SEARCH ENGINE

OPTIMIZATION
SEO
Whoever controls the door to the Internet, controls the Internet.
SEO
The process of refining your website using both on-page and off-page
practices so that it will be indexed and ranked successfully by search
engines.
• Google - Searching 4,285,199,774 web pages

• 28% of Google searches are for a "product/service name", 9% are for a "brand name"
and 5% are searches for a "company name".

• 85%* of all Web site traffic and 70%* of all online purchases originate from a search
engine. (*Jupiter Research)

• Micro Commerce opportunities for new products and services will generate an
estimated $60 bln in revenue per year by 2015 according to Gartner. A micro purchase
is a purchase valued at less than $5 and conducted electronically, where the settlement
can be either prepaid, by subscription, on-the-spot, or invoiced.

• For More Facts Visit http://www.itfacts.biz

SEO
The process of refining your website using both on-page and off-page
practices so that it will be indexed and ranked successfully by search
engines.
Search engine optimization is the process of refining website, using
both on-page and off-page practices, so that it will be indexed and
ranked successfully by search engines.
With SEO, the best and most cost-effective way to increase website
traffic is to have a high position in organic search listings.
 Definitions
• SE = Search Engine is a tool that enables users to locate information on the World Wide Web.
Search engines use keywords entered by users to find Web sites which contain the information sought.

• Web Directory = a search service that arranges the web pages it knows about into categories and
subcategories. Often picked by human beings for inclusion in the categories.

• SEO / SEM = A form of online marketing, Search Engine Optimization / Search Engine
Marketing is the process of making a site and its content highly relevant for both search
engines and searchers. Successful search marketing helps a site gain top positioning for
relevant words and phrases.
Search engine optimization
What is SEO?
SEO is the act of modifying a website to increase its ranking in organic (vs
paid), crawler-based listings of search engines

How do organic search listings work?

• A spider or crawler which is a component of a SE gathers listings by
automatically "crawling" the web
• The spider follows links to web pages, makes copies of the pages and stores
them in the SE’s index
• Based on this data, the SE then indexes the pages and ranks the websites
• Major SEs that index pages using spiders: Google, Yahoo, AltaVista, MSN, AOL,
Lycos
Search engine optimization
What is SEO?
SEO is the act of modifying a website to increase its ranking in organic (vs
paid), crawler-based listings of search engines

How do organic search listings work?

• A spider or crawler which is a component of a SE gathers listings by
automatically "crawling" the web
• The spider follows links to web pages, makes copies of the pages and stores
them in the SE’s index
• Based on this data, the SE then indexes the pages and ranks the websites
• Major SEs that index pages using spiders: Google, Yahoo, AltaVista, MSN, AOL,
Lycos
Search engine optimization/cont’d
2. Linking strategies
- the text in the links should include keywords
- the more inbound links the higher the SE ranking
- if the site linking to you is already indexed, spiders will also receive your site
- quality of inbound links is critical
- how to increase links: a) creative content / copywriting b) good outbound links c) target a
list of sites from which you can request inbound links
- links for the sake of links can damage your search rankings

“Link relevancy is critical in getting your site indexed by search engines”

“A small number of inbound links from high-quality, relevant sites is more valuable than
many links from low-traffic, irrelevant sites.”
Search engine optimization/cont’d
• 3. Keywords
- the most important in optimizing rankings
- research what keywords are people searching for using tools e.g.
Wordtracker (www.wordtracker.com)
- keywords are words that appear the most in a page
- the spider chooses the appropriate keywords for each page, then sends
them back to its SE
- your web site will then be indexed based on your keywords
- can be key phrases or a single keyword
- do not use common words eg ‘the’ ‘and’ ‘of’: spiders ignore them
- write keyword-rich text
- balance keyword-rich and readability
- always have text in your page: at least 100 words
Search engine optimization/cont’d
4. Title tags
- important in optimizing rankings
- the first thing that a search engine displays on a search return
- must keywords in title to be ranked no. 1
- should have the exact keyword you use for the page
- every single web page must have its own title tag
- you can use up to 65 characters - example
http://www.ebay.com/ (title is littered with keywords)

