Search Engines
When someone performs a web search, a search engine will scan its index for pages that correspond to the search terms and return these results. Search engines play an important part in directing visitors to a site, so there is a great deal of emphasis on optimising pages to appear higher up the list of results.
Users naturally expect search engines to return relevant results, and so providers like Google and Alta Vista resist attempts to 'trick' their software with the excessive use of 'keywords' and irrelevant text. This is why search algorithms are kept secret and changed frequently.
Nevertheless, there are some simple and obvious ways of optimising your pages. At the most basic level you should ensure that your text contains appropriate and comprehensive information about your organisation and the purpose and content of your site. Search engines will look for relevant search terms in the text of the page - not just individual words, but also phrases; so it is useful to employ the kinds of expressions someone may use when searching.
It's also essential to make sure a search engine can properly access the information on your page. Using images instead of text presents them with a problem, as can frames and the careless use of JavaScript.
Links can also have a significant effect on your search placing. The web's most popular search engine, Google, employs a page ranking system, which infers the relevance and popularity of your site from the number and quality of other websites linking to it.
