http://www.grantasticdesigns.com/searchengines.html

http://www.lookoff.com/tactics/promotion.html

http://www.1stsearchranking.com/link-popularity.htm

http://www1stsearchranking.com/open-directory.htm

http://www.sofer.com/research/searchmain.html

http://www.deadlock.com/promote/?1482 - excellent resources on search engine optimization, "power promotion" for online businesses, a free newsletter and more!

You can also search for optimization tips on Microsoft's bCentral small business hub. You'll find pages of advice, which prove particularly useful in optimizing for Microsoft's new Bing search engine - although many of the tricks listed are still applicable to Google and other search engines as well.

What sites have YOU found to be helpful in learning more about search engine optimization?

Myth #1 - You can always handle optimization in-house. Maybe. But not always - and certainly not unless you either a) have an employee whose sole job is SEO or b) are one of those lucky people who just have wayyyyyy too much time on your hands. And my guess is, if you ARE one of those people, you are probably too busy trying to figure out how to turn binder clips into an iPhone dock to even worry about SEO. As well-known SEO expert Bruce Clay points out, organic SEO takes a lot of time and involves constant monitoring - and even then, it's not always enough. Sometimes you still need to invest in other options, or perhaps even an official SEO Training Course (yes, they have those). If you're still wanting to give it a try in-house, I recommend reading over some of the information on Bruce's site. It's a great starting point.

Myth #2 - We bought software that does it all for us, so we don't have to worry about anything else. Ah, yes, SEO software. There are certainly plenty of options out there if you're trying to save yourself some time - but please understand that not all software is created equal. For instance, many of the options are limited only to Windows (sorry Mac and Linux users). SEO software has been around since the mid- to late-nineties, and does work to a certain extent but it shouldn't be the only tool you use in the metaphorical toolbox. Look at it this way: if you are busy dealing with customers and simply don't have time for SEO (or don't want to pay someone to do it for you) then SEO software may be the right choice for you. But if you can make enough time to at least do some of it yourself, or use a combination of methods, that would be the best way to go.

Myth #3 - Optimization experts are too expensive. I'll just go ahead and debunk that one. The market is now so saturated with Search Engine Optimization (SEO) experts that you have a wide variety of pricing levels to choose from. Many of them are reasonably affordable. Here at Pixels and Media, we'd be happy to either do the optimization for you, or teach you a few tips and tricks so you can do it yourself. Just contact us for more information and pricing details!

Myth #4 - You can’t calculate the ROI of optimization. One reason business owners struggle with calculating the return of investment for search engine optimization is because there are so many factors involved - and not everyone knows what to look for. Should SEO ROI be limited to just the ranking on the Search Engine Results Pages (SERPs)? If so, which search engines? Just Google, or do the others matter at all? How do you track conversions? Are factors other than optimization taken into account - such as usability or layout? How do you track these results? These are all things that business owners need to take into consideration before determining if their SEO efforts were a success or a huge flop. Luckily, there are now programs available that will do the math for you. Just do a search for Search Engine Marketing ROI Calculator and see what comes up.

Myth #5 - Search Engine traffic isn’t as good as visitors from other sources. False. More and more people are using search engines to find content and to make purchases. The single best way to get traffic these days is from search engines, and unless you already have a well-established brand with a loyal customer base who know the URL to your website, you are going to need to optimize your site, get some inbound links, and do some sort of marketing to spread the word. If search engine traffic were unimportant, there wouldn't be such a huge market for SEO professionals out there.

What are some other rumors and "myths" you've heard about SEO? Any questions you still have, or any tips you can provide from your own personal experience? We'd love to hear your stories so feel free to share your comments here!

1)      Learn to Network. Yes, that means Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn can serve a purpose other than following Ashton Kutcher's every move or seeing what your old high school sweetheart is up to these days. Networking is, first and foremost, about meeting people, making friends and getting your name out there. Think of the internet as a wonderful new tool that you can use to do this. Building these relationships will only help build your business – and luckily, we now have social networking sites to assist in our global reach.

