Archive for wordpress
WordPress SEO Search Engine Optimization: Getting Started
Posted by: | CommentsNovember 19, 2008 by Victoria Stankard
Search engine optimization of static pages is a subject that is covered ad nausea. How about those of us that have more dynamic Internet presences? I personally prefer the WordPress system to any other type of content management system, and believe me I have tried them all. Unless you have an e-commerce site with hundreds or thousands of products, more than likely you could use WordPress as your content management system.
Using WordPress Posts and Pages For SEO
When you have WordPress installed either as a standalone application or part of a website, your options for SEO are increased big time. In my post WordPress SEO Server Side I explain the basics of WordPress and the importance of a good theme. Now that it is up, what do you do?
The first steps involve the sites content. You must have a plan for at least the first 20 posts or pages. There is a difference between WordPress posts and pages. A page is pretty much the same as a standard web page. It takes longer to get into the SERPs, but also has more staying power. A post can get you instant gratification, but unless the post is commented on frequently, it won’t stay in the SERP’s for long.
Creating Keyword Intensive Pages
If your site is specific to a set of keywords, the best game plan is to create keyword heavy PAGES. I have found that an optimized page other than the home page can rank highly for about 3 keywords or keyword phrases. The key is to use the keyword phrase in both the URL (in WordPress that would be the slug which is best formatted in lowercase with words separated by a dash, i.e. keyword1-keyword2-etc) and the Page title. In the slug or URL field do not use noise words like the, and, or, a, etc.
WordPress SEO is pretty basic on the client side if your system is set up properly with the right plugins. You have your title and slug with the keywords you are promoting on the Page. The first sentences should be a description of the content on the page. You need at least 1 or 2 paragraphs to start off the page prior to using H2 tags. The H2 tag should also have a keyword phrase in it. If you are optimizing for multiple phrase, then use multiple H2 tags, but always have at least 2 paragraphs between H2 tags. If the keyword phrase you are promoting has sub-topics use H3 tags to break down and isolate the different phrases.
It is important not to spam the page, and to have as much keywords that make sense. It is always good to rotate between <strong> and <em> tags to bold and italicize your keywords and phrases. This shows the spiders that the page is an authority on the keywords mentioned.
By creating Pages that are keyword heavy, you now have a base for deep link navigation that will help you gain authority in the search engines and give your users an idea what your site is about. The Pages are the foundation for getting started with WordPress SEO.
Promoting WordPress Pages With Posts
Once you have your primary keywords within Pages, you can now start writing WordPress Posts to promote them. During the WordPress set up you should have created at least the most basic categories to put your pages in. If you haven’t then now is the time to create your categories.
Most new blogs have a growing period from inception to getting regular readers and subscribers. That being said the first posts are probably not going to be consumed by the masses, which is why it is good to use them to promote your optimized WordPress Pages.
Setting up a WordPress Post for SEO is basically the same as it is for a Page except that you also will have tags and keywords. The same principles of title and slug remain the same, use your keywords in both. Once you have created enough posts that link to your pages, your blatant self promotion is over and you are ready to get busy writing your articles and setting up your subscription base. If you are unfamiliar with syndication read my post RSS Real Simple Syndication Overview.
WordPress SEO is a big topic and I will be covering it over the next 2 weeks, please leave any questions as comments on this post. I am putting together a plugin package along with an instructional video on how to install and configure the SEO plugins I use. I hope to have that done by the end of next week.
Social media has the potential to change how you think about doing business. No longer are blogs and micro-blogs filled with people babbling on about what they ate for breakfast or which flight they missed at LAX. Those people exist still but have little to no following. Those thought leaders that “get it” realize that in order to get people to follow and listen in on your conversation they have to be interesting and add value to the listening community. They must offer some sort of incentive in order to get visitors to stay and perhaps join in the discussion.
How do you add value and incentives to your followers? First it requires listening to what that niche of people are talking about and then adding pertinent valuable information in the community that adds to the conversation. By offering something of value readers come back and bring their friends. They begin to trust their relationship with you and your posts that they are willing to invite others to the table to talk and share their experiences and observations as well.
