Internet Marketing Secrets : SEO dos and don'ts

Internet marketing secrets don't come much more closely guarded than dos and don'ts of Search Engine Optimization. Get it right and you can rocket up the rankings; putting an instant smile on your bank manager's face.

Don't: Take it too seriously: If you look at optimization as a game you can play with search engines, and are prepared to go along with their rules; you can have a lot of fun. Try to cheat and it won't be long before nobody wants to play with you anymore.

Do: Put in the hours: Good things may indeed come to he who waits, but don't make the mistake of confusing patience with indolence. The secret of internet marketing success, like most other areas of business, is to work your socks off. Despite the fact that data zips along the information superhighway at seemingly light speed; rankings are notoriously slow to change - so you'll also need a good deal of patience.

Don't: Serve up spam: Like the celebrated pork luncheon meat; electronic spam can be dressed up in an infinite number of ways, but no matter how good it looks; it's still spam. The chances of you being able to outsmart the combined brainpower of the boffins pulling the search engine's strings are indeed slim and you're genuinely much better off producing something that you really believe in.

Do: Have some respect: It may be contrary to popular belief, but search engines aren't stupid. Everyday they are evolving to become more and more human. Treat them like a machine and you won't get anywhere. Don't underestimate what they can do and you stand a much better chance of success. If you think keyword stuffing and link farming can be used to circumvent billions of dollars worth of technical research; then you're in the wrong game.

Don't: Let it go to your head: It's easy to become addled by the instant financial rewards of a top ranking site. Remember the Newtonian concept that what goes up must come down and use your new found wealth to plan for the future of your business. Nobody is indestructible as media frenzy surrounding the fallout from Google's 2004 Florida update proved.

Do: Share the joy. Who wants to be the electronic scrooge of Scrooge? Sign up to forums and network with likeminded souls as much as possible. By pooling your knowledge (or at least part of it) you never know what marketing secrets you might unwittingly stumble across.