Realistic Search Engine Optimization Expectations

Those who've been in the SEO biz for a number of years know how much more competitive it is these days as compared to a few years ago. The number of webpages indexed by search engines has doubled, tripled, and quadrupled in past years. On top of that, a good portion of site owners and webmasters know just enough SEO to be dangerous. In the golden age of SEO, the vast majority of websites hadn't given a thought to the search engines, and when they did, it was only to place some keywords in their Meta tags. (Which, incidentally, didn't help then either.) Those were the days when anyone who knew even the slightest bit about SEO could easily rank highly in all the major search engines, with very little effort. Even competitive areas were doable with just a little more work than their non-competitive counterparts.

These days, it's almost the exact opposite. Even keyword phrases that nobody's searching for can sometimes be difficult to obtain high rankings with unless you really and truly know what you're doing. And even then, those rankings may be here one day, and gone the next. The problem is magnified for new businesses and new websites. If your site isn't at least a few years old, your SEO efforts will be less likely to provide the results you want. This is one reason why your website optimization should always be seen as a long-term proposition.

As we move forward in this industry, webmasters, site owners, and SEOs need to shift their focus from that of asking how they can get this keyword to this position in this engine to how they can get more targeted traffic and convert it into customers. Unfortunately, a large portion of those looking into SEO services are still seeing the small picture. For instance, on the contact form on my site, I ask people to tell me a little bit about their "business goals." A good portion who fill it out want something like "top-5 rankings in Google and Yahoo for this keyword." Huh? That's not a business goal! A business goal is more like "Bring more people to my website who are searching online for the types of products we sell." (As a side note, soon after writing this, I got an email from someone whose goal was to have their Flash site be "#1 in all the search engines for the word 'spring.'" I kid you not!)

Don't get me wrong, I very much understand why people would love to move their rankings up from #11 to #1 for a highly sought-after and targeted keyword phrase. I'm quite sure it would very much increase their targeted traffic and their sales (assuming they're doing everything else right). My frustration lies in the fact that there are people who believe that somehow an SEO company can magically snap their fingers or wave their magic wands and make it so. They probably found my site at #2 in Google for search engine optimization and expect that I can just do to their site whatever it was I did to my site, and voila -- instant rankings!

Even the best SEOs are not magicians. They can't simply place a site at the top of the engines when there are hundreds of thousands (if not millions) of others that offer basically the same thing, and provide basically the same information. If they could, you'd see a whole lot more millionaire SEOs.
Does this mean that SEO is dead?

Absolutely not! But SEO that focuses on rankings for the most highly sought-after keywords in any given space is most definitely dying. This doesn't mean that you have to settle for keywords that receive few searches. It just means that you have to broaden your horizons and see the big picture.

Almost every time I review one of those "put me at #1" prospects' websites, I see tons of opportunities for fixing the site in general so that it will work better for both their users and the search engines. They are almost always so focused on their "money phrases" that they completely neglect many areas of their site. Instead they put their special phrase on every page and never research the thousands of others that are being typed into search engines every day.

Another trend I've been seeing a lot lately is the creation of content simply for the sake of creating content. What's that all about? SEOs certainly throw the words "good content" around a lot, but why is it that nobody seems to know what that means? We now have a whole cottage industry of companies who will allegedly write "good content" for you. Worse, there's even one that will *rent* you content! Newsflash...good content has nothing to do with the history of your products. Nor is good content a bunch of madlib spam pages where you simply substitute keyword phrases from one page into the other. Good content isn't stuff you write for the search engines.

Good content is unique. Really and truly unique. It is creative ideas that simply popped into your head which nobody else in your space has thought of yet. The key to good content is creativity. Unfortunately, creativity itself seems to be a dying art. Being creative isn't looking at what your competitor is doing and copying them. It's being a leader, not a follower. It's having your own voice and your own opinions and expressing them, regardless of what others might think. It's pouring your heart and soul into your website, not looking for the next quick fix. And it's (say it with me) making your site the best it can be for your site visitors AND the search engines. It's what's made my site rank highly for the most competitive phrase there is (among thousands of other phrases), and it's what will make your site rank highly for whatever phrases relate to it. But it's not easy, and it's not fast. And it can't be done with the flick of a switch.

