Search Optimization Basics: What Every Web Writer Needs to Know

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Search Optimization BasicsWhat Every Web Writer
Needs to Know

• InterLab 06
• Joe Chervenak Marsha Luevane
• National Renewable Energy Laboratory

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Introduction

• The basics for writers/content creators
• Focus is on the visible text on Web pages

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Content to Optimize

• Header text (H1)
• Body of content
• Title tags

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Step 1 Determine Keywords

• Define audience
• Who are the primary users?
• Think like users
• Use keywords users are likely to use when they do
  searches
• Search logs, other research can help determine
  appropriate terms
• Use synonyms and acronyms

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Step 2 Position Keywords

• Think like a search engine
• Search engines look for keywords in specific
  places in Web pages
• Header text
• Body of content
• Introductory text 1st couple of sentences is
  key
• Throughout the rest of the page content
• Title tags
• If user search terms are positioned in these
  areas, the page will rank higher in search
  results

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The User Experience

• Im looking for basic information on hybrid
  electric vehicles
• I do a search and get search results

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Show Web Page
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More About Title Tags

• Title tags are very important
• Display as caption in search results
• Keywords in title tags are the second most
  important ranking factor in search results
  (keywords in content is 1)

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Title Tag Tips 1

• Put a descriptive, unique, concise, and
  meaningfully different title on each Web page
  (9.2 Research-Based Web Design Usability
  Guidelines.)
• Recycle header text use identical text as the
  title tag
• Call a home page a home page

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Title Tag Tips 2

• Avoid pitfalls
• Whose job is it?
• Who checked it?
• Writers Ask coders to recycle header text
• Check title tags before publishing

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Conclusion

• Theres no getting around it -- you cant fix the
  search unless you fix the content

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Disclaimer and Government License This work
has been authored by Midwest Research Institute
(MRI) under Contract No. DE-AC36-99GO10337 with
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