Last week I discussed how I use Squidoo as a Search Engine Optimization tool. I explained that you want to get free backlinks to your web site or blog to help lift it toward the top of the search engine rankings.

Squidoo is one of several high ranked authority site where you can create your own content on your topic and create your own backlinks. What I neglected to focus on in my last post was the need for and how to create what are called anchor text or anchor tags.

Anchor texts are backlinks that have been coded with the url of the destination we want people to go to. We do this for the practical reason of making it clear to the reader and to the Google Bots not only where to go but why.

For example, a home stager may want to get their web site to appear on the top of the search engines when someone searches for the term San Francisco Home Staging. They could just enter their url www-MaryJanesHomeStaging.com in a Squidoo page and anyone who visits the site will be able to click on the link and go to the site. So will the search engine bots.

The search bots will note that the backlink exists, and will give it some credit depending on the value the attribute to the the site where they found it.

A better course of action, (and the point of this post) would be to use a keyword you want to rank for rather than your url as the link.

For example, if Mary Jane lived and did home staging in my home town of Minneapolis, she might choose to type in the link as “Minneapolis Home Staging” and then highlight those words and then insert a link on those words. In most browsers, the words Minneapolis Home Staging would appear blue, and most people would know that it was a clickable link.

On most text editors you will often find a small image of a linked chain, which serves as a tool to create links on the selected text.

Unfortunately, it’s not as easy on Squidoo,  so you need to learn a tiny bit of HTML code to create your anchor text.

Here is the HTML format for an anchor text.

<a href=”http://www.MaryJanesHomeStaging.com”>Minneapolis Home Staging</a>

Lets look at this more closely so we can understand what’s happening.  It’s not hard.

The <a href=”  is the actual HTML code that tells a computer that a link is to follow. In this case, we are telling the computer that we want the link to connect with http://www.MaryJanesHomeStaging.com

We let the computer know we are done with our url, by adding a end guote and closing arrow. ie  “>

Next we have our keyword that we want to be our anchor text.  Again in this case it’s Minneapolis Home Staging.

Then we tell the computer that we are done with all of out HTML code by ending with </a>

You will note that the code started with an <a  and ends with a </a>

This convention is used throughout HTML.

Once we have done this, the people reading our Squidoo Lens will know that MaryJanesHomeStaging serves Minneapolis. More importanly, the search engine robots will learn that MaryJanesHomeStaging.com is about Minneapolis Home Staging.  Now when someone goes to Google or another search engine and searches for a Minneapolis Home Stager, the search engines will know that MaryJanes site is one they should list.

The more backlinks associated with the anchor tect Minneapolis Home Staging that Mary Jane is able to establish on Squidoo and elsewhere, the more likely Mary Janes site will be ranked toward the top of the search engines.

HTML is actually relatively easy to learn, and very helpful in many different applications.  I have a good HTML Guide for those who want to learn more.

But whether you wish to learn HTML your self or not, you do want to understand that using sites like Squidoo and others can be a powerful way to move your web site to the top of the search engines.  The advantage of sites like Squidoo is that you can generate free back links from a high ranked site.

When you create your own links you have control, and can use the anchor text of your choosing to in essence Brand your web site to appear in the search engines on the keywords you use as your anchor text.

Please let me know if you have any additional questions on this topic or any other by leaving a comment on the blog.  It was a comment there that generated this post.

Anchor text are not limited to Squidoo, its just that to make the maximum use of Squidoo, you do need to learn how to do a little bit of extra work. Once you learn how, it’s a piece of cake.

Click here to get my Squidoo eBook.

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Setting up your web page, and getting your web site to the top of the search engines is a challenging but worthwhile task. The first step is to take stock of your current web site. How does it stack up in terms of its meta tags, on page factors and off page factors. What would need to happen to get to the top of the search engine rankings in your local market? For $99, I will review your existing site, identify its strengths and weaknesses. Suggest any easy changes you or your computer person can make quickly, and evaluate the steps you would need to take to rank in the top organic listings in your market place. This will include a half hour personal consultation with me, after I complete the analysis. To learn more send me and email together with your web site address, and I will do a free quick evaluation of your site to see whether or not my services would do you any good. Then and only then, will I ask you for a commitment, and payment. Send email to enetwal@gmail.com

Technorati Tags: anchor tag, anchor text, free backlinks, how to get backlinks, HTML Guide, improve search engine ranking, search engine optimization tool, Search Engine ranking tool, Squidoo ebook