This stuff works - but be patient

[Capote]

..or subtitled "This is how I did it"

Managed to get clients second most important keyword to #1 on Google recently (most important is about 5 or 6, am getting there with that one)

Yes, we all know 'rankings aren't important, traffic/searches are' but you know what -  when a Client sees their keyword at #1 it kinda helps getting paid.

Thus, in summary, this is how I did it. I don't think there's anything earth shattering here but it might help a few out as I see so many 'where do i start' type posts.

1 - Do everything within Webmaster Tools that is humanly possible. Sitemaps, fix errors, preferred domain the lot. Spend ages here!

2 - Get your on page optimisation sorted out. Decide on THE main keyword for page, fire it into your campaign and test it. Do not give up until it's an A and you've done ALL the tips/hints (yes, even bold text on the page.) It's obvious but you have to tell a Search Engine exactly what the page is about - and give it a few hints too.

3 - Links - ahhh, good old links the bain of our lives. This site was struggling for links so i bought some - yes, the shame of it. I still think the best directories are a good starting point, spent about £400 or so. (BOTW, JoeAnt, HotVsNot etc,) Also, find low hanging fruit places for links. See where top 3 or 4 competitors are getting links from (via OSE) and get your site linked there too. These aren't always chargeable.

4 - Get rid of as many errors you can from Crawl Diagnostics (Roger) and do everything you can to ensure page(s) load as quick as possible. e.g. for images, resize them and reduce colour depth.

5 - Go over Steps 1-4 again and again AND AGAIN.

I think that's about it (will add anything if i think of it), this all took about 4-5 months - not to do the SEO work but for Google (or any SE) to recognise it all, so thanks to all at SEOmoz, the blogs and this forum for all the assistance. (Just need to get Linkscape updated quicker now folks - i couldn't resist that one!)

[Capote]

Ben, i'd love to know how much the On-page versus the Off-page stuff accounted for the rankings boost but can't put an exact value on it. All i know is MozTrust is up, DA is up so am happy for the time being. As soon as the next Index update is done i'll do a before and after Keyword Analysis report to try and get more granular.

Personally, i think Directories will become less relevant as Social takes over as a 'vote of trust' but don't think G is killing off the directory business quite yet. Am definitely sticking to quality over quantity for these however.

[Capote]

Ah yes, Step 0 is paramount! Thanks for the comment.

[BenFox]

Glad to hear it's all working for you.

Do you think the directories had a noticeable impact. I've discontinued by BOTW subscription because I didn't see the value in it anymore but would be interested in hearing your experience.

[HalogenDigital]

Step 0: Have good content.

But seriously, this is a great list and mirrors my sentiments exactly. I just recently developed a website following these exact guidelines to the letter, also adding in Schema.org & other such data like Facebook's Open Graph.

Content is flowing, so now it's a waiting game