5. Meta description tags

- displayed below the title in search results
- use dynamic, promotional language
- use keywords
Search engine optimisation/cont’d
Meta keywords tags
- no longer carry weight with major SEs
- a myth that meta keywords alone affect rankings

6. Alt tags
- include keywords in your alt tags

7. Submit your website to SEs for indexing

- submit your site to search engine directories, directory sites and
portal sites
- indexing takes time (~ 3 months)
Search engine optimization/cont’d
SEO - what is NOT recommended

Flash and shockwave - spiders do not pick up these files

Image only sites - spiders do not pick up images
Image maps - spiders cannot read image maps.
Do not use them on your home page or critical pages.
Frames - only one page can be titled (titling is critical in search rankings)
- If the spider cannot read the complete page (because of the frames), it will
not be indexed properly.
- Some spiders may not even read a frames web site
Misspellings, JavaScript or HTML errors (validate your code)
Search engine optimization/cont’d
PDF files - Although some search engines can index them, the pages
must be interpreted into HTML and can lose much of their content.

- place PDFs lower down in your site

Drop down menus – spiders cannot read them therefore make sure
you have a SiteMap
Search engine optimization/cont’d
In summary… Make Search Engines work for you!!!
Critical elements
- domain name, links, keywords, title, meta description, alt tags,
submitting your website to SEs
- keywords galore: include in page copy, title, description, domain
name, ALT tags
No-nos
- flash, image-only sites, image maps, frames, password protected
pages, code errors
Search engine optimization/cont’d
How SEO elements affect organic listings

Title tag

Meta description tag (or first para of text if no meta

des has been added)

Keywords
Search engine marketing
What is search engine marketing (SEM)?
SEM is the act of marketing a website via search engines by
purchasing paid listings

What are paid listings?

These are listings that search engines sell to advertisers, usually
through paid placement or paid inclusion programs. In contrast,
organic listings are not sold.
Search engine marketing/cont’d
Paid listings:
1. Paid inclusions
- Advertising programs where pages are guaranteed to be included
in a search engine's index in exchange for payment
- no guaranteed ranking
- payment made on a Cost Per Click (CPC) basis
Advertisers pay to be included in the directory on a CPC basis or
per-url fee basis with no guarantee of specific placement
Search engine marketing/cont’d
2. Paid placements
- Advertising programs where listings are guaranteed to appear in
organic listings
- the higher the fee, the higher the ranking
- eg sponsored links and Google’s Ad words
- can be purchased from a portal or a search network
- search networks are often set up in an auction environment
where keywords and phrases are associated with a cost-per-click
(CPC) fee.
- Google and Overture are the largest networks
Search engine marketing/cont’d
Paid placements - Google