So please...if your pet phrase isn't ranking highly enough, don't call me and don't email me. In fact, don't call or email *any* SEO company. Instead of calling, you need to reassess your goals. No SEO company in the world will be able to help you unless you are ready to forget about what you think you want, and learn more about what you really need. Read that last sentence again until you really understand it. Forget about what you think you want, and learn more about what you really need.

And remember, there are plenty of companies that will say they can do whatever you want them to do. You want to be #1 for spring? Sure, no problem. They will happily take your money, do some work, and promptly get no results. Don't blame them though -- they were just telling you what you wanted to hear.

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Ten Tips to the Top of the Search Engines

Having a website that gets found in Google, Yahoo, and MSN, etc. isn't hard to do, but it can be difficult to know where to begin. Here are my latest and greatest tips to get you started:

1. Do not purchase a new domain unless you have to. Due to Google's aging delay for all new domains, your best bet is to use your existing domain/website if at all possible. If you're redesigning or starting from scratch and you have to use a brand-new domain for some reason, you can expect to wait a good 9-12 months before your site will show up in Google for any keyword phrases that are important to you.



2. Optimize your site for your target audience, not for the search engines. This may sound counterintuitive, but hear me out. The search engines are looking for pages that best fit the keyword phrase someone types into their little search box. If those "someones" are typing in search words that relate to what your site offers, then they are most likely members of your target audience. You need to optimize your site to meet *their* needs. If you don't know who your target audience is, then you need to find out one way or another. Look for studies online that might provide demographic information, and visit other sites, communities, or forums where your target audience might hang out and listen to what they discuss. This information will be crucial to your resulting website design, keyword research, and copywriting.



3. Research your keyword phrases extensively. The phrases you think your target market might be searching for may very well be incorrect. To find the optimal phrases to optimize for, use research tools such as KeywordDiscovery, Wordtracker, Google AdWords, and Yahoo Search Marketing data. Compile lists of the most relevant phrases for your site, and choose a few different ones for every page. Never shoot for general keywords such as "travel" or "vacation," as they are rarely (if ever) indicative of what your site is really about.



4. Design and categorize your site architecture and navigation based on your keyword research. Your research may uncover undiscovered areas of interest or ways of categorizing your products/services that you may wish to add to your site. For instance, let's say your site sells toys. There are numerous ways you could categorize and lay out your site so that people will find the toys they're looking for. Are people looking for toys to fit their child's stage of development? (Look for keyword phrases such as "preschool toys.") Or are they more likely to be seeking specific brands of toys? Most likely, your keyword research will show you that people are looking for toys in many different ways. Your job is to make sure that your site's navigation showcases the various ways of searching. Make sure you have links to specific-brand pages as well as specific age ranges, specific types of toys, etc.



5. Program your site to be "crawler-friendly." The search engines can't fill out forms, can't search your site, can't read JavaScript links and menus, and can't interpret graphics and Flash. This doesn't mean that you can't use these things on your site; you most certainly can! However, you do need to provide alternate means of navigating your site as necessary. If you have only a drop-down sequence of menus to choose a category or a brand of something, the search engine crawlers will never find those resulting pages. You'll need to make sure that you always have some form of HTML links in the main navigation on every page which link to the top-level pages of your site. From those pages, you'll need to have further HTML links to the individual product/service pages. (Please note that HTML links do NOT have to be text-only links. There's nothing wrong with graphical image navigation that is wrapped in standard tags, as the search engines can follow image links just fine.)



6. Label your internal text links and clickable image alt attributes (aka alt tags) as clearly and descriptively as possible. Your site visitors and the search engines look at the clickable portion of your links (aka the anchor text) to help them understand what they're going to find once they click through. Don't make them guess what's at the other end with links that say "click here" or other non-descriptive words. Be as descriptive as possible with every text and graphical link on your site. The cool thing about writing your anchor text and alt attributes to be descriptive is that you can almost always describe the page you're pointing to by using its main keyword phrase.



