Website Search Engine Optimization, Website SEO, SEO Search Engine Optimization
Understanding & Using Search Engine Optimization
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Transcript of Understanding & Using Search Engine Optimization
Barrett [email protected]
678 608 3408www.ifpeople.net
Understanding & UsingSearch Engine Optimization
What exactly issearch engine optimization?
SEO means improving the volume or quality of traffic
to a website from searchengine results.
When someone searches for youor something relevant to your org...
...you appear in the results.
So what?
30% of web traffic deliveredby search engines.
80% of that traffic deliveredBy Google.
SEO has three separate parts...
technical
content links
All three must be well-balanced
for best results.
technical
content links
Let's start with...
Flash sites look pretty...
...but text in Flash isn'treadable by searches.
A Word on Flash
Indexible content is more importantthan design.
A Word on Flash
With SEO, code quality matters.
Code: Overview
Clean, correct code is indexed faster by search engines.
Use a validator to check code.
Code: Best Practices
http://validator.w3.org/
Google reads pages from top to bottom.
Code: Best Practices
Keep important content near top.
Excessive code makes crawling your site difficult.
Code: Best Practices
Keep a low code to copy ratio.
code
copy
code
Reduce code by moving javascript and CSS to external files.
Code: Best Practices
Multiple lines of code becomeone line of code.
Give your pages names that describe specific content.
Descriptive Names: Overview
URL
page title
This associates your page with relevant search engine queries.
Descriptive NamesDescriptive Names: Overview
Include descriptive words in your URLs...
www.healthpartners.com/fight-for-healthcare-reform
www.healthpartners.com/0001b274cdn
Descriptive Names: URLs
Descriptive NamesDescriptive Names: URLs
Use hyphens, not underscores...
www.healthpartners.com/fight-for-healthcare-reform
See as separate words
Descriptive NamesDescriptive Names: URLs
Avoid really long URLs...
www.healthpartners.com/fight-for-healthcare-reform-sign-petition-get-bill-through-congress-for-universal-healthcare
Viewed as disingenuous and “spammy”
Give descriptive titles to each unique page.
Descriptive NamesDescriptive Names: Page Titles
Metadata is invisible to web visitors.
Metadata: Overview
It includes bits of descriptive infopicked up by search engines.
Meta keywords...
Meta DataMetadata: Keywords
• Usually seen in source code
• Still found by search engines
• In Plone, called “categories”
meta data in Plone
A sitemap gives search engines an overview of your content.
It makes relevant results easierto find.
Sitemaps: Overview
Big websites need...
Sitemaps: Big Sites
full map of site
Small websites need...
Sitemaps: Small Sites
navigation bar
Sitemap Generator
Sitemaps: Creation
http://www.xml-sitemaps.com/
Now, let's talk about...
technical
content links
Keywords: Overview
• People find websites based on keywords
• Including relevant keywords in copy can improve your SEO
Keywords: Selection
Use Google Analytics to see what words people search for before landing on your site.
Step 1:
search term listings
Keywords: Selection
Brainstorm other related keywords
education advocacyhealth advocacy employment helpmiddle school successgraduate high schooleducation support
universal healthcarelocal volunteer opportunities healthcare for alllive uniteduninsured programs low-income family help
Step 2:
Keywords: Selection
Use a keyword tool to evaluate the search volume of your keywords.
Step 3:
https://adwords.google.com/select/KeywordToolExternal
www.wordtracker.com
free paid
Keywords: Selection
Take note of “search volume,” competition, and relevant synonyms.
Step 4:
Keywords: Selection
Choose identifying keywords and include them in web copy, page titles, metadata.
Step 5:
uninsured
programs
education support
live united
Search engines love new content.
For higher rankings, update content regularly.
Update Content: Overview
events
news
stories
Easiest if you have a CMS.
Update Content: How To
Also easy if you have a blog connected to your URL.
Update Content: How To
Finally, there's...
technical
content links
Links are like academic references.
Links: Overview
More links to and from more credible sources = better SEO.
Links on your site to other sites.
Links: Two Types
Links on other sites to your site.
Make your links descriptive.
Links: Your Site
This connects your text to key search terms.
Links: Your Site
Don't write, “click here.”
Get info about the 2009 Race for the Cure in Indianapolis.
For info about the 2009 Race for the Cure in Indianapolis, click here.
Appear on other sites by...
...submitting to relevant directories.
Links: Other Sites
Appear on other sites by...
...leaving blog comments w/ links.
Links: Other Sites
As you develop online relationships,
Links: Other Sites
ask clients and partners to link to your site.
But how can I makesure my SEO is continually refined?
Monitoring: Overview
SEO is a process, not a one time deal.
benchmark
SEOevaluate results
Monitoring: Overview
Benchmark Questions:
What do I want out of SEO?
How many new hits do I want to achieve?
How many of those hits should turn into reputable leads?
Monitoring: Tools
Google Analytics
Observe what keywords are associated with your site and increases in traffic.
Monitoring: Tools
Website GraderAnalyzes:
• Web traffic
• Social popularity
• Technical factors
Includes basic adviceon improving site.
Monitoring: Tools
SEO Toolbar
• Firefox toolbar
• Competitive research
• Keyword research
• Comparative linking
• Page rank
Click to edit Master subtitle style
Questions?