Beginner’s Mind for SEO, Web Analytics, and Social Media

Posted on 23 December 2009 by Jared Huber| 1 response

I’m tired of self-proclaimed gurus.

In our field, there are an ever-increasing number of ‘experts’ and ‘gurus.’  A quick search on Linkedin shows 45,000 gurus and 450,000 experts overall, with a ridiculous concentration around SEO.  Employers are even seeking out this level of hubris by adding the term to their job listings.  The graph below shows the percent of job postings on Indeed.com including the word ‘guru’ as a function of time.  You can’t argue with the stats; our collective bravado doubled in 2H07.

Don’t get me wrong; confidence is pretty important in these fields, but the problem with the titles and a ‘guru’ mindset is that we can

• start believing our own hype,
• stop learning every day (which is likely what got us here),
• and start thinking in a box (I’ve seen this problem before…).

The title of this post is a reference to one of my favorite books, Zen Mind, Beginner’s Mind.  Suzuki’s quote below that encapsulates the problem with this mindset.

“In the beginner’s mind there are many possibilities, but in the expert’s mind there are few”

The start of a new year is a terrific time for clean slates and fresh starts.  How to you plan to ‘begin’ again?

Site Speed Optimization: The Need for Speed

Posted on 16 December 2009 by Jared Huber| No responses

Is it the next big thing for optimizing on Google’s Caffeine?

Let’s travel down memory lane, as Rand shows us how the algorithm has changed over time, citing smaller or larger reliance on each of the below factors of SEO rank.

• Domain Trust
• External Links Anchor text
• On page Keywords
• Raw Pagerank/links

What immediately comes to mind for big algorithm changes in the past is that they were all done in reaction to SEO gaming of the previous ranking method.  Raw links could easily be bought and fabricated and on-page keywords stuffed; anchor text could be faked (miserable failure). Enter domain age, authority and diversity of inbound links, link acquisition rate, etc.  For this reason, the site speed criterion throws me off somewhat.

What’s this in response to? Spammers slowing down the internet with pokey sites?  Unlikely.  Preparing SEOs for an eventual mobile ranking algorithm? Again, it doesn’t make much sense.  Will static HTML sites continue to beat our their Flash-y counterparts?  If so, broadband penetration rates and RIA technologies are going in one direction and Google in the other.  Are slow, relevant sites going to be pushed below quick, spammy sites?

In the meantime, the new labs section of webmaster tools tells me a site is slower than 60% of its peers; I’d better get to work.

Related:

• Matt Cutts points to several tools that help identify and correct site speed issues.
• SEO Boy gives their take, and even coins the acronym SSO for site speed optimization.

Photo credit topfer on www.sxc.hu.

How to use Twitter, A Marketer’s Perspective

Posted on 15 December 2009 by Jared Huber| No responses

We hear this question a lot.  Social Networking, especially Facebook and Twitter, are becoming mainstream, but.. how can my business use twitter?  I see three potential scenarios: to connect with a community, understand what people are saying about a brand, and for research to develop fresh and relevant content for SEO.  Each has particular measures that help prioritize the information we care about most, and potentially, a tool that will help get us there.

Use some keyword research to identify a group of keywords your site (or brand) is targeting.  Then, put these into a twitter search tool.  This process can be as simple or complicated as you need it to be for your business.  Only targeting a handful of keywords?  A manual check once a week may provide plenty of useful data.  Targeting the long tail?  You may need to look into some tools to automate this process.

