SEO for Beginners! (Basic Lessons from Google)

Hey!

Welcome to our first article on our Blog. We are sure that our web site is going to be a hit, in the future. But, remember that Rome was never built in a day. And, at any point of time, when you are up the ladder of success – the basics are still important. Yes, both important & relevant, too. So, let’s get started with some basic lessons from Google. Here are some simple techniques to check your website & do some minor tweaks to rank better in Search engines. I am sure that they would throw some light. And, if you are having a simple web site, they would sure help you to get kick-started, into the world of SEO.

1. Make meaningful & relevant TITLES:
   When your Web Designer has designed your website, it would sure be as attractive to your eyes, as you may have wanted it. But, probably, it is not having unique Titles for each page. And, hence it is not “SEO Friendly”. A title tag tells both users and search engines what the topic of a particular page is. The tag should be placed within the tag of the HTML document. Ideally, you should create a unique title for each page on your site.

   Ensure that you have authentic Titles & your Title is useful, unique, brief yet descriptive, and relevant to the actual page itself. The title for your homepage can list the name of your website/ business and could include other bits of important information like the physical location of the business or maybe a few of its main focuses or offerings.

2. Is your URL – Human readable? And, does it make sense?
   It is critical to have URL (web site address) – that are clear, simple & human- readable. Because, in the Search Engine Results page, the URL of your web page appears below the title, with words from the user’s Search Query in bold.

   For example, avoid using URLs such as http://googlesearch-example.com/product_id=1234356
   Instead, you could go for http://googlesearch-example.com/mobilephones/apple/iphone-5c.html

3. Provide relevant Page Descriptions.
   The Page Descriptions appear below the Title on the Search Results page. And, this descriptive text under the URL is usually taken from the description meta tag on the source of the page. Ensure that your Descriptions should be different and unique to each area of your site. It could be a phrase, sentence or a short paragraph. This is important, as the Descriptions, may be used as snippets.
4. Simple & sensible Navigation:
   It is a known fact that users, shun away from web sites that are not user-friendly. Search Engines are also brilliant to understand what content the webmaster thinks is important. Using Breadcrumb Navigation on all your pages is a simple approach. Putting an HTML site map page on your site, and using an XML Sitemap file – is a good practice. Also, having an useful 404 page is a good idea. Because, users will occasionally come to a page that doesn't exist on your site, either by following a broken link or typing in the wrong URL. Having a custom 404 page that kindly guides users back to a working page on your site can greatly improve a user's experience.
5. Add your business to Google Places, to help Google display location information in results.
6. Content is KING!
   Remember! You are Unique. Your Business is unique & you have an edge over your competition. So, having original, factual & informative content is of prime importance. Do not dump your keywords. Use your own style... Put your heart, mind & soul into creating your content. Be authentic. Sometimes, you may have to beat your own drum & blow your own horn.. But, that ok. Afterall you have to drive business to you.
7. Managing Images & Videos
   Off course, people love to see images & videos on your web site. And, it sure brightens up your web site. But, we need to also remember that Search Engines are designed for text, as they do not read the images. Hence, it is important to provide text descriptions, of those images and videos.
   Some ways of doing it are:
   a. Use descriptive File Names: Suppose you are selling a Canon Camera, you may use the file name Canon-Camera-ixus-130.jpg, rather than image1.jpg.
   b. Create meaningful Alt Text.: Alt texts are the texts that appear within a box, when you mouse over an image. It is used to describe the contents of an image file. It’s useful for human readers, as well as provides search engines with useful information about the target image or video.
   c. The context of the image: The content around the image – makes Search Engines to understand more about the image/video. For example, the description about the Canon-Camera-ixus-130, tells Google that the entire page is about Cameras.
   d. Using high-quality source files is preferred.
   e. Uploading your video to YouTube - can help you reach a larger audience, too.

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