Reminder:
Goal-of-the-DAY... Build a home page, and one TIER 2 Keyword-Focused Content Page.
6.2.3. 80-20 SEO (Search Engine Optimization)
The next several pages will introduce the 80-20 best practices of Search Engine Optimization (SEO). Effective SEO improves the likelihood your submitted page will obtain a Top 10 to 20 ranking position for your Specific Keyword on a Search Engine’s results page. The higher the ranking, the better are your chances that a surfer will see your listing and click over to visit your site!
Please follow these recommendations but be careful not to go overboard. Some online marketers fall into the trap of constantly experimenting with on-page criteria in order to obtain better rankings. There are so many criteria factored into the SEs' ranking algorithms that such efforts are extremely low-yield. The key is to build your pages properly the first time, and then focus on the “C” of…C -> T -> P -> M
SEO is comprised of two elements…
• On-page ranking criteria -- This refers to ranking elements occurring directly on the Web page you are creating. For example, the Title of your article as it appears on the <> tag of your page is an on-page criterion.
• Off-page ranking criteria -- This refers to ranking elements that do not occur on this page but yet affect its ability to rank well and obtain listings. Off-page ranking criteria are important indicators of human behavior. Visitor reaction reflects the quality of a page.
An example of such a criterion would be an in-pointing link (i.e., another site has your URL on its site). While your first priority will be to create and optimize your pages, obtaining a few credible in-pointing links should be a close second.
This is known as building link popularity. (We’ll see how to do it in the coming session.)
Both on-page and off-page criteria are necessary for success. Let’s begin by highlighting the most important standards for on-page ranking criteria. To rank well at the SEs, your page’s Specific Keyword must be integrated in all the right places. Where, exactly?...
1) TITLE tag
2) META keyword tag
3) META description tag
4) H1 and other header tags
5) Body copy
6) Link tags
7) File name/domain name
8) Image ALT tag and name of image
Let’s look at each of these “on-page” criteria quickly...
1) TITLE tag = WORLD’S BEST Fashion Factory Outlet Stores,
The Cream of Cyber Discount Fashions
• Must contain your Specific Keyword at least once, no more than twice, and with some kind of variation or synonym. Try to include your most important General Keyword, too.
• Use up to 70, even 80 characters. Get your most important message in, right at the beginning. If the engine cuts your title off at 60 characters in its listing, you would have been able to fire your “big gun.” Meanwhile, some engines will show up to 90 or so characters.
• Remember, the title appears as the link in Search Engine listings. It must “get the click” -- so make sure it’s attractive, without being misleading. Getting your Title right for both your reader and engine is the single most important thing you can do.
The TITLE tag is the key on-page elements. Make sure every single one of your pages (yes, even your TIER 3 pages) contains a relevant, keyword-rich TITLE tag.
2) META keyword tag = < meta content="”factory" name="“KEYWORDS”" >
• Consider adding a common synonym that has a nearly exact meaning
(ex.,”outlet malls”) but don’t dilute your META tag with a million synonyms.
• You could add a few General Keywords that people might add when they search (ex., “discounts, shopping”).
• If you do put more than one keyword in this META tag (separated by commas), always put your most important one, the one that this page focuses upon, first.
Here’s an example of an expanded META keyword tag...
< meta content="“factory" name="“KEYWORDS”" >
Don’t lose sleep fretting over your META keyword tag. It is rarely factored into ranking algorithms these days. Just include your most important keywords and a couple of variations, and move on.
3) META description tag = < content="“Ever" name="“DESCRIPTION”">
• The META description often comprises a portion of what searchers see in the Search Engine’s listings (SEs display their results slightly differently). So, like the Title tag, make sure it’s attractive, without being misleading. Your goal is to entice the prospective visitor to click through to your site. A gentle, good-natured tease, like the above, will do well.
As with the META keywords tag, most SEs do not place much ranking weight on the text inside META description tags. So focus on getting the click through, and don’t worry too much about just the “right” blend of keywords for this tag.
• Use 150-200 characters. Some engines cut off the Title listing at as little as 140 characters. So again, make sure you get your “#1 benefit statement” up front. Remember, a “benefit statement” does not have to be “in your face” – read the META tag above.
