Posts Tagged ‘Site Structure’
Search Engine Optimization (SEO) - How to Reach the Top
Here are some tips to increase your page ranking in major search engine results. Please remember: It is not easy to gain high rankings and you must be prepared to put in the time and effort to see it through. Also, have patience as SEO results will not show over night!
1. Content, content, content…
- Content is a major bonus in producing a search friendly site. The more text you have, the more likely it is that your keywords will be picked up by Search Engines. This does not mean shut your eyes, let your brain go numb and pour out hundreds of lines of pointless text! You want the text to be search friendly and keyword rich. Aim for more than 100 words, obviously the more text you have, the better your chances.
- Search engines cannot read graphics. Graphics look great and can make your site stand out but a fundamentally graphics based site will not do well with search engines.
- Remember to use your title tags for better search results; Include keywords and relevant text. For example: Your site is called www.pedigree-in-space.co.uk and you market space ware for pets, (I don’t know why you would but just humor me!) instead of your title reading “Pedigree in Space” it should say something more like “Pedigree in Space - Space Ware for Pets”. This is more descriptive and targeted. Again, use your keywords.
- Meta tags are another great way of getting high search results. Meta tages are hidden in the code of your site and tell search engines exactly what your keywords and page descriptions are. If you are using a Web Design program such as Frontpage or DreamWeaver you will find that they have the option of including keyword and description Meta Tags.
- If your site includes a shopping cart system or you mainly use a database to display items on your site, make sure that it is configured to pull the item titles to your Title Tags and the descriptions to your Meta Tags.
- There are some general rules that can be followed whilst refining your content although it is a good idea to experiment with this yourself to achieve the best results.
- Make sure to use your most relevant keywords around 3 - 8 times for every 100 words you write.
- Check your keyword density and make sure that you correctly format your Meta Tags.
- Keep adding pages of relevant content to your site and ensure that your Title Tags include keywords
2. Link Building
- The first thing I would suggest before going any further with your link building is to download the Google Toolbar. You can use this nice little add-on to view a websites PageRank (PR) which is a good measure of their credibility and relevance in Google (as well as other search providers).
- Links are a great SEO tool as they can help prove your standing in the online community to search engines. The more relevant links you have, the stronger your search ranking will be. One way of increasing your links is to enter into a link exchange with other sites in your industry. A link exchange is exactly what it sounds like; an exchange of links! You can look for link partners and request an exchange. Make sure the pages you are linking to are relevant to your site and aim for sites with a PR 3 or higher.
- You can also buy banner ads or text links an other sites which should be a direct link to your domain. This will help your standing and will also double as a marketing and awareness tool. Include keywords in the anchor text of the links in the same way you would for your Title Tags. Make sure that tracking code is not used as these forms of ads are not classed as ‘natural links’ and will not boost you link popularity.
- Use a link popularity checker to show you all links from and to your site and keep track of your progress.
3. Site Linking Structure
- This is the way that your website is linked together, it is yet another important SEO tool and can often be overlooked or neglected.
- Your most important pages should be linked from every other page on your site. You could setup a page template to save you having to add these links for every page and insert the different content for each unique area. This will also help to keep a continuous theme throughout your site.
- You can also include keywords within your internal links so that the search engines know what the page is about.
- If you decide to use Java, Flash or graphic links and navigation it is good practice to include text links at the bottom of your pages to aid search engines.
4. Submit your site to Search Engines and Directories
- Search engines allow you to manually submit your website to them and this will help to speed along the process. You can submit directly to the search providers or by using a website submission service. This is an especially handy trick for new sites, especially if you don’t yet have any relevant links as it will give you a good head start. Google can take up to six months to process the content on your site fully so any chance of speeding along proceedings is worth taking.
- There are many services available to speed along the search process such as the Overture Sitematch Program. This will crawl your website every 48 hours and so updates will be continuous. This is a choice that you will have to make on your own. I would urge you to research these programs and make up your own mind as to whether they are right for you. My personal opinion is that they are a waste of time and money but I thought I would include this as many people believe it to be beneficial.
- You can also submit your site to directories, some of which are free and some not. Dmoz open directory is free but bear in mind it may take a long time for a review of your site. Yahoo also provide a directory service but this costs around $300 or more, dependent on the site. Again, this is not a method I would use but many people believe it to be a valuable asset so it is only fair I let you know! It is worth looking into and some directories are continuously crawled, in depth by search spiders. You also get the benefit of a back link to your site which can help again with link building. If you do choose this option, ensure that your site is placed in the best category for your industry.
5. Call in the Experts!
- I understand how daunting this can sound to someone with no experience and it can also eat away a lot of your time. When you get it right and you begin to see the results it can become a bit of an addiction; always striving for higher rankings and better links! It is a good idea to get an SEO company in to optimise your site but make sure that you research the company and their prices first as not all are as competitive or professional as they make out. There are also many link building cons out there so just make sure you know what your signing up for if you decide to take the plunge.
I hope this article has been helpful and always welcome any suggestions for improvement. Please feel free to leave constructive criticism and don’t hesitate to contact us for more advice.
P.S. I could always do with some extra work!
How Site Structure Can Effect Your Search Results
Site structure is a big part in not only Search Engine Optimization ( SEO ) , But also making a very user friendly navigation system that’s easy to remember.
Some people over-do the navigation on their site using bad url’s or non optimized url’s. an example of these are:
- http://www.mysite.com/content.php?id=3
This is a non optimized url - i recommend looking at my The Power of Search Engine Friendly URLs post to combat this issue
- http://www.mysite.com/site/uk/products/computers/
Although your content is sectioned, which is good for your search engine optimization ( SEO ) , a user is never going to be able to remember this url if they want to come back. i recommend reducing this url to something like:
- http://www.mysite.com/products/Computers/
The country specific details can be dealt with in code, or for Search Engine Optimization ( SEO ), you should buy the .co.uk Domain for the UK sector.
The /Site/ folder is useless there are so many websites out there that section off their main website into a folder, it is pointless and also effects the ease of use of the navigation for the user.
This shorter structured type of URL is good for Ease of use, AND for sectioning off products for better seach enginge optimization, without overdoing it or going too far.
The other important thing to note about search engine friendly URLs , is your site should handle chopped url’s. for example if you have the path:
- http://www.mysite.com/products/Computers/
A user should be able to remove /Computers/ and see a list of all products on the url http://www.mysite.com/products/
Search Engine Optimization ( SEO ) is always a balance, you wouldn’t want to over-do it and make a page impossible to use for your users, you need to make a compromise with Search Engine Optimization ( SEO ) and ease of use.