Paid placements
Other internet marketing strategies
• Usability driven information architecture
• Effective copywriting, dynamic content through SE friendly web
portals, BLOGS, RSS
• Affiliate programs
• Email marketing and online newsletters
• Interactive customer relationships
• Web traffic analysis and web analytics
Conclusion on SEO and SEM
• If budget allows, undertake both SEO and SEM as SEM enables ROI
tracking (leads and conversions)
• If budget is lower go for SEO
• Recommendation for
- SEO for organic promotion
- SEM for campaigns and international markets
SEO process
SEO process
1. Goals:set up clear, realistic goals and targets for your SEO campaign.
2. On-page optimization: the granular, technical optimization of the
various elements on website. It involves ensuring search engines can
easily read, understand, crawl through, and navigate the pages of your
site to index it correctly.
3. Off-page optimization: refers to techniques used to influence website
position in organic search results that cannot be managed by on-page
optimization of site. It's a long-term, iterative process focused on
gaining website authority, as determined by what other websites say. To
put it simply, it's about building a digital footprint and earning online
credibility.
SEO process
Analyze. This stage is very much a cyclical process. You're now looking
at the data coming back, analyzing it, and deciding upon the
adjustments needed going forward. This will help you tweak your goals
accordingly as you implement additional goals and changes.
Search Engine Result Pages (SERP)
• A SERP is the web page that a search engine, such as Google or
Yahoo!, returns that lists the results of a user's search.
• A SERP is divided into core sections.
• At the top you'll always find paid listings marked with yellow flags that
clearly highlight these entries as ads.
• beneath the advertising , There are organic search results, or the
listings that are featured on a SERP because of their relevance to the
search terms that a user has entered into a search engine.
Organic versus Paid Listings
• Listings that are displayed on the first page of search engine results
yield the highest search traffic
• paid listings will garner a 30 percent click-through rate (CTR), with
organic listings making up the remaining 70 percent.
• CTR is the number of clicks that your ad receives divided by the
number of times your ad is shown: clicks ÷ impressions = CTR. For
example, if you had 5 clicks and 100 impressions, then your CTR
would be 5%.
Location-Based Search
• Search engines take into account the location of the person searching
to deliver the most applicable search results. For example, with
Google's My Business you can submit your business for display on a
location-based search,
• complete all elements of the form by providing a category,
description, pictures, videos, and so on to catch user attention.
• Google operates a five-star rating scheme, so customers should be
encouraged to review and rate your business.
Knowledge Graph Listing
• Google's Knowledge Graph tries to understand searchers' intent while
anticipating their end goals.
• It tries to help people discover key information about a particular business
that they may not have been able to discover through an organic listing.
• For example, if a user searches for information on restaurants in New Delhi,
Knowledge Graph will display both a variety of images at the top of the
SERP and a panel on the right with a list of key information, a company
description, reviews, related searches, and so on.
• It feeds on information from related websites, popular searches, Google
local listings, and other sources.
Data Highlighter
Data Highlighter is a Google Search Console (GSC) tool that is very
valuable when it comes to refining your SERP listing.

