Search engine optimization is the process of making ones website content more search engine friendly so that it ranks higher in keyword searches and attracts more traffic. Following are some of the most critical things that need to be done to optimize any website.

Choose Effective Keywords

Choosing the correct keywords for your web site and optimizing for those keywords is incredibly important. According to a 2007 study:

• 62% of users click a link on the first page of search results
• only 23% of users move on to the second page
• 80% of unsuccessful searches are followed with keyword refinement

Most Internet users do not search through page after page of search results. If they do not find what they are looking for in the first 1 or 2 pages they will either give up, or refine their search using different or more precise keywords.

Keyword choice is very important and can make a huge difference in your search engine rankings. The most effective keywords can only be determined by careful analysis of your industry and competition. Once the most effective keyword are chosen we can begin to optimize your website by writing, or re-writing your website content to include these keywords in a manner that is most effective at raising your search engine rankings.

Develop Useful Website Content

The most successful websites on the Internet achieve high search rankings because they contain content that people are looking for (i.e.: Wikipedia, Amazon, CNN). These websites are useful. The usefulness of a website is very important if you want people to visit more than once. Your website must contain content people are looking for, and that content must be updated regularly.

Well Structured Content that’s Search Engine Friendly

Great web content that’s well structured will help your website rank higher. Internet users search for sites by entering keywords into a search engine’s text box. Sites that are optimized for the keywords a person is searching for have a greater chance of appearing at the top of the search rankings for those words. The more content you have on your site, the more opportunities you have to embed keywords into your site.

Website content is what’s important, not meta-tags. Most search engines all but ignore the “keywords” meta-tag. If you want your potential readers to find your site it must contain the content they’re looking for. This means that the keywords people are entering in search engines such as Google must be contained in the text content of your website.

The titles and headings you choose, how they are formatted, and where they are placed also have an effect on search rankings. We will ensure the content of your site is structured in the most effective way possible.

Many High Quality Inbound Links, called Backlinks

One of the most important things you can do to improve the visibility of your site is create lots of high quality inbound links, called backlinks, to your site. This is crucially important if you’re in a competitive market and you’re using common keywords that your competitors are also using.

Google considers a lot of inbound links to a site to be a sign of a high quality site. Lots of high quality backlinks will help generate a high page rank with Google. A higher page rank contributes to appearing higher in search results. We will build a link campaign to increase the number of inbound links to your site.

See the search engine optimization services provided by WebFire Designs.