5 Basic Steps to Successful (Organic) Search Engine Optimization

1.) Good Keyword — or Rather, Keyphrase — Design

If you were searching for you, how would you go about it? Put yourself in the mind of your customers, and investigate what works with your competitors. Know your niche and what keywords and phrases work best within it and carefully craft them into your site. I am not just talking about slamming them all into the keyword metatag, either. The keyword metatag is basically dead. Very few search engines pay any attention to it at all anymore. It’s still a good place to organize the keywords you are focusing on for that page, though.

The key, so to speak, to keywords is placement. They need to be placed throughout the page, but as naturally as possible. Don’t overdo it. Keyword stuffing doesn’t get you any further in search engine optimization than desperation does in love, or stalking does in — well, you get the picture.

2.) Give the Page a Good Custom Title & Description

This is the place where you really connect the search engine to your page content. Yes, search engines will notice the content anyway, but they pick up your page’s real focus (and file it away for ranking purposes) based on the keywords and keyphrases in your title and description tags. Search engine spiders start at the top of the page and work their way down. The top is where the title and description tags are — this is your first chance to hit them with your keywords. Make sure you use those same keywords and phrases throughout the page content — watch for overkill though: spam = bad (see keyword stuffing remarks above).

3.) Alt Tags for Images — Use Them & Use Them Wisely

If you aren’t sure what an alt (alternative) tag is, it is the text that you see, sometimes, before an image loads or if an image on a site is broken. It tells people what is supposed to be there. Search engines look for this text too, so make it count! Each image should have a descriptive message attached that focuses on the keyword(s) you are trying to trend on that page. If the image doesn’t seem to work descriptively with your keywords, then it is likely that you are using the wrong image for that page. Your best bet is to find another image that works and leave a nice, well-crafted keyword-rich message in the alt tag area.

4.) Title Your Links

The same principle used in alt tags applies to the title tag in links on your site. Whether you are linking to an internal page (which is also good for SEO), or linking out to someone else’s site, carefully craft each title tag to reflect your desired keywords. Don’t overdo it though… The purpose of this tag is to let people know where you’re sending them, not to be a nonsensical list of keywords.

5.) Here’s the Big One: Start a Blog

A blog is an SEO goldmine. If you write regular blog posts (once per week or more) and keep in mind the four steps listed above, you will have a good base for a keyword-rich, constantly updated site that will become good friends with the search engine spider-bots. Do it right and there is a very good chance you will see an upward jump for your site in the search engines. A blog also shows people who come to your site that you are serious about your business, and passionate about your work. This helps you better connect with them, and this is good for sales and word of mouth — which is also good for sales. Speaking of sales, don’t just throw sales pitches about all willy nilly on your blog posts either. Be interesting! Engage people! Tell them, something they need to know about your products or something. Offer yourself up as a resource. You are, after all, an expert in your field.

There you have it, five quick and easy steps to search engine optimization. The basic building blocks that will help you get your site noticed and build good ranking over the long haul. Has this been helpful for you? Let us know and/or ask us questions in the comments!