Two-Cents on SEO

Programs and automated tools such as WebPosition Gold typically are not preferred by Search Engine Optimization firms and frowned upon by the actual search engines. Search Engine Optimization has been most successful through more manual processes. While software can add some advantages such as tracking previous initiatives and generating ranking reports, the auto-submission and content development components typically don't work well and at times, can be penalized by the search engines.

An example:
1) Google penalizes duplicate content. So if these programs create two sets of similar content for two different companies and the content is uploaded to the sites, then Google could potentially see it as duplicate content and penalize the companies.

I believe the best approach to SEO is 3-tiered:

1) Submissions
Manually submit your site (homepage and major directories) to the engines and directories. Make sure to hit DMOZ, etc. Use Google SiteMaps as a tool for Google.com - it is powerful and offers great reporting. Also check your robots.txt files to ensure those are properly setup. Keep this process consistent but don't spam the engines - rather re-submit if there is a dramatic change.

2) Content
Content is king. As Google has stated - become an expert on your site subject matter and write about it. Then consider keyword density, internal links, etc. Properly coded sites play into this equation as well. Dynamic sites are difficult so use neat url's. CSS vs. tables definitely helps and there are many hidden tricks you can use with CSS that are not considered spam. Plus H1 tags should contain prominent keywords as they get prominent consideration.

3) Strategic Linking
We've all heard of Google PageRank. Well Google isn't the only one considering this - we believe other engines now consider the relevancy of strategic links - of course taking the concept from Google. Don't worry about link farms and linking to every Joe.com site. Link to sites that have a good PageRank as this will be more important. Consider partners, vendors, etc - get listed with them. Think of a business analogy - it's who you know. Knowing every business owner in Burlington may not be helpful, but knowing 10 who can improve your business is helpful. Same concept with PageRank.

Prioritization
Google generates almost 50% of web searches so I'd suggest putting 50% of your efforts in Google. Then Yahoo!, MSN, Ask and a few others. Keep in mind - having a top 30 listing in 30 engines means a lot less than having top 10 in 10.

Use Analytics to measure performance and track improvements. You could also use Google Alerts to monitor performance for specific keywords.