Website Optimization Tips from Google and the Gang

With multitudes of seminars, books, websites, and other resources available from SEO experts, how do you know who to trust? Who truly knows the most about how search engines work?

Take a guess. Who do you think it is? (No, not me.)

That’s right! The search engines!

This “Ask a Geek” response answers the question, “Where can I find website optimization tips?” by introducing, “Webmaster Guidelines.” Webmaster Guidelines are SEO tips that come directly from Google, Yahoo! and other search engines. They should be the starting point for every website optimization project.

Search Engines vs. SEO Consultants

It won’t surprise you, but search engines and SEO consultants don’t always get along. It’s easy to see why.

But remember … ethical (aka “white hat”) SEO is about working with the search engines, not manipulating them.

We Can All Get Along

The best way to get into someone’s good graces is to follow their rules. Search engines have rules, but they call them “guidelines” or “recommendations.” Here are links to the “Webmaster Guidelines” for the 3 top search engines; Google, Yahoo! and MSN. Each will help you understand how they want your site to be built. Luckily, they frequently overlap.

• Google’s Webmaster Guidelines
• Yahoo! Quality Guidelines
• MSN Live! Guidelines

Common Website Optimization Guidelines

Here is a list of optimization highlights pulled from the pages listed above. Each will become a topic in a series of upcoming Geek Camp blog posts. Make sure to let us know which one you want to learn about first and share your comments below. Then, sign up for Geek Camp website updates so you’ll know when your request becomes available.

• Maintain a Sitemap
  Use sitemaps to ensure that search engines can access every page of your website
• Keep Your Navigation Hierarchy Flat
  Keep your navigational links shallow and close to your root domain
• Write Content of Genuine Value
  Strive to create useful, meaningful, and engaging content
• Beware the Mark (?)
  Is your website dynamic? A good way to find out is to look for a question mark in the URL. If you have one, proceed with caution
• Write Compliant XHTML & CSS
  Just like the English language, you need to use proper web grammar
• Use the <title> Tag Appropriately
  Use descriptive and relevant <title> tags
• Minimize Broken Links
  Scan your website regularly to make sure all of your links work
• Use a robots.txt File
  Tell search engines what to index and what to ignore
• Avoid Unethical Tactics
  Stay away from cloaking, doorway pages, keyword stuffing, and other unethical (aka “black hat”) techniques
• Avoid Duplicate Content
  Make sure the content on your website is unique and original

What’s Next? You Decide!

What topic would you like to hear more about? How to use the robots.txt file? Or perhaps you want to learn more about unethical SEO techniques?

Let us know!

Just share your comments below and we’ll make your suggestion a priority for the next post in our “Website Optimization Tips” series!

This entry was posted on Wednesday, October 31st, 2007 at 1:52 pm and is filed under Ask a Geek, Search Engine Optimization. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.