Search Engine Optimization (SEO) expert John W. Ellis was the featured guest speaker for a gathering of Social Media Club Greenville. The discussion was filled with excellent advice and tips from Ellis, who demystifies SEO for audiences and debunks the idea that SEO is tricky, complicated work.
Here’s a list of the top 6 SEO lessons shared at event:
Search engines love blogs. Blogs link to other sites; they are updated with new, fresh content on a regular basis; they offer high numbers of keywords on a single page; and they inspire user-generated content. All of these criteria increase search potential among the major engines.- Social Media impacts SEO. Social media and social networking sites provide real-time search, brand saturation, and link building mechanisms. As search engines continue to promote “social circle” searches, the connections we have to others will impact search at increasingly high levels.
- SEO breaks the HIPPO rule. SEO should be based on research rather than the HIghest Paid Person’s Opinion. Research indicates the best keywords to use: those with high search traffic and low results.
- Link Baiting ensures organic links. More links lead to more discussion on your site and higher search engine ratings. Strategies for encouraging organic links include: top ten lists, white papers, blogs, interviews, case studies and contests.
- SEO, by itself, is not the goal. Once you’ve risen to the top of the search engine’s rankings and people are visiting your site, you must still present good, compelling content that inspires users to act.
- SEO requires ethical constraint. As in public relations, the strategies employed in SEO can be used ethically or not. Falsifying links, spamming, and lying on other sites create links. Bad press creates links. Unethical practices are used in SEO, but reputable marketers should avoid these pitfalls.
What SEO lessons would you add to this list?
J.A.McArthur 
What are your thoughts?