Both of these options are examples of search engine optimisation, which is the only guaranteed way to achieve a search engine first place listing. The art of search engine optimisation, or SEO, is based primarily on developing marketing campaigns for specified keywords and phrases: where you can have your site indexed in connection with key terms you have defined, then your chances of attaining a high ranking go up.
These keyword campaigns take two basic forms: the “straight” keyword campaign; and the “organic marketing” campaign. In a straight keyword campaign, you will attempt to hit your high position by optimising your whole site for key terms that you have researched. Your search engine first place position comes because all the text on the site, and all the articles and blog posts on the web that link to or mention your site, are peppered with the terms you’ve identified.
The secret here lies in the terms you choose. You can’t choose words, phrases and terms that everyone in your business is using. Commonly used keywords and phrases will reach a wide audience, insofar as more people on the web will be searching for them: but you’ll be in direct competition with hundreds of other sites. The best keywords and terms to choose are precise, descriptive search terms for your products – terms that have a lower volume of overall use, but which fewer sites are optimised for.
Think of it like this. You get closer to a search engine first place ranking when all the people searching using a particular term find your site. So if you optimise your site for a specific phrase that fewer people use, then you’ll get most of them: whereas optimising for a very popular term means there is no guarantee that you’ll see anyone. Successful optimisation is all about getting all the action in a small crowd rather than trying to get a tiny piece in a much bigger one.
