is important to build as many links to your website as possible, through link exchange directories or by exchanging links privately.

6. Reaching Out

No matter how well executed your search engine optimization strategy, reaching out to prospects and customers is a must. E-publications like newsletters, articles, etc. support search engine optimization because they contain a wide variety of keywords to be picked up by search engines and directories. They may also be passed on, exposing your business and your website to numerous new prospects with whom you otherwise would not connect. In addition, frequent changes and updates to websites (such as the posting of a current e-newsletter addition) create greater visibility as search engines continually seek out new information.

As important as it is, search engine optimization is simply a means of helping potential customers find your web site. It isn’t a substitute for solid content, the right messages, great design and a well planned online and offline marketing strategy. The most important thing is to ensure your website has the basics:

Simple, cleanly coded design
User-friendly, intuitive navigation
Titles and Meta tags to help identify relevant keyword phrases, and
Links that accurately describe what can be found in the site.

With these elements in place, your site has the potential for high rankings for a variety of keyword phrases in major search engines and directories. Why? Because search engines and directories look for the same things you do when you search online: easy-to-access information in clear and concise language, right up front.

But don’t forget that the process of ranking high in the search engines can take a significant time investment up front, and, because your competitors are striving for the same positioning that you are, your search engine strategy will require constant refinement in order to maintain and improve rankings.

Did you know that there are scientific ways to get your website read? Studies have proven that website visitors interact with online content differently than with print. Understanding the formula for writing for the web is key to capturing potential customers online.

Optimizing your website to attract the Internet-savvy customer takes some simple techniques; executing them well will give your website what it takes to beat the competition and grow your business. Here are some of them, and why they work:

Keep it Simple

Tracking studies prove most readers skip right over large blocks of text. For important information that customers need to see, use short paragraphs and plenty of white space to draw eyes in and make for easy reading. Stick to one idea or concept per paragraph to keep content focused, or incorporate bulleted lists for dense information that can’t be pared down.

Connect with Links

Use links to outside sources within your online text to: (a) show readers that you’ve done your homework, and (b) take them directly to information that backs up your position and paints your organization as more credible. Keep readers from straying away from your site with links that open in a new web browser. Links also act as visual stop signs that help prevent readers from skimming content – if links aren’t an option, use bold text where appropriate to achieve the same effect.

A Taste, Not a Meal

Viewers only read about 20% of the text on the average page – eliminate everything that doesn’t add value and increase the potency of your message. Web readers are browsers; they look for a little information about a lot of topics. A web page shouldn’t offer comprehensive data or expect detailed reading from web visitors: Keep content informative, but not exhaustive and use links for value-added information.

Catch Their Eye

Eye tracking studies find the same results time and again: readers scan web pages. But where do they look? Viewing patterns generally resemble a capital F: readers scan across the top of the page, then scan the left vertical column followed by a small scan across the middle of the page about halfway down. Place vital information, headlines and bulleted lists where viewers are looking to ensure they get attention.

Every customer and web user is unique, but science has proven they have website viewing preferences and habits in common. Contact 5th business today to learn how to maximize your website’s ability to engage visitors – and keep them coming back.