White Hat SEO Services: Search Engine Optimization Done Right

In todays World Wide Web, the good guys come out on top--literally. White-hat SEO tactics are catapulting Web sites to the top of the search engine rankings. Find out how search engine optimization companies can help your business achieve online visibility through quality content and Web design.

The World Wide Web has evolved beyond the wild West of its early days, when Web designers used clandestine tactics to win top rankings on search engines. Today, the best route to a high rank is the high road. White-hat search engine optimization (SEO) develops sites that win on their own merits, with user-friendly design features and relevant, up-to-date content.

Search Engine Optimization Done Right

In the end, the good guys win. White-hat SEO agencies work with the search engines toward a common goal: helping users find and access the information they need. In this context, an optimized Web site is not one that scrambles after page views at all costs, but one that accurately telegraphs its content to the search engine and delivers focused, relevant information.

Businesses working with a white-hat SEO company can expect the following services, endorsed by Googles own Webmaster Guidelines:

1. Site Design: Optimal site design balances the requirements of search engine spiders with the preferences of users. Simplicity is the best SEO policy.

• Clear hierarchy. Web designers ensure accurate search engine indexing by establishing a clear hierarchy among web pages. Each page should be accessible from at least one static text link
• Site map. Site maps help users and search engines navigate complex sites
• Strategic use of multimedia. Users and search engines diverge when it comes to multimedia. Multimedia features such as dynamic pages, images, and animation enhance user experience, but may impede the search engines ability to index the Web site. Googles Webmaster Guidelines warn SEO specialists against using too many "fancy features such as JavaScript, cookies, session IDs, frames, DHTML, or Flash." SEO agencies help businesses use multimedia strategically
• Technical tools to facilitate indexing. An SEO company should abide by technical best practices to facilitate the indexing process, such as including modified since information in the http header

2. Content: Presenting solid, up-to-date information in a user-friendly format is the essence of white-hat SEO.

• Relevant, focused content. Search engines employ several criteria to rank the content of a site. A site with relevant, unique, fresh, and extensive content can expect a high ranking. SEO services often include regular updates to the content, ensuring the quality and timeliness of the sites information
• Keywords. Including targeted keywords in the content helps the search engine spiders identify content relevant to users search terms. Search engine optimization specialists can increase visibility of a site by identifying popular keywords relevant to the content
• Meta Tags. Meta data offers sites the opportunity to telegraph their relevance directly to the search engine spider. Meta tags include a title, keywords, and a brief, one-sentence description of the Web page

3. Links: In evaluating a Web sites relevance to search terms, the search engine algorithm takes into account links to and from the site. The search engine rewards sites with many incoming links from different sources. By placing links on other sites, search engine optimization specialists build the authority and popularity of the clients Web site. As one specialist puts it, link building "develops a level of search engine trust over time"--search engines interpret traffic from other users as an endorsement of the sites relevance and quality.

Together, these three features of white-hat SEO help clients build credibility online, cultivating visibility and a community of loyal visitors.

Sources

Brick Marketing

Search Engine Guide

Beanstalk Search Engine Optimization