Search Engine Optimization In-depth

Since the Internet has become a local and global marketplace, the need for companies to use Search Engine Optimization has increased. With more users utilizing the Internet for shopping purposes, Search Engine Optimization is essential for a company’s growth and stability. Some industries require an online presence to compete creating the need to optimize a web-site to show up on a Search Engine Results Page (also known as a SERP).

Search engines, which are tools to help users find information online, are abundant all over the Internet. Some of the most popular search engines are the following:

1) Google- the industry leader in all of search engines, Google provides what most people consider to be the most relevant SERPS. Google has around 65% of the market share and provides site links for the top result. Site links will often appear below the URL of the top result and breaks the content down into different categories. Google is also known for providing maps at the top of SERPs for local searches, has free e-mail with their GMail service, will provide audio samples in music searches, and owns Blogger, a free online blogging service. Google technicians constantly update the search engine and research several ways to enhance user experience. 

2) YouTube- not considered a traditional search engine when first launched, YouTube has slowly evolved into one of the most efficient and effective search resources on the Internet. With more and more videos being loaded onto the YouTube, users can usually find what they are looking for. For example, anyone looking on how to play Pachabel’s Canon on guitar can just type in “pachabel canon guitar” and find different videos of people playing the piece and explaining how to play the song. Some YouTube video descriptions will even allow users to put guitar tablature (similar to sheet music) right next to the video. YouTube users can also sign up for a free subscription or account, create their own YouTube channel and watch television shows. The search engine has also been used as a marketing strategy for up and coming recording artists (look up the a Capella group Straight No Chaser as an example) as a method for spreading their music to a massive audience. YouTube is owned by Google and is run as a subsidiary. 

3) Yahoo- originally a graduate school project, Yahoo is still one of the most widely used search engines in the world. Yahoo provides SERPS  relevant to the search query but not as closely related as what Google provides. Similar to Google, companies can pay to have a sponsored search result at the top and on the side. Yahoo will also provide a subpage link for the top result. Users can also sign up for their own Yahoo Mail account, view instant news headlines, follow their favorite sports teams, and even has online chatting capabilities. Users can also access their Facebook updates from Yahoo’s home page. 

4) MSN Bing - MSN search engines have been around for a while but Microsoft recently rebranded their search engine as Bing in June of 2009 (it was previously called Live Search, Windows Live Search and MSN Search in the past). With around 10% of the market share, Bing provides results relevant to what the user types into the search query and allows users to section off certain areas of content. Bing was recently in the news as being one of the first search engines to sign a partnership deal with Twitter, which allows search engine users to find tweets within a SERP. Bing users can also access their Hotmail accounts (Microsoft’s free e-mail service) from the search engine. 

5) Ask.com- originally AskJeeves.com, Ask is still used by many users around the world. Ask will usually post online coupons and deals for users and provide related search queries on the right hand side of the page. Ask is also known for being the official search engine of NASCAR. 

The results seen on a search engine page come in two different categories:  sponsored search results and organic search results. Sponsored search results usually show up at the top of the page, on the side and are in a shaded box so they stand out better. Companies utilizing this strategy pay money to the search engine so their web-site shows up in the sponsored links portion of the pages. This strategy can be set up as a pay-per-click campaign for with some search engines or a pay per 1000 impressions campaign. Using a pay-per-click campaign allows the user bid on keywords they want to show up for in a search engine and only pay money if the ad is clicked. A pay per 1000 impressions campaign means the company pays every 1000 times the ad is shown on the SERP page. Organic search results (sometimes referred to as natural results) do not require the company to give money to the search engine and show up below the sponsored links on a SERP.

No matter which strategy you use, all search engines have a spider that will search for content. Spiders will look for web-sites that have keywords and phrases that are exact or similar to the phrases typed into the search query. Spiders will look at the web-site content, outside links going into a particular site, the words and phrases in the title tags and headlines to find the sites that are the most relevant.

