So, if you’ve been engaged in SEO for a little while you probably realise that it’s not just about where you sit with the search engines. An excellent PageRank does not necessarily mean business profits, although it certainly helps. In order to get the best out of your SEO strategy, you need to think about organic results, rather than the smaller things that these results consist of.

Organic results come from the combination of three things:

1. Rankings
2. Traffic
3. Conversions

These three things are important sequentially, but it’s also important to keep all three in mind from the start. They contribute to each other. Rankings bring traffic, but a good traffic flow can show the search engines that you’re popular and improve your rankings as a result. Conversions keep users on your site for longer, also helping your SEO.

Pre-SEO planning will play a big part in whether you are able to turn your rankings into rewards. Your search engine optimization company needs to know about your conversion paths when sketching a keyword plan, and you can talk about this to our experts at SearchEngineOptimization.co.uk. The important thing to remember is that SEO results should be measured against your business aims, not just against where you can spot your listings on Google.

Good rankings lead on to improved traffic, it is true, and the more traffic you have the better chance you have at making decent conversion numbers. Throughout search engine optimisation services, though, you need to think about your end goal, namely improving your business.

Heard of Blekko yet? It’s new on the search engine scene, being made accessible to the general public on 01 November 2010. What makes it different from Google, Bing and Yahoo? Well, their goal is to offer a cleaner search service that doesn’t include link farms in results, and carries an editorial policy similar to Wikipedia.

From an accessibility point of view we like blekko. SEO site statistics are available to view immediately under each result and offers some comprehensive breakdowns. To show they understand the social media market, they have now introduced Facebook ‘likes’ to search results – something that Bing also incorporated a few days earlier.

The aim is to find search results relevant to the user and, again, eliminate spam. Rich Skrenta, chief executive of Blekko, said: “Millions of Facebook users are curating their web experience everyday by simply clicking ‘Like’ on the content, commerce, travel, restaurants and brands they love most. We’ve taken this data and applied it to Blekko’s results making them spam-free and personally relevant.”

Blekko also proposes to do this with its unique slashtag system which helps collate search results for a more personalised service. We’re not sure how this will flesh out in the future – isn’t the point of a search engine to offer organic results to the user to help them find what they need? If people have already liked something specific on Facebook, then surely that’ll be their most likely destination for that product and service, entirely negating the need for a search engine?

When a search engine – no matter how good its intentions are – looks to manipulate organic results then can it still be classed as a search engine? Don’t get us wrong – we’re all for the Blekko project. Anything that gets rid of spam and de-clutters the internet gets a massive thumbs up by us. But if a search engine omits quality search results from people who simply want access to information as quickly as possible, then they’re doing both themselves and their users something of a disservice. And what of SEO services?

We wish Blekko all the luck in the world though in their quest, and will be keeping tabs on the project throughout 2011.

It sometimes can appear that learning about search engine optimization is an endless journey. As SEO never stays still, there is always more to learn. Furthermore, the breadth and depth of the subject are both impressive. However, the more that is learned, the easier learning becomes. A site owner does not require knowledge of every single detail because they simply have to be able to engage productively with specialist services. Nevertheless, for managers who are contemplating entering into a relationship with a specialist firm getting to grips with it all can seem to be on the daunting side of the street. Therefore they should be patient and absorb relevant knowledge in an incremental fashion.

At Searchengineoptimization.co.uk we have the ability to pursue multifaceted, flexible and productive campaigns. We realise the importance of treating each site on its individual merits. It is possible to spread knowledge about optimization so potential clients are conscious of the possibilities and pitfalls which should be taken into account. Many clients have expressed interest in the question of whether or not the age of their domain will have an impact on site performance in the search engine results pages. There is much more to SEO than faring well in the search engine results pages, but the question as it stands is certainly a fair one.

In a subject as complicated as search engine optimization, it is quite rare that a straightforward ‘yes’ or ‘no’ is a satisfactory answer to any specific question. As the topic has elements of art and science, a more comprehensive response is usually demanded. It can also be the case that changes in the ‘search world’ mean that any answer has validity in a temporary way. Just because a question has been answered with apparent confidence does not mean that the advice cannot be overtaken by events. Despite this salient point, it does seem that research points to the fact that domain age matters somewhat when the major search engines examine a site.

