SEO: Back to Basics

For the average person, SEO can be a bit daunting. It’s all about spiders and algorithms and keywords. Search Engine Optimization, or SEO, doesn’t have to be just for technical types.
In order to make the most out of your website, there are a few basic guidelines to help optimize your traffic flow. Before taking any steps towards changing your site, you should know the basic concepts behind the spiders and the keywords. Essentially, search engines send out an electronic spider in search of any new content that appears on the Internet. These spiders crawl from one website to another through links and keywords, copying content and recording it on the search engine database. These spiders run infinitely 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

Attract Traffic

Using SEO to attract traffic to your site is simpler than you think. First off, do NOT use your title tag for every page on your website. Instead of, yourdomain/page1, yourdomain/page2, name each page individually. This allows each and every page to be picked up for its own content and not just for the content on the home page. Don’t forget that Meta keywords, descriptions and Robot tags are all used by Google to market your website. Make sure they reflect what your website is about.

Relevant Content

Next, research keywords in order to write content relevant to your target audience. Using the SEO keywords in your first sentence in the body text is important ways to draw traffic, however, do NOT use the keyword if it doesn’t make sense to put it in the first sentence. Do not use descriptions in image labels unless they involve a keyword. Spiders cannot determine the difference between an image label and normal content. Keep in mind the keyword density equation. The ideal amount of keywords when compared to the entire content is 5%-8%.

KISS Technique

When creating content for your web pages remember to KISS-Keep It Simple Silly. Keep the content relevant to that particular page. Each page should be focused towards one purpose so as to maximize the ability for search engines to find the information. Having numerous amounts of different information on one page confuses spiders and people alike. Even your home page should be devoted to introducing your business to your target audience and nothing more. Create informative, high quality information with a few keywords sprinkled in and the traffic will find you.

Compatible Links

Make sure that your site’s internal links and outbound links are SEO compatible. Meaning, make sure your internal link text and internal link URLs contains the wording for the content of the pages, not just the domain listing. The same applies to any outbound text links. In other words, use keywords to link to other pages and sites instead of using the web address. If you’re linking to a marketing site don’t put the name of the site, write something like ‘amazing email marketing techniques’ and hyperlink it to the website. The spider reads what is on the page while using the website address when it is ready to travel to the other site.

Implementing these steps can enhance your website’s traffic while increasing your rank in the search engines. Keep in mind that search engines are not designed to put the best sites at the top. They are designed to put the worst sites at the bottom. This can become frustrating at times, but by utilizing a few SEO basics, your website can find its way upwards so that your target audience can find it and spread the word about your business.
Toronto search engine optimization
For more information on Toronto search engine optimization or to talk to an internet marketing company Toronto, contact a specialist at Wolf21.

By Susan Lipton
Published: 8/26/2009
 
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