subject: Seo Marketing: Optimize For Success [print this page] The internet is the fastest growing news and entertainment medium of modern time. With millions of people searching for billions of websites on just a few choice search engines, marketing geniuses are not the only people realizing the advertising potential of this vessel. The concept is simple; when a user wishes to find information on a subject or certain type of product, he or she types a keyword into the engine's search bar and is answered with upwards of a few thousand results. Even the most dedicated internet searcher only browses the first three or four pages, so how does one get a website into that miniscule percentage at the top of the ranking? The answer is SEO marketing.
SEO stands for Search Engine Optimization. Basically, the order of websites in a search result is optimized according to the best and most relevant websites. The SEO process is one that both companies and individuals should be aware of when creating a sales marketing website, for it makes the website more favorable in the eyes of the search engine and increases its likelihood of being shown within those first three pages.
Recent studies have stated nearly 60% of websites lack the proper formatting and/or programming to be effectively optimized on a search engine. Considering SEO when creating a webpage is an easy way to prevent this tragedy. Search engines look for several key things when ranking a page: content, keywords, links, age and more. Content seeks out which words are most used, or keywords, as well as the website's overall subject. Keywords, however, also need to be found in the title and URL. Links, both external and internal, must lead to relevant pages and information. Age simply refers to the age of the page itself and its domain name. There are many more elements mixed into ranking a webpage, but a trend is easily recognizable: anything that makes a website appear more valid or relative to a specific topic boosts its ranking.
SEO companies and organizations have capitalized on this complicated process. Many have created expensive programs with features such as "SEO Checks," which scan a webpage and estimate a ranking for the page before it is published. The program will then suggest ways to improve the website's ranking, and charge for those as well. Prices for such services can run anywhere between $100 to $1,500 dollars per month. Though some would consider this a necessity, others ask, why pay so much for something that can be done independently?
Anyone can use SEO fundamentals to create a popular, high ranking website. Advancing the rank of a webpage is simple with use of the following tips: major keywords should be in the title, URL and title tags, different keywords should be used for various website pages, and any provided links must be limited to websites that fully support the content of the original. Though these tips will not instigate the success of a webpage overnight, they provide a solid base in an ever-changing virtual market place. They are tools to help one keep up with the fastest growing news and entertainment medium of modern time.