1. Blogger Relations: Use twitter search to find the ‘sneezers‘ in your niche, and connect with these people however possible (via twitter, their blog, email, or gasp.. via telephone or in person.)
   • Mavens: People who talk about your space a lot.  These are the likely the leading-edge, early adopter folks who know your product inside and out. They’ll give you insight on your product, the space, and the competitive environment.  (as a quick aside, Erik von Hippel’s book on the Sources of Innovation is available for free download as a PDF.)
     • Maven Share of Voice = # of maven tweets / Total tweets for a given timeframe, using a given keyword search.
     • Maven Mind Share = # of keyword tweets / Total Maven Tweets for a given timeframe.
   • Connectors: People who talk about your space occasionally, but have a lot of reach.  Look to see who is talking about your keywords and also has a ton of followers.  They may be a little harder to get a hold of, but these folks are worth reaching out to if you’re interested in how to better promote your brand.  A great example of this is a post Tim Ferriss recently wrote outlining 13 Christmas gifts he’d recommend. Give these people samples!
     • Connector Reach = # of followers  (yeah, this one’s sloppy, I know)
2. Brand Monitoring: Probably one of the more frequent marketing uses of social media is ‘Monitoring.’  Use a social media tool, google alerts, or simple keyword searches to listen to what people are saying about the brand, and how often.
   • Share of Buzz = # of tweets including your brand /  # of tweets in the keyword space.  Metrics like this are only interesting if you trend them over time, or compare them to competition.  This type of analysis could be interesting when crafting Marketing Messaging or SEO keyword strategy for your site.  Does share of buzz = share of wallet?  Nope.  Still worthwhile?  Yep.
   • Brand Mentions. Is there a correlation between brand buzz and press releases, blog posts, etc?  Which vehicles or promotions drive the most brand interaction?
3. Content Development & Research: Maybe it’s my SEO bias, but this is easily the most overlooked use of twitter.  Part of an SEO plan is to write new, relevant content for a site.  Doing some research on twitter helps you find the intersection of what’s hot and what my brand is about.  Extremely useful for content development.
   • Top-linked pages during a timeframe – use the API to pull down the most-posted links for a day.  Some of these will be duplicated, others will be retweeted.  With a bit of filtering, the most-posted links will probably give you a good indication of the hottest topics within your space at a given time (ie Google’s citation method).  Comment on these blogs, write about these topics.  Head towards the intersection.

Note the omission of spamming the hell out of your prospects using an automated tool.

How does your business use twitter?

You+Me=Together, Getting SEO and Clients on the Same Page

Posted on 9 September 2009 by Lauren Eynon| No responses

As SEO-ers we hear “why” a lot. Why didn’t my page’s rank increase? Why should I target a more specific keyword? Why should I spend money on a PPC (Pay-Per-Click) campaign? Why are you so pretty?

Ok- not the last one but all of the others I have heard a million times over. I think many of these questions come from a fundamental breakdown in communication and education. We (SEO-ers) spend quite a bit of time pitching our ideas and methods to potential clients, but once the deal is made we can forget to continue the dialogue.

Even clients who have experience with SEO need to be given the time it takes to explain what exactly it is we do. The breakdown in communication doesn’t come solely from us though; often the client isn’t clear on what their expectations are. This is why it is so vital to our industry and to our client’s success that we have frank and open discussions regarding what SEO is and what the client would like for it to do for them.

• Some clients love to spend money. I’m not sure who said it, but somewhere at sometime somebody told their client that throwing money at their SEO problems would make them disappear and a top ranking would shortly follow. I have to assume this was the case because so many clients seem to think it’s a finite rule of SEO.  This is not so. Not at all. Yes, SEO costs money- of course it does, but if your SEO company is trying to convince you that money=#1 then you need to find a new SEO company. You can’t buy a number one ranking; it takes quite a bit more than money to achieve that.

• There are many components to optimizing your website. Your SEO-er should explain which ones will work the best for your particular website. And not all of those methods should cost you beaucoup bucks.

