SEO Information
How Search Engines Work
In order to get a website to rank well in the search engines we must first have an understanding of what a “search engine” is and how it works. A search engine is a complex program that searches for keywords in files and documents found on the World Wide Web. These programs search across many sites, using such agents as spiders to gather lists of available files and documents and store these lists in databases which users can search by keyword. Examples would include Google, Msn, Yahoo, Lycos, Excite and many, many more.
Search Engines not only collect information on keywords and files but it determines the “importance” of your site by nearly a hundred different variables. One of the keys to ranking well in the search engines is to know how to make the information on your site recognizable by the search engines. This is called ON-Page Optimization. It mainly has to do with the programming of your site. The search engine “spiders” do not view the information on your web pages the same way that you and I perceive them. The “spiders” collect information from the title bars, the text of your site, meta-tags, alt tags, and the amount of other sites that are linked to the page. It uses all this information to make a determination of what each page on your site is about. For example, the title bar on each page is the biggest factor (45%) on what tells the search engines what your page is about (Not your website title, but the title bar on the top of your browser—back ground programming). All the other factors play a role as well, and it is important they are written in such a way that the search engines can recognize.
On Page Optimization
Successful websites are a balance. The site must be appealing to the eye, contain pertinent information to the subject of interest, easy navigation, tools to generate leads, and most importantly the right tools to rank well in the search engines.
On-page Optimization is an essential element of your website. Poor programming, improper layouts, over use of flash programming, or I-frames can kill your ranking in the search engines as well as limit the amount of keywords that you come up for in the search engines. To have a successful website it is important that when a search engine “spider” comes to your website, it is able to recognize the content contained within your web pages.
When using the RapidListings system, you can be confident that your website is created in proper layout and programming style that will be conducive to your search engine ranking. There are over hundred different variables that search engines use to help determine the relevance and importance of a website to different search terms. You want to be sure that you have all the elements of your website working for you to get the best ranking possible. Just a few of the factors involved in this ranking process are Website Content, Meta-Tags, and Web Page Structure.
Website Content
A good way to determine how much search engines are actually recording when they come to your website is through the following method-
Place your mouse at the top right corner of your real estate website and hold down you left mouse button. Slowly drag your mouse diagonally across your website so that areas highlight. Does each letter highlight on your site individually or do “blocks highlight with the text image with in them”. A good example of the difference between text, text images, and text contained within flash is the following experiment-The second example is an image or picture of text. If you try to highlight the individual letters you will notice that the whole “image” lights up. That is because it is a picture of the words “INDEX ME” and search engines only recognize it as a picture and not words.In this example we have 3 versions of the same word, the top example is recognizable by the search engines and the other 2 are just recorded as image files and are of no benefit to the search engines.
Standard Text: INDEX ME Image Text:
Flash Text:
The bottom example is an example of Flash. The words “INDEX ME” where written in a Flash program. When you left click and drag across the words to try to highlight the individual letters you will see the whole Flash Image light up. Again, with this example search engine spiders cannot read the text it simply sees a Flash Image. This is the reason Flash sites or sites with a lot of flash components have a harder time ranking in the search engines.
On the first example look at the text- “INDEX ME”. When you hold your left mouse button down and drag across it you will see the individual letters light up one by one. Search engines CAN recognize and read this example.
Using this method on your website can give you an accurate idea just how much information is being indexed when a search engine spider comes to your page.
Website Meta-Tags
Not as relied on as heavily as they used to be, Meta-Tags are still an important part of your on-page optimization. This background programming allows web administrators place “tags” to help tell search engines what the webpage is about. Some search engines rely heavily upon these tags, and some search engines place very little bearing of what is placed in the Meta-Tags. Like it was said before, It is important that you have all the elements of your website working for you. RapidListings actually gives you complete control of what you want these tags to say and helps you out by pre-filling these tags with information pertinent to your local area. RapidListing also provides valuable tips and hints what to place into these tags if you do choose to change them to focus in on a particular search phrase. Click here for more information on the Meta-Wizard.
Web Page Structure
The Layout of a website has a lot to do with how well it ranks in the search engine. Search engines programs have to make determinations of what a website is about. It does this by analyzing the content that was collected from the website. A higher importance on placed on different words depending on where they are positioned on the page, their font sizes, boldness, whether the text is linked, and other factors. Typically the first few words on the page and the first few words in each section of the website are considered to be “more important” than the rest of the text on the site. You must ask yourself when analyzing web providers- What is the first Text on the page? Is the Website title an image? Is my home page a flash intro? Navigational structure is an important aspect of your website as well. Did you know search engines also use links to determine what the pages of a website are about as well? Each Navigational button is a “link” to another webpage. Search engine take into account what text is attached to the link. If your navigational button is written in text format and it links to your “buyer resources” page, then search engines believe that that page is about “buyer resources”. Many web design companies like to use images for their navigation or Java Script, though sometimes visually appealing, it can actually be detrimental to the rank of your website. Site Maps are a good way to offset design downfalls such as these, but we believe every design element should work to your advantage.
Off Page Optimization (Link Trading)
Off-Page optimization is an important factor that must be considered when trying to get a website to rank well in the search engines. Off-Page Optimization in a word is “linking”, or more accurately “link trading”. Link trading is where 2 sites agree to place links to the other site for the purposes of building the “Importance of their site”. Back-Links are the websites and web pages that are linked TO your website. Each Link TO your website is like a “vote” that increases the importance of your website in the search engines. Though off-page optimization is much less complicated that on-page optimization there are still a few factors you must take into consideration when looking for reciprocal links to build the “importance” of your website. A few of these considerations would be PageRank, link placement, and who you are trading links with.
