Search Engine Optimization

SEO is the acronym for Search Engine Optimization You will hear and read more nonsense on the subject of search engine optimization than almost anything else on the web. The truth is make your content relevant and keep it fresh. To get high search engine rankings ensure you create quality content, relevant linkage and researched, targeted keywords.
If you do that, the engines will find you. Getting to the top of the rankings, however, needs a little more skill.
SEO increases targeted traffic to the site - not any old traffic - targeted traffic - customers who want to buy.
Effective search engine promotion and optimization is mandatory for businesses that want to drive targeted traffic to their web site.
Simply adding hundreds of meta tagged keywords doesn't work. Why not? Because most search engines ignore keywords in the meta tags.
Optimizing your site, the process of optimization, and submitting it to search engines is an important e-marketing function, but few truly understand how it works, or how to do it properly.
Here are some of the things to do:
• Review competitor sites
• Benchmark current page ranks
• Analyze / redevelop site architecture
• Research key phrases
• Develop meta tags
• Add XML site maps.
• Add robot files to assist easier spidering
• On page optimization
• Cross link internal pages
• Cross link client owned domains
• Create and implement links campaigns
• Create and implement online PR campaigns.
Additionally optimizing means knowing how to write effective copy - compelling to people, yet focused for search engine algorithms.
Remember though... search engines can only rank on text - so that beautiful all singing all graphics Flash intro to a site won't get ranked.....
If you're serious about getting and retaining high rankings you need to think through and create a complete strategy; and then follow up regularly. Successful SEO is a time consuming business and long learning curve.
Optimizing your site greatly involves Web analytics.
Unlike offline marketing, web analytics, site tracking and web statistics means you can discover precisely how, when and why your visitors react to your offers.
So tracking visitor routes and reactions on your web site is not just to garner statistics. Sifting through the data will provide nuggets of gold - information that will tell precisely when, where and what your visitors are doing, and how interested they are. Right now it's probable that 50% leave within 3 seconds of hitting your home page. By analyzing traffic data in conjunction with your business objectives you can see exactly what you need to change to meet your goals.
Web analytics, site tracking and web measurement are not rocket science but it is complicated and needs experience and skill to interpret the results and make cost effective recommendations for change.
And it needs to be done regularly to make the most of you investment.