7. Write compelling copy for the key pages of your site based on your chosen keyword phrases and your target market's needs, and make sure it's copy that the search engines can "see." This is a crucial component to having a successful website. The search engines need to read keyword-rich copy on your pages so they can understand how to classify your site. This copy shouldn't be buried in graphics or hidden in Flash. Write your copy based on your most relevant keyword phrases while also making an emotional connection with your site visitor. (This is where that target audience analysis comes in handy!) Understand that there is no magical number of words per page or number of times to use your phrases in your copy. The important thing is to use your keyword phrases only when and where it makes sense to do so for the real people reading your pages. Simply sticking keyword phrases at the top of the page for no apparent reason isn't going to cut it, and it just looks silly. (Purchase and read our Copywriting Combo for exact tips on how to implement this correctly.)



8. Incorporate your keyword phrases into each page's unique Title tag. Title tags are critical because they're given a lot of weight with every search engine. Whatever keyword phrases you've written your copy around should also be used in your Title tag. Remember that the information that you place in this tag is what will show up as the clickable link to your site at the search engines. Make sure that it accurately reflects the content of the page it's on, while also using the keyword phrases people might be using at a search engine to find your stuff.



9. Make sure your site is "link-worthy." Other sites linking to yours is a critical component of a successful search engine optimization campaign, as all of the major search engines place a good deal of emphasis on your site's overall link popularity. You can go out and request hundreds or thousands of links, but if your site stinks, why would anyone want to link to it? On the other hand, if your site is full of wonderful, useful information, other sites will naturally link to it without your even asking. It's fine to trade links; just make sure you are providing your site visitors with only the highest quality of related sites. When you link to lousy sites, keep in mind what this says to your site visitors as well as to the search engines.



10. Don't be married to any one keyword phrase or worried too much about rankings. If you've done the above 9 things correctly, you will start to see an increase in targeted search engine visitors to your site fairly quickly. Forget about where you rank for any specific keyword phrase and instead measure your results in increased traffic, sales, and conversions. (You can sign up for a free trial of ClickTracks, which easily tracks and measures those things that truly matter.) It certainly won't hurt to add new content to your site if it will really make your site more useful, but don't simply add a load of fluff just for the sake of adding something. It really is okay to have a business site that is just a business site and not a diatribe on the history of your products. Neither your site visitors nor the engines really give a hoot!

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Content Management Solutions India

Content Management System | CMS

Our content management system (CMS) provides you with the ability for organizing and facilitating collaborative creation of documents and other content. Our CMS can be used as a web application for managing websites and web content. It can also be used for storage and single sourcing of documentation for a firm including but not limited to operators manuals, technical manuals, sales guides, etc

Key Features of Content Management System

» Online authoring / change approval » WYSIWYG editing » Workflow including a review and publishing process » Session and user management » Indexing and Searching » Object Storage » Templating » Image and URL management More info about content management - Offshoresoftwaredevelopmentindia.com

B2B/ B2C Web Portals

A Web "Super Site" that provides a variety of services including Web search, news, e-mails, discussion groups, shopping and links to other sites. Our Web portal solution is site on the World Wide Web that typically provides personalized capabilities to their visitors. In addition, our business portals are designed to share collaboration in workplaces. A further business-driven requirement of portals is that the content be able to work on multiple platforms. With its Administration module administrator can add any number of Modules, Roles, and Events in every module.

Key Features of B2B/ B2C Web Portal Solutions.

» Intranet/Internet Home for corporate employees » Register users » Real-time site content editing » Contacts Functionality » Post Announcements » Post news » Post event » Sales information Functionality » Discussion forums Functionality » Site search functionality » Administration / Backend Functionality » Assign access rights to user groups » Manage site structure More info about portal development service - Offshore Software Development India