• Rank, rank, rank. For some clients this is all they can think about. I understand that way of thinking- heck, I used to be the president of the rank, rank, rank club. Unfortunately, SEO isn’t that simple. Of course, we all want our clients to achieve top ranking on most if not all of their sites pages… but high rank doesn’t necessarily mean success. You could have your client ranked number one for every single page on their site, but if their website isn’t achieving its purpose  (be that revenue, form conversions, members, or whatever the case may be) then that website can not be considered a success. Imagine a client who has a website dedicated to selling custom grocery bags. You work your SEO magic on the site and it gains top ranking on a number of different terms: Excellent! But also imagine that though they are number one they have sold the same amount of custom grocery bags as they did at number 12. This website isn’t fulfilling its main point of existence and you need to go back and re-think your methods and strategies in order to not only attract visitors but also to attract customers. Being the top-ranked site certainly helps — but it doesn’t mean any of your websites goals will be achieved. You (and I’m talking to SEO-ers and clients here) have to consider every perspective of a website not just the rank.

• Listen. An SEO-er might be an expert in SEO, but the client is an expert in their business. You need both sets of expertise to have a successful partnership. You have to create a synergy between client and SEO. After working together the SEO-er should know a lot about the client’s business, and the client should know a lot about SEO. I’m not sure where the habit of keeping SEO methods to ourselves came from, but in order to best serve our clients we have to get over it. Clients need to know and understand what it is we do for them. It’s important to listen to one another and really make an effort to learn. Good communication can be the difference between a successful campaign and an unsuccessful one. Besides, SEO is a reputation game, if they love you they will tell everyone they know and the same goes if they hate you, which would you rather have said?

• Expectations. Your client needs to be clear as day about what they expect to come out of your SEO efforts, and SEO-ers need to be clear as day about what outcomes are possible and what outcomes are impossible. The clearer everyone is on their expectations, the lesser the chance they will be disappointed.

• There isn’t one formula. There are many different methods and strategies in SEO. What works for one website won’t necessarily work for another. SEO-ers have to take every website on an individual basis and make changes based on that particular websites issues. Clients have to understand that since there isn’t one formula there may be more time and testing involved in finding the method that works for your site. It takes some patience on both sides but in the end finding the best possible combination of methods and strategies for a website makes it all worth it.

Communicate with each other: we are all working for the same end. There should be a very open dialogue between client and SEO. Neither side should ever hesitate to start a discussion. The success of your partnership depends on this openness.

SEO-ers, explain what your methods and strategies are from the beginning and don’t be annoyed when your clients ask you “why?” They need to know and you need to tell them (even if you have already said it a hundred times). Let them explain their business and what their expectations of it are to you. Clients, make sure you are listening to what your SEO expert is telling you. Make an effort to understand what they are changing on your website and why. Be clear about your expectations: SEO-ers are smart, but most of them aren’t mind readers; if they don’t know what you want they can’t give it to you. Again, it’s about communication.  So, let’s talk.

3 SEO Blogs I Couldn’t Live Without

Posted on 1 September 2009 by Lauren Eynon| No responses

Ok, so my title is a bit hyperbolic. I could live without them (probably) but I don’t want to. I’m smart enough to know I don’t know everything, and when I am stuck or trying to find a different perspective, I usually turn to these blogs to inspire and educate. More than anything, my favorite thing about all of these blogs is the sense of community they bring to the SEO world. They aren’t just a few SEO experts telling everyone else how it’s done, they are dialogue starters. 

1. SEOMoz. The sheer volume of posts and topics is enough to send any SEO enthusiast over the moon. Besides that, all of the posts I have ever read on SEOMoz (and trust me, I have read most of them) have been really insightful and informative. There is always data to back up claims and most posts contain excellent visuals. The posts are incredibly well written and in many cases humorous- who doesn’t like a good SEO laugh? They just have a brilliant blog. If you work in SEO (or are just interested in it) and don’t read this blog, you are definitely missing out. 

2. Occam’s Razor by Avinash Kaushik. Simply brilliant. This blog has so much to offer: not only on SEO, but also web analytics. All of the posts are full of useful information but they are also very personable. I learn a lot from each post and I never feel as if I’ve been lectured to. This blog is one of my very favorites. I trust  and rely on it. I can’t stress enough how incredibly helpful this blog has been to me and how much I enjoy reading it. Again, it is simply brilliant. 

