Search Engine Optimization - SEO

Search engine optimization today is not what it was when it first began. SEO is now a very fine art that is truly understood by very few people. Originally search engines would search sites based on content which anyone could manipulate by adding a load of invisible or visible keywords on the site. When META tags emerged on the scene, it helped a little but only for those who played by the rules. Of course META tags have become abused just as well. Though keyword rich content on your website plays an important role it is no longer the sole player in determining search engine ranking, especially in the case of Google.

Google, the search engine king, has radically changed how websites rank by raising the level of importance of incoming links to a site. This basically equates to a high tech popularity contest in which it is believed that if lots of websites are linking to you then you must be the most relevant and frequently visited website. Though there is some flaws in this, it does however bring up the most relevant websites that I am searching for most of the time.

Newcomer, Cuil, has gone back to the original ranking based on content and has a very slick new user interface with a better "visual" appeal than Google. That being said, it doesn't, however, seem to be very good at providing truly relevant content when doing searches. On Cuil, for example, I search for "mobile providers" and there were no links to any of the major mobile providers in the country like AT&T, Verizon, Sprint, AllTel or T-Mobile. Even in the "explore by category" it didn't give links to them. Additionally, from a pro family standpoint, Cuil dangerously has pictures with each link and even if the filter is on it is not perfect and shows porn in the search without a way to block those pictures from innocent eyes. Cuil has a good start but definitely has a way to go in "revolutionizing" the way search engines work.

SEO has 8 major elements that must be covered in order to satisfy the majority of search engines including Google.

1. Identification of keywords based on 4 areas of research
2. Creation of 4 key META Tags based on keywords
3. Optimized page(s) based on keywords in 4 core components
4. 3 step process to Search Engine Submission (SES
5. Build a 4 tiered structure for Resource Directory
6. Reciprocal Linking Program that involves 6 crucial components
7. A complete online marketing campaign that includes the 3 the most critical mediums
8. Continual follow-up, editing and oversight to maintain SEO integrity

If all of these elements are followed then there will be marked improvement in the search engine results for that website, however, there are still other import rules to follow about each of those elements to be the most effective and to keep the site from being penalized. SEO will always be a very important part of marketing and helping to make your company website visible to web users. Search Engine Optimization is definitely a key component of Marketing 2.0 ®