You know search engine optimization (SEO) is a powerful sword that can beat down your competition like weeds, but are you working every possible angle with your current SEO strategy? There is a lot to learn in the world of SEO and most small business owners are only using a very small portion of the knowledge that is out there to be found.

You don't want to be one of those small business owners! You want to be one of the few who discover every aspect of the art so you rise to the top rather than sinking in mediocrity with the rest of them.

Search engine optimization is a two-edged sword. If you aren't flexing both edges you aren't getting the best results possible from your SEO strategy.

Edge #1: Onsite SEO

This is where most people start with SEO, and unfortunately it is where many small businesses end. Onsite search engine optimization involves lacing your entire website with well chosen keywords in an effort to be ranked as highly as possible by the search engines. These keywords are the language spoken by the search engines and your customers when they use the search engines.

The easiest part of SEO is placing the keywords into the content of your website and blog, but there is a lot more to onsite SEO.

For starters, you have to take the time to develop a spot-on keyword list, and then you have to continually be updating that list. You want to find three different types of keywords:

1. Those that are being searched for the most by your target market and used heavily by your competitors.

2. Those that get searched a lot but aren't being used as much by competitors.

3. Keywords that are increasing over time (the best keywords of tomorrow).

When a keyword becomes ineffective or loses its search power you need to take it off your list and replace it with a word or phrase that is increasing in popularity. You want to get out ahead of your competition by picking up the newest keywords for your niche first.

Just placing these keywords in the basic content of your website is no longer enough. You have to name your website with you strongest keyword and place the right keywords in your meta-tags, captions on images, and a variety of other technical places.

Edge #2: Offsite SEO

You will use that same keyword list for your offsite efforts. This is where you start getting other popular websites to carry a one-way link to your website. You want the search engines to see that you are very popular because all of these other sites find you valuable enough to point their viewers in your direction.

The most cost effective way to get these links is through article marketing, though there are some other options out there. The goal is to gradually increase the number of links pointing back to your site over time. If you go too fast you risk being considered a spam site which is never a good thing.

The key to effective SEO is to use both edges of the search engine optimization sword. You want to cut your competition down at their knees by getting your site noticed in every possible way so you rise in the ranks.