3. SEO-Chicks. These ladies are passionate about SEO. Really passionate and really relevant. The posts are current and they aren’t afraid to say things that other SEO blogs would be very hesitant to say (this post on Matt Cutts/Google for instance.) Extremely humorous and chock-full of valuable information. I leave the site feeling exhilarated about getting back to my SEO tasks for the day- and that is what a wonderful SEO blog should do, inspire you to keep working. 

I know there are loads of other quality SEO blogs out there and I’m not discounting them. These are just the three whose posts I can’t wait to read every day, and that I take the most from. All of the these blogs educate, inspire, and even entertain at times. Like I said before, I really love the sense of continuing dialogue in these blogs- the post ends but the conversation never does.

A Metric Here, A Metric There, A Metric Everywhere

Posted on 28 August 2009 by Lauren Eynon| No responses

There are loads of SEO tools out there. Loads. They all use different metrics to rate and optimize your site- and there are a lot of metrics to choose from. The majority of my posts are based on different metrics that search engines use to determine rank and how to optimize them. Today, I wanted to give you an overview of other metrics that are traditionally used by most SEO tools. 

• Domain age-  this is something you as a website developer have very little control over. It can’t be faked (unlike my age.) This is probably why many people believe that search engines give it more weight. The older a domain is the more trusted it is by the search engines. There is quite a bit of debate surrounding exactly how much or how little weight domain age is given, but I think, at the very least, it is safe to say it is taken into account. 
• Server Response Time- the longer it takes for your server to respond the less likely it is that users and search bots alike will stick around to enter your site. Accessing your site should never be an issue- if it is, then fixing it should be one of your first priorities. 
• Alexa Rank- the Alexa Rank takes a statistical sample of “typical” users and their internet trends and uses it to assign rank to your site. Hmmm, this is a tough one. There is quite a bit of controversy over how accurate the Alexa Rank is. In fact, many SEO experts have dismissed it completely. Most tools, however, still include the Alexa Rank because, if nothing else, it is at least a starting place. A good Alexa Rank doesn’t mean that your website is highly ranked on any of the search engines but it probably does mean you are being successful at attracting traffic to your site . Take it with a grain of salt. 
• Compete Traffic- shows you your sites traffic trends on specific keywords over 3 months, 6 months, or a 1 year. This is very helpful for competitive analysis. It lets you see how your biggest competitors are faring on keywords and allows you to compare you and your competitors head to head. Most SEO professionals go here first to see how sites compare against one another in traffic and keywords. This can be very useful when creating an SEO strategy to edge out the competition. 
• Number of Page- this is something you do have control over. The more pages you have on your site, the more search engines have to crawl and index. More pages gives you the ability to create more unique content that incorporates more keyword terms. Let me stress that every page should contain unique content (not rubbish); you won’t earn any ranking points for nonsense. The more relevant unique content pages you have the better the chance for ranking on a plethora of keywords.
• Indexed Pages- obviously considering the bullet point above- you want search engines to crawl and index all of your sites pages (except for the one you choose to have them skip, see the post on Robots.txt). The more pages search engines have indexed the better your chance to rank on those pages. You want this. If it seems as if the indexing is taking too long try submitting an XML Sitemap- it may expedite the process. 

In summary,

Domain Age- older is better,

Server Response Time- faster is better,

Alexa Rank- don’t pay too much attention to it,

Compete Traffic- great way to compare your site and your competitors sites,

Number of Pages- more is definitely better, 

Indexed Pages- more may be better; at the very least it gives you a good indication of how well the site is being indexed and might possibly speak to the site’s value in the eyes of search engines.

These were just a few metrics that are traditionally used by SEO tools and that I hadn’t already covered in previous posts. It is by no means a comprehensive list. The tools you use might not even take some of the above into consideration- that’s fine, everyone uses their tools in different ways and some tools are meant to have a very specific focus that doesn’t include the metrics above. This is just an FYI post. Enjoy your information.