Microsoft Excel - Useful Shortcut Keys

Ctrl+A	Select All	None
Ctrl+B	Bold	Format, Cells, Font, Font Style, Bold
Ctrl+C	Copy	Edit, Copy
Ctrl+D	Fill Down	Edit, Fill, Down
Ctrl+F	Find	Edit, Find
Ctrl+G	Goto	Edit, Goto
Ctrl+H	Replace	Edit, Replace
Ctrl+I	Italic	Format, Cells, Font, Font Style, Italic
Ctrl+K	Insert Hyperlink	Insert, Hyperlink
Ctrl+N	New Workbook	File, New
Ctrl+O	Open	File, Open
Ctrl+P	Print	File, Print
Ctrl+R	Fill Right	Edit, Fill Right
Ctrl+S	Save	File, Save
Ctrl+U	Underline	Format, Cells, Font, Underline, Single
Ctrl+V	Paste	Edit, Paste
Ctrl W	Close	File, Close
Ctrl+X	Cut	Edit, Cut
Ctrl+Y	Repeat	Edit, Repeat
Ctrl+Z	Undo	Edit, Undo
F1	Help	Help, Contents and Index
F2	Edit	None
F3	Paste Name	Insert, Name, Paste
F4	Repeat last action	Edit, Repeat. Works while not in Edit mode.
F4	While typing a formula, switch between absolute/relative refs	None
F5	Goto	Edit, Goto
F6	Next Pane	None
F7	Spell check	Tools, Spelling
F8	Extend mode	None
F9	Recalculate all workbooks	Tools, Options, Calculation, Calc,Now
F10	Activate Menubar	N/A
F11	New Chart	Insert, Chart
F12	Save As	File, Save As
Ctrl+:	Insert Current Time	None
Ctrl+;	Insert Current Date	None
Ctrl+"	Copy Value from Cell Above	Edit, Paste Special, Value
Ctrl+’	Copy Fromula from Cell Above	Edit, Copy
Shift	Hold down shift for additional functions in Excel’s menu	none
Shift+F1	What’s This?	Help, What’s This?
Shift+F2	Edit cell comment	Insert, Edit Comments
Shift+F3	Paste function into formula	Insert, Function
Shift+F4	Find Next	Edit, Find, Find Next
Shift+F5	Find	Edit, Find, Find Next
Shift+F6	Previous Pane	None
Shift+F8	Add to selection	None
Shift+F9	Calculate active worksheet	Calc Sheet
Shift+F10	Display shortcut menu	None
Shift+F11	New worksheet	Insert, Worksheet
Shift+F12	Save	File, Save
Ctrl+F3	Define name	Insert, Names, Define
Ctrl+F4	Close	File, Close
Ctrl+F5	XL, Restore window size	Restore
Ctrl+F6	Next workbook window	Window, ...
Shift+Ctrl+F6	Previous workbook window	Window, ...
Ctrl+F7	Move window	XL, Move
Ctrl+F8	Resize window	XL, Size
Ctrl+F9	Minimize workbook	XL, Minimize
Ctrl+F10	Maximize or restore window	XL, Maximize
Ctrl+F11	Inset 4.0 Macro sheet	None in Excel 97. In versions prior to 97 - Insert, Macro, 4.0 Macro
Ctrl+F12	File Open	File, Open
Alt+F1	Insert Chart	Insert, Chart...
Alt+F2	Save As	File, Save As
Alt+F4	Exit	File, Exit
Alt+F8	Macro dialog box	Tools, Macro, Macros in Excel 97 Tools,Macros - in earlier versions
Alt+F11	Visual Basic Editor	Tools, Macro, Visual Basic Editor
Ctrl+Shift+F3	Create name by using names of row and column labels	Insert, Name, Create
Ctrl+Shift+F6	Previous Window	Window, ...
Ctrl+Shift+F12	Print	File, Print
Alt+Shift+F1	New worksheet	Insert, Worksheet
Alt+Shift+F2	Save	File, Save
Alt+=	AutoSum	No direct equivalent
Ctrl+`	Toggle Value/Formula display	Tools, Options, View, Formulas
Ctrl+Shift+A	Insert argument names into formula	No direct equivalent
Alt+Down arrow	Display AutoComplete list	None
Alt+’	Format Style dialog box	Format, Style
Ctrl+Shift+~	General format	Format, Cells, Number, Category, General
Ctrl+Shift+!	Comma format	Format, Cells, Number, Category, Number
Ctrl+Shift+@	Time format	Format, Cells, Number, Category, Time
Ctrl+Shift+#	Date format	Format, Cells, Number, Category, Date
Ctrl+Shift+$	Currency format	Format, Cells, Number, Category, Currency
Ctrl+Shift+%	Percent format	Format, Cells, Number, Category, Percentage
Ctrl+Shift+^	Exponential format	Format, Cells, Number, Category,
Ctrl+Shift+&	Place outline border around selected cells	Format, Cells, Border
Ctrl+Shift+_	Remove outline border	Format, Cells, Border
Ctrl+Shift+*	Select current region	Edit, Goto, Special, Current Region
Ctrl++	Insert	Insert, (Rows, Columns, or Cells) Depends on selection
Ctrl+-	Delete	Delete, (Rows, Columns, or Cells) Depends on selection
Ctrl+1	Format cells dialog box	Format, Cells
Ctrl+2	Bold	Format, Cells, Font, Font Style, Bold
Ctrl+3	Italic	Format, Cells, Font, Font Style, Italic
Ctrl+4	Underline	Format, Cells, Font, Font Style, Underline
Ctrl+5	Strikethrough	Format, Cells, Font, Effects, Strikethrough
Ctrl+6	Show/Hide objects	Tools, Options, View, Objects, Show All/Hide
Ctrl+7	Show/Hide Standard toolbar	View, Toolbars, Stardard
Ctrl+8	Toggle Outline symbols	None
Ctrl+9	Hide rows	Format, Row, Hide
Ctrl+0	Hide columns	Format, Column, Hide
Ctrl+Shift+(	Unhide rows	Format, Row, Unhide
Ctrl+Shift+)	Unhide columns	Format, Column, Unhide
Alt or F10	Activate the menu	None
Ctrl+Tab	In toolbar: next toolbar	None
Shift+Ctrl+Tab	In toolbar: previous toolbar	None
Ctrl+Tab	In a workbook: activate next workbook	None
Shift+Ctrl+Tab	In a workbook: activate previous workbook	None
Tab	Next tool	None
Shift+Tab	Previous tool	None
Enter	Do the command	None
Shift+Ctrl+F	Font Drop Down List	Format, Cells, Font
Shift+Ctrl+F+ F	Font tab of Format Cell Dialog box	Format, Cells, Font
Shift+Ctrl+P	Point size Drop Down List	Format, Cells, Font

