SEO or Search Engine Optimization is a set of tools and techniques which help to increase the page rank of the site in the search engine index. A search engine crawls through the colossal data on the internet and displays a list of results sorted according the relevance to the search criteria. SEO techniques aim to manipulate a specific piece of information or a web page so that it appears more relevant to the search engine.
There are several search engines on the internet such as Yahoo, Google, Bing and others and each of them has developed a unique algorithm to browse through the information on the internet. However, most search engines use the basic method of matching the keywords entered by the user with the words on the website. So for instance, if one is searching for ways to generate traffic for his site, he might use keywords like ‘list building,’ ‘lead generation’ and so on. The search engine will find out which pages contain those keywords and display them.
The interesting point is that if one is careful about the use of keywords in what one publishes on the internet, then it is possible to improve the ranking in the search engine index. There are 4 strategies for optimizing content for search engines.
SEO for Article Marketing
Articles are an effective way to share information about any topic. If one uses the right keywords in the article, then it is possible that the search engine places it high in its results. There are some key places where keywords should be used. The title is the first place where the keyword should be present. Related keywords should also be placed in the first paragraph. In the rest of the content, keyword density should be around 2-4%. Finally, the keyword can also be used as the anchor text which links the article to the site which is to be promoted.
It is not enough to use the specific keywords in the article but one must also use other related keywords since that will make the article even more "search engine friendly". For instance, if the article is about network marketing, one can use related keywords like MLM, lead generation, distributor, independent representative and so on. This process is known as LSI or Latent Semantic Indexing.
SEO for Website
For a web page, one can follow the same rule of keyword density as mentioned above. In addition, there are places like the "META tag" and the page header where the keyword or keywords must be used.
Pay Per Click Advertising
Most search engines offer pay per click or PPC advertising options. It is possible to compose these ads in such a manner that they appear when the keyword is used in the search criteria. These PPC ads are also shown on other pages which display the "Google Adsense" ads and the process is known as contextual advertising.
4. Paid Indexing
Search engines like Yahoo allow advertisers to pay to get their site listed in their search indexes. This increases the probability of getting the site displayed in search results.
SEO is both a science and an art and a science and if one wants to succeed as an internet marketer, then he cannot afford to ignore these techniques.
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