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Keyword Ranking

The Keyword Ranking Report shows you how each page ranks during a search for its Specific Keyword. Please note this important point, before we go any further...

When you build each page in SiteBuilder, make sure that your Specific Keyword for each page is the FIRST one listed in its Keyword data entry box in the Page Information section. (NOTE: If you are creating and uploading your own HTML pages, make sure that your Specific Keyword is the first comma-separated keyword in your META Keywords tag).

Why is this important?

The Keyword Ranking Report assumes that the first keyword is the Specific Keyword for that page -- so it searches for that one.

NOTE: Quoted Vs. Non-Quoted Results

Up until December 2005, SE HQ had reported "QUOTED SEARCH" results (keyword phrases were enclosed within quotation marks) because quotes were very effective isolators of a phrase. For example, SE HQ was reporting for "Anguilla beaches" as if a surfer had searched for "Anguilla beaches" WITH the quotes.

This was the best indication of how well you had handled the "on-page criteria" for that particular multi-word phrase. However, the engines have changed and the non-quoted search now gives excellent results for this. In some cases, and this was first reported in the forums(!), the non-quoted may be an even better indicator (likely because the engines are simply now considering multi-word searches as phrases).

So this report was adjusted in December 2005. It now reports on NON-quoted searches and gives you extra info (see bold vs. plain below) at the same time.

SBI! does a NON-quoted search for each keyword and reports on what it finds. Here's how to interpret the results...

1) If you see a number (from 1 to 30) in a box, it means that a search for that Specific Keyword, at that specific Search Engine, ranked at that spot (i.e., at #1 to #30) for at least one of your site's pages.

If the number is bold, that page ranks at that number in the Top 30 for a non-quoted search for its Specific Keyword. Ranking anywhere in the Top 10 is great, in the Top 20 is good and in the Top 30 is so-so.

If the number is plain, that page actually ranks at greater than 30 for a non-quoted search for its Specific Keyword. However, some other page on your site DOES rank at that number for that keyword. The plain number is the best ranking result that was found from all pages from the domain -- that number will be reported for each page that uses THAT search term as its Specific Keyword (if it does not have a bold number to report, of course).

The reported number (plain) is the best ranking result that was found for ANY page from your domain for a non-quoted search for that Specific Keyword.

That means that any page, even one that does not focus upon that keyword as its Specific Keyword, may account for the plain rank-score that you see for a given page. For example, let's say that you find several "plain 19s" for pages that have the Specific Keyword "anguilla villas." If you can't find the corresponding BOLD number, then those particular pages do not use THAT term as their Specific keyword.

If you don't find another page with the same Specific Keyword showing the bold number, a higher-tier page is the most likely "winner." Naturally, the Keyword Ranking Report does not report a page found in the Top 30 for a non-quoted search term if its Specific Keyword does not match the search term. (SBI! "saves" the report for that page for its actual Specific Keyword.)

The Importance Of Bold Vs. Plain

Bold vs. plain is key information. Why? Because you now know that you have a page that does rank highly for that keyword, even if that particular reported page was not the "winner." Remember...

The ultimate goal is to get one page in the Top 30 for a given keyword. Other pages with the same Specific Keyword basically play a useful, supporting role. But most engines will not rank more than 1 page from the same domain (2 if you really dominate!) in the Top 10.

So don't be greedy. Consider your "plain" numbers to be good supporting players.

Proper interpretation of Bold Vs. Plain

The numbers give you a good indication of how well you are doing for "on-page" criteria (as good as earlier days when this report employed non-quoted searches).

It tells you how each page is doing. And it also tells you that even if this page did not score for a given keyword, another one did. (So don't worry about it!).

And an added bonus... since it reports for non-quoted searches, it also gives you a better indicator of what surfers actually see when they search.

You can double-check results by doing your own searches at the SEs. You may find discrepancies for many reasons...

1) This report is only meant as a snapshot at a particular moment in time. It is updated over a period of weeks, slowly and steadily, so as not to cause unfair overuse of the engines. So, at any given moment in time, an actual result for any keyword at any particular time may vary from what you find.

2) Results can also vary from country to country.

3) Results at the engines themselves can sometimes vary from search to search, during periods when they are less stable.

The more you consider this report as an "overall snapshot" and the more you focus on building more and more Content, the better you will do overall. We'll discuss "tweaking" below.

The Other Ranking Possibilities

The first possibility discussed (above) was...

1) A number (from 1 to 30).

Other possibilities include...

2) If you see a dash (-) in a box, it means that page has not been indexed by the spider of that Search Engine yet.

3) If you see ">30" in a box, it means that a search for that Specific Keyword, at that specific Search Engine, ranked beyond the #30 spot. It will always be plain (i.e., not bold), because it was not found. And if a keyword is not found...

It is invisible, basically. Not good, especially if that page is scoring badly at all engines.

