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Search Engine Optimization Services This is the first search engine optimization course I purchased back in 1997!
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Sitemaps 101 - Back to SEO School
Sitemaps are without doubt one of the most often ignored and undervalued aspects of search engine optimization. You've probably spent a huge amount of time working on pages of original content, keyword density and getting incoming links but never once spared a thought for a sitemap for your new creation.
What is a sitemap?
Put simply it's a page or pages that contain a list of and link to all the other documents on your site. This is useful on two levels:
1. Your visitor can quickly reference all the documents on your site to find exactly what they're looking for.
2. Search engine spiders can also quickly find and index every single page of your site in the least amount of time. The SEO benefits of using a sitemap far considerable and should not be ignored.
This is a win-win situation for you, your website visitors and the search engines. Put simply you're nuts if you've not included a sitemap as part of your overall website promotion strategy.
The good news is that it's never too late to start. You can create a sitemap page today but there are some rules to creating an effective sitemap that you need to follow:
Your sitemap must only be linked to from your homepage and no other page. Why? You want the search engine spiders to find this link directly from your homepage and follow it from there. Your sitemap MUST NOT be linked to from every other page of your site. Also from a Google Pagerank point of view only linking to your sitemap from your homepage can also "funnel" PR quickly to pages all over your site.
If you have a large website of 50 pages or more limit the number of pages listed on your sitemap to a maximum of 30. This is to prevent your sitemap from being misinterpreted as a link farm by the search engines. It also makes the sitemap a lot easier for real human visitors to read through. Limiting the number of pages listed on each sitemap to 30 might mean splitting your sitemap over 5, 10 or 20 pages. This has to be done and the long term benefits are worth it. Bear in mind that if you do create a 20 page sitemap you've just created an extra 20 pages of content for your website!
Make absolutely sure that each of your sitemap pages links to the next. If you have 10 sitemap pages in total then each of those needs to link to every other sitemap page. Otherwise both visitors and search engine spiders will find a broken link, lose interest and go away.
Test your sitemap thoroughly. Make sure all the links works. Make sure it's easy to read and navigate through. Your sitemap is there to assist your visitor and not confuse them.
How should you structure your sitemap? The following tips must be adhered to in order for your site to gain the maximum possible benefit from having a sitemap.
1. The title of each sitemap link should be keyword rich and link directly back to the original page.
2. Include 10 - 20 words of text from the original page of content underneath the relevant sitemap link. This creates more content for search engine spiders and human visitors can see exactly what each page is about in advance of clicking. uman visitor benefit is that they can see what the pages is about in advance.
3. Ensure that the look and feel of your sitemap page is consistent with the rest of your site. Use the same basic HTML template you used for every other page of your site.
So now you understand the importance of building a sitemap for your website. There is work involved but the long term benefits for your websites far outweigh any effort you have to make right now.
This article was provided courtesy of Search-Engine-Fuel.com where you'll find tons of information on search engine optimization. Check out our page on SEO sitemaps.
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Getting To Know Google
Having greatly benefited from my relationship with Google in the past several years, I am dedicating this article to the search engine superstar.
Should You Buy Text Links?
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Search Engine Wars - Quality Searches Vs Quantity!
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Googles Trap, DMOZs Nap, And Yahoo!s Crap
On November 16th, 2003, Google commenced an update (the Florida update) which had a catastrophic effect for a very large number of websites and, in the process, turned search engine optimization upside down. It is common to give alphabetical names to Google's updates in the very same way that names are given to hurricanes, and this one became known as "Florida".
An Ethical Alternative to Doorway Pages
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Effective Keyword Optimization and Analysis Techniques
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Five Ways To Win The Favor Of Search Engines
You've got a cool new website with all the works: cool Flash presentations, eye-catching colors, informative text, easy-to-use layout, and an interesting topic. You think your site is amazing, and you know that others will agree with you. If only they know it exists.
Search Engine Optimization --- An Overview
Search engine optimization is one of most popular online marketing tool for any website. With most websites looking forward to increasing the online sales of their products/services, search engine optimization can be a very cost-effective tool to target and procure your customers online. In this paper, we will discuss about search engine optimization, its benefits and how you can optimize your website for top search engine rankings.
Analyzing Googles Backlinks Is Close To Worthless
Do You Submit Your Website To All The Search Engines?
There is really only one search engine to worry about submitting too and that is Google and you should only submit one page your main once and maybe a sitemap a week later but never more than once a week. If you have a link coming to your new site from a site that is currently listed in Google then Google will find you quicker.
Does The Number Of Links On A Page Affect Ranking?
Lots of research has focused on inbound links to a site, but little has focused on the number of links actually on a page (outbound or to other parts of a site). Many SEO gurus have recently been talking about something they call "PR Leak" which seems to be a theory that the more outbound links you have, the more your page rank on Google "leaks" away. That concept isn't found in the academic papers published by the founders of Google, but does seem to be accepted by a majority of SEOs. I decided it was time to take a look at the number of links present on a page and how that number correlates with ranking.
How to Succeed with the Search Engines
The Cold Hard Facts?..
Ten Steps To A Well Optimized Website - Step 1: Keyword Selection
This is part one of ten in this search engine positioning series. In part one we will outline how to choose the keyword phrases most likely to produce a high ROI for your search engine positioning efforts. Over this ten part series we will go through ten essential elements and steps to optimizing a site. Some steps take a few hours, some may take months depending on the competition, but in the end and if done correctly you will have a well optimized site that will place well and hold it's positioning.
Drive More Traffic to Your Website With Your Web Page Title!
One of the most overlooked, but important components, on your web page is the Meta title. The Meta title is the text or page title found at the top left of your browser window and it is also the title saved when a web site visitor bookmarks your website. Some people will argue that search engines put little or no value on the title tag, but regardless of how the Meta title figures into the ranking algorithm, the title tag is still critical to driving new and repeat traffic to your website.
How to Google; or How to be Easily Distracted
I set out with the intention of writing a self improvement type article with an original temporary working title of 'How To Overcome Fear'.
Whats with the Competition? Ever Heard of Cooperation?
I attended the SES Expo in San Jose, CA the other day. It was an hour from my home in Larkspur, CA just north of the Golden Gate Bridge. Along the way I was thinking this would be really neat to see, a lot of companies doing the same things really, and to see how they play together.
Is Page Not Found Making Google Tell The World Site Not Found?
Search Engines are hard to tame, that's for sure. But if you can get on their good side, search can be your biggest ally when it comes to generating tons of free traffic to your business web site. Not many people understand how search engines think. So, search engine "optimization" ends up either ignored or left up to highly paid experts.
SEO #4: Off-page Optimization
Yesterday you should have read the third course out of 6 courses that will help you get a TOP rank in the search engines and get EXPLOSIVE LASER TARGETED TRAFFIC for Free. Today we move on to course #4 and study off-page Optimization. Please read today's course very carefully and take some time to test what I'm about to tell you on your own webpage. Alright let's start!
How To Get Your Web Site Banned ? or Search Engine Promotion, How Not to do it!
Search engines constantly strive to advance their technology and algorithms in order to provide the most relevant search results for their users. Achieving effective results require the identification, and ultimately the complete eradication of, manipulative search engine optimisation tactics. As Internet marketers, it is up to us to achieve high listings for our customers and this requires that our search engine marketing tactics change and grow with the new technology.
How To Get Number 1 Spot In Google, Every Time, Guaranteed
Woaah! Wait a minute. Before I exclusively reveal these insider secrets can I ask you question? Well, actually, I want to ask you a series of questions.