• Should contain your Specific Keyword at least once (try twice if it fits and see how it ranks). Include one or two of your most important General Keywords. Also, use common synonyms 2-3 times more (ex., “outlet” and “mall”). (Synonyms will work better and better as engines become more and more sophisticated. But your first priority is to place sufficient focus on your Specific Keyword.)
• Remember, do not repeat the TITLE in this tag. The reader will just see the same phrase twice in the Search Engine’s listing, once in the Title and then again in the description. That’s wasting valuable “word real estate.”
4) H1 and other header tags = Fashion Outlet Stores Nirvana. The headlines are more important than your regular body copy. That’s true for both human readers and for the engines. As far as ranking criteria goes, it is likely that the <>tag is second only to the <> tag in importance. Please keep in mind that some engines don’t use the META description tag to form the second part of their listings (i.e., after the Title) in their search results. In those cases, they will usually use the first words on the page -- your H1 tag (first headline), and the first words in the body copy after that.
Here are the key “musts” for your H1 tag...
• Contains your Specific Keyword at least once. Try to include an important General Keyword, too (different from the one you used in your Title).
• Does not exceed 80 characters, 40 is better. Long headlines feel rather “hypey.”
• Helps to “get the click” -- so make sure it’s attractive, without being misleading.
• Does not contain your Title. Otherwise, if the engine uses your H1 tag, your listing and H1 tag will both say the same thing... needless repetition.
Consider this strategy…
Take your META description tag and chop it into two pieces -- one part for the headline and one part for the opening paragraph of your body copy. If a single discussion warrants more than a single headline, use a smaller headline (<><>) containing variations of your page’s most important keywords.
Special Note… Every single content page must contain a <>or <>tag for maximum ranking relevancy. If you are not using these tags, you are missing out on free Search Engine traffic!
5) Body copy
We started the body copy at the beginning of DAY 10. Let’s see what our search result listing would look like for those engines that don’t use the META description tag. First of all, the Title appears as a link...
WORLD'S BEST Fashion Factory Outlet Stores,
The Cream of Cyber Discount Fashions
This is followed by the H1 tag and the beginning of the body copy...
Fashion Outlet Stores Nirvana
Ever been on the road, far from home, when what do you see? A mall jammed with fashion outlet stores!
Yes, that would pull me through to your page! So you see how important it is to start your body copy strongly, as we did above. Now don’t blow it!
OVERdeliver great content in your body copy.
Your intro paragraphs establish your VPP while quickening the pulse of your reader. After that, you’ll deliver the benefits of your site by answering the “what’s in it for me” question that every visitor asks when arriving at a site.
And you’ll do it while blending in your keyword. You should work not only “factory outlet stores” into your copy, but also common synonyms and variations like “outlet stores” and “fashion outlets” and “fashion malls” and “discount fashions” and “discount outlets” and “discount malls.”
And also work in General Keywords that would likely be associated with your keyword (ex., shopping, shops, savings, discounts, etc.). If someone searches with part or all of your Specific Keyword and one of these General Keywords, you’ll have a good shot at being found. And you’ll have a high-quality, interested and motivated visitor!
Remember, though, that synonyms and variations should not reduce your main keyword (factory outlet stores) to near invisibility. Establish your main keyword and then sprinkle in the synonyms and variations.
How many times should you use your specific keyword in your body copy? As I said before, do use your Specific Keyword more than your high school teacher would have liked -- keyword density is of some importance for the SEs.
However, don’t overdo it, either. Don’t cross over the line between properly optimized content and spam. The best rule of thumb is to read your page aloud, and ask yourself…
“Does this sound natural?”
If too many incidences of your Specific Keyword are making your page sound a little odd, then replace these with appropriate synonyms. Surprisingly enough, top ranking SE pages have keyword densities a lot lower than you think -- varying from as little as 1-4%.
What about keyword prominence (i.e., the location in your page text where your keywords appear)? Yes, keyword prominence has a role to play as well. Make it a point to use your Specific Keyword more heavily in the opening two paragraphs (it must be in your opening sentence), and also in the closing paragraph. And then, like a good chef, sprinkle throughout!
Your keyword scatter pattern should look like an hourglass... bigger (i.e., more frequent usage) on the top and bottom, and less (but still present) in the middle of the page.
If you like, you may experiment with different numbers, frequencies and patterns of keywords as you build new pages. But again, don’t waste much time on this keyword density or prominence. The growing importance of off-page ranking criteria makes such efforts a low-yield effort.
