Four must-know steps to become an SEO Specialist

The first time I heard about SEO I was like, "What, is that a new program?" Fortunately, my friend was patient enough to explain to me what it was and how you do it. I was interested right then. I just had no idea about the how to's. For months, I spent searching on the internet for SEO tutorials and the likes but nada. It's a good thing that this friend offered a free basic SEO training at the Cebu City LDS Employment Resource Center which is held every Wednesdays for a good four weeks. 


So what did I learn from this training? Well, at least I now know that you don't need a software program to do that but you do need tools to help you with the process. In fact, there are four steps that every aspiring SEO specialist should know and I'd be happy to share them with you. This is not a blog that will give you in-depth details of the how to's but this is written to share what I have learned. It's still a long process but knowing these four basic steps will definitely keep you off the dark.


First off, SEO stands Search Engine Optimization. According to Wiki, it is the process of improving the visibility of a website or a web page in search engines via the "natural" or un-paid ("organic" or "algorithmic") search results. In order to do that, then you must know these steps:


1. Keyword Research
Using keywords are vital when you optimize a website. Why keywords? What does this have to do with becoming an SEO specialist? Well, as explained, Google and other search engines like Yahoo or Bing use keywords as they crawl on websites. That explains why every time you Google a certain word, it also appears on the search results. So the more unique and specific your keyword is the bigger the chance your site of being on the top ten search results or even on the first page. There are a lot of tools you can use as you search for keywords. Just Google it.


2. Competitors Analysis
The name of the game in any business is knowing your competitors. It's a strategy that can also be used when you're optimizing your website or your client's. Again, there are tools that you can use for this. That way you'll have an idea on how to improve the website and its contents.


3. On-page Optimization
This basically involves optimizing WITHIN your website. It includes the page structure, the layouts, the titles and meta tags, speed. You just have to make sure that your site is SEO ready and that it's an interactive site that allows you to add content regularly. If it's not then you'll have to redesign your website. Basically, you'll have to work collaboratively with the site developers for this.


4. Off-page Optimization
This, on the other hand, is completely the opposite of on-page optimization. What this means is that you optimize outside your website through other means such as link building. Simply put, you build traffic to your own site by making your website visible in others. That's why there's Twitter, Facebook, and other social media sites because they play a role in link building.


Well, that's it. I hope I leave you less flummoxed with this simple insight. Again, these are just the stuff that I learned from the training. If you want to learn more, you might as well visit my friend's site at www.eyewebmaster.com for more information especially about the free training. 

To complain or not to complain

I saw a television show last Saturday night that really sparked my interest and that got me to think really deeply about my current situation.  It's a documentary show called I-Witness wherein each episode would features stories about people in interesting situations.  That night, they documented a story of a family whose main bread and butter is gold digging. Although instead of going inside a mine in a mountain or shovel dirt in river beds, each family member, from the father down to the youngest capable child, would take turns diving deep into a muddy well to dig dirt by hand for hours hopefully the mud they took has tiny nuggets of gold in it. At the end of that laborious and not to mention dangerous due to the constricted space underneath the well, they could earn roughly a net of 249.00 pesos, that is if they're lucky enough to collect gold pigments up to a size of a one peso coin to sell.

Watching that segment got me thinking how lucky I am to have a job.  I have no right to complain that I am earning less than what I was used to.  Compared to their kind of work, at least I am comfortable and safe sitting on my desk, working my fingers on the laptop, with food to munch on every now and then.  It's just as easy as one, two, three than wearing a diving mask, with a motorized oxygen, wearing nothing but your clothes on, diving onto a pitch black mud well for hours digging up dirt with the hope that you'll get out alive.

Instead of wishing for things I don't have, I should be grateful that I have a home-based job that allows me to earn, even if it's just a meager income, but enough to sustain me and husband and as well as to contribute financially to my family. I have to say that I'm blessed to have a family who supported me in my educational pursuits so that I don't to do hard labor all the rest of my life.  Watching the episode was a humbling experience for me.  It altered the way I think about people who have unthinkable jobs like that. I mean I'm not a mean person but I do think that people who work odd jobs like janitors, garbage collectors, or gold diggers should be given the respect they deserve. Not just how they are treated socially but even financially. They should be given a higher pay. Otherwise, who would clean our toilets? Who would collect our garbage daily? Who would dig gold for us so that we can have those fine ornaments or accessories?

This is not a blog about labor code reformation but this is a blog about what I have gotten out of watching that show.  It will be my constant reminder to be grateful of the things that I have.

Just Remember...

When my mom was diagnosed with cancer, I was devastated.  The news came not like a bomb dropped on me but my mind became darkened.  All I could think of was death.  I asked myself is this the end? I'm not ready to lose my mom.  Tears wouldn't stop falling that night.  As I laid down on my bed that night after I said my prayers, the Plan of Salvation came to my mind.  Instead asking whether it's true like in the movie Charlie,  I thought about the great plan of happiness that Heavenly Father made for us, that families are forever, and I thought about enduring mortality and living the way I ought to so that I can be with my family forever.  Somehow those thoughts comforted me.  My mind was no longer darkened, and the next day I felt at peace.  I went back to the hospital with a determination that we're going to fight this to the end.  That we're going to do our best to prolong mom's life with the help of cancer treatments and our support for her.

As the financial strain slowly taking a toll on our lives especially to mom, I was worried again and feeling frustrated.  I don't know how we're going to do this.  Then I thought about the Atonement of Jesus Christ.  I remembered a scripture verse found in the Book of Mormon that Jesus Christ not only suffered for the sins of the people so that He could save from our sin, but He also suffered for the pains and sicknesses of this people.  Meaning, He also suffered for mom's sake so that He'll know how to succor her.  I'm sure He knows our suffering and what we're going through.  I don't know how the Atonement is going to work for sick people like mom, but I do believe in miracles.  I don't know if He'll take away the impurities in her body but I know that He has the power to do that but it's in His will. Just the thought of Him suffering for all the pains and sufferings and problems and sorrow is a comfort to me.  I felt comforted that we can do this.  That Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ are there for us.  That they know how much we needed them right now and I know that they're going to help us.  They're going to provide a way for us to endure this.

So it's important that we remember.  Remember what we have learned at church.  Remember His gospel.  And remember our faith.  Remember also that satan is not only pushing hard to tempt us but he'll also use our emotions to pull us down.  He's going to make us feel sadder, more sorrowful, more depressed in the hope that all those negative feelings will weaken our faith and make us miserable.  So remember the gospel.  Remember that nothing is impossible with faith.  Remember to have faith in the Lord's timetable. Remember that we have a loving Father in Heaven who cares and loves us so much that He wants to pass the test of mortality so that we can go back to His presence someday.

We're only at the first stage of mom's long treatment but just remembering what I have learned about the gospel gives me the strength to endure and to never give up because I know that an all-powerful, all-loving Heavenly Father will always be there for me and for my family.