As a way to find different phrases to put in the title tags, headlines and web-site content, companies can do keyword research through the Google Keyword Tool or Wordstream (there are other keyword tools out there but these seem to be the industry standard and the most popular). The purpose of keyword research is to find relevant search terms users are typing into search engines to find products and services. For example, if someone is looking for a vacuum cleaner, keyword research will show if people are typing in “Hoover vacuum cleaner”, “multi-purpose vacuum cleaner”, “water and liquid vacuum cleaner” and  other phrases searchers are typing in to find that product. With this list of keywords, web-sites can be designed for keywords to appear in the content of the site, the page titles, title tags and the internal links so that spiders can find the site more efficiently and effectively. For a pay-per-click campaign, keyword research provides a list of keywords for the business to bid on so their ads show up when a user types in those particular phrases into a search engine.

In addition to keywords, external links will also catch the attention of search engine spiders. Web-sites that have lots of external links into their web-site will catch the attention of spiders. If a site has a good number of web-sites linking to it, spiders will think that web-site is important to users and put it at the top of a SERP. In other words, the more external links a web-site has, the more important it will look to a search engine spider. Building external links into a web-site is a process that takes lots of patience and time but will optimize a web-site.

With video and images becoming more prevalent on the Internet now, search engines now utilize what is called a blended search (referred to as a universal search result by Yahoo). A blended search will display not only web-sites but links to online videos (usually from YouTube) and pictures within the SERP. Search engine spiders will search the description on an online video or image for keywords. If written well, a video or image description containing a good number of keywords will make it easier for the spider to find it and place it in a blended search.

In any Search Engine Optimization campaign, time and patience are key. Results can occur but will not necessarily happen overnight. A considerable amount of time has to be placed into keyword research, external link building, web-site design and testing certain pages. If any of these processes are rushed, a search engine optimization performance can be affected and not produce the best results. Optimizing a web-site typically takes three months to a year because of the amount of time needed for research, building a brand and becoming familiar with a particular audience. Patience and time are important in a Search Engine Optimization campaign but is worth the investment.

In today’s local and global marketplace, utilizing a Search Engine Optimization campaign is important for growth and stability. With lots of different search engines available, businesses can benefit from showing up in organic or sponsored search results. With keyword research and external inks, a web-site can be optimized for a search engine spider to find it. Over a period of patience and time, a search engine optimization campaign can produce results for a web-site and bring in more customers.

(more…)

Bookmark to

More

Law Firm Internet Marketing By SageRock

Since being launched in 1999, SageRock has specialized in law firm marketing. With the Internet becoming more and more popular each year, law firms can benefit from search engine optimization or a pay-per-click campaign. Internet users are constantly utilizing search engines to find a law firm to suit their needs, which makes the Internet a useful marketing tool for people in legal industry. As more and more people use search engines to find attorneys, the Internet is a valuable marketing tool and a great way for law firms to grow their client base.

When doing keyword research (finding words or phrases that search engine users are typing into search engines to find a service or product), different terms for lawyers, law firms and attorneys show up in the Google Keyword Tool (an online resource to do keyword research) as having as high volume search terms. These terms show high levels of search volume and the Google Keyword Tool shows the different types of attorneys search engine users are looking for. For example, typing  in the keyword “attorney” will show keywords such as “civil attorney”, “divorce attorney”, “family law attorney”, “medical malpractice attorney”, and much more.  This proves that search engines are being used to find different types of attorneys to fit their needs.

You can access the Google Keyword Tool by clicking the link below and try it for yourself:

https://adwords.google.com/select/KeywordToolExternal

When doing a keyword search by a region, terms related to attorneys, law firms and lawyers show up as having high search volume as well. For example, if someone typed in “Cleveland lawyers” into the Google Keyword Tool, it will display a large list of keywords related to lawyers in the Cleveland area. In other words, law firms can be found by search engine users in region specific searches and bring in new clients.

Based on how the Internet has become a great research and search tool for consumers, a search engine optimization campaign is a great way for law firms to drive more traffic to their web-sites and bring in new clients. By utilizing search engine optimization, law firms can have their web-site show up near the top of a search engine results page (also known as a SERP) without having to bid on keywords or pay the search engine money. In other words, the law firm’s web-site can show up near the top of the organic listings (meaning the business did not pay the search engine to be near the top of the SERP or bid on keywords) with a search engine optimization campaign. Someone in need of a specific type of attorney can simply type what he or she is looking for in the search engine and be able to get results right away. Web-sites closer to the top have a greater chance of being clicked on so utilizing a search engine optimization campaign can bring in more business for law firms.