Follow the 80-20 best practices approach to SEO (which, as you will see later, also includes a good links program), you’ll be fine. In the meantime, you know what to do…
C -> T -> P -> M
How long should a page be?
As long as it needs to be, but no longer!
Don’t worry about what the Search Engines think about length -- that’s important only to your reader. It makes no sense for an engine to score a short page any better than a long one. If length is of any importance, it’s minor.
One caveat…
The longer you make an article, the greater the chance you will wander off-topic and dilute the importance of your Specific Keyword. Slice-and-dice lengthy articles into smaller ones. This improves readability and gives you additional opportunities to rank well with the Search Engines.
Bottom line?
Use common sense, and avoid abuse.
Keep your content focused to a single theme per page. Do not ever get offtarget and introduce a second topic to a page -- you’ll dilute the effectiveness of your Specific Keyword. And that goes for your site as well. The more you laserbeam on a single theme, the better you’ll do with the Search Engines.
6) Link tags
Links create the TIER 1-2-3 structure. They must flow naturally and smoothly within the content.
Think of your links as providing a service to your readers. You are giving them beneficial recommendations or tips. So don’t just save your links for the end of the page. Add an in-context link within the body of a paragraph where appropriate.
It’s not just your readers who see your links. The engines do, too. So include your Specific Keyword, and variations and synonyms thereof, in visible, blueunderlined text in your links to your merchants.
Don’t just say… “Click here.” Say… “Click here for the best outlet malls, region by region.”
This format clearly telegraphs the link’s ultimate destination, making it easier for your user to decide whether to click or not. Using a Specific Keyword within each link will help the SEs determine relevance for each page and for your site.
While the use of internal links is unlikely to affect your site’s link popularity, it makes it easier for the SEs to accurately categorize your site.
7) File name/domain name
Include your Specific Keyword in the filename of your html page. This action might also add a relevancy point or two with the engines.
So if your Keyword-Focused Content Page is that TIER 2 page about “outlet mall” that we discussed earlier (“Top Factory Outlet Malls Where You Can Shop Via The Net”), let’s name the file...“outlet-malls.html”
The full URL, therefore, would be...
http://www.WORLDSBEST-FashionFactory-outlet-stores.com/outlet-malls.html
The only exception to this, of course, would be your home page. The home page must be named “index.html” -- but that’s OK. We already have its Specific Keyword included in the domain name, because it is your Concept Keyword!
8) Image ALT tag and name of image
Although this is probably the least important in terms of ranking relevancy, it’s still a worthwhile strategy to follow, especially now that the major SEs (Yahoo!, Google, and MSN) all offer an “image search” option. Depending on your unique niche or topic, image search may be a significant generator of traffic.
What should you do?
Name a graphic on a page according to its keyword focus. For example, on your outlet-malls.html page, name its photo “outet-malls.gif”.
And make its ALT tag “outlet malls,” too. This is a bit complicated so ask a techie friend for help if necessary.
OK, that’s basically how to put together a high-value content page that hits both key points...
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Deliver valuable content to your readers...
... AND tasty content to your spiders.
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The essential strategy is simple. Aim to get on-page criteria within an acceptable range for the Search Engines to rank you well. A good ranking is critical for pulling in free, targeted traffic.
More importantly, though, don’t sweat the small stuff. If you’ve done your homework and built a list of profitable, niche-related keywords, achieving top rankings won’t be a difficult task. And remember what I said earlier…
The SEs are placing more and more emphasis on off-page ranking criteria (human reaction to your site, for example). On-page ranking criteria are important, but they are only one part of the picture. To achieve the rankings you desire, both on-and-off page criteria must be addressed. (Off-page criteria will take center stage in the next chapter.)
Use the same approach for the TIER 2 and TIER 3 Keyword-Focused Content Pages. While the home page focuses upon the fundamental Concept Keyword, the other pages each focus upon one of the HIGH-PROFITABILITY keywords that your MASTER KEYWORD LIST has identified.
Ultimately, you create Keyword-Focused Content Pages that...
• fit with your Site Concept and VPP
AND...
• have a good SUPPLY/DEMAND ratio
AND that...
• you enjoy writing about.
Each page wraps a high-value topic around each Specific Keyword, following the guidelines outlined above.
To be continued soon…
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