The Google Alert Tool is actually a gadget that can be used for the purposes of search engine optimization (SEO). This tool allows you to fill in perimeters on a form so you can keep your eye on new entries that make it into the top 50 on Google. You enter up to one of 5 keywords to a total of 150 query requests and Google will email you every time a new entry enters the top 50 results. You can also narrow the number down to the top thirty or ten hits on a keyword or the top one hundred. Putting the perimeters at 30 is not a bad idea as being in the top thirty page rankings on Google is what is thought to make you money.

Why is it so important for you to know what the top sites are? It is because these are the sites that are going to let you know who the top players are when it comes to your competition. And rather than treat them as competition you are going to try to make this site your partner by trading links with them. If you are really lucky, the site is brand new and you are the first one asking for a link exchange. Chances are that anyone who has a site in the top 50 is probably a good partner for your site and knows what he or she is doing. There is also a chance that the person may not know that his or her site is in the top thirty or fifty and you can be the one that brings them this good news.