The Basics Of Search Engine Optimization
Anyone who owns a website and is looking to unlock their site's revenue potential is going to be interested in something referred to as SEO or Search Engine Optimization. SEO is a process of making a website search engine friendly. The end result is that the website will show up in search engines for search terms related to the content of that site.
The whole process of optimizing a site for specific searches involves various things. Certain changes must be made to page content and site layout to make it search engine friendly. Other steps must be taken to help the site to be indexed in the search engines. These things will be discussed briefly in this lens. To learn more about SEO please visit the A2Z SEO Strategy Guide.
Visit my other lens to learn more about the best SEO techniques.
If you like this lens don't forget to give it a rating out of 5 stars and add it to your favorites.
Featured on KingPin's SEO Blog
This guide to the basics of search engine optimization has been featured on KingPin's SEO Blog. Hear are some recent posts from his blog.
Fetching RSS feed... please stand byFavorite Webmaster Forums
Some Webmaster Forums I Recommend
One of the best places to keep up on the trends of the SEO industry is online forums. Forums offer a place where people can post questions and receive answers from other people who are in the same industry.
Join SEO.com's Search Engine Optimization Forums to learn more about SEO and keep up with the latest trends in the search marketing industry.
These are some of the forums that you may find me hanging out at now and then. If you have questions post them there and if someone called "Web Gazelle" posts an answer then that answer was from me.
SEO.com Search Engine Optimization Forums
Discuss the various aspects of SEO at SEO.com's se more...38 points
Webmaster Discussion Forums
Webmaster discussion forum.27 points
Digital Point Webmaster Forum
Search Engine Optimization and Marketing forum.23 points
V7N Forums
Webmaster Community Forum.16 points
Search Engine Marketing Forum
Search engine marketing forum and community.7 points
Webmaster Lighthouse Webmaster Forums
Webmaster Discussion Forums.4 points
The Best SEO Techniques Ever
Who uses the best SEO techniques ever?
- Best SEO Techniques Ever
- SEO.com uses only the best techniques to provide our clients top search engine placement for the most relevant search terms. SEO Specialists at SEO.com use the best SEO techniques ever!
Free SEO Proposal From SEO.com
Request a Free SEO Proposal and Ranking Report from SEO.com
- Free SEO Proposal From SEO.com
- Fill out the form and a search engine marketing expert will perform an initial analysis of your website and contact you regarding a Search Engine Optimization proposal.
Related Links
- Domain Names and SEO
- Learn about getting most of your site and the effect a great domain name can have on search engine rankings.
- A2Z Internet Directory
- Perhaps you have submitted your site to DMOZ, But is it listed in A2ZMOZ? Submit your site today!
- Search Engine Optimization Tutorial
- Learn more about seo from my seo tutorial.
- Best SEO Techniques
- Learn what the best SEO techniques are.
- SEO Forums at SEO.com
- Discuss the various techniques of search engine optimization at the SEO.com search engine optimization forums.
- Learn SEO from the Pros
- If you want to learn about SEO the best place to go is search engine optimization forums.
- The Value of Directories
- Yes, directory links still hold value. Submitting to directories is still a good way to get inbound links.
- The Best SEO Forums Ever
- The SEO forums at SEO.com are a place to keep updated on the latest trends in the search engine optimization industry.
Get Targeted Traffic
Diving Targeted Traffic Through SEO
- Drive targeted traffic to your site with SEO.com!
- SEO.com is recognized as a world leader in the art and science of search engine optimization by Fortune 500 companies, emerging Internet entities, small businesses, and professional firms.
SEO Services
Hire A Firm Or Do It Yourself?
Before discussing the basics of search engine optimization I am going to mention a decision that every website owner is going to have to make regarding SEO. That would be the decision to either hire an SEO firm or learn SEO and do it yourself. There are pros and cons to both choices.Learning SEO yourself and doing it on your own can save the expense of hiring a professional. However SEO is not something that can be learned over night. Search engines are constantly updating and SEO professionals are constantly watching trends, reading blogs and communicating in forums to keep up with changes. By doing it on ones own, money can be saved but much more time has to be invested and the results do not usually come as fast.
Hiring a professional will ensure that the optimization of the site is done by someone who is experienced and will be able to bring results in a relatively short time. Hiring a firm will not be cheap. Reputable SEO firms will cost money to employ their services. In the end the money invested is always well spent with a reputable SEO firm.
Get a free SEO quote from SEO.com.
Recent Blog Posts From SEO.com
Read All the Latest Stories on the SEO.com Blog
Fetching RSS feed... please stand byWebsite Optimization
Optimizing For Relevant Search Terms
The first part of SEO is optimizing for relevant search terms. Showing for search terms in search engines is not going to matter much if the searches are not relevant. Research must be done to find the best relevant terms to optimize the site for.Once those terms have been researched they will then need to be placed in various locations on the pages of the website. The terms should be found in The page title (title tag), meta description (meta tag), page headings (h tags), in the body content and in the anchor text of text links that point to the page being optimized.
