OReilly Search Engine Optimization May 2006 ISBN 0596527861

SearchEngineOptimization
ByHaroldDavis
...............................................
Publisher:O'Reilly
PubDate:May2006
PrintISBN-10:0-596-52786-1
PrintISBN-13:978-0-59-652786-0
Pages:48

TableofContents

SEO--shortforSearchEngineOptimization--istheart,craft,andscienceofdrivingweb
traffictowebsites.
Webtrafficisfood,drink,andoxygen--inshort,lifeitself--toanyweb-basedbusiness.
Whetheryourwebsitedependsonbroad,generaltraffic,orhigh-quality,targetedtraffic,
thisPDFhasthetoolsandinformationyouneedtodrawmoretraffictoyoursite.You'll
learnhowtoeffectivelyusePageRank(andGoogleitself);howtogetlisted,getlinks,and
getsyndicated;andmuchmore.
ThefieldofSEOisexpandingintoallthepossiblewaysofpromotingwebtraffic.This
breadthrequiresarangeofunderstanding.InthisPDFyou'llfindtopicsthatcoverthat
range,soyoucanuseSEOtoyourbenefit.Thosetopicsinclude:

Understandinghowtobestorganizeyourwebpagesandwebsites.
Understandingtechnologicandbusinesstoolsavailablethatyoucanusetoachieve
yourSEOgoals.
UnderstandinghowGoogleworks.(SinceGoogleisfarandawaythemostimportant
searchengine,effectivelyusingSEOmeanseffectivelyusingGoogle.ThisPDFcovers
howtoboostplacementinGooglesearchresults,hownottooffendGoogle,how
besttousepaidGoogleprograms,andmore.)
UnderstandingbestSEOpractices(whetheryourorganizationissmalland
entrepreneurial,orwhetheryouhaveresponsibilityforalargewebpresence).

WhenyouapproachSEO,youmusttakesometimetounderstandthecharacteristicsof
thetrafficthatyouneedtodriveyourbusiness.Thengooutandusethetechniques
explainedinthisPDFtograbsometraffic--andbringlifetoyourbusiness.


SearchEngineOptimization
ByHaroldDavis
...............................................
Publisher:O'Reilly
PubDate:May2006
PrintISBN-10:0-596-52786-1
PrintISBN-13:978-0-59-652786-0
Pages:48

TableofContents

Copyright

BuildingTrafficandMakingMoneywithSEO
SearchEngineOptimization
Section1.1.SEO'sEvolution
Section1.2.SEOatitsCore
UnderstandingSearchEngines
Section2.1.NaturalandPaidListings
Section2.2.TheSEOAdvantage
Section2.3.WhatSEOCan(andCannot)Do
DrivingTraffictoaSite
Section3.1.ContentThatDrawsTraffic
Section3.2.WebSiteMetricsandMeasuringTraffic
UsingPageRank
GettingListed
Section5.1.SearchEngines
Section5.2.Taxonomies
Section5.3.GettingOpenDirectoryProject(ODP)Listings
Section5.4.GettingYahoo!DirectoryListings
Section5.5.Wikis
GettingLinks
Section6.1.TheBestInboundLinks
Section6.2.FindingSitestoMakeaLinkRequest
Section6.3.MakingtheLinkRequest
UsingSyndication

Section7.1.CreatingFeeds
Section7.2.TellingtheWorldaboutYourFeed
Section7.3.SubmittingFeeds
ToolsoftheTrade
Section8.1.WorkingwiththeBot
Section8.2.MetaInformation
Section8.3.MetaInformationTactics
SiteandPageDesign
Section9.1.SiteDesignPrinciples
Section9.2.WordsandKeywordDensity
Inbound,Outbound,andCrossLinks
Section10.1.BrokenLinks
Section10.2.InboundLinks
Section10.3.OutboundLinks
Section10.4.CrossLinks
SEOAnalysisTools

Section11.1.FreeTools
Section11.2.CommercialSEOAnalysisSoftware
AvoidingSEOPitfalls
BestPractices:SEOThatWorks
Section13.1.CreateanElevatorPitch
Section13.2.KnowYourCompetition
Section13.3.UseAdWordsasanSEOTool
Section13.4.WorkwithConsultants
Section13.5.BestSEOPractices
Summary
AbouttheAuthor


SearchEngineOptimization:BuildingTrafficandMakingMoney
withSEO,byHaroldDavis
Copyright©2006O'ReillyMedia,Inc.Allrightsreserved.
NotforredistributionwithoutpermissionfromO'ReillyMedia,
Inc.
ISBN:0596527861




BuildingTrafficandMakingMoneywith
SEO
ByHaroldDavis
SEOshortforSearchEngineOptimizationistheart,craft,and
scienceofdrivingwebtraffictowebsites.
Webtrafficisfood,drink,andoxygeninshort,lifeitselftoany
web-basedbusiness.

