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Legitimate search engine optimization does not attempt to "fool" the search engines. Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is used to help search engines understand the contents of a webpage or website.

Search engines want to provide searchers relevant search results. Legitimate SEO helps search engines discern the contents of a web page and the web pages relevance. Webmasters wishing to rank well should use SEO for their websites.

Tips for Organic Search Engine Optimization

1. Meta Tags
Each and every webpage on a website should contain meta tags with a unique title and description tag. The title and description should appear in the header tags of the HTML code.

Format Sample:
<title>The Web Page Title</title>
<meta name="description" content="Description that explains the page content">

Meta Tag Example:

2. Alt Tags
Images should include an alt tag , this is beneficial for individuals with disabilities and assist search engines in determining what the graphic represents. Search engines cannot spider an image and tell what the picture is. The "alt tag" on an image is the next best thing, and provides text related to the image, so that search engines can classify the image.

ALT Tag Format Sample
< img src="http://www.domain.com/images/image.gif" alt="image description">

3. Well Formed Copy
Copy should be well written using proper grammar and punctuation. Each page should contain a minimum of 250 words in order to perform well in the search engines.
(more on Writing Web Copy)

4. Well Formed HTML
All web page tags should be correctly formed, invalid HTML will not only prevent the web page from being properly displayed in web browsers, it could affect search engine ranking.

W3 Validator
HTML Validator

5. Focus
Each website's copy should be focussed on one or two search phrases. The keywords or keyword phrases should be sprinkled throughout the web copy.

6. Bold for Emphasis
Use H1 or H2 tags to emphasize important page section titles in the web copy.

7. Domain Age
Domains are like fine wine, they improve with age. There is not much you can do about this if you are just starting out, but aged domains perform better than new domains.

8. Keywords
Keywords and keyword phrases should be included in the web pages title tag, description tags, the web copy, the anchor text pointing to the page, and possibly in the URL of the page itself.

9. History
Links gradually added over time show a strong history and are favored by search engines. A sudden rush of incoming links shows less credibility. Search engines take a historical look at websites, to establish a websites value. Longevity of links builds credibility.

10. Keep it Fresh
Search engines prefer websites that contain fresh new content on a regular basis. Stagnant websites will see their search rankings suffer.

Optomizing for organic search results is time consuming and involves a number of different areas. While it may seem overwhelming, keep in mind that organic search brings free search traffic.

Related Articles:
Search Engines Matter!
What is Organic Search
PPC vs. Organic Search
How to Get More Links