SEO (Search Engine Optimization) is only a myth or fact? Not all SEO techniques that you encounter on the Internet is real and proven. But not all SEO techniques that have only a myth. Some real, some are not yet proven. Confused huh? Not really. Let us see with a reference document on SEO, which officially sourced from Google, Yahoo, and MSN.

Document reference

As a reference in the discussion of this article, I use:

1. This article is Google’s Search Engine Optimization Starter Guide (PDF 551kb), must be downloaded lovers SEO.
2. Google Webmaster Guidelines
3. Google Friendly Sites
4. Google’s U.S. Patent 7,031,954, http://www.freepatentsonline.com/7031954.pdf
5. Google’s U.S. Patent 7,031,961, http://www.freepatentsonline.com/7031961.pdf
6. Yahoo! Search Content Quality Guidelines
7. MSN Guidelines for successful indexing

SEO techniques are real

1. Expand the number of links to web pages

The more other pages that point to a web page, the destination web page will have an increasingly good position in Search Engines. Essentially a statement on page google Google Friendly Site. Naturally, if your website or blog is good, people will automatically put links on their pages. Is not natural, you can blogwalking the blog dofollow or request a link exchange with the owner of another website or blog.

Phenomenon click here

Until now the phenomenon of “click here” (the power link text) can still be seen on Google. Please enter the word “click here” without the quotes in Google, see the page that becomes the top. Open the page, perhaps no single word “click here” on that page. Which causes a good page position in Google is because many web pages which link to the page with a sentence something like this: To download this software, click here This phenomenon indicates that the number of links and text used as a linkto the specific page will determine the page position in search engines. This is a fact, not myth.

2. Keyword and article quality

Repeatedly mentioned in the Google Webmaster Guidelines, Yahoo! Search Content Quality Guidelines, and MSN Guidelines for successful indexing, that content is the main thing. Okey main content quality but how do I differentiate these pages a quality or not? How do I differentiate these pages for keywords that visitors typed in search engines? If we may suppose, if we are asked to create a search engine, or develop search engine algorithms, of which we consider is the number of keywords and keyword positions in the article is not it?

It is a fact again is that search engines consider keywords in the URL and title. If you enter a particular keyword on Google, and these keywords into the URL of a search result document, the keyword in the on-bold by google right? Similarly, the keyword in the title, which is always in bold by Google in the SERP (Search Engine Results Page). So the key word in the URL and title are what determine the position in the search engines is a fact, not myth.

That alone was enough, there are only 2 pieces SEO techniques that really real, and if you are getting dizzy and did not want to be bothered, simply apply the two SEO techniques mentioned above. But if you have more time, please continue reading this article.

SEO techniques are based on Google’s SEO Articles

If you think a bit strange too, as search engines, Google issued an official document that contains SEO Tips, please be downloaded at the reference links that already said above (PDF 551kb). If may be argued, SEO tips in the article some of it was good to improve your position in Google, or (at least) to simplify and speed up the index, but partly to prevent and combat the circulation of SEO tips are without foundation, excessive optimization, or blackhat. Here are some tips on SEO that Google article:

1. Creating a unique and accurate title

In English class, the title of the article may be made intriguing to entice readers. For example a short story titled romance can “cherry blossom”, although from the beginning was not discussed about the cherry blossoms were at the end of the story describes two lovers who meet under the cherry tree.

In the view of SEO, the title of “cherry blossoms” appropriate if the article talks about the cherry blossoms, such as shape, type, or how to grow it.

Google Suggestions:

• Making an accurate title, unique, and different for each page.
• Make a short title but clear.

Common errors to avoid in SEO:

• Default title such as ‘Untitled’ or company name for all pages (if the company name not only the problem homepage).
• The title is too long.
• Add keywords that are not needed in the title is redundant.

2. Using meta description

If you are comfortable with editing HTML, you can give the words appropriate for the meta description. In some directories do not even index the page, only the meta description and the meta keyword are entered into their database.

Google Suggestions:

• Creating meta description that accurately describes its contents.
• Making meta description different for each page.

