Search engine optimization for profit

Search Engine Optimization (SEO) aims to maximize profitable traffic from search engines to websites. Wordtracker has commissioned and interviewed a cast of renowned professionals to give you insight into their work. Start by downloading our free SEO book:

Free guide to SEO - "SEO Made Simple"

This value-packed e-book introduces you to the need-to-know basics, such as how to:

• Find the right keywords for a new website
  
• Plan and structure your site's content
  
• Get other sites to link to yours (an SEO must!)
  
• Create engaging content that people will link to and share

Whether you seek more sales, response, conversions, or visits from the search engines, SEO Made Simple gets you off to a running start.

All we ask in return is that you help spread the word about this free book by giving us a +1 from Google+, a Facebook like, or a Tweet. A fair exchange, wouldn’t you say?

Email Address

Please also send me Wordtracker's newsletter - packed with marketing tips and tactics

SEO articles

With the help of Wordtracker's keyword tool, you can also use the following links to learn how to optimize your site:

• How To Optimize A Page For Over 10,000 Keywords
• Keyword Research - how to deliver visits, response and profits to your website
• Keyword Research
• Find your website’s target markets
• The long tail of keyword research (and why single keywords are for losers)
• Adventures in (long tail keyword) Wonderland
• Why SEO For Profit Must Target Groups Of Keywords
• How to SEO at scale with keyword niches
• SEO Strategy
• The SEO Pro's Secret Path From Keyword Research To SEO Strategy
• Really really really easy SEO
• Content For SEO
• On-Page SEO
• Site Structure
• How To Optimize Your Website's Structure
• How to plan your site structure with keyword research
• Site Navigation
• How To Optimize Your Website's Navigation
• Link Building
• Monitoring
• SEO Never Stops
• Case Studies

1. 

   Beware! Google is changing title tags at will Posted by Karon Thackston on 08 May 2012

   In all the years since Google became a player in the search engine optimization arena, we have seen countless changes. Some have been minor algorithm tweaks while others caused a major upheaval. Still, one thing remained constant: we controlled our title tags. But no longer. Karon Thackston explains ...

2. 

   An introduction to basic SEO with Wordtracker's tools [VIDEO] Posted by Mal Darwen on 26 April 2012

   Where do I start with keyword research? How do I go about SEO'ing a website? How can Wordtracker help? This webinar recording answers some of those questions.

3. 

   52 Top SEO tips from BrightonSEO 2012 Posted by Julie McNamee on 19 April 2012

   Wordtracker took a trip to beautiful Brighton on the south coast of England to report on the latest tips and tricks from the search marketing professionals speaking at BrightonSEO. Here's the best of that advice.

4. 

   Learning the importance of video in SEO [Video] Posted by Ken McGaffin on 29 March 2012

   CEO of ReelSEO answers Ken McGaffin's questions on how video has impacted on the world of SEO.

5. What you should know about Google Panda [Video] Posted by Justin Deaville on 14 March 2012

   We asked Eric Enge, co-author of 'The Art of SEO' to share his insights into the Panda update. Eric was happy to oblige with a video interview we're sure you'll enjoy.

6. 

   The secrets of landing page optimization Posted by Gareth Davies on 07 March 2012

   Landing page optimization can be crucial in determining the profitability of your SEO and PPC campaigns. At SES London this year, Wordtracker’s Gareth Davies was on hand to listen to what Nathan Richter from Monetate and Karl Blanks from Conversion Rate Experts had to say.

7. 

   SES London 2012: 173 takeaways and top tips Posted by Julie McNamee on 20 February 2012

   The SES London conference covers basic, advanced and cutting edge SEO, PPC and online marketing. Julie McNamee, Justin Deaville and Gareth Davies have collected the best top tips, takeaways and memorable quotes from SES London 2012.

8. 

   SEO and conversion with post-Panda Google Posted by Gareth Davies on 15 February 2012

   With Google’s Panda update helping big brands, small businesses face the challenge of targeting the long tail with limited resources.

