Quick wins and search engine optimization, can it be? They say there’s no quick wins in SEO and successful campaigns take time, energy and sometimes some cash. While this is very much true, there are some search engine optimization tips which will almost guarantee quick wins and require very little investment.

1. Find and fix any error pages – These error pages are poor for user experience, poor for the engines and might be a missed opportunity as some might carry page rank or even some authority. To find these pages, type www.sitename.com/<any-non-valid-page> and look at the page title of an error page. Now head to Google Analytics < Content < Content by Title and type the page title in the Filter Page Title box. Click on the page title to find all the error pages you’ve got and fix them. If Google Analytics isn’t tracking your error pages, head to Google Webmaster and verify your site to receive a complete list of error pages (amongst other useful info).

2. Check for images without alt text and fix this – Alt text for images is becoming very important for SEO and recent tests show that it carries as much if not more weight than an H1 tag. Juicy Studio has a free tool for checking alt text and other issues.

3. Rename your images using a descriptive phrase – I often see product and service images with odd naming conventions such as sitename.com/images/6799_98.jpg. Renaming your images using a keyword rich phrase such as sitename.com/images/product-name.jpg will help with image search traffic. Use a free tool such as xenu to find all your images and their naming conventions.

4. Use AdWords to test the best page title in terms of CTR – While you might be slightly lower than your competitor for a particular keyword, you are able to match the overall diversity of clicks by opting for a great call to action page title. Why AdWords? using rotating ads function in AdWords you are able to source the best Ad creative and apply its call to action for page title, for example <key terms> < call to action> :: <brand> or Blue Widgets Exclusive Deals :: Site Name

5. Start spending more time creating content – Chances are you’re spending most of your SEO efforts on link building in the shape of directories, social sites, link requests etc, however great content can often be more productive for link building. Start spending at least 10% of your time creating how to guides, on line tutorials, video demos, editorial reviews etc. You’ll find that great content will get those natural links the engines just love.

Bonus tip – If you haven’t already, install a social bookmark button such as Add to Any across your site. Links from social bookmarking sites and other social properties are another example of natural links which are seen very favorably by the engines.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, June 30th, 2009 at 11:35 am and is filed under Optimization. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.