Search Engine Optimization Methodology

Search Engine Optimization is an art!
Time for a cold hard dose of reality. The truth about SEO is this: There are no secrets or guaranteed solutions when it comes to Search Engine Optimization. There are methods and practices but there are no guarantees! Search Engine Optimization is much more of an art than a science.

You need both the creativity and "brush techniques" to be able to paint a masterpiece. Similarly, you need both to optimize your website for the search engines. If you were told by an SEO firm that they could guarantee you ranking for a keyword, the keyword either is NEVER searched (and thus has no competition), or they LIED to you.

How do Search Engines Determine Rankings?
If you really think about it, Search Engine Optimization is not as complicated as you might think. Search Engine Optimization by definition is simply making your site more relevant for a keyword than your competitors. There are three distinct ways that a search engine determines whether your site is relevant for any given keyword/key phrase:

Search Engines value the content on your site
Ever heard the phrase "Content is king?" Without question the most important part of good rankings is rich content. This means good, keyword-rich text on your site. It makes sense that a search engine (essentially a machine) would use text to determine which site is relevant for which keyword.

The number one reason why sites do not have good ranking is insufficient content. The first step is identifying keywords based on frequency of use and applicability. Once you have identified your core keyword menu it is time to put these keywords into your content and metas. The trick however, is to make your site content rich and keyword-focused without making the site incoherent.

Incoming Links and Anchor Text is important
Linking strategy is the next important step. Search Engines value not only what sites link to yours but also how relevant they are to your industry and desired keywords and what the actual "text" is that links to your site. Often people go with companies promising thousands of links to improve search engine rankings, however, search engines don't add relevance if you have thousands of unrelated incoming links to your site.

Search Engine Submissions are important
The final step is submissions. This is perhaps the easiest step. Make sure that your site is submitted to all the major search engines. Most search engines are free to submit to, with few exceptions. For guaranteed submission, Yahoo offers a directory submission. Google site indexing can be sped up by creating a Google sitemap.