Google and the like do notice domain age when they assess sites, but how much emphasis do they actually place on it? The workings of their algorithms are closely guarded secrets, but it does appear that the major search engines do not put too much weight on domain age as a factor when they are deciding how to rank sites. This could be because of various reasons.

One reason why Google may not elect to place too much stress on having an old domain name is that users do not. Google puts pleasing users at the heart of its strategies. Another reason for the status quo may be that Google knows that domain names can be traded or lie dormant for considerable periods. It can be seen that ‘being old’ is thus no guarantee of being reliable. The major search engines are familiar with all aspects of the domain age question and are therefore only prepared to grant minute relative favours to sites with old domain names. The age of the site itself may also be judged to be of limited relevance.

In the complicated and altering world of search engine optimisation, it is interesting that some advice retains its relevance for considerable time periods. Indeed, it sometimes appears that the value of some simple tips endure far beyond what you might expect given the breakneck pace of technological change. It has been the case that high quality content production and ethical link acquisition have been at the heart of SEO strategies for a long time. While most attention will focus on the need to design and implement effective optimisation strategies, things like web hosting can have a significant impact on a site’s performance.

At Searchengineoptimization.co.uk we work very hard to improve the performance of the sites of all clients, not neglecting anything which might give them a comparative advantage in the battle to make progress up the search engine results pages. We then try to maximise traffic on the sites concerned and can help ensure that the most is made of the traffic that does find its way to the sites’ pages.

A site’s performance cannot usually be explained by any one factor operating in isolation. After all, site performance can be seen to be a relative concept in that a site is competing against other sites in its own sector. However, sometimes one thing is undermining site performance in a critical manner. Failure to address the issue can have significantly detrimental consequences for the business connected with it. If there are difficulties flowing from inadequate web hosting, it is imperative to sort things out as soon as possible.

A web hosting company provides a virtual residence for a site. If this important task is not performed with due care and attention then it may be that other aspects of the site are assumed to be culpable for its lacklustre performance. This can cause unnecessary confusion and can contribute to further problems down the track. It always makes sense to get expert guidance to help with SEO because the level of complexity involved in contemporary implementation makes independent action fraught with difficulties.

The selection of a web hosting company should not be made with an exclusive concentration on budgetary matters. If the server of a host is not reliable, a site will not prosper in the rankings of the major search engines. For example, the site will gain a reputation for unreliability which is not related to its own specific features. In addition, if a server crashes there will be an obvious and negative impact on the fortunes of the site. Thus a site owner needs to do some research, probably in coordination with a SEO account manager, into which web hosting firm is appropriate for their particular wants and needs.

A server may be shared with other firms. It can be the case that the major search engines take a close look at the other firms with whom a site shares a server. This underlines the pivotal importance of using an excellent web hosting company. There is a lot to recall with regard to SEO, but neglecting the basics can hit a firm where it hurts.

Search engine optimization is a complex and evolving discipline. Take your eyes off it for a few weeks and you will slip behind. As SEO requires a fusion of theory and practice, confining yourself to either theory or implementation is counterproductive. Due to the fact that search engine optimization is a complicated combination of art and science, there are always issues which divide SEO professionals. Assessing which argument is more persuasive than another can be problematic, particularly for novices. There is no substitute for careful checking sources against one another and the gradual accumulation of knowledge through learning by doing.

A specific example of where expert opinion is somewhat divided relates to how well the major search engines can cope with images and image-based links. When optimising a site, it normally makes sense to focus on Google, Yahoo! and Bing because these search engines dominate the sphere of search. At Searchengineoptimization.co.uk we pursue targeted campaigns of a multifaceted style that are tailored to drive the sites of our clients up the search engine results pages. Emphasis is placed on getting more traffic and conversions for sites by improving their performance with a concentration on how the web crawlers of Google perceive them.

