Hook's UT Place

**Hook**

~ Keywords Are STILL Very Important To Your SEO! ~
By “Hook”(aka Morgan) - 11/28/07 - Founder & Admin of The Forum Directory

www.forumdirectory.freeforums.org
AND - Founder & Admin of The Robin Grad of 73

www.robingrad.freeforums.org

Despite what some so called SEO "gurus" have said, Keywords (aka "Meta Keywords") Are Still Very Important to Your SEO & SERPs!
(SEO = Search Engine Optimization) & (SERPs = Search Engine Result Pages)
I have seen a lot of print lately of emphasis in SEO switched from the importance of using "keywords" to more emphasis on the importance of Links and "mentions" from other sites that are "Related" to the subject matter of your site/forum, and the amount of traffic between them and your site.
This has mainly been centered around search engines such as Google and Yahoo, but mention also has been made for some of the lesser search engines going to this sort of emphasis also.
Do not let this cloud your thinking that the use of keywords and the keywords you choose for your forum/site aren't important or are obsolete, because they Still are Very Important and they are Definitely NOT obsolete!

OK, now, selecting these keywords for your forum/site is what may make a lot of the difference between your forum/site and all the other sites that have a related subject to your forum/site. Selecting the right "Common" or "Normal" keywords that would be associated with your forum's/site's subject matter is definitely part of the answer, as you still want your site included in any searches that may have been initiated by these common keywords for you subject matter.
Using these "Common" or "Normal" keywords will include your forum/site in the search along with many, many of the other sites like yours, but as things are, alot of these other sites will have better "ranking" than yours and will tend to ace yours out of the top spots.
These "Common" or "Normal" keywords are also known as "Competing" keywords for the obvious reason that they are used by Most of the sites of the same subject matter.
And I emphasize here at this point to choose keywords that are really and truely related to the subject matter of your forum/site, because if you just use any keywords, your ranking will soon suffer.
But, now comes what separates the common sets of keywords, and other sites that use these that are similar to yours, from your forum/site!
Now you must select the "Targeted" or "Niche" keywords to include in your set of keywords that will make your forum/site "unique" from the other sites that are like yours or have similar subject matter.
These "Targeted" or "Niche" keywords will COMPLEMENT your "Common", "Normal" or "Competing" keywords.
The "trick" here is to find keywords that are as unique as possible (probably not used by other sites), that highly relate to the subject matter of your forum/site AND yet still are keywords the will likely, or even MAY be used by people searching for your type of subject matter of your forum/site.
This way, when using these "targeted" or "Niche" keywords that are unique to the subject matter of your forum/site, you will recieve more select, quality traffic to your forum/site. You may not receive MORE traffic, but the traffic you DO receive will be BETTER, QUALITY "Targeted" traffic and that will also eliminate most of the unwanted people that really are not interested in your site anyway.
OK, at this point I would like to make a Simple Comparison to show you waht I am talking about.
I will show you 2 Sites of which 1 will be a fictitious example of Your site and the other will be a fictitious example of a Competitor of your site.
I will also show you along with these sites their fictitious example of their keywords and how they com up in a fictitious example search or the Theory of it anyway.

Site 1) YOUR Tinker Toy Site
Your Keywords) - Tinker, Toy, Wood, Wooden, Play, Build

Site 2) Competitor Tinker Toy Site
Competitor Keywords) - Tinker, Toy, Wood, Wooden, Play, Build

As they are above, if Both are indexed in a search engine, they will Both come up in a search because they are using the same "Common", "Normal" or "Competing" keywords or keywords that are likely to be used by a person searching or the most common ones used by most people.
OK, Now let's leave the "Common", "Normal" or "Competing" keywords as they are but we will add a keyword to YOUR site that is a more "Targeted" or "Niche" keyword that maybe that other site didn't think of or "Research".
You also would have maybe an article about interlocking wooden toys on your site.

