Commonsense SEO That Won't Get You Dinged

Recently at South by Southwest (SXSW) Google’s Matt Cutts talked about an upcoming “over-optimization” algorithm adjustment aimed at those who sort of abuse search engine optimization to game the system. This would included stuffing the page repetitively with keywords, link-buying, automated link building and other tactics that go beyond "what a normal person would do."

But you don't necessarily have to worry about wearing a black hat, grey hat, white hat or any hat at all. By following these practical steps, you can achieve strong search engine rankings, stay clear of the new Google adjustments and sleep well at night:

• Make sure your page title, main headline (h1) and the content immediately under that headline contain the keywords for what you want to be found for
• Write deep, authoritative content about your subject matter, content that people may also want to link to
• Have a blog on your site and post frequently on topics that you want to be known for, using the same keywords as your content strategy
• Foster links with companies that you're affiliated with or with like-minded sites
• Build links by posting comments on other peoples blogs related to your targeted topics and include your URL or reference other blogs (with a link to their URL) on your blog.

There are, of course, other things that you can do but these basic steps will get you results while keeping you in Google's good graces. You can read more about what Google said at SXSW here.