Whetheryourwebsitedependsonbroad,generaltraffic,or
high-quality,targetingtraffic,thisPDFhasthetoolsand
informationyouneedtodrawmoretraffictoyoursite,and
buildyourbottomline.You'lllearnhowtoeffectivelyuse
PageRank(andGoogleitselfeffectiveuseofSEOmeans
understandinghowGoogleworks),sitedesignandanalysis
tools,SEObestpractices,andmuchmore.
WhenyouapproachSEO,youshouldtakesometimeto
understandthecharacteristicsofthetrafficthatyouneedto
driveyourbusiness.Thengooutandusethetechniques
explainedinthisPDFtograbsometrafficandbringlifetoyour
business.

Contents
SEO'sEvolution

2

UnderstandingSearchEngines

3

DrivingTraffictoaSite

6

UsingPageRank

11

GettingListed

13

GettingLinks

17

UsingSyndication

20

ToolsoftheTrade

23

SiteandPageDesign

28

Inbound,Outbound,andCrossLinks

32

SEOAnalysisTools

33

AvoidingSEOPitfalls

35

BestPractices:SEOThatWorks

37

Summary

40




SearchEngineOptimization
SEOshortforSearchEngineOptimizationistheart,craft,and
scienceofdrivingwebtraffictowebsites.
Webtrafficisfood,drink,andoxygeninshort,lifeitselftoany
web-basedbusiness.
Somewebsitesdependonbroad,generaltraffic.These
businessesneedhundredsofthousandsormillionsofhitsper
daytoprosperandthrive.Otherwebbusinessesarelookingfor
high-quality,targetingtraffic.Thistrafficisessentiallylikea
prequalifiedsalesprospect:alreadyinterestedandabletobuy
yourproduct.
ThisPDFhasthetoolsandinformationyouneedtodrawmore
traffictoyoursite,andbuildyourbottomline.You'lllearnhow
toeffectivelyusePageRankandGoogleitselfeffectiveuseof
SEOmeansunderstandinghowGoogleworks:howtoboost
placementinGooglesearchresults,hownottooffendGoogle,

andhowbesttousepaidGoogleprograms.You'llalsolearn
howtobestorganizeyourwebpagesandwebsites,applySEO
analysistools,establisheffectiveSEObestpractices,andmuch
more.
WhenyouapproachSEO,takesometimetounderstandthe
characteristicsofthetrafficthatyouneedtodriveyour
business.Thengooutandusethetechniquesexplainedinthis
PDFtograbsometrafficandbringlifetoyourbusiness.




1.1.SEO'sEvolution
Originallyfairlynarrowlyconceivedasasetoftechniquesfor
risingtothetopofsearchenginelistings,searchengine
optimization,orSEO,hasconceptuallyexpandedtoincludeall
possiblewaysofpromotingwebtraffic.
Learninghowtoconstructwebsitesandpagestoimproveand
notharmthesearchengineplacementofthosewebsitesand
webpageshasbecomeakeycomponentintheevolutionof
SEO.ThiscentralgoalofSEOissometimescalledcoreSEO(as
opposedtobroader,non-core,webtrafficcampaigns,which
mayincludepaidadvertisements).
Searchengineplacementmeanswhereawebpageappearsin
anorderedlistofsearchqueryresultsit'sobviouslybetterfor
pagestoappearhigherupandtowardthebeginningofthelist
returnedbythesearchengineinresponsetoauser'squery.
Notallqueriesarecreatedequal,sopartofeffectiveSEOisto
understandwhichqueriesmattertoaspecificwebsite.It's
relativelyeasytobethefirstsearchresultreturnedforaquery

thatnobodyelsecaresabout.
Clearly,drivingtraffictoawebsitecanmakethedifference
betweencommercialsuccessandfailure.SoSEOexpertshave
cometolookatsearchengineplacementasonlyoneoftheir
toolsandtolookatthebroadercontextofwebtechnologiesand
businessmechanismsthathelptocreateanddrivetraffic.
SEOisrapidlyevolvingintoanadvertisingdisciplinethatmust
bemeasuredusingthemetricsofcost-effectivenessthatare
appliedtoalladvertisingtechniques.




