1. Title Tag
At the very top of a web site’s source code you’ll find numerous meta tags — the common ones being the Title, Description and Keyword tags. The title tag is technically not a meta tag, though it is normally associated with them. The title tag plays such a large role in the indexing of your web site, that it is considered the most important of the three.
A page title is the very first thing a search engine will look at when determining just what the specific page is all about. Additionally it is the first thing potential visitors will see when looking at your search engine listing.
It’s important to include a keyword or two in the title tag — but don’t go overboard – you don’t want to do what’s known as “keyword stuffing” which does nothing but make your web site look like spam. Many people includes either the company name, or title of the particular page here, likewise.
2. Meta Tags
There are two primary meta tags in terms of SEO — the description and the keyword tag. It’s arguable whether the search engines utilize description tag as far as ranking your results. Nevertheless it is one of the more valuable tags since it shows up in your search result — it is what people read when your link pops up and what makes them decide whether or not to visit your link. Be sure to include a few relevant keywords in this tag, but don’t stuff it with keywords either. The description tag should read like a sentence — not a keyword list. Due to “keyword stuffing” many search engines now totally disregard the keyword tag. It is no longer nearly as essential as it was years ago, even so it doesn’t hurt to include them in your source code.
When creating your keyword list, you’ll want to think of the suitable terms everyone will enter when looking for a site like yours. Just don’t go overboard — lots of duplicates are not a good thing (such as “web designer” “web designers” “custom web designer” “html web designer” “your state here web designer” – you get the idea). Those are all basically the same, so pick several variations at the most and move onto the other keyword.
3. Proper Use of Heading Tags
This is a pretty important element to consider when writing out your site copy. Use of heading tags helps users, web browsers and search engines alike know where the major key points of your copy are.
Your main page title should utilize tag — this shows what your page is about. Usage of additional tags, just like and are definitely imperative by helping to break down your copy. For one, you’ll see a visual break in the text. But as much as the major search engines are concerned, it will automatically know very well what your topics are on a page. The various heading tags give a priority to the content and help index your site properly.
4. Alt Attributes on Images
Putting alt attributes on your images actually serves two purposes. In terms of SEO, putting a brief yet descriptive alt attribute along with your image, places additional relevant text to your source code that the search engines can observe when indexing your site. The more relevant text on your page the higher quality chance you have of achieving higher search engine rankings. Also, including image alt attributes help the visually impaired who access web sites using a screen reader. They can’t begin to see the image, but a descriptive alt attribute, they get the chance to know what your image is.
5. Title Attributes on Links
Including title attributes on links is another significant step that worthwhile web site should have. That’s the little “tool tip” that pops up once you place your mouse over a link. These are particularly significant for image links, but equally useful for text links. As a note, you should employ descriptive text for the links. “Click here” doesn’t really tell an individual – or more importantly, the search engines — what the link is. At the very least put a title tag that will explain that “Click Here” really means “Web Design Portfolio” as an example. Also – make the key link text something similar to “View my web design portfolio” — this could give some value to the link showing that the resulting page is strongly related searches for portfolio’s.
6. XML Sitemap
My last post referenced the sitemaps employed by web visitors to help them navigate through your site themselves. However, there’s another version — XML sitemaps — that are used by the search engines as a way to index through your site, as well.
This list of ALL pages / posts / etc. of your site also includes information such as the date the page was last modified, as well as a priority number of what you feel the most important pages of your sites are. All elements which help the various search engines properly find and link to all content of the site.
7. Relevant Content
Having content relevant to your main page or site topic is although the main SEO aspect of a page. You may put all the keywords you prefer in the meta tags and alt image tags, etc — but if the actual readable text on the page is not relevant to the target keywords, it winds up basically becoming a futile attempt.
While it is important to include as many keywords in your page copy as possible, it is equally as important for it to read well and make sense. I’m sure we’ve all seen keyword stuffed pages written by SEO companies that honestly don’t make much sense from the reader’s point of view. When creating your site copy, just write naturally, explaining whatever information you’re discussing. The key is to make it relevant, and to have it make sense to the reader. Even if you trick the various search engines into thinking your page is great — when a potential customer arrives at the site and can’t make heads or tails of your information and it just feels spammy to them — you can bet they’ll be clicking on the next internet site within just a few seconds.
8. Link Building
We’ve probably all been aware of Google Page Rank — it seems to be every web site owner’s dream to have as high a page rank as you can. While the algorithm for determining page rank encompasses many elements, and is constantly changing, one item is the number of links pointing to your web site.
Now, you’ll want to avoid link farms along with spammy attempts at getting links to your site. However there are lots of reputable and niche directory sites that you could use to submit your web site, or specific blog articles to. With genuine content — especially if you have a blog — you can generate links with other web sites and blogs, as well. It’s somewhat of a give and take, in that if you link out to other sites, you’ll find sites linking back to you — and hopefully see your page rank becoming greater, as well!
9. Social networking
Although technically not SEO, Social Media is such a developing factor in getting your web site noticed, that it’s an indispensable element to include with your plan.
Social media ranges from social networks like Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn — to social bookmarking sites for example Delicious, Digg, StumbleUpon and others. You can find a numerous relationship building involved, but as you build your individual networks and build quality content on your web site or blog, you’ll see traffic to your web site increasing, as well. As with any relationship, it is a give and take. Don’t just expect to join a site like Twitter for the pure sake of pushing your content. That just won’t fly — your true intentions will stick out like a sore thumb and do nothing at all but turn people off.
Even if you are on the website purely for networking reasons, the important thing is to make friends. Help out members of your network if they ask for a “retweet” or Digg, give helpful advice if asked, etc. You’ll start to see the same in return.
If you write an incredible post and have built meaningful relationships with peers in your niche, you’ll often find that friends will submit your posts and give you votes on the social bookmarking sites. The more votes you receive, the more likely your post will be noticed by others and shared around, often leading to additional link backs from other blogs, etc.
10. A couple of SEO Don’ts — Flash and Splash
Along with any list of Do’s come the Don’ts. As far as SEO is concerned, two of these items are splash pages (often consisting of a flash animation) and all sorts of flash web sites. Yes, flash is pretty! Full flash web sites can in fact be amazing to look at — their own bit of interactive artwork. But unfortunately the search engines don’t get along well with Flash. Although there may be talk of possible advancement in this area, in general the search engines cannot read Flash.
All that great content that you just wrote on your site aren't going to be seen by the search engines if it’s embedded into a Flash web site. So far as the search engines are concerned, your all flash web site might as well be invisible. And when the search engines can’t see your site content, a significant chunk of prospective customers will miss out on what you need to offer, too.
Equally as “pointless” are splash pages. Once very popular, the splash page should no longer be an important feature of any site. While splash pages used to serve as an introduction into a web site (often with a flash animation), it is no longer seen as helpful, and often times might actually annoy visitors.
For one — it’s an additional click to get into your content. Worse is when you don’t offer a “skip intro” option or set of links into your main site content — because you’re essentially forcing your targeted visitors to site through the full animation. If you’re lucky, this would only annoy them… if not — they’ll just leave without giving your main web site a shot. And without an html link pointing into your site, the search engines have no way to continue either (until you made use of a sitemap.xml file — but still…)
The best option to both issues is to apply a flash header. There’s no problem to add a flash animation at the top of your main site, or as a feature within the content area, etc. Because this is an addition to your web site, as opposed to a full separate element.
