Optimisation of web site

A listing or ranking with the major search engines can increase a web sites' traffic many times over. When a web site is submitted to a search engine for ranking, the search engines' 'bots' or 'spiders' will assess the sites' subject matter and its relevance to search requests it receives. Search engine optimisation involves the tuning of several different elements in the site; text, page titles, site description and key words. This will already have been done when your site is built but to enable you to change them (in conjunction with the information from the site statistics), Helix Site builder's control panel lets you simply enter new or edit existing keywords, site description and page titles etc.

Preparing a web site for this process is refereed to as 'optimisation' and involves tuning the site as follows:

1. Text. Start by making a list of 'key words' and phrases that you consider people searching for a site like yours would use. It may be advisable to ask other people what they would use. Check these words and phrases in a search engine to see if sites similar to yours appear near the top of the rankings and then retain those key words and phrases which produced the best results. At this point you are able to write your text relevant to the sites subject matter but using as many of these key words and phrases as possible. It is not advisable to repeat words or phrases to often or to use non-relevant words which you think would draw in traffic, as this may work against the process.

These key words should also be submitted to Helix Site Builder for use in the code that makes up the web page.

2. A description of the site must be placed in the site code which says in about 12 - 15 words what the site is about. This description appears in the search engine results and is vital to communicate the sites purpose.

3. Page titles and links within the site should use 'key words' or phrases, (the key word or phrase should also be used in the text on that page) which searchers may be using when looking for subject matter covered in your site.

4. Key words. The 'key words' you have decided on should be included in the site code through the control panel's 'Edit key words'. Although not all search engines use this method of ranking a site, they are still useful in helping some directories and search engine databases.

5. The home or index page (if not all the others) must have an external link to it, this is how some search engines discourage 'doorway pages' and other practises of 'spaming' with multiple entry pages.

If it's important to you to have you site found through search engines, then time spent working of this aspect of your marketing will be time well spent. Click on 'add URL' where you can entre search engines to register and re-register and promote your site. A lot of search engines draw in information from other databases other than their own, some will use several giving a wider source of available sites and although these alliances are constantly changing, some of this information is shown too.