Search Engine Optimization HOW AND WHY

Introduction to SEO SEO stands for “Search Engine Optimization” and often refers to the ability to easily locate your site via search engines. You should know that search engines rank your site based on relevance. Help yourself by writing rich content for your site in the Pages, Titles, and Metadata!

How Does Google Work? Google is the leader for search engine algorithms and it works in a three step process. Step 1: Crawling Step 2: Indexing Step 3: Serving CrawlingIndexingServing

Crawling Googlebots follow relevance algorithms at random These bots “crawl” the pages, links, and content You want to construct your site so Googlebots and other search engine spiders can easily crawl through the links and return few pathway errors CrawlingIndexingServing

Indexing Googlebots return crawling data to be indexed Information like Title, Meta, and Alt tags inform Google about your site Indexed data helps make Google even smarter, it essentially learns your content! CrawlingIndexingServing

Serving When a user inputs a query into a search engine, the hard works of the Googlebots shine! Search queries are served answers based on the relevance of the data indexed Ensure Googlebots can crawl and index your site properly so you can increase your relevance and page rank! CrawlingIndexingServing

How Do Search Engines Measure Relevance? BRAND SIGNAL RELEVANCE SIGNAL Domain Names Page Titles Metadata Keyword Search Search Frequency External Link Traffic When your site is crawled by bots, brand and relevance signals are indexed. Google’s goal is to understand the correlation between YOUR brand signals and their relevance to the USER’S search query.

Page Rank Factors Algorithms: the mathematical equations that makes predictions based on logical properties and continually improved analytical data Keyword Use: insert your keywords where Googlebots can read them – Titles, Alt tags, Metadata, URL, Domain External Links: keywords in your linked content, trusted partners to share quality information, increased traffic for both parties

So many different variables go into calculating Google Pagerank. Click the image to see an article outlining these factors!

KEYWORDS Talk like your audience does (y’all) Develop your keywords based on your target demographic The pathways of buyers and their choices also inform your analytics Expand and Update Keyword List and then confer with Analytics. Continual Improvement and Refinement is the Goal! Keyword Database Buyer Behavior Analytics

Metadata: The Language of the Googlebots Author Name: seems self explanatory, but this adds to the reputation of the writer and links their fan base to your site Alt Tag: HTML gives you an option to give pages an Alternate name or identifier than the Title tag Publication Dates: copyright information, dates, and locations of publication helps to individualize your content

What Analytics Tell Us Changes in search patterns are important for marketing, sales forecasting, and trend spotting. When various new search engine tools are updated or algorithms are enhanced, you can understand new data. Buyer behavior indicates consistent demographic trends. Consider the movement of different audiences and use this tracking information to better construct pathways to retain audiences. analytics/seo-planning/

How Do We Measure Analytics: Data and Tools Webmaster Tools SEO Moz Majestic SEO Google Analytics Data Component FrequencyTool Site Crawl Errors Daily Webmaster Tools Sitemap Indexed Pages Daily Webmaster Tools External Links Weekly SEOMoz / MajesticSEO Keyword Traffic Weekly Google Analytics analytics/seo-planning/

Information Architecture How does the site structure and organization affect its mission and goals? Usability of a site is key. Audiences are likely to distrust a source when it is difficult to use or functions outside of its nature. And if your audiences loses trust in you, so will Google! should-mirror-your-business-goals

Increase Your Search Engine Visibility Write fresh content for your site through blogs, newsletters, status updates, etc. Google loves seeing brand new activity – it means you’re trying and Google likes that! Titles, Headings, Meta, Alt, and Categories tags are crucial to successful SEO practices. Understand the importance of your Headings and Metadata, as these are the language foundations of the bots crawling and indexing your site.