Any Internet marketer who has been in the business for some time has probably heard the term “SEO” a thousand times by now. Internet marketing newbie’s should expect to hear it a lot as well because it will play a huge role and determine the success of their online career.

SEO stands for search engine optimization. This term basically refers to the use of keyword phrases to get a high page rank in the Google search engine. For online marketers, the process begins by picking out a few keyword phrases related to your niche. For instance, if you are promoting a weight loss product on your website, then you might pick out a long tail keyword like “how to lose weight fast” or “how to lose weight naturally”. You want to use keywords that web surfers will likely enter when searching for information about your niche.

The next step is to use a service tool like the Google Keyword Tool Bar. This tool will let you know how often a keyword phrase is searched. It will also give you an estimate of how competitive a keyword phrase is. Remember that other Internet marketers will be vying for the same keywords as well. Ideally, you want to use keyword phrases that get decent searches but are not too competitive. You should stick to long tail keywords about three to six words long. Going back to the previous example, a broad term like “lose weight” or “weight loss” may get a lot of searches, but it is also much more competitive. You will be more likely to make it to the first page of Google with long tail keywords.

Once you have your keywords picked out, include them in your website. They should appear several times in the text and in the title. Include it in the URL if possible. You also want to visit blogs and forums within your niche and include a link back to your website with the keywords as the anchor text. Article directories are another good place to drop off a link. Just write an article related to your niche and include a link in the resource box. This process is known as link building. Link Building takes time and involves tedious work. However, this technique will slowly improve your page rank.