Raster Gang

Search engine optimization theory is fast becoming a hot topic in 2009. It seems like anyone and everyone who has an SEO blog is trying to make a name for themselves in the field of SEO theory. Don’t be fooled. Real SEO theorists are rare to find. The field of SEO theory has been around for many years but its undisputed spokesperson and most influential writer is Michael Martinez, author of the SEO Theory blog. Martinez began his SEO career in the late 1990s when his efforts to promote his Web sites topped out. Learning about search engine optimization, he set himself to the task of mastering this new, emerging skill set.

To be sure, there are other sites where you can learn about SEO theory but not in anything like the depth and detail that Martinez has applied on the original blog. He does write another blog where he occasionally shares SEO theory but the one authoritative source remains SEO-theory.com, which offers white papers, a glossary, and a searchable index of hundreds of long, detailed articles about principle and theory.

Although some people speak about “the art of SEO” the SEO theory field is more about science than art. People who practice SEO as an art lack sufficient grounding in theory to really explain why search engine optimization works. They can take you through the motions of doing SEO but their attempts to explain how it actually works are lackluster at best.

Through the years many sites have written great reviews of SEO Theory, acknowledging Michael Martinez’s accomplishments in the field of studying, understanding, and explaining how search engine optimization works. He may not be the most popular pundit in the industry, but he is without a doubt one of the best SEOs in the world.