Site 1) YOUR Tinker Toy Site
Your Keywords) - Tinker, Toy, Wood, Wooden, Play, Build, interlocking

Site 2) Competitor Tinker Toy Site
Competitor Keywords) - Tinker, Toy, Wood, Wooden, Play, Build

Now, if a person doing the search puts in "interlocking wooden toy" for a search, Your site may be the one coming up on top over your competitor's site.
In fact, your site may come up without the competitor's site at all especially if they only put in "interlocking" or maybe "interlocking building set", etc, in the search.
Depending on How Unique your "Targeted" or "Niche" keywords are, the more narrowed down to your site it will be on the result pages.
If your "Targeted" or "Niche" keywords are very unique, your site may be the only one to show up!
Again, your are not going to get a ton of traffic from these "Targeted" or "Niche" keywords, but the traffic you DO receive will be BETTER, QUALITY "Targeted" traffic!
They also help to Narrow Down your site in searches that end up putting your site higher on a search result.

It pays to Research your Keywords, especially your "Targeted" or "Niche" keywords.
Find words that are within the content of your site's subject(s) that you feel are the most unique to your forum/site.
To research them, put them into search engines such as Google to see how many sites come up.
Try to find the "Targeted" or "Niche" keywords that bring up the LEAST number of sites on a search, but yet are keywords that very well could be used to search for your site and are highly related or directly related to unique subject matter on your site.

Adding "Content", or better still, adding "Unique Content" to your site such as written articles really goes hand-in-hand with your choice of keywords.
Also, add this same content to other sites, for example in the form of "articles" or "blogs" with links to your site for "more information", will also help greatly with relating links to your forum/site.
Of course you will want to use as many of your keywords in these articles as you are able to "tie" them to your site.

Here at The Robin Grad of 73 AND The Forum Directory, we have added places to Add Content about YOUR site!
The Content you add here and on your site compound to produce those Content, or phrase (aka "long tail") Keywords!
These places also help with your "Link Profile" and also help build a Good "Link Profile" for your site!
So write those articles, edit your posted listing(s) in the directory and let us know how your site is doing!
(See appropriate forums at The Forum Directory to post your writings in as mentioned above)
Webzine

http://forumdirectory.freeforums.org/viewforum.php?f=56
How is your Forum Doing Today?

http://forumdirectory.freeforums.org/viewforum.php?f=51
YOUR Directory Listing (example)

http://forumdirectory.freeforums.org/viewtopic.php?t=390
These are just a few among other places here!

Good Luck!

I may add more information to this article as it arrises, so check back at times!
EDIT Hook Pirate

Hook (aka Morgan)

After adding the New Section here for Webzine / Ezine I added these as "Unique", "Niche" keywords.
webzine, ezine, web-zine, e-zine
Most forum directories do not have a webzine / ezine section
I Googled this: forum directory webzine ezine - The Forum Directory HERE Came UP Number 1 - Yeeeehaw! (just to show it works, because they are unique, niche meta-keywords) Wink

I then Googled this: forumdirectory webzine ezine - The Forum Directory HERE Came UP Number 1 & 2 without ANY other sites! - WOW Shocked

Sources of Some of the information in the above article...

One Source of Expertise - (that was sent to me) ...
Omaro Ailoch - a senior software engineer, an entrepreneur and the founder of OC IT Services.
OC IT Services is a highly skilled California based web development, design, and search engine optimization firm.
(If/when I can find a link for this source I will add it so you can read his information also! - Hook)

Also some inspiration, awakening and information spurred by SeanB., a member here with a very successful forum.
AND - But mostly from my own Experimentation and Experiences.

For MORE Articles and Help with Your forum, Go to The Forum Directory ...
At

www.forumdirectory.freeforums.org
Also See Our Listings there ...
At

http://forumdirectory.freeforums.org/viewtopic.php?t=11
Also See Our Listing at FreeForums.org ...
At

http://forum.freeforums.org/viewtopic.php?t=12390
_________________
{xCBx}Hook Hook Pirate

(Site Administrator)
Hopelessly Addicted to UT99 & Mapping for it!

The NEW Forum Directory at: www.forumdirectory.freeforums.org