Google: What You REALLY Need To Know

 

The Basics

The hottest topic in web design right now is Search Engine Optimization and Online Marketing.  There are a ton of books and a million websites on the topic with everyone claiming to be the expert.  Anyone with any knowledge in how the Search Engines work now claims to be an expert in Search Engine Optimization.  It sounds easy enough.  All you really have to do is make sure that your website has the right information, you have a ton of backlinks and you pay the most amount of money for Google Adwords.  That should get you to the top, correct?  Wrong!  I’ve put together a few frequently asked questions about Search Engine Optimization.

 Can anyone Guarantee 1st Page Listings?

The easy answer to this question is no, there is no way to guarantee 1st page listings.  According to Google, any company seeking help with Search Engine Optimization should be careful to avoid companies that promise 1st page (or #1) rankings on Google.  The reason for this is simple.  No one actually knows what the exact algorithm that Google uses is.  There are over 200 different criteria that Google uses in order to determine the relevancy of your website to the search being performed.  SEOmoz gets a panel of experts together every two years and they have come up with what they believe the ranking factors to be.  This report is shared through their website and is available to those interested in reviewing the data.

What types of Search Engine Optimization are there?

For the purpose of this article, we will just talk about the two different types of Search Engine Optimization that can be performed for your website.  These types are On Page SEO and Off Page SEO.

On Page SEO

On Page SEO is any optimization done to the actual website.  This includes optimizing the content of your pages so that the key words are found on the site.  The optimal amount of keyword density is 4%.  Anything over 4% could cause your website to be penalized by Google for keyword stuffing.  In addition, you want to make sure that your keyword appears in at least one of the heading tags on your site.  Does your page contain pictures?  Make sure that all of the pictures of alternative text associated with the pictures.  At least one picture on your page should have alternative text that contains your primary keyword.

Off Page SEO

Off page Search Engine Optimization is exactly what it says, optimization that is done off of your specific web page.  This includes such activities as directory listings and additional backlinks to your website.

What are backlinks and why are they important?

A backlink is any link from another website to your website.  Think of a backlink as a recommendation from one site to another.  Google uses these “recommendations” to determine your website authority and place in the search results.  The more quality backlinks that a website has, the more likely it is to rank higher in the search engines.
When creating backlinks, make sure that your website is not being listed on what is referred to as a link farm.  These websites exist only to create a lot of low cost backlinks to different websites.  Google has blacklisted these types of websites and will penalize your site if it is listed on one of these sites.






Beginning this year, Google has also began penalizing companies using comment spam to create backlinks to different websites.  Comment spam is referred to as the practice of commenting in forums and websites and including a link to your website.  There are applications that will search the web and add these comments to hundreds of sites a day.  This practice is typically a part of Black Hat SEO.

Backlinks are important to Search Engine Optimization but they are not the only important factor.

What Directories should my business be listed in?

There are a certain directories that every business should be listed in.  Not only do these directories create authority backlinks to your site but their listings have high search rankings as well.  Here are ten different directories that every business should be listed in:

• YP.com
• Manta.com
• MerchantCircle.com
• HotFrog.com
• BrownBook.com
• Google Local
• Yahoo Local
• Bing Maps
• Superpages.com
• Local.com

While I have provided a list of ten directories here, there are hundreds of online directories that are available.  If you are interested in learning more about the different directories, let us know!

Should I set up a Google AdWords or PPC campaign?

The answer to this question isn’t as simple.  Some businesses benefit from setting up a Google AdWords campaign while others don’t.  If your business is already ranking highly in the search engines then it may be a waste of money.  Creating a Google AdWords campaign means that your website will appear in the paid advertisement listings to the right of the search results.  If someone clicks on your ad, then you will be charged a set amount that you specify when setting up the campaign.  It is important to make sure that you set a maximum dollar amount in this campaign as pay per click campaigns can get quite expensive if not managed correctly.

