SEO = S… E… What the #$%*???

SEO is a term that has been bouncing around the web for a while. It means ?Search Engine Optimization? and boils down to creating a website that people can find. That?s the point of most websites, isn?t it? To get visitors there to check out whatever it is that you have to say or sell.

Simple, right?

The concept is simple, to make your site as user-attractive as possible. Well-written copy, clean layout, easy navigation?all the basics for a user-friendly site. Thing is, first you have to actually get people TO YOUR SITE. And unless they already have the link (probably sent?by you? to everyone in your address book), chances are the visitor will find your site using a search in Google (or Yahoo, Dogpile, Ask.com, Bing, etc). These searches might bring up your site, but chances are it will also bring up a bazillion other links as well. Why not tilt the odds in your favor that your site will be at the top of this list by using words that people will actually be searching for?

SEO Tip #1 ? Use Searchable Words

This is an easy fix for any site. Use the words that best describe your site in the COPY on your site. Do you have recipes for vegan dog treats? Do you sell organic seeds? Do you have an affinity for collecting Pez? Use these words within your site, especially on the index page (you know, the homepage), as often as reasonably possible. Search engines will reference these words when someone enters a search for vegan dog treats or Pez collection. The closer your site matches the search, the more likely your link will show up.

Keep it simple. Try to avoid using obscure wording and complicated terminology. It is important to use the terms that visitors will actually be using, and to use these terms at least a few times within the copy. Use ?vegan dog treats? instead of ?scrumptious morsels of canine indulgence entirely void of creature products.? It seems obvious, but sometimes we just want to make our products sound unique, we forget people may not understand and probably aren?t using these words to search. Keep the bulk of the copy simple, and add those extravagances to a few of the details.

NOTE: Using searchable words more than once in your site is vital, but is important to keep the copy valid. Having a paragraph of a single word repeating or words that do not apply to your site is known as spamindexing, a form of Black Hat SEO. These kinds of tactics can have your site blocked from search engines, which means it won?t show up on anyone?s search.

The key is to know what people are searching for to get them to your site. After all, you are selling a product you want people to know about. You can also use Google Analytics to find out what people are searching for that are bringing them to your site. (More on that later.) Just remember, at Moxie, we are here to serve our clients, to help YOU SUCCEED!

www.thinkmoxie.com

? Post written by Cristy Wiza.