Search Engine Optimisation or SEO is a process by which internal and external aspects of a web site are adjusted to gain high search engine returns on keyword and key phrase searches. Search returns are sometimes referred to as organic or natural.

The majority of web traffic is driven by the major commercial search engines: Google, Yahoo and Bing. Google attracts approximately 60% of worldwide searches at 37 billion, with Yahoo (8.5 billion) and Bing (2.2 billion). A number of country-specific search engine companies have also become prominent in their own territories; for example Baidu in China, Guruji in India, Yandex in Russia.

High placements invariably lead to sites receiving an increase in traffic. 78% of users stop their search if the first 3 pages which don't provide an answer to their question so high search engine placements are essential. 28% don't even consider scrolling past the 2nd page of results. High traffic can be converted to revenue through sales, advertising revenue, referrals and votes. Smart, professional Search Engine Optimisation yields high organic returns (70% of search engine users prefer organic search returns to sponsored links or PPC which you can find on the right hand side of Google Search) can deliver extremely powerful results.

Most SEO (Search Engine Optimisation) companies will provide a Guarentee if they are credible businesses. Anyone who doesnt or offers it but it isnt in the contract is worth staying away from.

Professional and successful search optimisation is a multi-disciplined process involving an astute combination of professional skills. Copywriting, web design, web development, marketing, advertising and analysis are all integral to a planned, focused and well-executed Search Engine Optimisation project.

A solid starting point about Search Engine Optimisation projects is in defining the words and phrases necessary to attract relevant visitors to your site - your semantic space and the foundation of your campaign.

Search Engine Preparation

As well as defining your keywords it's important that the site is prepared for the search engines on a technical level. A thorough site analysis will reveal unfriendly URLs, obstacles to search engine spiders and inappropriate Search Engine Optimisation damaging code. Small coding differences can make a big difference - with a fast loading, well coded site with an accessible structure and high ratio of content to code proving irresistible to the search engines.

Copy

They say "content is king". In the case of Search Engine Optimisation there are many who would agree. Search engines don't look for images, video, audio or Flash - they search for text content. Good copy can go a long way. Whilst it is possible to achieve top rankings for specific keywords almost immediately based on "relevance", some Search Engine Optimisation 'specialists' try to be too relevant.

Strong copy that interests and engages its audience (still including keywords and phrases of course) is without doubt the most effective approach in the long term. Quality counts as visitors will recommend the site, link to it increase its popularity by word of mouth - especially if the copy is kept fresh and updated regularly.

Structure

In addition to content, search engines respect structure and they like to know what's important about your organisation. Sites ideally should have the most semantically relevant information higher up in the site hierarchy and each page should use structural elements - heading, paragraph and other HTML tags - to prioritise importance.

Link Popularity

Link Analysis is another critical aspect of search engine's ranking, in fact a large part of website optimisation happens off the page with Google and the other search engines determining sites importance by the links from external sites. Global Link Popularity is arguably the most important Search Engine Optimization criteria. Google, Yahoo and the other major search engines love to see sites that have quality incoming links from other relevant sites. Sources might include current associates, online directories, press releases and blogs.

Natural or 'organic' search engine optimisation is an ongoing, holistic, systemic process. It not only improves site ranking it also benefits your overall Internet presence. Site health and value is increased, optimised HTML code increases usability, content will inform and interests visitors, increased link popularity increases site legitimacy.

Contact Quad to discuss your Search Engine Optimization requirements now.