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Simple Tips for Search Engine Optimization

Updated on May 26, 2021
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As an electronic marketing company owner I am often asked about search engine optimization. I still send people to this article to learn.

Search engine optimization creates targeted traffic.
Search engine optimization creates targeted traffic. | Source

Why Should You Optimize For Search Engines?

Why would you bother writing if you can't reach the audience who has an interest in what you are publishing? The function of search engine optimization is reaching those who search the keywords you use.

When done correctly, you are reaching those who have an interest in your subject. I have never met a writer who doesn't write with the motive of earning from what they publish. It makes sense then to do whatever is necessary to reach the audience most interested in what you have published.

Simple Tips We Still Use Today

Say you are writing an article on training a horse. Horse would be the first word you would search. As of today May 26, 2021 this brings up 1,030,000,000 results. Horse training brings up 1,390,000,000 results. Although we have no wish to break a horses spirit, we learned the word breaking is less often searched. Since our goal is to let people know there are approaches other than breaking, we used it. The search for breaking a horse to ride brings up results up to 234,000,000 results. It’s going to take a really well optimized article to hit the top of that niche.

We don’t like pain for us or any animal so lets add gentle. Now we are down to 20,400,000 results and with this keyword cluster we are ranked page 1. Since we are not alone in believing it is better to be gentle these keywords are searched thus bringing us readers, because they are finding us on page 1 of a search engine. An interesting fact though is the article shows page one, top of page, on Google for "gentle training a horse to ride" It also has less competition for these keywords. .

We have also narrowed our niche bringing in the readers we really want. As time passes Google adds relevance for linking and sharing. This then, is something you should consider after publishing.

Many people believe optimization is one and done. This is far from the truth. Social sharing and linking will add to the value, giving articles more readers over time. It is rare for an article to reach and hold page one on the day it is published. Most take between two and three months.




Can On Page Search Engine Optimization (SEO) Be Simple?

When you build clusters of keywords using the system we have shown above and below it is. The techniques we started with are as effective now as they were in Jan 2011 when we started using them. There are several articles still pulling readers using nothing more than these simple techniques and at the time of creation, no back linking.

You must realize when you are writing, you are trying to reach an audience. Your goal is to have people read what you have written. If possible, you want your article title to contain at least one of your keywords. This is because those searching will be looking for that keyword. Choose your title wisely.



This Is The Most Effective Method You Will Ever Find.

The approach we use is choosing words then searching them. It is rare now for us to actually open to read anything we find in the search. What we are looking for is the keywords they are using in their summary. We do read the summary a search engine has picked up because this gives us ideas and other words which might be more effective. It also helps us pick the niche in which we want to be found.

It is important to remember that not every keyword is searched often. There are free tools which will let you know how often certain words are searched. For this article we are not going to go into them. What we are going to do is use an example from our own work. We find doing these simple searches for keywords and words we will use in a title enjoyable.

The Horse Article Is Still Ranking Page One 10 Plus Years After Being Published

This article is now ranking in several page one slots. For the keyword cluster, gentle breaking a horse to ride. The competition is now 23,600,000 for these keywords and the gentle breaking a horse for riding article is on a page one people are finding.

It is important to understand there is no static page one on Google. For years, Google has used the search preferences of the people who use their search engine. It takes choosing keywords those in your niche are searching.


What is Simple Search Engine Optimization All About?

Simply putting your article in front of the audience you are writing to reach. All the fancy programs in the world can only speed up the process. Learning to do it this simple way is really the best. Once you have this down, you will learn in reality how you rank is dependent upon one thing. Your brain is the best search engine optimizer that exists.

For our example article, we used the title and on the platform we used, we were able to add a summary which contains our keywords gentle breaking once and horse twice. Summaries are not used by search engines for optimization. The function is to create enough interest to have people who find the summary for them to click through.

It is recommended to make your keywords bold in your article if the platform allows. You can also use your keywords in sub titles, again if the platform allows.

Using Pictures Or Graphics To Help With Optimization

If pictures are allowed and you can find a way to use your keywords in some way, this is highly recommended. In our example article, we used this method. This is especially true if you place the picture at the top of the article. At this point we are recommending using a full sized picture at the top of the article. It should be full width, and no deeper than it is wide if possible, a smaller depth is recommended as a large picture causes people to scroll to see the content.

For pictures on today's internet, they should be no more than 500 Megabits. For the most part now we use Jpeg. Smaller pictures where you want the best resolution possible PNG works fine. On articles and website pages because of more mobile searches, search engines are recommending smaller pages, with low megabit pictures and graphics to speed up loading time.

Photos can help with search engine optimization if properly tagged with keywords
Photos can help with search engine optimization if properly tagged with keywords | Source

Keyword Clusters

The rule of thumb is make sure to use your keyword clusters close together in any order one time within your article. Up dated after the latest Panda. Having them within the first two sentences is probably the most important.

The rule of thumb is at least one keyword within the first eighty five characters. If you can’t add a summary, these first few sentences are what a search engine is going to pick up, and what people will see when searching for you. You want your keywords in your first paragraph, because this is what your article should be about.

Around the center of the article use them again. Make them fit and make it feel like there is a reason for them to be there. They don’t have to be in order or even in the same sentence just within sixty five characters of each other.

Search bots search the entire article looking for keywords and sometimes we have found that by using this method it is actually this grouping we are finding on search engines in the summary the search engine is showing searchers. This works especially well when you can’t add a summary. Even when you can use a summary doing this is showing your keywords are relevant.

Somewhere along the way we learned that in good writing your final paragraph is a summary of what you have written. We don’t always use this paragraph properly but now make sure our keywords are in it. This again to show our keywords are relevant to the article.

The reason people write is to have what they have written read. It is just a waste of brain power to write if what you have written is not being found. You can now see that search engine optimization is simple if you use these tips and your brain.

Links in Text and Using Links

If you link to articles or websites on any platform, blog, or website make sure you are not using a single word which matches a word in the link. This is considered spam by the Penguin update and your information will be passed over by search engines. If you have been wondering why you are losing traffic this might be the reason. A reader brought to our attention that this was improperly worded. We are adding this so people will understand.

One of the websites we are branding at the moment is Luxri.ca. The linking word cannot be Luxri. If so the link would be considered spam. You can link to a single word, the word you link to though cannot be in the link.

Revised May 26, 2021 9:30 PM CST Dennis Thorgesen for Lisech eMarketing,

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© 2012 Dennis Thorgesen

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