| Maximizing traffic from the search engines to your | | | | verifying your link structure. |
| web site is not a difficult task but it does require you to | | | | Using Images For Primary Navigation Links |
| think ahead and plan your Search engine optimization | | | | Many webmasters like to use fancy looking navigation |
| strategy carefully. If you have not yet built your web | | | | links but, in doing so, they fail to establish a theme for |
| site and are still in the initial planning stages then you | | | | their sites. For instance, using a graphical link back to |
| may have an easier time of it. If you already have an | | | | your home page does not tell the search engine |
| existing web site, then you may need to take the time | | | | spiders what that link is about unless the spider actually |
| to read up on these SEO strategies and make some | | | | visits that page. If you use optimized ALT text on that |
| changes to incorporate them into your web site. | | | | graphical home page link, then that would be a step in |
| I will discuss 13 ways in which you can improve on | | | | the right direction. But to maximize the effect and |
| your existing web site or boost a brand new web site | | | | clearly define the theme of your web site, you need to |
| into the stratosphere of high rankings. These are NOT | | | | use a text link that has your primary keyword or |
| SEO tricks but rather tried, tested, ethical and true | | | | phrase within the link text. This is called Link Reputation. |
| methods that we know to work effectively. We all | | | | Home, Site Map and Contact Page Links |
| know that in reality there are no real SEO tricks. True | | | | The Home, Site Map and Contact pages are your |
| success is achieved through hard work, research and | | | | site's primary pages and should be your SEO strategy |
| implementation of a thorough and complete SEO | | | | top priority. It is essential that these pages be spidered |
| strategy. | | | | and exposed to your site visitors. To ensure that they |
| Without further ado here is a checklist of important | | | | are spidered, place links to them near the top of your |
| items to consider and implement into your SEO | | | | source code on every page of your web site. Your |
| strategy. | | | | home page is, of course, the main entrance to your |
| Using Javascript or Other Unspiderable Code | | | | web site so you want that to be the focal point in the |
| If you intend to use Javascript on your web page it is | | | | search engines. Your site map page should (if properly |
| best to use it sparingly or not at all. Search engine | | | | optimized) have links to all of your sub pages and use |
| spiders cannot read Javascript and it is possible that | | | | primary keywords belonging to each sub page within |
| along with ignoring it when they come across it on | | | | the link text pointing to those sub pages. Your contact |
| your page, they may also get hung up on it if you are | | | | page is just as important because it's used by visitors |
| using a lot of it. If you really need to use Javascript you | | | | who have questions or who wish to order products |
| can safely use it by putting the code into a separate | | | | and services. |
| JS file and calling it with a single line of code which you | | | | Redirected Pages |
| place between your head tags within the header of | | | | When a web page has outlived its usefulness, |
| your web page. | | | | webmasters will, on occasion, redirect visitors hitting |
| Using Style Guidelines Effectively | | | | that page to another page. Search engine spiders, |
| If you are using CSS style commands, do not include | | | | however, take a dim view of page redirects. If you |
| them within your actual web page source code. You | | | | change the content of your site and find that you have |
| don't want search engine spiders to have to wade | | | | no further use for a page, do not place a redirect on |
| through 100 lines of unreadable code before they | | | | that page. Instead, remove the outdated content and |
| reach your actual content. Instead, place your style | | | | replace it with something relevant. Include a text link to |
| guidelines into a separate CSS file and call them with a | | | | your home page or to a new replacement page. |
| single line of code from within your head tags again by | | | | When you remove a page or place a redirect on an |
| using the following code: | | | | outdated page, you're cheating yourself out of better |
| Primary Keyword Layout | | | | rankings and search engine traffic. Moreover, using |
| Examine your web site from a source code point of | | | | page redirects can result in the removal of your site |
| view and ensure that your primary keywords or | | | | listing in search engine databases with a consequent |
| phrases will be spidered first. When search engine | | | | loss of revenue. |
| spiders read your page they read the source code | | | | Excessively Small Type Font Sizes |
| just like we would read a book from left to right - top | | | | Text in a font smaller than font size 2 is normally |
| to bottom. We know that search engines place higher | | | | reserved for copyright information and the legal jargon |
| relevancy on keywords and phrases which appear | | | | often seen at the bottom of web pages. Use font size |
| closer to the top of a page so it stands to reason that | | | | 2, or greater, for the majority of text on your page. |