 Other Resources on these Metrics

* http://blog.rankpay.com/the-benefits-of-extending-your-domain-age/

* http://www.seomoz.org/blog/rewriting-the-beginners-guide-to-seo-rewriting-server-hosting-issues

* http://www.mattcutts.com/blog/thoughts-on-alexa-data/

* http://www.seobook.com/archives/002351.shtml

(Photo credit goes to lusi at sxc.hu )

Make Your URL’s Work For You.

Posted on 27 August 2009 by Lauren Eynon| No responses

URLs are not the boss of you. You are the boss of them. Take control, rewrite responsibly, and make your URLs more user and search engine friendly.

You want a better URL? Follow these guidlelines and make it so.

• Explain yourself. Your URL should be descriptive of your site. Not only in your domain but also in your subdomains and directory name. When a user, or a search engine for that matter, visits your site they should know or at least have a pretty good idea of what it is all about. There is no need for mystery- you might think that is alluring but most visitors won’t and search engines will think your URL is irrelevant. Be simple, be obvious. That is what makes for a good URL.
• Short is good. The longer the URL the more difficult it is to pass it along. Think about it, even if you love a website you aren’t likely to copy and paste it into your Facebook status if it is 100 characters long- and you wouldn’t even consider writing it down. You want people to share and tweet about your website but you they won’t if it takes every character Twitter allows to post your URL. Be descriptive but also be concise.
• Use words not numbers. While the number 1234 might mean something obvious to you, it probably won’t to a user. Use words to describe so that any and every user knows exactly what to expect from your page. The only time numbers should be used is if they are specific to the page, such as a page dedicated only to the year 1985, or a page that revolves around the band the B-52s. Again, your URL should be obvious (OBVIOUS.)
• Use keywords. Seriously, didn’t I tell you how important keyword targeting is? The URL is another instance in which choosing the right keywords can make a big difference. Use one or two of your chosen keywords in your URL (as long as it makes sense.) Not only will it make it clear what the topic of your page is, it will also help in the ranking department.
• Be consistent. You should maintain the same URL format throughout your site.
• Use hyphens to separate words in your URL. For example (just off the top of my head…)

http://www.seo-web-spider.com/inbound-links/raise-your-inbound-anchors-text/

• Static URLs  are just better. Yes, some search engines have no trouble navigating through dynamic URLs, but users do. Dynamic URLs can be extremely frustrating for users. All of those question marks. It makes you wonder, are they somehow unsure of what their site is about? Don’t even get me started on & and =.  Please, make it simple for people to understand.

The key thing to remember when re-writing your URLs is to make them simple and descriptive. Once you have that, you can count on an increase in traffic and higher click-through-rates. Make those URLs work for you!

Other great URL resources

* http://www.seomoz.org/blog/11-best-practices-for-urls

* http://www.seomoz.org/blog/dynamic-urls-vs-static-urls-the-best-practice-for-seo-is-still-clear

* http://www.seoconsultants.com/articles/1000/urls.asp

* http://www.seobook.com/do-you-need-use-url-rewriting

(Photo credit goes to svilen001 at sxc.hu)

The Occams Razor of Site Optimization = Body Text.

Posted on 26 August 2009 by Lauren Eynon| No responses

Occams razor. There are many competing theories about how to achieve high search engine rank, but like William of Occam, I believe that when there are two competing theories that make exactly the same prediction, the simpler one is the better. Hence, body text optimization. It isn’t complicated and doesn’t require intense strategic planning- body text is one of the most basic aspects of optimization, and one of the most reliable. Certainly you should diversify your optimization methods and test new ideas but always start with the most simple of solutions- body text.

