Getting your website a good ranking in a search engine is not easy as search engines are getting smarter and more intelligent every day. Therefore, it takes more than just a good content to top your competitors.

On page optimization is one of the very first steps for effective SEO. A proper on page optimization can not only make you rank well in a search engine, but can also increase the overall readability of your website for your visitors.

In this article, I will summarize two of the most important on page optimization techniques which include title optimization and meta tags optimization. Other useful techniques like important HTML tags, keyword optimization and synonyms, link optimization, and image optimization will be discussed in the next entry.

* Title Optimization

A site’s title tag is by far the most important on page optimization element. A title tag should be short but descriptive enough for your visitors to identify you and your business. Title tag is the first thing that is shown and indexed by the search engines. Thus, it is naturally given a very high importance.

Your site’s title has to be appealing enough for visitors to want to find out more information. On the other hand, your title has to be appealing enough to the search engine in order to rank you above thousands of other similar websites like yours. Important things to include in your title are as following;

- Your name: This is very important for branding propose. If you feel that your customers may search you by your brand name than it’s also useful to put it somewhere in your title.

- Keywords: If you want to rank for a certain keywords it is always good to place some of them in your title tag. A Title tag represents the whole content of your website, thus you can include keywords in your title tag. However, do not stuff too many keywords in your title. Write a title which is readable to humans and also good for search engines.

- Phone number: Including your phone number in the title tag helps your visitors to take a direct action. It also makes your site look more professional and legit when it is displayed in the Search Engine Result Page (SERP). Searchers are likely to click on the result that has a phone number attached to it because in their unconscious mind, they will have a good impression on the authenticity of the business and the level of support. If you prefer not to include your number in the title tag, you can alternatively include it in your Meta Description which will give you almost the same benefits.

* Meta Tags Optimization

A site’s Meta description should contain a brief description of your website focusing on the areas and services that your business is specialized in. This small piece of text can be considered as a selling snippet.

If a searcher finds it appealing he is likely to click and go inside your page to find out more information. However, if your Meta Description is too generic and is weakly written then there is a chance that your site will simply be ignored. Important things to include in your Meta Description are as following;

- Your selling point: Tell your customers what they want to hear through your site’s Meta Description, and you will definitely get some advantage over others in the SERP. For instance – if you sell ‘cheap web hosting’ then including a phrase like “hosting starting from only $0.99” may result in more clicks and visitors because your description will exactly match the flavor of search performed by the user.

- Keywords: Including some of your keywords will give you an advantage in Google’s relevancy algorithm.

- Phone number: If you haven’t included your phone number in the title, you can rather include it in your Meta description. If the users have Skype installed on their system, any number on their browser will become clickable which will result in a direct Skype-out call. So basically, if your number appears in the Meta description some of your customers might just prefer to call you directly instead of going through your site.

Understanding keywords is a must for implementing SEO techniques. In fact, SEO techniques are simply a necessity for a website to reach out to desired customers. However there are definite specific technicalities associated with the SEO process and understanding them is vital to having an effective SEO campaign for your site.

For most website owners today, using long tail keywords has become successful simply because they bring an excellent conversion rate. To give an example, if you are a dentist running a local business in a specific geographical area, you can promote it well through the internet. Now, if your content has keyword like ‘dentist’, it doesn’t really specify much. On the other hand, if you have keyword such as the ‘dentist in Bangkok, you are talking more specific. When a potential client is searching the internet, using the second keyword, he or she is more likely to be a suitable potential client in search of a good dentist in Bangkok. On the contrary, the user who has entered only the first phrase is likely to be searching for specific information about dentists.

It cannot be denied that exact keywords such as these are extremely important when it comes to a successful SEO design. At the same time, as the search engine optimization is tailored for potential clientele living in a specific area, an SEO professional should be doing their due persistence and research to disclose the behavioral aspects of the users in that distinctive area. This research will give the SEO professional ideas for the keywords that would be specifically attractive to the targeted people. This type of analysis is the first thing that a Search Engine Optimization expert needs to consider while designing the layout of a SEO campaign.

However, one thing is for sure. The online marketing sector is certainly making much buzz at the moment. In fact, this is one of the most productive ways to cater to the specific needs of the clients and search engine optimization has increased the outlook of this new marketing style. Still, if you want to dig out the most of SEO, there are definite things that you have to keep in mind. First of all, you have to have a lucid idea about the target audience of your website. This is absolutely necessary to find out the right keywords for your website. Another thing to digest is that SEO is not a free service. Run you numbers and establish a budget on what you are willing or able to spend to conceive an effective, successful SEO campaign.