Websitefor your

Common Sense SEO Tips

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Table of Contents

Introduction ���������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� 3

1� Know which keywords matter - and which don’t. ���������������������� 3

2� Don’t forget to keyword your Site Title� ������������������������������������ 5

3� Content - don’t miss obvious opportunities to work keyword

phrases into your website content. ������������������������������������������������������ 6

4� Use your links wisely� ����������������������������������������������������������������� 8

5� There’s more to a page title than meets the eye� ��������������������� 8

6� Meta Description - how Google REALLY uses this field. ���������� 10

7� Meta Keywords - an exercise in carpal tunnel ��������������������������� 11

Conclusion ��������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� 11

about Rowboat Media ��������������������������������������������������������������������� 12

Recommended Resources ������������������������������������������������������������� 12

Copyright and Sharing �������������������������������������������������������������������� 12

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You know you want

to rank #1 with google,

but for what? Have you

REaLLY thought about it?

Introduction

There is a widespread misconception that Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is some

sort of black magic that only those with pointy hats and knowledge of a secret arcane

language can comprehend. While it is a broad and complex field, full of consummate

professionals and at least as many faux wizards, the basis of most SEO is good, solid

common sense.

WordPress - combined with a quality framework like Thesis or genesis - makes basic

onsite optimization as easy as pie - with just a few tips to point the way.

1� Know which keywords matter - and which don’t.

You know you want to rank #1 with Google, but for what?

Have you REALLY thought about it? Because those

rankings depend on search terms, and if your business is

Joe Smith’s Tree Service in Peoria, IL, then what are you

trying to rank for?

Joe’s Tree Service? Think again. Most people looking for a

tree service don’t know about you, Joe - they just know they live in Peoria and that tree

is about to fall on their garden shed if they don’t do something - fast.

So they’re going to sit down and search for things like:

� Peoria tree service

� tree service in Peoria IL

� best tree service in Peoria

� having a tree removed Peoria

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� safe tree removal Peoria

� tree service recommendations Illinois

They might not be smart enough to list their geographic location with the first few

searches, but after they keep finding Jack Sprat’s Tree Service in New Jersey at the

top of the listings, they’ll get wise and narrow it down.

They won’t, however, EVER Google Joe Smith. The only time they’ll do that is if their

neighbor had a tree removed and said, “oh - yeah - can’t remember the name of the

guy’s company, but his name was Joe Smith.”

Then and only then, they’ll search “Joe Smith tree service.”

That’s why it’s important to have your

name in the text of your website in a

couple of places, but it does not need

to be an extreme focus - just enough

to help personal referrals find you.

Searchers might also use phrases

like:

� how to tell if a tree is dead

� cutting down a tree in a small yard

� will my homeowner’s insurance pay for tree removal?

These are all phrases a homeowner will use when doing their research, before

deciding to spend money. But what if YOU, Joe Smith, had a ton of informative articles

on your website addressing these questions? Odds are, the researcher will call you if

they’re sitting there reading up about tree removal on your website.

That’s why it’s

important to have your

name in the text of your

website���

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That’s the essence of content marketing.

If you’re just not sure what keywords people will use to find you, you can narrow it

down by doing some keyword research of your own.

You can Google (irony) “keyword research tools” to find some, and back it up by

reading Karon Thackston’s awesome (and FREE) ebook entitled “Demystifying

Keyword Research”.

You can pick it up at http://www�copywritingcourse�com/keywordreport�html.

2� Don’t forget to keyword your Site Title�

This is the field you set in WordPress under Settings > General.

Get your #1 keyphrase in there, while keeping in mind you’re stuck with a maximum of

70 characters. That’s way more important than your name with all the initials behind it.

Use a title that helps people know they’re in the right place, like:

Tree Service | Peoria IL | Safe, Affordable Tree Removal & Repair (That’s 65

characters).

If you have enough characters left over, you might include your phone number in the

Site Title field.

Your site design may show the tagline - if so, use it for a nice marketing phrase, like

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GE’s “We bring good things to life.” Whatever you do, DON’T leave the default, “Just

another WordPress weblog” in there when you launch your website. It’s a bit self-

effacing for a marketing effort. Blank is just fine for the tagline if it does not appear

in your header (as text that you can watch change, not a graphic put there by your

designer).

3� Content - don’t miss obvious opportunities to work keyword phrases

into your website content.

Google has gotten wise over the years to people stuffing irrelevant keywords into

metadata fields (more on that later). Metadata used to matter a lot more, back when

site structures were a lot harder for Google’s bot to crawl.

Now that the bot is more sophisticated, and sites are more text-based, like all

WordPress sites, content is truly king. Lots of good, relevant content with the right

keyword phrases wins out over a 3-page site with a $5000 domain name all day long.

This is how joe.com, with 51 articles on all things tree maintenance, can outrank

peoriatreeservice.com’s 4 pages about how great Joe’s dog Buster is.

Instead of breaking your brain (or your bank account)

looking for the perfect domain name - get one that’s easy

to type in and tell to people (hint: no hyphens) and work on

your content instead. If you can get an awesome domain

name too, that’s just gravy.

So - instead of saying, “If your trees have taken a beating

in the latest storm and need to be safely removed, we can help.” it’s just as easy to

write, “If your trees have taken a beating in the latest storm and need to be safely

Instead of breaking

your brain (or your bank

account) looking for the

perfect domain name���

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removed, Joe’s Tree Service can help.”

Don’t forget geography. You need to set yourself apart from that guy in New Jersey,

right? So here’s another example.

Not so good:

“We have over 20 years experience providing tree removal and repair services to local

residents.”

