Want to get your Web site to appear high up in the results when someone is looking for the kind of stuff you sell? Today, I'll share with you some keys to drive traffic to your Web site.
Remember, there are two ways to appear when someone types in "keywords" into a search engine:
>> Search engine optimization (SEO) — designing and writing your Web site to naturally rank high in search engine results.
>> Search engine marketing (SEM) — paying for a listing adjacent to keywords that you choose.
In my just-released book, Successful Marketing: Secrets & Strategies, I've covered the full range of marketing tactics for small businesses. But SEO and SEM are increasingly important, as they drive highly motivated prospects directly to your Web site. Moreover, with SEM, you pay only for those who actually "click through" to your Web site, so it makes search engine advertising particularly attractive to small companies.
Find right words, repeatWith both SEO and SEM, the most important step is to clearly identify which keywords searchers are likely to use when looking for the types of products, services, or content you offer. Then you must make sure you've "optimized" your site for those keywords by using them over and over throughout your site — in your content, headlines, page names, additional Web pages and more.
Search engine optimization (SEO)
If you want your site to appear high in results without paying for ads, choosing which keywords to use throughout your site is critical. Choose the most narrowly defined terms appropriate to your products, services or content.
Let's say your company creates math software for kids. You could use terms such as "educational software," "math software," "kids software." But your site won't show up high in search results because millions of other sites use such terms.
Instead, use very specific keywords — such as "kids algebra educational software" — repeatedly. Yes, use the entire phrase over and over. Keep in mind that "keyword stuffing — repeating a keyword without content or context — can get your site blackballed from search engines. So make sure you're actually providing real information related to those terms.
Search engine marketing (SEM)
If you're willing to pay for ads on a major search engine, such as Google or Yahoo, you'll "bid" for placement against other advertisers who also want to be associated with certain keywords. The more you're willing to pay, the higher in the listings your ad will appear. That's another reason to narrow your keywords: There will be fewer competing bidders the more specific your terms are.
Even if you pay for placement, you still want to optimize your Web site — or certain pages of your Web site — for keywords. That's because search engines still want to make sure the results, even ads, that searchers see are relevant.
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