Website Design & SEO Blog | Tips for Online Success

1. Write for Humans: And that also means write for the right humans. A good search engine optimizer gets to know the product or service he/she is marketing from the inside out before attempting to optimize the content. Once you know the proper terminology, research those keyword phrases and determine which words phrases are most commonly used. While it is sometimes more appealing to aim for the words with the most searches, those phrases are generally more competitive. Search engine optimization may yield more results if one develops content with less popular, yet relevant, keywords. Finally, remember to include keywords but also make sure that it reads in way so that those keywords were used in an organic fashion.

Matt Cutts – a Google Webmaster – explains optimal keyword usage.

2. Write for the Internet: Think about the way you read content on other websites: do you read through it carefully and analytically or skim for what you were looking for? Generally, people tend to read content they find on the web very quickly. To facilitate this process, it helps to break down content into short paragraphs and make clear, relevant headings and subheadings. Using your keywords in headings is also a fantastic way to optimize your content.
3. Write Something New: What is the point of reading your article if it has already been said over and over again? In fact, search engines will actually penalize you for directly copying content without crediting the original article. But what if what you are writing has to do with your specific industry? When you cannot avoid writing roughly the same thing, find a new way to present it. High-quality pictures and graphics are a wonderful way to develop your content. Video is also a fantastic method to express information and is also heavily favored by search engines.
4. Write for your City: Writing about locations, culture, issues relevant to your company’s location is a good search engine optimization technique because it makes it seem that you are writing for reasons other than improving rankings. Aside from giving your content a more natural feel, it also lures in more relevant viewers because your website has a clear geographical target. While using colloquialisms may not enhance you rankings, using phrases such as “the inner Houston Loop” or the “Houston Rodeo” hints to search engines where you are, which allows you to improve rankings in your zip code.

Now that you have these tipes on content development, you can implement them in your own search engine optimization strategy. For more information concerning SEO and content development, call Directory One at 713.465.0051 or visit www.directoryone.com.

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In today’s marketplace where a growing number of consumers are turning to Internet shopping, a company is only as good as its online reputation. Even though shopping online has become commonplace, consumers are still wary of dealing with companies they can’t see face to face. For this reason, these potential customers are doing their homework on companies before they do business with them. So, when they search for your company, do you know what they’ll find?

Ego Search

An ego search is the act of searching for one’s own name online. Even though the term conjures up images of self-importance, it’s actually a type of search every business owner should be performing on a regular basis. If you’re not doing this, you could be exposing your business to lost sales and declining profits due to negative search results.

The Results Are In!

For the sake of this article, let’s say your ego search turns up unflattering results about your company. What do you do? Don’t panic. Using simple SEO techniques, you can take control of your online reputation.

• Optimize Your Page- Chances are you are ranking very well for your own name. That’s usually the least of your problems. However, you might be able to make a bigger impact on the SERPs by branding your pages and blog with your company name. Of course, you don’t want to remove the keywords from the titles, but you can still include your company name along with those targeted keywords.
• Take Advantage of Article Directories- We all know the importance of using article directories and online press releases to take control of the top rankings for your keywords. Since these pages tend to rank very well quickly, you can use them to flush the negative results out of the top SERPs. Develop several articles and press releases that include your company’s name, and you will soon be dominating the first few pages of search results.
• Get into Social Networking- Social networking has many benefits for your business. Not only can it be used for building your brand and connecting with consumers, social networking can also play an important role in your online reputation management. Profiles on these sites tend to rank very well in the search engines. By creating profiles on sites like Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn, you can take control of what users will see when they search for your company’s name.

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