Which three letters bring on sweaty palms and sleepless nights for business owners and web masters everywhere? IRS?  FBI? Good guesses, but the culprit is… SEO.

If you do it wrong or put it off, then your website will spend its days lost in the endless pages of search engine results, like a message in a bottle floating in a vast, dark ocean.

But what if you crack the code on the secret language of meta keywords, H1 tags, and inbound links? Will all the riches and glory of Page One Google Ranking await you?

Well, no.  As with most things, good SEO is less about uncovering “the secret”, and more about taking the time to understand and implement best practices… and then to keep applying them religiously over time.  (Sorry!)

This leads to the big question regarding your website’s search engine optimization… do it yourself or hire an SEO expert?

According to a recent Marketing Sherpa report, just over half of businesses manage their SEO in-house, while about 45% use an outside expert or are considering one… So whichever way you decide to go, you’ll have plenty of company!

Here are a few pointers to get your started down the path to SEO success.

If you’re going to do your own SEO…

• Learn the basics first. Invest in a couple good books on SEO.  There are lots, so find one that lays out the material in a format and style that works best for you.  Browse Amazon to see what other readers are recommending, or just head to the business section at your local bookstore and flip through what’s there.

• Subscribe to SEO information sources. Get a daily stream of advice, tips, and tricks from experts.  Check out this list of 15 good SEO blogs, or if Twitter is more your thing, follow TheSEOList, a great curated list of folks that tweet about search engine optimization.

• Don’t approach SEO as a one-off project. Instead, think of it more like going to the gym – consistent effort over time is what will bring results!  If you need more traffic right away, you should read our previous post, Should You Do SEO or Paid Search?

If you’re going to hire an SEO consultant…

• Educate yourself on what you’ll be paying for. This article from Search Engine Journal, What’s My SEO Charging Me For?, is a great place to start.

• Ask (smart) colleagues for referrals. Part of an SEO consultant’s job is to understand your business and customers, so finding someone who has worked with businesses like yours before can really help get things moving quickly.

• Remember there are no SEO guarantees. Be wary of any consultants making claims that guarantee you a specific ranking or position. Search engines are complex, the algorithms are nuanced, and results take time. Reputable SEO practitioners will happily agree to goals and measurable milestones, and factor these into your billing and payment terms.

And in either case…

Don’t worry about every possible tweak you could make – just start with the basics and you’ll be well on your way. So wipe off those palms, get a good night’s sleep, and we’ll see you on Google’s Page One!

(P.S.  We’re here to help… so feel free to give us a call at 888-330-3236)

It doesn’t matter what type of online business you have… just remember it’s all about the content. The text, pictures, and graphics of your website are responsible for informing, engaging, and prompting visitors to stick around and take the actions you care about… like signing up for a newsletter, giving you a call, or buying your products!

Once you realize how important your website content is then my next comment should be obvious: you’re actually a publisher. That’s right… a publisher. Why? Because publishers are always thinking about content and that’s what you need to do too!

Here are some guidelines to help you think like a publisher:

• Keep your target audience in mind. When writing your website copy, always use words and phrases that reflect how your prospects actually talk. When in doubt, just think about the conversations you have every day with people interested in your offerings and write like that. But please no “biz-speak”… you know, a formal tone with lots of big words that no one uses in real life. Unless your target audience really speaks that way.

• Write content that is engaging and personal. Always write in the “active” voice. For example, the phrase: “you can” is more engaging than “enable you to”. See what I mean? And write as if you’re speaking to an actual person. Notice how I use the words “you” and “your” all the time? I could instead use “one” or “a person”… but that’s so darn impersonal.

• Update and add website content often. This keeps prospects coming back to see what’s new and interesting. For example, you can update product pictures on your home page, add customer reviews and testimonials, provide tips and best practices, and even answer more frequently asked questions. Depending on your business, you should update and add content weekly or at least monthly.

• Grammar and formatting are important too. Please, please, please… no grammar or spelling errors. And keep paragraphs short and easy to read with lots of bullet points when it makes sense. Remember, people don’t like to read on the Internet… they browse and scan instead. Make it easy for them and they’ll want to read more!

• Do it yourself or have someone do it for you. There’s no shame in needing help with your content. Maybe you’re not a good writer or graphic designer. Why should you be? Just find someone that is for what you need help with. These days there are many talented people available and affordable too. Need copy writing help? Place an ad on www.freelancewritinggiggs.com, www.elance.com, or www.craigslist.com for starters.

Lots of good content (especially text) is also critical to keeping the search engines happy. And a happy search engine means prospects will find your business when searching the Internet.

The bottom line: when prospects and search engines like your content then a wonderful thing happens… you generate lots of business!

It’s not like the good old days when a press release was only issued by a big company with quotes from way too serious executives. In today’s web world, press releases can and should be an important part of your strategy to get the word out about your business… even if you’re a one person start-up working from your kitchen table.

Of course, you need to be realistic. Your press release is probably not going to be “picked up” by CNN or USA Today. But many people will read it including potential customers. That’s the power of the Internet. And who knows… a blogger that follows your industry could see it and comment. And the buzz begins… nothing wrong with dreaming!

In any case, issuing a press release is about creating content. And content is king. Why? Because content gives people something to talk about and helps you generate natural (free) search traffic… which is definitely a good thing.

With that said, here are some tips for writing your press release:

• Make it news worthy. There’s a lot of “noise” out there so you need to break through the clutter with news that’s truly interesting, relevant, and compelling to your audience. And even better, if it’s about something that solves a problem for them.

• Tell a story. Sure it’s news but write it like a story. Grab your reader’s attention with a strong headline and an initial paragraph that tells the essence of your story line. Use the rest of the release to cover the basics of who, what, why, and when.

• Use real life examples. Use quotes and examples from real people to bring your story to life. And adding “success stories” is a great way to show the benefits of using your service while making it easy for prospects to relate to your offering.

• Stick to the facts. Hopefully your press release will be an attention getter. But if you want prospects to take you seriously, then don’t write your release like an advertisement. This means stick to the facts and resist the temptation to over-embellish (no promo fluff please!)

• Keep it lean and mean. Attention spans are short… especially on the web. So keep your press release concise, impactful, and action-oriented. Just like that last sentence!

Now the most important thing… always write with your audience in mind. Here’s a good test: if you wouldn’t want to read your press release then your prospects won’t want to either.

At this point you’re probably wondering what you should issue a press release about. Why not cover the launch of your new website or service? How about that important customer you just landed? Did a retail chain just decide to carry your product? Or maybe you’re presenting at an industry conference or event? You get the idea!

And issuing a press release is not that costly. You can expect to pay $25 to $100 per release at quality services such as: PRNewsWire.com, PR.com, and PRLeap.com. There are also free services available like: PRLog.org, 1888PressRelease.com, and OpenPR.com that you can try out.

Keep in mind the free services tend to only show your press release on their site while paid services will also distribute to other websites plus make it easier to optimize your release for the search engines. So the extra cost may be worth it to you.

Are you ready to get started? Do a search for “press release samples” to find examples and templates to check out. Then pick one of the services… now go ahead and make some news!