» Six Tips to Increase a Posts Search Engine Ranking

I have received several mails recently inquiring how I have so many pages listed highly in Google, especially for tweaks, hacks and fixes for PHP and server related issues.

The key is the keywords used in the post title and body.

The keywords for any issue specific post, such as a bug or error message are easy. Portions of the actual error message should be used. Ask yourself, 'If I had this problem, what would I search for to find the solution?'

Take for instance a recent post regarding an error I encountered after installing the Zend Optimizer for a client. The error message was:

Failed loading /usr/local/lib/ZendExtensionManager.so: /usr/local/lib/ZendExtensionManager.so: undefined symbol: zend_extensions

The post was titled: Undefined Symbol Error After Installing Zend Optimizer.

Checkout these Google results. Three top five links on a post that is less than two weeks old. Yes, those are some specific searches, but they were pulled from the server logs.

Some general guidelines:

1. Use distinctive keywords in page title and body
2. Use proper names where possible (application or company name)
3. Limited use of generic keywords in page title
4. Use whole phrases if applicable(error messages, features, slogans)
5. Reinforce keywords in page body
6. Add secondary keywords and phrases in page body

Popularity: 15%

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