highlight the various data fields (title, description, image, etc.) on page.
This allows Google to display website data in new, more attractive ways
both in SERPs and on the Knowledge Graph.
Stage 1: Goals
• identify the business pain, view this pain as a goal, create a strategy to
achieve the goal, and assign KPIs to the strategy to monitor your progress in
solving the pain.
• Business pain: A decline in online orders Goal:
• Conversions Strategy: Increase website visitors through on-page optimization
(keywords, blog, etc.)
• KPIs: Sales, online inquiries
• In this example, the searcher benefits through an enhanced user experience
and relevant content, the search engine benefits through being able to easily
understand and index your site, and you, the website owner, benefits through
achieving your goals.
The ultimate goal of SEO is to achieve that number-one ranking
on SERPs for your website.
Benefits
• Increased organic CTRs. Organic CTR is the percentage of clicks your website listing
generates, based on the number of organic impressions served. Organic impressions
are the number of times a page from website displays in SERPs and is viewed by a
user, not including paid listings. A number-one position will increase organic CTR,
which in turn reduces advertising spend and ultimately leads to conversions.
• Increased engagement.
• Enhanced reputation. Top listings yield both online and professional credibility,
status, and reputation.
• Market leadership and competitive advantage. Outshining your competitors is vital,
so strive for a number-one listing to avail yourself of this advantage.
• Increased conversions
Stage 2: On-Page Optimization
• Keyword Research-A search term is a commonly used phrase that
users type into search engines to find
• long-tail keywords : are three- or four-word keyword phrases
searchers using long-tail keywords are usually closer to the point of
purchase.
• long-tail keywords are quite specific, they have lower competition and
bring much higher qualified traffic to your website.
• Offline Keyword Research
• Marketing collateral: Open the office storeroom and gather your
company's leaflets, brochures, posters, and the like. The content here
can be particularly useful for generating low search volume keywords
that are worth including. sourcing competitor marketing material is an
excellent competitor keyword research method.
• Customer surveys.
• Listening to customers.
Online Keyword Research
• key tools that allow you to perform filtered keyword research using
the following criteria:
• custom date ranges, query volume, historical trends, levels of data, and
related phrases by city or country.
With such a wide variety of online keyword research tools available for free or
for a fee,
Google Autocomplete.: based on the most popular search terms entered.
Google scans your browser history to deliver the most relevant search results. If
you're using Google Autocorrect for keyword research , delete , search history,
cache, cookies, and temporary files—clear it all
Online Keyword Research: Google AdWords
Keyword Planner
This is a tool built into the Google AdWords platform. Under the Tools section,
you'll find Keyword Planner. The research and analytical functionalities
After you've entered a particular keyword or search term and chosen the
location you're targeting, click on Get Ideas. The Keyword Planner will return a
report detailing the top listings containing that keyword or search term, plus
other suggested keywords. In the listing you will notice two tabs, one for ad
group ideas and another for keyword ideas. At this stage of the process focus
on the latter. The ad group ideas tab concerns PPC ad campaigns
https://support.google.com/google-ads/answer/6366720?hl=en#zippy=%2C
smart-mode
https://support.google.com/google-ads/answer/1722062?hl=en
Keyword Ideas in Google AdWords Keyword Planner
Online Keyword Research: Google AdWords
Keyword Planner
• search term and average monthly searches.
• Start by looking at the search term and its corresponding search
volume.
• Base keyword selection on relatively high search volumes that are
actually applicable.
• keywords with low enough competition so that one can get that all-
important page-one listing. Again, don't disregard long-tail keywords.
• They use search terms with less competition and bring more relevant
traffic to your website.
Online Keyword Research :Google Trends
• popular keywords are ever changing, so it's important to keep
informed and stay ahead of the curve.
• Google Trends is a tool for analyzing the rise and fall of keyword
trends.
• It's important to be aware of trending terminology and phrases so
you're not targeting outdated keywords.
• This tool can also show how search terms are trending against each
other and if there are any new trends you should be considering.
Typical Site Structure
The On-Page Optimization Process: Bounce
rate
• Utilizing structure and breaking up your content using bullet points, headings,
images, and the like is where a lot of websites fail.
• If you have a page-one listing but it looks difficult to read, your customers will
bounce faster than you can say keyword cannibalization.
• Bouncing: activity of users who enter a website, don't interact with it, and exit
back out to the SERP or close the window entirely.
• Google considers bounce rates in determining your ranking, which is why
website structure is so important.
• High bounce rates can lead to search engines viewing a particular website as a
bad match for the search term used, and they could potentially demote your
website as a result.
The On-Page Optimization Process :Up-to-
Date Content
• If you were searching for on-page optimization articles and the SERP
returned listings from this year and five years ago, which link would
you click first?
• text on the page—photos, videos, slides, and images are all examples
