A list of 10 SEO steps I undertake with a new site to give it the best possible start with the search engines and make it more resilient against algorithm changes.
Every time I create a new website there's a series of SEO steps I follow in order to get it indexed more quickly. Here are my top 10
1. I Complete my META tags for each page of my site. I fill out all the available META tags individually for each page - making them unique to each page.
2. I make sure that all my images have 'alt' tags defined
3. I make my navigation as simple and clear as possible. I particularly make sure there are no orphan pages or dead ends. If I use DHTML or Flash based 'drop down' menus (which I avoid doing if I can) I make sure I have standard HTML links to my other pages throughout my page content. I also place all my links to other pages in standard HTML at the bottom of my page (footer navigation). This is because the search engines can't follow Flash or DHTML based 'drop down' menus.
4. I make the correct use of my h1 and h2 tags on each page and I make sure these are sync'd with my META tags for that page.
5. I minimise the use of scripts
6. I create a sitemap and submit it to Google. I create a new sitemap and re-submit it each time I add or remove a page.
7. I register my new site in my Google Webmaster Tools account and I check this each week for any problems showing up on my site.
8. I create as many inbound links to my site as I can. I do recommend joining social sites for social marketing purposes, but remember that the links from social sites are of no value because they go through re-directs. Article marketing is one of the best ways to grow your inbound links.
9. I set up a blog on my new site and post to it regularly. (I have to admit I've only done this for one site so far - I should do it for the others!).
10. I set up satellite sites like Squidoo and HubPages and satellite blogs on sites like blogger.com and wordpress.com and link back to my site. I post useful (hopefully!) content on these sites every couple of days - but they're generally what I call utility posts, rather than Pulitzer prize winning ones.
Once I've done those things I focus totally and continuously on producing, refining and improving the content and facilitites on the site. That means that the site grows over time as I add new pages.
None of these steps is difficult and it only requires a bit of discipline (or a check list) to make sure you carry them out on each of your new sites.
I've found that doing so gets my sites appearing in the natural search results more quickly and makes them more resilient against changes in search engine algorithms - meaning that they continue to figure in the natural search results more consistently.
Wordpress Security: Close Every Loophole
A review of some security precautions you can take to secure your blog, plus a couple of areas that are often overlooked.
10 Steps to a Successful Internet Marketing Business
Here are 10 steps to help you get your expectations set correctly and acquire a mindset that will dramatically improve your chances of succeeding in your Internet Marketing business.
4 Steps to Getting Your New Site Listed on Google
4 simple steps you can take that will ensure your new website is indexed by Google as quickly as possible.
