Simple strategies to help you be seen in search engines

If you are a business and you have researched how to get leads to your site, then SEO or search engine optimization has most likely come up. Among the strategies for building your visibility on search engines is the practice of keywording a site. This may sound a bit confusing to some, and honestly many small businesses and even professionals tend to get the concept wrong. Here are a few tips which can help you to effectively optimise your site.

Know what your site is about

I am sure that you have a firm grasp upon your business and the services that you offer, but does your website convey this? Is the information which is presented directly relevant to your goods and services, or is it a bit ambiguous? The text of your site should give precise information as to what you offer. This is the first step to keywording. Consider.

We offer beverages to the local community

Or

(Your company’s name) offers freshly brewed coffee from Columbia, expressos, lattes, mochas, and cappuccinos, as well as other specialty coffees to (your city)

By putting in the specific information not only do you make your visitors more aware of the specifics of your business, but you broaden your range of searched words.

Keyword phrases not words

One of the worst mistakes that a small business can do when keywording is to use generic words to try to get to the top of the SERPs (search engine results page). It is usually a futile attempt to get seen. Think about it this way. If you offer printing and you put the word printing into your page, then that word will be recognized by search engines, but your site placement will be competing with every single site which has the word printing within the text. Instead of being generic with your keywords, use phrases. Luxury business card printing is more specific and narrows down the competitive field a bit, making you rise in the SERPs.

Add brief descriptions under pictures

While tags and the ability to share photos via social media is important for you site, so is a typed description under the photos. Being as descriptive as possible (but not writing a book) identify what is in the picture as well as where you acquired it. If a bird is sitting on a branch eating a berry type “Bluebird on a Cedar Tree eating a blueberry”. While this may not help with your services it will help people find that picture which drives traffic to your site. The more traffic you receive the higher your rankings.

Do a keyword search

In order to find the best keywords to use in your text, do a keyword search. There are several sites which have you pay for the services of keyword searching. Why do that? Use Google to help you for Google searches:

1. Create a Google AdSense account
2. Click on tools then go to Keyword Planner
3. Type in a phrase or a word for your keyword search
4. Type in your site landing page
5. Select your industry
6. Click search

You will note that the results give you a suggested bid. Ignore this unless you want to start a campaign. What you need to look at is the High, Medium, and Low average monthly searches. These words and phrases show you what is searched as it pertains to your site. If you want to see which phrases have the most views click on the Ad suggestion tab.

Use what you have learned

Now that you know which words have the highest search rate, and you know that phrases are more acceptable for keywording your site, it is time to re-type the information on the site to match the demands of the SERPs. Do not over stuff your website with keywords or you will be marked and fall back in the rankings. I try to stay within 3 to 4 uses on a page of one specific phrase. Keep in mind that you can use multiple keyword phrases to build up your keywords.

A note about keywords

Keywords should not dictate your site. Ensure that your text is easy to read and that the person visiting the site can engage in the content. If a site reads like spam or a marketing pitch, the viewer will not share snippets, will not read the content, and will not purchase your services or products. You must find a balance between your online marketing and your customer service to encourage your customers to share the information of your site while at the same time keywording the site so that the information is searchable on Google, Bing, Yahoo, and MSN.