Search Engine Optimization (SEO) and Search Engine Marketing (SEM) play vital rolls in online business and should be implemented by any means. Without the use of SEO/SEM your business may be completely invisible to the billions of potential online customers. SEO/SEM is the process of attracting more visitors to your online business by better defining your business as a whole within the search engines. Though some SEO strategies may require more man hours and understanding than others; there are still tips and advice that can help even the most novice business owner:
1. Every business owner needs to keep track of their businesses search engine rank and results. It is important to keep track of the amount of visitors your site is receiving and the terms they use to discover your site. These search terms are the key to your SEO strategy.
2. These search terms should be placed throughout your site accordingly to maximize visitors. Terms that are most effective for SEO are your business title, services, location and content. The title tag and page header are the two most successful places to implement these search terms. In addition, it is dangerous to put ridiculous amounts of keywords throughout your page to gain more visitors. The site may be viewed as a spam site and may be skipped over by the search engines.
3. Try to keep your URLs user friendly and clear cut. For example, it is easier to understand what www.grassgreener.com/products/nomoreweeds may contain rather than www.grassgreener.com/17783/s301.htm. This makes it easier for search engines to search through your site thus making it easier for your visitors to discover your site.
4. Search engines can only search text, not text within your images. This makes it important to label all of your images accordingly to get a better read within the search engines. Keep the text within close proximity of the images while using descriptive key words that will benefit your SEO strategy.
5. Social Media is also a critical way to maximize your SEO. Distributing links of your content through social media networks can help you reach leads and sales otherwise viewed unattainable. Whether the links are spread through tweets, comments or word of mouth this strategy adds to the many ways visitors can come across your business.
