Google's SEO Advice For Your Website: Content

Written by Joel Walsh


Continued from page 1

* Frames. The top two web pages listed forrepparttar most searched-on keyword employ frames. Frames may still be a bad web design idea from a usability standpoint, and they may ruin your search engine rankings if your site's linking system depends on them. But there are worse ways you could shoot yourself inrepparttar 149901 foot.

* JavaScript-formatted internal links. Most ofrepparttar 149902 websites use JavaScript for their internal page links. Again, that's notrepparttar 149903 best web design practice, but there are worse things you could do.

* Links: Most ofrepparttar 149904 web pages contained ten or more links; many contain over 30, in defiance ofrepparttar 149905 SEO bugbears about "link popularity bleeding." Moreover, nearly allrepparttar 149906 pages contained a significant number of non-relevant links. On many pages, non-relevant links outnumbered relevant ones. Of course, it's not clear what benefitrepparttar 149907 website owners hope to get from placing irrelevant links on pages. It has been a proven way of lowering conversion rates and losing visitors. But Google doesn't seem to care if your website makes money.

* Originality: a significant number of pages contained content copied from other websites. In all cases,repparttar 149908 content was professionally written content apparently distributed on a free-reprint basis. Note:repparttar 149909 reprint content did not consist of content feeds. However, no website consisted solely of free-reprint content. There was always at least a significant portion of original content, usuallyrepparttar 149910 majority ofrepparttar 149911 page.

Recommendations

* Make sure a professional writer, or at least someone who can tell good writing from bad, is creating your site's content, particularly inrepparttar 149912 case of a search-engine optimization campaign. If you are an SEO, make sure you get a pro to dorepparttar 149913 content. A shocking number of SEOs write incredibly badly. I've even had clients whose websites got fewer conversions or page views after their SEOs got through with them, even when they got a sharp uptick in unique visitors. Most visitors simply hitrepparttar 149914 "back" button when confronted withrepparttar 149915 unpalatable text, sorepparttar 149916 increased traffic is just wasted bandwidth.

* If you write your own content, make sure that it passes throughrepparttar 149917 hands of a skilled copyeditor or writer before going online.

* Update your content often. It's important both to add new pages and update existing pages. If you can't afford original content, use free-reprint content.

* Distribute your content to other websites on a free-reprint basis. This will help your website get links in exchange forrepparttar 149918 right to publishrepparttar 149919 content. It will also help spread your message and enhance your visibility. Fears of a "duplicate content penalty" for free-reprint content (as opposed to duplication of content within a single website) are unjustified.

In short, if you have a mature website that is already indexed and getting traffic, you should consider making surerepparttar 149920 bulk of your investment in your website is devoted to its content, rather than graphic design, old-school search-engine optimization, or linking campaigns.

[Formatting: for web, please use "website content provider" as the link's anchor text (visible link text)] Joel Walsh's archive of web business articles is at the website of his business, UpMarket Content, a website content provider: http://UpMarketContent.com


Big Business Web Design Disasters

Written by Joel Walsh


Continued from page 1

Of course, Flash can be used as a way to present content—words, both printed and recorded, and pictures that actually illustrate something. But more often, it is used to impress. And most often, it ends up annoying. Who wants to spendrepparttar better part of a minute waiting for a rotation of generic pictures of smiling models?

Special Effect that Bombs Number 2: Splash Screens

You type in duracell.com expecting information on batteries—which you will find, if you haverepparttar 149900 patience not to hitrepparttar 149901 “back” button whilerepparttar 149902 site shows a picture of a battery revolving painfully slowly.

On http://www.mcdonalds.com you're met with pictures of happy children playing with Ronald McDonald and a menu to select what country you're from.

Johnson's and Johnson's web site shows a logo before automatically redirecting you torepparttar 149903 main page—that is if it doesn't crash your browser first (which happened whenrepparttar 149904 author tried to accessrepparttar 149905 page on May 2, 2004 ).

Another way big consumer corporations' web sites from Schick to Mercedes-Benz to Thomas Cooke waste your time with splash pages is by making you choose what country you're visiting from. This could have been detected automatically, or at least, useful worldwide content could have been placed onrepparttar 149906 homepage, with an option to choose a country prominently displayed.

Splash pages arerepparttar 149907 internet equivalent of making patrons wait in line out front before letting them inside. Unless a site belongs to a night club or a professional services firm with too much business, keeping people outside can't be a good idea.

Special Effect that Bombs Number 3: Overbuilt or Badly Built “Dynamic” Functionality

Every web surfer has a story about a shopping cart that malfunctioned just when they were about to click “purchase” on something they really wanted. Or a detailed form that lost allrepparttar 149908 information afterrepparttar 149909 “submit” button was pressed.

Sometimes, malfunctioning dynamic content can distortrepparttar 149910 way an entire site presents itself. Ifrepparttar 149911 dynamic content is so complex that it presents problems for many users, it is unlikelyrepparttar 149912 dynamic content is worth it. When I visited disney.com in May 2004, my first greeting was a message that your computer is sufficiently up-to-date (or not) to handlerepparttar 149913 site.

In short, you may want your small or medium-sized business to get as big as Coca Cola or Disney, but you'll never get there if your website looks like theirs do.

[Formatting: for web, please use "website content writer" as the link's anchor text (visible link text)] Joel Walsh's business, UpMarket Content, lets him partner with web designers and other creative people, as a website content writer: http://UpMarketContent.com


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