1. Always use keyword and description meta tags.

For every page on your site you should have meta tags unique to that page.  Meta tags are HTML code found between the tags near the top of the page when you are looking at the HTML code.

For the keywords meta tag create a comma-separated list of keywords relevant to your site. Keywords don’t have to be single words. They can, and should, be keyword phrases relevant to the content of that page.

For the description meta tag write a description of your site that would make someone want to click your link. This meta tag’s description is used by some search engines, including Google, as the text description of your site. So it’s not just for the search engine’s benefit, it’s also likely to be seen by a human and it may be the difference between that human clicking on your site’s link or another site.

2. Where you have images on your site, always include an alt tag.

The HTML code for including an image in your page has an optional attribute called the ‘alt’ tag. It’s short for ‘alternative text’. It was originally intended as a text description to aid viewers surfing with images turned off or using a screen reader so they could get an idea of what an image was about, since they couldn’t see it. But search engines also use the alt tag to find out more about what your page is about.

You want the alt tag to contain keywords relevant to your site and the image they are describing. Instead of just putting “header” in the alt tag for your header image, use the opportunity to tell the search engines what your site is about, with something like “Puppy Training Header”, if your site is about puppy training. Don’t over do it though, you want this description to be concise rather than stuffed with every keyword relevant to your site.

3. Use header tags wisely.

The header tags H1, H2, H3 etc. are used by search engines to figure out what the important keywords for your site are. You can easily change the appearance of the header tags by using stylesheets, so try to use the standard HTML header tags instead of custom styles for your headers. Then just make sure you’ve got relevant keywords in the headers. The H1 header should contain the primary keyword for your page, the H2 header should contain the secondary keywords for your page, etc.

We’ve covered just a few basic, but very important, aspects of on-page SEO in this article. This is a very good place to start if you want to improve your sites search engine optimization.  The next step in the SEO process is to get quality back links to your website.

Why is search engine ranking important?

Having a website is one thing, but being able to be found by people looking for what you are offering is totally different.  This is where SEO comes into play.  Most people do not go beyond the first page of the search results, and only 4% go as far as the third page.  So showing up on the first page is important if you want your website to be seen, and get the resulting traffic.

SEO techniques fall under two broad categories, on-page factors and off-page factors.

On-Page SEO – The on-page factors are changes you can make to your website that effect how well it is optimized for your targeted subject.  More specifically each page of your site will focus on one or two keywords, and you use these techniques to tell the search engines what your site and specific pages are about.  Some on page factors are using keywords in the title, keyword and description meta tags, the use of the alt tag for images, H1 header tags, keyword throughout the content on your page.

Off-Page SEO – Getting backlinks is what makes up the off-page factors of SEO.  These are links other people have on their site that point back to yours.  They are also called “inbound links”, which is a little more descriptive of what they are. The search engines look at these inbound links like votes from other people on the quality and relevance of your site.  For the most part the site with the most “votes” wins, and is rewarded with higher rankings.

Steps You Can Take To Improve Your SEO

1.    Use keywords in Title tags
2.    Include your keywords in the meta keyword and description tags.
3.    Where you have images on your site, always include an alt tag.
4.    Use keywords in header tags where possible.
5.    Make sure you site has quality content that contains your keyword a few times.
6.    Get backlinks with and use relevant keywords as the anchor text.

We’ve covered just the basic, but very important, aspects of SEO in this article. This is a very good place to start if you want to improve your sites search engine optimization. Keep applying these techniques until it becomes second nature and you should see an improvement in both your search engine rankings and an increase in the traffic to your site.

Missed this when it came out a week or so ago, but it’s worth posting about after the fact a bit. The Small Business Success Index reports that social media adoption among small businesses has doubled from 12% to 24% in the past year. From reading the release, I gather that “adoption” means a business is actively using social media, as opposed to just having a placeholder profile page.

Here are some of the other findings:

Small business owners use social media to attract new customers:

• 75% surveyed have a company page on a social networking site
• 61% use social media for identifying and attracting new customers
• 57% have built a network through a site like LinkedIn
• 45% expect social media to be profitable in the next twelve months

Small business owners still have concerns with social media:

• 50% of small business social media users say it takes more time than expected
• 17% express that social media gives people a chance to criticize their business on the Internet
• Only 6% feel that social media use has hurt the image of the business more than helped it

The study is sponsored by Network Solutions and the Center for Excellence in Service at the University of Maryland Smith School of Business.

