search engine optimisation (seo) - the basics explained
DESCRIPTION
Explains the basics of Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) from the point of view of a non-technical user. Shows the highest payback things you can do to help improve your site's search rankings with Google, Yahoo, Bing. This is Part 1 of a two-part presentation. Part 2 (not included here) covers paid search (Google AdWords etc)TRANSCRIPT
SEO and Web Analytics: Attracting visitors, measuring
successMartin Taylor,
Director, Digital Strategies LtdBlog: http://activitypress.com/ereport
Michael Carney, Strategic Planning Director, Media Counsel
Author, Trade Me Success SecretsBlog: http://mediacounselblog.co.nz
Two ways to top the search results SEO and SEM(arketing)
• Two parts to today’s talk:• Part 1: Organic Search
– Focus is on good content, good design and good reputation
• Part 2: Paid Search and Web Analytics– Focus will be on using paid (PPC) advertising
and measuring results– Often encompassed in the broader term
‘Search Engine Marketing’ (SEM)
Part 1: Search Engine Optimisation
Martin Taylor, Director, Digital Strategies Ltd
Blog: http://activitypress.com/ereportWeb: http://digitalstrategies.co.nz
It’s not just about search engines
• Most things that make sites work for humans make them work for machines
• Good, relevant content + Good site design = Good SEO
• Good usability + Good accessibility = Good SEO
• One difference: Search engines feed on HTML text, both visible and invisible
A search example from an SEO point of view
<head>
<title>Mighty Ape: Harry Potter > Buy Harry Potter Books, Games, DVDs, Toys and Music</title>
<meta name="description" content="Mighty Ape is the best place to shop for Harry Potter! Orders over $49.95 get FREE NZ delivery!" />
<meta name="keywords" content="games, game, dvds, dvd, music, books, book, computers, computer, electronics, toys, toy, movies, movie, tv, New Zealand, NZ, store, Harry Potter" />
</head>
What the web page looks like to a search engine …
What should I optimise?
• You optimise pages, not sites – (but there are site-wide things you can do)
• You can’t usually optimise every page so focus on specific pages:– Most important– Most unique/competitive: ‘large share of small market’– Landing pages with specific, relevant content
• Optimising takes time and is on-going so factor this into the cost (whether in time or money)
• Not just Google– Other search engines have different ranking
opportunities but principles the same
SEO starting point:Keywords and Key Phrases
1. Brainstorm keywords and key phrases– What words will my visitors use to search?– Incl similar and plural (“key phrase”, “key phrases”
and “keyphrases”)2. Study successful competitors
– The good news: you can see all their secrets– eg seo-browser.com
3. Use keyword tools– eg Google Webmaster Tools (free) or freekeywords.
wordtracker.com4. Balance popularity / competition / relevance
SEO Top 5: Tune Your Website
1. Use keywords in Title (<title> tag)– Title shows on the top bar of visitor’s browser
2. Useful, unique and fresh content– Keywords in first 50-100 words of HTML page
3. Use keywords in Heading 1 (<h1> tag)– Heading 2-6 (<h2> to <h6> tags) also useful
4. Keyword use in page links– both internal links and external (in-bound) links
5. Site design: useful hierarchy, text-based links, breadcrumbs, sitemap (and XML Sitemap), keywords in domain name and directory structure
Ranking based loosely on data from: http://www.seomoz.org/article/search-ranking-factors
But how do I do this stuff?
• Do the keyword and key phrase research– Make sure your team know them
• Properly use your Content Management System (CMS) – or make sure your next website has a CMS– Common CMS’s: WordPress, Joomla, Drupal
• If no CMS, mark-up for web designer – both the visible and the invisible content (eg
link keywords)
A CMS gives you control over the content, both visible and invisible text—without the need for a web designer
SEO Top 5: Most important factors for in-bound links
1. Keyword-focused links from external (in-bound) sites
2. External link popularity– Eg alexa.com for data on links and site popularity
3. Diversity of link sources linking to your site– Links from many different root domains
4. Trustworthiness of domains5. Directories (also used to supply descriptions)
– especially human-edited, eg Open Directory Project– NB Paid links from link brokers can harm rankings
Ranking based loosely on data from: http://www.seomoz.org/article/search-ranking-factors
SEO checklist: Putting it together
This page has a unique HTML page title The HTML page title contains my target
keywords This page contains 200+ words of HTML text HTML text on this page contains my exact
target keywords This page can be reached from the home page
by following text links The HTML links from other pages to this page
contain my target keywords
Source: www.yourseoplan.com
Part 2: Paid Search and Web Analytics
Michael Carney, Strategic Planning Director, Media Counsel
Author, Trade Me Success SecretsBlog: http://mediacounselblog.co.nz
[Please open the separate slide presentation.]