Search Engine Optimization, often called simply 'SEO', is simply the practice of modifying your website so that it will appear more prominently in the search engines. With the success of Google and other search engines, an entire industry has sprung up to address a concern many companies share - how can I get to the top of the results?

The value to business is obvious. Search is becoming the dominant method people use to find content on the web. Consider these facts;

• A 2004 survey found that 63.9% of B2B purchasing decisions go to search engine first.
• In May 2009 there were 229 million Google searches per day.
• A top ten placement in Google increases traffic by an average of 500%.

Whether you are selling a product or advertising your service, improving your rank for important key terms can have a dramatic impact on your business. At the same time, in the competitive atmosphere of the web, a falling rank can spell disaster. That's where SEO comes in. Having a solid strategy in place will increase the chances that you'll be able to earn top spots in the search engines and - even more important - stay there.

Stay tuned to this blog for some tips on how to excel in the search engines. In the coming months we'll discuss some of the most important actions you can take to improve your SEO results, and we'll debunk some common myths that have grown up around this topic.