Search Engine Optimization

Search Engine Optimization (SEO) seems to be a buzz word that is finally (thank goodness) hitting the small business world. My clients have started coming to me for my thoughts and recommendations on SEO. While I do offer a full search engine optimization service, I am usually more than happy to gush on about the seemingly simple, yet definitively complex process.

I have been doing search engine optimization since I started building web pages back in 1997. Of course that was when you did all of your optimization in the code (Title & META Tags). Today, the search engines have complex algorithms that evaluate hundreds of factors. This is great for web searchers as this ensures we get the best possible results. However, it is a nightmare for those of us trying to get our clients ranked on their desired keywords.

I now attend several search conferences a year (and have spoken at a few) and subscribe to numerous publications just to stay abreast with the latest changes. Google, for instance, changes its algorithms slightly several times a month (some say even daily).

So, over the next few weeks, I'm going to explain the entire process from soup to nuts. Additionally, I will also discuss the differences for brand new sites and sites that have been around for some time. I will try to keep it mostly high level, but I'm bound to get into the "weeds".