SEO or search engine optimization is a very popular as well as debated terms these days and the internet is full of doubtable and wrong information about it. Actually, many people talk and debate about SEO but they seldom have a fair idea about what search engine optimization actually is. So, we should attempt at a definition of SEO first. In simple words, SEO is manipulating a site in such a way so that we gain top rankings in the search engines such as Google, Yahoo!, and MSN. Search engine optimization allows for what is called as ?organic ranking?, i.e. top ranking with the aid of the mechanics of SEO. In order to make things clear, it therefore is necessary to have a fair idea about the do's and don'ts of SEO.

The first and the basic search engine optimization ?do? is also where most people falter. It is about picking the right kind of key word for the website. By correct I never mean that the key words should be what you, based on your knowledge about the concerned subject, feel to be the term(s) best describing the subject. For this, you should rely on the sites such as Wordtracker, AdWords, etc. It is the only place that will provide you with the idea about the key phrases that the prospects are more likely to hit at while surfing for the services or products that you specialize in. It is better to subscribe to such sites so that you can see a sea change in your rankings. This will enable you to pick up the most effective cycles of keywords.

The second ?do? too is related to the key words. It is what experts call as the ?isolation key word strategy?. Many people try inserting as many key words as possible in the page. Excess of key words do more harm to your search engine optimization than good, as they hamper the prospect of high rankings. Rather, you should take efforts to carve out several key phrases and build one page for each such key phrase. This will certainly have a positive effect on your search engine ranking.

The first and last few lines of each page are of prime importance. The first paragraph should always have the key phrase and also serve a meta description for the entire page. Similarly, the last paragraph, besides concluding, should well incorporate the key phrase. You also need to be conscious about the aspect of interlinking. It holds a lot of importance in the dynamics of search engine optimization.

There are also several ?don'ts? in search engine optimization. For instance, one of the basics of search engine optimization is not to put the name of the site anywhere in the meta title. You should never hold back on the text size. There needs to be a minimum standard volume of words, say 250 or 300 words. In case there are parameters of database in the urls, the spiders will have problem discerning them. So, do away with such techniques. Apart from these, there are several other do's and don'ts related to search engine optimization. Perhaps experience in the domain will tech you well about all these aspects better.