Restaurants throughout the world need to recognize the power of Search Engine Optimization (SEO) and understand how targeting potential customers in search engines can drastically increase revenue. If a potential diner is looking for a restaurant in his/her area, or is seeking out specialty foods, its important to have broad online exposure and reel in the catch, especially for seafood restaurants (pun intended). In essence, respond to the interests of customers in a strategic, targeted manner.

Please find 3 tips for creating a killer restaurant SEO campaign below:

Research The first step of any SEO venture is to research target markets and obtain a solid understanding of their mindset. This includes keyword research, exploring successful competitors and why theyre succeeding, and analyzing ones own marketing efforts to see what has worked and what hasnt. Information will set you free.

Implementation Websites and content need to be optimized with a strategic, research-infused approach. Even with the best research, SEO campaigns can fail. Proper implementation includes optimizing all content, utilizing the appropriate number of keywords in page titles and other sections, using long tail keywords, etc.

Tracking After an SEO campaign has begun, tracking must continuously take place. Traffic numbers, referring sites, keyword placement, backlinks and other pertinent information must be watched. Via consistent tracking, underperforming areas can be identified and rectified.

I hope the above information has been helpful and, if you find yourself in a bind and have questions, please feel free to contact me.

Aaron Schoenberger
twitter.com/TheSchoenberger

(310) 876-0874 x1
The Brainchild Group

Aaron Schoenberger is Founder of The Brainchild Group a Search Engine Optimization (SEO) and Social Media Marketing company in Los Angeles, California. Hes known for his work with celebrity clients, top restaurants, professional athletes and Fortune 500 companies.

DO READ:

51 SEO tips that everyone use on daily basis

17 Killer tips to Get Traffic From Social Bookmarking Sites

Top 10 Ways to Increase Your Blog Traffic Quickly

1. Perform keyword research. This is a very important step in your SEO campaign, before you even begin. Thoroughly research all keywords you may want to use this can make a huge difference in your strategy.

2. Dont use the same Metas for every page. All your Meta and Title Tags should be unique for each page. Also, make sure to use keywords and write an engaging title.

3. Dont try to deceive the search engines. Dont overuse keywords, hide text, or create doorway pages. These are unethical forms of SEO. With the current trend of search engines favoring ethical SEO, your best practice is to create a well-thought out web page, that has unique content, and is easy to navigate.

4. Avoid low quality links. Not all links are created equal. Instead of getting links from link farms, research the popularity of websites before getting links from them. Alexa ranks are a good way to check popularity, as well as page rank. However, if your own page rank is rather low, fret not, for this will be explained below.

5. Avoid using links with the same anchor text. Search engines do not like links that use the same anchor text and description that are repeated in short bursts.

6. Dont overdo reciprocal links. Reciprocal linking can be valuable, but only when done in small doses, and if the links are relevant to your business. Also, make sure to have a diverse set of links, including links to blogs, forums, articles, social media bookmarking, and more.

7. Dont become obsessed with page rank. Page rank is only a small part of your entire SEO campaign. The way pages are ranked is actually rather complicated, and is based on many factors. It is possible for a lower ranked page to actually be quite successful and get lots of visitors. So if your page rank is low, dont freak out.

8. Do network with other Website owners. This is a great way to learn, get advice, and exchange links. These relationships can be mutually beneficial.

9. Make site updates regularly. Sometimes, an out-of-date website can be worse than no website at all. Make sure you update regularly with current information, news and events, and fresh content. If you want to catch the eye of the search engine robots, regular updates are a great way.

10. Dont compete for single keywords. Instead, compete for keyword phrases. This will make it more likely that your site will show up as a relevant search result. For instance, if your company sells jewelry boxes, and you attempt to compete for the term boxes, many people who find your site will be looking for cardboard boxes, hat boxes, and other types of boxes, and will likely not stay on your page once they realize you dont sell what theyre looking for. If you compete for the phrase jewelry boxes, its more likely that potential customers who are looking strictly for jewelry boxes will find you.

11. Research your competition. Its always good to know what the competition is up to, including what they are doing on their website, where they are getting links, etc.

