Just a week after taking some basic search engine optimization measures, I have some dramatic results to share.
To recap: Last week, I told you about my collaboration with search engine optimization guru Sally Falkow. Over the weekend, Sally sent me a list of simple recommendations, which I immediately implemented.
Sally suggested adding specific, frequently-searched keywords to my meta tags. She also asked me to modify page titles and to add some descriptive text to every page on my site.
Did it work? And how.
Under the search term “travel blog” I’m now showing up in the top 30 results on three search engines. Under the term “travel tips” I’m in the top 300 results on Google (previously, I was not in the top 1,000). I had the same problem for the term “travel news.” Now I’m in the top 400.
How has that affected traffic? The week before SEO Sally’s changes, I logged 6,294 visits and 14,401 page views. The average visit lasted about two pages.
In the last week, I’ve had 7,360 visits — a total of 17,381 page views. The length of visit is up by about by about a fraction of a percentage point.
Not a bad start.
Christopher Elliott is the author of Scammed: How to Save Your Money and Find Better Service in a World of Schemes, Swindles, and Shady Deals. Critics have called it “eye-opening” and “inspiring” — it’ll “grab your attention and won’t let go.” Order your copy now on Amazon, Barnes & Noble or iTunes.
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