SEARCH ENGINE OPTIMISATION
Content is King!
Many Websites are built with much technical expertise and many pretty pictures,
but little content. The belief is that attractive Web pages are sufficient for the
Website to be found by the search engines. The results are invariably disappointing.
Don't decorate, communicate!
Adequate content is essential for a search engine to determine where a Website will
rank in its listings. Good, well directed content will give an advantage over competitors
that have little or no content.
The content must incorporate targeted Keyword phrases
Keyword phrases are an important part of any search engine marketing campaign. Keyword
phrases should make up 2% to 3% of a Web page for optimal results. In order to get
these high Keyword phrase densities, every word must count. There must be no superfluous
words.
Having the content rich in well-optimised Keywords will increase the chances of
a successful search engine marketing campaign. Of course, the Website needs to be
clear and concise for customers, as well as being effectively optimised for the
search engines.
The most important Keywords and phrases should be as close to the top of the page
as possible.
The content must have relevance to the service that is on offer
Wherever possible, make the focus of each Web page relate to one particular service.
Many Websites make the mistake of covering multiple services on a single page. Not
only can this be confusing for visitors to the Website, but it also means that the
overall Keyword density on each page is weak.
The content must be focussed on the sales message
Ensure that the summary or sales message is in the initial paragraphs, and the detail
in the following paragraphs. Alternatively, provide summaries on a main page, with
links to pages dedicated to the detail.
If a visitor is overwhelmed with too much information, they will turn to a Website
with a simpler format.
The content should contain fresh information, hints or tips
Create reasons for customers to return to the Website. Fresh content is a great
way to keep visitors coming back. The content should contain information that compliments
the marketing message, or is helpful to the visitor.
The content does not need to be updated frequently
Repeatedly adding fresh content will ensure that the search engines frequently index
the changes. But frequent spidering alone does not help rankings.
The content should contain articles of interest
Use personally written articles, hints and tips. The personal message will ensure
credibility in the customer's eyes. More to the point, search engines favour original
content in Websites.
Articles can be downloaded from the Web to complement the message. Or, hire a professional
copywriter to write the content.
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