1.2.SEOatitsCore
ThecorepracticesofgoodSEOarefairlysimple:
Understandhowyourpagesareviewedbysearchengine
software
Takecommonsensestepstomakesureyourpagesare
optimizedfromtheviewpointofthesesearchengines
Fortunately,thisessentiallymeanspracticinggooddesign,
whichmakesyoursiteseasytouseforhumanvisitorsas
well.
Avoidcertainover-aggressiveSEOpractices,whichcanget
yoursitesblacklistedbythesearchengines
Fromabroaderviewpoint,goodSEOinvolvescreatingan
effectivebusinesscampaign:understandingyoursales
propositionandbenefits,creatingastrategyfordrawingand
convertingprospects,andbeingbetteratwhatyoudothan
yourcompetition.

UnderstandingSearchEngines
Searchengines,suchasGoogle,arehighlycomplex
implementationsofsoftwaretechnologythathaveevolvedinto
mega-businesses,andcertainlyGoogleisacolossuswhenit
comestoprovidingaccesstotheinformationyoucanfindon
theInternet.

Note:Googleisfarandawaythemostimportantsearch
engine.SoSEOexpertstendtofocusonGoogle.Butmost
othersearchenginesworkbasicallythesamewaythatGoogle
does.BybetterunderstandingGoogle'smechanisms,you'll
alsobeabletoimproveyourplacementwithothersearch
engines.
EffectiveSEOrequiresabasicunderstandingofhowthepieces
ofsearchenginetechnologyfittogether.
Asearchengine,suchasGoogle,implementsfourbasic
mechanisms:
Discovery,meaningfindingwebsites.Thisisaccomplished
usingsoftwarethattravelsdownweblinks,whichis
sometimescalledabot,webbot,orrobot.
Storageoflinks,pagesummaries,andrelatedinformation.
Googlecallsthesystemsusedforthispurposeitsindex
servers.
Ranking,usedtoorderstoredpagesbyhowimportantthey
are.GoogleusesacomplexmechanismcalledPageRankto
accomplishthistask.


Returnofresults,usedtoorganizethedisplayofsearch

results,basedonranking,inresponsetoaspecificuser
searchquery.
Discovery,Storage,Ranking,andReturn(DSRR)areall
importanttoSEO.Inparticular,you'llneedtohaveabasic
graspofDiscoveryandRankinginordertobeeffectivewith
SEOimplementationsothesemechanismsareexplainedin
greaterdetaillaterinthisarticle(see"UsingPageRank").




2.1.NaturalandPaidListings
Naturalsearchresultlistingsarelistingsthatappearassearch
resultswithoutthepaymentofaspecialfeetothesearch
engineprovider.ThegoalofcoreSEOistoappearhighin
naturallistings.
Paidlistingstakeseveralforms.Somesearchengines(butnot
Google)acceptpayforplaysearchfees.Someconsumer
advocatesfrownuponthesenichesearchenginesbecausethe
appearanceofanaturalsearchresultthatisactuallyapaid
listingcanbeconfusing.
Googleandotherfirsttiersearchenginestakethehighroad.If
youpurchaseanadvertisementkeyedtosearchtermsusing
GoogleAdWords,whenyouradappearsinresponsetoasearch
query,itwillbeseparatefromthenaturallistingsandclearly
markedassponsored.
Aspreviouslymentioned,thegoalofcoreSEOistoobtainhigh
naturallistings.Astheworldofsearchhasgrown,however,the
SEOdisciplinehasalsoexpanded.There'snolongeranystigma
associatedwithpaidlistings,particularlywhenusingaprogram

likeAdWordsthatappropriatelylabelscontent.Ifpaidlistings
helpdrivethetrafficthatyouneedinacosteffectivefashion,
theyshouldbeconsideredavaluablepartofyourextendedSEO
campaignmanagement.Youcanfindmoreinformationabout
effectivelyusingtheAdWordsprograminmybook,Google
AdvertisingTools
( />fromO'Reilly.




