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Getting strong rankings in the leading search engines can be crucial for soloists who are building a business presence online. Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is both an art and a science, and this week I've asked Kevin Shoesmith of Venn Communications to share some tips. "There's no 'black cat magic' to better rankings," Kevin says. "The best results come from applying solid fundamentals and consistent attention." Kevin describes four pillars to his approach:

1. Choose (and use) effective key words.
When people search for things on the Web, they typically use one- to three-word phrases. Understand what the most powerful keywords are for your site, and use them for page titles, headlines, and copy. "Look for words that succintly describe your topic," advises Kevin, "then pepper your content with effective, highly focused keyword phrases." For help on selecting keywords, visit WordTracker.com.

2. Pay attention to pages.
Individual pages are the basic units of your site, and each page should have a strong and unique title. "Allow each page to speak to one particular topic," Kevin says, noting that "search engine spiders can more easily index a page with a singular focus." Structuring your pages for a content length around 250 words gives search engines enough content to determine what the topic is about without overwhelming human visitors.

3. Create strong metadata.
There are actually two types of content on a Web page -- information for humans who visit the site and clues for spiders who read the code for indexing purposes. These clues reside in the metatags in the HTML code, and two areas are particularly important: the description and the keywords. While these could vary from three to dozens of words, focus is the most important factor. "Five or six highly focused words are often better than 40 vague ones" in these tags, says Kevin. Need ideas on what to use? Check out competitive Web sites and "View Source" from your browser to see their choices.

4. Link appropriately.
The inbound links to your site are very important to search engines. Having a number of quality inbound links will in turn develop the popularity of your own. "Link farms" or indiscriminate pages of links aren't worth the effort, Kevin says. "Search engines look at inbound links from respected sites in your industry as a positive reflection that your site is offering worthwhile material," he adds.

Kevin notes that there are no guarantees that you'll land good placement in any search engine, and that testing and experimentation are part of the ongoing process. He also offers these three resources for further info:

Creating a Google Friendly Site
Search Engine Guide
13+ Fantastic Tools for Knowing How They're Doing It

In two weeks, I'll bring you Part II of my interview with Kevin, with tips on avoiding the barriers to good search result rankings.

To learn more about Kevin's work as a Web developer and Web content management expert, visit his site, Venn Communications. Thanks, Kevin!

-- Terri Lonier
Founder, WorkingSolo.com

PS: This article was based on a suggestion from a reader, Kaye Young. (Thanks, Kaye!) Do you have Working Solo Minute topics you'd like addressed? Email me.