Monday, August 25, 2008

Optimizing Your Website

By Michelle Ming


People often discuss Search Engine Optimization in the internet marketing and website design world. They wonder how it works, if it's worth the time and money spent to optimize their site. They wonder how SEO techiques and methods help gain higher rankings for their websites. There are myths on how to effectively improve search engine results without having to hire an SEO expert: adjusting Meta Tags, utilizing doorway and gateway pages, submitting multiple domain names, resubmitting pages on a weekly or monthly basis, and in-house self adjustments. People often utilize these common unproductive myths of optimization to try and improve search engine results.

Originally created to better aid webmasters, Meta Tags were included to assist search engine tools discover what content a website provides. Though Meta Tags aren't directly visible by webpage visitors, they are imbedded in the HTML document and can easily be revised. Doorway and Gateway pages are also often treated as unwanted spam in most search engines. Cloaking Doorway pages redirect visitors without their knowledge to another page and are prohibited by most major search engines. Though Meta Tags, Doorway and Cloaking pages may seem to be quick and easy fixes for helping increase search engine results, they often do not work, and carry a risk of getting your website banned.

The old adage "less is sometimes more" is especially true when in reference to webpage optimization. Multiple websites are usually not cost effective because it requires unnecessary work to maintain and build multiple sites. When utilizing multiple keyword domains, not only does it narrow the focus of content on the site, but it also limits the ability to cross-sell your other products. Submitting pages to search engines is also ineffective because webpage information, once found by a search engine database doesn't disappear with time. There are many services that claim to resubmit on a monthly basis to help improve rankings, but this has no impact whatsoever.

Despite the various effective options on improving internet marketing exposure, many still try to optimize sites on their own. Fact of the matter is, website optimization is a very complicated task, involving far more that just tweaking Meta Tags or changing title tag keywords and phrases. The technical knowledge required for optimization of web design is specialized, and clients who utilize professional SEO services tend to rank at or near the top of major search engines. With search technology and algorithms which are used for defining rating on a search being reevaluated on a daily basis, the daunting task of website optimization is a task better left to the professionals.

Utilizing the services of a professional SEO company, corporations are able to gain much higher and prioritized rankings in search engines. Since most consumers run a search for websites, products, and services, corporations who utilize SEO services receive more targeted traffic to their websites. Not only does using a quality SEO campaign gain your company much higher and prioritized ranking in search engines, With optimized search results, those searching for a product or service like yours would most likely be directed to your website.

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