   At the London Conversion Conference, Gareth Davies heard some suggestions from Patrick Altoft of Branded 3

9. Goldilocks SEO [Infographic] Posted by Aaron Wall on 01 February 2012

   Aaron Wall is a master SEO, a talented SEO writer and an entertaining iconoclast. His Goldilocks SEO infographic below is a little masterpiece in communication containing more wisdom than most other SEO bloggers put together.

10. 

    The Rules of SEO for Profit Posted by Mark Nunney on 15 December 2011

    If you don’t have time to read Mark Nunney’s new book, SEO for Profit, then at least make sure you learn the rules.

11. 

    63 conversion tips from Conversion Conference London Posted by Gareth Davies on 05 December 2011

    Over two days in London’s Business Design Center, some of the world’s foremost consultants and speakers on conversion rate optimization gathered for the first major event of its kind in the UK. Gareth Davies was on hand to cover the event and he took away 63 top conversion tips.

12. 

    How to be an expert SEO Posted by Mark Nunney on 01 December 2011

    An expert SEO leaves set processes behind, works fast, intuitively, delivers great results and can reap great rewards. In an edited extract from his new book, SEO for Profit Mark Nunney explains how you can become an expert SEO.

13. 

    The New SEO Posted by Mark Nunney on 12 November 2011

    Although the use of keywords on website pages and in the anchor text of inbound links remains important for SEO, search engines are increasingly using a site’s branding, visitor behavior and social data. This is The New SEO, introduced here by Mark Nunney in an edited extract from his new book, SEO for Profit.

14. 

    10 reasons why your link requests are failing Posted by Ken McGaffin on 27 October 2011

    One of the most common difficulties in link building is getting a response from link requests. Ken McGaffin gives 10 reasons why you might not be getting answers and how to fix each problem.

15. 

    Keyword tracking reports for search engine success Posted by Mark Nunney on 18 October 2011

    Tracking your site’s ranks on Google for your target keywords is an important part of search engine optimization (SEO). It allows you to report results, discover the cause of traffic gains and losses; and spot the seeds of future success. Mark Nunney explains why to do it and how.

16. 

    62 steps to the definitive link building campaign Posted by Mark Nunney on 21 September 2011

    Successful search engine optimization (SEO) requires inbound links from quality relevant websites. Using extracts from their book, Wordtracker Masterclass: Link Building - How to build links to your website for SEO, traffic and response, Ken McGaffin and Mark Nunney here outline the definitive steps in a successful, long term link building campaign.

17. 

    Why Google Panda slapped quality sites Posted by Mark Nunney on 26 August 2011

    Google’s Panda update is aimed at low quality sites like content farms. So why is it hurting so many established high quality content sites? Mark Nunney explains why he thinks this happening, what to do about it and what we can all learn from it.

18. 

    How to get things done in SEO Posted by Mark Nunney on 25 August 2011

    Most business is as simple as trying to get the obvious done by people who’s job it is to do it. Yet it’s still difficult. SEO is more difficult still because you need to get the not-so-obvious done by people who have other jobs to do already. Mark Nunney considers the problem of implementation and has some suggestions to help you get things done in SEO.

19. 

    Optimizing the new Google sitelinks (and controlling your brand’s Google SERPs) Posted by Mark Nunney on 17 August 2011

    From today you have a new opportunity to get more visits and response to your site from searches with your brand name. This is because Google has changed how ‘sitelinks’ are shown on its results pages. Mark Nunney explains and shows you how to optimize this opportunity.

20. 

    Google Panda update survival guide Posted by Mark Nunney on 27 July 2011

    As of 24th Feb 2011, a major update by Google on how it ranks sites has affected 12% of search results and halved many sites’ visitor numbers. Named the Farmer or Panda Update it’s only affecting US Google results as I write but if you’re outside the US it is coming to you soon. Here’s how to find out if you have already been hit, are going to be and what to do about it.

21. 

    Automatic SEO ecommerce case study: Tahoe Mountain Sports Posted by Mark Nunney on 07 July 2011

    Smart SEO can make your online business more successful by focusing your efforts on the searches (keywords) your buyers are making. This case study shows how Wordtracker Strategizer can save you days of research trying to find those keywords, planning the actions required to target them and reporting your results.