2.2.TheSEOAdvantage
IfyouunderstandSEO,youhaveanedge.Itpaystonurture
thisunderstandingwhetheryouarecodingyourwebpages
yourself,workingwithin-housedevelopers,oroutsourcingyour
webdesignandimplementation.
True,somewebsitesdojustfinewithoutconsciously
consideringSEO.Butbyconsciouslydevelopingaplanthat
incorporatesSEOintoyourwebsitesandwebpages,yourweb
propertieswilloutrankothersthatdonot.
Justassuccessbegetssuccessinthebrickandmortarworld,
onlinetrafficbegetstraffic.(Whatyouplantodowiththe
traffic,andhowyouplantomonetizeit,areotherissues.)
OnewaytolookatthisisthatsitesthatusecoreSEOhavean
incrementalhigherrankinginsearchresults.Thesesitesdon't
makegauchemistakesthatcostthem"points"insearchengine
ranking.Theyusetried-and-trueSEOtechniquestogain
"points"foreachwebpage.
Pagebypage,theseincrementsgiveyouanedge.
ThisedgeisyourSEOadvantage.

2.3.WhatSEOCan(andCannot)Do
SEOcandrivemoretraffictoyourwebsite.Ifyouplan
carefully,youcanimpactthekindoftrafficdriventoyoursite.
ThismeansthatyouneedtoconsiderSEOaspartofyour
generalmarketresearchandbusinessplan.Sure,most
businesseswanttraffic.Butnotjustanytraffic.Justasthegoal
ofabrick-and-mortarbusinessistohavequalified
customersoneswithmoneyintheirpocketwhoarereadytobuy
whentheywalkinthedoor,anonlinebusinessideallywants
qualifiedtraffic.
Qualifiedtrafficisnotjustanytraffic.Itismadeupofpeople
whoaregenuinelyinterestedinyouroffering,whoarereadyto
buyit,andhavethemeanstobuyit.Thisimpliesthatto
successfullycreateanSEOcampaignyouneedtoplan:this
meansunderstandingyouridealprospect,theirhabitsandwho
theyare,andcreatingastep-by-stepschemeto"lure"this
prospecttoyoursitewhereheorshecanbeconvertedtoa
customer.
Inaddition,SEOcannotspingoldfromstraw,ormakeapurse
outofasow'sear.Garbagesitesorsitesthatexistasscamswill
notdrawhugeamountsoftraffic.Oriftheydo,thesesites
won'tdrawtrafficforlong.Googleandothersearchengineswill
pulltheplugassoonastheyseewhatisgoingon.

Note:Incaseyouhaven'tnoticed,there'sawebcontentarms
racegoingon.ForGoogleandothersearchenginestostayin
business,theresultstheydeliverhavetobemeaningfulto
users.Thismeansthatthere'sonlysomuchcontentspamthat

Googlewillputupwith.Justasemailspammerskeeptryingto
outwitemailfilters,andfilterskeepgettingbetterinresponse,
contentspammersandGoogleareinvolvedinanarms


race.YourgoalwithSEOshouldnotinvolvecontentspam,
sometimesreferredtoasblackhatSEO.Instead,beoneofthe
goodguys,awhitehatSEOpractitioner.SEOskillsareSEO
skillswhetherthehatisblackorwhite.Butuseyourwhitehat
SEOskillstodrawevenmoretraffictositesthatarealready
goodanduseful.Inotherwords,SEOshouldbeusedinan
ethicalandlegitimatefashionasabranchofmarketresearch
andbusinesspromotionforproductsandservicesthatare
genuineandnotaspartofascamtorippeopleoff.
Astimegoesby,SEOneedstoberegardedasanadjuncttothe
firstlawoftheweb:goodcontentdrawsheavytraffic.Thereis
nosubstituteforcontentpeoplereallywanttofind.
WhilebestpracticesSEOshouldalwaysbeobserved,there
needstobeasenseofproportioninhowSEOisused.Itmay
notmakesensetocreatea"PotemkinVillage"usingSEOto
drawtraffictoasiteifthefundamentalsitedoesn'tyieldhigh
returns.Inotherwords,SEOthatiscostlytoimplementis
becomingregardedasonemoreaspectofadvertisingcampaign
managementandsubjecttothesamedisciplineofcost-benefit
analysisappliedtoallotherwell-managedadvertising
campaigns.