12. Design your Website to be SEO friendly. There is definitely an SEO strategy when it comes to website design. Avoid heavy Flash and lots of graphics, since search engine robots crawl the text, not images. Good Meta and Title Tags are a must, as well as fresh and engaging content. If youre hiring someone to design your website, look for someone who is an expert in organic SEO.

13. Use text links instead of images. If using JavaScript, text links are important since spiders wont follow JavaScript.

14. Keep localization in mind. There are several benefits to reaching out to the local audience. Aside from gaining local customers, including location-based keyword phrases, like detriot auto body shop, will help you because you will have less competition for that keyword.

15. Dont ignore the power of content. Nothing drives a Website like good content. Make sure your content is engaging, original, and well researched. Use keywords strategically (so they fit in with the natural flow of text).

16. Always proofread. This step should be a given, yet its not uncommon to see typos and content mistakes on web pages. Aside from providing incorrect information, mistakes, as well as typos, make a web page and its company look unprofessional.

And most importantly

17. Dont Give Up! SEO is not accomplished overnight. It can be a long process and takes lots of work and sometimes trial and error. Keep up your effort and dont give up!

18. Best SEO Tools . Best SEO Tools for Website Analysis and Free Search Engine Optimization Software in One Place to Build a Successful Site for Increase Traffic.

DO READ:

Top 10 SEO Softwares for professionals

SEO Tips For Newbies

How To Optimize Your RSS Feeds For The Search Engines

With Internet penetration in India rising from 0.1% in 1998 to 6.9% in 2010, search marketing plays an increasingly important role in the marketing strategy of Indian start-ups. Many companies try a spray and pray approach, undertaking ad hoc activities and hoping that they bear fruit. What you need instead is to adopt an aim and shoot approach.

Spending on search marketing is less about quantity and more about the strategy. One of the most misunderstood areas of search marketing is Search Engine Optimization. Many start-ups go wrong in basic SEO. A successful SEO campaign begins with keyword research and includes strategies for adding content and gathering links. Here are some tips:

Keyword Research
One of the biggest mistakes I see start-ups (or, for that matter, even larger companies) make is in the keyword selection process. They use theGoogle Keyword Research Tool. But the mistake they make is to select a Broad Match and not an exact match. For all SEO purposes, you need to consider only the Exact match numbers. I would advise going one step further and running a small Adwords campaign for your website. That will give you the most accurate data as to which keywords get you leads or sales. Once you have this data, you can start using it for SEO.

Adding Content
Content is king. But most people are puzzled over how to add content to their websites. Do a keyword research and find out what problems people face in your industry. Once you know the problems or questions people ask before a purchase, use those as the basis for creating content. You can then upload this content, perhaps to your blog. This will ensure that you add relevant content to your website.

Going Social
Once you add content, you can also summarize the content and post it with a link to your blog on your Facebook page and to your Twitter account. This will make your website active on social websites, which these days play an important role in Google rankings.

Going places with Local
With Google Places rolling out in November in the U.S., U.K. and some other countries, local search has become a very important factor in getting your business visibility on the first page of Google. So make sure you submit your listing to all major local search engines in India likeGoogle Local,Just Dial,Ask Laila,Guruji andHotFrog.

Make sure you submit it to the right categories and also use your keywords if possible in the business title and description. Utilize all the features of the local submissions and enhance the listing wherever possible.

Image by Rebekah May

It is not necessary to change. Survival is not mandatory.

- W. Edwards Deming

Its safe to say the way search engines work is changing; but then, its been safe to say that since the first engine rolled out. Is SEO changing, though? Think about it:

Since people first started using the Web to advertise their business, theyve been hiring other people to figure out how to make sure their business gets visibility.

Search ranking, and thus, SEO, is becoming more competitive. But then hasnt it been becoming more competitive each year for several years?

Choosing the right keywords to target is essential but hasnt it always been?

So, then is SEO, as in the whole, encompassing Search Engine Optimization, changing or are the number of methods just growing?