- CTRL combination shortcut keys -

- Key Description -

CTRL+( Unhides any hidden rows within the selection.
CTRL+) Unhides any hidden columns within the selection.
CTRL+& Applies the outline border to the selected cells.
CTRL+_ Removes the outline border from the selected cells.
CTRL+~ Applies the General number format.
CTRL+$ Applies the Currency format with two decimal places (negative numbers in parentheses) .
CTRL+% Applies the Percentage format with no decimal places.
CTRL+^ Applies the Exponential number format with two decimal places.
CTRL+# Applies the Date format with the day, month, and year.
CTRL+@ Applies the Time format with the hour and minute, and AM or PM.
CTRL+! Applies the Number format with two decimal places, thousands separator, and minus sign (-) for negative values.
CTRL+- Displays the Delete dialog box to delete the selected cells.
CTRL+* Selects the current region around the active cell (the data area enclosed by blank rows and blank columns).
In a PivotTable, it selects the entire PivotTable report.

CTRL+: Enters the current time.
CTRL+; Enters the current date.
CTRL+` Alternates between displaying cell values and displaying formulas in the worksheet.
CTRL+' Copies a formula from the cell above the active cell into the cell or the Formula Bar.
CTRL+" Copies the value from the cell above the active cell into the cell or the Formula Bar.
CTRL++ Displays the Insert dialog box to insert blank cells.
CTRL+1 Displays the Format Cells dialog box.
CTRL+2 Applies or removes bold formatting.
CTRL+3 Applies or removes italic formatting.
CTRL+4 Applies or removes underlining.
CTRL+5 Applies or removes strikethrough.
CTRL+6 Alternates between hiding objects, displaying objects, and displaying placeholders for objects.
CTRL+7 Displays or hides the Standard toolbar.
CTRL+8 Displays or hides the outline symbols.
CTRL+9 Hides the selected rows.
CTRL+0 Hides the selected columns.
CTRL+A Selects the entire worksheet.
If the worksheet contains data, CTRL+A selects the current region. Pressing CTRL+A a second time selects the entire worksheet.

When the insertion point is to the right of a function name in a formula, displays the Function Arguments dialog box.

CTRL+SHIFT+A inserts the argument names and parentheses when the insertion point is to the right of a function name in a formula.

CTRL+B Applies or removes bold formatting.
CTRL+C Copies the selected cells.
CTRL+C followed by another CTRL+C displays the Microsoft Office Clipboard.

