Is Seo A Winner Take All Game?

admin    Website Traffic     alpharetta seo, Keyword Research, number 1 listing, organic rankings

What a number 1 listing for your keyword can mean for traffic.

I am sure you have seen the advertisements for seo companies that claim to get on the first page for you keyword. Getting on the first page for your keyword term is a great outcome but there can be a huge difference between being in the number 1 postion and being in the number 10 postion. In terms of traffic to your site and sales or leads increasing your ranking several postions can have a huge impact on the overall visitors to your site.

How much difference does it make to have the number 1 postion versus the number 10 postion? Lets take a look at what you can expect from click through rates from being on the first page.

- Listing #1 : 42% CTR

- Listing #2 : 12% CTR

- Listing #3 : 8.5% CTR

- Listing #4 : 6% CTR

- Listing #5 : 5% CTR

- Listing #6 : 4% CTR

- Listing #7 : 3.5% CTR

- Listing #8 : 3% CTR

- Listing #9 : 3% CTR

- Listing #10 : 3% CTR

The numbers above only take a look at the organic clicks and do not factor in Pay Per Click. So as you can see having a number 1 listing can have a massive effect on the traffic to your site. You also have to keep in mind that there are other factors when it comes to click through rates such as the title and description that is shown in the listings. If you have a compelling title and meta description than your click through rate can go up but as you can see most of the eyeballs go straight to the top listing.

When you are deciding on an seo program and your keywords than you can see that sometimes keywords that receive less traffic but are less competitive might be the way to go initially. If we use the numbers above we see that if you have a keyword that receives 1,000 searches per month and you have a top ranking than you should see about 420 visits per month for that keyword. If a keyword gets 5,000 visits per month and you are in the number 8 postion you should see about 150 visits per month for the keyword. Typically, keywords that have more traffic are tougher to rank for because other websites are gunning for them.

Sometimes less is more and in the instance of gaining a top ranking this really is the case. So when you are doing your keyword research do not discount the keywords that do not get a massive amount of traffic because you could be losing out on easily attainable keywords.

A List Of The Top 5 On Site Optimzation Attributes

admin    Search Engine Optimization     alpharetta seo, h1, internal linking, on site optimzation

The Top 5 On Site SEO Attributes

One of the most common questions I get when I speak with people about search engine optimization for their website is what is the best way to optimize their website for on site purposes? Let me be the first to say that on site optimization needs to be done but their are other variables that need to be undertaken to make sure that your seo project is a success.

From an on site optimization perspective there really are certain areas that you need to focus on. Here are the top 5 onsite seo attributes that you need to take care of when decide it is time to do a seo project. Keep in mind that these are in no particular order but all of them should have a positive effect.

1. Place your main keyword in the title tag of the web page. If you are focusing on the keyword “shared office space” your title tag should look something like this – Shared Office Space | Short Term Offices | www.website.com. Placing your domain name at the end of the title tag is not necessary but for brand awareness purposes you may want to include it.

2. Place your keyword in the domain name or the subfolders. When focusing on a keyword try use that keyword in your domain name if possible. If the domain name is already taken or you are working with a current domain put the keyword in the subfolder so it would read like this – www.domain.com/shared-office-space.html.

3. Add your keywords in the image alt tags. When placing images on your website within the code you can use your keyword as the alternate text. Alt tags are used because the the search engine spiders cannot read images so they need a way to find out what the image is about, this is where the alt text comes into play. There is a caveat to this, do not go crazy with this and stuff the keyword on several of the images.

4. Make sure that you use your keyword is in the copy of your text and place the keywords within the tags of your site such as the h1, strong, and various places that it makes sense. Again, do not over do this so you will not raise any red flags.

5. A strong internal linking structure. If you have several pages on your website and they also have terms such as shared office space than link that page the one that your are trying to get ranked with your keyword as the anchor text.

If you think about it all on site optimization is all about keywords and linking but as you start to do the work you can soon realize that it is all about the details.

For help with your websites on site optimization and need an Alpharetta seo please feel free to contact me for a consultation.

Chase The Longtail When Doing Keyword Searching

admin    Keyword Research     alpharetta seo, Keyword Research, long tail keywords, Website Traffic

When doing keyword research for your website you can be overwhelmed with the amount of different keywords that you could choose to optimize your website. The question becomes, focus your website on head terms or will you go after long tail keywords.

Depending on the competition in you industry or niche with the right amount of leg work rankings for certain head keyword terms can be attained, it will typically take more time to see your website rise up through the rankings. If you have never ventured into the wonderful world of search engine optimization and want to see quicker results than focusing on the long tail is probably your best bet.

Terms that are more heavily searched are the head and an example of a this would be a term such as golf balls. People typically use the head term when they are in the research phase of their search and are less likely to purchase. Optimizing your website for the head could be a strategy for the long haul and can bring you a ton of traffic if are able to reach the first page for the term.

