Search Engine Optimization Resources

General SEO Resources

Searchenginewatch.com

Has extensive articles about all aspects of search engine optimization. Reading a few articles on this site is a great way to get started learning about the depth and breadth of what goes into search engine optimization. Both the free and paid subscription areas are great resources.

WebProWorld.com

Good resources and articles. Has a search engine strategy forum. Can post your website for review by experts who hang out on the site.

SEO411

Has directory-style links to search engine optimization resources. Some of the resources are top-notch, and others require a cautionary eye. Automated keyword rank checking software and cloaking software/scripts should be used with caution, if at all.

Search Engine Books

We have collected some search engine books at Amazon.com for your convenience. Of particular use to beginners is Shari Thurow's book "Search Engine Visibility".

Link Popularity Information

Google PageRank Explained

As one of the major search engines, Google's technology plays a large part in how your site will be found by people looking for your products and services. Google's PageRank system is one key to understanding why your website may or may not come out on top when a search is done on Google. Link popularity is a primary factor in Google's PageRank system. Read directly from Google how PageRank works. Contact Pixelgroove to learn more about the intricacies of getting a great PageRank for your site.

Google Toolbar

One method of quickly checking your site's PageRank (and the PR score for your competitors) is to install the Google Toolbar. The Google Toolbar is free to install and only takes a minute or so. Use the toolbar to check the PageRank of any Web page that you visit by hovering your mouse over the PageRank section of the toolbar. Of course, it is never as simple as looking at a webpage's PageRank on a scale of 0 to 10, but at least this is a start in examining how relevant Google considers your Web pages.

Marketleap Link Popularity Check Tool

Here is an excellent tool for analyzing your website's inbound link popularity, comparing your site to the competition, and comparing your site and others to general industry benchmarks.

Checking Who Links to Your Site (or your to your competitors') Via Google and Alltheweb

There are a few ways to get to the same point. The quick way is to go to Google.com and in the search box type "link:www.yourwebsite.com" in the search box. Google will show many of the sites that link to the site specified. Not all inbound links are shown via Google. Google tends to display only the sites that it has given a significant PageRank to ("significant" will vary). A fantastic second tool, to use in checking in-bound links to a site is by using Alltheweb.com's advanced search function. This engine tends to show the majority of the links that are out there, and provides some control over filtering the search criteria.

Get a Link in the Open Directory Project (DMOZ.org)

While we are discussing link popularity, it is worthwhile to mention that while many search engine marketers feel that the Open Directory Project is dead or broken, having your site listed there still counts for something, especially with Google. A site listing here is free, so even though it may take the editor of a given category some time to get your site reviewed and listed, it is worth 10 minutes to submit. Go to http://www.dmoz.org/ and find the category where your site fits best. Follow the instructions and submit your site.

Keyword Resources

Keyword Research

You may think you know which keywords you should be using, but look at real search data to verify your assumptions. Also use these keyword tools to find phrases that you may not have thought of previously or new phrases that can help you build new content and theme pages for your site.

 Use Wordtracker.com's Keyword Research Tools

Both Overture and Google AdWords have good keyword suggestion tools as well.

Keyword Density

Check the density of your keywords on each individual page on your site, or on a competitor's site.

Keyword Verification

Check to see if your site is being picked up by major search engines for your keywords and phrases.

Search Engine Robots

Here are a few links for information about search engine robots (aka spiders) and the IP addresses associated with them:

• http://www.robotstxt.org/wc/robots.html
• http://www.jafsoft.com/searchengines/webbots.html
• http://directory.google.com/Top/Computers/Internet/Searching/Search_Engines/Robots/

Search Engine Articles

• The Search Engine Wars - Coverage on National Public Radio.
• Researchers Develop New 3-D Search Engine
• For Google Many Retailers Eagerly Jump Through Hoops