Go To Web Design Home | Add to Favorites
Facts You Should Know About Web Site Design And Search Engine Optimization
1. Web site File Structure / File Naming Most search engines do not recognize beyond two directory levels.Make sure to name your files and directories with keywords.Don't separate keywords using the underscore instead use hyphens.File names should be not too long.2. Load Time - If a page doesn't load in 8 seconds, Web site will lose 1/3 of the visitors.
- Images and Graphics -Image optimization will help to improve the load time. Images can be optimized using the "GIFBOT" image optimization tool (http://www.netmechanic.com/accelerate.htm)
3. Browser Compatibility / Screen Resolutions - Make sure the all the web pages are compatible with the latest versions of Internet explore and Netscape. (Eg: IE 4.0 and above, Netscape 4.7 and above)
- Screen resolution is very important. Compatibility in 800 and 1024 resolution is a must.
4. Site Map - A very important page on a web site.
- Search Engine spider's prefers Site maps.
- Name the Site Map page-using hyphen (site-map.html).
- Make sure the site map has links to every page of the web site.
- Use key words on the anchor.
- Try to describe the links with two or three lines.
- Give a link o the site map from all the pages of the site.
- Keep the site map simple with no or few images.
5. HTML Validation - Make sure the coding is done according to the W3C standards. (http://validator.w3.org)
- Search engines are constantly rewarding web sites that utilize clean and validated HTML.
- Validate the HTML coding using the "CSE HTML Validator" before the site goes live. (http://www.htmlvalidator.com/)
6. Custom 404 Error Page - Through the custom 404 error page, make it easy for the users to find where they want to go.
- Use HTML links and include a search box.
- For information on how to create custom 404 pages for every type of server, visit the 404 Research Lab (http://www.plinko.net/404/). The site also features many examples of custom 404 pages.
7. Cascading Style Sheets (CSS) - Cascading Style allows Webmasters to control Web page design parameters, such as margins, font/typeface appearance, link appearance, colors, and placement.
- CSS decreases download time. Style sheets alone don't matter to the search engines.
8. Using JavaScript / Frames / Flash - JavaScript - JavaScript is not search engine friendly and not important to the engines, so move it to a separate .js file.
- Frames ? Try to avoid using frames. In a situation of using frame make sure to use the Tag. Frames must be navigational within the frames. Include an option to use the site with or without frames. And, use JavaScript to keep frames intact.
- Flash ? Search Engine spiders cant read the flash (Except Fast.com). Anyway Flash can be used for demos and presentations.
- Layers ? It is recommended not use layers.
9. Font Styles and Colors 10.Title / Meta Key Words / ALT tags - Title / Meta Key Words ? Title and Meta key words play an important role search engine optimization.
- ALT Tags ? It is important to have an Alt tag to each and every image.
About The Author Rajitha Dahanayake is the Senior eMarketing Analyst of Reservations Gateway Inc. He has over 3 years experience in search engine optimization and Web Marketing. rajitha@rezgateway.com
Branding Web Strategy Mistakes - Brand Identity Guru
1. Lack of overall strategy and clear definition of success:Most people realize the need for a site, but don't understand what it can/should do for the company. And when they do have a goal, they don't measure it. We'll often ask people, "What are the obj...
Web Page Building For Beginners 4
Page ranking by search engines such as Google are not only overrated but unusually explained by "experts" in the SEO field. SEO stands for search engine optimization and is needed to get your website placed at the top of a web search. I have no truck with someone wanting to get their pages placed in the number one or two spot from a search, but page ranking has nothing to do with that whatsoever and I can assure the reader that I can ...
Custom Icons For Your Specific Brand
Developing a software application is not easy at all; apart from the effective creation of the application you'll have to think of other things as well, like: making the software easy to work with, giving it a unique and appealing look, making it better than other software, etc. Apart from the qualities of the application, these little things are the ones that promote your software application among the end users. If the application is easy to use, has a friendly user interface, the look of the program is unique yet not too flashy a lot more people will want to have it and use it. On the other hand, we should be careful about the overall look of the entire application because if it looks too different or it is too striking, many of the new users will be reserved in trying it. The reticence might be coming fro...
|
 |
|
|
Graphic Design Using Color
Color is everywhere and conveys a message even if we don't realize it. While this message can vary by culture it pays to know what colors "say" in your own corner of the universe, and even what color means to your target market.If you don't think that color speaks just complete this sentence, "red means ---- and green means ?" even a child will know what red means stop and green means go. If such simple ideas work for all of a given culture or market what could it mean to the graphic design of your website, brochure, or product if you know some of this information.First let's start with the basics. The color wheel. We've all seen it. The color wheel shows the basic colors, each wheel is different in how many shades of each color is shown, but they are essentially the same. |  |
| Website Design For Small Businesses
There are many different website design companies, offering different facilities such as flash design, however what should a small business look for wh... | |
| Build It And Build It Cheap!
There are several very good reasons why you should consider building your own web site versus having someone do it for you. It's more cost efficient, you can make it much larger in content, you are more involved in how you want the pages to look, and I have actually enjoyed learning the dos and don'ts of website profiling. I have run into some definite don'ts as ... | |
| Got Web Traffic But Still Low Sales? Ten Ways To Selling Success - Part 2
Part one of this article is available at www.bookcoaching.com/freearticles/article-34.shtml. Have you put a lot of effort, time, and money into your site and are frustrated with lackluster sales? Are you planning to put a new Web site and don't know where to start? If you are like many business professionals out there, you know your subject, you are an expert speaker or coach in your field, and you are even passionate about it. You have great products and services to sell. But do you... | |
| How To Create A Stunning Drop Capital Effect On Your Web Pages
Drop Capitals are frequently used in many newspapers, books and magazines in the offline world. You will frequently see the large capital letter sinking down into the first paragraph of articles, stories and chapters in the majority of publications you come across. The drop capital gives the page a nice finishing touch, and certainly adds a more professional looking feel. Online, the drop capital looks just as good on web pages as it does in print. The only drawback is that you can easily get the whole effect wrong, and end up with a less than appealing result. The wrong way... When most people attempt to create a drop capital effect on a web page, they usually just enlarge the first letter by a few font sizes and make it bold. If you do this... | |
| Your Web Site Is A Wonderland: What Picassos Art Taught Me About Persuasive Design
Whenever singer John Mayer sings his romantic song, "Your Body is a Wonderland", I can't help but think of web sites and usability. As a usability consul... | |
| Congratulations! You?ve Gotten Visitors To Your Site! Now, Can They Find What Theyre Looking For?
As search engine marketers, we spend an enormous amount of time trying to get targeted traffic to our site. But, once those visitors get to our site, can they find what they're looking for?... | |
| Essential Strategies To Make Your Web Copy Attractive To Your Target Audience
Reading on the web is different than reading in all other formats. People approach it differen... | |
| Make Your Site Quick To Load!
The time it takes to load your site can make or break a visitor's first impression of your site. If your site takes too long to load, the visitor will click "Stop" or "Back" and leave your web site. If you are a business and offering people important information, it is critical to have a nice desig... | |
| Why Content Is King Of Website Design
If there's one thing that most web site developers can agree on, it's this: content is king.That's not, of course, to say that good design doesn't matter. It does. A good, clean design, which is easy to navigate and optimised for search engines is absolutely essential if you want your online business to be a success. When you get right down to it, though, visitors don't come to your website to admire it. It's content that brings them there, and it's content that keeps them coming back for more. Or not, as t... | |
|
|