CTRL+D Uses the Fill Down command to copy the contents and format of the topmost cell of a selected range into the cells below.
CTRL+F Displays the Find dialog box.
SHIFT+F5 also displays this dialog box, while SHIFT+F4 repeats the last Find action.

CTRL+G Displays the Go To dialog box.
F5 also displays this dialog box.

CTRL+H Displays the Find and Replace dialog box.
CTRL+I Applies or removes italic formatting.
CTRL+K Displays the Insert Hyperlink dialog box for new hyperlinks or the Edit Hyperlink dialog box for selected existing hyperlinks.
CTRL+L Displays the Create List dialog box.
CTRL+N Creates a new, blank file.
CTRL+O Displays the Open dialog box to open or find a file.
CTRL+SHIFT+O selects all cells that contain comments.

CTRL+P Displays the Print dialog box.
CTRL+R Uses the Fill Right command to copy the contents and format of the leftmost cell of a selected range into the cells to the right.
CTRL+S Saves the active file with its current file name, location, and file format.
CTRL+U Applies or removes underlining.
CTRL+V Inserts the contents of the Clipboard at the insertion point and replaces any selection. Available only after you cut or copied an object, text, or cell contents.
CTRL+W Closes the selected workbook window.
CTRL+X Cuts the selected cells.
CTRL+Y Repeats the last command or action, if possible.
CTRL+Z Uses the Undo command to reverse the last command or to delete the last entry you typed.
CTRL+SHIFT+Z uses the Undo or Redo command to reverse or restore the last automatic correction when AutoCorrect Smart Tags are displayed.

- Function keys -

F1 Displays the Help task pane.
CTRL+F1 closes and reopens the current task pane.

ALT+F1 creates a chart of the data in the current range.

ALT+SHIFT+F1 inserts a new worksheet.

F2 Edits the active cell and positions the insertion point at the end of the cell contents. It also moves the insertion point into the Formula Bar when editing in a cell is turned off.
SHIFT+F2 edits a cell comment.

F3 Pastes a defined name into a formula.
SHIFT+F3 displays the Insert Function dialog box.

F4 Repeats the last command or action, if possible.
CTRL+F4 closes the selected workbook window.

F5 Displays the Go To dialog box.
CTRL+F5 restores the window size of the selected workbook window.

F6 Switches to the next pane in a worksheet that has been split (Window menu, Split command).
SHIFT+F6 switches to the previous pane in a worksheet that has been split.

CTRL+F6 switches to the next workbook window when more than one workbook window is open.

Note When the task pane is visible, F6 and SHIFT+F6 include that pane when switching between panes.

F7 Displays the Spelling dialog box to check spelling in the active worksheet or selected range.
CTRL+F7 performs the Move command on the workbook window when it is not maximized. Use the arrow keys to move the window, and when finished press ESC.

F8 Turns extend mode on or off. In extend mode, EXT appears in the status line, and the arrow keys extend the selection.
SHIFT+F8 enables you to add a non-adjacent cell or range to a selection of cells by using the arrow keys.

CTRL+F8 performs the Size command (on the Control menu for the workbook window) when a workbook is not maximized.

ALT+F8 displays the Macro dialog box to run, edit, or delete a macro.

F9 Calculates all worksheets in all open workbooks.
F9 followed by ENTER (or followed by CTRL+SHIFT+ENTER for array formulas) calculates the selected a portion of a formula and replaces the selected portion with the calculated value.

SHIFT+F9 calculates the active worksheet.

CTRL+ALT+F9 calculates all worksheets in all open workbooks, regardless of whether they have changed since the last calculation.

CTRL+ALT+SHIFT+ F9 rechecks dependent formulas, and then calculates all cells in all open workbooks, including cells not marked as needing to be calculated.

CTRL+F9 minimizes a workbook window to an icon.

F10 Selects the menu bar or closes an open menu and submenu at the same time.
SHIFT+F10 displays the shortcut menu for a selected item.

ALT+SHIFT+F10 displays the menu or message for a smart tag. If more than one smart tag is present, it switches to the next smart tag and displays its menu or message.

CTRL+F10 maximizes or restores the selected workbook window.

F11 Creates a chart of the data in the current range.
SHIFT+F11 inserts a new worksheet.