of different forms of media you can use to keep your content fresh
and attractive to the reader.
Optimizing the Technical Mechanics of Your
Page: URLs
• Insert your chosen keywords into the URLs of each web page on your
site. This is an indicator that search engines look for
• URLs should be optimized
• eliminating the string of numbers and the &=%? symbols from the URLs
and replacing them
• with easily readable keywords, to assist both your users and search
engines. Hyphens or dashes are the only symbols that should be used
as word separators.
• Google does not recommend underscores, as underscores make it
more difficult for algorithms to identify what the page is about.
Optimizing the Technical Mechanics of Your
Page: URLs
• 1. digitalmarketinginstitute.ie/courses/type/postgraduate-diploma-in-
digitalmarketing/
• 2. http://www.abcdefhgj.ie/index.php?
option=com_content&view=article&id=13&Itemid=43
Optimizing the Technical Mechanics of Your
Page: Page Names
• Keyword insertion here can be tricky, but you must name your web
pages appropriately to ensure they're relevant to the page content.
• Page names act as labels that help us distinguish content and create
meaning.
• They usually have one or two words, and for that reason it's not
always possible to optimize them in terms of keywords.
• Naming these pages with relevance is the solution here.
• As users and search engines go deeper into the website, pages should
get more specific to the keywords you're targeting.
Optimizing the Technical Mechanics of Your
Page: Meta Tags
• A web page is made up of hypertext markup language (HTML). Within
the HTML are special tags, known as meta tags.
• Meta tags don't affect the web page layout, but rather provide
important information about the page's content, which is used by
search engines to index your site.
• By right-clicking on a page and selecting Source Code, you can see
the HTML and meta tags of that particular page.
• higher rankings are given for relevance, user experience, and
popularity than for meta tag optimization.
Optimizing the Technical Mechanics of Your
Page: Meta Tags
• Title tag. technically not a meta tag, this tag will display the first part of your
search engine results listing.
• Title tags help ensure your listings on SERPs say the right things about your
business, contribute to click-through rates, and help search engines
determine what the page is about.
• title tag: name of a web page in the tab of a browser
• Description tag.-your description tag as a sales pitch. Get keyword in there,
but also include a call to action, benefit, and unique selling point. That way
you're telling people why they should visit a website, purchase, or make a
query about a product or services. Snappy and informative description tags
will engage users and please the search engines.
Breadcrumb Navigation
• This allows the user to return to previous sections on the website
without having to use the main navigation bar to do so. As users go
through each page, they leave a breadcrumb that is displayed on the
top of each page
Google Search Console.
Site Maps and Google Search Console
• Google Search Console (GSC). Probably one of the most underused tools
that Google provides, it helps website owners see how Google crawls,
understands, and indexes your site. Use it to help find the technical
issues that may be hurting user experience, or worse, your ranking!
• 1. HTML sitemap. An HTML sitemap is the text version of a sitemap and
shows text links to all the website's pages,
• 2. XML sitemap. a sitemap written using extensible markup language
(XML), which displays in a coding format. It follows the same rules as the
HTML version of a sitemap but is preferred by search engines, which find
the language easier to understand. You need to submit your XML
sitemap to Google Search Console,
• When your sitemaps have been created, the next step is to create a
GSC account, register, and verify your website on it.
• This can be done in a variety of ways, including uploading an HTML
file on your web server and adding a meta tag on your homepage.
• Once verified, Google will start pulling data into your GSC account.
Crawl issues, indexing frequency, search terms, ranking, click-
throughs, and penalization are all areas that will be analyzed and
reported on.
• Within your GSC dashboard you'll find an area to submit your XML
sitemap
Stage 3: Off-Page Optimization
• The purpose of off-page SEO is to improve your website ranking,
based on the amount and quality of links coming into your site.
• Link Formats –
• 1. Link text refers to the text that appears on the page.
• 2. The link URL is the destination to which that link text will take the user.
Internal links define linking within your own website content from one page to
another. Consider them a vital element of the SEO process. They help
spiders crawl your website and reach pages
Activities
• Set up an account in Google AdWords. Under Tools, click Keyword
Planner and Search for New Keywords. Select AdGroups Ideas. Type
in five keywords or phrases; for example, iPhone 7 accessories, or
something similar. Choose your target country and click Get Ideas.
Visit the Keyword Ideas tab. Note how many average monthly
searches have been completed for your chosen keywords or search
terms.
Exercise 2
• Go to a website that you visit regularly and access the source code
of the page. (Right click on the page text and select View Source
Code.) Complete a search in the source code by pressing Ctrl F. Does
the web page include an H1? Is the H1 the main page headline?
Does the H1 include a core message for the user? Is there any sign
that the H1 is optimized for searching (are there any keywords
included in it)? Is the site using the additional headings H2 through
H6? Is it creating correct page and content structure?