DrivingTraffictoaSite
ThefirstgoalofSEOistodrawtraffictoasite.Buttrafficis

drawntositesthataregood.Solet'stakealookattwo
perspectivesonwhatkindofcontentdrawstraffic.
First,awebsiteworthpracticingSEOuponshouldbeaworthy
beneficiary:asitewithcontentthatatleasttheoreticallyhas
theabilitytodrawtraffic.
Second,oneSEOtechniqueintheabsenceofthisworthy
contentistocreateitfromscratch.Sobearinmindthat
creatingcontenttodrawtrafficisoneofthemosteffectiveand
simplestSEOtechniques.Assuch,it'sworthhavingalookat
contentthatdrawstraffic.

Tip:Mostsitesneedtopresentbreadthmeaningmanypages
thatareorganizedcohesively.Asitethatpresentsasingleweb
pageisunlikelytopresentsufficientdepthofcontenttojustify
extensiveSEO.TheSEOtrickistodrawtrafficwithdesirable
content,thento"seduce"thetrafficintoportionsofthesitethat
maynotdirectlyhaveanythingtodowiththecontentthisisthe
ultimategoaloftheSEOcampaign.


3.1.ContentThatDrawsTraffic
There'sagreatdealofvariationingoodsuccessfulcontentweb
sites.Thepurposeofthesesitesvariesfromhumortopractical
toeditorialopinionsandbeyond.It'shardtogeneralize.But
successfulcontentsitestypicallydotendtofallintoatleastone
(maybemorethanone)ofthefollowingcategories:
Thesiteishumorous,andmakesvisitorslaugh.While
humorisamatterofpersonaltaste,andvaries
tremendouslydependingondemographicsofthetarget,
humorousfeaturescandrawagreatdealoftraffictoasite.

Onedownsideisthathumortendstogetstalequickly.An
exampleofahumoroussitethatispopularisGooglefight,
,asitethatcomparesthe
Googlerankingsoftwotermssuchas"God"and"Satan."
Thesiteprovidesausefulfreeservice.Webservicesthat
arefree(anddesirable)candrawastoundinglevelsof
traffic.AgoodexampleisTinyURL,,
whichprovidesapracticalandveryuseful(butsimple)
service:itallowsyoutoconvertlong,unwieldyURLsfor
example,thoseyouoftenseefromAmazon.comwhenyou
selectaninventoryitemtoshort,convenientURLsthatare
easytouseinHTMLcode(andeasytoenterinabrowser).
TinyURLgetshundredsofmillionsofhitspermonth,andis
abletoconvertsomeofthistrafficforotherpurposes(such
asmakingmoneyfromadvertising).
Thesiteisanonlinemagazine,newspaper,orblog.
Newsworthycontentorinterestingopinionpiecescandraw
considerabletraffic.Butthefactthatanyonecanputupa
blogmeansthatyou'llhavetogotoconsiderablelengthsto
distinguishyourcontent.


Tip:FromanSEOviewpoint,addingablogtoasiteprovides
oneverydesirablefeatureithelpsmakesurethesitehasfresh
content.Freshnessofcontentpreferablyonadailybasisisone
ofthefactorsthatsearchenginesusewhenevaluatinghowto
ranksites.


EnablingCommunityonaSite

Youmightnotwanttoprogramanapplicationthatenablescommunity
functionalityfromthegroundup,butyourwebhostmayprovidethissoftware
forfree,versionsmaybeavailablefromtheopensourcecommunitythatare
alsofree,oryoumaybeabletoinexpensivelyoutsourceapplicationsthat
facilitatecommunity.
Youcanbuildcommunityonasiteincludebyproviding:
Messageboards
Chatrooms
Calendarswithinformationabouteventsinaspecificfield
Instantmessagingapplications
Readerreviews
Blogcomments,pings,andtrackbacks

Thesiteprovidespracticalinformation.Manypeopleturnto
theWebastheirfirstlineofapproachforfinding
information:abouttechnology,relationships,travel
destinations,health,andmuchmore.Addingusefularticles
isoftenoneofthefirststepstakenbySEOconsultanciesto
beefuptraffictoadestinationsite.Obviously,themore
closelyrelatedthearticlesaretothekindsoftrafficyou
wanttotarget,thebetterthiswillworkfromanSEO
perspective.
Thesiteservicesacommunity,andprovidescommunication
toolsforthatcommunity.TheWebislargelyabout
community,andinvolvingcommunityinyoursiteserves


severalSEOpurposes.Notonlywillyourcommunityhelp
keepyourcontentfresh,it'salsoself-selecting:ifyou
enableyourcommunitywithcareitcanhelptotellyou

whichtopicsareofinterest,andwhatcontentareaswill
drawtraffic.




