Understanding and Using Search Engine Optimization

Think about how you use Google. You type in a few key phrases, hit search, and Google returns a list of websites. Good SEO means that your website appears near the top of that list. 

So what? you might ask. How can so many marketing companies base their whole business around helping clients achieve better search engine optimization? 

The answer is quite simple. 30% of web traffic is generated by search engines. That means that, if you have poor SEO, you might be missing out on a lot of potential customers, donors, or supporters.  

SEO has three separate parts, all of which must be balanced for the best results:

• Technical
• Content
• Links

Let’s discuss each one in turn.

I. Technical

This is the part of SEO where most people’s eyes glaze over. But there’s a lot even people without experience in programming can learn and put into practice.

Code

With SEO, code matters because clean, correct code is indexed faster by search engines. No matter how clean your website looks, if you have messy code, a search engine might have trouble and send your site to the bottom of the list. There are several things you can do to ensure your code is up to par.

Use a tool called a code validator. A great validator to begin with is W3C because it’s easy-to-use and free. This web-based application searches your site and tells you how many code errors you have and where these errors are located. Don’t worry if you have a few errors. Most sites do. You might have a problem, however, if your errors start to go over the 20 to 30 mark. This will give you a good idea about whether you should dive in to your code for a clean-up, or (if you don’t have a background in HTML or CSS) to get your tech staff or hire someone to do it for you.

Reduce excess code by moving javascript and CSS to external files.  This can condense multiple lines of code into a single line of code. This cleans up your site and makes it easier for search engines to browse your page for important data.

Descriptive Names

Give your pages descriptive names. As you create your web pages, you have the option of titling your pages and creating custom urls. Use this opportunity to briefly and accurately tell search engines what your pages are about. 

When you’re writing a url with keywords, make sure you always use the dash (-) not the underscore (_) to separate your words. This is because search engines see dashes as spaces. Not so with underscores.

Metadata

Use metadata keywords. If you use a CMS like Plone, adding meta keywords is easy. When you’re creating a page in Plone, you can click on the “categorization” tab and list keywords and phrases that describe your content. Even though a regular web visitor can’t see these words, search engines pick them up and use them to return relevant searches.

II. Content

Keywords

We just discussed how keywords are important for metadata, but strong keywords are also important to include in your visible content.  Depending on what your organization or business does, you should include key descriptive words and phrases that people might search for and that might lead them to your site. To find your best keywords, we recommend a four step process:

Step 1: Use Google Analytics to see what words people search for before landing on your site. This will give you a quick idea of which words you need to use more in your web copy.

Step 2:  Brainstorm other keywords. Sit down and make a list of the words and phrases that describe what you do. If it helps, enlist everyone in your office. Include both generic and simple terms to create a list of keywords.

Step 3: Use a keyword tool to evaluate your list. Keyword tools will tell you how much traffic and how much competition each of your words has. Ideally, you want great descriptive words that have high traffic (a lot of people search for them) and low competition (not a lot of businesses use them).  Google has a great free keyword tool you can use when you’re getting started.

Step 4: Identify your best keywords. Take note of the keywords that a) describe your organization effectively b) are searched for often and c) don’t have a lot of competition. Then use these words in the copy of your website.

Update Content

As a rule, search engines loathe static websites, but they love sites that are updated regularly.  Continually add new relevant content to your site. A great way to do this is to have an events or news section, or to employ a user-friendly CMS like Plone that makes adding new content easy.

III. Links

To search engines, links are like academic references. The more your site has and the more reputable they are, the higher search engine ranking your site will receive. There are two types of links you should consider for SEO 1) Links on your site to other sites and 2) Links on other sites to your site.

Links on Your Site to Other Sites

Obviously, this is the type of link you have the most control over. When you link to other sites, make sure your links are descriptive. For example, if you want to provide your visitors with more information about the Lance Armstrong Foundation, don’t write:

For more information about the Lance Armstrong Foundation, click here.

Search engines view “here” as the most important part of that sentence. Instead, write:

Get more info about the Lance Armstrong Foundation.

Search engines pay attention the phrase “Lance Armstrong Foundation,”  and your site is connected with that site as a result.

Links on Other Sites to Your Sites

There are a few ways you can get links to your website to appear on other sites.

List your website in online directories that are relevant to your organization. If you’re a green company, for example, there are plenty of green business directories that are free or at least really cheap. This makes it easier for people to find you, and your listings in these directories could appear in search engine results in addition to your official website.

Leave a link to your website after you comment on a relevant blog post. Remember that engines search look at everything – even blog comments. If you have something worthwhile to say, this could be another great opportunity to put your link in cyberspace.

Ask your clients, partners, or collaborators to link to you on their site. You probably have a lot of close relationships with people, businesses, and organizations in your industry. Take advantage of this by asking them to link to you on their site. It's an easy way to make your business network viewable by web surfers and search engines alike.

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