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Optimize Your Website with These Simple Tips - Think Links
By Greg Newell (c) 2009

As more and more marketing functions move to the web,
businesses are at least starting to understand the
requirements of ranking for keywords relevant to the
business. Most however still don't understand how Google
and other search engines determine who gets top placements.
The guidelines here will at least put you in position to
achieve higher search engine ranks.

For businesses that want to wade into this arena, here are
some guidelines that might save you the cost associated
with website optimization. Bear in mind that there's no
free ride here. Expect to put some time in this effort if
you really want to see results.

Consider this a short lesson in "on-page" SEO, things that
you can do to your website to improve search engine
visibility. This list should be applied to EACH PAGE of
your site. (You should measure your results by tracking
site rank and monitor your traffic with Google Analytics).

For all pages on your website, you should:

1. Pick a primary keyword phrase that you want the page to
rank for (a keyword phrase can be one or more words).

2. Pick a couple of secondary keyword phrases related to
the main keyword phrase.

3. Put the primary keyword phrase at the beginning of the
list of keywords in your metatags

4. Include the secondary keyword phrases also in the
keyword metatag list.

5. Use the primary keyword phrase in the description
metatag. (try to also include the secondary keywords in the
description)

Don't load in keyword phrases that you won't be discussing
on the page in either the keyword or description metatags.
(It doesn't help).

7. Put the primary keyword phrase in the url (if you can).
Use underscores to separate words.

8. Put the primary keyword phrase in the Title of the page
(this is a biggie!)

9. Use the primary keyword between H1 Header tags in the
content area.

10. I usually recommend the content follow a five paragraph
essay broken up with graphics etc. Open the page
introducing the main keyword phrase and mention the
secondary keywords in context (1st paragraph). Each
paragraph after this should discuss a secondary keyword and
relate it back to the primary keyword. You can highlight
sub-paragraphs with H2 or H3 Header tags using the
secondary keyword terms to make them stand out. The closing
paragraph summarizes the importance of the primary keyword
as it relates to secondary keywords (again using those terms
in context).

11. Put keywords in alt-text of the images. Use images to
break up the text and enhance the content. Keep the images
relevant.

Note: Secondary keywords could become primary keywords for
sub-pages. In that way, your site is a never-ending work in
progress.

NEXT STEP: When you've shored up the content of your site,
you should then take a look at your internal linking. Use
keyword loaded hyperlinks. For example, if you have an
inner page about wedding flowers and find occasion to
call attention to that page, hyperlink the words "wedding
flowers" to that page. The point being: the words that you
use in the hyperlink define what Google thinks the target
page is about. Same goes for your home page. Instead of
"Home", you should link "Keyword Phrase" (whatever that
keyword phrase is) to the home page. One way to do this:
Imagine creating an index to your site that enumerates the
keywords that you want to rank for and links those
keywords to appropriate pages within the site (for
example). You can get creative but again keep your link
text focused on the keywords that you want to show up for
in the search engines. Include a "mini" index of keyword
links on a page linking the reader to related pages of
content. You can see that this will make it easier for the
site visitor to find related information AND it will also
send the search engine spiders in a frenzy (in a good way).

Need a mantra? THINK LINKS!

NEXT STEP: That pretty much covers all you can do for your
site. Next, pay attention to the in-bound links you have
coming to your site. The same rule above applies to those
links as well. So first, approach your existing link
partners whom you already have inbound links with and ask
to redefine the links that they have. You should provide
the code to them if they don't know how to do it. Use
keyword defined hyperlinks instead of just linking the URL.
If you redefined all the links that you had TO your site
with your primary keyword phrase instead of your URL, you
very likely will see a significant bump in your rank
relative to that keyword phrase.

I think once you get this far, you should be seeing
significant improvements in your rank. The key to SEO
beyond this is finding ways to generate inbound links of
this nature.

THINK LINKS
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Greg Newell is an Internet Marketing specialist located in
Hamilton Ohio. He leverages his WSI franchise to deliver
outstanding results to customers in Columbus, Dayton and
Cincinnati. Call if you have SEO Ohio website requirements.
http://www.wsiNetReturns.com .
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