Changing SEOMethods

The number one, never changing method of SEO is the three Ts (tracking, testing, tweaking). As far as Im concerned, Alfred Edward Perlman perfectly described the mindset of optimization almost 60 years ago:

After youve done a thing the same way for two years, look it over carefully.After five years, look at it with suspicion. And after ten years, throw it away and start all over. (New York Times, 3 July 1958)

In yesteryears, SEO might have been nothing more than a few reciprocal links and some on page optimization. Today, it could be a long list: article marketing, blogs and other content development, URL structures, back links, you name it. While methods may change, grow or depreciate, the same two truths hold firm. They are:

An SEO campaign cannot be thrown together. It has to be carefully planned as any campaign should be.

An SEO campaign has to be revisited intermittently and adjusted as necessary as any campaign should be.

This is not news. These are the basics.

A side note on SEO service providers

If youre starting a marketing campaign and know nothing about marketing, would you consult a professional before starting? More likely than not, you would youre pushing hundreds or thousands of dollars down the drain that way, and you know it.

Now consider this; how much is it costing you to keep your online business going? Hosting, website design, writing (whether you do it or hire someone, it costs time or money), marketing perhaps Are you willing to see all that go down the drain as well? You dont have to consult with an SEO professional, but there is a degree of risk without at least checking your campaign with someone in the industry. End of lecture.

Succeeding in a Continually More CompetitiveMarketplace

So what does it take to succeed nowadays? What steps can you take? Here are just a few:

Define your SEO strategy, content and site structure before beginning any of it. If you have a pre-existing site, define it anyway, and make necessary changes.

Make sure the company or person designing your website understands at least the basics of good on page SEO structure and uses it accordingly.

USE your analytics program. Most hosting providers have one and, if not, you can grab Google Analytics free. If you cant see whats happening on your site, how do you expect to know what to change and where?

Dont automatically go for the high search, high competitive terms. Start with the lower ones (thusly called low hanging fruit) and build traffic gradually.

No matter what else you do, dont ignore content. The search engines want and expect content. You have to provide it; it isnt optional.

Lastly, understand the World Wide Web is the busiest place on Earth. Dont believe me? In Africa, a continent full of third world countries,almost 111 million people use the Internet. In Asia, the last count was 825,094,396 Internet users. Worldwide, theres almost 2 billion. (Statistics thanks to Internet World Stats )

Its also the smallest place on Earth; companies in Germany can be your direct competition, even if youre just a local online business shipping to three area codes. Be willing to change your strategy, your methods and your content to meet the needs of 1) your visitors and 2) the search engines. Survival isnt mandatory, but it sure is nice.

However, whether working with SEO specialists or not, it is still highly likely you want to be able to check some basic areas within your website to ensure it is optimised appropriately. The website your business has is of great importance and it is necessary for you to know what is expected from your site in terms of SEO and what can make a difference to how it performs.

Your website must have an adequate amount of content. An appropriate amount of content per web page within your site will depend on how much information needs to be given for you to communicate your message with your visitors. Your content must be clear, well written and relevant to your business. It may be you only require a small amount of content or you may require considerably more. What is of most importance is that this content gives relevant and useful information clearly and is regularly updated.

The links you have between web pages within your site must also be working efficiently. If links are not working, web crawlers will not be able to explore your site quickly and easily and visitors may not be able to find what they are looking for. Links must be working effectively and must be clearly presented so navigation around your site can take place.

The URL structures you have for pages within your website are also of great importance. Often, these structures can become quite complicated and confusing and this will not be beneficial for your SEO campaign. Your URL structures should offer a clear idea of what is present within the web page to which it is attached. This will help your page to be ranked relevantly in the search results.

You must also ensure the images used within your web pages are suitable and have been created appropriately. Image searches can be extremely useful for online business owners so images must be optimised effectively. Create appropriate tags for any images used and ensure the images are relevant to the content within the page too.

A large number of business owners like to get involved in SEO and this simple checklist provides some of the basic areas and issues of importance in a search engine optimisation.

We at SEO Consult can provide you with valuable SEO information and develop an appropriate SEO campaign for your needs. Together, we can build and develop a successful SEO campaign for your business.

However, whether working with SEO specialists or not, it is still highly likely you want to be able to check some basic areas within your website to ensure it is optimised appropriately. The website your business has is of great importance and it is necessary for you to know what is expected from your site in terms of SEO and what can make a difference to how it performs.

