Search engine optimization seems to be well understood by consultants and sometimes very poorly understood by their clients. One of our clients described SEO as "that voodoo you do."

Although search engine optimization isn't "voodoo", it can be accurately described as a meld of both art and science. The science part is learning how search engines evaluate your site and how to make the improvements that will allow your site to place well in those search engines (often referred to as "organic placement" or "natural placement"). Unfortunately many optimizers forget that although the search engine's spiders or bots crawl your web site for information that they use in their ranking algorithms it's ultimately your potential client or customer who must be impressed by the information they find on your web site and they will make their buying decisions based on what they see there. That's where the "art" comes in - it's making changes to an existing site or recommending strategies for a new site that will maximize both the organic search engine rankings and the customer's willingness to buy from you or your web site. We offer four search engine optimization strategies: SEO audit, intermediate, advanced, and customized.

Search Engine Optimization Process

Keyword Research

Keyword research is the foundation of an effective SEO campaign. We conduct detailed keyword research to identify effective keywords for your web site. This means that we review the categories in which you think your web site belongs, look at the highest ranking competitors in that category, and begin developing a list of keyword alternatives. After we have compiled an extensive list of possible keywords, we review them to determine which will offer the highest possibility of bringing relevant traffic to your web site. We identify the most effective keywords to use for on-page and off-page optimization.

On-page Optimization

On-page optimization is the process of optimizing your web site code to bolster your search engine rankings. The keywords chosen in the keyword research phase are strategically used within your web pages. Search engines penalize overuse of keywords and repetitive keyword usage (among many other infractions). How search engines rank on-page factors changes frequently.

Link Popularity

Another important element of a search engine optimization (SEO) campaign is an ongoing link popularity campaign. An online linking campaign consists of securing one-way and reciprocal links to your web site, submitting your site to various general and industry specific link directories, creating targeted articles and submitting them to article directories, and syndicating your content. The search engines have gradually evolved to filter spammy SEO techniques, so we take great care to conduct your linking campaign in a natural manner to avoid being penalized by search engines.

Content and Media Development

Fresh, regularly updated, and well written topical content is pivotal to a successful search engine optimization campaign. The search engines seem to place more emphasis on sites that are updated regularly and grow naturally. Creating a business blog is one very effective way to create new material for your web site or link to your website if you don't wish to host the blog on your own site..

Web Site Analytics Analysis

If your site doesn't have any analytics - it should! Analytics gives you the ability to closely track your visitors and make informed web site management decisions. Take the guesswork out of optimization! If you don't have analytics installed, install Google Analytics - it's free! Yes, it has some limitations and if you can't live with those limitations there are plenty of other paid options available.

Start All Over!

That's right! Start all over. Search engine algorithms change, new competitors spring up, established competitors change tactics - all these factors will affect your rankings. It's very important to review your optimization monthly to ensure you remain competitive online. Now is no time to rest on your laurels.

Hire a Professional

You can do all these steps yourself if you're willing and able to invest time and money in the process. If you don't have time to wait for your learning curve, consider hiring a professional firm to handle your internet marketing. Please call 864-335-9393, email info[at]morrilltech.com, or fill out our contact form and we'll provide more information on our services and a free ranking report for your web site. There's nothing to lose and everything to gain!