22. 

    How to be a successful guest blogger Posted by Ann Smarty on 28 June 2011

    Guest blogging is receiving a lot of internet marketing buzz at the moment. Pro bloggers are regularly publishing new articles giving guest blogging advice. However this doesn't necessarily make the newbie's job easier as the information is scattered around the web. Worse, at least 80% of posts you read just share how great it is and why you need to try as well.

23. 

    Six things you have got to know before you build links Posted by Gareth Davies on 17 May 2011

    Since 1998 links have been the foundation of Google’s ranking algorithm. But too many people still don't realize that 90% of what they need to do is to get other sites to link to them. Gareth Davies summarizes Patrick Altoft’s recent SES presentation on some basics of link building, including brand v keyword-rich links, competitor analysis, content syndication and replicating competitors’ links.

24. 

    SMX London: 221 takeaways and top tips Posted by Gareth Davies on 16 May 2011

    SMX London is now consistently SMX Advanced and so worthy of our and your attention. Gareth Davies, Mal Darwen and Mark Nunney attended and were ably supported by Thomas Baugh manning the Twitter watchtower.

25. 

    12 Essential SEO Tips by Dave Naylor Posted by Gareth Davies on 05 May 2011

    SEO is about great content and great site architecture ... it’s certainly not about spam and trying to fool Google. From a Dave Naylor SES presentation, Gareth Davies provides 12 essential SEO tips for 2011.

26. 

    What use is a show for SEO? Posted by Mark Nunney on 25 April 2011

    @marknunney and @mald from the @wordtracker team will be at SMX London. To make sure he is spending his time wisely, Mark Nunney challenged show organizer, journalist and SEO practitioner Chris Sherman with the question: What use is a show for SEO? If you like his answers as much as we do then we'll see you at London SMX on 16-17 May.

27. 

    Introduction to Google Analytics (and how to turbo charge it) Posted by Mark Nunney on 08 April 2011

    Google Analytics (GA) has become an essential tool for many SEOs. Here Mark Nunney introduces some basics of using GA for SEO and then shows you how to turbo charge it by importing your GA data into Wordtracker Strategizer.

28. 

    Top 10 free SEO and keyword tools and reports from Wordtracker Posted by Rachelle Money on 21 December 2010

    Holiday season is a good time to remind you of all the lovely freebies we have on our website. Take a look at our free guides on keyword research, as well as our fantastic tools and videos, which should help you come up with some fresh ideas for your 2011 SEO strategy. Here's our top ten for you to enjoy.

29. 

    Really really really easy SEO Posted by Mark Nunney on 16 December 2010

    More traffic and response with really really really easy SEO (search engine optimization) works by building on your current success - the keywords that already bring response to your site. These keywords are your low-hanging fruit and getting more results from them is child’s play. Mark Nunney explains how to do it the long way (manually) and the quick way (automatic SEO with Wordtracker Strategizer).

30. 

    SEO Expert series: Mark Nunney Posted by Rachelle Money on 13 November 2010

    Wordtracker would like to introduce our very own expert in Search Engine Optimization, Mark Nunney. Journalist Rachelle Money kicks off a special interview series with Mark, in a Question and Answer article where she picks his brains on top tips for SEO work, emerging trends and advice.

31. 

    Mark Nunney's 12 most common SEO mistakes: SEO expert series Posted by Rachelle Money on 12 November 2010

    Have you ever embarked on some SEO work and got that sinking feeling that you might be doing something wrong? You're not alone. Our expert Mark Nunney gives us the dirty dozen top mistakes he sees being made in SEO, as well as tips on how to negotiate the pitfalls.

32. MarketingSherpa survey reveals the most effective SEO tactics Posted by Justin Deaville on 21 October 2010

    The SEO field is changing rapidly and it can be difficult to keep up with the latest thinking. Research firm MarketingSherpa has surveyed thousands of search marketers to discover today’s most effective SEO tactics. We got a sneaky preview, so we can tell you what's working in SEO - and what's not. By Wordtracker's own Justin Deaville.

