This is a very generalized comment, not all SEO companies use “dodgy” methods to get to the top. Most people want quick results and some SEO companies offer this through spamming. We all know that spamming doesn’t work for a competitive key phrase anyhow.

A good link building campaign is essential and as far im concerned the larger of the SEO companies know no more than the rest of us. Its just about resources both financial and experience.

Because of both the secretive and crackpot nature of doing seo, many times the truth is hard to find. So, here is an attempt to list what is known to work for seo purposes.

Meta Tags -
True - Google doesn’t rely on them to boost your rankings, but the other search engines will use them as a starting point in categorizing your site.

Page Title -
This tells the search engine what your page is supposed to be about.

Content -
Obviously, you need matching content related to the title of your page to have a chance of getting and maintaining top ranks in the search engines.

H1 Tag -
Whatever your page title is named, that keyphrase should be found within the H1 tag for that page. Also, make sure you only use one H1 tag per page.

Naming your web files -
Try to use your keywords when naming your files. Also, use the hyphen instead of the underscore when creating your files.

Sitemap -
Even if your site is only 5 pages long, you should always use a sitemap. This way you can make sure that the search engines find all of the pages for your site.

Robots file -
This is a simple file that tells the search engines where they can’t go to on your site. Be sure not to place anything sensitive in this file as hackers will look at the robots file to see what you are trying to keep hidden.

Error Handling -
Always use a 404 error handling page. Anytime a user or search engine accidentally mistypes a url or tries to go snooping around your site, they should be taken to this page. Also, you should place your sitemap navigation on this page as well.

Image Optimization -
Where appropriate, you should use the ALT tag to describe your images.

These are proven methods for your search engine optimization strategy. Be sure to take advantage of these basic points to get your site ahead of your competition!

-To your online success!