Search Engine Optimization (SEO) | PageRank

Cure Your Poor Engine Placement
Got ranking woes? Don't use search engine submission forms. Get ranking the right way. Here's a brief overview of steps you can take right now that could solve your problems.

Get More Links
You can't be listed if the search engines don't know you're there. The fastest way to get added to the index is to get links from already established websites. Here are my favorite methods:

Post Blog Comments
My favorite way to build inbound links is to comment intelligently on related blog posts. Most blog comment forms allow you to enter a URL. Enter yours, and then say something witty or insightful about the blog post. Don't re-post your link, or include any spammy promotional messages.

Give yourself plenty of time, and try to post at least ten comments per week. Some blogs use the nofollow attribute, so some comments won't be counted -- but if you post something intelligent, the blogger might just blog about you in their next post.

Participate in Message Boards
Most message forums allow you to include links in your signature that appear below every post. As with blog comments, don't post promotional messages. Just participate in the community and be a positive and helpful voice.

Use Better Page Titles
Got a term you're trying to rank for? Make sure it's in your page title. In most keyword spaces, this step alone will get you ranking within three or four months. For competitive terms, you'll need to do more.

Add More Content
Do you sell blue widgets and red widgets? Rather than have a color selector, why not create two different product pages (linked to each other, of course). Use customized titles and text for each. For example, you could use the following page titles:

Blue Widget - XYZ Corp.
Red Widget - XYZ Corp.
Doing so will help you rank better for both specific terms, rather than a single, more general term. Specific terms tend to convert to sales better than more general terms. (see The Long Tail: SEO Tips for more detail).

You're also more likely to rank in the critical top three positions if you target more specific terms. According to a recent eyetracking study from Eyetools, visibility declines rapidly beyond beyond the top three listings. The number 10 spot, for instance, is only seen 20% of the time.

In other words, if your keyword is searched 100 times, and you're in position 10 in the SERP, your link is only seen 20 times.

Use Cleaner Code
Do you have HTML tables, CSS, or JavaScript in your pages?

HTML tables can be removed in favor of lighter-weight CSS-P.
CSS can be stored in a separate file and linked with the link element.
JavaScript can be stored in a separate file and linked with the script element.
Fix Common Mistakes
Be sure you're not making any of the most common SEO mistakes. In particular, make sure you have text navigation (you can overlay graphics for style-aware browsers), and that your critical keyword-loaded content isn't buried in flash objects that search engines might struggle to digest.

There are good reasons to use flash in some cases, but most of the flash I see is not necessary, and hurts both rankings and usability.

DON'T
Assume that you've been banned, or that Google doesn't like you. Chances are, it's not true.
Use automated site submit services. This can actually get your site red flagged, and delay your rankings.
Spam -- people, blogs, forums, or search engines.
Follow this advice today, and you could be ranking tomorrow.