While it is unquestionable that there are numerous elements to understanding and implementing an effective Search Engine Optimization (SEO) strategy one thing is fairly consistent amongst novices and experts alike - Content is King. The fundamental component of any website is it's content. Content is what people search for and what they will spend time reading and browsing (translating to time spent on your site). Consequently, content is what automated search engine robots also look for and use to determine a website's value and relevance to a search phrase.
Any individual or business that has, or is planning on, developing a website must be willing to spend some focused time determining exactly what it is they want to say, and how they want to say it. It is also important to consider how you will keep your website fresh. For example, you should consider adding a Latest News section to your site where you can, if you desire, add new content on a daily basis. The search engines also like content that is updated regularly. Blogs tend to do well in the search engine rankings because they are, by definition, a frequently changing compilation of articles. Allowing readers to comment and add their own input to Blog articles is another good way to keep a steady stream of new content flowing.
The static content on your site, e.g., about us, our history, etc. should be well written, informative, and should contain the key word phrases that are consistent with the product or service you are providing. Don't try to stuff keywords that aren't relevant to what you do just to try and capture more visits it will only increase your bounce rate. The search engines are also much smarter these days and are getting pretty good at detecting schemes designed simply to capture clicks. Focus on relevant and meaningful words and phrases within well written sentences and you should be ok. Don't waste your time trying to second-guess the search engines and fake them out, it will only hurt you in the long run.
Of course, excellent content alone is not enough to improve your website's SEO. There are numerous underlying technical details that must also be considered when designing a website. At Amherst Partners we develop the majority of our client's websites on the Joomla CMS Platform using templates from RocketTheme - both are optimized for search engines. In conjunction with Joomla and RocketTheme templates we also install licensed SEO and SEF (Search Engine Friendly) extensions that take care of things like producing human (and search engine) friendly URLs and assisting in creating the important meta-data (title, description, and keywords) associated with all the content on the site. And, although we purchase developer licenses to some of these tools, we do not charge extra for including them in the websites that we develop. You can read more about our SEO offerings here.
Last Updated on Tuesday, 07 December 2010 18:02