Some authoritative figures in the SEO world have claimed that the likes of Google cannot cope with image-based sites. Certainly, Google does like text and there is no point in maintaining that high grade content and long tail keywords are unimportant tools. In addition, the major search engines have traditionally had difficulties in appreciating images on sites. Users may have liked them more than the web crawlers. To be more specific, it has been maintained by reputable experts that image-based links do a site no favours whatsoever. It is therefore sometimes advised that images and image-based links are to be shunned so that sites can perform better in the competitive battle for higher rankings. Image-based links lack anchor text which is something that can work towards the progress of a site.

There are those who are unconvinced by the notion that image-based links should always be eschewed. They maintain that some users quite like links to be constructed out of images. If SEO is fundamentally about pleasing users, they indicate that compromises between what users and the search engines crave are sometimes necessary. It could perhaps be argued that if a site is too mundane it might not make the most of its traffic.

It is sometimes hard to make sense of arguments which are diametrically opposed to one another. However, in this case, evolution in the ‘search world’ means that it is possible to venture a reasonably balanced opinion on the matter under debate. Google and its less popular competitors are astute enough to spot that  image-based links are links. This means that a site will not be penalised for using image-based links in a direct manner. Unfortunately but obviously, using images as links means that you cannot seed keywords within links and thus adhering to the old pro-text bias still makes sense. The advocates of text-based links have sometimes been guilty of exaggeration, but this does not invalidate the thrust of their contentions.

It is often said that we live in an age of information. Certainly the networked knowledge economy has been with us for several years. However, some commentators have claimed that we suffer from an excess of information. They contend that evaluating situations and making decisions is made more problematic by the fact that we have access to such large volumes of data. It does seem that there may be something in this theory. Microsoft have come up with the slogan ‘Bing and decide’ to promote the search engine Bing. The subtext of this slogan is that other search engines are not assisting with decision-making. The question really is can Google, the most popular search engine internationally, be said to be in part responsible for information overload?

To the extent that information overload exists, it is a dilemma which haunts politicians and big players in business. Operating in a content of copious information, they can find it hard to take balanced decisions which take into account the most relevant facts. The average user of a search engine is trying to find something specific. They are not usually trying to work out whether or not to keep a national nuclear deterrent. They are merely trying to track down some data in the same way as someone might have used a library. A search engine, particularly one as efficient as Google, usually helps the user wade through the irrelevant stuff.

Google, then, does not contribute to information overload. It actually helps people to process, sift and understand data. Google is successful in large part because it is excellent at what it does. In short, it works. Therefore it would appear that Bing’s slogan is not that effective because so many users will not notice a correspondence between it and reality. The only way in which the slogan could be justified is if Bing regularly outperformed Google. If Bing helped users get to the right information faster than Google, the slogan could in part be salvaged.

While Bing has its advocates and its defenders, it superficially appears that it does not provide a superior service to Google. If it did, it would have probably made more headway in terms of market share. While some users prefer Bing, it would seem that the hegemony of Google is likely to persist for some time to come. Thus the slogan of Bing may not be backed up by the evidence which is out there. It should be remembered that many slogans are based on aspiration. This slogan is describing the world that Microsoft would like rather than the world which currently exists.

At Searchengineoptimization.co.uk we understand the importance of monitoring relevant trends in search. SEO is often about optimising for several search engines, but it is still of utility to be aware of variations in market share. It is also the case that a specific target audience may have its own motivations for preferring one search engine to another. As a search engine optimisation campaign should be a long term thing, it is only prudent to be vigilant about changes which may necessitate adjustments.

Those involved in search engine optimisation often focus their attention on the major search engines. For many sites, this approach can make a great deal of sense. Prospering in the search engine results pages of Google is more likely to generate traffic for a site than doing well in the rankings of a minor search engine. However, notwithstanding the collective dominance of Google, Yahoo! and Bing, optimising for alternative search engines can prove worthwhile for certain sites. It may be necessary to obtain specialist advice to assess whether this tactic is likely to be rewarding in a specific set of circumstances.

At Searchengineoptimization.co.uk we have the experience and the expertise to pursue SEO campaigns which tick all the right boxes. This means that the tactics employed on behalf of a particular site are selected carefully in relation to its unique requirements. In addition, the tactics which are used are adjusted in line with the specificities of the site concerned, in order to ensure that the beneficial impact on site performance is maximised.

