By now you probably know that Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is that magic thing people do to improve their web site ranking on search engines like Google or Yahoo!, but what does this mean? What is it these companies really do? Are they modern day snake oil salesmen or alchemists using pseudo-science and magic to make gold (or in this case dollars)? Surprisingly, alchemistry is actually a pretty fair analogy. The best SEO companies use real science and the magic of human intuition and understanding for their alchemical marketing mixture. The worst companies or SEO packages could explode in your face. To clarify the process and pull things out of the dark ages we are going to break down the elements of search engine optimization and provide much sought answers to questions about the companies and the process.
First, what is Search Engine Optimization? Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is the process of taking a Web site and altering content, META tags, and elements of structure and design to push that site to a higher ranking on search engines for specific search phrases. I emphasize the term “specific search phrases” because the choice of those phrases is another element of optimization that we will review later. In any case, if you go to a search engine and key in, for example, “Rochester search engine optimization,” the sites that come up first on the list are the ones that have been “optimized” for that phrase. That high ranking, we all know, means more people seeing your site, that is, if customers are likely to key in “Rochester search engine optimization.” If you don’t provide Rochester search engine optimization, optimizing to that phrase won’t really improve your traffic. This may seem obvious, but there is a difference between increasing your traffic and increasing your quality traffic. We’ll go over this more later as well.
Okay, so in short Search Engine Optimization tailors a site for the search engines to read and rank higher than other sites. What is it that the search engines search for then? There are many elements search engines weigh in order to determine ranking. Complicating matters more, each search engine applies a different weight to the various elements. To simplify the complex, search engines need to understand a) what your website is about and b) how it is navigated.
Websites are divided into two important segments, the header and the body. Elements in the header are referred to as META tags. Most of these elements are not visible to normal web surfers but search engines use these META tags in determining how to rank and display your site in the search results. The META tags are the first lines telling the search engines what your site is about. Want to see what the search engine sees? Check out the code.
The source code is the half and half computer/human language that makes up the software program (remember all these web sites and search engines break down to simple computer programs.) When you are looking at a site, most will let you see the code if you click on “view” on the top menu bar, then “source” or “source code.” This will show you the text version of your site exactly as the search engines see it. From here, type control-F to bring up the find window. Now you can search your site for the search terms you think it should be “found” under. If the response comes back “cannot find” then you know your site is missing something. Your site will not be listed when a potential customer is looking for you using those terms.
Although other elements are considered, search engines rely heavily on the frequency and positioning of key phrases in the text of your web site. These determine where your site will be ranked in search results. Repeating important keyword phrases, preferably near the top of the page is the first step toward having a successful Web site that’s ranked top in search results. Other factors will play in, and each search engine is a little different, but without exception, the most important thing to consider in optimizing your web site is the frequency and position of your chosen key phrases. Of course, choosing those key phrases is nearly as important.
Now for the hard part. It may seem simple, but it's harder than it first appears. Use and repeat the right phrases in the beginning of the pages on your site and you’ll rate high in search results. Search engines use algorithms, math really, to determine your rank so for the computer’s sake you just need a good mathematician, right? It’s all science. Never forget the human element.
First, in the META tags you decide to put SEO SEO SEO over and over to rate the site high for that keyword. Put it in the title tags and when the list comes up with websites for the search, “SEO” and the description of your website is SEO SEO SEO. The description of the next one is “A full service internet company offering web design, internet marketing, search engine optimization, software development, ecommerce web hosting…” As a potential customer, which would you click on? So you see, rating is only part of the equation. The human element, if left out, can devalue all of your careful computer tailored results. Well done Search engine optimization optimizes for people as well as computer algorithms.
META tags are considered by Search engines in determining ranking, but they are not the most important element. It is more important here to remember your human audience. Your description must be accurate and interesting to catch the eye of potential customers. Likely you are halfway there by showing up in the search, the description tags have to be the sound bite advertising that makes you stand out from the competition.
