I spent a lot of time getting title, description and first headline right and went through many variations before I stopped. (But, I don't have to stop - they can be modified any time at all I choose.) Only when I had finished *that* process though, did I then develop my final keyword list.

Each page for website was treated in same way. But, although each page - and there are only eleven - is thematically similar, TITLE, DESCRIPTION, KEYWORDS and first headline are all different (content for each page is different also, of course!). By doing so, I ensure that I can submit all pages individually, should I choose, without being accused of spamming search engines (although, with only 11 pages, that was not likely anyway).

When all was done, I submitted site (http://rogersreference.com) to all of majors manually i.e. top ten, which includes Yahoo, Google and Altavista, on Oct 17th, and made a note to search SEs in a few weeks. (I used an automated service to submit to hundreds of other SEs). When I checked above three on November 20th, there I was - page 1, number 1. You could've knocked me down with a feather! And, I haven't paid a cent yet to be included in any directory or search engine.

The site is not yet indexed in Yahoo, but I'm hoping that will happen in a little while. Anyway, I'm not complaining!

SUMMARY: Perhaps most important lesson I've learnt is that a unique product or idea for a niche category or market is crucial, being sine qua non for high ranking. This, I think, cannot be stressed too strongly.

Secondly, whole domain was developed with KISS principle as paramount. The people who read through domain will be interested in *only* what I have to *say* and will judge it accordingly. And, that's how it should be. (Other products however would benefit from more page embellishment e.g. fancy video games, animation software, photography, art and such like.)

And, finally, I've given search engines and directories what they want: content rich web pages in a specific niche, directed to targeted, interested people. And, isn't that how it should be also?

If you're interested in finding my ebook product, go to one of above and punch in 'homonym+dictionary' or 'homonym+homophone' in search box.

Now, here's BIG bonus: search results for above also include a link to another of my domains, sometimes on same page. Now that's icing worth waiting for!

2. Go easy on Keywords and too many JavaScript cookies. If you have an excessive number of keywords in your tags, your site could be banned. An excess of cookies can confuse spiders.

Better to ensure that TITLE and Description tags are used properly to provide a true "picture" of site.

3. Dynamic pages (ASP,PHP etc with a question mark) are a real nuisance for spiders - they can get caught forever, trying to follow links. So...the spiders are programmed to ignore those pages.

Hence, if you must have them - say, for a database application - link to them from main page(s) that is ASP or PHP free.

4. Keep graphics, video and music to bare minimum. Not only will spiders love you, but your prospects will not have all their senses battered trying to find out what you're selling!

Much better to hone that textual content...make your words sing and dance, instead.

5. When submitting pages to search engines, do it manually. Not only does that ensure job is actually done, you will also ensure that each submission is tailored for each SE. And remember, there are barely a dozen or so SEs that count; get indexed in those and you can worry about rest later.

There are many automatic submission services, but I do not use them for my submissions to majors. For submissions to lesser known search engines however, I've used services of Selfpromotion.com with good results. Use this link if you're interested:http://online-wealth.com/promo/ .

Don't forget: make sure that first four points are fully covered *before* you make *any* submission to *any* SE.

So...if you follow spider's rules *and* you have site with unique, themed content, you are very well positioned to get top ranking in all majors, for your keywords.

Additionally, if you can generate relevant links with other sites, that will tend to improve your popularity and your overall ranking. But, in my opinion, that's a bonus.

And, finally, it's getting a lot tougher to get into major SEs now. That being case, get it right first time or you'll just keeping losing more time and money. ;-(