SEO Strategy
SEO is not something you do once and then forget about it.
For one thing, the rules of the game change as the
search engines update their algorithms. A page that ranked in the top
ten (first page) last week, may rank on page 8 the next.
Even without an algorithm change, ranking is a moving target as your
competitors improve their own search engine optimization. Your SEO strategy
needs to be a regular part of your site maintainance routine, something that
you develope and refine as you move forwards.
Elements of an SEO Strategy
What are your Goals?
Are you trying to promote a catalog of unique products or bring the world
to some great content? Are the products unique to your site, or are they also
advertized elsewhere? Is it static content or dynamic?
Current State
Are you about to build a new site or are you looking to optimize an
existing site? If the former, you're in luck, because you get to
make all the technology and architecture decisions that will make
your site attractive to the crawlers. If, on the other hand, you're
dealing with an existing site then your first job is going to be analysing
the problems and limitations that are going to get in your way.
Keyword & Keyphrase Analysis
Goes without saying that this is crucial. You need to target the keywods and phrases that
will bring the right users to your site. Often this is a trade-off between popular keywords
(which means competative keywords) and less popular terms that are still highly relevant to
your content.
Don't neglect this part. I can almost guarantee that if you do so your SEO campaign will fail.
See the Keyword Analysis page in the Site design section and the Keyword Density & Keyword Placement
pages in the On Page SEO section for more details.
Do it
Armed with your keywords and a clear understanding of your goals, it's time to get in there and do it.
SEO Strategy and Time
Don't expect overnight miracles. Most of the major search engines have some kind of
sandbox concept that penalizes new sites. Your placings in the SERPs will continue to improve over time.
As we said at the top of the page, SEO is not a one-off task, it is a process. Once you have been in there and done the initial work
you can't just sit back and forget about it. Get in there and add new content. Build your link popularity. Apply SEO principles to ongoing
maintenance tasks. Do SEO every day!
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