Wednesday, March 18, 2009

Search Engine Optimization - Content Creation

By Matthew McKernan

Search engine optimization is rapidly becoming the most popular way for people to more effectively market their websites and increase their traffic, and due to the increasing number of websites (thousands are being made every day), it can be difficult to stand out in a sea of sites similar to your own. The creation of search optimized content will bring users to your site that want to find information that actually relates to what your site has, and therefore increase the chances that anyone who finds your site is more likely to hang around and browse through it. In this article, we'll go over how you can use content creation to increase your site's traffic and effectiveness.

Content creation refers to the writing of articles and blogs, the development of video and other media, and any other sort of content that search engines frequently look for on web sites. There are two basic kinds of search engine optimization, white hat and black hat, and while black hat optimization tends to consist of trickery and underhanded methods to raise user traffic, it is also looked down upon and punished by search engines that catch sites using it. White hat optimization includes search engine approved techniques, like content creation, that are geared towards making things that users actually want to see and read, and looks remarkably similar to positive web development.

The only difference between simply writing an article on training your German shepherd and search engine optimization is that a search optimized article on training your German shepherd would purposefully include key terms and phrases that are likely to draw attention from search engines. For example, the article would probably repeat the phrases "training your German shepherd," "dog training," and "puppy training" several times, so that when search engines look for one of those key terms the article (and by proxy, your web site) would be more likely to appear. This is a frequently employed technique, and many articles that are genuinely useful have also been optimized for search engines.

Search engine optimization is an important tool in raising any web site's overall traffic, but can also provide a way for users to more effectively narrow their searches when looking for specific information. For example, even though you are creating optimized content to increase the amount of traffic you get, the users will appreciate it because it makes them more likely to find exactly what they are looking for.


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