Better:

“Joe’s Tree Service has over 20 years experience providing tree removal and repair

services to Peoria residents.”

It’s just as easy to write a well-

optimized sentence as a sentence that

is a missed opportunity.

Keep in mind that you DO need to

use pronouns sometimes - if you start

every sentence with the name of your

company, your copy will sound pretty

spammy. Write for HUMANS, but keep ROBOTS in mind. Not the other way around.

If you need help knowing a variety of keyphrases to use and making sure your content

has the appropriate number of them, the Scribe SEO plugin for WordPress is a

valuable tool. It analyzes your content, suggests search terms, and helps you crosslink

your content. I know it makes me a better SEO copywriter, as I’ve gotten spanked by

the page analysis numerous times.

It’s just as easy To

write a well-optimized

sentence as a sentence

that is a missed

opportunity�

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4� Use your links wisely�

You’ve probably already heard that it’s a smart idea to link from one page of your

website to another - this is called crosslinking.

It helps keep people on your website reading more

information, which increases your time-on-site stats,

What you may NOT realize, however, is the importance of

anchor text.

What is anchor text, you say? Anchor text is the text that

shows up as a link in your website.

Here’s an example of a wasted anchor text opportunity:

� To read more about tree removal, click here.

Here’s an optimized version of the same link:

� Joe’s Tree Service handles all types of tree removal challenges.

In the first example, “click here” is the anchor text. No one is going to be searching the

phrase “click here” to find a tree service. In the second example, tree removal - one of

the keyword phrases we’re optimizing for - is the anchor text.

Easy. Also easy to overlook.

5� There’s more to a page title than meets the eye�

Your site title is one opportunity to use the right keyword phrases, but so is the title of

every page and blog post on your website. However, if you titled every page “Peoria

Tree Removal” “Peoria Tree Repair” “Common Tree Diseases in Peoria,” your site

would start to look pretty spammy to the humans in a hurry.

What you may NOT

realize, however, is the

importance of anchor

text� What is anchor text,

you say?

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Custom page metadata, which is included with the Thesis and genesis frameworks,

allows you to control what shows up as the blue link in Google search results without it

repeating all over your website.

In the screenshot below, you’ll see that the WordPress page title is “Services.”

Underneath the content, you’ll see a section entitled “SEO Details and Additional

Style.”

This is where you customize what shows up on a Google SERP (Search Engine

Results Page). Note that the Custom Title Tag does not just say, “Services.” - it

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includes the phrases “Website Design,” “WordPress,” “Thesis,” and “Genesis.”

Google does index key phrases in page titles. Make sure your service/product and

your location, if that matters to your business, appear in the Custom Title Tag for

EVERY page. Don’t leave this to chance.

See those Meta Description and Meta Keywords fields? More on that coming up.

6� Meta Description - how Google REALLY uses this field.

You get 150 characters in the Meta Description field to make your case to the searcher.

Google doesn’t index the keywords in the Meta Description, but it does make the

keywords that the searcher entered bold if they match the description.

Example:

The above screenshot is the result of a search on “Thesis designer.” Note that the

word “Thesis” appears in bold. This helps increase the searcher’s confidence that

the website is relevant. Think of it as a really tight classified ad - you talking to the

searcher.

If you don’t fill out this field, Google “guesses” from what’s on your page what to put in

the description. Don’t accept this. Control your destiny.

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7� Meta Keywords - an exercise in carpal tunnel

I don’t know for sure about other search engines, but Google has been ignoring meta

keywords for YEARS, due to the abuses perpetrated by spammers and lazy online

marketers. That’s why that field is empty in the screenshot above.

You can’t fix bad content, or not

enough content, by stuffing the meta

keywords field. Spend time on good

content instead.

People argue with me over this one -

they find it SO shocking!

Don’t believe me - here’s the proof straight from google, via the Rowboat Media

blog:

� It’s official: google ignores keywords meta tag

Conclusion

While this only scratches the surface - I can think of ten more easy things to do, but

one has to stop somewhere - I hope this helps take the mystery out of common-sense

onsite SEO, and that you found at least 3 things you can implement TODAY. If you put

down that remote.

Go forth and prosper!

You can’t fix bad

content, or not enough

content, by stuffing the

meta keywords field.

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about Cynthia LaLuna

I’ve been writing marketing copy, making money online,

and creating websites since the Internet was just a twinkle

in Al Gore’s eye. In 2008 I founded Rowboat Media, a

digital marketing agency specifically for lawyers and small

business owners.

I also had a 15 year career as a technical writer, which

means I created some of the best-written, most concise

technical manuals and online help systems in the history of software until I came within

an inch of boredom-induced brain death.

Those horrible sets of instructions you get now, when you get them at all? Outsourcing.

English matters. Using the simple tips in this document, combined with clean

WordPress development, I have aided many of our clients in moving from Google’s

cheap seats (way down past page 3) to page 1.

about Rowboat Media

Rowboat Media specializes in providing business owners, lawyers and other

professionals with sharp-looking, search-optimized websites designed to convert

visitors into customers and clients. We build on WordPress to provide you with a

content management system that keeps you in charge.

Recommended Resources

Themes that make onsite SEO easy: Thesis, genesis and Headway

SEO content analysis and keyword suggestions: Scribe SEO

SEO fast Start by Dan Theis

Keyword Research Demystified by Karon Thackston

Copyright and Sharing

This document is copyright © 2011 Rowboat Media. All rights reserved. Feel free to

share it with others, but share it in its entirety with all attributions, links, etc. intact.

Affiliate Disclaimer: This document contains links to a number of resources we personally use and recommend. If you

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