33. 

    How to plan your site structure for maximum traffic (Video) Posted by Mike Mindel on 13 October 2010

    In this 13-minute video, Mike Mindel shows you how to plan your site structure for maximum Google traffic.

    When you organize your pages - using a structure of category and content pages - both readers and search engines are able to find what they want. As a result, your site looks authoritative, and the search engines will send you more traffic!

    So sit back, press play - and find out how you can use keyword research to plan your own website.

34. 

    How to plan your site structure with keyword research Posted by Mark Nunney on 17 September 2010

    Keyword research can do more than find you profitable keywords to target. With Wordtracker's Keywords Tool you can also plan a site structure optimized for search engines. Mark Nunney explains how.

35. 

    Wordtracker + Google + SEO = Win Posted by Mark Nunney on 10 September 2010

    Google keyword research data is impressive, powerful and now available on Wordtracker Keywords Tool. But make sure you verify its search estimates with alternative sources like Wordtracker’s own. Most importantly, use a keyword research process that ensures you find your site’s most profitable keywords. Mark Nunney explains how Wordtracker can help you.

36. 

    Find your website’s target markets Posted by Mark Nunney on 09 July 2010

    Mark Nunney shows how to start your keyword research for a new site by first finding and then prioritizing your target markets and the keywords associated with them.

37. 

    111 takeaways and top tips from SMX Advanced London 2010 Posted by Mal Darwen on 20 May 2010

    SMX London 2010 was SMX Advanced so we thought we'd push ourselves too and offer you 111 takeaways and top tips from the conference. Wordtracker's top tweeter, Mal Darwen attended and was supported by Mark Nunney reporting the coverage.

38. 

    How to optimize your images with Aaron Wall Posted by Aaron Wall on 07 May 2010

    In an extract from his 50 Kick-Ass Keyword Strategies book, SEO legend Aaron Wall shows us how to get more visitors from image searches on search engines by using keywords to optimize your images. Aaron runs SEO Book site and helps his wife out with PPC Blog.

39. 99 takeaways and top tips from SES London 2010 Posted by Mark Nunney on 20 April 2010

    The Search Engine Strategies (SES) conference in London was once again a great success and I've collected no less than 99 tips, ideas, statistics and memorable quotes from various speakers, panelists and a man in the bar.

40. 

    How to SEO at scale with keyword niches Posted by Mark Nunney on 09 April 2010

    So single keywords are for losers. And a shift in perspective to 'keyword niches' allows you to work at the scale required to maximize profit. In this article, Mark Nunney pins down the definition of a keyword niche with a look at some real life examples that show how single keywords miss the big picture and keyword niches reveal it.

41. 

    Are you using microformats & rich snippets to increase clickthrough rates and traffic? Posted by Richard Baxter on 19 March 2010

    Microformats offer your site the chance to get more visits and response by increasing your clickthrough from search engine results pages (SERPs). Richard Baxter, Director of SEOgadget, a niche UK-based SEO agency consulting company, looks at what exactly microformats are and how you can use them to improve the way your website is displayed on SERPs.

42. 

    Adventures in (long tail keyword) Wonderland Posted by Mark Nunney on 11 March 2010

    How can a small site with few resources benefit from targeting long tail keywords? And won't such strategies and subsequent tactics get in the way of response?

    These questions were raised in comments following our investigation into the long tail of keyword research (and why single keywords are for losers) and I thought I’d use the comments to introduce some practical advice on how to target long tail keywords.

43. 

    The long tail of keyword research (and why single keywords are for losers) Posted by Mark Nunney on 04 March 2010

    In one month, a small website about management and leadership received 95,036 visits from search engines via 44,655 thousand different keywords. That’s a lot of keywords for a little site; and it’s a glimpse into the long tail of keyword research. For most websites, how to make a profit from the long tail is the same as how to make a profit.

44. 