Page Rank
Page Rank is a system developed by Google to help determine the importance of web pages indexed by its search engine spiders. It also helps determine how often pages are indexed and the importance of other pages linked together. Google actually provides a tool bar to view the page rank of any website. You can get this tool by clicking here- http://toolbar.google.com/?promo=mor-tb-en.
The page rank of each site you visit is displayed on a scale of 1 – 10. The higher the rank the more “voting power” the site has. For example one link from a 5/10 page rank site may be worth more than 20 links on 0/10 page rank sites. When you are link trading to build the “importance” of your website, it is good to trade links with pretty much website that is willing to swap links with you (with the exception of link farms- which we will discuss a little further down the page). It not only benefits your site but it benefits the sites you linking to on YOUR website. Keep in mind as well, if other sites are looking to trade links with you and they do not have a page rank, they will have a good page rank soon, because they are actively building the importance of their site. As their page rank moves up it benefits you as well.
Link placement
It is important how others link to your site. First off when you trade links you want to be sure that after you have linked to someone else’s site that they have reciprocated a link back to your website. Secondly, you want to make sure they have linked in the proper way. Text links are going to be the most beneficial for the ranking of your site for particular key words. You want the link to say whatever the keywords are your are trying to come up for in the search engines for example- Miami FL Real Estate normally you want to avoid using your name or company in these links unless that is what you want your site to come up for in the search engines. Once your site is ranking well for the keywords you want, you can change what you want sites to link to you with to start ranking well for other words.
Who you are trading links with
Who you trade with can be a factor in how fast you move up in the search engines as well. Some sites will require you to place a link on your home page TO their website. Typically the homepage has the best page rank of any of the other pages of your website. In return, they will stuff you one of the loaded link pages which will pass very little page rank and is not usually of a great benefit to you. When first starting out with your link trading it may be necessary to resort to these lop-sided trades, but as your page rank gets higher you can hold out for even trades. Normally the best places to look for link trades are websites in your local community and even other out of state realtors who are eager to raise their page rank as well.
Link Farms are definite problem you want to be sure to steer clear of. Link Farms are companies or websites that are set-up for sole purpose of flooding links to a site to skew search engine rankings. Automatic linking programs and businesses set-up promising over night results is normally companies to steer clear of. This normally will get sites to rank well for a short time before they are penalized and removed completely from the search engines.
The only legitimate way to rank well overnight is Pay-Per-Click Programs.
Pay Per Click Programs
Pay-per-click services are an excellent way to start generating traffic to your website, immediately. This is a good way to make better use of your new website while you are moving up through the search engine rankings and getting little natural results. What pay-per-click programs do is display your ad or link at the top of the search for the keywords you have bid on. When people click on your advertisement it brings them to whatever page of your website that you wanted them to land on. If your campaign is set-up properly, it will bring people to your website that have done a search for the exact service that your offering.
There are a few things you should be aware of when setting up your campaign- Choose your keywords wisely, look for less expensive keywords to bid on that will yield the same or similar results, start off with a low daily budget, make sure your website has the proper tools to turn your visitors into leads.
Choosing Keywords wisely
When choosing keywords for a pay-per-click campaign, you want your keywords to be a specific as possible. The reason for this is that you are paying money each time someone clicks on the link to your website. You do not want to drive traffic to your site that may not be looking for the service that you are offering, or may not be looking in the area that you offer your service. Here is some examples of keywords that a Real Estate agent in Miami Florida might pick-
Bad Examples
Real Estate - In this example, the keywords are not specific enough. Real Estate is what this agent is offering but, he would be paying for visitors that could be looking for real estate in other parts of the country and not in Miami, FL.
Florida Real Estate - Again, this search is not specific enough. Keywords like this will generate visitors to a website but they would be poorly targeted visitors that maybe looking for real estate in other parts of the state and not where this real estate agent is selling.
Homes For Sale - Too general, No specific location. Would generate visitors, that mostly likely are not looking for Homes in the Miami area.
Miami FL - Too general, no service described. Would generate visitors that may be looking for services other than real estate related, in the Miami Area.Good Examples
Miami FL Real Estate - Geographic location and service are described correctly. This would generate highly targeted leads that have done a search for the service and location that you are offering.
Miami FL Waterfront Homes - These keywords would drive visitors to a website that are looking for a specific niche of the real estate market.
South Beach FL Real Estate - Picking keywords that contain all the smaller towns within a city can generate traffic that you might not have gotten with the more general search of “Miami FL Real Estate”.
Look for “less expensive” keywords
You want to make sure you do bid on the more popular searches for your pay-per-click campaign. While you are setting up your campaign you may want to look for some of the less popular searches in your area, that will still drive quality leads to your website for a lot lower “pay-per-click” price. Often times you can come find keyword combinations that other agents have not thought of or bid on. There is one simple principle that you need to stick too when choosing ANY keywords for pay-per-click.
Be specific!Recommended Pay-Per-Click Services:
Do not worry about being too specific, because if the keywords you picked do not generate results you have not lost any money, you are only charged money when a lead is sent to your website
Set A Low Daily Budget - After setting up your keywords, you will be able to set your daily budget. You will mostly likely want to keep your daily budget set low, to determine whether your keyword selection is going to drive the desired amount of traffic and results. Once you start generating the type of leads you want with your campaign you can increase your daily budget and you leads should increase proportionately.
Precisely target customers who search online but purchase locally
Find buyers searching for what you sell.