By Lance Trebesch, Taylor Robinson and Denise Moorehead
The authors have developed a multi-part series on search engine optimization (SEO), or how to improve your website’s placement in web search lists. In Part 1, they share tips for building the foundations of your SEO strategy.
You can dramatically improve your Web search placement. Do you ever wonder why some websites seem to steal the top positions on search engines? No, it’s not magic. And yes, your nonprofit can make the top pages when Web users do a search on Google, Yahoo, Ask and other search engines.
The “secret” to achieving this success for your website is harnessing the power of search engine optimization. While the term sounds a bit scary, don’t worry – the process is not. By following this step-by-step guide, you will be well on your way to drastically improving your website’s standing in only a few weeks.
What You Need to Know
Phase I Objectives. Despite what some companies may want you to believe, there are no tricks or shortcuts to SEO, and you will not top the list of search results overnight. But focusing on directories, keywords and your website’s content must be your first order of business.
Directories
Submitting to nonprofit directories such as CharityNavigator, Yahoo Health, idealist.org and fundsnetservices or general directories such as Business.com, Best of the Web and DMOZ will immediately affect your website’s search rankings. While listing your site on directories is worth your time, the links are of little overall value and will only have a minimal impact on your ranking.
Keywords
Keywords are the words and phrases that tell search engines about the purpose of your site. It is important to identify which words are most advantageous to your organization so they can be optimized in your content. Begin selecting keywords by brainstorming every word/phrase that is topically relevant to your organization. Remember to put yourself into the shoes of the searcher and avoid industry jargon.
Be sure to include the name of the organization and the main service the organization provides. Additionally, when selecting keywords, try to avoid using very general terms such as “nonprofit,” “charity” or “fundraiser” without a modifier. Select keywords that are unique and relevant.
Two problems arise when general keyword terms are used:
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The phrase becomes more competitive and harder to rank well on.
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The site receives traffic from people who are looking for a different service than your organization provides and immediately leave your site.
 You will want to use action keywords such as “donate” or “contribute” to make your fundraising campaigns more successful. If coming up with a list of more than five or six keywords still has you stumped, browse through websites of similar nonprofit organizations. Look at which keywords are used on their sites.
Extra tip: As a general rule of thumb, use words on each of your which reinforce the basic message that page is trying to communicate. Do not fall into the trap of using words that you think will improve your search rank but don’t relate closely to your main message. This just doesn’t work.
Keyword Tracker Tools. Once you have developed a starter list, you are ready to test the words using one of the many online keyword tracker tools. A good, free online tool is found at Google AdWords. The tool will show the popularity of the keyword entered during the last month and give you ideas of what additional keywords may work for your organization.
Extra tip: The trick here is to select keywords that are popular searches but not commonly used by other organizations.
Keyword Density. There has been a great deal of hype regarding keyword density and finding the correct density for each search engine. Keyword density refers to the frequency that the keyword is used. According to the most current and accurate articles written on the subject, keyword density is much less important than originally predicted.
The only standing rule of keyword density is not to use “keyword stuffing” techniques where the phrase is repeated multiple times. Search engines now monitor this tactic and will actually lower your site’s ranking if they detect stuffing. Search Engine Land’s article, SEO Don’ts: 20 Fatal Mistakes You Must Avoid to Succeed, gives an accurate list of pitfalls such as keyword stuffing that you will want to steer clear of when implementing your SEO strategy.
New Website Content
When incorporating keywords into your website’s text, be sure to look at the content from the user’s point of view, and strike a balance between the user and the search engine (priority always goes to the user), making content friendly for both.
For further reading on how to layout your website to optimize its effectiveness with search engines, do an online search for search engine optimization. Two websites that have some very good reading on the issue are Search Engine Land and Marketing Profs.
Title and Header Tags. The most important keywords identified should be included in the website’s title and header tags. A title tag is a short HTML code that tells search engines about your site. Headers are viewed by users on the top of each page and tell the purpose of the page. The 7 Essential Title Tag Strategies of High Ranking Web Pages in 2006 has further information about how to improve title tags to optimize your search performance.
Phase One Checklist
Following these tips will take you a long way toward improving your website’s placement when people search for organizations that do what you do. You may even find that scores of people who are not sure exactly what they are looking for will be pleased to learn about you.
We’ll look at other strategies that you can employ to improve your Web search placement in other parts of this series, but remember to try the steps below as your first step in helping constituents find you and the programs and services you can offer them:
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Submit your website to directories.
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List keywords.
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Test your keywords with online tools.
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Research title and header tags.
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Improve your website’s content by adding keywords.
For more on search engine optimization, Top the Web Search Lists, read:
Lance Trebesch and Taylor Robinson are with TicketPrinting.com, an online technology company with expertise in the dynamic area of online marketing. Denise Moorehead is a staff member at TSNE.
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