Effective and Simple SEO
A lot of the hype about Web 2.0 is XHMTL and CSS. Valid pages are good. Tables for formatting are bad, very bad. In essence, a lot of Web 2.0 is about simplicity and effectiveness, which is very similar to the goal of SEO. Many people believe, and many purveyors of SEO software believe that keywords are the key. Unfortunately, that's not what SEO is about, that's up to your content. Validity, accessibility, and ease of use are the most important, not only making it easier for your viewer to use your site, but also make it easier for the search engine's robots to index your website.
1. Use alt tags
A requirement for any image in XHTML is an alt tag. These tags let you tell the search engines what you want them to decide what the picture is about.
In addition, if your images fail to show up, or the user cannot see them, this alternate text will help to explain what the meaning was of that image.
As of yet there is no technology for identifying what's in your images, so give 'em the old alt.
<img src="../images/computer.png" style="float: left;" alt="Picture of Computer"/>>
2. Insert title here
Effective use of title tags on your web pages gives a big boost to users and search engines. The title is one of the first things
the search engines robots look at, and it's what shows up when the user finds your site in a search. In addition, it represents your page when it's maximized, minimized,
and tabbed. As with this site, it will also help with name recognition if you include the name of your site in the title.
<head>
<title>Donutey | Effective and Simple Search Engine Optimization | SEO Basics</title>
</head>
3. Keep the code as valid as possible
While not crucial to your success, having valid code makes it easier for search engines to 'see' your site to index it. If you can still
easily read an article on your site when looking at the source code, it's generally easier to read for the engine. Valid code also helps with
cross-compatibility between browsers and makes it easier for you to edit the site when you dive into the code. In addition, there is some satisfaction
in have a 'Valid XHTML' link at the bottom of your site, although don't expect much reaction from your users.
W3C Code Validator
4. Make your navigation obvious
I like to follow the three clicks rule; all pages on my sites are within three clicks of the main page. When you bury content for your users, you bury it
for the search engines too. Google also suggests you to have sitemap for easier indexing, although, it also says to keep it under a hundred links to avoid being labeled
as a link farm.
This site's sitemap
5. Contentious Content
Content is hard, good content that is, and that is what you should spend your time on. Read over your articles once or twice, check for grammar, run it through a spell checker.
No one can end up with perfect grammar and spelling, but after a few mistakes users get tired and leave.
Remember, a little time spent on SEO will make your content shine.
Kevin C. July 12th 2006 kcas88@gmail.com
Donutey 2008