Another aspect of the human element is selecting those key words and phrases you want to tie to your site. Simple enough. Common sense, right? You pretend you are the customer and select the phrases they would look for to find the service you provide. Watch the tricky endings and the insider lingo. For instance, web design is rather different than web designer, and SEO might not be recognized by the people who need it the most. And which is more likely to be searched, content management or function options? Common sense will carry you far, but little can replace good market and keyword research. This part of the process can easily take the most time, but it can be the most rewarding. First position on a key phrase that only receives 100 searches cannot return more than 100 visitors, but fourth place positioning on a key phrase that receives millions of requests can generate thousands. Then again, quality is more important than quantity, especially on the internet.
Web surfers are usually very directed. They know what they are looking for and they can click away from what they don’t want in a second. If you use the phrase “Britney pics” to increase traffic it may work really well—and earn you nothing because disappointed surfers will click away to another site without examining your site, which clearly does not have pictures of Britney. The swift moving determined nature of the web surfer can work against you if you are trying to draw their attention away from their purpose, but it can work for you and earn you dollars if you position yourself right. A percentage of those surfers are looking for exactly what you are. If you can put yourself in their path and make it easy for them to identify what they need from you, those sales are yours. SEO is best used when combined with a well considered web market strategy.
Among the methodologies available to increase your ranking on the search engines there are tricks and ways to mislead the algorithms. Invisible text, doorway pages, link farms, cloaking, mirror or duplicate content, all of these are known generally as black-hat techniques or spam. These are the components of SEO alchemistry that could blow up in your face. Spam, as far as search engines are concerned, is any attempt to mislead or trick the search engine into producing any document that is not as honestly relevant to the given search as it is portrayed. Search engines can and have banned sites for these practices. Be aware that even though these practices are known to be unsavory and can produce the exact opposite effect desired, some companies market packages that use these methods. It is a buyer beware market and when seeking an SEO company or package, you should be aware of their strategy. If they are not clear and upfront with you on their process you would do better to look elsewhere.
Is it worth it to work this magic yourself? A little common sense, a little research, some clarity on the technical side and you could handle SEO in house maybe, right? Right. You can do it yourself. It’s not really magic. But it is work. For most people learning the process, keeping up with the best practices, avoiding the common pitfalls like broken links and misuse of frames, not to mention the time consumption of research is simply not worth it. If you can buy everything inexpensively and focus your life and your business resources on the many other complications life and business throw your way it is as worth it as pre-sliced bread. Cost, then, is the key.
Since search optimization is a fairly new industry, there are many companies with optimization packages - and the price varies wildly from company to company. Some offer optimization for a predetermined number of keyword phrases, but they may not guarantee a particular placement. Other companies may charge you for how well they optimize for certain phrases - for example, you get charged more for being #1, that you do for #2. A fixed fee, monthly or yearly, is another method of billing used. It isn’t only the cost and the billing style that differ, each company may also have different levels of service. There is no EASY answer to the question, how much does this cost. In general, if you consider the labor effort involved, expect to pay between $2000 and $3000 for a competent and reputable company to do the work for you.
That's a lot of money! I got an email yesterday that offered to submit my site to thousands of search engines and get my site #1 for only $20. Why not just use them?
While an uncommonly large site with many different topics may cost more to optimize, basic time requirements to perform the minimum research and tuning prevent the costs from being much less even for a less complex site. Many firms out there offer service for "Only $29!" or a software package to do-it-yourself. Remember the explosive mixture from earlier? These services are most commonly spammers using black-hat techniques that could leave you banned from the search engines while they spend your “Only $29!” along with a few hundred other peoples’ “Only $29” on a Mexican holiday. Also, keep in mind pay-per-click offerings, which do not optimize your site at all, but work instead on the highest bidder approach. Pay-per-click (PPC) methods offer a reliable way to generate traffic on your site, but are often more costly in the long term, and may not produce the quality traffic of a good SEO campaign. Remember how easy it is for the wrong web-surfers to click on and then click right back off.