Search Engine Optimization

Search Engine Optimization is important to the success of your website.  You can have the best looking website in your industry but if can’t be found by potential clients then you have wasted your money.  If you are attempting to do your own Search Engine Optimization, make sure that you have studied the latest information.  You will need to stay up to date with any current Google Algorithm updates to make sure that your website isn’t penalized.  And most importantly, understand that nothing happens overnight.  The old saying “Rome wasn’t built in a day” can be applied to website optimization as well.  Rankings take time depending on the popularity of the keywords that you have chosen.  If you find that you are getting overwhelmed, seek out a professional.

What is Internet Marketing?

Depending on whom you ask, the term Internet marketing can mean a variety of things. At one time, Internet marketing consisted mostly of having a website or placing banner ads on other websites. On the other end of the spectrum, there are loads of companies telling you that you can make a fortune overnight on the Internet and who try to sell you some form of "Internet marketing program".

Today, Internet marketing, or online marketing, is evolving into a broader mix of components a company can use as a means of increasing sales - even if your business is done completely online, partly online, or completely offline. The decision to use Internet marketing as part of a company's overall marketing strategy is strictly up to the company of course, but as a rule, Internet marketing is becoming an increasingly important part of nearly every company's marketing mix. For some online businesses, it is the only form of marketing being practiced.

Internet Marketing Objectives

Essentially, Internet marketing is using the Internet to do one or more of the following:

Communicate a company's message about itself, its products, or its services online.

Conduct research as to the nature (demographics, preferences, and needs) of existing and potential customers.

Sell goods, services, or advertising space over the Internet.

Internet Marketing Components

Components of Internet marketing (or online marketing) may include:

Setting up a website , consisting of text, images and possibly audio and video elements used to convey the company's message online, to inform existing and potential customers of the features and benefits of the company's products and/or services. The website may or may not include the ability to capture leads from potential customers or directly sell a product or service online. Websites can be the Internet equivalents of offline brochures or mail order catalogs and they are a great way to establish your business identity.

Search Engine Marketing (SEM), which is marketing a website online via search engines, either by improving the site's natural (organic) ranking through search engine optimization (SEO), buying pay-per-click (PPC) ads or purchasing pay-for-inclusion (PFI) listings in website directories, which are similar to offline yellow page listings.

Email marketing, which is a method of distributing information about a product or service or for soliciting feedback from customers about a product or service through Email. Email addresses of customers and prospective customers may be collected or purchased. Various methods are used, such as the regular distribution of newsletters or mass mailing of offers related to the company's product or services. Email marketing is essentially the online equivalent of direct mail marketing.

Banner advertising, which is the placement of ads on a website for a fee. The offline equivalent of this form of online marketing would be traditional ads in newspapers or magazines.

Online press releases, which involve placing a newsworthy story about a company, its website, its people, and/or its products/services with on online wire service.

Blog marketing, which is the act of posting comments, expressing opinions or making announcements in a discussion forum and can be accomplished either by hosting your own blog or by posting comments and/or URLs in other blogs related to your product or service online.

Article marketing, which involves writing articles related to your business and having them published online on syndicated article sites. These articles then have a tendency to spread around the Internet since the article services permit re-publication provided that all of the links in the article are maintained. Article marketing can result in a traffic boost for your website, and the distribution of syndicated articles can promote your brand to a wide audience.

Social media marketing, which can involve social networks like Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook and social bookmarking sites like Digg.

Internet Marketing and Home Business

Of all of the components of Internet marketing, prospective customers and clients expect a business to have a website. In fact, not having one could raise a red flag to a prospect. Online usage has become so pervasive today, many prospects might easily choose to do business with a company that they can get up-to-date information on 24 hours per day, 7 days per week.

Even a business that only has very local customers, such as a single location restaurant or shoe store can benefit from having a website and engaging in online marketing. And, those businesses whose customers are not restricted to a geographical area might have a difficult time finding an alternate method of attracting customers that offers the reasonably low expense and worldwide reach of a Web presence.

Because of the "virtual" nature of most home businesses, websites, if not an absolute necessity, can certainly provide benefits to a home business operator. Since most home-based businesses don't have a physical location, a website provides an inexpensive means for prospects to get to know what you do or what you sell and can even be a "storefront" for selling goods and services directly.

The Internet has greatly enabled home businesses to prosper because of the reasonably low cost to start and maintain a web presence. Therefore, Internet marketing should be part of your business plan and your marketing strategy.