What is Search Engine Optimization?
If you’re like me, Google is the first Web site you visit when you have a question or need to do some research. Search Engine Optimization, also known as SEO, is the process of improving the volume and quality of traffic to a Web site from search engines (such as Google) via search results. The earlier a site appears in the search results, or the higher it ranks, the more likely searchers are to visit that site. SEO can also target different kinds of searches, including image searches, local searches, and industry-specific searches.
How to Optimize your Web site
Optimizing a Web site involves editing the content and HTML coding to increase its relevance to specific keywords and to remove barriers to the indexing activities of search engines. In other words, it makes the Web site easier to find through a search engine. Sometimes a site’s structure, or the relationship between its content, must be altered too. If you’re interested in doing this to your own Web site and a lot more tech-savvy than I am, here are complete instructions on how to optimize your Web site. (http://www.bruceclay.com/web_rank.htm)
Why is SEO important?
As an internet marketing strategy, SEO considers how search engines work and what people search for. It has become a very important tool for companies because consumers are relying more on Web sites to find trusted information. Chevy, in order to save money on advertisements, has recently cut back on television commercials and has focused more on its Web site. Chevy made use of SEO to increase traffic to their Web site. When people put in the key word “car” into a Google search, Chevy ensured through SEO that they would be one of the first sites listed. This allowed Chevy to lure customers who are not loyal to one specific car brand. SEO is a great way for companies to increase traffic to Web sites and can potentially save a lot of money on advertisements.
What does SEO mean to Public Relations Professionals?
It is very important for public relations professionals to make use of SEO for their clients. The internet has become into a huge medium for finding information and researching a product. Getting your client’s Web site to be the first site listed in a Google search can help your client achieve a numbers of goals and will prove your value as a public relation practitioner.
To learn more about Search Engine Optimization, visit the following site:
http://www.google.com/support/webmasters/bin/answer.py?hl=en&answer=35291
By: Ellen Greenwell
3 comments:
Great post! I actually also just blogged (http://is.gd/47Zo) about the importance of SEO and PR integration, and I think that there are a lot of ways that the two practices can work together to benefit a client.
Google won't disclose their algorithm for how the Web sites show up. Do you think it is that different than other search engines like Ask.com? It certainly has the notoriety that other sites don't have.
Allison Key
I think this is a great tool for PR practitioners to use as an alternative way to have their client's name come up in searches while saving money by not purchasing advertisements. I only wonder what happens if two competing companies like Chevy and Ford try to use SEO for the word "car." Who would come up first? Since it's not paid for, it's never guaranteed prime placement, but maybe in economic times like this the money saved by taking a chance on SEO outweighs advertisements with premier placement.
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