Read more: http://www.smallbusinesssem.com/more-small-businesses-using-social-media/2847/#ixzz0gmsR7cIY

And I think today Google’s changing the local game again. You can now get local search results — a map, business listings, and all — even when you don’t do a typical local search. Mike Blumenthal discovered this today, and there’s already a good discussion started there.

Basically, there are a variety of terms (like “restaurants” or “plumbers” or “doctors”) that will produce a Google Maps/Local result even if you don’t include a city name or other geographical term in your query. Here’s a search I just did for “attorneys” –

As you can see, I’m getting local search results that appear to be based on my IP address. I’ve done a couple dozen generic searches and the map never shows at the top of the page; it’s always at the 4th spot or lower.

Google is always adding new services and features to make searching for locations and about locations in the users local area easier. Google has been busy recently expanding its horizons with new endeavors like Google Energy and the company has just announced a new local search service.

The local search service is called “Near me now” and the goal is to make it easier and quicker for users to find places and information about places near them. The service is accessible by going to Google.com on the iPhone or Android devices and clicking on the “Near me now” button once the phone provides your location.

“Near me now” was designed to address two user problems. First, is to make it fast and easy to find out more about a place in your immediate vicinity, whether you’re standing right in front of a business or if it’s just a short walk away. For example, you may want to know what other customers think about a restaurant before you go inside.

Second, is to make searching for popular categories of nearby places really simple. Imagine that you emerge from the subway station and you want to grab a coffee, but you don’t see a coffee shop around you. You can simply search for all nearby coffee shops by using “Near me now”.

Tactic #1. Personalize your auto-responder

Many companies use an auto-responder or some other nearly instant response system to give customers the benefit a quick “thanks for your email” message while they are waiting for the full answer to work its way through the queue.

However, some customers are unwilling to wait the 24-48 hours for their full answer. When they get the auto-responder they pick up the phone instead, which is more expensive for your company to handle.

To head off that restlessness, try altering your auto-responder system to include some personalization. The customer’s name in the text of the message will help. Even better, reference their question in the response.

People love to hear their own words said back to them. Something as simple as pasting their question in the middle of the reply (not at the end) can make a big difference.

Tactic #2. Deep-link if you link at all

Answers that simply read “Check our Web site” with a link to your home page are infuriating to many of your customers.

If they wanted to go to your Web site, they would have done so. In fact, often they have *already* done so and did not find the answer they were looking for. They have chosen the communication method they would like you to use to help them, and now it is your turn to follow their lead.

If you do reference your Web site address in your reply, give a deep link that goes directly to the answer to the question the customer was looking for.

If you cannot link deep, never give your Web site home page as your only or primary answer to the customer question. Instead, send out your fast reply auto-responder, put the email in the queue and answer the question properly, clearly and completely, via email as soon as you can.

Tactic #3. Personalize Reply Message Intros

Increase customer loyalty by adding a little extra personalization to the beginning of your final, complete email reply.

O’Flahavan says, “Draw on what you know about a customer to personalize. If they are a long-time customer, or a new one, acknowledge that. Make them feel like a person, not just a number.”

Tactic #4. Review Your Canned Answers

Have a copywriter familiar with your brand review all your canned answers for appropriate tone. While the facts may be right, the tone may be so off-putting the answer will boomerang on you badly.

While reviewing your canned answers, check to see that those with step-by-step instructions present these in a series of separate numbered paragraphs. Do not pile several steps into one paragraph of text, it is harder for customers to comprehend.

Tactic #5. Hold Email Agent Get-Togethers

Invite your agents to a special ‘sharing ideas’ meeting at least once a month on company time so they can interact with each other.

O’Flahavan says, “It’s extremely valuable to convene a panel of agents. Ask them to each bring sample questions and decide amongst themselves, ‘What was the customer asking? Was their question fully answered?’

“It’s incredible to see how grateful the agents are to talk to each other about writing. They are so isolated otherwise – you spend eight hours with your fingers on the keyboard talking to customers.”

For full story: http://www.marketingsherpa.com/article.php?ident=23181