    How to maximize profits by becoming an analysis ninja Posted by Mark Nunney on 28 January 2010

    Web analytics guru, Avinash Kaushik, can teach you how to use data analysis to change the way you make decisions about your website. Ahead of Kaushik's keynote speeches at the Search Engine Strategies (SES) conferences in London and New York, Mark Nunney looks at his vision for Web Analytics 2.0.

45. 

    SEO copy doesn't have to sound like "that" Posted by Karon Thackston on 10 December 2009

    Karon Thackston, web copywriting superstar, busts some myths about SEO copywriting then explains how to optimize your text for search engines and still keep it great to read.

46. 

    Are your Superman Pages trapped in a basement full of kryptonite? Posted by Mark Nunney on 30 October 2009

    Your Superman Pages are your most important for search engine optimization (SEO) - the ones you want to perform best on search engines. Get your site's navigation wrong and your Superman Pages will be trapped in a basement full of kryptonite. Here I show how to optimize your website's navigation for search engines and set Superman free.

47. 

    How Brent D Payne increased Tribune sites’ monthly visits by a cool 20 million Posted by Rachelle Money on 27 August 2009

    Brent D Payne, as the Tribune Company’s in-house Director of Search Engine Optimization (and bald SEO legend), has managed a 20 million increase in monthly visits to its websites, including the Chicago Tribune and the LA Times. Payne tells Rachelle Money how these spectacular results have been achieved, including using keyword research to help give readers “the news we know they want”.

48. 

    Remember last minute keywords for easy targets and higher returns Posted by Aaron Wall on 27 August 2009

    In an extract from his 50 Kick-Ass Keyword Strategies book, SEO legend Aaron Wall who has a few SEO tools of his own, reminds us that keywords used by last minute shoppers should convert better, pay more and be easier to target than more popular keywords. Additional material from Mark Nunney shows you how to find those keywords with Wordtracker.

49. 

    How to beat Wikipedia to the top of Google...and CNN, the BBC, USA Today, ABC News... Posted by Mark Nunney on 26 August 2009

    With permanent search engine optimization (SEO) you can secure and defend the keywords you are successful for and find new keyword niches to target. Mark Nunney explains why SEO never stops and how you can use this to beat the toughest of competition.

50. 

    Gold rushes never last forever Posted by Stephen Mahaney on 02 July 2009

    As you know, Wordtracker doesn’t normally endorse another company’s products unless we feel it can truly benefit you. Our friends at Planet Ocean Communications are about to publish a new book and quite frankly they’ve outdone themselves. They’ve created the best, most incisive guide we’ve seen on how to optimize your site for local search:

51. 

    5-minute SEO with SEO Blogger for Firefox Posted by Chris Garrett on 24 June 2009

    Anyone who has tried search engine optimization knows how important keyword research is. Well, good news everyone; keyword research just got a whole lot quicker and easier with Wordtracker's new, free Firefox extension - SEO Blogger.

52. 

    SEO made simple with the SEO Blogger Firefox addon Posted by Rachelle Money on 24 June 2009

    Calling all you bloggers! Wordtracker have launched a fantastic new tool that will see bloggers writing fully optimized posts without having to leave the page. Andy Mindel (picture left) talks to Rachelle Money about how he came up with SEO Blogger and how it will benefit the blogosphere.

53. 

    Wordtracker 7-day video tutorials: Day 2 Assess your market with keyword research Posted by Justin Deaville on 06 April 2009

    Welcome to the second video in our seven day series on getting the most out of Wordtracker's Keywords tool.

    Once you've watched the tutorial, please click here to sign up for a year's unlimited access to the Keywords tool.

    Did you know we offer a money-back guarantee? At any time during the first 30 days you can ask for your money back and we'll happily refund you.

54. 

    Wordtracker 7-day video tutorials: Day 3 How to build an effective keyword strategy Posted by Justin Deaville on 05 April 2009

    Welcome to the third video in our seven day series on getting the most out of Wordtracker's Keywords tool.

    Once you've watched the episode, click below to:

    Sign up for a year of unlimited access to the Keywords tool

    Did you know we offer a risk-free guarantee? At any time during the first 30 days you can ask for your money back and we'll happily refund you.

