Search Engine Optimization White Paper
How to put search engines to work for your business
This piece was created as a value-add for Crestec Digital clients. It was a very successful white paper, and generated a lot of traffic to their site.
It provided detailed information on what customers may be doing wrong, and also provided them with ample advice on how they could maximize
their website.
They wisely offered a free analysis to the white paper recipients so that they could help potential customers understand what they might be missing, and, of course, give them a call to action, or reason to follow up.
This was written in 2005, so much has changed. Now, it serves as a bit of a history. I am still very proud of my ability to write about such a technical subject matter. Additionally, I feel I demonstrated that I can take a somewhat dry topic and make it fun and interesting to the reader.
Here is how Crestec Digital can help you improve your website rankings to increase website traffic
Search engines were originally designed to support the internet. Over time, however, they have become as indispensable as the internet itself. Today, having an online communications plan means more than just having a good website. You’ve got to develop an effective search engine plan, too.
Poor placement in search engine results will bury even the most effective 
website under an avalanche of competing online messages. To cut through this “internet clutter,” you’ve got to use search engines effectively, so that potential customers can find you fast.
Crestec Digital understands the symbiotic relationship between the web and search engines. We know it’s impossible to discuss website improvement, or internet marketing, without a basic understanding of the engines that deliver the internet its audience.
We hope the following explanation and background information on search engines will be helpful in starting, or improving your online communications plan.
Anatomy of a search engine
Search engines function as a kind of electronic encyclopedia, indexing information about website content, virtually into infinity. There are millions of websites on the internet and keeping track of this vast, constantly changing medium is a very complex task.
To keep up with internet growth and change, the major search engines employ automated programs, known as spiders, (or “bots” as they are known at Google) to research and organize the information on the internet.
The spiders “crawl” through the web, automatically locating URLs, or website addresses, and exploring pages within the sites they discover. They follow links, scan the text of every page, and r ad various files, tags and codes hidden within the HTML source code.
The information they gather determines a site’s rank and, ultimately, where it will appear in a search.
In an effort to keep up with the ever-changing internet, search engines are constantly updating the listing data stored at their headquarters, on a monthly, weekly, or sometimes daily basis, as well as the methods used by information seeking spiders.
Evolution of the search engine
Historically, search engine spiders relied heavily on metatags to determine a website’s content. The rapid evolution of the internet, and keyword abuse, led them to expand the criteria used for ranking pages.
Today, they consider a combination of the best search engine strategies, and look at a variety of elements when determining a website’s rank. Crestec Digital encourages website owners to become familiar with search engine strategies and incorporate that knowledge into their website designs. Read more…
Reprinted with permission from Crestec Digital.