How to Improve Search Engine Rankings

If you want to drive more traffic to your website, you've got to know how to improve search engine rankings.

About Search Engine Rankings

Okay, here's a little Search Engine 101. When someone types a word or phrase, aka keyword, into their computer's search mechanism, a search engine such as Google or Yahoo takes the phrase and pulls up all websites connected to the search words, which could be one or more pages worth of websites. The order the websites are listed in is determined by how much content they have related to the requested topic, so generally the first website listed should have the largest amount of relevant content.

Now, the average user will only look at items on the first page, so website owners really want to be in the first five to ten sites listed in order to get the most traffic for their site.

What Most Search Engines Are Looking For

Most search engines base their rankings on three criteria:

• Meta Tag Descriptions- A basic summary of a website's content. Meta Tags should also include keywords.
• Links- Links connect one website to another, and the more quality links a site has leading to it, the better its ranking should be.
• Keywords- Targeted words or phrases about the website's subject that are commonly used when internet users search for information and sites.

Some search engines consider link popularity the most important criteria, while others may put more weight on meta tags or keywords. Comparing popular search engine statistics will reveal how much importance different search engines put on these three criteria. Since you can't predict which search engine will be used, it's a good idea to utilize all three criteria to optimize your webpage for the best possible ranks.

How to Improve Search Engine Ranking with Meta Tags

A well written Meta Tag description of your website provides some search engines with the main criteria for their search engine rankings. Limit the description to no more than 250 words, and include a main keyword in the title, first sentence, and body of the description.

How Search Engines Look at Links

Persuading other websites to link with your own is a good way to improve search engine rankings. To reach your target audience, it's a good idea to link to websites and E-zines with topics similar to your own. Many sites will agree to add your link if you return the favor for them. Choosing to link with sites that already receive high rankings is one of the fastest ways to improve your own standing.

How to Improve Search Engine Rankings with Keyword Articles

Including well written keyword articles on your site is a terrific way to improve the traffic that the search engines send your way. A good keyword article uses one main keyword/phrase, and perhaps one or two supporting phrases throughout the body of the article in order to catch a search engine's attention. A keyword density of approximately 3% for the main term is good enough to improve search engine rankings without reaching the limit for what would be considered spam, and doesn't seem overly repetitious to the reader. The articles must be on topic for the website, and including a few internal links to other areas within the site also enhances the search engine optimization. By adding new topical articles each week, you can keep your website fresh for viewers and still improve rankings.

Paying for Position

If all of this seems a little too confusing, there is another option as to how to improve search engine rankings. Most search engines have a space at the top of their pages for paid links. For a monthly fee, you can list your website at the top of the search engine page that matches your topic. This can be a good option for a webstore that makes enough money to support paying for the placement, but smaller sites may find the payment a burden.

Avoid Spamming

Certain practices will get your site listed as spam by the search engines and you will not get a ranking. These practices may include:

• Using keywords excessively- If you are using keywords at a rate of 5% or greater, you are highly likely to be considered spamming by the major search engines. Keep it near 3% and you should be fine.
• Repeating the same information from page to page. You may be increasing your content, but pages that resemble each other too closely may be considered spam, and are not a good use of your webspace.
• Using invisible text. When you use the same colored text as your background you create a text that is invisible to the reader, but not the search engines. Search engines were once fooled by this tactic for inserting excess keyword content, but today's search engines recognize the spam for what it is, and you may be penalized for this practice.

Conclusion

As you can see, there are many ways to do search engine optimization on your web site. The idea is to use these practices better than your competitors. Try putting in a search in your own website category, and see who's listed first in the search engine results. Then study that website, and see if you can use similar techniques, but perhaps doing it just a little bit better. Design your own site accordingly, and then submit it to the search engines. If you do everything right, you may just be able to claim the number one spot in the search results for yourself.

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