SEO and More

I just published this excellent article by Robin Nobles, called “Chasing the Search Engines’ Algorithms . . . Should you or Shouldn’t you?” .

All the points that Robin makes in the article are especially important for those looking to get high rankings in the long-term. I know this approach works because I wrote the manual on it. The sites I used it on are still #1 for their choice of key phrase even after YEARS…

When you chase algorithms, you’re have to keep running to stay one step ahead of the search engines and the changes in their algorithms. How well you do then depends on how far you’re willing to run. We believe that approach is strictly suitable for those looking for short-term gains.

One the other hand, when you create a website with good content, backed up by a well-planned, well-executed linking campaign you’re setting yourself up for success in the long term, and your time and effort is spent building a great brand that will attract links, publicity and traffic for a long time to come.

Which would you rather have? If you’re wise, you’ll choose the latter.

In that case, you should keep Robin’s recommendations in mind -

1. Forget about the search engines. Write your web content for your readers and visitors.
2. Keep the basic SEO rules in mind so that your pages are well optimized.
3. Focus each page on ONE keyword phrase only.
4. Add fresh content, use synonyms

I especially liked this statement by Jerry West of WebMarketingNow.

“Take it from someone who has been in this business for nine years and studies the algorithms closely - don’t chase the algorithms. You say that you have a #2 ranking for a certain keyword phrase that alone is bringing your site 550 visitors per day? Great. In the time that you have spent gaining that ranking, I have written 285 pages of unique content, obtained 821 links, etc., and collectively I am getting over 1,300 visitors per day.”

Focus on building a more useful website and reap the rewards of top rankings in the long-term.

This entry was posted on Friday, October 21st, 2005 at 6:24 am and is filed under Search Engine Optimization. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.