The StyleSheet - For businesses that use the internet

The Ongoing Process of Search Engine Optimization

Posted April 3, 2006 By Nick Weynand |

8 times out of 10 when I sit down with a client to scope out a project I get a requirement such as "We need our site to be optimized for search engines" or "We want to make sure we have the right key phrases in there" or "I want to make sure we’re #1 in Google." Misinformation abound, the whole search engine topic needs some quick clearing up. I’m here to set things straight and the number one point I want to get across is that if you own a Web site you’re never "done" with search engine optimization.

True, you can build a Web site so that it is "search engine friendly" (and fire your developer if he doesn’t) but true search engine optimization requires a continued effort over a long period of time. I know "continued effort" conjures up visions of abandoning your social life for long hours of tedious work at the office. Fear not — by "continued effort" I mean really easy things that you can implement yourself, without having to pay anyone. Let’s look at some things you can start doing today to increase your exposure on search engines and find the happiness you’re looking for.

Content is King

The content you have on your site is really, really important.  Content is like food for search engines and if you provide good content you’ll keep them hungry for more.  So what makes content “good”?  Good content is updated frequently and contains lots of key phrases that are important to your business.

"The more you can use your chosen key phrase, the more "votes" you will get for that key phrase by the search engines"

To get started, I recommend listing 2-6 key phrases that people would use to describe your business. Think of these phrases as category listings in the Yellow Pages (yes…people still use the Yellow Pages, I think). Refrain from using any technical, industry specific jargon. For example no one is going to perform a search on "XHTML/CSS Developer in Austin." Rather, I would use layman’s terms such as "Web design in Austin."

Once you have your key phrases chosen, write about them. Then write about them some more. In fact, write about them as much as possible. If you’re an accountant, write about the history of accounting, then write some articles about accounting, then write some tips about accounting, then…I think you get the picture. I know I’m being repetitive, but that’s the point! The more you can use your chosen key phrase, the more "votes" you will get for that key phrase by the search engines. The more votes you get, the higher you will be ranked.

It’s worth noting that you need to be realistic. If you’re a real estate agent, chances are you’re never going to be listed well under "real estate." Instead, focus on the key phrase "real estate in Austin" or "real estate in Central Texas." You’ll have a much better chance if you localize your key phrases.

To stay with our "ongoing process" theme, search engines really like fresh content. Web sites with content that is 2 years old will continually slip down the rankings and eventually fall off. So unless that sounds like a good business strategy, then add content continuously. Write a couple articles a month, post some news about your company or brag about some big accounts you just landed.  Just keep adding content.

Now before you go content-crazy, I have a couple more tips.

Go Hit the Links

People know that links are important, but many are confused about what kinds of links are important. Now this could change by the time you read this, but only external links leading to your Web site are worthwhile. You can have a "Links" page on your site and load it up with links to a million other Web sites, but it won’t get you anywhere. What really counts is how many other Web sites are linked to you. Key phrases within your links are also really important. For instance, if your company name (let’s say ABC Chiropractic) is listed on another site it’s more helpful if the actual linked text says "ABC Chiropractic: Spinal alignment, sports medicine and back pain relief in Austin." Get it?

So what should you do? First off, make sure your site is listed everywhere: SmartPages.com,

"Have friends who are willing to shamelessly promote you? Get linked on their site."

SuperPages.com, the Better Business Bureau, the Chamber of Commerce, any associations you’re affiliated with, clubs you belong to and any articles written about you. Have friends who are willing to shamelessly promote you? Get linked on their site. If you’re really desperate, there are several link “buying” programs, though I’ve never tried any of them. In addition to just adding your company name with a link, add your company name plus some key phrases. I don’t think there’s anything wrong with asking the Chamber to list your company name as Jones & Smith, L.P.: Austin Attorneys specializing in business law. Just an example.

If you’re interested in finding out how many other sites are linked to you, go to Google and type in "link:http://www.yourwebaddress.com". If you get no results, then you have some work to do.

Create a Sitemap

Search engines find Web pages by jumping from link to link. It makes sense that all of your pages should be easily found and not too many clicks away from one another.  You can make all of your pages just one click away by creating a sitemap.  Don’t just create a massive list of links though; follow the rules about content above.  List the name of the page with a short description containing some key phrases.  It will help users figure out what the page is all about and will help search engines figure out you’re about.  Keep the sitemap usable though, if it gets too lengthy (100 pages or so) you may want to break it out into multiple pages.

If you’re going to create a sitemap, stay on top of it.  Search engines really don’t like broken links and you can keep your content fresh by adding new pages to your site and links to your sitemap.

Also, when creating your sitemap or putting links throughout your site, never use the old "Click here" adage.  Instead, give the link a meaningful name and even throw in a key word or two.

In Summary

The world of search engine optimization is vast, always changing and sometimes requires professional help.  However, you can do much of it yourself.  Follow the tips above on a regular basis and see if your search engine rankings don’t start to go up.  Remember that a high search engine ranking means that more people will find you and you’ll have more business then you can shake your laptop at.  Then you can afford to hire people to do this stuff for you.

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