If a keyword ranks ">30" for all engines and for all pages that use it as a Specific Keyword, click on the Analyze It! button. This triggers the Analyze It! function to pop up a report to see how well you have managed the "on-page" criteria for that keyword for that page...

  • If it fails the test, make the changes suggested to rank higher. Just click on the Edit (E) button to start editing that page.

  • If it passes the test, it's best to leave it alone. Use your time to create new Content instead. Why? Because if it passes the test, you have a good chance at ranking high the next time the engine shuffles its algorithm a bit. And, as you will see below, you have more important things to do than "chasing an ever-changing algorithm."

    What kind of things? Well, if you have a choice between spending hours on tweaking a page for "Search Engine Optimization" or creating new Content, which do you think will generate more income in the long-run?

    Hopefully, you screamed out...

    "Create more content."

    More on this now, because it's critical for your success...

Tweaking Vs. The Tao of C T P M

It is tempting to tweak a page if it does not rank well. But, assuming you have passed the Analyze It! test (which gives the engines enough info to let them know what the page is about), you're wasting your time.

SEO "experts" ("SEOers") like to tweak, tweak, tweak, constantly "chasing an algorithm." It is so-o-o-o-o-o easy to fall into that trap. They constantly rave about the newest secret, some important formula or parameter, and on and on.

Ignore it all.

The SBI! approach is "keep it real." Yes... do use Analyze It! to make sure you are giving the engines enough "on-page hooks" to "get" your page in the right ballpark (i.e., that you are delivering enough of your Specific Keyword in all the right spots).

But then...

Keep building Content, Content, Content. That is what drives C T P M.

As you build Content, start the "off-page" snowball rolling by seeding some off-page criteria, too...

Start by getting some inbound links...
  • Use Value Exchange.

  • Use Search It! to find Specialty Hubs and Directories searches in Search It!).

  • Build word-of-mouth buzz and use other strategies outlined in the Action Guide.

  • Download Make Your Links WORK! ("MYLW!") for this important part of building traffic.
Your traffic, and your business, will soar. It is that simple. Not easy -- it takes work to create good content. But the concept is simple. Don't let anyone fool you into thinking that "it has to be more complicated than that."

SEO Is Dead!

The single best tip to succeed at SBI! is to ignore all the noise about "how to succeed" online. Most of it is wrong. And all the "right stuff" is already in SBI!...

Put on blinders and focus on your business.

Successful SBIers focus on business and "trust the Tao." They just want to grow their business. They focus on that, and they trust SBI! to take care of the rest.

The greatest amount of misinformation that you will read is from the "SEO experts" who have the temerity to suggest that they know the inner formulas of hundreds of PhDs at Google.

There are only two rules... Rule #1: Keep It Real.

The Tao of SBI! explains. No SEO expert has been able to refute the logic in this short e-booklet (right-click to download)...

http://buildit.sitesell.com/TaoOfSBI.pdf

The more we data-mine, the more it is clear that C T P M simply, flat-out works. Here's an excellent addendum to the Tao, part of that data-mining that again reinforces the "accidental-on-purpose" power of Content...

A Superb Addendum To "The Tao Of SBI!"

Rules #2?...

Never forget Rule #1.

FAQ

1) "What if none of my pages are ranking for a Specific Keyword in the Top 30 for any of the engines?

Let's say you have five pages with the same keyword, "Anguilla beaches." And none of them rank in the Top 30? Here's what to do...

i) Analyze It!. Make sure you pass this simple "on-page" test.

ii) Is this a competitive TIER 2 keyword or your TIER 1 Site Concept keyword? If so, these are the last to win. Keep building Content for your TIER 3s. This TNT article is important (especially the Sidebar about how a Site Concept Keyword rose from "invisible" to Top 10 without ever tweaking)...

To Tweak Or Not To Tweak... That Is The Question http://sbitips.sitesell.com/tweak-or-not-tweak.html

Bottom-line advice...

"Don't tweak the page. Instead build Content. Get inbound links. Build word-of-mouth buzz and follow the other off-page criteria strategies of SBI!. The net result will be like an incoming tide that raises the boat of your site."

iii) Is this a low-Demand, less competitive TIER 3 keyword? Has it been indexed for at least a couple of months and do you have at least 30 pages in your site? If so, and if you are not ranking for any of the 5 pages about that Specific Keyword...

It might be time to experiment. For example, build another page about this topic, but this time build one that has too many keywords according to Analyze It!. Do it in all the areas... title, headline, text, etc.

Change your approach for your next page, different for each page, more keywords in some areas and less in others.

However, do not become a mindless slave to Analyze It!. Push the boundaries a bit and see what happens.

Nothing is carved in stone... Analyze It! gives you a great starting point. Experiment from that starting point until you find what works.

Then stick with that.

2) "What do I do if my rankings drop?"

Lucky! We just happen to have a TNT article on that...

What To Do If Your Rankings Drop http://sbitips.sitesell.com/keep-building.html

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