There are two types of search engine optimisation SEO techniques that will determine your website's standing with the search engines. They are, On-Page SEO and Off-Page SEO. On Page SEO is what can be done on website pages to maximise search engines performance for target keywords in direct relation to the on page content.

It basically refers to the text and formatting of TEXTUAL content on web site pages. In simple terms it refers to the editing and optimisation of pages and content so that search engines can find your web page when a user searches for a web site on a particular topic using keywords and keyword phrases.

On page SEO in addition to looking very closely at the nature and quality of content, particularly copy also pays close attention to the structure of the site. Search engines apply great weight to structure and they like to know what's important about each site. Semantically Relevant information needs to be higher up in the site hierarchy and each page should use. Focus is drawn to:
· The topicality, depth, detail and breadth of the information presented
· How the content is interlinked - the internal anchor text, its source and destination. When the opportunity presents itself, include links to related products, related articles and related searches. Ensure the anchor text is optimised. The number and nature of external links - how concentrated they are and which pages they are pointed at
· Structural elements - heading, paragraph and other HTML tags that prioritise importance.
Off page SEO is deployed in an attempt to influence how search engines view your website and thereby control your ranking. Off page search engine optimisation or off-page SEO basically seeks to influence and control how the Internet portrays your website - Its profile and reputation. Off Page SEO techniques when well applied can result in significant search benefits and generate high MSN, Google and Yahoo rankings, drive traffic to sites and generating strong returns on investment.

On Page SEO has been around since the first commercial search engines appeared on the scene in the mid 1990's. In those days the search engines used simpler, less sophisticated technology and the Internet was considerably smaller. Simple On Page SEO was sufficient to differentiate sites of relevance, as the search process was basically a comparison of on page elements with the most obviously useful information attaining highest search engine placement.

As the Internet grew exponentially with huge amounts of new sites and content it became necessary to apply increasingly sophisticated methods of generating Relevant Search Results. Ever-resourceful webmasters and SEO marketeers sought to find ways by which their sites would appear at the top of search returns so the search companies worked hard to keep ahead of them. Differentiating between sites of relevance and sites that spammed them with worthless content provides an ongoing challenge to the search engine companies.
There are a number of generic rules of thumb that should be adopted to rank high on the search engine result pages (SERP's) such as well-optimized structure. Whilst many crucial ranking factors covered by on page SEO are controllable, refineable and manageable, in the final analysis, it's the nature of the balance between On Page SEO and Off Page SEO that dictates Search Engine Optimisation success.

Find the most searched keywords for the niche, genre or theme, deploy those keywords throughout the documents then apply an internal linking strategy based on contextual architecture. As much high quality copy should be included as possible. Search engines are relevance hungry and much prefer specialist and expert copy against uninformed content.

Approach each web page on your site as (almost) standalone entity. Every page of your web site should have a Unique Title Tag that reflects the content on that particular page. Including keywords in your domain/sub domain or file/folder is always advisable and strong Search Engine Optimisation will ensure that your page/folder URL contains your most important keyword. Ideally name your web page files starting with the targeted keyword - keyword.htm - It doesn't matter how awkward web page files look or sound as their not publicly viewable it's only you and the search engine spiders get have access to them.
Tag content with informative and compelling titles and descriptions, make sure the alt-attributes, and the file naming conventions are themed and optimised.

Header Tags are an important part of On page SEO and must be applied with care. Ideal optimisation involves a single H1 tag that containing the main keyword for that page followed with 3 - 4 H2 tags that containing the secondary keywords for that page. Little importance is given to H3 and on.
Optimising alt text and link text and ensuring on page optimization is razor sharp can ensure your pages keep upwardly mobile in the SERPs (search engine result pages).

While making your web page as search engine friendly as possible keep in mind that the copy is destined for human not spider consumption. It needs to read well. Keyword Density is a balancing act though it is safer and wiser to weigh the balance in favour or readers not bots. Search engines are programmed and fashioned on principles of ethical (by their own definition) behaviour such as reputation and trust. Take care not to 'over optimise' pages by stuffing them full of key words.

Not only will they read poorly but you may face the wrath of the search engines with their engine algorithms that take into account the keyword density of a particular page. By applying in-depth analyses of the best returning websites for a given keyword (for Google, speculation puts the ideal keyword density at between 1.5 - 1.8 % while MSN runs up to 3.0 %, with Yahoo somewhere between) they can identify that something just isn't right if your website has a keyword density of 10% or more.

This is know as spamming or spamdexing and sends up an immediate red flag alert to the search engines. Best to also avoid hidden text, using link farms (sites with 100+ outbound links per page), irrelevant keywords in your link-ads, junk links, doorway pages link churning, mirror pages, hidden inbound links and cloaking. Such Black Hat On Page SEO could lead to search engines penalizing sites by reducing their rankings or eliminating their listings from their databases altogether.

While sites of course need off page optimisation and links to be treated as an authority and to rank well by the search engines it's important to ensure that your On Page SEO factors have been addressed.