Search Engine Optimisation F.A.Q.

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Everyone wants to be on Page 1 of Google… but as we all know, that is not possible as there is only limited space on Page 1!

So who gets that space? What is the magic formula? What do I do to get better rankings in Google?

The simple answers to the above are:

  1. Whoever has the most money to spend will probably get Page 1
  2. The “formula” is updated every so often and is [at the time of writing] mainly based on proper title tagging, balanced keyword density, good relevant content, quality backlinks and the popularity of your site on various social media networks.
  3. You could simply pay Google for your rankings in the Sponsored links area of AdWords Advertising – or spend time and money developing your site’s search index profile by working on the above.

There are many people out there using the Google SEO tactic to scam hundreds, if not thousands of dollars out of desperate businesses every day – cold calling and spamming with promises of “secret formulas” “agreements with Google” “page one guaranteed” – and simply walking off with your money.

Sometimes you will get results – though remember, you will generally have to keep paying to keep optimising. “Search Enging Optimisers” basically compete against each other for top spots and whoever has the most money can hire the most workers to monitor, analyse and make adjustments as needed.

Google is always updating their formula to separate SEO manipulators from naturally developed rankings – and they are getting better at it. Once your site is de-ranked, it can take a long while to get back up there. If your site ends up on a blacklist you may have to scrap your whole site and domain name and start again. SEO can be risky business!

What is good for Google and ranks you high one week, may get you de-ranked later on down the track.

A well optimised and naturally linked up web site will rank well and usually maintain ranking through Google formula updates.

THE DO’s

  1. Title your pages relevant to the page content
  2. Make sure you are using proper HTML tags in the proper places – mainly headers  <h1> <h2>
  3. Write good quality content, paying attention to spelling and grammar.
  4. Have a separate page for each of your services to allow for more targeted content.
  5. If you sell products, have a separate page for each product – use an online product catalogue.
  6. Link your site in quality directories and related sites. Pay a reasonable amount for links in quality local business directories.
  7. Get socially networked on Linked In, Facebook and Twitter + YouTube if you have videos.
  8. Do an online press release to try and attract as many news outlet and blogger links back to your site. (www.prweb.com)
  9. Do try and target specific areas like your City / local Suburbs. Link yourself in Google Local.
  10. If you are going to employ an SEO provider – make sure it is someone you know of and has referrals you have spoken to.

THE DO NOT’s

  1. Never give out your FTP or Hosting Details to any SEO who promises you magic rankings in Google
  2. If you do give out your FTP details make sure your site isn’t being hacked and you update your passwords when they are finished. Better yet, get the SEO people to liase with your web developer, hosting provider to make the necessary changes and uploads they are requesting. We have had several clients scammed and hacked by “SEO Experts”.  Unscrupulous types often come back weeks and months later to log in and take advantage of your web site and hosting account – especially if you fire them!
  3. Do not stuff your pages and Title tags with “keywords” – this is the quickest way to get banned from Google
  4. Never buy “SEO Backlink / Social Linking” packages – these are artificial and automated links that will probably get you banned from Google
  5. Never build multiple web sites or “doorway” pages for the same business – while some people still do this, if Google finds out you may get banned.
  6. Never try to “hide keywords” in your pages using colours or in image ALT tags. All image tags should be relaed to the image it represents.

These are some of the basic things to look after when doing SEO – though as time goes by these requirements will change…

In the end, the goal of any search company is to make money – and the only way they get it is by getting businesses to pay.  Shuffling ranking and making SEO a minefield generally insures that, in the end, they get paid – and whoever pays the most gets top position.