Search Engine Optimization -an hour a day

This book written by Jennifer Grappone and Gradiva Couzin was probably the first SEO book I read not in electronic format - yes a real book with covers.

Unlike most of the electronic Search Engine Optimisation books this one didn't actually promise me untold riches, ferraris and low work millionaire lifestyles - ah well.

The book is written for a beginner targeted at a web owner or someone responsible for a web site who wants to improve it's visibility. The idea is that you spend " an hour a day " doing some search engine optimization on yoru web site. The book splits this hour up into individual tasks that should be accomplished in this hour.

The book has some good definitions and points out some of the valid mistakes that people make with regards to SEO. The one I particularly like to see emphasised is the " I'm ranked No1 in Google!" which is fairly meaningless without finishing the statement - "I.m ranked no 1 in Google for .........."

Grappone and Couzin make the important point that being ranked No1 is only useful if that ranking is for specific keywords relevant to your business. It's also the way that less responsible SEO consultants ply their trade - "yes I can give you a No 1 ranking in Google" ! (for the phrase -" baby kangaroo counselling services" ) - just watch those sales flood into your Computer consultancy service.

The book is easy to read and very simple to understand - I think this is my main criticism though is that the book feels a little lightweight on the actual core of SEO - there's lots of useful information on improving the look and feel of your website and attracting traffic but none of it very in depth.

As a series of tasks and pointers the book definately works - however lots of the subjects you would need to seek elsewhere to find more information on. It is a difficult subject to write a book on as SEO varies wildely and changes so often due to the whims of algorithms and competing sites. This book really does try and break the subject down to a very simplified level but does seem to spend a lot of time discussing non-SEO subjects when more facts would have been better.

It is a professionally written book though and for someone wanting an easy introduction to SEO and perhaps a handbook and guide to help them optimise their own website it is ideally suited.

If you have some knowledge of Search Engine Optimisation though you may find yourself skipping through lots of sections of this book.