SEO – Search Engine Optimization

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Picking a Domain Name

January 17th, 2011

admin

They say all the good domain names have been taken and for the most part that is true. I see a lot of new webmasters searching for days to find a good domain name to register, what they don’t realize is that there may be a much faster and better way to get a good domain. The first thing you should do is make a list of the main keywords your domain should have. It will make ranking high for niche much easier in the long run.

There are millions of domains available in domain aftermarkets and the benefits of an aged domain are countless. Take this website for instance. I wanted a domain name that started with SEO and I didn’t want to spend much money on it. The first place I looked was the GoDaddy domain auctions and found it with a Buy it Now of only $5. So I got what I wanted without spending much money, benefit #2 is that the domain is 7 years old. You won’t always get the domain name you want that cheaply but there are some good ones out there for a good price. The most I’ve spend for a domain was a few thousand dollars for an exact 3 word keyphrase with a #5 Google ranking.

It’s no secret that Google now takes the age of a domain into account in it’s algorithm. It’s also no secret that newly registered sites usually end up in the Google sandbox for a year or more. So definitely try and find an aged domain.

Another thing to consider is the .tld of the domain. Any webmaster would pay a fortune for a .gov or .edu domain but sadly those are not available. Your first choice should be a .com and if that’s not available try and find a .org or .net. You should avoid anything else. I have a few .info domains that just don’t seem to do well no matter what.

Step 1 for your new website is to do a search for a good domain name in the domain name aftermarket.

Why Good SEO is so Important

January 16th, 2011

admin

I thought that for my first post on here I would write about why SEO – Search Engine Optimization is so important for all websites. My goal is to make things as simple as possible for new site owners to understand.

When people do a search, they’re usually looking for specific information.

Less than 10% will look beyond page 1 of the search results returned so your goal should always be page 1 and then continue to build towards a top 5 ranking which is above the fold (seen without scrolling down).

Whatever niche or market you are in there is going to be competition so don’t limit your efforts to just a keyword, also target 3-4 word key phrases. Key phrases are much easier to rank high for then one word keywords.

So, if you wish to run any form of online business, your primary role is to get recognized by the major search engines. SEO is really the only way to do that.

Something else to consider is that Google, Yahoo, Bing and Ask account for over 95 percent of all global internet searches. Google is by far the largest and accounts for roughly 70-80% of all searches.

Good SEO is not only about ranking high and getting traffic, it’s about ranking high, getting traffic and having exactly what the user is looking for.

SEO is an ongoing process and it starts the second you decide to register a domain. Domains that are keyword rich will be much easier to rank for.

Don’t try and take shortcuts. Take your time and do things the right way and you will be rewarded in due time. 99% of SEO services out there aren’t worth using. Read and research and do it yourself. It will take time, but you’ll know it was done right.

SEO is NOT about cramming your website with every possible keyword. If anything it will get your website penalized with Google.

Make sure your website is clear, easy to read and easy to navigate. I see many new webmasters using white text on dark backgrounds and while that may work for some sites, they do not for most. Think about this, when was the last time you saw a newspaper or magazine with white text on a dark background? Never!

Use a free tracking tool like Google Analytics to see how your site is performing for your main keywords and phrases. You’ll also be able to see any errors that Google may be having while crawling your site.

Don’t ever stop working on building your site’s popularity. Take at least one day of the week and devote it to adding fresh content. If your homepage doesn’t change much, you can still add content with a news feed or by submitting articles to article submission sites. As your site grows, so will your Page Authority and your rankings will go up in the SERP’s