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Do you want to know what Google is looking for in a Web
site?
How can you ensure that your Web site content is meeting the Google
guidelines?
Visit Google's Webmaster Guidelines.
You may not be a Webmaster, but if you are writing the
content for your Web site, you need this information. Let's take a look at
three of the guidelines:
Clear Hierarchy and Text Links
(1) "Make a site with clear hierarchy and text
links. Every page
should be reachable from at least one static text link.”
In other words, your site needs to be easy to navigate
(with one click and easy for visitors to figure out how to get to where
they want to go). This is a combination of good writing and design.
When I am writing content for a site, I am
often presented with a site that has poorly designed navigation: you need
two or more clicks to get where you want to go, there is no button to
bring you back to the homepage, or the navigation choices are confusing.
The best content in the world will not help a poorly
designed site. You have to have good
content AND good navigation design.
Information-Rich Site
(2) "Create a useful, information-rich site and
write pages that
clearly and accurately describe your content. Make pages for
users, not for search engines. Don't deceive your users, or present
different content to search engines than you display to users."
Always keep in mind that it is people that buy your
product or service, not search engines. The content you write needs to
be interesting and informative. It does you no good to have a high
search engine ranking if your visitors immediately leave your site
because they lose interest.
You also want to bring visitors to your site who are
most interested in your specific product or service.
Research has consistently shown that the more targeted your
market, the greater the percentage of sales for your business.
So, don't think in terms of bringing in as many people as
possible. Think in terms of bringing in the people who might
be buyers. That's how you get the money.
Create informative content that will answer your
readers'
questions about your product or service. Emphasize the benefits
of what you offer. How do you stand out from the competition?
Why should they purchase that widget you are selling?
Useful Search Phrases
(3) "Think about the words users would type to
find your pages,
and make sure that your site actually includes those words."
Start brainstorming and make a long list of all the two
to four word phrases someone might use to find your Web site. (Don't
think in terms of only single words, use two to four word phrases.)
Using single words makes the search too broad. For instance, if
you wanted to find information on business writing workshops in Orange
County, you wouldn't want to type in writing. You would want to
narrow your search by including the more descriptive phrase of
businesswriting workshops. If you wanted to narrow it down even further
you would include a geographic location like Orange County.
A good way to test out your keywords is to use the free
program at www.goodkeywords.com.
“GoodKeywords makes use of various tools provided by search engines
and indexes
like Overture, Yahoo, Google and Teoma, and other services like Alexa.” Type in your keywords and
the program will tell you the rankings of how people searched for those
keywords. The newly released 2.0 version also has an easy meta tag
creation tool. So, you can use the tool to create the keyword meta tags
for your site.
If you are coming up with poor results with the keywords
you have chosen, it is time to start asking other people what they would
use to search for your site. The best person to ask is someone who is
your target market. If you are targeting entrepreneurs, then go to a
networking meeting of entrepreneurs and start asking questions. Tell
them what you do and ask what words they would use to find you on the
net.
Sometimes what you think are the best keywords are
actually not effective. Many times I have zero results for the words my
clients think someone would use to search for their site. I then start
researching the target audience to find the right words.
Follow the Leader
Google is the undisputed leader in Search Engines. The
guidelines they’ve written are best practices that we should all be
following to have a successful online presence.
© 2005 Michelle Howe
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