Key points to consider when writing body text…

• The first step to all optimized body text is keyword targeting. 
• Keyword density is a much debated topic in the SEO world. Some experts believe that it is given rank weight by search engines while others think search engines hardly consider it. My opinion is that whether or not search engines use it to assign rank, it can be very helpful to the writing process to calculate keyword density to make sure you aren’t over-using or under-using any of your chosen terms. At the very least it is worth a bit of effort on your part to make sure your content flows in a logical and non-repetitive way for the actual users. 
• Topical relevance. All keyword terms/phrases you use on any given page should be congruent with the rest of the text on that page. Don’t simply sprinkle in keywords just because you have targeted them on a page where they aren’t applicable. Users will be confused and search engines won’t be fooled- topical relevance is something they do take into consideration. 
• The more body text on a page, the more search engines have to index. Though, once again, let me emphasize the fact that it needs to be relevant. 
• Keyword grouping. Use keyword terms in concurrence with one another when you think users will search for them that way. 
• Keep search queries in mind when writing body text. Consider how any “regular” searcher would phrase a query and use your terms in that way. The closer your body text is to an actual search query the more likely it is that your site will earn the click over another. 
• Put targeted keywords in bold or italic. Not in every instance of its uses but occasionally when it makes sense to do so. 
• Update or add to your content regularly. There is a general consensus that search engines really appreciate content that is regularly being updated or added to- this will especially be true once Google launches Caffeine because the pages with the most recently updated content will place more prominently. 

Body text optimization is one of the most traditional and worthwhile methods of SEO. It is simply put (pun intended) the Occams Razor of SEO strategies.

More about Body Text Optimization…

* http://www.bestdamnwebhosts.com/blog/2009/07/keyword-use-part-2-body-text/

* http://freelance-seoindia.blogspot.com/2009/04/main-body-text-optimization.html

* http://www.seomoz.org/blog/my-personal-opinion-90-of-the-rankings-equation-lies-in-these-4-factors

* http://www.kaushik.net/avinash/2006/06/tips-for-web-analytics-success-for-small-businesses.html

(Photo credit goes to bjearwicke at sxc.hu)

What’s the Word?

Posted on 25 August 2009 by Lauren Eynon| No responses

Keyword research and targeting is one of the most important aspects of optimizing your website. The keyword terms/phrases you choose will be used in your title tag, H1 tag, URL, meta description tag, throughout the content of your site, and possibly in your domain name. The odd thing is, many websites ignore this most basic principle of SEO. It’s true that there are many other ways to achieve a high page rank but keyword targeting is one of the most relied upon and proven methods (and it happens to be what we do best.) 

Choosing the right keywords for your website involves more than guesswork. You can’t assume you know what keyword terms/phrases are best for your site. Sometimes choosing the most obvious terms can be detrimental to a website. Think about it, if you choose keywords that are obvious to your industry chances are all of your competitors, large and small, have also thought of them and are bidding on them. This makes it very difficult to rank on these types of keywords because so many websites are competing for the same words and some of those websites have much more money and energy to throw into it. This is why research is required. Your best bet is to find a comprehensive keyword tool. These will give you options for both long-tail and generic keywords that would be prudent to incorporate in your site’s content. You should also check out the keywords your competitors are using and consider whether it is worth competing with them on those terms or whether you should target more specific terms and therefore have less competition and a higher chance to rank. It definitely takes quite a bit of thought to choose your keywords wisely but once you have them chosen it will help you optimize other aspects of your site. 

Now that you have your keywords chosen, how do you incorporate them in the content of your site?

• Keywords should have a prominent position (i.e. first or second word) in your title tags, meta description tags, H1 tags, URLs, and body text of your site. Although you can’t always have one of your keywords in your website’s domain name, if it is available and makes sense, then buy that domain name. Both search engines and users will immediately know what your site is about. 
• Use keywords in body text but don’t over use them. They should be placed toward the top of your body text and then sparingly throughout the rest of the page. Only use your keywords when they make sense. Search engines and users alike don’t respond well at all to overuse of keywords. Users call it annoying, search engines call it “keyword stuffing”, and your website is vulnerable to penalty on both counts. 
• Don’t put all your high ranking hopes on one keyword. Have a selection — both generic and long-tail — of keywords you are targeting. This way if you can’t seem to rank on one term, you still have a chance to rank on others. It’s all about diversity. You want to rank on more than one term because not every searcher uses the same verbiage in their search queries. For example, two searchers might both be looking for rain boots. One searcher uses the term “rain boots” while the other searcher uses the term “wellies.” They both are searching for the same item but simply used different terms. Your site should cover all the variations of your keywords so you don’t limit your traffic. 

