search rankings, its content is probably performing better than yours. Analyze it and find
out why.
Link quality and quantity:Your competitors’ linking strategies could hold a clue about
why they rank well. Look at the link structure. If they’re using legitimate linking strate-
gies, what are they? If they’re not, don’t try to follow suit. Their actions will catch up
with them soon enough.One thing you should use caution about is copying your competition too closely. Instead
use their success as a way to jump start creative ideas for improving your own web site.
Some web-site owners will fill the internal workings of their site with bogus keywords, tags, or other
elements in an effort to keep the competition from catching up to them. If you follow their practices
too closely, you could end up doing more damage than good to your own site.Maintain your competitive analysis over time. It should be an ongoing activity that helps you stay
abreast of how those companies that rank better than you reach those rankings. Examine them
closely, and then spend some time finding creative ways to improve your rankings based on what
works for the competition.Conversion Analysis
If you’re driving your customers to your site simply to have them visit you, you’re wasting your
time and efforts. Site traffic alone will not build brand recognition today. There must be other ele-
ments of supplying your customers or potential customers with what they need. Of course, what
you should be supplying them with will depend on your industry. But even with the differing
needs of audiences, there’s still a way to measure or value your site visitors.Your conversions are your ultimate measure of how well your site optimization and design work.
And you should constantly be focusing on the conversions that your site drives. Without conver-
sions, you’re not making any money. That doesn’t mean that conversions all have to be monetarily
based, just that they have to fulfill some goal that you have designed for your web site.There are two types of conversions: revenue conversions and pre-revenue conversions. Revenue
conversions are actual sales. A sale is a conversion goal. If you sell anything from your web site,
you should have a conversion goal for reaching the end of a sale. That might mean the goal is
achieved when a user clicks through to the “Thank You” page or when the order confirmation is
displayed. These conversions require the exchange of money for goods or services.Another type of conversion is the pre-revenue conversion. Pre-revenue conversions are all the
other steps in the selling cycle — activities that lead up to the final sale. So, a pre-revenue conver-
sion might be something like having the visitor request additional information about a product
or service or sign up for a newsletter that’s offered on your site. These are valid conversions that
should also be tracked.CAUTION CAUTION
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