3.2.WebSiteMetricsandMeasuringTraffic
AnimportantcomponentofSEOisgettingahandleonwebsite
metricsandmeasuringtraffic.Thisisnotaseasyasitsounds,
becauseagreatmanycompetingtermsareused,anddatais
notalwaysreliable.
FromanSEOperspective,youneedtoestablishaplanfor
measuringtrafficsothatyoucanfindoutobjectivelywhichSEO
measureshavesucceeded.
Howmuchtrafficdoyouaspireto?Anotherimportantquestion,
becauseSEOapproacheswilldifferdependingonwhetheryou
wanttogeneratetonsofgeneralbroadtraffic,orifyouare
targetinganarrow(butsignificant)niche.
Agood(andreasonablyobjective)sourceofinformationand
metricsaboutgeneralandhigh-traffickedsitesisAlexa.

3.2.1.Alexa
Alexa,,isownedbyAmazon.com.

Note:ImentionAmazon'sownershipofAlexabecause
ownershipcanbedestiny,andyoushouldbearAmazon's
relationshipwithAlexainmindwhenyoureadtheopinion
piecesonthesite.Forexample,whenAlexaindicatesthat
Google'strafficisperhapspeaking,andthatMySpace's
continuestoclimb,andputsthegraphofeachtogetherasthey

didrecentlyyoumightwanttoconsiderwhetherthisisunbiased
informationorspeakstoarivalrywithGoogle.


OntheAlexasite,youcanclicktheTrafficrankingstabtosee
anorderedlistofthetop500Sitesupdateddaily.TheMovers
andShakerslistisalsointeresting.Itisasnapshotofthe"right
hereandnow"ontheWeb,andisusefulforaligningyourSEO
effortswithWeb-widetrendsinrealtime.
ItisworthspendingtimelearningaboutpopularityontheWeb
ifyouwanttobuildsuccessfulsites.Alexaprovidesthetools
youcanusetoseeforyourselfwhatistrafficked,andwhatis
gainingorlosingamongtop-rankedsites.
YoucanalsouseAlexatoseetrafficstatisticsforsitesthatare
notinthetop500.Foralmostanysitethathasbeenarounda
while,Alexawillgiveyouanideaoftrafficstatistics,and
whetheritisgainingorlosingtraffic.
Alexaletsyouenterdescriptiveinformationaboutyourweb
site,whichotherscanseeiftheycheckyoursitetrafficusing
Alexa.YoucanalsomakesurethatAlexaprovidesasnapshot
ofyourhomepagealongwithitsstatistics.Sincethisserviceis
free,itiscertainlyworthenteringasitedescriptionand
monitoringyourAlexagarneredstatistics.
AlexaworksbycollatingresultsfromusersthroughouttheWeb
whohaveinstalledthespecialAlexaToolbar.(Ifyou'dlike,you
caninstalltheAlexaToolbarandhelpwithpopularitystatistics.)
There'ssomequestionaboutthestatisticalvalidityofAlexafor
less-traffickedsitesbecauseofthismethodofgathering
dataAlexa'sresultsareprobablyskewedtowardsuserswhoare
alreadywebsavvyandheavyusers.

Mostlikely,Alexa'sresultsarenotverymeaningfulforsitesthat
arerankedbelow100,000inpopularity(veryroughly,with
fewerthan10,000visitorsperweek).

3.2.2.MeasuringTraffic


Themetricsofwebsitetrafficisahugetopicjustbyitself,and
goeswaybeyondAlexa.Thereareanumberofbooksjust
aboutwebmetricsifyouareinterestedinthistopic,youmight
wanttocheckoutJimSterne'sWebMetrics:ProvenMethods
forMeasuringWebSiteSuccess
(whichiscomprehensiveandexcellent,ifa
littledated.Youcanalsotakealookatthe"Trackingand
Logging"threadonWebMasterWorld,
.
Thereisalso,ofcourse,quiteabitofsoftwaredesignedsimply
tohelpwebmastersgatherandunderstandthemetricsoftheir
sites.Also,yourwebserver'slogscontainagreatdealoftraffic
informationthatcanhelpprovideyouwithusefulmetrics.