According to research, Google, Yahoo! and Bing dominate the search engine competition for market share in countries like the USA and the UK. Statistics show that in nations like these the three most important search engines share in excess of 90 per cent of the market. However, each online firm has its individual target audience and its own set of repeat visitors. Some target audiences have their own preferences as regards search engines and research can help establish what these preferences are. The preferences can sometimes be related to the sector in which an online firm is operating.

Any SEO plan will include ideas of how best to optimise the specific site for Google, Yahoo! and Bing. It will probably incorporate on page and off page tactics. On occasion, however, it is shrewd to think outside the box and take a chance on optimising for search engines like Lycos, AltaVista and Cuil. Which one of these search engines appeals will ultimately depend on the nature of the site being optimised. It takes skill to determine the appropriateness of optimising for the lesser known search engines. Budgetary constraints may well have a considerable influence in some circumstances, but if funds are available and the right choices are made it can be worth persevering.

Some of the minor search engines currently in operation have long histories. Such search engines have a past that stretches back towards the beginnings of the net. In this category, search engines like Lycos and AltaVista are located. Such search engines still function and can provide users with what they are looking for. In addition to these ‘survivors’, there are newer search engines such as Cuil. Cuil was established by some former employees of Google. Cuil is worth thinking about because it has the capacity to work well in relation to a social media marketing campaign. As social media marketing becomes more complex and more important, it is quite possible that Cuil may develop a higher profile in the future. Nevertheless, making predictions in the complicated world of search is fraught with difficulty.

Recent research has underlined that the United Kingdom has the largest search engine optimization sector in the European Union. One respected commentator has argued that the infamous British weather is in part responsible for this. They have highlighted how online firms typically fare worse in hot weather. However, the popularity of SEO in Britain could be the result of cultural factors which are not related to the climate. Nor is it the case that hot weather has an adverse impact on online firms across the board. Hence further exploration of the reasons behind the trend is needed.

At Searchengineoptimization.co.uk we always examine relevant trends in search with care, because we know that this puts us in a great position to assist clients with their campaigns. Research, monitoring and analysis are essential tasks which inform our multifaceted campaigns.

Just because the climate is generally hotter in France, Spain and Italy than in damp Britain does not necessarily mean that is why online firms are prospering and proliferating to a greater extent here than in the other European states. Britain is culturally closer to the United States of America than many other European nations. In politics, in economics, in films, in music and in fashion, Britain and America are closer than the geography might imply. It is arguably the cultural commonality and the shared language that have made it easy for British people to start using the net like their American ‘cousins’ do. Historically, there are also many connections between the two states and while the ‘special relationship’ may have been a bit one-sided recently, it nevertheless has more or less endured for many decades. Many British people instinctively admire many aspects of American culture.

The climate of Britain may be in part responsible for the popularity of the net. However, sales on the net are often linked to broader economic trends. If consumers feel confident about the future and have disposable income in significant amounts it may have more of an effect on traffic and conversion rates than a few weeks of warm weather. Nor will products like garden furniture or sandals sell badly when the temperature increases.

A major factor in the propensity of consumers to access goods and services online is their feelings towards new innovations in the technology. In the United States and Britain consumers have been particularly quick to be attracted by new mobile devices and so on. The same is true of the new social media networking sites. Social media marketing makes the maximum amount of sense where large numbers of people are engaged with sites like Facebook and Twitter. Facebook and Twitter have become international phenomena, but they are especially significant players in the English speaking world. So SEO and SMM are popular in these nations in part because they have been so fast to adopt ‘the social’ aspect of the net.

While it may be devilishly problematic to establish precisely why Britain loves the net so much, given that there are multiple interacting factors, it is more crucial to understand that it does. It is then possible for an online firm to profit from the emerging opportunities, with the help of specialists.

Many articles are written on the hot topic of search engine optimisation. SEO is a great way of giving a boost to an online firm. However, while many professionals look at sites from the perspective of a user or a search engine, many site owners still perceive their site from their own viewpoint. It is important that people who are new to the discipline remember to look at their site from diverse perspectives before and during a campaign.