Your website must have an adequate amount of content. An appropriate amount of content per web page within your site will depend on how much information needs to be given for you to communicate your message with your visitors. Your content must be clear, well written and relevant to your business. It may be you only require a small amount of content or you may require considerably more. What is of most importance is that this content gives relevant and useful information clearly and is regularly updated.

The links you have between web pages within your site must also be working efficiently. If links are not working, web crawlers will not be able to explore your site quickly and easily and visitors may not be able to find what they are looking for. Links must be working effectively and must be clearly presented so navigation around your site can take place.

The URL structures you have for pages within your website are also of great importance. Often, these structures can become quite complicated and confusing and this will not be beneficial for your SEO campaign. Your URL structures should offer a clear idea of what is present within the web page to which it is attached. This will help your page to be ranked relevantly in the search results.

You must also ensure the images used within your web pages are suitable and have been created appropriately. Image searches can be extremely useful for online business owners so images must be optimised effectively. Create appropriate tags for any images used and ensure the images are relevant to the content within the page too.

A large number of business owners like to get involved in SEO and this simple checklist provides some of the basic areas and issues of importance in a search engine optimisation.

We at SEO Consult can provide you with valuable SEO information and develop an appropriate SEO campaign for your needs. Together, we can build and develop a successful SEO campaign for your business.

Ubscure | three Cheap SEO Services Which Your Small Business Needsthree Cheap SEO Services Which Your Small Business Needs

By: kikaru kung

But, your role does not finish at just finding an appropriate SEO company. You wish to confirm that you’re obtaining the correct SEO services for your business website, that can offer maximum benefit to your business. Make positive that your SEO Company offers you the subsequent SEO services, no matter that package you go for:

Keyword Analysis
Major corporations offer this SEO service, as it’s a vital part of any website optimization campaign. Keyword research is the first step experienced SEO firms absorb beginning your SEO campaign. This includes researching on all the keywords applicable for your product and services and analysis of the keywords major competitors are using for their website optimization. Solely after a thorough analysis of keywords will the SEO Company be in a position to figure out that keywords are being used to search for your product and services. Once the keywords are determined, a compelling copy desires to be written together with these keywords, so that search engines will be able to cache your web site into the relevant category. Keyword analysis is hence the key SEO service that starts the web site optimization method for your SEO campaign.

Upgrades in your Web site
Your SEO Company desires to test your business web site completely so as to confirm that it is in compliance with the rules of major search engines. The SEO services you avail of should hence embrace an in-depth analysis of your website. The SEO firm will then decide what SEO tools to use to optimize the positioning at the backend. In case upgrades in your website are needed, the SEO company will work accordingly. The company can then add new pages or sub domains that are required to enhance your website’s rankings.

SEO Reports
The main reason you’re hiring SEO services is to urge targeted traffic to your website. However how do you analyze whether or not that goal has been achieved or not? SEO reports is the answer to that question. Your SEO Company ought to be able to provide you with necessary SEO reports like keyword rankings and website traffic reports in order to prove the success of the website optimization campaign. Some SEO companies promise to increase traffic however finish up solely bringing in spam traffic; to avoid this, you ought to raise your SEO company for relevant reports as half of the SEO service you’re hiring.
While you’re trying to rent these three SEO services, conjointly observe the ways the SEO Company is using to attain rankings in search engines. Black Hat SEO techniques could usher in quick results but in the long term might harm your website ranking, with the possibility of being blacklisted totally by search engines. Make positive that your website optimization campaign avoids any such techniques.

Those working unethically in search engine optimisation try to make others believe black hat SEO is highly productive and yet it is quick and easy too. This is what many website owners want to hear and so they are eager to believe what they are told. Unfortunately for them, black hat SEO does not work in this way and the consequences of a black hat SEO campaign can be devastating.

If you use black hat search engine optimisation techniques, your rankings in the search results will drop significantly and your site may even be banned from the search results entirely. This is obviously the opposite outcome to what those running an SEO campaign aim to achieve. SEO is used to get websites ranked in better positions so exposure and traffic can be gained. If you use black hat SEO, you will not see this result. Instead, you will have less exposure and less traffic visiting your website because of a massive drop in rankings.

