Thursday, August 27, 2009

Announcing Proven Search Engine Optimization Methods

By Michael Fleischner

Search engine optimization is made up of two different disciplines that must work with one another to be truly successful. The two areas you have to master including on page optimization and off page optimization. Web sites that are successful at both can achieve search engine optimization success.

If you want your search engine optimization strategy to carry you for a long time, you'll have to start with well thought through strategy. You should be aware that building search engine optimization success starts with on page optimization. Just like building a great house, you have to begin with a strong foundation. On page optimization gives you that strong base that enhances your link building and other off-page optimization techniques.

The place to begin when thinking about on-page optimization is with URLs and the overall structure of your web site. The reason we want to start here is because the URL is one of the most visible aspects of a web site. However, don't put too much emphasis on the domain name as that is only part of the on-page optimization game. It definitely helps with Yahoo and MSN but not as much with Google.

A really good way to implement a sub-domain strategy is by evaluating your keywords and identifying a small handful of sub-domains to implement. Choose your most important keywords to set up as sub-domains and focus your efforts on a top level domain with direct links to your subdomains. This ensures that your sub-domains are crawled on a routine basis and appear within search results.

While considering the subdomain strategy, you can also implement another URL strategy that is equally as effective. Although it's been debated in search engine optimization circles, I've implemented both a sub-domain strategy as well as the following strategy and they are equally effective. Instead of implementing a sub-domain, simply create a page that includes your keyword as part of the actual URL. One example would be yoursite.com/yourkeyword where your key word is the actual keyword or keyword phrase you are trying to optimize for.

Once you've figured out your URL strategy, the next step is to focus on other on-page factors. Although there are more than can be mentioned in this brief overview that you should be paying attention to, there are a couple that I believe are more important that others. Page load times and W3C validated code are vital to your web site's search rankings. Make sure your code is properly written and your web pages load quickly.

Once you have gone through all of the necessary on page optimization attributes associated with a high ranking web site, you should\its time to focus on off page optimization. Off page optimization is really a function of how the search engines see your site and how other web pages link to your own web site or blog. Off page optimization is often equated to link building as building external links to your site is at the core of search engine optimization.

Start with on page optimization to build a strong foundation to your web site. Once you have the proper domain structure and address other on page optimization factors, you will be in a good position to roll out your link building strategy. As you develop more inbound links, your search engine results will improve.

About the Author: