DO IT YOURSELF
SEARCH ENGINE OPTIMIZATION A BEGINNERS GUIDE
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THE BASICS Do you have a website or are you thinking of creating one? If the answer is yes then you need to know about Search Engine Optimization (SEO). When you optimize your site for search engines, you make it more likely that you will show up in search results in search engines. You need to take several steps in order for your website address to be found. You would not open a business in an obscure brick and mortar location and expect to be found. You would put out the word by engaging in some defined activities like hanging a business sign, handing out business cards, hosting a launch party, inviting the press, and advertising in several types of print or visual medias. You need to do the same thing on the web by using comparable virtual tools. This is a big topic, with an abundant amount of written material on the web and in books. It is as important as the development and content of your site.
That said, if your content is terrible than the SEO will not matter. Search Engines care about what is actually written on your pages. So please empower yourself with quality content then take these next steps. At B2 Foundry, we work with organizations and businesses with limited budgets and resources. In order to help them out, we made some WordPress Plugins and instruction manuals. They are free to anyone to use. Now it is up to you to figure out how to use the tools, aided by our manuals, you can take steps to opimize your site. To be successful online, you either need to learn about SEO or hire a company that specializes in providing this service. This manual will give you some basic instructions, vocabulary, and an overview of the beginning steps to presenting your site well online. Seeing your name appear in a search is your goal. Being number 1 would be great. But being number 2 or 3 or even on the first few page is a good feat depending whether or not you are in a crowed field. No one step will guarantee a top ranking. Used in tandem, they will increase the visibility of your site and improve the ranking. You should do all the steps plus others we haven’t touched upon, read more on the topic and revisit the steps if you are not seeing the results you are looking for. 1. Titles, Descriptions and Keywords 2. Submit your website to several search engines and directories 3. Create links to your site to increase exposure 4. Monitor results 5. Other Resources 6. Install our free B2 Foundry Plugins for WordPress on your site and follow the step by step instructions to set them up properly
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STEP 1: WRITE META TAG TITLE, DESCRIPTION AND KEYWORDS When your website appears in a search results list, it will appear with three lines of information: a title, the URL, and a description. This information is created from Meta tag in your program code under the SEO Tool. The browsers will assign a title and description if you do not enter one. You want to entice the user to click on the link to your site so it is important that you write a title and description for each page of your site or set it up to write pretty titles and descriptions automatically. The title is indexed by the big three engines (Google, Yahoo and Bing). To Google, the Title Tag is of average importance in terms of SEO, but important with respect to getting the click. You want the browsers and spiders to read meaningful information so they display your site in the search result. Keywords do not appear in the search results. They have no impact on ranking. However, they very lightly contribute to the browser finding you when a user is conducting a search.
Meta Tag Example Home page example <title>XYZ com: Beauty, Skin Care, Makeup, Hair, & Fragrance</title> <meta name=”description” content=”XYZ.com is a leading beauty retailer offering the best cosmetics, skin care, makeup, fragrance & perfume, hair, beauty products and makeup tips.”> <meta name=”keywords” content=”Beauty, Cosmetics, Skin Care, Makeup, Fragrance, Perfume, Hair, Makeup Tips”> Search Page Home Results XZY com: Beauty, Skin Care, Makeup, Hair, & Fragrance www.xyz.com/ - Cached XYZ com is a leading beauty retailer offering the best cosmetics, skin care, makeup, fragrance & perfume, hair, beauty products and makeup tips Meta Tag Title This line typically contains the organization name and one or 2 other relevant words. It should grab the readers attention and be no longer than 55 characters if you want it to appear in entirety in the browser. • SEO Format: <title> XZY: Beauty, Skin Care, Makeup, Hair, & Fragrance </title> Meta Tag Description This is a short HTML blurb that describes your site under your website name when it appears in the search results. In the absence of special coding for this line, each browser will pick up the first few lines on your home page or other page that appears in the search. • The tags do not have to be sentences. They just have to be sound bites that will entice the reader to click on that page. (ie. XYZ Design firm is an award winning graphic design agency specializing in strategic brand, print, and website design and development services in the San Francisco area since 2008.)
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• The tag should be 150 to 165 characters. Write one for every page, or at a minimum the home page. Write each page tag in the same style describing the content of that page. • SEO Format: <meta name=”description” content=”Brief description of the contents of your page.”> Meta Tag Keywords Web users usually enter one or more words into a search bar in a search engine. The more descriptive the search phrase, the more likely the user will see the results they are seeking. The most common search is two and three word phrases. When entered, they can yield thousands of results. Most viewers look at the first few pages. In order to increase the number of resulting relevant sites, the user must enter words that most accurately describe the result they are seeking. These words are known as keywords. The longer more descriptive words are known as Long tail keywords. When these targeted keywords are used, especially the long tail keywords, more results will be displayed that meet the criteria. For example, let’s say you are looking for an anti aging skin lotion. You can search on lotion, skin care lotion, beauty skin care lotion, or anti aging skin care lotion. Anti aging skin care lotion is the most focused and will yield the best results for the user and the retailer or manufacturer who has identified them as relevant words to their business. Identify keywords by compiling a list • Type words into the search bar that you would use to find your products or services. Your competitors should show up. • Look at your competitors keywords that can be found by right clicking on any page and clicking on view page source in the drop down menu. Search the code for a line that says “keywords” • Ask your friends, employees and co-workers what words they would use • Use Google’s Keyword tool (see resource) to see how popular the word is • Refine your list that will apply to each of page of your site. • Use the keywords in your content. Do not overload your site with them. You just need to have relevant text on every page so the search engines will pick them up. • Include important keywords and phases in your headers. Search engine crawlers pick them up. • Crawlers pick up on words that are consistently used on a site. • You need one page of well written and useful content for each keyword family you have chosen. Each page should be focused on exactly one keyword family. • SEO Format: <meta name=”keywords” content=” Anti Aging Cream, Skin care products, Lotion, xyz company, San Francisco, San Francisco Bay Area”>
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STEP 2: SUBMIT YOUR URL TO DIRECTORIES AND SEARCH ENGINES Following are some of the more popular search engines and directories. At a minimum you should list your site on Google, Yahoo and Bing. These are free. You should also list on some the directories that are free and fee based. Some of the fees are one time only, others are annual. Submit Your Website To Google http://www.google.com/addurl/?continue=/addurl Submit Your Website To Bing and Yahoo https://ssl.bing.com/webmaster/SubmitSitePage.aspx
Directories There are hundreds of obscure directories. We suggest you submit to some of the most popular ones. Paid Directories are categorical listing of sites that are not used very much by web surfers. The real benefit to being listed on them is to have a links pointing to your site. Many search engines look at who is linking to you and if you have a link from some of the paid directories such as Yahoo, Best of the Web, DoGuides, Business.com directory, it may give you some “credibility” points. Typically the paid directories do not guarantee an improvement on your web ranking. Following are a few suggestions to get you started. Do not go overboard with free directory listings because at some point these links will lower your ranking. The best of all worlds is to get real sites to link to you that relate to your content. DMOZ Its hard to determine how much weight to give to any directory listings but supposedly this is an important open directory that partners with AOL, Google, Yahoo and others. You want to be listed here. Your request is not automatically approved and it can take up to a few months to be processed but it is may be worth it. If you do not submit your site properly it can make the process longer and possibly lead to rejection. • Site Name: http://www.dmoz.org/add.html
Free/Fee Based Directories Don’t overlook free and paid directories that relate specifically to your industry Yahoo! Submit Your Website Directly To Yahoo Directory. Currently cost $300. https://ecom.yahoo.com/dir/ submit/intro/ Yelp free - https://biz.yelp.com/ CitySearch free – Click on site, enter your URL. If it does not appear, click on “Add Business http://sanfrancisco. citysearch.com/ Foursquare free - https://foursquare.com/business/
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Google Places - Get on google maps! free - http://www.google.com/places/ MapQuest free - http://listings.mapquest.com/apps/listing Yellowbook free - http://www.yellowbook.com/yellowpages/ Local free - https://advertise.local.com/ Yellowbot free - http://www.yellowbot.com/ Superpages free - http://www.superpages.com/ White Pages free - http://www.whitepages.com/help The white page link will re-direct you to the link below to add your site. http://www.localeze.com/ MerchantCircle The largest social network for local business owners. Services include free online business listings http://www.merchantcircle.com
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STEP 3: CREATE LINKS The more links you have to your site the more visibility it will get. Links = more traffic = higher ranking = better ROI (Return on Investment). Some links, often referred to as back links, are text or graphical hyperlinks from one site to another. Google and other search engines algorithms consider a site’s popularity based on the quality and quantity of inbound links from relevant third party sites to help determine search positioning. • Links to your site give Web users ways to find your site while visiting other sites • Links to your site give search engine spiders (robots) trails to follow to find and index or re-index your site • Links to your site are votes for your site in search engine ranking algorithms. All votes are not equal. • For multiple page sites link to the most important pages from every page of your site, and link to the other pages from section header pages • Use an XML sitemap for your site for sure to help the search engine navigate the site and consider an html site map for large sites. • Use a RSS tracking service such as Feedburner • Create profiles and pages on relevant networks such as Facebook, Linkedin, Twitter, Flickr, Instagram, Vimeo, YouTube, SoundCloud, Slideshare, last.fm, and any other social network used in your space • Make it easy to share with a friend and email a friend • Blog daily on your site promote the blog article on various blogging websites as well as your facebook page • Optimize every post, page, press release with unique title, description and keywords • Provide comment and connect options on your blogs so people can comment or connect to their own site from your blogs • Write and syndicate articles • Send out press releases to announce the launch of the site. • Create an e-newsletter.
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STEP 4: MONITOR RESULTS How long does it take to see my new site show up in the listings • Day 1: Submit your web site to these search engines (Google, Yahoo, MSN, Bing) • Week 1: Verify the search engines visited your site by typing your name into the search engine search box. • Month 1: Your web pages will begin to be indexed. • Month 2-3: You should be watching for placement.
Don’t stop here. SEO is a never ending activity. • See measurement results by signing up for Google Analytics: http://www.google.com/analytics/ • Check out other Googles tools and tips. Their business is the web and they want you to be successful on it. • Revisit keywords and directories. • Incorporate refined keywords in your page and post content as well as in your SEO tool • Run an adword campaign to test your keywords, improve traffic • Look for SEO advise online. There are many bloggers • Check what other tools are available that might make your site more functional and user friendly
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STEP 5: RESOURCES Some Online Resources 1. Google has made all sorts of great tools and guides available for free to help you analyze and manage the success of your site. The following URL - http://www.googlekeywordtool.com/ - has a list of many of the tools with links to them. • Keyword Tool - Good source for finding and and analyzing keywords • Google Analytics - Tool for analyzing the traffic to your site • Google Adwords - Paid ad service that is helpful in testing your keywords and driving traffic to your site • Google Webmaster - This tool along with similar ones at MSN Live Search have all sorts of statistic reports about the indexing of your site and inbound links. You need to sign up for this service to use any sitemap generator. • The official Google SEO starter guide - This is a more comprehensive guide than ours that will spur you on to other resources and build your knowledge. 2. Bing lists all their resources and support here - http://www.bing.com/toolbox/webmaster 3. SEO Blogs - There are many blogs. One blog we like that has been around is www.seomoz.org/blog 4. SEO Book - Search Engine Optimization An hour a Day by Jennifer Grappone and Gradiva Couzin. If you want to do it yourself and have no SEO knowledge this book carefully guides you through the entire process and lists many resources and tools. You can purchase the book. They also have a website. Currently the entire 330+ page book is available for online viewing for free on Issuu. http:// issuu.com/minuettemacon/docs/sybex.search.engine.optimization.an.hour.a.day/3 5. Manage your Social Networking Campaign. There are many useful sites for managing your social networking campaign. If you publish on Twitter and Facebook and also are Twitter and Facebook fans you can see incoming feed and do your publishing all in one central location. Some sites have free plans like Hootsuite. Check them out - http://hootsuite.com
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STEP 6: WHERE TO DOWNLOAD OUR SEO PLUGINS FOR WORDPRESS To make it simple to use your newfound knowlege of basic seo, we have created two SEO plugins for WordPress sites: B2 SEO and B2 XML Sitemap Generator with instructions on how to use them. They can be downloaded from our site along with the instructions. You can also download and install them from WordPress. There are many SEO and XML Plugins available on WordPress but we suggest you use ours or at least familiarize yourself with some standard ways of setting the plugins up by reading our instruction manual. Most of the plugins out there donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t come with any instructions and we have found people are challenged to get everything they can out of the plugins becasue they donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t understand what happens when you check this box vs that box. Good Luck!
Our site
http://www.b2foundry.com/products/
From Wordpress the direct link is
http://WordPress.org/extend/plugins/b2-seo/ http://WordPress.org/extend/plugins/b2-xml-sitemap-generator/
From Wordpress
Search for B2 SEO in the plugin search feature inside WordPress
Instruction Manuals on Issuu
B2 SEO manual: http://issuu.com/B2Foundry/docs/b2foundry-b2seo-instructions/1 B2 XML Sitemap manual: http://issuu.com/B2Foundry/docs/b2foundry-seo-b2xml/1
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