Monday 2 December 2013

Using Keywords in Titles and Thinking About SEO

Keywords, Titles, SEO for CMS

Four important factors that can dictate where you will rank on Google and other search engines: keywords, titles, search engine optimization (SEO) and content management systems (CMS).

Your titles on pages within your website should be a brief sentence about what that page is about. Note the word brief: not your life story! They are important because search engines match page titles with the content you place on each page. Your page titles should include keywords that your target audience and or buyers might type in Google and other search engines. You can conduct your own keyword research to see what people are typing in.

Content Management Systems are a fantastic tool for the average person to be able to update their website, without the need for knowledge of the complex scripting used by website developers. Fortunately CMS nowadays are conscious of the requirement for pages to be search engine friendly. So when you input your page title into a program such as Joomla, chances are it can take that title and make it part of that page's URL - its web address.

It is a timely reminder to write this article, because Christmas is a busy period for everyone and retailers in particular need to capitalize if they can. If you are selling products which may appeal to buyers at Christmas, make sure your titles include things like 'Christmas Gift Ideas', 'Xmas Gifts for him/her.' People will type these word combinations into Google, especially when they are unsure of what they are looking for or going to buy.

Making sure your titles include keywords and your pages are search engine friendly will go a long way to helping you achieve more hits on your website, lower bounce rate and hopefully more sales! Ensure your titles match page content and are not misleading: you will only be punished by the search engines with a lower page rank. It is in the true spirit of the internet that you work towards making it easy for your customers to find you.