When it comes to getting your website ranked in the SE’s, it comes down to variety of factors that all pertain to your pages overall visibility. Lower visibility on the search engines means less traffic, and less reach, we don’t want that. So how does page ranking actually work you may ask. Behind all the complex algorithms put in place by Google, the actual system for ranking is quite simple. I will go over some of the best ways you can optimize your site to make sure you have the best ranking possible across all SE’s, not just big G.

External Links: Page Rank is frequently amplified by the # and quality of inbound links. The better the sites that link back to yours, the better. You can attain these through massive email campaigns, networking with similar sites, or buying reciprocal links. Stay away from link trades as they are now deemed a negative impact on ranking as well as your SERP.

google pagerank explained

Keywords: SEO, SEM, Meta Tags, various social media advertising platforms (Adwords/YSM/Facebook Ads) all rely on these crucial elements. There are two types of keywords that can be implemented. Firstly there is the primary keyword which is the base for what you are targeting. Then you have a secondary keyword which is less pertinent but still helps to pinpoint what you’re targeting. Try to avoid keyword spam, as you need to place your primary keywords throughout your site strategically (H1, Title Tags, etc.) so that the SE’s can place your site quickly and easily.

Optimizing website content: The driving force that contributes to page ranking is textual content. You need to ensure that your web site has sufficient text on each page to facilitate proper indexing by the SE’s. Also keep in mind that the text on your page will not include images or Flash elements. The body copy of a web page should have the correct and most important keyword phrases.

Page titles: You need to create appropriate page titles for each of the web pages on your website. A page title is the first line of copy that is displayed during search listing. To attract visitors, you need to apply the right keywords and compelling copy in page titles.

Dynamic URLs: If you are using a dynamic URL then search engines will face difficulty in indexing your web pages. Try to avoid using dynamic URL’s.

Edit: Flash/JavaScript content: I was unaware, but apparently the SE’s can now read data from flash files, so feel free to create your menu’s and navigation in flash, however I would shy away from this as im sure not ALL the SE’s can read your swf’s. As for JavaScript, the SE’s also have trouble indexing websites using Java based navigation, so stay away from it.

For most webmasters and affiliate marketers, Google AdWords is their bread and butter, and rightfully so.  AdWords is a beast of an advertising system, and if targeted properly its earning potential can be great. If you follow some of these strategies then maybe even you can make money off Google AdWords.

1. The merchant or vendor site should have a professional look to it, in order to ensure the surfer that it is a credible product/service that they will be buying into.

2. Make sure to be able to maintain a level of communication between you and your affiliate preferably through an AM.  This will help you realize which ads convert better as well as keep you updated with new offers.

3. When you are paying for clicks, you need to realize the ratio between what will be a positive return and what wont be.  Try and promote affiliate products that will pay more than $15 in commission to get your ROI up. Clickbank is good for this.

4. The landing pages and sales sites need to be top of the line. If the customer is unhappy with the appearance of the page, it is more than unlikely they are going to invest their money into what your selling.

5. Same goes for the sales copy and actual marketing that is done ON the landing page.  It should include testimonials , and other key selling features in order to ease any hesitations the buyer may have.

6. Would you buy it? Ask yourself this when choosing a campaign for your affiliate program.  Chances are if you wouldn’t buy it, then most people wouldn’t be comfortable buying it either.

7.  Affiliate links are fine with your vendor as long as they are low key.  It can kill a sale if the user feels like he is getting scammed or bought into something.

8. The referring page for the vendor website should only have one product/service on it.  If there are multiple products the user can get confused by the sales messages and become hesitant to buy.

9. Tracking!  Keep a keen eye on your keywords and phrases. If any of them are getting higher than a 1:200 buy:click ratio, they need to be cut off.  A decent ratio to look for is around 1 in 50 creating a sell.  The higher the click-through rate, the better rankings you get on your niche.

10. Most affiliates will keep a record of email addresses for all your referrals.  This makes sure that you get credit for a sale even if the customer took 4-5 visits before buying… which is the case a lot of the time.

As most of you now know Google Analytics is freely available. With more than 243,000 sign ups within the first week, you can really see a value in a true “analytics” program such as this. Urchin already had a real name in the analytics marketplace and their developers, teamed with Google’s people made a truly amazing product here.

So, do you as a forum admin really need this much information? I sure think so! Google analytics will share bits of information, such as Geo tracking, that good ole webalizer and awstats only dreamed of doing. If you have plans of doing a bit of advertising through Google Adwords, I strongly advise you to use the ROI tracking utility with Google Analytics.

From Google.Com:

Integrated with AdWords.
If you have an AdWords account, you can use Google Analytics directly from the AdWords interface. Google Analytics is the only product that can automatically provide AdWords ROI metrics, without you having to import cost data or add tracking information to keywords. Of course, Google Analytics tracks all of your non-AdWords initiatives as well.

Implementation Made Easy.
Simply paste the Google Analytics tracking code into each of your website pages and tracking begins immediately. No purchase process. No need to download anything. If you don’t edit your own site, your webmaster, designer, or hosting provider can probably do it for you in under five minutes.

It is safe.
Google takes the trust people place in us very seriously, and is pledged to safeguard the privacy of your corporate data. We understand that web analytics data is sensitive information, so we accord it the ironclad protection it deserves. Read our industry leading privacy policy.