Search Engine OptimizationSEO

Jeff Carey | Blue Traffic

1. Definition of SEO

2. Current State of Search

3. Organic vs. Paid

4. How Search Works

5. SEO Recipe

6. SE Ranking Factors

7. Why It Matters

8. Advice / Resources

Definition

Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is the process of improving the volume and quality of traffic to a web site from search engines via "natural" (organic or algorithmic) search results. (Wikipedia)

The State of Search• Next to email, Search is the most popular online activity• Search engine results continue to get better every year• Today, Google knows about more than 1 trillion web

pages, and they find 2 billion new ones every day• Just as we rely on search engines, they need our help to

improve their relevance.• Good or bad…we are what Google says we are.

Share of Search MarketAugust 2008

Google 65%Yahoo 20%MSN/Live 10%Ask 3%

Others 2%Google

Yahoo

MSN

Our Work & Play begin with

Search

Organic Vs. Paid

Pay Per Click (PPC)

Local Results (Maps)

Organic Results (SEO)

Eye Tracking Study – Enquiro

Over 50% of all clicks were on the first 3 organic results.

- Location- Relevance - Page Title - Description - URL

How Search Engines Work1. Search engine bots/spiders are continuously crawling the web,

making note of new pages and content. They are not overly sophisticated, which is why html sites with properly built links/navigation often outrank more dynamic sites that use Flash and JavaScript links.

2. Specialized search spiders later return to web pages to gather this new information and it is eventually added to the search engine’s index. Again, these bots are basic…they can read text and links, but not much else.

3. When you conduct a search, the results are displayed almost magically, but a lot is happening behind the scenes. Results are pulled from the current Index, based on a complex algorithm.

13

SEO Recipe

On Page FactorsPage TitleKeywords in ContentHeading Tags

Keyword ResearchHow do people search?Competition level2-4 word phrases

Link BuildingInternal ExternalAnchor Text

Improved RankingsBetter VisibilityIncreased TrafficMore Leads/Sales

1. Keyword Use in Title Tag

2. Overall Popularity of Site – “Trust” & “Authority”

3. Anchor Text of Inbound Link

4. Age of Site

5. Internal Link Structure

6. Keyword Use in Page Content

7. Outbound Links to Quality/Relevant Sites

8. Age of Page

9. Keyword Use in Heading Tags (H1, H2, H3)

10. Age of Link

Source: SeoMoz.org

Search Engine Ranking Factors

Why It Matters

SEO is important because it improves the odds of someone finding your company online.

Online visibility can help your credibilityand brand awareness.

Improved rankings don’t always translate to more traffic and sales.

Think like your customers, then verify how people search. SEO can put you in front of the people looking for your products & services.

Your online marketing efforts should be focused on an end result.

Make sure your website/landing page makes it easy for visitors to sign up, join, request information, buy, or whatever else you seek.

Why It Matters

Both Clients

Free Traffic

Paid Traffic

Why It MattersGoogle Adwords Keyword Tool

27,000 X 10% = 2700 Free Visitors (PPC would cost $51k)

If just 1% get a mortgage: 27 X $2,000 = $54,000/mo. revenue

Getting this same traffic from PPC would cost over $50k.

Dear website owner,

I visited your website and noticed that you are not listed in many of the major search engines and directories. If our company can increase your traffic up to 500% by getting you top ranking results on the search engines such as Google would you be interested? We specialize in link building content writing and programming. We have proprietary techniques that work better and are less expensive than any other SEO firm.

Stay away from outrageous claims!

SEO Advice

Hello, I came across your website ******.com, and would like to propose a link exchange between your site and

***.com.

Please consider adding our link to your site on your page: http://www.******************************

Here is our linking information:

Title: Skateboard Description: SLINGZ is a unique Hands-Free Skateboard Strap for Skaters who traverse all terrain. URL: http://www.************

HTML Code

<a href="http://www.********.com" target="_blank"><b>Skateboard</b></a> SLINGZ is a unique Hands-Free Skateboard Strap for Skaters who traverse all terrain.

Don’t exchange links with unrelated websites!

More SEO Advice

1. SearchEngineLand.com

2. SEOmoz.org

3. SEObook.com

4. BruceClay.com

5. Sphinn.com

6. SearchEngineWatch.com

7. HighRankings.com

8. SEMPO.org

9. MattCutts.com/blog

10.WebmasterRadio.fm (podcasts)

Useful SEO Resources

Thank You.

Questions?