Thursday, March 13, 2008
The Road to Better Results
A lot has changed in the way sites are optimized for search engines since last year. For one thing, Google is not the only search engine worth looking into anymore; Yahoo has definitely managed to take away some of Googles oomph over the past twelve months. Another important change is that the intelligence of the search engine spiders and algorithms has increased dramatically. So without further ado, I will present you with a standard search engine optimizing process.
Keyword Research
Nothing can be done until you know what your target phrases are. Keyword research must be done to find out what people are actually typing into the search engines. For example, do they type in medical insurance or health insurance more often? Is it worth targeting the keyword dental insurance? What do your competitors think its clients type?
Keyword research usually begins by asking the client what they think are good keywords and by looking at your competitors Meta tags and text. You then have to brainstorm to find new and related keywords that were not previously thought of. The use of Wordtracker, Overture, and Google AdWords estimates is indispensable. If you use the KEI offered at Wordtracker, dont fall into the trap of giving it too much worth. It is a good tool to help discover keywords that have not been exploited by the competition, but the really important number is the amount of traffic each keyword generates. Finally, create a chart to determine the relationship between keywords used. For example, there is no point promoting dental insurance if your site does not offer it.
Texts
The next step is to write the text. Hire a specialized writer to put the text together. Ideally someone who has been trained in Internet writing, Internet marketing, and search engine optimization (SEO), or get advice from professional SEOs, marketing experts, and usability experts. Work with the client to get a feel for what is needed for the site. Then use all these skill to put together the delicate balance needed between selling to people, selling to search engines, and making the text interesting/useful to read.
Domain Selection
Once the text is written, come up with a catchy domain name for the site. Try to include part of the keyword in the domain, and to think ahead so that the domain can be expanded into the title. Our site www.gloriousbahamas.com is a good example of a domain with a keyword in it that is catchy and clearly stated. The keyword for that site is Bahamas real estate, so having part of the keyword in the domain will help in the long run.
Title and Meta Tags
From the domain name, you can then create a title with the full main keyword in it (such as Glorious Bahamas Real Estate). The title is the most important text on the site. The Meta tags include the description tag, and the keyword tag. The description is what the searchers will see in many search engine results, so it must have the keywords in it and, more importantly, it must sell the site. Write a description that is objective, not subjective. Zeal has some good advice for titles and especially description writing at http://zeal.com/guidelines/style/site_titledesc/. The keyword tag is done just in case some engines still use it (though very few still do), so dont pull your hair out over it. Just list 10-15 keyphrases and try not to repeat any single word more than three times.
New Content
Now we come to the meat of todays search engine optimization. So far, we have not discussed anything new or original. It is the same strategies that have been used since I first got into the business of SEO in 1998. Today, with smarter engines, a site needs to be something that is cared about. A site has to grow, develop, and expand as if it were someones baby. Gone are the days when you could build a site, get good listings, and then forget about it as it brought in the traffic and the dough. Take care of your site by adding useful content to it on a regular basis, and then the site will gradually grow from a few pages to dozens of pages. Not only will this make the site seem more alive - radiating with the healthy glow of a developing child - but it has the added benefit of increasing the amount of content the site contains, and thus increasing the amount of keywords found within it. For example with www.canada-health-insurance.com we add pages with more details about dental coverage or pages with details about government coverage for each province. Every month there are new pages, so that every time the spider comes back to visit, it spends more time at the site reading new content. This is one half of the key to getting good listings in the search engine results pages (SERP).
Link Campaigns
The second half of the key is getting good sites to link to your site. Going after web sites with related content, sites with good authority in your web sites field, and sites that are popular are the priority. Getting only reciprocal links is not the goal, getting the aforementioned sites to link to you because you have good, valuable content is the goal. Sites that do reciprocal linking usually have hundreds of links on their link pages and these will add very little value to your site. Dont waste your time with reciprocal linking. Only link to a site if doing so will increase the value of your site in the eyes of your clients.
A link campaign is a lot of work, and it involves a lot of frustration and rejection. You have to approach bigger sites and sell the value that linking to your site will bring them. For every 20 sites you approach, you will be lucky to get one to link to you. You have to be persistent, consistent, and determined.
