More bits and pieces

Here are a few more tips gleaned from the questions I get from my clients.

1. SEs won’t penalize you for putting up a basic/simple (or low content) homepage and then, later, adding content. The only reasons that they penalize websites is when the site owner does obviously illegal things, like copying text from other sites, feeding the SEs one page while the public another, using text that is the same color as the background, etc.

2. Clients have asked about 404’s, and if they can count against their rankings. A few won’t, but as the number grows, so does your site’s credibility. As site cred. drops, so will inbound links, which will count against you.

3. FLASH sites: using FLASH can make your site look really cool. I can also be tough on low bandwidth users, and will cost you more to develop.

4. Website Templates: good or bad? Neither. Use them when you don’t have the skills to code your site, or you can’t afford to have someone else do it. That said, the free ones tend to limit you to very simple designs.

Bits and pieces

Today I would like to share with you a few tips. These are gleaned from the questions I get from my clients.

1. The extension (.com .org .net, etc) does not matter to the search engines (SEs) in terms of ranking ability of your site. I prefer to use .com extensions simply because they are the easiest to remember and the most recognized.

2. Copying text from a page that ranks well but lives on someone else’s site will not help your page to rank well; in fact, soon enough you may find that your page and/or site is getting lower rankings. Do it often enough and yoiu may find your site banned at the SEs, and your company in court for copyright violation.

3. Links are very important, in fact they are one of the most important factor in good rankings. Having said that, don’t bother asking for links from sites that are not about the same topic as your site. Those kind of links don’t help, and in fact many of my peers in the SEO industry believe that they can lower your ranking score; I agree. Spend your time going after links from sites that are similar to your’s.

4. Alt tags should be used, and they should describe the image they are attached to. Way back when, in the early days of SEO we used alt tags as simply another factor in better rankings. Now it makes sense to use them if for only the sake of your readers who prefer to turn off images (like a lot of portable users do).

Google Ads

Running Google ads (and/or Yahoo ads) can be a good way to determine which keywords you should make the focus of your optimization campaign. Use your log analysis tool to find out which keywords are being clicked on the most, and then see which ones turn into sales. If you don't have a log analysis tool, speak to your webmaster about setting one up (they are handy for more than just optimization).

Once you figure out which keywords give you the best bang for your buck, start optimizing for them.

Branding

A good SEO campaign will also help with your branding.

When you look at hiring a SEO specialist or company, make sure they understand that one of your goals is to improve the visibility of your brand.

They should be able to accomplish both; good rankings and increased visibility for your brand.

Copy

Writing good copy (text that describes your product(s) or service(s)) is essential to turning "browsers" into "buyers."

One of the keys that will enable you to succeed in generating good search engine rankings is also one that will accomplish the point made above.

Anyone can slap together pages that get decent rankings; not everyone can do that and make a sale.

The lesson? When you hire a search engine optimization specialist or company, make sure that you or they have a good writer on hand.

KISS

We all know KISS: Keep It Simple, Stupid!

The Search Engine Optimization (SEO) guideline for success is one more example of how this principle works.

To get better, good, then great rankings is simple, just follow this guideline:

         Build a site that people want to visit

It really is that simple. Create a site that others will point their friends to; make it a place where folks can find the information they are seeking. Then people will start linking to your site, word will spread, more links will be made, and the search engines will give you points towards higher rankings.

The best sites got their great rankings by following this simple advice.

Won't Be Fooled Again

Do not be fooled by claims of an instant rankings boost; it just won't happen, no matter how much money you spend. If your site does not rank well now, it will only do so with planning, time and effort.

And do not be fooled into buying one of the myriad "search engine submission" packages; you do not need them! Good content and valid inbound links will yield good rankings over time.