| if you've got a large table full of graphics appearing at | | | | Font size is a major factor in SEO strategy because |
| the top of your source code before your primary | | | | the font size used defines the relevancy a search |
| keywords, then you can achieve higher rankings by | | | | engine spider assigns to the content it finds on your |
| adjusting your layout and placing a well written search | | | | page. An example of this would be the text within |
| engine optimized paragraph above that table full of | | | | heading tags (H1 through to H6). Text surrounded with |
| graphics. | | | | H1 tags has a higher relevancy placed on it than text |
| Spiderable Text Present on Each Page | | | | surrounded with H6 tags. Visit the w3.org website for |
| Many times I have seen some very pretty web sites, | | | | a better understanding of how on-page text is viewed |
| but their chances of ranking high for any relevant | | | | by search engine spiders with regard to importance |
| keywords have been dashed by the use of only | | | | and relevancy. Search engine spiders tend to follow |
| graphics and very little or no text on the pages. It is | | | | the W3 HTML standard. |
| very important to your SEO strategy that you make | | | | Hidden Text, Door Way Pages and Other Tricks |
| sure that you've taken the time to write some quality | | | | Nowadays search engines are pretty smart and trying |
| textual content for your pages. Don't write nonsensical | | | | to trick them is not a wise course of action. Take |
| text filled with blatant sp@m. Instead, take a few extra | | | | some time to stop and examine your approach before |
| minutes and write 4-5 quality paragraphs which clearly | | | | proceeding with your SEO strategy. The rule of thumb |
| explain the theme of your site and the particular page | | | | is that if it looks like spam or could be perceived as |
| you're writing for. | | | | spam by the search engines, then it probably is spam. |
| Proper Use of robots.txt File | | | | The last thing you need is for a competitor to report |
| On several occasions I have performed an analysis of | | | | unethical SEO tactics to the search engines. Such |
| a client's web site only to discover that they had | | | | tactics could result in a loss of existing site listings as |
| inadvertently blocked spider access to their web site | | | | well as a ban on future submissions. So, to ensure the |
| by incorrectly formatting their robots.txt file. It is critical | | | | longevity of your online business, stay away from any |
| that you know what you're doing when you use a | | | | technique that looks unethical. |
| robots.txt file. If you are unsure of the correct syntax | | | | Using HTML Frames |
| when modifying or creating a robots.txt file, I | | | | In short, don't. Frames are not very search engine |
| recommend you not use a robots.txt file at all. This | | | | friendly because search engines cannot read a |
| may sound counterproductive, but it's better to be safe | | | | framed source document that tells your browser to |
| than sorry. Accidentally blocking the spiders can result | | | | load more than one page in your browser window at |
| in a loss of all your rankings. It would almost be like | | | | the same time. Thus, achieving a high PageRank on |
| starting over again to repair the damage. For help on | | | | your home page is difficult. Frames also make it hard |
| correctly formatting your robots.txt file, visit | | | | for search engine spiders to find all of your sub pages. |
| robotstxt.org. | | | | Non-Spider-Friendly URL's |
| Dead Links and 404 Errors | | | | If the URL's for your web site contain characters such |
| If you are not checking for broken links on your web | | | | as &, $, =, %, etc., that is they are dynamic in |
| site, then you should start immediately and make this a | | | | nature, then search engine spiders may not be able to |
| part of your SEO strategy. You can never be 100% | | | | read them. And, if they can't be read, then the search |
| sure of your link integrity, especially when your site has | | | | engine spiders won't be able to follow them to index |
| 100, or more, pages. Aside from losing potential | | | | your pages. However, there are solutions available to |
| customers into a vortex of 404 errors, you risk more | | | | fix this problem. For example, webmasters who have |
| than that from a search engine perspective. When a | | | | sites hosted on servers with Unix operating systems |
| search engine spider visits your web site and finds | | | | can use Apache mod_rewrite to rewrite URL's that |
| broken links, the impression left is that your site is not | | | | contain a session ID, or other nasty characters, into |
| regularly maintained and updated. Not much is known | | | | search engine spider friendly URL's. |
| about how the engines view this, but your crawl status | | | | SEO, of course, is not just limited to the 13 areas |
| may be assigned a low priority by visiting search | | | | covered in this article, but if you apply the SEO |
| engine spiders. In other words, the spiders may not visit | | | | strategies outlined in these 13 areas to your web site, |
| your site as frequently as they visit sites with 100% link | | | | you will find that your site rankings and traffic improve |
| integrity. So make sure you download some link | | | | dramatically. |
| checking software and begin a regular schedule of | | | | |