Keyword targeting is one of the most fundamental aspects of site optimization. It is the foundation of many other aspects of optimization and can contribute to higher page rank- when incorporated properly. Sometimes the smartest methods of SEO aren’t the most progressive and “cutting edge”, sometimes they are the ones, like keyword targeting, that just work. 

 

 

More on keyword targeting…

* http://www.seomoz.org/blog/perfecting-keyword-targeting-on-page-optimization

* http://blog.fluencymedia.com/articles/seo-keyword-targeting-strateg/

* http://www.seomoz.org/blog/10-steps-to-advanced-keyword-research

 

(Photo credit goes to Sachyn on sxc.hu)

Where Have All the H1s Gone?

Posted on 24 August 2009 by Lauren Eynon| No responses

What the H1!? SEOmoz recently published their Biennial Ranking Factors for 2009, and H1 tags have taken quite the hit in terms of SEO ranking importance. For ages, SEO experts have stressed the importance of the H1 tags for search engine rank, but recently there has been a significant shift in this type of thinking and the SEO world is taking note. So, where does this leave us? Do we abandon the sinking ship known as an H1 tag? No, we don’t, not completely. We just have to re-adjust the way we think of them. 

H1 tags are still useful, although probably not for ranking purposes. The H1 is useful for users, it helps establish the hierarchy of the page and highlights important sections. Like I have said a million times (or at least twice) websites should be more about the users than the search engines. I am certainly not minimizing the importance of a page’s rank- I, like every  other SEO professional, understand how vital a high page rank is for websites. I just think that ( and call me insane if you wish) the users should take precedence over the search engine. Besides, search engines still acknowledge the H1 and include them as part of their ranking, they just aren’t given the same kind of weight as we previously thought. So, in the interest of the users, here are some H1 tag tips…

• Include keywords. Your H1 shouldn’t be more than one sentence, so choose your keywords wisely. Make sure they flow with the content on that page and provide a good reference for users. 
• The chosen keywords should feature at the front of the H1. H1 tags behave like title tags in this way. The search engine will tend to give more weight to keywords that are placed at the beginning of an H1. 
• Don’t put all of the text on your page as an H1. Search engines will ignore this and users will find it very unpleasant to look at. 
• Appearance matters. Use H1 tags sparsely, they look very out of place when used throughout a page to highlight random sentences or words. Make sure that you place the H1 where it makes the most sense visually within the page while still highlighting your chosen keywords. 
• Your H1 should be logical. Don’t stuff a string of keywords that have no relevance to one another within one tag. Since H1’s are losing weight with search engines, the search engines won’t be impressed with a string of keywords and users will simply be annoyed. 

As far as other H tags (i.e. H2, H3, H4) go, only use them if you feel really strongly that the visual hierarchy of your page would be compromised otherwise. They have minimal importance when it comes to ranking and don’t have many benefits when is comes to usability either. 

Although H1 tags may not be given as much weight as in the past by search engines, they are still very useful to users and shouldn’t be completely abandoned by SEO. It’s just a matter of looking at them from a different perspective- user not search engine. 

 

 

Other H1 tag resources

* http://www.youngentrepreneur.com/blog/2008/01/24/the-15-most-important-onsite-seo-factors-part-5-headline-text/

* http://www.seomoz.org/blog/seo-best-practices-seomozs-new-policies-based-on-updated-correlation-data

* http://www.seomoz.org/article/search-ranking-factors#ranking-factors

 

(Photo credit goes to Bern161616 at sxc.hu)

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