~~~Writing for the Search Engines and Your Prospects~~~
From: Jon Catt
Heather,
I really don't want loads of text on my home page, but I understand
the advantages for searching.
Am I right in thinking that if I drop a load of text in at various
points on my page, then shrink the font down as small as possible, and
then make it the same colour as the background, ie invisible to the
eye but not to the search engine I can keep the appearance I desire
and get the advantage too?!!
Jon
JonC@aquatic.co.uk
~~~Heather's Response~~~
Hi, Jon,
I read your question and thundered into a first-class rant (silently
and to myself, of course). Of all the questions we receive, yours is
the second most common (the first is "Can I just tweak my Meta tags
and be OK?"). Now Jon, please don't think that I'm ranting at you.
Rather, I'm ranting at the amount of MISinformation there is about
ethical SEO techniques right now. What's worse, this information is
coming from what most of us would peg as highly reliable sources.
Case in point...
I attended a conference a few months ago, where a BIG COMPANY (not an
SEO company, but still BIG) had published a nice, succinct resource
handbook. Now, when I'm talking BIG COMPANY, just know that everyone
on this list, no matter what country you're from, has heard of this
company. They have brand awareness (and a trust factor) that would
cut through anything. In short, I would almost take anything they
said at face value, even if they weren't in SEO.
But that attitude quickly changed.
I excitedly flipped to the "SEO Marketing" section, wondering if they
mentioned "good, keyphrase-rich content" as a tip. Plain as day, and
listed as a top tip, was (and I'm paraphrasing):
"Using hidden text (text the same color as the background) is an
excellent way to help the search engines spider your site." There was
no mention of including visible HTML text, nor was there any mention
of keyphrases.
What? Here's a trusted BIG COMPANY spouting incorrect and harmful
information. Not only is this technique considered spam, it can also
get your site banned for life. Scary, no?
You may ask, "Well, who is going to notice if I hide my keyphrases and
make them the same color as the background?" The answer: your
competitors. Even if the search engines don't notice the spamming (at
first), your competitors will search for every opportunity to slice
your market share. If they can show a search engine you're using
unethical methods (and that's not difficult with keyphrase spamming),
you can kiss your Web site rankings goodbye.
Now, whether you meant to spam - or you were simply following BIG
COMPANY'S advice - makes no difference. Spam is spam to the search
engines - and they don't want to see that tasty lunchmeat substitute
stinking up their results.
That said, whom can you trust? If the BIG COMPANY can make a mistake
like that, can an SEO firm make the same costly error? Unfortunately,
the answer is (sometimes) yes - depending on the SEO company you
choose. Here are some things you can do to protect yourself and get
the best possible SEO firm for the buck.
1. Have a basic knowledge of SEO before you start hunting for help.
That doesn't mean that you have to know enough to do ALL the work
yourself. Rather, you should know enough to evaluate a sales pitch,
decide if it's meaningful, and ask pertinent questions. Just as you
wouldn't buy a used car without some research, don't hunt for an SEO
company without it.
2. Use resources at your disposal to find the best information.
Marketing Sherpa's "Buyer's Guide to Search Engine Optimization and
Positioning Firms" report (Jill's affiliate link: http://sherpastore.com/page.cfm/1759?a=jw) evaluates some of the top
SEO companies, plus provides a 14-point best practices questionnaire
you can use when grilling a possible SEO vendor. And believe me, the
$119 you'll pay for the guide will save you more than that amount in
time, effort and frustration.
3. Ask questions, ask for proof, and ask more questions. It's not
enough for an SEO company to say, "Yes, this strategy works...somehow,
so we're sure it will work for you." You need to know why a method
works - and ensure that's it's a tested, ethical and reliable
strategy. A little vigilance can go a long way - and make your SEO
investment a savvy one. In fact, Shari Thurow, Webmaster of
Grantastic Designs, also mentioned this great tip in a recent I-Search
post.
And Jon, as a side note, just because you don't want too much text on
your home page, doesn't mean that your buyers will agree. In fact,
not having enough product information is a top reason why people will
leave your site. Before you make a costly error, please surf through
the Rank Write archives about why text is important, and check out the
results of the Jupiter Media Metrix study in Rank Write 064. The sales you save will be your own.
BTW - if you're not a subscriber to I-Search, I highly recommend
signing up. Detlev Johnson, the moderator, is top-notch - and you'll
learn a tremendous amount. Jill and I faithfully read our copies
every week.
Thanks for your post. Keep those online writing and SEO writing
questions coming!
Heather
~~~Jill's unsolicited 2 cents~~~
Regarding that MarketingSherpa report...You may remember I mentioned
it a few weeks ago when it first came out. Since that time, Anne
Holland, who runs MarketingSherpa, took my advice and created an
easy-scan chart that grades companies based on what MarketingSherpa
felt are the best SEO practices. They've also added a quick-scan
pricing chart. If you already own the report (or are planning to
purchase it), you can find this new information on the link provided
for updates within every page of the report. I think this new
information makes the report much more valuable, and I highly
recommend it for companies confused about whom to hire for their SEO
work.
Jill
~~~Send Us Your Questions~~~
If you have questions about online copywriting or search engine optimization (or both!), just zip us an email to questions@rankwrite.com. We've had some folks ask if their question
was "too basic" to be printed - and you don't have to worry about
that! There are no "stupid" search engine optimization or copywriting
questions, so ask away!
