Optimizing for Search Engines
Website Optimization Series Part 2 - Optimizing for Search Engines
[Continued from Part 1: What is Website Optimization?]
In its infancy, Search Engine Optimization, otherwise known as SEO, was centered around measuring and optimizing keyword frequency on your Website, optimizing Meta titles, descriptions and keywords and getting listed in as many Search Engines as possible. Today, SEO is much more involved.
Let's focus on Google for this article, the largest, and by far the most important Search Engine. The Web has changed, and so has Google. Optimizing your site's titles and keywords is no longer enough to remain competitive. As the Web expanded, and its index grew larger, it became more important for Google to deliver search results relevant to the user. This meant changing the fundamentals by which it derives its rank for a given Website.
The Continually Changing Landscape of Search Engines
Here are some examples will help to illustrate the changes Google has made over the years.
To rank well - then:
- Optimized Meta Title, Description and Keywords, H1 tags
- Optimized keyword ratio in your site's content
- Domain seniority
To rank well - now:
- All of the above
- The speed of your Website
- How many qualified Websites link to yours
- The quality of content on your site
- The ability for Google to properly spider/index your site
- Not using tactics that can lead to rank penalties
- Number of "votes" your site has received via the new +1 feature
- And much more!
In Part 3 we will look at optimizing your Website content, layout and navigation.
Need Some More Details About Website Optimization?
» View Custom Fit Online's search engine optimization services.
By Robert Valcourt