Other site optimization involves making sure that the site navigation is SEO friendly and all pages can be indexed by the search engines. This often involves the creation of a site map that is usually linked to from the index page of the site. The site map will contain a list of text links pointing to each page of the site.
Matt Cutts Search Blog
Fetching RSS feed... please stand byLink Popularity
Getting Inbound Links To Build Link Popularity
The part of SEO that doesn't effect site content or site layout is that of building link popularity. A big part of ranking in search engines is inbound links. Links pointing to your site will help search engine bots find and crawl the site. This helps to get the site indexed and then it can be ranked based on the search engine algorithm. The anchor text of the link that points to your site tells the bots that those terms are relevant to your site.Inbound links should be from sites with content that is relevant to yours. Good places to get links are directories, articles, press releases and through link exchanges with other sites that have relevant content.
Contrary to popular belief, Google has not totally abolished the value of directory links. Directories hold the same value today as they did in the past. Having said that, a person should still look for quality when submitting sites to directories. Look for a unique clean layout and unique content. Look at the back links of the directory to see if it is being actively promoted. Those are the things that will tell you that it is a quality directory and you should list your sites in it.
The A2Z Internet Directory at www.a2zmoz.com is a personal project of mine. It is a hand coded, SEO friendly directory that offers additional deep links for every listing. Since it was hand coded by me it offers a unique look and feel as well as 100% unique content. If you have not submitted your site, submit to the A2Z Internet Directory today!
I highly recommend submitting your site to dmoz.org and for a small submission fee, submit to Directory At V7N as well as Site Sift Directory
Find more great tips on link building at the link kitchen.
Top 10 Web Directories
My Choice For Top 10 Directories To Get Your Site Listed In.
Web directories are an excellent place to get inbound links for a website. There are several free and paid directories available to get a site listed in. This is a list of some of the ones I recommend.
Directory At V7N
Internet Web Directory.20 points
A2Z Internet Directory
The A2Z Internet Directory at a2zmoz.com is an org more...18 points
GreenStalk Web Directory
Comprehensive Human-Edited Directory of the Web.8 points
BetterSeeker Web Directory
Comprehensive Human-Edited Directory of the Web.2 points
Sezza :: The Human-Edited Web Directory
Comprehensive Human-Edited Directory of the Web.2 points
VistaDex Directory
Comprehensive Human-Edited Directory of the Web.1 point
Business Returns Directory
Internet Web Directory1 point
Best Of The Web
Internet Web Directory organized by category, offe more...0 points
ODP - Open Directory Project
Help build the most comprehensive human-reviewed d more...0 points
Seekon Web Directory
Seekon Info directory provides a unique opportunit more...0 points
Site Sift Web Directory
Internet Web Directory.0 points
Yahoo Search Blog
Fetching RSS feed... please stand byBuy These Great Books
Add These Books To Your Personal Library
Get Indexed in Google
Get a Site Indexed in Google in 1 Week
Webmaster Tools
Learn More About Your Site With Google Webmaster Tools
Part of Google webmaster tools is the option to submit a Google sitemap to tell Google more about the site and get it better indexed.
- Google Webmaster Tools
- The first step to increasing your site's visibility on Google is learning how the Googlebot crawls and indexes your site.
- Create an XML Sitemap
- A sitemap is a way of organizing a website, identifying the URLs and the data under each section. Previously, the sitemaps were primarily geared for the users of the website. However, Google's XML format was designed for the search engines, allowing them to find the data faster and more efficiently.
Are you using Google Analytics?
Monitor Your Site Traffic With Google Analytics
So you have optimized your site and are getting some good inbound links. You now want to see the results of your work. There are several different programs to monitor site traffic with but one I recommend is Google Analytics. You just create an account, then add some code to the pages of your site and you will be able to see lots of different information about who is visiting your site. There also the option to set up goals and conversion tracking. Get registered with Google Analytics today! Learn Internet Marketing From These Great Books
Matt Cutts on YouTube
Is Google The Best?
Share your thoughts about the best search engine.
Top Search Engines
Which Gives You The Most Relevant Search Results?
MSN Power By Live Search
0 points
Black Hat SEO
What is Black Hat SEO?
- Google webmaster Guidelines
- Following these guidelines will help Google find, index, and rank your site.
- Yahoo Search Content Quality Guidelines
- Yahoo! Search Content Quality Guidelines are designed to ensure that poor-quality pages do not degrade the user experience in any way.
My Squidoo Lenses
Be Sure to Visit my Other Lenses
-
Domain Names and SEO
-
A domain name can have a positive effect on how a site ranks in the search engines. A domain name that contains targeted search terms can help a site to rank better for those terms. This is where getting a good domain name comes into play for SEO str...
