We’ve discussed the basic premise of Search Engine Optimisation, (including factors pertinent to ‘on-page’ optimising) in an earlier feature. However, what really matters concerns off-page SEO. It’s rather like a voting scheme. One website volunteers a link or vote to another website. They’re suggesting the site is worth looking at.
There are 2 main bits to the link. First, the actual URL or web address of the page they are pointing to. Then secondly the keyword phrase. This will be highlighted on the web page. That page can then be seen as receiving one ‘vote’. In other words one ‘vote’ to push the website up the natural listings.
This is always how it works. The page being targeted and the Anchor Text are permanently linked to each other. Otherwise it doesn’t work! The anchor text notifies the Search Engine about the page’s content – and thus what search term it should come under. This is vital to understand: Anchor texts are responsible for all the searches your site appears for.
So it becomes obvious why ‘CLICK HERE to learn more’ has no SEO value. We’ve done no more than give those two words our vote! Who thinks of typing in ‘CLICK HERE’ when they’re doing a search? Not a soul!
That is why the anchor text is SO important. Because that’s what controls the phrases you will rank for. And by the way, if you DO Google “Click Here” you will always find the Adobe Reader download site at the top. Is that an important term to Adobe? Of course not! But they’re up at the top because the phrase “CLICK HERE to Download Adobe reader” features on so many websites.
In short, anchor text phrases are always used by the SE’s to place a vote. It’s quite sensible really. The process attempts to use human logic for looking and searching. In fact, the actual subject matter of your page could be quite different. You’ll rank for the terms in the anchor text phrases that point to you. That is how it is.
Obviously, a few other things come into it – Because the SE’s also use the page title and wording of the page being pointed at to correlate the results. And many more factors too. (To give you an idea, the spread of the sites linking to yours, and their relevancy to your site).
The crux of it all is though that a mass of back links solves all the problems! And these need to be from as many different sites as possible – with the correct phrases used as anchor text. A site’s quality is taken into account as well: Receiving a link from a top site like Microsoft is much more valuable than one from a start-up site.
Picking the keyword phrases that you want to rate for is an art in itself. (And you should perform a lot of keyword and competitor research before putting any strategy into place.) The key really though is – What does an enquirer search for when they’re looking for your products and services? Because that’s it! The answers give you your exact keyword phrases.
And yet it’s not a case of guesswork. The best results are sometimes quite unexpected. Individuals can be quite random in the way they express themselves. One person looking for a good night’s sleep might type in “Orthopaedic beds” or “New Mattress”. Yet ‘more sleep please’ could be someone else’s first thought.
You just can’t trust your ‘gut feel’! The importance of the investigation, testing and measuring of these phrases cannot be underestimated. They are fundamental to generating your leads on the internet. It’s just like having an ad in a telephone Directory. If you’re a Plumber and you’re listed under Stationary Providers, you won’t get much business! It’s very important to be listed for the right terms online. Solid SEO research will take care of that.
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