The search engines have technology to identify those sites using unethical SEO methods and punish them severely to show this approach is not advantageous.

Using black hat search engine optimisation will also severely damage your reputation. If you are running an online business, reputation is extremely important. Your company needs to be respectable and trustworthy if it is going to be successful. Online consumers do not like to shop from unethical and immoral businesses and if you use black hat SEO, it will be obvious to others your business falls into this category.

The other way you will be punished if you choose to use black hat search engine optimisation instead of an ethical approach is by wasting time, energy and money on an unproductive SEO campaign. Black hat SEO does require money and hard work and yet it does not produce the results you are hoping for if your business requires an SEO campaign. If you have used black hat SEO, you will have lost money and time and this can be extremely disappointing.

At SEO Consult, we only use white hat search engine optimisation because we know only this approach to SEO actually works. Black hat SEO is a waste of time and actually harms your business instead of helping it.

There are many white hat SEO techniques available which can help your business and we can help you to identify and use these methods effectively. Dont be manipulated by those working unethically in SEO but work with us instead because our company is respectable and trustworthy and has been helping clients to achieve impressive SEO results for many years.

My last post, “What’s Next for Search, SEO?,” managed to produce some interesting takes on the future, past, and present of devices and how we use them/optimize for them. Thanks for your responses. They got me thinking — what year am I stuck in?

The simple answer is that I never quite came to terms with the ’90s. Having been born in 1980, I just couldn’t accept that a new decade had anything to do with me. Plus, my football team was unbeatable in the ’80s and is now average at best. So if I were really pressed for an answer, I’d say I was stuck in 1988. Early May, to be precise.

But I’ve also noticed some definite differences in search engine optimization (SEO) campaigns and approaches to SEO from agencies and in-house teams that can give clues about when they last carried out a root and branch review of how they do SEO.

Since 2000, SEO has been developing as an art and as a defined function of marketing. Each year has tended to see specific approaches and developments that have helped to define how you should approach SEO. If 2005 was about internal linking, then 2009 was about optimized PR and advertorials.

What I’m particularly interested in is defining SEO in 2010. This isn’t necessarily about finding something new, more about what seems to really be producing results after the Caffeine update and the May Day changes.

The trend we’re seeing is that highly relevant links from sites with quality link profiles of their own are adding the most value to an SEO campaign, rather than those with outright PageRank (we have also seen a large number of sites suffer ranking drops due to an inordinate number of sitewide inbound links, but that’s another story).

This may not be anything new in itself — highly relevant links have always been important and difficult to come by for a number of reasons. But the reduction in apparent value of PageRank, and increase in the value of a purely relevant site and content, is interesting.

What is doubly interesting (and helpful) is that Google has a tool that can specifically identify what those highly relevant sites might be. (It won’t actually get links from them, you’ll still have to be creative there).

The tool? Google Ad Planner — allowing you to see what sites match the same user profile as your client’s site, and also filter by industry sector/classification of the site, giving a neat picture of what Google feels is a relevant link profile for your client. You can then export a list of the best sites to target for links — it can even tell you which ones are using Google text ads on their site, thereby giving you a foot in the door to discuss advertising rates, content hosting, reciprocal links, or whatever you feel is the right approach for each site.

So, if there’s a theme for 2010, it has to be that taking the time to identify your market and focusing on how to build relationships with those relevant sites will put you above SEOs that are still focusing on optimized PR and advertorials. They’re stuck in 2009…

Join us for SES San Francisco August 16-20, 2010 during ClickZ’s Connected Marketing Week. The festival is packed with sessions covering PPC management, keyword research, search engine optimization (SEO), social media, ad networks and exchanges, e-mail marketing, the real time web, local search, mobile, duplicate content, multiple site issues, video optimization, site optimization and usability, while offering high-level strategy, keynotes, an expo floor with 100+ companies, networking events, parties and more!

