SEO Your Website
Before you write one line of code:
* Do keyword research to determine what keywords you want to target
While constructing your website you should do the following:
* Use markup to indicate the content of your site
- Optimize your title tags on each page to contain 1 – 3 keywords
- Create unique Meta Tags for each page
- Use header tags appropriately (H1 > H2 > H3)
- Use strong and em tags if appropriate
* Optimize your URLs
- Use Search Engine Friendly URLs (for dynamic sites)
- Use keywords in your domain (http://www.keyword1.com/)
- Use keywords in your URL (http://www.example.com/keyword2/keyword3.html)
- Use dashes instead of underscores to separate words in your URLs (keyword2-keyword3.html)
* Optimize your content
- Use keywords liberally yet appropriately throughout each page
- Have unique content
- Have quality content
* Use search engine friendly design
- Create a human sitemap
- Do not use inaccessible site navigation (JavaScript menus)
- Minimized outbound links
- Kept your pages under 100K in size
* Design the navigational structure of the site to channel PR to main pages (especially the homepage)
* Create a page that encourages webmasters to link to your site
- Provide them the relevant HTML to create their link to you
- Provide them with any images you may want them to use (although text links are better)
* Make sure your website is complete before launching it
Immediately after launching your site you should do the following:
* Submit your site to all major search engines
- Google (Use a Google SiteMap)
- Yahoo (Use the page list option)
- MSN (Finds your site via incomming links)
- Ask (Finds your site via incomming links)
* Submit your site to all free directories
- DMOZ (also powers Google Directory)
- JoeAnt
* Submit your site to relevant directories
- Find more at ISEDB
* Begin a link building campaign (attempting to get keywords in the link anchor text)
- Put a link to your website in your forum signatures
- Reply to relevant blog posts (Don’t spam please)
- Submit articles to relevant websites
If you will pay to promote your website:
* Submit your site to pay directories
- Yahoo
- GoGuides
* Purchase text links from high PR (Pagerank) sites related to your site
Finally, as part of an ongoing strategy:
* Continually update your website will quality, unique content
* Continually seek free links preferably from sites in your genre
Do NOT do the following:
* Make an all Flash website
* Use JavaScript for navigation
* Spam other websites for incomming links
* Launch your site before it is done
* Use duplicate content
- Point several domains to one site without using a 301 redirect
* Use markup inappropiately
- Style
- Hide content using ‘display: hidden’
* Use other “black hat” techniques (unless you accept the risk – Banning)
- Doorway/Landing pages
- Cloaking
- Hidden text
- Keyword stuffing
Additional Tips:
* Usable and accessible sites tend to be search engine friendly by their very nature
* Be patient! High rankings don’t happen overnight
* Don’t obsess with any one search engine. They are all worth your attention.
http://www.sitepoint.com/forums/showthread.php?t=361403
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