55. 

    Wordtracker 7-day video tutorials: Day 7 Expand into new markets and beat your competition Posted by Justin Deaville on 01 April 2009

    Welcome to the seventh video in our series on getting the most out of Wordtracker's Keywords tool.

    Once you've finished the series, you can get a year's unlimited access to the Keywords tool

    A risk free offer

    You have absolutely nothing to lose – just sign up and start your research!

    If within 30 days you don't feel that you are receiving real value, we'll return every penny that you paid – no questions asked. That's how confident we are that the Keywords tool is the most powerful, effective, rank-boosting keyword research tool on the market today.

56. 

    Lisa Ditlefsen - SEO chick Posted by Rachelle Money on 13 February 2009

    Lisa Ditlefsen, the original SEO Chick herself, speaks to Rachelle Money ahead of London's Search Engine Strategies Conference about what it's like to be a woman in SEO, and why she's decided to start up her very own search agency.

57. 

    The SEO pro's secret path Posted by Mark Nunney on 18 November 2008

    Your Search Engine Optimization (SEO) should focus on achieving success for the keywords that will deliver the most profit. That seems obvious but how do you find and prioritize those keywords? SEO pro Mark Nunney introduces the process so you can apply it to your own site.

58. 

    Why SEO for profit must target groups of keywords Posted by Mark Nunney on 17 October 2008

    You know targeting keywords is important, but targeting single keywords with your SEO is unlikely to be profitable – SEO for profit must target groups of keywords. Here we’ll tell you why and explain how.

59. Why online PR and SEO go hand in hand Posted by Ken McGaffin on 06 August 2008

    Once you’ve optimized your website copy, you’ll find that the most important part of the optimization process happens off the page – with links from external sites back to yours playing a vital role in telling Google and other search engines how important your site really is.

60. What is Google Page Rank and how do I measure it? Posted by Mark Nunney on 15 August 2007

    Google PageRank is a rough guide from Google to the popularity of your site's pages according to its inbound links. Although quick, it’s crude and often gives the wrong impression so use alongside other metrics. Here's how to find out your site's Google Page Ranks.

61. Website structure optimized for search engines Posted by Mark Nunney on 15 August 2007

    A website with ambitions to support even a modest business will need to plan for hundreds, soon thousands of pages, and all that content has to be organized for users and search engines or it might be lost to them both.

62. Tracking your site visitor statistics Posted by Mark Nunney on 15 August 2007

    Use site statistics analysis software to monitor your site’s visitors, referrers, sales and other ‘wanted actions’ like newsletter sign-ups etc.

63. Using Alexa Rank to measure your site's performance Posted by Mark Nunney on 15 August 2007

    Alexa Rank ranks your site's popularity in visitor numbers as measured by those who have used Alexa’s toolbar. It's also great for spying on competitors' sites.

64. How to monitor your SERPs rankings Posted by Mark Nunney on 15 August 2007

    To get visitors from search engines, your website's pages need to be listed and seen on page one of Search Engines' Results Pages (SERPs). That means you need to track your sites' SERPs for target keywords. Here’s how.

65. How to find out how many pages on your site are indexed by Google Posted by Mark Nunney on 15 August 2007

    Every site owner needs to know that Google has indexed all their site's pages. Here's how to find out.

66. How to count your site's inbound links Posted by Mark Nunney on 15 August 2007

    Inbound links are links from other sites to yours, and they are crucial in all but the least competitive of markets (and even in those you need some links). You therefore need to know how many inbound links your site has.

67. 

    How to build genuine SEO skills that will impact your online sales Posted by John Alexander on 24 November 2006

    A beautiful website with no traffic or visibility can't survive in the business world. But a high ranking website that gets tons of traffic where no-one is compelled to make a purchase or take action, won't work for you either. Think "visibility PLUS a solid call to action."

68. 

    Search Engine Optimization for Dummies Posted by Peter Kent on 15 November 2006

    This is a free chapter on keywords from the search engine optimization for dummies book.