Common errors to avoid in SEO:

• Making meta description that has nothing to do with the content.
• Creating meta description contains only the keyword (not the sentence).
• Meta description is too general.
• Copy and
  paste the contents of this page in meta description.
• Making the same meta description for all pages or some pages.

3. Making a good URL

Just as has been discussed above, the keywords in the URL will contribute to determine the page position in search engines. Suppose you make an article about cherry blossoms, better use the URL:

http://your-web.com/cherry blossoms/

than

http://your-web.com/p?12

URL will appear in search results (SERP) and are often used as the text of links that lead to that page.

Google Suggestions:

• Using the URL form of words or sentences.
• Creating a directory structure (such as a folder in windows) simple.
• One page only has one URL.

Common errors to avoid in SEO:

• URL is too long, too general, or too many repeated keywords.
• Creating a complex directory structure or nothing to do with the content.
• Blending URL, sometimes with the prefix www, sometimes without the www. Sometimes with the suffix “/”, sometimes not.
• Using a combination of upper and lower case, should only lowercase.

4. Making site navigation easy and simple

Google suggests the site was made with a simple navigation from general to specific. For example on the main page there is a “company profile”, in the page “company profile” there is a link to the “business”, “company budget”, “management”, etc. On the page “field of business” there is a link to the “off air”, “on water”, etc.

Google Suggestions:

• Creating simple navigation hierarchy and natural.
• Using a text link in the navigation.
• Using a text which states the position in which visitors are (breadcumb), which enables visitors can easily lead to a higher level, for example, is displayed when visitors are on:
  company profile> business area> off air
  
  
• Creating an HTML sitemap, which is a page that contains links to all pages or important pages in your site.
• Consider if some of the URL removed. For example a link to this article:

  http://www.situsinformasiinternet.com/2009/10/understanding-myth-of-seo-techniques.html

  consider whether the link is valid if the link was cut to:
  http://www.situsinformasiinternet.com/2009/10/

• Creating a useful 404 pages. Page 404 is the page that is shown when a visitor clicks on or write the URL of a page that is not in your site. Page 404 may contain a link to the homepage or link to articles or pages that are popular on your website.

Common errors to avoid in SEO:

• Makes navigation very complex, for example, all pages related to each other.
• Creating pages that are too deep, these pages can only be opened with several clicks and opens another page that is very much in advance.
• Using lots of images and animations for the link (preferably text).
• HTML sitemap contains links that are not valid or not well-organized.
• Allowing 404 pages indexed search engines, just a short message “Not Found” or “Error 404″ without explanation, and using an inconsistent design such as only the white pages.

5. Content and offer a quality service

According to Google, a quality web content is the key to be able to get the traffic, because it will attract visitors to invite friends went to see the web, whether via blogs, email, word of mouth and so on.

Google Suggestions:

• Write the web content with an easily understandable and organized topics.
• Using the keywords that visitors are expected to use your target. For example your website is a car shop, then enter your keyword BMW, cars, used cars, cheap cars, and other words of about the many people entered into search engines. These words had to be in your website.
• Creating new content, unique, and not found on other web.
• Creating content that is intended for people, not search engines.

Common errors to avoid in SEO:

• Many errors both in spelling and grammar.
• Copy paste from another website or blog.
• Create a page similar to other pages within a site (duplicate content).
• Enter keyword excessive, so that if we ordinary people cause discomfort.
• Insert the words with spelling mistakes in the hope that someone who made a typo in the search engines will find our website.
• Making text invisible to the user (such as very small or the background color of the text is the same).

6. Making good anchor text

Anchor text is the text used as a link. This text serves as a keyword for the intended page. Making good anchor text is very useful in SEO, both for the link to the page and link out to the page in our site.

Google Suggestions:

• Write the anchor text that describe the content intended page.
• Anchor write a short text and clear.
• Anchor text makes for easy viewing and unlike plain text (color, size, etc.).

Common errors to avoid in SEO:

• Make anchor text that is too general such as “click here”.
• Make anchor text is too long and the anchor text that is not necessary.

