We often get clients requesting advice on how to deal with meta-tags and keywords.  Our answer is really simple… “Don’t waste your time”.   But we have to admit – that isn’t a very popular answer.  It often leaves clients confused and perhaps even a little worried about our sanity as web site advisers.   The truth is – meta-tags are a utility that have very specific functions in today’s website technology.    Page rank – is NOT one of them.  At least not any more.   Let’s explore…

So, you’ve created the next great Number 1 ranked website in your field.

You’ve spent hundreds of hours making sure you represent your company with a clean, focused website that describes your services and represents the business model that your company truly lives by.  You’ve included all the standard components that your competitors have – and you’ve made sure that you’ve followed the formula and “tricks” that your web guru advised.

So why isn’t your site right up there on Google?  Why aren’t you at least ranked as high as the folks you compare yourself to?

There could be a variety of reasons your site doesn’t rank the way you’d like.  The first – and BY FAR – most likely reason – is that your site is no more credible or “important” than anyone else’s.

Let’s see if we can simplify this concept.

When Google provides you results – what is it that you want them to show you first?   Do you want the answer to your query?  Or would you prefer that the results represent whatever some company managed to manipulate Google to display?   In the “old days” of search engines – you could type in “napkin” and find thousands of results that had absolutely nothing to do with napkins.  The truth is – you most likely faced at least 5 or 10 results to some pornography sites.   That’s not exactly a credible result to something rather simple and obviously focused.

The best example we can provide is Google themselves.
When was the last time you heard someone say; “Look it up on Yahoo.”  or  ”See what BING says about that…”  Very few people say those things anymore.  I’d be willing to bet that more than half the people reading this haven’t used Yahoo for the last 5 years, and at least 60% of you don’t even know what BING is.  Well – Yahoo was the first search engine ever created – and BING is Microsoft’s search engine.   Both were once considered major competitors to Google, yet they could easily be forgotten in todays World Wide Web, and few would even notice their absence.

So – WHY are these heavyweights becoming so insignificant?  The answer: “No Credibility”.     The truth is - Nowadays they actually just get their results directly from Google, and slap their own content and ads around it.  We could get into the complete history of why one is bigger than the other – or how they all get their info from the same source anyway… but that’s not going to help you improve your web presence.  The facts are simple… if you want to get a higher rank on ANY SEARCH ENGINE – you quite simply have to learn how to be viewed as the most credible response that GOOGLE has to offer.

SO, what makes you credible in Google’s all knowing eye?
Let’s use a practical example…

Until 2007, when you searched Google for the term “FAILURE” the first result displayed was the personal (and official) White House biography page for George W Bush now – Google didn’t do this on purpose.  The fact is – someone created what was then called a “googlebomb”.   Here’s how it works:

George Johnston of the “Old Fashioned Patriot” website posted this link:  Failure on his blog – and encouraged ALL of his readers to post the same link on their websites.   Before long – thousands of websites around the world begin to share that link.  Then – it goes “viral” and before you know it – MILLIONS of links, on just as many websites are relating a single word to one particular website.

Because Google is a fully automated, artificially intelligent system – it automatically decided that the most credible response to “FAILURE” was the page located at:  [http://www.whitehouse.gov/president/gwbbio.html]

How do KeyWords fit into all of this?  <Laugh>  that’s easy…  THEY DON’T.  MetaTag Keywords have basically no real impact in today’s search results.  Lets face it - regardless of your political opinion, or all the evidence to support the idea – we can assure you that the word FAILURE was not used in any part of the White House’s meta-tags referring to G.W. Bush.

FACT:  In 2009 – GOOGLE themselves declared that Meta-Tag KeyWords are no-longer indexed or considered IN ANY WAY by their system.  Here is “the horses mouth” Matt Cutts – expressing his thoughts about how you should really be using keywords in your website.

With the term Search Engine Optimization (SEO) being widely used, many self-titled “SEO Experts” have popped up, making unrealistic promises and offering guaranteed rankings.  These days businesses are all too familiar with spam email about Search Engine Optimization, or a cold call from an “SEO guru” who can make all your Internet Marketing dreams come true.  The best defense against SEO scams is becoming more educate about the subject.  Since most small business owners don’t have the time and resources needed to become experts, we’ve put together a quick list of the most common “SEO claims” you should look out for.  It’s important to note that we are talking about claims regarding organic search engine results (natural results), not paid results.  Anyone can pay for top placement of an advertisement – it’s just a matter of budget and choice of target audience.

#1 Guaranteed Rankings

Many SEO scams center around some sort of guaranteed rankings. Claims like “Guaranteed #1 ranking on Google”, “Guaranteed first page ranking on Google”, “Guaranteed #1 ranking on all search engines” are simply impossible to substantiate (when referencing organic results). If you read the following article from Google, you’ll see a section titled No one can guarantee a #1 ranking on Google.  Google goes on to say “Beware of SEOs that claim to guarantee rankings”.  Since you’ve heard it directly from Google, you should make sure to avoid any company that offers such a guarantee.

#2 They know someone at Google, or have a special relationship with Google

False!  Again, no SEO company has “special relationship” or access to a “priority submit” for Google.  Any SEO firm that makes this claim is simply lying to you.

#3 Offering free SEO trial services

SEO is tedious and very involved. The process required to achieve great results requires days of work, and no legitimate company is going to do this for free. Additionally, if in return for the “free trial” they ask for your FTP username/password or ask access to your hosting account, just imagine what they could do. Avoid promises that sound too good to be true!

#4 Submissions to thousands of search engines

So what. Google, Yahoo, MSN/Bing, and AOL accounting for over 95% of the search market. Just focus your attention on the ones that matter.

#5 Undisclosed or secret SEO strategies

Hmmm, a magic potion? A crystal ball? Is Harry Potter involved? Any legitimate SEO company should be able to explain what they will do to your site, as well as outline their link building strategy. Firms who reference “SEO trade secrets” are likely planning to use black hat SEO techniques that will get you banned by all major search engines at some point.

#6 Top Ranking within 48 hours

We’ve already discussed the concept of guaranteed top rankings; LET ALONE adding a deadline to this promise. The only way to guarantee this would be with Pay Per Click (PPC).

#7 The lowest priced SEO

If an offer sounds too good to be true, it is. As we mentioned, SEO is hard work and takes some serious time to do correctly. You’re better off learning how to do it yourself, rather than paying some “SEO expert” who claims that he can do it for an absurdly low price. You get what you pay for!

#8 We work with someone at Google, or are partners with Google

No they don’t, and no they are not. Google has no such partnerships in the SEO world. Plus, no Google employee would jeopardize their jobs by illegally associating with any such firms.

#9 We know the Google Algorithm, we are Google Algorithm experts

The algorithms used by search engine are complex, and dynamic. At best, people may know about certain aspects (link popularity, content, meta tags, etc). By the way, knowledge of the important aspects of SEO should be a given if you’re in the SEO world.

#10 Avoid SEO companies that take ownership of content

Anything you pay for, should belong to you. Make sure that any agreement you sign does not give ownership to the SEO agency you work with. This content can be held hostage, or even worse, be sold to a competitor.