6 Keys to Success (of many)

Typically, great performance in the Search Engines comes from great SEO. That’s Search Engine Optimization. There are dozens of critical elements to keep in mind when trying to improve the SEO on your website, unfortunately there is even a larger variance to the importance of each item from all of the so called experts. Here are 6 keys that are generally agreed upon across the board.

1. Content is King

Original Content that is rich with keywords is like food for the search engines. It is important to not only use keywords, but to use key phrases. This will allow you to not only be found for vanity and trophy searches, but for long tail searches. Avoid duplicate or similar content. Be sure to stay on topic, the more specific the better. If you are an attorney it is great to talk about you family law practice on one full page. It is better to talk about it on 5, and break it down into 5 areas i.e. divorce, custody, support, etc…Great content will also lead to an increase in conversion. Remember not to over do it, or it will look like spam and hurt performance.

2. Keyword Use in Title Tag

This is said to be the strongest On Page Factor. Proper Original Title Tags, with organic SEO. The Keywords have to match the content on the page. If I read the title of an article to be "Dog Bites Man" I wouldn’t expect to read a story about Munchausen syndrome. Proximity of the keyword near the beginning is also very important. Duplicate Title Tags are not something that will improve your chances with the search engines.

3. Anchor Text of Inbound Link

Anchor Text is the visible text of a hot link/hyper link. The quantity, relevance, and quality of your inbound links are important. As, or near as, important is the text that links to your website from another website. Unless you want to be found for "visit website", you need to have an appropriate relevant word or phrase that brings traffic into your website. The search engines are smart and will also be evaluating the content that surrounds the anchor text, so hopefully it "makes sense".

4. Inbound Links

Quantity, Relevance, Quality. More "good" links are better than less. Inbound links from websites that are relevant to your business are highly preferred. A link from a well respected website holds greater credibility, than that from a relatively obscure website. In essence you are sharing in the credibility of others that send their traffic to your website. Avoid link schemes and poor links. Link Farms and schemes can hurt your chances of success with the search engines.

5. Age of Site (>1 year)

This is one hurdle that is difficult to jump. The search engines favor aged domains that have authority. In a competitive search the immaturity of the website may inhibit or slow down the true ranking evaluation. The age of the Inbound Links is also important.

6. Servers Inaccessible to Search Engines

This is something to be aware of and to avoid. Better the hosting server…better it is indexed. If the server is down or frequently crashes the search engines will be less likely to send traffic in that direction. This will also lead to poor crawlability for your site, ultimately putting you at a competitive disadvantage.