Basic SEO Tips For Beginners :: Web Page Design

So you have managed to get a website up and rolling and you did it yourself. There were quite a number of things to learn but now it’s up and world can see it in all its glory, that is, if they can find it… As odd as it may seem building a search engine friendly website does not seem to be the number one priority of most tutorials or books. Esthetic design and functionality are usually well above following search engine rules of engagement.

Rather than telling how to build a search engine friendly website from scratch here are a few basic things that are so often overlooked and yet are essential for any website to rank well in the major engines.

Title Tag: This needs to be done for every page. Don’t repeat the same title tag on each page. The more unique and applicable the better.

Text: Use browser text in every page as well. Don’t embed your text into an image unless it is repeated elsewhere on the page. Keep in mind that the search engines don’t read 3000 word pages. They usually only pick up the first 300 – 400 words.

Text Menu: If you make a fancy menu using Java, Flash or images chances are it is not recognized by the search engines. Include a text menu at the bottom of the page too if you are going this route. Use a menu items that describe the section if possible

Meta Tags: Debatable as to the extent of their importance but why take the chance. Put a description and keywords meta tag on every page as well.

Internal linking is also an important technique often over looked. Link from one page to another within the text of the page. Use keywords or at least descriptive words to link to other pages or sections. Avoid the use of “click here”. Do these 5 things and your website will have a much better chance of ranking well in all the major search engines.