ALT+F11 opens the Visual Basic Editor, in which you can create a macro by using Visual Basic for Applications (VBA).

ALT+SHIFT+F11 opens the Microsoft Script Editor, where you can add text, edit HTML tags, and modify any script code.

F12 Displays the Save As dialog box.

- Other useful shortcut keys -

ARROW KEYS Move one cell up, down, left, or right in a worksheet.
CTRL+ARROW KEY moves to the edge of the current data region (data region: A range of cells that contains data and that is bounded by empty cells or datasheet borders.) in a worksheet.

SHIFT+ARROW KEY extends the selection of cells by one cell.

CTRL+SHIFT+ARROW KEY extends the selection of cells to the last nonblank cell in the same column or row as the active cell.

LEFT ARROW or RIGHT ARROW selects the menu to the left or right when a menu is visible. When a submenu is open, these arrow keys switch between the main menu and the submenu.

DOWN ARROW or UP ARROW selects the next or previous command when a menu or submenu is open.

In a dialog box, arrow keys move between options in an open drop-down list, or between options in a group of options.

ALT+DOWN ARROW opens a selected drop-down list.

BACKSPACE Deletes one character to the left in the Formula Bar.
Also clears the content of the active cell.

DELETE Removes the cell contents (data and formulas) from selected cells without affecting cell formats or comments.
In cell editing mode, it deletes the character to the right of the insertion point.

END Moves to the cell in the lower-right corner of the window when SCROLL LOCK is turned on.
Also selects the last command on the menu when a menu or submenu is visible.

CTRL+END moves to the last cell on a worksheet, in the lowest used row of the rightmost used column.

CTRL+SHIFT+END extends the selection of cells to the last used cell on the worksheet (lower-right corner).

ENTER Completes a cell entry from the cell or the Formula Bar, and selects the cell below (by default).
In a data form, it moves to the first field in the next record.

Opens a selected menu (press F10 to activate the menu bar) or performs the action for a selected command.

In a dialog box, it performs the action for the default command button in the dialog box (the button with the bold outline, often the OK button).

ALT+ENTER starts a new line in the same cell.

CTRL+ENTER fills the selected cell range with the current entry.

SHIFT+ENTER completes a cell entry and selects the cell above.

ESC Cancels an entry in the cell or Formula Bar.
It also closes an open menu or submenu, dialog box, or message window.

HOME Moves to the beginning of a row in a worksheet.
Moves to the cell in the upper-left corner of the window when SCROLL LOCK is turned on.

Selects the first command on the menu when a menu or submenu is visible.

CTRL+HOME moves to the beginning of a worksheet.

CTRL+SHIFT+HOME extends the selection of cells to the beginning of the worksheet.

PAGE DOWN Moves one screen down in a worksheet.
ALT+PAGE DOWN moves one screen to the right in a worksheet.

CTRL+PAGE DOWN moves to the next sheet in a workbook.

CTRL+SHIFT+PAGE DOWN selects the current and next sheet in a workbook.

PAGE UP Moves one screen up in a worksheet.
ALT+PAGE UP moves one screen to the left in a worksheet.

CTRL+PAGE UP moves to the previous sheet in a workbook.

CTRL+SHIFT+PAGE UP selects the current and previous sheet in a workbook.

SPACEBAR In a dialog box, performs the action for the selected button, or selects or clears a check box.
CTRL+SPACEBAR selects an entire column in a worksheet.

SHIFT+SPACEBAR selects an entire row in a worksheet.

CTRL+SHIFT+SPACEBAR selects the entire worksheet.

If the worksheet contains data, CTRL+SHIFT+SPACEBAR selects the current region. Pressing CTRL+SHIFT+SPACEBAR a second time selects the entire worksheet.
When an object is selected, CTRL+SHIFT+SPACEBAR selects all objects on a worksheet.
ALT+SPACEBAR displays the Control menu for the Excel window.

TAB Moves one cell to the right in a worksheet.
Moves between unlocked cells in a protected worksheet.

Moves to the next option or option group in a dialog box.

SHIFT+TAB moves to the previous cell in a worksheet or the previous option in a dialog box.

CTRL+TAB switches to the next tab in dialog box.

CTRL+SHIFT+TAB switches to the previous tab in a dialog box.

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