- Image via Wikipedia
It is much easier to begin the design of your website with SEO in mind, rather than trying to optimize an already existing site for SEO. That being said, there are several factors that should be kept in mind when building your site or blog to increase your rank standing with the search engines.
The title is the first and most important bit of data for SEO purposes. You want to have your keywords in your title, but also use the title of your page throughout the document wherever possible. You can bury the title into HTML element titles which will then only make them visible to search engines and not your readers.
Alt names that are keyword rich are another way to increase the search engine optimization of your site. For each of your images, be sure that there is an alt name that is not only applicable, but one that is keyword rich.
Another tip is to optimize the H1 tag. The H1 tag is commonly the main heading of your webpage or blog. This is what your visitors will see first but it is also very important to search engines. Your main keywords should be in the H1 tag but use it only one time per page. Search engine algorithms are suspected to notice and penalize you if this tag is overused.
Be concise with keywords. Being too general will lump you in with thousands of other websites. Finding a niche is where you’ll get the best search engine results. For example, instead of using “horses” as your keyword, use “Thoroughbred horse racing” as your niche. You’ll get a much more targeted group of competitors for your keyword, and you’ll be able to rank higher.
Optimizing your website for SEO can be tricky when there are no easy answers to what search engines are looking for. These tips will, however, guide you onto the right path and help your site rank higher.
