Google,
Yahoo and MSN: the 3 major search engines that can
make or break a site.
I'm not gonna sugarcoat this, search engines
are a difficult nut to crack. Just when you think you've got
it figured out and your site is in the top 5, they'll mess with
the algorithms and your site might be dropped for the next 6
months. So never, ever think you're set. You ain't.
That said, there are a lot of things you
can do to optimize your site and give it the best chance for
optimum placement. We've already talked about domain names and
how that can help. Let's travel down a page to see what else
we can do.
Meta tags: You'll want to read our tutorial
on Meta Tags to give yourself
the best advantage.
Links: Inbound links help
hugely. The better the site, the more valuable the link, too,
so start trading links with websites that are related to your
chosen subject matter and you'll be doing yourself a great favor
on the Search Engines.
Correct HTML: Visit one
of the HTML validation sites to make sure your HTML is up to
speed. You never know, a programming error could keep your website
from ever being listed.
Site Maps: Having a site
map makes it easier for search engine spiders (and your visitors)
to see the contents of your site. Make one.
Keywords: Keywords
throughout your text plays a big part in getting listed. If
your site specializes in blue widgets and you only have a single
mention of blue widgets, the search engines aren't going to
think you're much of an authority. On the other hand, if you
make a page for what blue widgets can do for you, another page
on blue widget tips and tricks, then another for the history
of blue widgets, you'll be giving both visitors and spiders
what they want, content.
A note on keywords: don't overdo
it, the keywords should work within the context of your page.
If you lamely repeat your keywords like crazy thinking more
is better, you'll probably end up with a spam penalty and
that = no listing at all.
Content: The #1 thing you
can do to get high search engine rankings is to have great,
original content (emphasis on "original"). Btw, If
you suck at writing, hire someone to do it, because crap writing
is ugly, boring and will send visitors away in a flash. Oh,
and spellcheck!!
Content is King. Don't forget
it.
But wait! Your site won't be listed for
a couple months (maybe several months in Google's case!) What
to do? Advertise on Google,
Yahoo & MSN...
