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Nine Must-Have SEO Tools

Keyword implementation, optimal page design, link building and other SEO aspects can result in a lot of hard work.  Thankfully, there are many tools available to help you simplify the process.  Here are nine we consider must-have:

1) Thumbshots Rankings

Thumbshots Ranking offers an informative, yet fun way to make yourself familiar with search engines and learn how to optimize your site for better ranking.  Proper use of this tool can go a long way in generating the quality traffic you seek.

2.) SEOBench

This particular SEO tool analyzes results from Google and Yahoo, identifies what they have in common, and them provides a graphical display of the results in both engines.  SEOBench gives you a nice illustration which reveals that while optimizing your site for both Google and Yahoo is not necessarily an easy task, it is not impossible either.

3.) Link Appeal

Link Appeal is a very effective tool that calculates the efficiency rating of having a link on a given URL.  It relies on factors such as the number of outbound links, its page rank and the overall percentage of links to HTML.  Link Appeal can serve as a great tool for helping you decide whether to request a link on a particular web page or not.

4.) Link Popularity Checker

The Link Popularity Checker is pretty self explanatory as it informs you on how many sites are linked to your own.  We think you will find this tool quite valuable being that link popularity is such an integral part of the entire optimization process.  The more popular your site becomes, the better it will rank in the SERPs.

5.) SEO Checker

SEO Checker is an ideal tool for checking up on search engine saturation, which simply describes the number of pages a search engine indexes for a given website.  While every search engine does not report this information, a fair share of them do, and this is enough to establish a few meaningful benchmarks for your SEM campaign.

6.) Google PageRank Report

Google PageRank Report is something you can use to automatically check the ranking value for any URL you specify in the provided form.  To get the best results, simple add “www” in front of the domain in question.

7.) Link Value

This easy to use link calculator calculates the link value of your website on a monthly basis.  The value is calculated based on many essential factors specific to most of the major search engines.

8.) Keyword Research

Keyword Research is a tool that can be used to research your targeted keywords and phrases, helping you determine which as best suited to implement into your web pages.  All if you have to do is enter a given term or phrase, and the tool automatically makes additional suggestions regarding other words and phrases you should think about targeting.

9.) Google Keyword Suggestions – This handy Google orientated tool will aid you in the process of selecting popular and relevant terms that are related to your desired keyword.  Simply enter a word, and the tool queries data from a number of Google searches, which it then uses to determine the most relevant terms used by websites in that particular niche.

Four things to Consider When Hiring an SEO Firm

Hiring an SEO firm is a move that cannot only improve the optimization of your site, but also help you save time and increase your bottom line over the long haul.  However, this is a large decision and one that deserves careful consideration on your part.  Choosing the wrong company could damage your reputation and ultimately hinder the success of your business.  While some of these experts companies can provide valuable services, others have blemished the market with unethical practices, utilizing overly aggressive marketing tactics to manipulate the SERPs (search engine result pages) in ways looked down upon by search engines.  These practices tend to violate guidelines and could result in a penalty that lowers your sites’s ranking or complete removal from the search engine index.  There are many pitfalls that must be avoided, thus this article will let you know what to look for when choosing an SEO firm.

1.) Know the Facts

It is very common for SEO firms to make the claims of being able to deliver guaranteed rankings.  They often allege special relationships with major search engines or boast the ability to guarantee high rankings with priority site submissions.  These are the type of companies you want to avoid at all costs.  There is no such thing as guaranteed rankings or priority submissions.  If a particular company is offering something that seems too good to be true, it probably is.

2.) Get the Facts

Should the SEO firm throw something your way that you don’t completely understand, never hesitate to ask for comprehensive explanations to clear things up.  This is very important because if the company creates misleading or deceptive content for your site, you could be removed from the search engine index entirely.  Although you want a company that operates with honor, in the end, you are held liable for the actions of the firm you hire for SEO.  By gathering all the facts, you can determine if their services will aid in your cause, or end up doing you more harm than good.

3.) Be Cautious of Linking

We recommend steering clear of any firm that tries to persuade you with free-for-all links, link farms or other schemes to achieve link popularity.  You should also think twice about any company that wants to submit your site to thousands of search engines.  In most cases, these practices have no positive bearing on search engine rankings.  If anything, they will end up impacting your rankings in a negative way.

4.) Know What You’re Paying For

There are a number of search engines that combine PPC (pay per click) results with the standard search results.  This is where you really need to be cautious of SEO firms because some will guarantee you a ranking, but have you placed in the advertised section opposed to the regular search results.  To avoid this trick and others like it, be sure to ask the company where your money is going and if any of it will be applied to rankings that show up temporarily on the advertising side of the page.

The Importance of SEM

There are many ways to go about promoting your site and SEM is one of the most effective.  Search engine marketing or SEM, refers to the marketing of a website to improve its ranking in the search engines.  It also describes purchasing paid listings among other search engine related activities.  When embarking upon an SEM campaign, it is important to first understand the benefits of optimization and then employ techniques that will bring prospects to your site.  Just as when getting browsers to enter your store in the real world, the goal is the same here – convert those visitors into customers.

Why SEM?

Today’s internet and World Wide Web see more consumers turning to search engines for the products and services and they seek.  If you are out to establish a strong base of customers and strengthen your bottom line, making friends with the search engines is the way to go.  SEM is a proven technique and has worked wonders for business owners looking to increase their online visibility via the SERPs.  This method involves a combination of various techniques and when used effectively, the consumers who are after your products or services will find you much easier.

A recent study shows that nearly 90% of all website traffic is generated from major search engines such as Google and Yahoo.  This is the very reason why almost every online business owner is currently so engulfed with optimization and marketing their sites for search engine traffic.  As we mentioned before, SEM covers a broad category of techniques and the most important of all is optimization.

Below we have provided details on two of the most commonly used methods of SEM.

SEO

More commonly known as SEO, search engine optimization describes the act of creating web pages that appeal to the search engines.  It generally involves building link popularity and most importantly, implementing relative keywords potential visitors are most likely to type into a search engine.  These keywords are to be inserted into the body of the web page as well as title tags and meta tags.  SEO can be so effective that other SEM techniques might not even be necessary.  Although every method is not required for a successful SEM campaign, SEO is one you can’t do without it.

PPC

Because achieving high rankings in a search engine is no easy task, some rely on Pay Per Click campaigns for high profile placements.  This is the type of model where you pay a predetermined fee when a user either clicks or visits an advertisement.  PPC is an SEM technique that focuses on targeted audiences and particularly, generating sales.

The key to SEO and SEM in general, is knowing how web surfers go about searching for products and services they are interested in.  Keep in mind that they rarely use industry jargon so you have to think like your audience in order to attract them.  This is why SEO experts stress the importance of keyword research.  Whether its genuine SEO, PPC or other methods, keywords are the basis of successful SEM.