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Hello, I'm Dan Thies. My new book, "Search Engine Fast Start!", is quietly revolutionizing the search engine positioning industry, by teaching the "little guys" how easy it is to compete for top rankings.
 
For those who aren't yet ready to buy my book, I've created the "Search Engine Optimization 2001" newsletter.

"Just finished following your great article "The Ten-Minute Homepage Tune-Up" from your newsletter. When I redesigned my site last month, I totally forgot some of those points - thanks so much. You write a great newsletter!!!

   - Susan Nichols, Vector Central Website Design

Ever since the first issue was published on November 26, 2001, I've been receiving comments like this from satisfied readers all over the world. In just two months, the weekly circulation has grown to over 2000 subscribers, thanks in large part to the enthusiastic support of readers like these.

Search Engine Optimization Has Never Been Easier!

Search engine optimization is no longer the arcane science that it once was.
Today's top search engines are nearly identical in how they rank web pages.

As little as two years ago, optimizing web pages was a "black art" where the top experts held a huge advantage against the rest of us. Now, that gap has been narrowed to the point where it has little practical significance.

A lot of folks out there could tell you how to do your own search engine optimization, but very few experts are prepared to give up their secrets and lose their competitive edge.
 

"Dan, thank you again for your informative newsletter. I guess you must sell a lot of books, but it's refreshing to see so much good advice, so freely given. Looking forward to next Monday's edition!"

   -Rob G.

I give away my search engine secrets every week!

Why I'll gladly tell you everything I know about search engine marketing, for free.

Some folks have asked me why I'm willing to give away this information, when I'm trying to sell a book at the same time. The answer is simple: I want everyone to know this stuff, whether they buy my book or not.

I won't kid you, though - a lot of subscribers do end up buying my book. The reason, again, is simple: they like getting the free tips every week, but they don't want to wait a year for the whole story!

Each issue includes one article or tutorial, followed by breaking search engine news and answers to frequently asked questions. Even at one issue a week, it will take a year or more to really tell the story of how anyone can become a search engine master.

Sample Article:
The 10-Minute Homepage Tune-up

This is an excerpt from my recent tutorial on "optimizing your home page." It's a good example of the kind of information you'll receive each week from Search Engine Optimization 2001.

Step One: Identify Your Keywords
The first step, and often an overlooked one, is deciding which keywords and phrases you're targeting with your home page. What you want to identify are the 4-7 top keywords or phrases that you will use on your homepage.

Step Two: Keyword Placement Review
Once you know which keywords you're targeting, pick the most important 1 or 2 keywords or phrases, and make sure they're loaded into the right places on the page.

• TITLE tag: keyword phrase | more keywords if possible
  The optimal title tag starts with a keyword or keyword phrase, followed by a vertical bar (should be above the Enter key), then as many more keywords as you can work in. Limit your page titles to 5-8 words if you can. Make sure your page title still makes sense to someone who reads it, because search engines will display the title in your site's listing.
   
• META Description & Keywords
  Your top keyword or phrase should appear as early as possiblein these tags - "Welcome to..." is not the right way to do it! Your Description still has to make sense, since many search engines will display it in your site's listing.
   
• H1 or H2 Heading
  The first text on your page should include your top 1 or 2 keywords or phrases wrapped inside of an H1 tag. In addition, I like to work my other keywords into H2 headings (2-3 of them) farther down the page.
   
• First Paragraph and Body Text
  The first paragraph of text should include your top 1 or 2 keywords, as early as possible, preferable within the first few words. Additional keywords can be worked into the rest of the text, under the H2 heading where they appear.
   
• Hyperlinks
  For best results, all of your top keywords should appear in hyperlinks on your home page, leading to internal pages on your site. If you use images for your navigation links, use the ALT property of those images to contain the appropriate keywords for that link.
   
• Closing Text & Site Map
  If it makes sense to have your top 1-2 keywords appear again at the bottom of the page, use them again here, but don't make nonsense out of your homepage over it. If you have a site map, put a text link to it at the bottom of your page.
   
• Page Size:
  Your home page should be as small as possible. Move any Javascript or CSS you're using into external files, and do what you can to move your important keyword content toward the top of the file. Using layers instead of tables for layout makes the latter task a lot easier.

Step Three: Check Your Links
It should go without saying, but you must check every link on your homepage to make sure it's working and active. Broken links can not only hurt your rankings, they're also a big issue for the editors at Yahoo!, Looksmart, and the Open Directory.

Step Four: Validate Your HTML
Finally, run your homepage through an HTML validator. Invalid HTML can make it impossible for the search engines to read your page correctly. Here's a link to an online validator you can use for free:
http://www.htmlhelp.com/tools/validator/

There you have it - ten minutes to a higher ranking homepage!

I wish you success...

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