Search Engine Optimization (SEO) really isnt a new concept although the buzzword is fairly new. It is basically the process of ensuring your site has on it that which search engines (e.g. Google) index, hence making your search engine rankings higher and presumably driving more traffic to your website. I still remember doing this in the mid-90’s when we had a huge number of search engines ranging from Hotbot to Alta Vista to AOL that mattered and each one needed to be submitted to and then your site massaged in order to get anything resembling a decent ranking.
Times have changed, the index bots are much more sophisticated than 10+ years ago, and are far less likely to be fooled by the tricks (like using keywords hidden in your background by using the same color for both).
I often get asked, “How can I improve my search results?”. I usually try to resist rolling my eyes for two reasons: 1) the sheer amount of resources out there covering this topic are just overwhelming and 2) it isnt that hard! So, to those hosting with me and everyone else reading this, here are a few short tips on how to get your site SEOized!
Content, Content, Content
The more content you have, and I dont mean junk, I mean actual meaningful content, the higher your rank. So sharpen your pencils and start writing.
New Content, New Images, New Stuff
Daily blog posts or news releases will really help you get noticed by the bots. But again, dont post junk, otherwise your ranking will drop due to noone visiting.
Network
You must network your site. Join a few groups, post on them, use WordPress or similar software, embrace RSS, use MySpace or Facebook and link to your site. These will only drive traffic to your site, increase the relevancy of your keywords and get you the rankings you want.
Use decent HTML/CSS
I say decent, since I still think the entire validation thing is a scam (I will post more on that later). Your page should work in all major browsers, use alt tags in your images, name your pages something relevant, and avoid a lot of Flash or Images (for now) since they still aren’t fully indexed. Do not use an image for text blocks, it will not index!
See, not hard. Enjoy adding quality content, dont overuse images or the other spiffy technologies (Silverlight, Flash, etc…) and have fun watching your traffic come to you for a change.
