Long Content Pages Defy Search Engine Optimization Strategies for Keyword Density

Utilizing a broad-scope website architecture poses quite a few challenges. Standard keyword density ratios are ineffective in cases where useability issues require long content pages:

• The repetition of keywords formed from the use of parallel phrases - different phrases that contain the same keyword but are used in a different and meaningful context - can drive critical keyword counts above an acceptable threshold, which results in ranking sacrifices
• The inability to keep the keyword count low while at the same time maintaining a high keyword density can result in ranking sacrifices

There are two standard solutions to this dilema:

• Break down the content of the page into as many sub-pages ( smaller pages ) as needed, optimizing each page according to a theme-based strategy: Each page is then written carefully.
• Leveraging page rank by developing external links that link to each page with the desired keywords in the link anchor text.

With the first method, the end user pays the price. Not only does a visitor have to deal with the annoyance of repeated clicking and waiting, but it becomes very inconvenient for a visitor to be able to print all of the information. The result is to be avoided: A break in the continuity of consciousness of the visitor, and annoying "click here for a printable version" patch jobs.

The second method of developing external links is always a good idea. However, more than one website has tumbled down the scale on search engine results as a result of normal changes implemented by the search engines. The major search engines are constantly changing how link systems are evaluated in an effort to filter out spam and link farms.

There are, however, other acceptable solutions to this fundamental challenge in website architecture. One solution is to do a complete rewrite of the content, creating complete and meaningful documents that form a small "informational hub" around the topic. This takes quite a bit of writing experience, as each page must be a complete section to itself, with a real usefullness, and a proper internal linking system must be created to harness each page's "link power" or PR.

It should be noted that long pages are not always negative. In fact, long pages are a key element to a broad-scope and wide-angled website architecture. Ranking sacrifices can be overcome by utilizing advanced architectural design methods ( a tiered or multi-level system ) and a well thought out text navigational system. A website owner should never lose sight of the reasons that their websites have been created, and hopefully the reasons why their business or website project exists in the first place.

Below is page two of an example of 7,000 search terms compiled from 4 months of one website's logs.

Page 3: Optimizing Titles and Text Links

View our Search Engine Optimization Services