Search engine optimization changed the world of online marketing forever. Once website owners realized that you could optimize your website for the search engines, many blogs shot to the top of Google and other popular search engines. Unfortunately, Google released the Panda update and other changes to its algorithm to penalize website owners who were trying to game the system by stuffing their posts with keywords and paying other people to link to their pages. Now that Google is demanding quality, blog owners must use other methods of search engine optimization. Use these tips to improve your rankings and drive more traffic to your website.
Avoid Keyword Stuffing
In the early days of SEO, all you had to do to improve your ranking was to make sure your blog posts repeated your keyword as many times as possible. Unfortunately, this practice made text sound like spam. Keyword-stuffed text was hard for people to read and did little to improve each user’s experience. The search engines started cracking down on this old SEO practice, so now it is best to avoid keyword stuffing. Instead of trying to hit a certain keyword density when you write your posts, include your keyword naturally in the text. Use similar phrases in place of your keyword wherever they make sense. This will make it easier for people to read your text, keeping them on your site for longer periods of time.
Ensure User-Friendly Navigation
One of the cardinal rules of good website design is that users should be able to get to any page of your site with no more than two mouse clicks. If you want people to keep visiting your blog, you should keep this rule in mind and make it easy to navigate. Create a menu that allows people to quickly access your contact information and privacy policy. Create categories and tags that make it easy for people to find content that is relevant to their interests. Simple navigation will make it more likely that people will bookmark your site and return when they need information related to your industry.
Avoid Unnatural Backlinks
Another early SEO strategy involved paying people for backlinks or trading links with other website owners. Google and other search engines now look at your link profile when determining your ranking, so it is important to have a profile that includes natural links. The best way to attract natural links is to publish content that people find useful and information. They will be more inclined to share your content and link to your website when you publish this type of content. This will prevent you from having to trade links with other people or use any other SEO tactics that could get your website penalized in the search engine rankings.
Improve Your Bounce Rate
The term “bounce rate” refers to visitors who come to your site and then leaves without viewing other pages. The search engines see a high bounce rate as an indicator that you may not be providing content that people want to read. A high bounce rate could negatively impact your search engine rankings, so it is important to control this metric. Reduce your bounce rate by publishing high-quality content that answers reader questions or gives them information they need. Add internal links to other pages on your site to entice readers to read other pages.
All of the above techniques are easy to use if you have SEO experience. If you are new to blogging or search engine optimization, however, you can benefit from the knowledge and experience of a search engine optimization consultant. Consider hiring an SEO consultant to guide you in optimizing your site for the search engines and publishing content that your visitors will love to read.
pavan @(pavanh.com)
very nice and effective tips in detail about seo