-
A2Z Directory (a2zmoz): The Greatest Webdirectory Ever
-
The a2z Directory at a2zmoz.com is the most user friendly directory that lists only the highest quality sites. The directory offers website owners a place to list their sites for additional exposure on the internet. The A2Z Directory at a2zmoz.com is...
-
Search Engine Optimization Forums at SEO.com
-
Perhaps you have visited my other Lenses on SEO, or maybe you haven't. If you want to learn how to promote your website using search engine optimization then one of the best places you can go to learn SEO is an SEO forum. Search Engine Optimization F...
-
The SEO Forums At SEO.com: The Best SEO Forums Ever
-
The SEO forums at SEO.com offer webmasters a central place on the web to meet and communicate with other webmasters. The forums are staffed by the SEO specialists at SEO.com. The SEO forums are a place to keep updated on the latest trends in the sear...
-
SEO.com: The Best Seo Techniques Ever
-
While working full time as an SEO specialist for an SEO company I use current seo techniques that are proven to bring results. SEO.com uses only the best techniques to provide our clients top search engine placement for the most relevant search terms...
My Del.icio.us Bookmarks
Don't Put Your Site Rankings in Jeopardy
Use Good SEO Techniques to Ensure Your Site Ranks Well
Weird Al Yankovic - I Lost On Jeopardy
weird al yankovic jeopardy
Runtime: 3:47
460104 views
10 Comments:
Reader Feedback
Give Me Your Feedback.
Please post your comments and any feedback about this lens.
Note: All HTML will be stripped out of comments.
|
GreenRevolution
Congrats on making 'Giant Squid'! Posted July 18, 2008 |
|
Deborahlee
Hi , SEO confuses me to the point of no return. You actually make it sound simple - thanks. Posted July 09, 2008 |
|
KimGiancaterino
Congratulations on making Giant Squid! Posted July 07, 2008 |
|
anilg
Great lens with valuable tips about seo. Know about best online money making programs here Posted June 09, 2008 |
|
TopStyleTravel
Thanks, more info on my least understood but favorite topic right now. Posted June 04, 2008 |
|
Gusher
wheeew!!! this one was great, a lot of useful artcles were here!!! ;-) Posted June 03, 2008 |
|
Scrap_Book_Guru
Wow! This lens is full of lots of great information. Definitely going to add it to my favorites. Posted May 07, 2008 |
|
Newbie_101
Nice lens you have here which I will go give 5 stars to. I'm keeping and eye out for a hopeful PR update sometime in mid-may. Anyone else think that will happen? Again, I enjoyed your lens. Keep up the great work! Posted May 02, 2008 |
|
samie-wilson
SEO is really cool. Lots of strategies, and this lens really helped me in forming strategies. Posted April 29, 2008 |
|
Tom_L
Very informative lens! I have learned a lot. Thanks! Posted April 23, 2008 |
|
TitusMarshall
You need to read more about SEO? Posted April 17, 2008 |
|
Temi-Odurinde
KP, Posted April 03, 2008 |
|
evilsonic9999
Wonderful geat work! Posted March 29, 2008 |
|
sunita
Interesting and informative lens.SEO information is useful. Posted March 22, 2008 |
|
tdove
Nice information on SEO. Thanks for joining G Rated Lense Factory! Posted March 19, 2008 |
SEO on Wikipedia
The Wiki on SEO
Search engine optimization (SEO) is the process of improving the volume and quality of traffic to a web site from search engines via "natural" ("organic" or "algorithmic") search results for targeted keywords. Usually, the earlier a site is presented in the search results or the higher it "ranks", the more searchers will visit that site. SEO can also target different kinds of searches, including image search, local search, and industry-specific vertical search engines.
As a marketing strategy for increasing a site's relevance, SEO considers how search algorithms work and what people search for. SEO efforts may involve a site's coding, presentation, and structure, as well as fixing problems that could prevent search engine indexing programs from fully spidering a site. Another class of techniques, known as black hat SEO or spamdexing, use methods such as link farms and keyword stuffing that tend to harm search engine user experience. Search engines look for sites that employ these techniques and may remove them from their indices.
The initialism "SEO" can also refer to "search engine optimizers", terms adopted by an industry of consultants who carry out optimization projects on behalf of clients, and by employees who perform SEO services in-house. Search engine optimizers may offer SEO as a stand-alone service or as a part of a broader marketing campaign. Because effective SEO may require changes to the HTML source code of a site, SEO tactics may be incorporated into web site development and design. The term "search engine friendly" may be used to describe web site designs, menus, content management systems, URLs, and shopping carts that are easy to optimize.
SEM on Wikipedia
The Wiki on SEM
Search engine marketing, or SEM, is a form of Internet marketing that seeks to promote websites by increasing their visibility in search engine result pages (SERPs). According to the Search Engine Marketing Professional Organization, SEM methods include: search engine optimization (or SEO), paid placement, and paid inclusion. Other sources, including the New York Times, define SEM as the practice of buying paid search listings.