Gareth Owen, Head of Natural Search, Steak, began his career in SEO at ChoiceQuote Insurance based in Liverpool in 2004. Responsible for the full marketing function for insurance products in motorcycle, taxi, van and haulage, he oversaw sizeable increases in ROI from online marketing spend.

He then moved to The Search Works where, as European Account Director, he worked on a range of large client brands, pioneered studies into the measurable effects of TV advertising on search volumes, and generated over 1 million in revenue through integrated search offerings in 2009. While in this role he also successfully created an integrated PPC/SEO/Affiliate offering for the parent company.

As well as being responsible for the SEO offering at Steak, Gareth also sits on IAB and IPA Search Councils and has spoken at IAB, IMRG and Econsultancy conferences.

Archive

My last post, “What’s Next for Search, SEO?,” managed to produce some interesting takes on the future, past, and present of devices and how we use them/optimize for them. Thanks for your responses. They got me thinking — what year am I stuck in?

The simple answer is that I never quite came to terms with the ’90s. Having been born in 1980, I just couldn’t accept that a new decade had anything to do with me. Plus, my football team was unbeatable in the ’80s and is now average at best. So if I were really pressed for an answer, I’d say I was stuck in 1988. Early May, to be precise.

But I’ve also noticed some definite differences in search engine optimization (SEO) campaigns and approaches to SEO from agencies and in-house teams that can give clues about when they last carried out a root and branch review of how they do SEO.

Since 2000, SEO has been developing as an art and as a defined function of marketing. Each year has tended to see specific approaches and developments that have helped to define how you should approach SEO. If 2005 was about internal linking, then 2009 was about optimized PR and advertorials.

What I’m particularly interested in is defining SEO in 2010. This isn’t necessarily about finding something new, more about what seems to really be producing results after the Caffeine update and the May Day changes.

The trend we’re seeing is that highly relevant links from sites with quality link profiles of their own are adding the most value to an SEO campaign, rather than those with outright PageRank (we have also seen a large number of sites suffer ranking drops due to an inordinate number of sitewide inbound links, but that’s another story).

This may not be anything new in itself — highly relevant links have always been important and difficult to come by for a number of reasons. But the reduction in apparent value of PageRank, and increase in the value of a purely relevant site and content, is interesting.

What is doubly interesting (and helpful) is that Google has a tool that can specifically identify what those highly relevant sites might be. (It won’t actually get links from them, you’ll still have to be creative there).

The tool? Google Ad Planner — allowing you to see what sites match the same user profile as your client’s site, and also filter by industry sector/classification of the site, giving a neat picture of what Google feels is a relevant link profile for your client. You can then export a list of the best sites to target for links — it can even tell you which ones are using Google text ads on their site, thereby giving you a foot in the door to discuss advertising rates, content hosting, reciprocal links, or whatever you feel is the right approach for each site.

So, if there’s a theme for 2010, it has to be that taking the time to identify your market and focusing on how to build relationships with those relevant sites will put you above SEOs that are still focusing on optimized PR and advertorials. They’re stuck in 2009…

Join us for SES San Francisco August 16-20, 2010 during ClickZ’s Connected Marketing Week. The festival is packed with sessions covering PPC management, keyword research, search engine optimization (SEO), social media, ad networks and exchanges, e-mail marketing, the real time web, local search, mobile, duplicate content, multiple site issues, video optimization, site optimization and usability, while offering high-level strategy, keynotes, an expo floor with 100+ companies, networking events, parties and more!

Gareth Owen, Head of Natural Search, Steak, began his career in SEO at ChoiceQuote Insurance based in Liverpool in 2004. Responsible for the full marketing function for insurance products in motorcycle, taxi, van and haulage, he oversaw sizeable increases in ROI from online marketing spend.

He then moved to The Search Works where, as European Account Director, he worked on a range of large client brands, pioneered studies into the measurable effects of TV advertising on search volumes, and generated over 1 million in revenue through integrated search offerings in 2009. While in this role he also successfully created an integrated PPC/SEO/Affiliate offering for the parent company.

As well as being responsible for the SEO offering at Steak, Gareth also sits on IAB and IPA Search Councils and has spoken at IAB, IMRG and Econsultancy conferences.

Archive