Conclusions
Optimizing a site is no longer something you can do and then forget about. For a site to succeed in the search engines today, it has to constantly be changing and growing either in content or in links, and ideally in both. It has to appear that the site is the life and soul of its creator, and that somebody cares enough about it to pay attention to it. Because after all, if the creator doesnt care, why should the search engines?
About The Author
Shawn Campbell is an enthusiastic player in the ecommerce marketplace, and co-founded Red Carpet Web Promotion, Inc. (http://www.redcarpetweb.com/). He has been researching and developing marketing strategies to achieve more prominent listings in search engine results since 1998. Shawn is one of the earliest pioneers in the search engine optimization field. Contact: shawn@redcarpetweb.com
The Go Daddy Classroom
Want a lesson in getting extra mileage from your ads? Meet (Professor) Bob Parsons, the president of giant domain seller Go Daddy. This guy has proven his genius in operating a full service domain and Internet products company. Who knew he was such a shrewd marketing guy turning his Super Bowl ad campaigns into a viral buzz machine and teaching the Internet marketing world at the same time? Take notes. This is the kind of gray matter every business needs.
It began a year ago, during the Super Bowl, when it is said that Fox refused a second airing of an edgy Go Daddy spot during the game. A big negative for Go Daddy? Far from it! Parsons began chronicling his plight in his blog, put the commercial on his website where it got millions of views and watched the national media jump on the story. ABCs Diane Sawyer called the spot, too hot to handle. Bloggers went crazy. This is new-age viral marketing at its level best!
Fast forward to this years Super Bowl season. Go Daddy begins submitting ads for approval to ABC, which, of course Parsons talks about in his blog and elsewhere. It is reported that 12 concept commercials are submitted and rejected as too racy. The buzz cranks up again. The rejected ads are put on the Go Daddy site, and again millions view them and the media jumps on the story. Finally an ad is approved in the 11th hour and Go Daddy is in as a Super Bowl sponsor.
At the risk of being simplistic, here are the lessons learned from Go Daddy and Bob Parsons.
The Internet is the most powerful advertising medium ever. Blogging is one of the most powerful marketing tools ever. Viral marketing has to be used. Edgy,Go Daddy-esque ads are necessary to be a market leader. Always, always, always think of a different and new approach. A $2.4 million TV commercial had a priceless return!
Expand your horizons. Read what you can about the Go Daddy saga and really THINK about it. How can you put together a viral campaign? Can you be Go-Daddyesque in your campaigns?
Bob Parsons taught the class. You make the grade.
Brian Grinonneau is the general manager of McMann & Tate Advertising a midwest agency that insists its clients tell their story like it has never been told before.
The Success Factor
Ever thought, when you look around, why some people appear to be more successful?
Some may even have been in your school. They had the same teachers, the same lessons, examinations to sit. So what made the difference between then and now. Why do they appear to have achieved more in life. Could it be some sort of Success Factor!
What is this Success Factor.
Well, it's not some sort of great secret saved for the select few. It is merely this. Successful people think and act differently. It's how they think and what they do with their time that makes the difference.
There are, of course, different areas to be successful in, but when you talk of being successful, most people will think in terms of financial success. It's a case of doing some research, finding mentors who are already successful, making a plan, following in their footsteps, taking action, making corrections, overcoming set backs, having determination, applying visualisation every day and never giving up.
7 POINTERS TO HELP YOU GET STARTED NOW.
"NOW" being the operative word. You can only think and do in the NOW. What you think and do NOW will make a difference to your future. Sitting and watching TV or thinking through and making a business plan. Which one has the greater potential towards success? Pretty obvious really isn't it. It's not just a question of being lucky.
* Research - look for and research a business, products/services that are already established and successful.
* Find a mentor(s) people who have already found the way and done what it takes to become successful in that particular business. It is easier if you already have a knowledge in or are interested in that field.
* Make a plan. How can you find a place without a map?
* Put each process, component and system into place into a mode of operation like the mentor did.
* Manage that plan. Find ways around obstacles and set backs.
* Visualisation - every day, go through a mental rehearsal. In your mind, go through the method step by step of how you will achieve the desired goal.
* Vow to never give up. If one way fails, it is not the end. Try a different approach and keep trying until you get through to the next step. Persistence is the key.
* If you enjoy what you are doing, it's not hard work!
Mike Taylor is the author of Freedom Lifestyle 7 Ways and spends his time writing for pleasure and to help people succeed.
