I’ve talked about meta tags before; this video from Aaron Wall explains page titles in detail. Questions and comments welcome!

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I teach clients about meta tags in one of my lessons so I thought I’d write out a few of the basics to use as a checklist. In the Search Engine Optimization world, there are many different opinions about what’s the “right way”. My good friend Janet Meiners did an article about the Top 10 SEO Factors, of which I agree with 100%.  These are guidelines I try to follow on all my sites.

On-site optimization, what we to on our site to make it search engine friendly, is only a part of getting the right traffic to your site. But if you do it correctly, it can really help you get out of the Google “sand box”.

Here are the tips:

Meta Tag Titles

• 6-10 words maximum
• Minimal keyword repetition
• No domain name
• Use keyword phrases that you want people to use to find you in a search engine
• Use “byer phrases” instead of “browser phrases”
• Every page of a website can have its own unique meta tags

Meta Tag Descriptions

• 1-3 Sentences
• Keyword repetition recommended
• Explain what the page is about

Meta Tag Keywords

• 25-30 words separated by commas
• keyword repetition is okay
• make sure the words relate to the page you’re marketing

Here are my meta tags (title, description, keywords) for my home page at www.ClogOn.com:

Title: Clogging shoes | Dance Bags | Capezio dancewear

Description: Online clogging store with new and used clogging shoes, taps, dance bags, capezio dance wear and other clog dancing information.

Keywords: clogging, clogging dance shoes, dance bags, capezio dancewear, taps, clogging steps, clogging shoe supplier, history, clogging blog, clogg dance, clogging dance team specials, what is clogging, clogging shoe distributor, costume bag

Hope this helps and gives you a picture of how your meta tags can look on your pages. Remember, we want to customize the meta tags for all pages, especially the ones we want to be found in search engines. I personally don’t waist a ton of time on the about us or contact us page.

If you want more in-depth information, this SEO book is excellent:

(Aff)

(Non-Aff)

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I’ve talked with quite a few clients about Press Releases and articles lately and wanted to share with them some information I’ve found about press release effectiveness.

• Why do we write press releases?
• How are they going to help us make sales on our eCommerce Website?
• Are they really worth the time you have to invest?

These are a few questions I’ve had myself regarding the press release concept. Below is an interesting case study I found aobut the power of an effective press release.

Millions of people use news search engines to find articles and press releases from the past 30 days. According to Nielsen//NetRatings, Yahoo News had a unique audience of 21.6 million visitors in March 2004 and Google News had a unique audience of 4.9 million visitors that month.

News search engines have also become an indispensable tool for journalists. According to a Middleberg/Ross Survey, 98% of journalists go online daily, 92% for article research, 81% to do searching, 76% to find new sources or experts, and 73% to find press releases.

Savvy marketers are harnessing this phenomenon.

On February 12, 2004, Southwest Airlines issued a press release that announced, “Southwest Airlines Offers Low Fares to Philadelphia; Airfare to Philadelphia as Low as $29 to $99 One-Way.” Southwest’s PR Department used SEO-PR to optimize the press release so it would appear when prospects or the press searched for relevant terms on Google News or Yahoo News.

Using unique tracking codes in links embedded in the press release and customized landing pages on its site, Southwest found that this one release generated more than $80,000 in advanced ticket sales. In other words, potential passengers read the press release on one of the major news search engines, clicked on a link in the release, went to http://www.southwest.com/cities/philadelphia.html, and ordered over $80,000 worth of tickets months before Southwest’s service to Philadelphia started on May 9.

In addition to the ticket sales, the press release also generated publicity. The New York Times, Washington Post, International Herald Tribune, Pittsburgh Post Gazette, Dallas Morning News, St. Petersburg Times, Philadelphia Business Journal, and half a dozen other media picked up the Philadelphia story. (source)

How would that be? Are you a bit more motivated now to write a press release?

If you’re like me, time is money. I do refer clients to places like www.elance.com or www.getafreelancer.com. These are websites that offer services from free lancers all over the world. They will give you bids on how much they’ll write a press release or article for.

Where do I post my Press Release?

Great question! Thanks to Newspapergrl, a fellow blogger and colleague, I found a great press release article by Ponn Sabra that should help. It’s a detailed list of Press Release directories that’s in order of page rank. It also gives pricing options - yes, some of them do cost money.

Hope this helps. What are your thoughts or successes with Press Releases?

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