Think Like a Searcher to Increase Your Traffic - That Spider is Just a Tool!
(Page 2 of 4 )
Sometimes when we optimize our sites to do well in the search engines, we forget that the Googlebot and even Google itself is just a tool. Searchers use them to find what they're looking for, and ideally we're using them to let searchers know what we have on our sites. But if we're building and optimizing our sites for Google's eyes alone, we're only doing half the job. Sure, Google might see that our site is relevant for a particular search, but how do we get that across to the searcher on the other side of the box?
It's not just our position in the SERPs that does it. If that were true, searchers would always click on the first link on the first page and the rest of us wouldn't stand a chance. I don't know about you, but as a rough guess I'll click on that first link only about half the time, maybe even less. Google thinks it's relevant - but I don't.
How do I decide that? Well, let me give you an example. Here's a screen shot of a search I did recently in Google for costume patterns. Sure, it's only April, but Halloween is just around the corner if you think like a costumer (to say nothing of Renaissance festivals, science fiction conventions, Star Wars Days at Disney and other possibilities for dressing up).
This is actually a pretty good example; I've performed searches where the top link featured so much keyword stuffing in its description that it made me crazy. In this case, I'd skip the first, third and fourth links, not because of stuffing, but because I'm pretty familiar with those resources. Simplicity and McCall's are well-known pattern companies. But look at Simplicity's listing: there's nothing in the description that says anything about costumes. If I didn't know anything about them, how would I know they were relevant, aside form their placement at the top?
McCall's listing is better. At least you can see the word "costumes" in the links. But it isn't the best listing. Not by a long shot.
Take a look at the description under the second link. "Free costume patterns for kids and adults. Create special effects make-up, make Halloween masks, wigs, fangs, hats, prosthetics and more." Now that is pay dirt for a costumer. Or look further down, at the fifth link. Not only does it explicitly include both of my keywords in the title, but it describes the page's contents concisely: "Links to companies which offer commercial costume sewing patterns for Halloween, dancing, skating, re-enactment and more." It sounds like an excellent resource. Oh, and look at the sixth link, almost below the fold - it's clearly something for historical costumers. If I'm trying to make something that's historically accurate, I'd probably click on it (though if the truth be known, if I'm trying to make something historically accurate I'll probably use more specific keywords).
You may be thinking that you don't have a lot of control over the description that appears in the search engines for your site. Actually, you have more control than you think. Check out this Google Webmaster Central blog entry for more information on when Google pays attention to the meta description tag, and how to write a good one.
The take-home lesson is that your description matters. There is next to nothing in the descriptions for the links to Simplicity and McCall that tells me they have costume patterns, and absolutely nothing to tell me what kind of costume patterns. KnowledgeHound and About both do better jobs of telling me what kind of information I can get by visiting their web sites. With specific, concise descriptions, they've piqued my interest - and earned a visit.
Next: Keys to Keywords >>
More Choosing Keywords Articles
More By Terri Wells
/ 18 
