Help with optimizing my site

[egar50]

Hello
Could someone make some suggestions for optimizing my site for the search engines.

I have read and tried to follow Bethers SOE Book.

I have probably got a lot of things wrong and more advice would be much appreaciated.

Thanks

[Bethers]

Re: Help with optimizing my site

Hi Egar,

I think you need to do some new copywriting before you do more SEO work - actually the 2 go hand in hand. But, unfortunately, your copy might now say what you want people to know - but it's boring - and people aren't going to stay around and read it.

A couple hints - you don't want to talk in terms of you - but in terms of the customer. So here's an idea instead of the first paragraph you currently have with optimizing considered also.

Put your header in h1 tags and get rid of the underlining (only use underlining if it's a link to something - you don't have to use it then - but people online have come to expect anything underlined to be a link). So it will look like this:

Online Software Store
The Software Bay

You've found easy access to a large and varied range of Computer Software, both downloadable and on disc, at affordable prices at The Software Bay.

These include:
(I'd put in a bulleted list of lots that you now have in the next few paragraphs - you want it easy for people to see the salient points - with the important words - but without forcing too much reading).

Then finish up with a paragraph - again in using action words and in the customer's viewpoint (using you and your, etc - rarely using I, We, us).

I understand you repeating your name - but, in all honestly, your name isn't known by anyone at this point - so repeating it isn't going to be that important - much more important are repeating the terms/phrases that the people do know and will use to possibly find you.

[egar50]

Re: Help with optimizing my site

Hello Beth

Thanks for the abvice, I will make the changes you suggest and you might take another look at that stage and see if it`s any better.

When you say to put the header in h1 tags, do you mean just increase the font size and make the letters bold or is there something else involved in doing this.

Thanks again

[Karen Mac]

Re: Help with optimizing my site

Hello Beth

Thanks for the abvice, I will make the changes you suggest and you might take another look at that stage and see if it`s any better.

When you say to put the header in h1 tags, do you mean just increase the font size and make the letters bold or is there something else involved in doing this.

Thanks again

Yes and make them Red and size 24! :)

Just Kidding.. no.. h1 tags are HEADLINES

<h1> Your text here </h1>

Karen

[egar50]

Re: Help with optimizing my site

Funny Karen

I thought bright Orange myself

How do I go about putting the heading in these h1 tags,
we can discuss colour later ha-ha

[Karen Mac]

Re: Help with optimizing my site

Egar.. You have to use an html box, and code the html yourself. If you need help, or if you have front page or an html editor you can do your formatting that way as well with the text editor, then go to the html mode and copy and paste it to an html box in bv.

Karen

[Bethers]

Re: Help with optimizing my site

It appears that some posts are missing - as I sent you detailed directions to this! But if you do a search on here - you'll find that I've sent them to many before, too :)

[Bethers]

Re: Help with optimizing my site

Here's a good thread to look at - some others give info - and I detail how to write the h tags:

http://www.vodahost.com/vodatalk/search-engine-topics-vodahits/20924-how-do-you-insert-h1-h1-h2-h2-tags-so.html

[Bruce Hewitt]

Re: Help with optimizing my site

I read in an seo e-book I found that at the end of the day your site must be designed for your viewers. Not to say you should ignore SEO.
Look at it this way, if you were going to build a house you would first have plans drawn and then build the house, not build the house and then decide what you want it to look like. Basically you must plan your seo well, and then build your site around that plan for EVERY page. Not first build the site and then look at the SEO!

[egar50]

Re: Help with optimizing my site

Thanks for the advice everyone

I have used the code (I think)that Beth refered to in post No 8 above for the Online Software Store heading, before I change anything else on the page could someone check to see if this is correct

[Bethers]

Re: Help with optimizing my site

Bruce, you audience is always changing - as are the terms they use and how they look at things. So, yes, you need to plan much at the start - but then you also have to be ready to change things - often in many cases.

Egar,
You are forcing it to go to a new line by the box you put it in - this may not display properly on all browsers. You have:

<center><h1> <font face="Tahoma" color="OOOOOO" size="5">ONLINE SOFTWARE STORE THE SOFTWARE BAY</font></h1></center>

You need to change it to:

<center><h1> <font face="Tahoma" color="OOOOOO" size="5">ONLINE SOFTWARE STORE<br>THE SOFTWARE BAY</font></h1></center>

And I suggest you try it at size 4 - just a tad smaller - but then use whichever one you prefer.

The <br> is simply telling it to do a carriage return between those words, btw.

[egar50]

Re: Help with optimizing my site

Beth

I have changed the script as you said and made it 4 also.

I origianlly used 4 but thought it had to be bigger for the h1 tag

Is this ok now, if it is I will go about changing the copy of the page as you suggested.

Thanks

[egar50]

Re: Help with optimizing my site

Beth

I have made some changes to the copy as you suggested, its not great I know but am I going in the right direction

If you have the time would you please take a look

Thanks

[Bethers]

Re: Help with optimizing my site

Egar,
You don't have an h1 tag on your home page - did you publish? This is what is there right now:

<font style="font-size:24px" color="#000000" face="Tahoma"><b>Online Software Store </font><font style="font-size:16px" color="#000000" face="Times New Roman"></b><br>
</font><font style="font-size:24px" color="#000000" face="Tahoma"><b>The Software Bay</font><font style="font-size:16px" color="#000000" face="Times New Roman"></b><br>

[egar50]

Re: Help with optimizing my site

Beth

I must have accidently changed the heading as I did have the h1 tag put in earlier.

I have put it in again now I hope it is correct, please take another look when you have time and what about the changes to the copy, is this any improvement.

Thanks