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Undoubtedly if you are in business you will have heard the term search engine optimisation being bandied around. For those embarking on an online business strategy the optimisation of your website is a vital constituent to achieving success. For the uneducated it is important to recognise that SEO and search engine optimisation are one in the same. Understanding this however does not make you an expert, while you may know that optimisation will eventually lead to success, understanding the process is a different matter all together. Ultimately you want to use SEO to improve your natural search engine rankings.

Fundamentally search engine optimisation will include using keywords in your website that the search engines will like. Your keywords let the search engine know what your website is about and hence should be relevant to the information contained on your page. It is not just the on page information however that needs attention when optimising. Another vital part of the process is to build links to your website, this will improve the natural rankings as search engines place emphasis on the number of links that a site has.

These two elements; on and off page are the two used in the world of optimisation. Understanding them can be difficult, but with basic knowledge it is possible to apply yourself and improve your rankings. Generally more rankings means more traffic to your site and hence, greater business as more people are visiting your site.

On page optimisation involves using the keywords you have selected in your content. It is important to construct your content in a way that it is quality; illegible content simply packed full of keywords will look spammy to search engines. This process is however ongoing, content should be updated regularly, always including your keywords. Natural listings will take time to arise, but by following this advice and being patient you should be able to achieve them eventually; the time it will take however is dependent upon the competition for your keywords. Naturally a word like insurance will have more competition than a key term such as tan leather chairs.

The general rule of thumb is that the fresher your content, the faster you will achieve good listings. It is important to realise that you can overdo the process of refreshing content. Ideally you want to change your content fortnightly or weekly, any more than this and you will be changing too much and will not be seen as stable by search engines. Ultimately you do not want to rush the optimisation process, those in the know realise that this simply is not possible, you need to be patient and keep the efforts up, and listings will follow eventually.

As previously stated building links is the second facet to the optimisation process. Search engines have a preference for websites with many links. These links do however have to be relevant, having thousands of links pointing back to your site that have no relevance are not held in the highest regard by search engine algorithms. By building as many links as possible and constantly pursuing this tactic listings will once again become apparent.

In the same way as refreshing you content you do not want to do this too fast. If you build the links back to your site too quickly search engines may notice your efforts and penalise you for this. Penalties can include removal from listings so it is vitally important to undergo this process slowly.

By following this advice you should be able to achieve the listings that will bring your business success. This is in no way a comprehensive list however of the tactics employed by SEO specialists, there are other methods, both on and off page that can achieve great rankings. Most important is to realise the time it will take to achieve natural rankings, optimisation is not a fast process, patience and adherence to your efforts are both vital elements in SEO success.

Internet marketing expert Thomas Pretty looks into the importance of patience when pursuing a search engine optimisation strategy.