Google will also provide a map near the top of a search engine results page to show organic listings. The Google search engine can detect the IP address (similar to a home address, this is where the server of an Internet connection is located) to find listings that are relevant to where the user lives. For example, if someone living in Shaker Heights is searching for a tax attorney, the Google search engine can find the person’s IP address and list law firms closest to that area. These listings come with a link to the web-site and the phone number is shown on the map making it easy for a search engine user to contact that business. A business can also lay claim to a specific listing in which a longer description, updated phone number and other features can be added. Laying claim to a listing also prohibits a competitor from going in and altering the information in that listing.

With a search engine comes the ability to bid on certain keywords in order for a web-site to show up in what is called a sponsored search. A sponsored search means the business pays to bid on keywords so their web-site shows up at the very top or on the side of a search engine results page. Web-sites listed in a sponsored search are listed in a shaded area near the top of the SERP or on the side where Internet users can easily click on them. These campaigns can be set up as a pay-per-click campaign meaning the business only pays the search engine whenever the link is clicked on. This is a cost effective way to market a business because a specific daily or monthly budget can be set and the results can be tracked easily. Law firms utilizing this approach can simply bid on keywords that are relevant to their business. For example, if a law firm specializes in education law, this law firm can bid on keywords like “education lawyer,” “education attorney”, “education law”, “education law firm” and more so that their firm shows up easily in a sponsored search.

With many different options available, the Internet is a valuable marketing tool for law firms. With a search engine optimization campaign, law firms have the ability of showing up near the top of a search engine results page and on a Google search map without having to pay the search engine money. Those wishing to pay to have their web-site near the top of a SERP can do so with a sponsored search and a pay-per-click campaign by bidding on keywords and phrases. The Internet has numerous opportunities ahead and the ability to bring more clients to law firms.

For more information on SageRock’s work with law firms, click on http://bit.ly/52ypMW.

Bookmark to

More

My Cleveland State University Search Engine Optimization Class

Since being launched several years ago, search engines have grown to become one of the most popular ways to find businesses, products and other information. With consumers looking for different products and services with a search engine, businesses utilizing search engine optimization have the opportunity to grow.

Taught by Sage Lewis of SageRock and Web Marketing Watch, Cleveland State’s Search Engine Optimization course shows you, the business owner, how customers can find your business on the Internet. By learning the importance of key phrase research, developing a web-site that can be accessed easily by a search engine, designing web pages for targeted key phrases, and link building, Sage will show you how the Internet can add value to your business.

With search engine optimization becoming more important each and every day, this class is a must for any business owner.

Previous web experience in HTML and CSS are helpful but not required. Additional information for Sage’s Cleveland State University Search Engine Optimization class  can be accessed at http://www.csuohio.edu/ce/catalog/courses/CPTR518601.html.

Bookmark to

More

eMarketing Techniques Conference in North Canton, Ohio – December 4, 2009

Business owners looking to learn more about emarketing will get their opportunity to do so at the eMarketing Techniques Conference will be taking place December 4^th in North Canton, Ohio.  Taking place at Stark State College, guests will have an opportunity to meet and hear lectures from industry leaders in web-marketing.

The eMarketing Conference Techniques Conference will feature Jeffrey Rohrs from ExactTarget as the keynote speaker. Rohrs, who has presented at other events around the country, serves as the Vice President of Marketing for ExactTarget and is the driving force behind the company’s social media, interactive and marketing education programs.

Scheduled to speak at the event will be Sage Lewis from SageRock and WebMarketingWatch.com, author and content strategist Joe Pulizzi, online community pioneer Don Philabaum, and Mike DeAloia from the LNE Group. The event will also feature sessions on using social media for web-marketing  purposes, using business blogs to generate leads, and improving web-site traffic by using search engine optimization, social media and other web-marketing strategies.

Anyone looking to attend the event is eligible to win a free admission pass courtesy of WebMarketingWatch.com. The pass is a $199 value and those looking to enter to win can do so at http://www.sagerock.com/stark. The winner will be chosen at random and will be announced in the Web Marketing Watch newsletter.

Bookmark to

More

Google does not use the keywords meta tag in web ranking

This has been the case for like forever. But for the record, let it go. The keywords tag has no value. It does, however, use the meta description tag.

For more information, please see the our blog post: http://googlewebmastercentr…

Bookmark to

More