Important Search Engine Optimization Tips

This morning we have a post from Collages.net's SEO Advisor, Tiffany Miller. She compiled the five most important search engine optimization tips for professional photographers.

1. Content

It is important to remember that your customers are not the only people that read your website – search engine robots do as well. For that reason, your content should be full of keywords and rich text. Also, duplicate text is not indexed by search engines, so make sure your content is unique to your site.

You can also add lots of solid content by adding articles to your site; you can write them for yourself or for other photographers, just be sure to add as many keywords as possible.

2. Keywords

Keywords are used when people search for information about a certain topic. Most photographers’ websites are in Flash, which doesn’t add any keywords to your site. You can add keywords to the backend of your website that search robots will be able to index. Every site is different, but your website administrator should be able to add these for you. When adding keywords, think of words that are not only relevant to photography but are also specific to the area in which you specialize, making you unique as a photographer.

3. Linking

Have as many links coming into your site as possible. When you have several links from other sites linking to yours, it tells search engines that you have a lot of worthwhile content to read. There are many sites in your area that will link to you free of charge because you offer a service (i.e. local chamber of commerce, local wedding retailers, any partnerships, your blog, clients’ blogs). Be sure to stay away from link farms or any service that requires you to pay for a link - these are usually viewed as spam.

4. Good title bars

It is important to title every page on your website. This helps search engines categorize your site. Your title should be a descriptive word or phrase about the page. You can also use your tagline by using a dash to separate the title and the tag line.

5. Do your research

Go to a major search engine and type in “Photographers in [Your City]". Take a look at what your competition is doing so that you can differentiate yourself in the search engines. Copying your competition will have no benefit and may be harmful in your search results. Look at the keywords and structure of their sites and see how you can make your site unique, not only for your clients but for the search engines as well.