With the New Year upon us, we wanted to share the history of SEO. If you’re new at the term Search Engine Optimization (SEO) there is a lot to learn out there. As an Omaha SEO Expert, we have found that changes happen quickly with the everchanging SEO world. The same can be said about SEO. The techniques used eight years ago to achieve the best search engine rankings no longer apply. Below, we have provided the history of SEO to help you understand what we do.
In the Internet’s (commercial) infancy, optimizing websites for SERPS (search engine results pages) was very different than it is in 2013. Back then, it wasn’t particularly difficult to manipulate the search engines to rank number one, and anyone with even a rudimentary knowledge of SEO (link building, meta tags and targeted keywords) could easily rank in the top ten for lots of keywords and keyword phrases.
Fast forwarding to 2013, webmasters now have to keep pace with highly advanced and complex search engine algorithms that are updated hundreds of times annually. Don’t hesitate to ask an Omaha SEO Consultant about current trends in search engine optimization. For many webmasters, sites they managed that once ranked on page one now limp along on page six, and they wonder why.
Well, there is no simple answer, because an increasing number of factors weigh in today, and those are all not related to on-page optimization of titles, descriptions, meta tags and so on. Building massive back links doesn’t guarantee success either, because Google started penalizing sites that were “overly” optimized. As to link popularity, it’s nearly impossible for the average webmaster to manipulate search results today because links on other sites are beyond their control.
Analyzing and Prioritizing Links
A site with 379 inbound links may rank higher in SERPS than a site with 6,000 inbound links. Why? Google and other major search engines are pushing for relevancy of content to search queries. Links to sites that advocate spamming, illegal downloads, black hat SEO, or those related to link exchanges migrate to “bad neighborhoods,” and are penalized.
Addressing Multiple IP Addresses Across Multiple Class C”s or /24’s – Does this Really Help SEO?
A Class C is an allocation of 256 IP addresses and is known as a /24. Historically, SEO gurus have advocated using link wheels and link exchanges, assigning different IP addresses to each site, in an effort to trick the search engines that sites were more popular than they really were. Link wheels can still be effective, but they need to be properly set up to avoid being penalized. Ask an Omaha SEO Consultant for advice.
Not all Meta Tags are Recognized by Google, Including Keywords
Content should be written for your end users and NOT for the search engines. Google actually employs humans to review, flag and rate sites. Intent is one of their factors, so flooding your pages with keywords is BAD. Content needs to flow naturally, provide value and BE RELEVANT to your visitor’s search queries.
What are the Search Engines Looking for Today?
The answer, taking note of Bing’s own advertisements, is returning relevant results. Visitors to your site are entering search queries on Google, Yahoo and Bing, looking for information that will ease some pain, fulfill a need or satisfy a desire. If the content on your site addresses these and offers solutions, then your site is golden.
Content Can be Optimized
Aside from ensuring that your content is grammatically correctly, if you write articles in the form of advice based on your experience AND if your advice is of value AND there are sufficient people searching for answers or information related to your content, the search engines will notice.
As Google indexes more of your content, the increased traffic that ensues often leads to external publication of your articles, either as a guest post on a blog or a re-tweet on Twitter. Share icons are now common place on WordPress sites. It’s not uncommon for articles to be shared thousands of times across multiple social media portals.
Tip: Provide a bio with each article that leads back to your website.
Contact Big Red SEO Today!
Do you have questions about Search Engine Optimization (SEO)? Call Big Red SEO, an SEO Company in Omaha, at (402) 522-6468, or fill out our contact form. Our mission is to help businesses be found where their customers are looking. More than ever, potential customers are searching for services in their local area. We can help you get the results you deserve.