You’ve heard about search engine optimization (SEO) — but are there certain types of SEO strategies you should implement to bring your website or blog to the first page of Google? And just as important, what shouldn’t you do to avoid the “Google Slap.”

Check out the Infographic below for a neat comparison — in Goldilocks style — for what’s too “spammy” (hot), what’s too cold (or apathetic in your copy) and what’s just right (profitable copy).

Infographic: SEO Strategies

SEO Infographic by SEO Book

I really like the way the folks at SEO Book did this chart, and the order in which they did it, i.e. starting with they keyword analysis and competition, followed by your on-page SEO, the quality of your content, the size of your site, etc.

It follows a natural flow as to how you’ll build your website, starting with the niche you want to be in and the keyword you want to target.

In many ways, the difference between good long term sustainable SEO and the crash-n-burn variety is subtlety. This is why keyword variation is a much better strategy than keyword repetition.

 

SEO Book

SEO Book also recommends four ways to include variation in your on-page SEO strategy:

• Singular vs. plural forms of a keyword
• Use synonyms
• Add in relevant keyword modifiers
• Change word order of keyword phrases

* If you need a keyword research tool, the two best options in my opinion are Market Samurai and Long Tail Pro. Both offer a free trial period so you can play around with them and decide which one you like better. Either one you choose will help you find the profitable keywords for your articles and niche websites.

There’s also the Micro Niche Finder as well as the Longtail Keyword Research Software, neither of which I have used. And, of course, you can always use the free Google Keyword Tool.