Can SEO Optimization Really Be Simple?

SEO Optimization can be as simple or as complicated as you want. It's your choice - You can improve your search engine ranking the easy way or the hard way. Me? I prefer the easy way. It's a no-brainer.

Before you can improve your search engine ranking, and increase search engine traffic, you need to know how the search engines work. A search engine has one job and one job only - To give searchers the most relevant web pages possible, sorted in order of importance. If they fail in this job then people will use a different search engine.

How do search engines do their job? With 'Spiders' and Algorithms (formulas). 'Spiders' are computer programs that bring back new web pages to a search engine's huge database. How do you get a spider to find your site?

• By submitting your site to 3 of the 4 major search engines. Here are their addresses:

  Google Site Submission

  Yahoo Site Submission

  Microsoft Live Site Submission

  The 4th major search engine Ask.com has no site submission page. They find your site using the next method.

• The other way that spiders find your website is through sites that are already in their database. If those already listed sites contain a link to your site, then the spiders will follow that link and add your site to their database.

Algorithms (formulas) are used to sort and classify every web page in the database. They change frequently and are kept top secret by the search engines. They determine a web page's search engine placement.

Although a search engine's algorithms are kept top secret we do know what their overall goal is - To serve the most relevant web pages possible for a given search term (keyword).

So your job in SEO Search Engine Optimization is to make each of your web pages as relevant as possible for your chosen keywords. Find out all about Keyword Research.

The first step in seo optimization is to create a useful website, full of valuable information for your visitors. It's important for two reasons:

1. Visitors will stay at your website longer before clicking away - search engines measure how long a visitor stays at a web site. The longer they stay, the better your site scores.

2. The other reason is if you have a great website, then other websites and blogs will want to link to your site. And links pointing to your site are extremely important.

The second step in seo optimization is putting your keywords in all the right places. Your keyword research should have given you a long list of good ones. Each page of your website should focus on one Main keyword for a good search engine rank. It will be your most profitable keyword. And it should be placed in the following locations for good seo optimization:

• In the Title of your page
• In your meta keywords tag
• In your meta description tag
• In the headline at the top of your page
• In your first and last paragraphs
• A few times throughout your page (but don't overdo it)

Now go back to your keyword list and find 5 - 10 keywords related to your Main keyword. These should be placed in the following locations for good seo optimization:

• In your meta keywords tag
• One or two in the meta description tag
• Throughout your page more often than your main keyword (but don't overdo it, you want it to read naturally... you must keep your visitors happy too).

Here's an example:

My Main keyword is 'cat breeds.' Some related keywords are 'feline breeds,' 'cat varieties,' siamese cats,' 'persians,' 'cat breeding,' 'types of cats,' 'himalayan.' For good seo optimization, here's how I would put it all together:

• Page Title - Learn About Cat Breeds
• Meta keywords tag - "cat breeds, feline breeds, cat varieties, siamese cats, persians, breeding, types, himalayan." I try not to mention the root of a keyword more than twice. The root in this case is 'cat.'
• Meta description tag - "Explore the world of cat breeds. What are the differences in feline breeds?"
• Headline at the top of the page - The Wonderful World of Cat Breeds

The third step in good seo optimization is to get other websites to link to your website. The search engines see a link as a recommendation. All links (recommendations) help your website's search engine ranking, but some carry more weight than others. Just like when you ask your friends or relatives for a recommendation - some people's opinions are more valuable than others. What makes for a great link?

• It comes from a website that has the same topic or a similar topic as your site. For example: You have a Cat Care website. A link from a cat or pet related website would be more important than a link from a Home Repair website.

• It comes from a website that ranks highly at the search engines. They're seen as an authority on their topic.

• It comes from a site with a good "Google Page Rank". "Google Page Rank" is a ranking meter included on the Google Toolbar. Every web page you visit will have a ranking on this meter from 0 - 10. A brand new web page will have a ranking of 0 and Microsoft.com has a ranking of 10. You can go here to download the toolbar if you don't have it - Google Toolbar.

But don't become a slave to the "Google Page Rank". If a site is in any way related to your topic and ranks on the first few pages of a search engine (up to page 6) - then they're worth getting a link from. Add a link to any good sites you can find related to your site. Then ask them for a link back. That's known as a link exchange request. After your site's been around for a while it will get noticed and you'll get approached by others for link exchange requests.

You can make seo optimization as complicated or as easy as you want it to be. It's up to you. But you'll probably do better in the long run by concentrating on information. Add as much useful information as you can to your website. This and the other steps I've mentioned will help your website's search engine ranking more than anything else. Seo optimization doesn't have to be difficult.