Google is the big timer in search. It brings in 75% of searches from around the
globe. Google is also always re-inventing their algorithm. Making it harder for
even search engine optimization specialist to keep up. Why do they do this? To
keep you on your toes and your competition too. If you're looking for way to
get ahead, you will have to learn the basics. Once you have them down. You
can grow and extend your knowledge through experimentation and trials.
How To Optimize Your
Blog For The Google Search
Engine:
planning:
Before you can optimize
your blog for the search
engines you will need to
plan. What is your goals?
What keywords are you
going to attempt to rank for? Who are your
audience? Planning
essentially tells you
everything you will be
doing and how you will be
doing it. So plan before you do anything! Find out
what you need to do to do it.
keyword list:
You probably have already started writing a bit of content for your blog. Thats
great, but you need to not only aim for writing for readers, but for the search
engines as well. Start by doing some keyword research. Compile a list of
keywords that you feel you can overtake in the search engines and maintain.
These are the keywords that will be bringing in the search engine traffic. So
when be picky when choosing your keywords.
link building:
Link building is what ever website operator needs to learn to do. Links are the
soul of search engine optimization. They show Google as well as other search
engines that your content and website is sharable. People like to show others.
Google picks up on this and gives you a higher ranking. Allowing your site to
grow in the ranks and draw in natural traffic. You see, it's Google's job to
provide a way for people searching to find the most relevant content possible.
sitemap:
Every website needs a sitemap. A sitemap's functionality is very simple. It
shows the Google spider (or any other spider) the links to your site. Basically
mapping out the site for the Google spider to crawl, categorize, and index.
Always have a sitemap on your blog. Most blogs usually come with a plug-in for
it. However, there are some CMS (content management systems) that do not. So
make sure you have a plug-in installed always.
design:
The design of your blog is always important. While your design may not help
you in the search engines it will in fact help visitors navigate. Easy
navigation is
the key to have a visitor continue looking around your site. This will decrease
your bounce rate and allow your site to gain higher rankings (sometimes). You
see, Google, and some other search engines track how many times your website
is clicked when searched for specific keywords. If you lack click
through, you'll drop in the ranking.
Constantly look your site over and see if there is anywhere you can improve. A
blog can always be improved. And remember, content is king. If you continue to
write good content you will see some good rankings naturally.