Note:Youcanuseyourwebserverlogstofindoutwhich
searchqueriesmostcommonlylandvisitorsonyourpages.
Measuringtrafficisaveryimportanttopic:tooptimizeyoursite
youneedtohavebaselineinformation,aswellasfeedback,so
youcanunderstandwhetherchangesimprovesitetrafficandto
alsoseewhichelementsinyoursitedrawtraffic.

Tip:IfyouarerunningGoogle'sAdSenseadsonyoursite,you
canusethepageimpressiondatathatGooglesuppliesasa

rough-and-readymeasureofwebtraffic.


UsingPageRank
GoogleusesthePageRankalgorithmtoordertheresults
returnedbyspecificsearchqueries.Assuch,understanding
PageRankiscrucialtocoreSEOeffortstoimprovenatural
searchresults.
Dependingonwhoyouask,PageRankisnamedafterits
inventor,LawrencePage,Google'sco-founderorbecauseitisa
mechanismforrankingpages.
Whenauserentersaquery,alsocalledasearch,intoGoogle,
theresultsarereturnedintheorderoftheirPageRank.
Originallyfairlysimpleinconcept,PageRanknowreportedly
processesmorethan100variables.Sincetheexactnatureof
this"secretsauce"is,well,secret,thebestthingyoucando
fromanSEOperspectiveismoreorlesssticktotheoriginal
concept.
TheunderlyingideabehindPageRankisanoldonethathas
beenusedbylibrariansinthepre-Webpasttoprovidean
objectivemethodofscoringtherelativeimportanceofscholarly
documents.Themorecitationsotherdocumentsmaketoa
particulardocument,themore"important"thedocumentis,the
higheritsrankinthesystem,andthemorelikelyitistobe
retrievedfirst.
Letmebreakitdownforyou:
Eachwebpageisassignedanumberdependinguponthe
numberofotherpagesthatlinktothepage.
ThecrucialelementthatmakesPageRankworkisthenatureof
theWebitself,whichdependsalmostsolelyontheuseof

hyperlinkingbetweenpagesandsites.Inthesystemthat


makesGoogle'sPageRankalgorithmwork,linksareaweb
popularitycontest:WebmasterAthinksWebmasterB'ssitehas
goodinformation(oriscool,orlooksgood,orisfunny),so
WebmasterAmaydecidetoaddalinktoWebmasterB'ssite.
Inturn,WebmasterBmightreturnthefavor.
LinksfromWebsiteAtoWebsiteBarecalledoutbound(from
A)andinboundlinks(toB)
Themoreinboundlinksapagehas(referencesfromother
sites),themorelikelyitistohaveahigherPageRank.However,
notallinboundlinksareofequalweightwhenitcomestohow
theycontributetoPageRanknorshouldtheybe.Awebpage
getsahigherPageRankifanothersignificantsource(by
significantsourceImeanasourcethatalsoreceivesalotof
inboundlinks,andthushasahigherPageRank)linkstoitthan
ifatrivialsitewithouttrafficprovidestheinboundlink.

Note:PageRankisessentiallyarecursivealgorithm;agiven
page'sPageRankisthesumofthePageRanksofthepages
thatlinktoit(weightedbythetotalnumberoflinks,ofcourse).
Inthisscheme,alinkfromahighPageRankpageclearly
countsformorethanalinkfromalow-rankingpage.
ThemoresophisticatedversionofthePageRankalgorithm
currentlyusedbyGoogleinvolvesmorethansimplycrunching
thenumberoflinkstoapageandthePageRankofeachpage
thatprovidesaninboundlink.WhileGoogle'sexactmethodof
calculatingPageRankisshroudedinproprietarymystery,
PageRankdoestrytoexcludelinksfromso-calledlinkfarms,

pagesthatcontainonlylinks,andmutuallinking(whichare
individualtwo-waylinksputupforthesolepurposeofboosting
PageRanks).

Tip:TheeasiestwaytoseethecomparativePageRankfor