At Searchengineoptimization.co.uk we realise that not every SEO tip will work for each site, so we act accordingly. Our generalist advice, which is featured in our articles and blogs, can be tailored to the requirements of a specific site if it is appropriate to do so. The best way of making progress in terms of driving a site up the search engine results pages, securing more traffic and obtaining more conversions is to get the services of a specialist.

It is almost commonplace to suggest that you should look at a site as a user does. This step can help ensure you get the overall design correct. It may also help you maintain good navigation and so on. A user has to be able to go around a site and discover the data they crave with ease. The approach also has the merit of drawing your attention to things like loading time. What is not remarked on so frequently is that thinking like a user is a move towards imagining you are a search engine. This is because Google and the other major search engines compete with one another to provide the best user-focused search services.

Imagining you are a search engine can easily be taken much further. Otherwise, it would still be based on looking at the site through a user’s eyes. The search engines have years of experience of dealing with users and delivering what they want. Google has an enviable track record of satisfying the expectations of users and several other search engines do a decent job. The hard won experience has given them valuable insight into how users behave collectively.

For example, Google is so accustomed to users not entering the search terms they want into the search engine that they have devised an effective and user-friendly ‘did you mean?’ facility. Most of us have met it at one time or another. This draws attention to what has to be done during the production of a keyword list. The composition of a keyword list does not only have to include long tail searches, it must also feature common misspellings and confused orderings of words. Traffic may be missed if you do not cover all the bases.

It should be remembered that keyword research is not a ‘one off’ activity. A keyword list may have to be adjusted periodically in the course of a continuous campaign. It makes sense to imagine how a search engine is responding to search queries. You may not have the luxury of a ‘did you mean?’ facility, but you can still make adjustments that will have positive outcomes.

Sometimes it makes sense to go from the simplest questions about a topic towards more complicated ones. This approach has the benefit of ensuring that the needs of the novice are not neglected. All too often in writing on search engine optimization, the novice becomes confused under a barrage of unexplained terms and acronyms. Doorway pages, SMM, Flash, SMO and link juice may all appear to be quite meaningless to someone who has not done any of the relevant reading or received any assistance. A novice can easily guess that a search engine penalty is a negative thing to happen to a site, but it is as well that they know considerably more about the topic before they invest in SEO services.

Search engine penalties cover a variety of things which lead to a site faring considerably worse than it would otherwise have done. They are commonly associated with measures taken by Google and other major search engines against sites which they suspect of contravening the ethical rules of the game. For an online firm, a search engine penalty can be a very serious setback and can involve being removed from the index. A SEO strategy can be badly derailed and this can be at the cost of an entire year’s work. If you use our services at Searchengineoptimization.co.uk we can make every effort to ensure that such a calamity does not befall your firm.

There is a lack of clarity about search engine penalties which is worthy of some limited attention. Some commentators on the net seem to confuse poor performance in the search engine results pages with incurring a real search engine penalty. This is because subtle negative things happen to sites which are provoked by similar things to those which provoke more far-reaching penalties. For the novice, it can appear to be a matter of semantics and it would be beneficial if the terminological confusion surrounding this area was sorted out in a coherent manner.

Several things can get a site in trouble with the search engines. Some are the consequences of accidents, others the result of trying to get ahead in a dubious way. Often the same problem can be reached either way. For example, duplicate content or poor links can be the outcome of deliberate attempts to subvert the rankings or they can flow from misjudgements or ill fortune. It is not always that difficult for skilled professionals such as Searchengineoptimization.co.uk to treat the issues that are having a detrimental influence on the performance of a site. For instance, someone with experience and expertise should have the capacity to remove doorway pages from a site with relative ease.

While correcting a site’s problematic features is not always exactly rocket science, diagnosing that a site is suffering from a search engine penalty can on occasion be very tricky. Therefore it is astute to monitor a site carefully. A slight fall in rankings may happen from time to time and should not be a cause for panic. However, if it appears that a decline is more than a minor fluctuation, investigation is called for.