28 January 2011SEO for Bloggers
SEO, what is it?
The acronym stands for Search Engine Optimization. In plain English, it is a process used to improve the visibility of your blog in organic (unpaid) returns/responses to a search query by the search engines. This strategy specifically considers how search engines work, and what people search for on the Internet.
Why is SEO important for your blog?
Simple: if the search engines cannot understand what your blog is about, if you do not make it clear what kind of information you provide specifically on a subject or subjects, the search engines will not return your site information high enough for a given search term. Without being found in the first two or three SERPs, you have little chance to attract like-minded readers.
Optimizing your Blog for Search:
Use your own unique URL and host it independently. This is a major step if you are serious about blogging for your business or for monetary gain.
Hosting on a free platform does not provide a direct way to be found by the search engines and most do not permit you to monetize your blog, except in limited ways (think Google Ad Words vs. your own personalized sponsors with banner ads).
For blogs, it is very important to keep the information fresh! Create a schedule and post regularly so your readers will know what to expect. If you find you are not in the ‘creative mood’ to write, post a video or record a podcast! Just be sure give those multimedia posts their own unique page and title. Post about 250 words on the subject of the multimedia presentation and you are good to go!
One way to be sure your site is understood by the Search Engines is to optimize your site structure. This involves editing the HTML and CMS. Important design elements to SEO include: menus, content management systems, shopping carts and internal links. It also involves creating unique URLs, page titles, and XML site maps for submission to the engines, as well as human-designed site maps.
Another way to be sure your site is understood by the Search Engines is to optimize the text content of your posts. A great opportunity in blog formatting is to tag your content! This allows you to create content that increase relevance to specific keywords you want to target for recognition, which will increase your prominence for those subjects. Do a keyword search to see what terms or phrases rank highest for the subject you are writing about, and be sure to include a couple of those highly ranked terms or phrases in your text write up! Just don’t overload your post with them or it will give you a bad reputation with the search engines!
Visual Elements tell the story, too. Optimize video, photos and other media sources like mp3 and podcasts can also help your site rank high – multimedia sources are currently one of the most sought after types of information on the web! As stated above, use alt tags and if you are able to describe in more detail, be sure to use about 150 words on the subject matter. Just like text, be sure to do a keyword search to see what terms or phrases rank highest for the subject and be sure to include a couple of those highly ranked terms or phrases in your text write up!
The Human Factor:
In addition, Social Media optimization is critical to your success! When you post to your blog, be sure to tweet it out on Twitter, share the post with a personal comment on Facebook and add to your LinkedIn profile.
If you post a video, be sure to optimize it where you place it (ie: YouTube), and then again in each place you distribute it to (posted to your blog, Facebook, etc) for the best results. That is just the start!
Don’t forget that your blog is also a social venue! Write for humans and create content that is emotional (sad, funny, outrageous, angry)! Tell a good story – because sharing stories that seem too private to tell online will get your point across and will make readers want to connect. Give advice on how to do something. Review a service or product. Post guest Interviews or invite a guest blogger who resonates with your readers, then allow them to participate or comment. This will create an interactive venue for you readers to start a conversation with you.
Be sure to have an option for the posts to be delivered via an email subscription or make an RSS feed available for readers who want to subscribe using a reader! In turn, you will grow your readership and gain trusted inbound links – each of which cast a “vote” for your site with the Search Engines!
Monetization: My advice is to grow your following before you try to overtly monetize your site. While you are growing it, you can certainly write posts about related services and products, BUT, you MUST disclose any type of relationship you have with them, in accordance with FCC ethics rules, or risk a $10,000 per incident fine.
For more information on these ideas, visit:
4 Tips for Writing SEO-Friendly Blog Posts
The Blogger’s Guide to SEO
The Professional’s Guide to Blogging
21 Tactics to Increase Blog Traffic
Tags: Blog Optimization, Blog SEO, content, Keyword Research, On-Page Optimization, SEO