SEO/SEM Overview for I-3

Search Engine Optimization&

Search Engine Marketing

The Internet has become the #1 source for information in the U.S., and for most people, it begins with a “search.”

The single most effective and efficient thing one can do to drive traffic to a website is undertake a variety of efforts, both on a website and more importantly off of the site, to make sure the search engines rank that website high within their search results.

This is called Search Engine Optimization (SEO) and the following plan outlines ways to optimize a website in hopes of maximizing traffic.

SEO - What Is It?Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is the process of improving the volume and quality of traffic to a web site from search engines via "natural" ("organic") search results for targeted keywords.

SEO considers:•how search engines work •what people search for•creating credibility for a site •improving a site’s ranking.

There are basic elements that must be in place on a website, but beyond that, search engines are placing a growing emphasis on links pointing in to a site from other websites. The “quality” of those links is very important and is judged by the Search Engines on a number of levels.

SEO - What Is The Purpose?Eye tracking studies have shown that human searchers scan a search engine results page from top to bottom and left to right (for left to right languages), looking for a relevant result.

Placement at or near the top of the rankings therefore increases the number of searchers who will visit your website.

Research has shown that 80% of the traffic goes to those on the first half of the natural search results, on the first page.

SEO Benefits

For sites that make their initial appearance on Google's second and third results pages, the number of unique visitors increases:

•517 percent in the first month and •942 percent the next month

As a site climbs in the results, the traffic increases in almost geometric proportion.

SEO Factors• Onsite

Coding (behind the scenes) Content of the website Navigation within the website

Offsite Links Pointing In from other sites

Page Rank of sites Relevance of site content Age of domains Perceived importance of sites Number of high-quality links

A similar SEO program was carried out for www.visitfayettevillenc.com over a one-year period.

http://www.visitfayettevillenc.com/

ResultsTraffic to the site from Organic Search Engines (free traffic) increased 2,737%Traffic to the website overall increased by 431%Unique visitors to the site increased by 330%The number of pages viewed per visitor increased by 689%The average time visitors spent on the site increased by 77%

A similar SEO program was carried out for www.openmyvideo.com over a one-year period.

http://www.openmyvideo.com/

ResultsTask: SEO placement for 15 terms

All terms started with lack of placement in the first 50 search engine results.

Conducted 6 months of SEO work which resulted in:

•6 terms in first place•18 terms in top five placement•24 terms in top ten placement

Results continue to improve

Plan Objective

Improve search results for YourSite.com to ensure the site will be listed highly in the results of relevant Internet searches.

Plan Strategies

1) Define the scope of relevant searches

2) Build a broad web of targeted links back to the site

3) Continue building on SEO efforts on a monthly basis, strengthening the hold on the established ranking while continuing to move the site up the list of Organic Search Results

Plan Tactics

Strategy One: Define the Scope of Relevant Searches

1) Determine optimum keywords to be used for SEO program

Keywords are the basis upon which Search Engines catalog and organize the contents of the Internet as well as the basis upon which human users search and locate information.

Strategy One: Define the Scope of Relevant Searches

2) Analysis of the selected keyword list

Employment of a proprietary mix of analytics tools to determine the optimal keywords to be used.

The most important element in building a good keyword list is to create the right mix of relevant terms that receive as high a volume of searches as possible, while also having the lowest number of competing pages with similar content.

Strategy One: Develop Target Keyword List and Site Description

1)Identify top ten target keywords that have the optimal mix of maximum search demand relative to the least amount of results competition

2) Craft website description utilizing top 3-4 target keywords. This description will become the anchor for many website submissions for the website across the Internet

Strategy Two: Build Targeted Links Back to Site

1) Crafting of keyword optimized articles based on top 10 keyword phrases selected. Each of these articles will be based upon a single keyword/phrase, employing the optimum keyword density within the article for the target keyword.

2) Dissemination of articles to top rated article directory sites on the Internet, each linking back to the parent site.

Articles in these directories are seen as important content by Search Engines and in turn, so are the sites to which they link. Some traffic will be sent to the site directly from the articles. Publishers of other websites will pick up the articles and republish them with all links intact.

What are Article Directories?Article directories are websites that exclusively host free articles on a variety of subjects. Some article directories are among the most highly trafficked sites on the Internet.

