The first step towards a better position on the search engines is choosing the right keywords.
A keyword is a short phrase a search engine uses to index your website while displaying the
results to a user's query. Cutting down your website's offerings to just a few words can give
you the basic keywords to use. You can do that by looking at your site's offerings from the
user's perspective, and ask yourself:
"What will a potential customer type in the search engine's search box when looking for something I have to offer?"
Once you have chosen a set of keywords that best describe your site, you should verify that you
are able to compete with them. Ranking as #1 on keywords such as "Software", "Books" or "Sex"
is not realistic, as they are too general. Furthermore, they are not targeted enough - your wish
is to drive targeted traffic to your site. Converting one visitor that is really interested in
your offerings to a customer is much easier then converting hundreds visitors that are not.
Most Internet users do not query search engines on general or single words such as "Books" or
"Doctors", as the results they will get are too general to benefit from. This fact works for you
- the first rule in choosing keywords, is to make them specific enough to best reflect what your
site offers. Narrowing down by geographic location is another means of being more specific in
your keywords. If you are interested in attracting visitors from Los Angeles, for example,
choose "Limo service in Los Angeles". The competition of these kinds of keywords is much less
intense then general "Limo Service". The chances of getting excellent positioning are much higher
when using focused and targeted keywords.
Keywords that are closely related to the main subject of your site can improve your ranking in
the search engines also. For example, if your website subject is Limo services in Los Angeles,
you might try targeting keywords like "Los Angeles Luxury Hotels". The point is that people
looking for "Los Angeles Luxury Hotels" are probably interested in Limo services as well.
Furthermore, the competition for that keyword is less intense then "Limo Services", and the
chances to be better positioned is much higher.
To improve your position in the search engine, be sure not to repeat a keyword more then 3 times.
Instead, use keyword derivatives. For example, if your website offers translation services,
consider to use derivatives of "translation", such as translator or translating.
Finally, be sure to include your domain name, company name, and products name in the keywords.
Always include at least 10 keywords or phrases that are most relevant to your site (starting
from the most important ones,). Maximum number allowed for keywords is 25.
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