I've been telling clients and prospects for years that there aren't any lasting shortcuts to great search engine results. Back in the ancient days of unrelated meta tags and premium Yahoo listings, there seemed to be ways to game the system and get your site listed higher than your competitors. The problem with that approach was that Yahoo, and on a much grander scale, Google, kept changing the rules of the game, meaning that last week's SEO strategy was a losing proposition today.

The best idea to drive people to your site is the same technique used for generations in any creative field: make great content and promote it with an intensely personal approach. Get your new friends to do your promotion for you. Then do it again.

That's why I found myself nodding in agreement (and not for the first time, either) with Jeff Jarvis today on his BuzzMachine blog. In a post about the increasing personalization of Google's search results, Jeff writes:

But as Google gets better at personal relevance through everything it knows about us — and it knows more and more — then your search for wine may be different from mine and there is no absolute value for placement in results and Googlejuice, no?

What does that mean to brands? The world gets confusing once more. But I think it means that true relevance becomes more important than SEO tricks. It also means that the more relationships you have with people — the more they talk about you and link to you and click on you — the better off you will be.

Imagine... your site becomes a popular destination not because you could outspend your competition, but because you're providing more relevant information. How very quaint.

There are, naturally, always those who will promise the "quick fix" method of getting what you want, whether it's weight loss, debt reduction or search engine optimization. Don't take shortcuts, though, because in the long view the game will continue to change and force you to come up with a new way to cheat.

Here's a better idea: write what you know, write what interests you, write what you really care about, then use the amazing social networking tools we have at our disposal to make connections with others who share your vision. Maybe it's not about having thousands of lukewarm visitors to your site per day, but instead one or two who really care. It's the old concept of a qualified lead. Create your blog or your site for those people, and let Google's organic search algorithms do the rest.

I had the pepper steak combo (with eggroll and wonton soup) at my local Chinese restaurant a few days ago. After lunch, my fortune was "Slow but steady wins the race." I smiled when I read that because I'd just been thinking about the many "get rich quick" methods of internet marketing that are being promoted today. Do a search on Google for "SEO" and you'll find some of them. They may promise to "guarantee" top listings on Google or Yahoo, or suggest they have a special relationship with the search engines that can rocket your website to that coveted number one position.

Just as in the "offline" world, there's no shortcut to long-term success, and search engine optimization isn't any different. There's no easy way to trick Google and Yahoo into listing your site higher. Take it from the folks at Google themselves. So how do you get your website noticed by prospective customers?

The one thing all search engines seem to love is fresh, quality content. Oddly enough, that's exactly what your website's visitors are looking for. They want to see that your business or organization is alive and well, and they want to know enough about you to make a decision whether to buy from you, or join your cause, or take a job at your company.

So here are four basic tips on how to improve your online presence, and in turn improve your rankings in the search engines:

• When writing content for your business or organization website, tell the whole story. Don't skimp on the details. Tell your visitors what you would want to know about your company if you knew nothing about it. Give them the information to make a decision right then.
• Keep the website updated. Think about the many websites we visit in a week that haven't been updated in months or even years. How confident are you about the current status of that company? They might be doing so well that they're too busy to update their website, but aren't we more likely to assume they've gone out of business?
• Consider starting a business blog. Search engines love blogs because there are usually many legitimate links coming in and out of the website, as you link to other interesting content and the media and other websites link to your compelling content.
• Use social media and networking sites such as LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter to connect with potential visitors to your site. The more you get the web address out there, the more likely people with find you and pay your site a visit.

There have always been temporary ways to game a system, including search engine rankings. Usually those loopholes are closed fairly quickly, as Google and Yahoo change their methods to keep their rankings accurate. The methods I describe above, however, while they won't bring overnight success, will in the long run build viewership to your website and improve your appearance in the search engines.

Slow but steady wins the race. Don't take shortcuts, invest the time and money needed to create a great online presence, and the rest will follow.