Achieving a high search engine rank in the organic listings is a key component to your search engine marketing plan. Unfortunately, it’s easier said than done. In this article, I’ll describe the components of a great search engine optimization plan.

1. Unique, Relevant, Frequently Updated Content
The first key component to any search engine marketing campaign is having unique, relevant content that you update frequently. There are three components here:

1. The content must be unique. Google has recently implemented a duplicate content penalty so that if it finds the exact same content on two URLs, it will penalize one of the pages by demoting its search rank.
2. The content must be relevant. Search engines are good (and getting better all the time) at weeding out sites that pepper their content with high traffic keywords but have no relevant content about those keywords.
3. The content must be frequently updated. Search engines value content that is frequently updated over static, brochure sites that never change. If you don’t update your site, chances are, some of your competitors are - and they will be the ones Google promotes.

A good rule of thumb is that you should make your site a valuable resource for the types of visitors you want to attract. Write for your visitors, but keep search engine rules in mind.

2. Strategically Chosen Keywords
You have a lot of competition out there competing for the same keywords you want. If you’re hoping that you can achieve a high ranking for a generic term like “travel,” “real estate,” “weddings” or “law firm,” you’re going to find that while it’s doable, it’s going to take a lot of work on your part.

A better way to choose keywords is to put yourself in your prospects’ minds and ask “If I was looking for X, what keywords would I use?” Often times, prospects are searching for specific problems they have. They want to “set up an LLC” rather than search for “business law” or they want “buy a vacation home in Tampa, FL” rather than just “Tampa real estate.”

And always do research on what people are actually searching for. Tools like Yahoo’s Search Term Suggestion Tool, Google Adwords Suggestions, 123 Promotion’s Overture Keyword Tool, Webmaster Toolkit’s Keyword Research Tool and Wordtracker will tell you how many searches each keyword or keyphrase got for the month.

3. Internal Linking Structure
How you link to pages within your site is extremely important. Your links should include keywords, which tell search engines what to expect when they follow your links. For instance:

1. Wrong: Click here to learn about how to choose keywords for your search campaign.
2. Right: Learn more about how to choose keywords for your search campaign.

4. Links From Other Websites
The final component of getting high rankings is getting in-bound links, or getting other sites to link to your website. Here are a few ways to do this:

1. Submit your site to directories. There are thousands of directories out there where you can submit your website. Your first priority should be to get a link in the Open Directory Project. You should also work to get listed in as many of the free directories with high Alexa rankings as well as any industry directories. In addition, there are also tons of paid directories that you can buy your way into.
2. Exchange links with other sites. The second way to get links is to email sites with similar topics as yours and ask if they would like to exchange links with you. Ideally, you want them to give you a keyword rich link - for instance, instead of linking to MorningstarMultimedia.com, I would ask for a link to MorningstarMultimedia.com - Philadelphia Marketing Consulting Firm. While that’s not always possible, it never hurts to ask.
3. Write great content and promote it. Look for high profile sites and blogs that might find an article you’ve written useful and pitch them. Good content gets linked to.
4. Leave comments on blogs. Most blogs allow visitors to leave comments. Look for blogs that are relevant to your topic through Technorati and leave a relevant comment which links back to your website. For tips on how to leave comments on blogs, check out Lorelle’s how not to comment on comments.

For more suggestions on how to build links, check out SEOBook’s 101 Ways to Build Link Popularity in 2006.

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