7. Making good heading tags

Heading tags are HTML code that shows the outline, starting from <h1> to <h6>. Heading tags contain the article title, chapter titles, sub-section title, or title key points, but not the paragraph that the article itself. For example an article about the cherry blossoms:

<h1> is the title of the article itself, such as “Flowers sakura”
<h2> is the title of the chapter, for example, “Introduction”, “Seed”, Care “
<h3> is a sub-chapter headings, such as “Need Water”, “Fertilizer Needs” etc.

Google Suggestions:

• Make a heading tag as an outline that spread well structured in an article

Common errors to avoid in SEO:

• Make a heading tag that is not necessary, jumping with no apparent structure.
• Make a heading tag for writing only pleasing to the eye, not because of its structure.
• Placing a paragraph in the heading tags, should be a short phrase or title.

8. Optimize image

Figure on a website or blog is very powerful in SEO. Search engines currently can not index the text in the picture, but it can index the attribute “ALT” in the picture. The text in the ALT attribute will appear if the visitor does not appear in the image browser to accelerate either intentionally or accidentally browsing by visitors.

Google Suggestions:

• Using ALT attributes that clearly and concisely explain the picture.
• Using the name of the file containing the image description or keyword.

  For example, better use
  ferrary.jpg, laptop.gif
  Than
  image001.jpg, mypicture.gif

• Using ALT attributes if the image is used as the link is required, function the same as the anchor text in link text.
• Put all pictures in a particular directory on a web site.
• Using a common file types (JPEG, GIF, PNG, and BMP).

Common errors to avoid in SEO:

• Don’t use ALT attributes.
• ALT attribute is too long or charged excessive keywords.

9. Creating an effective robot.txt

R
obots.txt is a file that ordered the search engine or NOT ALLOWED to access certain parts of the website. For example on the website http://situsinformasiinternet.com, Robots.txt is located at:

http://situsinformasiinternet.com/robots.txt.

Sitemap: http://situsinformasiinternet.comt/sitemap.xml
User-agent: IRLbot
Crawl-delay: 3600
User-agent: *
Disallow: /next/
User-agent: *
Disallow:

If the code included a robots.txt file to disallow a particular folder, the contents of the folder will not be indexed search engines, but can appear in search results, if a link to the page located at the other pages (including referrer logs). For more details, see the tutorial robots.txt.

So the robots.txt to prevent search engines from indexing certain pages but not blocking visitors because visitors can still open it if you know its URL.

Google Suggestions:

• For sensitive pages using security protection is not just a robots.txt example htaccess.

Common errors to avoid in SEO:

• Allowing search result search engine indexed.
• Allowing the pages indexed like search engines.
• Allowing the URL of the proxy server search engine indexed.

10. Using nofollow attribute

Creating attribute rel=”nofollow” on links will tell search engines not to give the ‘reputation’ of your page to page through. In the eyes of search engines, a link to another page will enhance the reputation of ‘the intended page. The higher the ‘reputation’, then the better the position of these pages on search engines.

Nofollow can be placed as a link attribute (rel=”nofollow”) or applicable to the entire page if placed on the head (<meta name=”robots” content=”nofollow”>)

Google Suggestions:

• Using nofollow attribute on links that are made freely by visitors, such as blog comments, guest books, referrer lists, forums, etc.

Common errors to avoid in SEO:

• Without using the nofollow attribute, your blog or website has links prone SPAM, link to SPAM pages can reduce ‘reputation’ your website.

11. Web Promotion correctly

With good content, links will wake up by itself, because people will tend to write in your blog or website as a reference, discussed, or by voluntarily putting your web link to the blogroll. Although the content is the main thing, there’s no harm in promotion your website or blog.

Google Suggestions:

• Create a blog about the news and your company’s services.
• Don’t forget about offline promotion such as posters, business cards, and so on.
• If you’re a business with a targeted local market, promote the Google Local Business Center.
• Join the community that supports your web promotion.

Common errors to avoid in SEO:

• Promotions little things that are not efficient.
• Join the link exchange program engineered (such as pyramid schemes).
• Buy a link or other techniques that are not reasonable.