Being listed with them passes on a number of SEO benefits and improves the potential for Search Engines to find a site and add it to their listings for free (index and list the site).

Thousands of people visit article directories everyday in search of information. Whenever a visitor views an article and clicks on the link to a website, found in the resource box of an article, you are actually getting traffic to your Web site.

Also, other website owners or content publishers may add the article to their website along with your resource box. In simple words they will add the Web site link along with the written article in their website so indirectly the site will be getting heavy exposure to the Web site with back links complete.

What are Article Directories?


3) Creation of new content for your primary target site based upon target keywords.

New articles will be produced based upon the top 10 keywords selected. This content will be designed to provide the right mix of quality content human readers desire while being optimized for the specific keywords we are targeting for the Search Engines


4) Submission of the website to appropriate, high-ranking website directories.

Many website directories (categorized listings of websites) are highly regarded by the major Search Engines. Sites listed in these directories are in turn viewed as important sources of information (based upon the keywords used in their listing and link) which helps move them toward the top listings in the Search Engine results.

What’s A Web Directory?A web directory or link directory is a massive collection of categorized links and descriptions to other sites.

A web directory is not a search engine, and does not display lists of web pages based on keywords, instead it lists web sites by category and subcategory. The categorization is usually based on the whole web site, rather than one page or a set of keywords, and sites are often limited to inclusion in only one or two categories. Web directories often allow site owners to directly submit their site for inclusion, and have editors review submissions for fitness.

Some top directories allow paid inclusion only while thousands of others are free. The overall rank of a directory in the eyes of the major Search Engines is of paramount importance for SEO.

What’s A Web Directory?


5) Securing of One-way links from high page rank websites that the Search Engines deem as reputable sources of high-quality information.

These may include large “authority” websites, .edu sites (such as high ranking Ivy League school sites) and more. These sites are generally not directories of any sort.


6) Creation of “Mini-Net” of “Authority” sites within social media.

This is a small network of interlinked websites built upon a variety of platforms, all regarded highly by the Search Engines. These sites are all ultimately linking back to your primary target pages as well.


7) Promotion of “RSS Feeds” from all Authority sites and article directories to top 20 online RSS Aggregators.

RSS (“Really Simple Syndication”) is a family of Web feed formats used to publish frequently updated works such as blogs.

An RSS Aggregator is a web-based application (site) that reads the contents of RSS feeds and publishes them, making them available for viewing online by human and Search Engine visitors.


8) Building or high volumes of backlinks (largely blog post based)

The number of overall links pointing back to a website is key to the site being indexed on an upper level.

We use a proprietary software to identify and post high volumes of blog backlinks.

Strategy Three: Continue building on SEO efforts on a monthly basis

The activities undertaken in Strategies 1 and 2 are designed to build a foundation and framework for the SEO efforts of a given website.

To realize significant advances in Search Engine Result positioning and to sustain those advances, ongoing maintenance of and additions to the initial base must be undertaken. This is what your competitors are doing.

These actions are designed to continue slowly and steadily building upon the base created in month one. A gradual increase over time is important, as the Search Engines will disregard links if too large a mass of content is produced and distributed all at once. It will not look natural and “Human” if it happens too fast.

Strategy Three: Continue building on SEO efforts on a monthly basis

1)Ongoing Production and submissions of articles based on top 10 keyword phrases selected.

2)Ongoing creation of new, high-quality content for primary, target site.

3)Maintenance and growth of authority “mini-net”.

4)Ongoing promotion of RSS feeds to feed aggregators sites

5)Building of Keyword based backlinks to target site

Reporting Month One:

• Establishment of an SEO baseline for primary target site. Baseline parameters to include:

• Backlinks from other sites to primary target site• Search ranking for all target keywords• Number of pages indexed by top 3 Search

Engines• Detailed traffic statistics• Numerous other supporting statistics

• Installation and integration of a comprehensive, Online SEO Reporting Dashboard

Reporting

Following Months Ongoing:

• Access to the Online SEO Reporting Dashboard• Detailed monthly report distributed in PDF format

for viewing both online and offline

Online SEO

ReportingDashboar

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SEO/SEM Overview for I-3

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