2)      Identify possible reciprocal linkers. Then, contact them directly and ask if they’d be interested in linking to your site if you return the favor and link back to theirs. This step is pretty easy but please know that there is a right and a wrong way to do this. First of all, JUST SAY NO TO LINK FARMS. If you don't know what a link farm is, consider yourself lucky. These are sites where people pay for links from hundreds of different sites that often have absolutely nothing to do with theirs. They do this with the hopes of moving up in the search engine results pages quicker, and sometimes (unfortunately) they do, but because this practice is frowned on by all the major search engines, this pleasure is usually short-lived. I don't recommend taking this risk unless you are looking to get banned. Instead, I'll tell you the right way to get inbound links: go to a search engine such as Google and type words for products and services that COMPLIMENT but don’t COMPETE WITH yours. Make a list of the sites that seem to get the HIGHEST traffic, and contact those sites first. If you get turned down, don't give up; there are plenty of sites out there, and most of them are undoubtedly in the same position as yourself, and need to build their reciprocal links. Remember, search engine optimization can be a long and slow process, so be patient and keep at it, and eventually you'll see some results!

3)      Set up an affiliate program. There are plenty of resources on the web for doing this. You can do a search on any major search engine for "affiliate program" to see some examples.

4)      Submit classified ads to online services. Make sure there is a link included either in your ad or on the page somewhere, so that you actually do receive a link back to your site!

5)      Write articles. Obviously, this method is going to be slightly more tedious, so it isn't for everyone, although it can be very effective. You can write articles and submit them to webmasters who will link back to your site in return, or put an ad on Craigslist stating that you would be willing to write articles for a reciprocal link. Do make sure that you don't post the same articles on your site that are being posted elsewhere around the Internet, though, as this is viewed as "duplicate content" and can be a big no-no for high search engine rankings.

6)      Put your site on rotation. Advertisement rotation, that is. There are plenty of sites out there that will let you pay either per click or a flat rate to place a banner or other advertisement on their page, with a link back to your site. You can use your favorite search engine to find one based on relevant keywords and phrases. I recommend finding a site that has similar or complimentary content to your own (again, avoid your competitors' sites) and preferably choose a site with plenty of visitor traffic and high search engine rankings. Prices, time frames, advertisement size and locations of the ad spot may vary. Many sites also prefer that you create the ad yourself and then send it over to them. If you have questions, be sure to contact the site owner or webmaster for more details.

7)      Link-sharing services. This includes sites like delicious.com and Digg, which allow users to recommend blogs and pages that they find helpful. This makes it easier for other users to find your site, gives you credibility for posting useful (or at least interesting) information and - best of all - the search engines crawl these sites and will notice if your site gets recommended. This is a win-win-win situation so encourage your visitors to submit your site to these services!

8)      Free For All (FFA) link pages. Did someone say "link farm"? This is not a new technique. In fact, it's been around since the mid-nineties. However, there is conflicting evidence about how much they will improve your traffic. Also, be prepared for inbox flooding; each submission can result in a confirmation email from the FFA site. And most of those emails are full of fun advertisements (read: SPAM). These sites tend to be full of unrelated and often irrelevant links from sites that are merely trying to improve their own search rankings rather than trying to offer valuable content. Therefore, many FFA's and link farms are penalized by the search engines - and presumably, your site could suffer in rankings because of this.

9) Editorial links or interviews. If you are an industry expert, you might be flooded with these requests already. Now here's the advice for the rest of us. You don’t have to be an industry expert to be interviewed for an article – if you’ve done Step #1 correctly. Look through your network and your list of friends. Do any of the people you know have their own sites? If so, contact them and see if they’d be interested in writing about you, your site, your services, or just interviewing you for an upcoming article or blog entry. If you don’t know anyone, go to Step #2 and try to find sites that might be interested in writing or blogging about you. Then contact those sites.

10) Create a site worth visiting. "Wait, Brittany," you might say, "you mean I am actually supposed to keep the visitor in mind when I create my site?" Hey, you, thanks for asking - and the answer is most definitely YES. The internet has changed a lot since the days of Al Gore (ha!) but that part has remained the same, and the search engines all agree. Content is still, and hopefully always will be, king. If you build it, and make it worthwhile with interesting and relevant and useful content, they will come. And maybe, just MAYBE, they'll link to you in return...

Give these tips and tricks a try. Be patient and persistant and you should get some inbound links in no time.