SEO Consult Blog

Failing to notice that certain which aid Search Engine Optimisation have moved on can harm not only a website but an entire SEO campaign.

Many SEO techniques are today useless, yet are still being implemented, some tactics have changed while others have been completely eradicated and replaced with something else. Terminology has also changed and now requires a change of mindset.

Things related to Ranking and Linking

Tags are well known as being related to rankings. ‘Noscript tag links’ were previously used to insert invisible links in pages that looked legitimate, at least to a search engine. They haven’t been used for quite a while now. An alternative should be provided for non-flash or non-AJAX users. If you have got flash installed or have switched scripts, load Flash or an AJAX-free menu. Search engine robots find these links useful.

Building links requires an action on your part that of building them and this implies that because they are built, they are artificial, something you have manufactured. Links gained in this way are under close scrutiny by a search engines quality team. What you should replace this with is getting links in a natural and organic way and as links cannot be filtered out. While building links is still alive and well, the onus is on you whether to continue with the old ways or adapting to the new ways.

Paid links, text link ads or sponsoring and charity? Paid linking has shown that it seldom works in the long term. However, there are ways to get great links for some sort of payment, but they are usually indirect links. Today sponsoring links or giving them away as charity is preferred. If done right they can result in great benefit to parties, those receiving and those who support them financially.

Not that long ago footer links were popular and people totally stuffed their page footers with link exchange partners. It is a useless exercise though and if you are still doing it, change. You should be practicing content links instead. These make people want to write about you because your offer fabulous resources, news articles and unique copy that has not been filched or repeated.

Free counter links force you to add invisible links back to the counters homepage as well as links to other third parties you know nothing about. Don’t do it. Today there are such things as ‘widgets’. Contained within these ‘widgets’ is basic information that offers more information once you have clicked on it. ‘Widgets’ are legitimate in terms of Web 2.0.

Things pertaining to blogs and forums

A Search Engine Optimisation technique which many people still use is forums that allow signatures that ‘pass PageRank’. You should consider placing links on the home pages of social media profiles instead. Social media sites which allow this offer you a way to consistently contribute to these profile pages and in the process gain more authority over time.

Blog comments vs. trackbacks. Trackbacks are also known as comments on your blog. As a link building tactic, many people still comment on ‘dofollow’ blog sites. This is very outdated and they don’t often pass Google’s scrutiny. If you want to get a link back to your site, or a response, it is preferable to write your own blog about other bloggers then link them or trackback.

It’s a relatively simple formula in theory – improve your search engine position and grow your business. Yet optimising your website to improve its ranking in search engine result lists is one aspect of search engine optimisation (SEO). The second more valuable element of SEO is to skilfully optimise your website to directly increase business growth.

Skilled Search Engine Optimisation experts aim to provide more than an increase in traffic to a particular website. A significant role of SEO experts is to strategically improve website conversion rates. Therefore instead of focusing solely on increasing online traffic, SEO experts target potential consumers by tactically optimising a website so it’s easily found by a niche market.

Target your market

Increasing website traffic does not necessarily mean you’re attracting potential consumers and growing your business. Plan an SEO strategy to target your audience and increase website conversion rates to generate sales.

Planning your SEO strategy

• Business speciality
Define your business’ speciality – what sets you apart from your competitors? Your business’ core function – or speciality – should be readable in your domain name, homepages and subsequent webpages.

• Friendly user experience
Your website should be easy to navigate to allow your audience to quickly find what they’re looking for. Content should be uncluttered and relevant. Avoid over-embellishing your website for the sake of SEO – keep your editorial copy succinct and engaging. Adapt your website so it’s easy for consumers to buy products. Ensure contact details are visible and offer various methods like an email and telephone numbers.

• Create a keyword list
Learn how to compile an effective keyword list and thread them appropriately across the text in your web pages. Keywords used for SEO should provide visitors with the precise information they’re looking for when they land on your webpage.

• Measuring SEO success
There are various methods to measure SEO success depending on what type of results you’re measuring. One method is to track the number of unique visitors to your site, and from this information determine how many buy your product or register or your website. Evaluating Search Engine Optimisation success is a lengthy process as it takes time to build ‘trust’ with search engines.

• Update website content
Regular content updates are important to main high ranks in Search Engine Results. Instead of making vast changes to your website, gradually update areas of content to maintain the website’s appeal and relevance to users. Consider refreshing content at least once a week, by adding further engaging nuggets of content.

Improved Search Engine Optimisation results aren’t immediate, but after several months your rankings should advance if you’ve enabled your website to be relevant, regularly updated and user-friendly. Search engines are cautious about gathering information for Indexing and search for websites that have updated content, are user-friendly and frequently visited.