~~~Writing for the Search Engines~~~
From: Ed
We all know the importance of having key phrases/words/metalinks
associated with that first page of your web site. In order of
importance, please rate WHERE they should be?
1) In the actual hyperlinks words?
2) In the headlines of the text?
3) Within the first or second paragraph?
4) In words/phrases separated by commas, in a line at the top (or
bottom) of the web page?
5) As metalinks (hidden phrases in the software)?
Thanks,
Ed
~~~Heather's Response~~~
Hey, Ed.
That's a great question. However, except for one item you mentioned,
it's hard for me to take your list of smart techniques and rank them
"in order of importance." Basically, all SEO writing techniques
provide a cumulative effect. That is, if you don't put keyphrases in
your headlines, but have them in your body copy, you could still be
OK. However, it's advisable to do *everything possible* (without
spamming) to increase your rankings. Why go halfway when, with a
little extra effort, you'll know you're covered on all counts?
I'm going to discuss your questions point-by-point.
1) In the actual hyperlinks words?
Yes, yes, yes! The search engines figure that hyperlinked keyphrases
are important, and they'll give that phrase more weight. In fact, now
that I'm on my soapbox, I think that every hyperlink on your home page
should include a keyphrase.
2) In the headlines of the text?
You betcha. Both your headlines and your subheadlines should include
at least one keyphrase. The reason to do this is the same as the
reason for hyperlinked keyphrases. Search engines think that
headlines are important, highly relevant text. The more keyphrases
you have in your headlines, the more chances you'll have that the
search engines will sit up and take notice.
3) Within the first or second paragraph?
Yes, with modifications. The "old" school of thought was that you
should pack your keyphrases in the first couple lines of text. This
may work for the search engines, but it's horrid for your prospects.
Unless you are *very* skilled and the keyphrases simply flow out, your
first couple sentences will sound stilted and weird this way.
Search engines spider the entire text. For maximum effectiveness, I
would recommend spreading your keyphrases throughout your body copy.
This way you're covered with the search engines, and you don't lose
your marketing flow from the get-go.
4) In words/phrases separated by commas, in a line at the top (or
bottom) of the web page?
I'm assuming you mean that these lines are visible to your prospects,
and not a sneaky way to do the hidden text thang? I don't do
"keyphrase lines," and I wouldn't recommend them. You have to
consider that all your text...and that means EVERY word you
write...needs to satisfy the search engines and your prospects. If
you have a keyphrase line up there, you're breaking up the marketing
flow and run the risk of alienating your client. Besides, it's just
as easy to insert keyphrases in the body text, so there's no reason to
"stuff" a couple lines.
5) As metalinks (hidden phrases in the software)?
I'm assuming that you mean the Meta keyword tag? Because of
incessant abuse, the search engines are giving this tag less weight
(see Jill's article, "The Meta Keyword tag" for more information).
Should you still work with this tag? Heck yes! It may not be the
be-all, end-all for improving your rankings, but why not do everything
you can?
Thanks for your question! Keep 'em coming!
Heather
~~~Jill's unsolicited 2 cents~~~
Yep, Heather is right that most of your points are equally important.
I would probably rank them something like this:
1. Keyphrases spread throughout the entire body text.
2. Keyphrases in headlines (using <H2> or <H3> tags).
3. Keyphrases within hyperlinks.
4. Keyphrases in Meta tags.
I also agree with Heather, and would *not* put keyphrases in a line at
the top or bottom of the page separated by a comma (Ed's number 4). I
wouldn't be surprised if search engines *look* for this and try to
ignore it if/when they see it. I'm not saying they do, but if I were
a "spam-combating, search engine algorithm-programming geek," I'd
definitely program my algorithm to ignore stuff like that!
More important is what Ed is missing in his list of SEO
techniques. That is, the all-mighty Title tag! A keyword-rich Title
tag and well-written, keyword-rich content will go a looooooong way
towards getting you high rankings. In fact, I discussed this in the
audio interview Heather mentioned above. It is also discussed in our
next ClickZ.com article, which should be published sometime in the
next few weeks. In the meantime, you can always learn more about my
best bud (after Heather!), the Title tag, in my article entitled, "All About Title Tags".
Jill
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