Terms that are less heavily searched are the long tail, this would be a term such as golf balls for high handicappers. These terms tend to lead to less traffic but will bring in more sales because during this phase of search people have figured out pretty much what they are looking for.

The long tail of keyword research is important to your success. Long tail keywords have less competition from other websites, you have a much better chance of ranking highly in the search engines and will give your website much more visibility. It really is basic math the more terms you rank for the more traffic you get and the path to more rankings is to go after many long tail terms.

Here is a nugget to get you thinking about focusing on long tail keywords, In a 2008 report, that was published by Hitwise, they stated that for any given topic, the top 100 keywords account for just 5.7% of all website traffic while long tail keywords account for the remaining 94.3%.

So are you going to focus on the head term or the long tail?

How Your Business Can Benefit From Local Search Optimization

admin    Local SEO     google local, local maps, local marketing, local search optimization

If you are a local business and you want more customers from the internet than optimizing your local maps is one of the most beneficial projects you can do. Since the search engines Google, Bing, and Yahoo have introduced local maps now more than ever it is imperative that you submit your local business and optimize the listings if you want to maximizethe traffic to your site. People are getting more sophisticated when they use the search engines to find what they are looking for and many are using a local modifier with their search terms.

Since information technology has changed the way that companies market their business old traditional forms of marketing such as print, radio, and television advertising are becoming less effective. Since times are changing businesses must adapt to the technology revolution and one way you can take advantage of this if by submitting your website to local directories. Local directories are gaining in popularity and with many of these websites forming alliances and sharing data the amount of relevant content that they have is highly attractive to the search engines.

Adding your website to the local directories can be time consuming but the end result will be more traffic to
your website and it is targeted to people who are in your geographic area. When adding your website to the local directories the first thing you want to do is add them to the major search engines like Google, Bing, and Yahoo. You also want to make sure that you keep your information consistent with all of the search engine and directories. Always use the same business listing, address, phone number and etc. for all of your listings. When the search engines crawl the directories and see that all of the information is exactly alike they will take note and it will improve your ranking capabilities.

Several factors play a part in your ability to rank within the search engine’s map listing but one of the top
factors is getting reviews from customers. Reviews can really enhance your chance of ranking highly on the maps so whenever possible ask a happy customer to leave a review within your map listing. If you are keeping an email database of your customers you are way ahead of the game because you can send out an email blast asking them to leave a review.

If you have tried marketing your company with traditional forms of media and have been frustrated try your hand at listing your website with the search engines. If you use traditional media and have been happy with the results you should still invest the time to submit your website because it can bring new business to your doorstep.

For a free consultation and to find out how you can increase your traffic by using local maps contact us by
clicking here.

5 Easy Ways To Build Quality Backlinks

admin    Search Engine Optimization     back links, backlinks, quality backlinks, Search Engine Optimization

5 Easy Ways to Build Quality Backlinks

quality backlinks

Anybody can start a webpage. Anyone can fill it with content. The problem occurs when no one visits your site because your site’s landing page is on page 35 of Google’s search. Utilizing a backlink strategy is essential to boost your site’s traffic, but equally important is the quality of the backlinks you obtain.

Quality backlinks are one of the keys to your online success. Here are five simple things you should be using in your backlink strategy to gain the momentum you need to rise up the page ranks of Google and increase your online traffic.

1) Obtain quality backlinks from pages that have a page rank of six or higher via directory submissions. Be selective about the sites you choose to have backlink to you. Sites that have a low page rank typically aren’t as valuable and don’t have the credibility you need to make your site an authoritative site.

2) Use article campaigns. Submitting to article directories is an easy way to obtain a quality backlink. Articles are also a great way to share your site’s value with potential visitors.

3) Use social bookmarking. Used in conjunction with article marketing, social bookmarking sites like Digg, Del.icio.us, and Technorati allows you and other people to tag articles they find helpful. This creates a quality backlink and also helps drive traffic to your site.

4) Become active in related online communities by posting comments on forums, groups, and blogs. Having a link or two in your signature will create the quality backlink you want and it will also help to establish your credibility as a site with authority.

5) Start a blog. Blogs are a great way to get quality backlinks and drive traffic to your site. Place a link in your blog post. Comment on blogs that are relevant to your site. Doing this consistently builds quality backlinks naturally.

One last thing to keep in mind is that backlinks should be built up over time – roughly a period of five to six months. Quality backlinks are built naturally because your site provides valuable and relevant content to visitors; not because you’ve submitted your link to thousands of directories within two weeks. Google will ultimately recognize the quality of the backlink and your site may be penalized accordingly.

Quality backlinks are your key to online success. Use these strategies consistently and you will reap the reward of increased traffic.