When readership goes up and the dialogue in the form of comments (blogs) and DM’s or re-tweets (direct messages- Twitter) goes up as well you begin to have a web presence that is based on trust in your content. Every company wants to build their brand presence in the market place. When you have a brand following of people who trust and look to you for valued content and contribution, then they are more willing to try your latest product, have brand loyalty, and spread the word. Word of mouth or word of internet marketing by your customer base has more power than any give-away or print media marketing plan. There is money to be made from trust if you give them good valuable information as you cultivate your relationship with them.
Good information should not cost the consumer anything. Give them valuable information on a related topic or niche in a free ebook, case study, or special report. Give them articles that are full of rich information that is worthy of their time and energy. Grow your blog into a website with a branded look. Include your logo so it becomes associated with your products and services and your blog. Make your blog something that is branded and easily recognized. Don’t be boring and impersonal. Your logo is essentially the face of your blog and represents your company and your goods or services. People want branding that is original but easy to remember. Think FTD florist…what is their logo? Mercury with flowers is a logo we all recognize and associate with FTD. Post your logo in a clean simple design relevant to your audience.
When you blog you want to create a buzz that makes you known, recognized, and talked about by your audience. You want your name to go beyond the internet and out to the world at large. Your blog/micro-blogging efforts present you with the opportunity to make yourself well known and to build a real web presence. Blogs are cheap to develop (cheaper than product development)and have a tremendous ROI potential. Through hard work, tenacity, and dedication you can create a market for your products, goods, or services directly from your blog. You build the audience and the loyal following by providing good rich valuable information and they will become your greatest admirers and product fanatics. They will then sell and promote for you…but only if you create that feeling of community and trust that comes from cultivating the relationships with them. By carefully expanding and building your fan base through the dissemination of good information and offering innovative ideas, you can’t help but build your niche market into a business empire.
How to Use Twitter and WordPress to Build Your Brand Presence
Posted by: | CommentsSocial media has the potential to change how you think about doing business. No longer are blogs and micro-blogs filled with people babbling on about what they ate for breakfast or which flight they missed at LAX. Those people exist still but have little to no following. Those thought leaders that “get it” realize that in order to get people to follow and listen in on your conversation they have to be interesting and add value to the listening community. They must offer some sort of incentive in order to get visitors to stay and perhaps join in the discussion.
How do you add value and incentives to your followers? First it requires listening to what that niche of people are talking about and then adding pertinent valuable information in the community that adds to the conversation. By offering something of value readers come back and bring their friends. They begin to trust their relationship with you and your posts that they are willing to invite others to the table to talk and share their experiences and observations as well.
When readership goes up and the dialogue in the form of comments (blogs) and DM’s or re-tweets (direct messages- Twitter) goes up as well you begin to have a web presence that is based on trust in your content. Every company wants to build their brand presence in the market place. When you have a brand following of people who trust and look to you for valued content and contribution, then they are more willing to try your latest product, have brand loyalty, and spread the word. Word of mouth or word of internet marketing by your customer base has more power than any give-away or print media marketing plan. There is money to be made from trust if you give them good valuable information as you cultivate your relationship with them.
Good information should not cost the consumer anything. Give them valuable information on a related topic or niche in a free ebook, case study, or special report. Give them articles that are full of rich information that is worthy of their time and energy. Grow your blog into a website with a branded look. Include your logo so it becomes associated with your products and services and your blog. Make your blog something that is branded and easily recognized. Don’t be boring and impersonal. Your logo is essentially the face of your blog and represents your company and your goods or services. People want branding that is original but easy to remember. Think FTD florist…what is their logo? Mercury with flowers is a logo we all recognize and associate with FTD. Post your logo in a clean simple design relevant to your audience.
When you blog you want to create a buzz that makes you known, recognized, and talked about by your audience. You want your name to go beyond the internet and out to the world at large. Your blog/micro-blogging efforts present you with the opportunity to make yourself well known and to build a real web presence. Blogs are cheap to develop (cheaper than product development)and have a tremendous ROI potential. Through hard work, tenacity, and dedication you can create a market for your products, goods, or services directly from your blog. You build the audience and the loyal following by providing good rich valuable information and they will become your greatest admirers and product fanatics. They will then sell and promote for you…but only if you create that feeling of community and trust that comes from cultivating the relationships with them. By carefully expanding and building your fan base through the dissemination of good information and offering innovative ideas, you can’t help but build your niche market into a business empire.
