Ways to Optimize Traffic to Your Website
A search engine is a program that searches documents (web pages) for specified keywords and returns a list of the documents where the keywords were found. Specific search engines include Google, Yahoo, and Alta Vista. Search engine optimization (SEO) is the process of improving the visibility of a website or a web page in search engines.
SEO is a complex, time-consuming process in trying to get people to find your website. And really, it takes a lot more than just plugging in keywords!
Here are some ways you can optimize traffic to your website – and, some will also keep your readers on your site longer and have them wanting to come back again!
Onsite Optimization
- Optimize Meta Tags – These tags are what tell the search engines what each of your pages is about. It is desirable to align these meta tags so they perform at the very best to improve your search engine rankings for profitable targeted key phrases. Find out what the most important keywords in your sector or business area are.
- Link Structure Modifications – The Two-Click Rule: your pages should be no farther away than two clicks from your home page. This gives not only users easier navigation, but the search engine crawlers better ability to index (place pages in their database) your web pages.
- Create Quality Content that customers and clients will be looking for. Make your terms crystal clear, without jargon, and repeat them naturally in your copy. Hyperlink terms to other places on your site.
- Content Optimization – Use heading tags and keywords in strategic locations to assure a higher search engine rankings score.
- Change/Add to the Content Often – Static web sites don’t get found. Search engines look for changes. That’s why I love WordPress with its posts and categories!
- Use Anchor Text Wisely – Search engines crawl it. Use hyperlink keywords (instead of “click here”) you think your readers are looking for, or you wish they were searching for to find your site.
- Stay Away from Flash Animations on Your Landing Page – Flash looks good, but search engines don’t search it.
Offsite Optimization
- SEO Link Building – Obtain links that are theme related to your site.
- Article Marketing – While content is king to gain better rankings, article marketing is about creating that content and submitting it to thousands of article directories. These article directories are receiving millions of hits a day, so by adding optimized content not only is traffic increased, but links and page rankings are too.
- Directory Submission – A web directory is a directory of sites that are organized in categories and sub categories. The most crucial directories are the Google directory, Yahoo, Open directory (DMOZ), and LookSmart, etc. By submitting your site to these web directories this will help gain quality theme related one way links to attain better search engine rankings. Directory submissions will increase search engine visibility, link popularity, pin point traffic and business success.
- Social Marketing and Blog Posting – Involves posting content on the top web 2.0 marketing sites like Facebook, LinkedIn, Blogger, etc.
- Pay-Per-Click – Paying for the top spots in the search engines.
- Press Release Syndication – This technique is very beneficial. It involves submitting your content to press release sites and getting the word out to the world.
- Analytics Reporting – From accurate web analytics, modifications are made that are needed to bring your business a successful marketing campaign.