When looking for a page, a search engine will first compare the title of the page to that of the requested search. This also means that it is best to do this for each page on your website so as to direct the searcher to the page that contains the information that they are looking for.
What YikeSite does
YikeSite automatically places the name you give the page into the title field. You can also modify this to include other information through the theme; for example, using your tag line on the home page.
What you can do
Accurately describe the page's content - Choose a page name that effectively communicates the contents of the page.
Create unique page names - Create a unique title for each page on your website for easy navigability.
Use brief, but descriptive titles - Titles that are too long will only have a portion that shows up in the search engine. Also, a short, descriptive title is far quicker to read.
You should create URLs that aren't too long, but are descriptive. They should not contain random characters like ?, = and & or random numbers such as 3592. Search engine robots view this as gibberish that is both confusing and unfriendly. Google and other search engines will most likely ignore these types of URLs. Also, your website's directory structure should be simple and easy to navigate.
What YikeSite does
- Uses lower case words from the page title to build URLs. This means the URLs are descriptive and do not contain gibberish.
- Creates a website with a simple hierarchy with straightforward navigation.
- Allows you to smoothly move pages around and create a simple organizational structure that is easy to navigate and reflects the message you want to convey.
What you can do
Choose appropriate page names - Choosing a relevant page name means creating a suitable URL. This helps both the search engine and those using the search engine to distinguish between whether or not the page is relevant.
Create the content of your website before the design - Creating content before design ensures that the organization of your website reflects the message you want to communicate. This will be reflected in your website's hierarchy.
Search engines generally look to see if your website is well organized. They decide whether or not it has easy navigation and how users will react and behave when they visit.
What YikeSite does
- Allows you to create a naturally flowing hierarchy.
- Uses text for navigation rather than pictures (you can also use images if you prefer).
- Supplies visual cues.
- Provides site map and google site map options for better indexing.
- Shows another page if a section of the URL directory is removed, because every link within a hierarchy has content.
- Displays a 404 page if a page is not found, with a link that redirects to your home page.
Best practices for site navigation
Create a naturally flowing hierarchy - Make a smooth transition from general to specific information.
Use mostly text for navigation - Use text rather than images from the linked page to allow visitors to decide whether or not to follow a link.
Use "breadcrumb" navigation - This allows the visitor to see where they came from if they find themselves lost.
Put an HTML sitemap page on your site - This can be very useful if you have a large site and think visitors might occasionally lose their bearings.
Consider what happens when a user removes part of your URL - Some visitors will drop part of the URL and enter more general information than they have been supplied with.
Have a useful 404 page - When visitors enter a URL that is non-existent, instead of displaying a blank screen, tell them that they have entered the wrong URL or that the page no longer exists, and then redirect them.
What you can do
Take the time to create a quality site - The organization of your site is very important as far as page indexing. YikeSite recommends creating the content of your site in advance of the design to ensure that you have navigation that truly represents the message you want to deliver.
Make sure there are not too many links on one page - Too many links on a page make it hard to read. Only link to important words or phrases. Search engines may penalize you if you have too many links on a page, as they may think you are trying to cheat them.
Make sure hierarchy reflects the message you want to convey - Northern Village recommends that the main menu items on your site convey an "at a glance" overview of your primary message. Generally, the fewer number of menu choices there are, the stronger your message.
This is pretty straightforward. For visitors to feel satisfied, you need to have good quality material on your website. This will increase traffic as users spread knowledge of your site through the web and by word of mouth.
What YikeSite does
- Makes your website simple to use and easy to update.
- Uses CSS to style the site for consistency throughout, including an easy to read font.
- Updates your content immediately.
- Integrates with other systems including blogs, shopping carts, forms, apps, etc.
What you can do
Write easy to read text - This allows visitors to understand your material and act accordingly.
Stay organized around each topic - Make it easy to tell when one subject area ends and another begins. Otherwise, visitors may get confused.
Use relevant language - Keywords play a large role in how search engines choose which sites to display. The more keywords you use, the more variety of visitors you will get.
Provide fresh, unique content - Writing new website content encourages your existing visitors to return and will help bring new visitors as well.
Offer exclusive content or services - This is where you need to come up with ideas that will draw visitors to your website and allow it to grow.
Create content primarily for your users, not search engines - Designing your site around search engine results will not work if your content doesn't cater to people's needs.
Consider hiring an editor - Quality content is an important part of any first-class website. Hiring an editor ensures that content is organized by topic, language and formatting is consistent, and your text is free from embarrassing typos and grammatical errors.
The text that appears in a link (i.e. anchor text) is important because users want to know if they should follow the link and search engines need to understand what the page is about.
What YikeSite does
- Formats link text through CSS. This means links fit smoothly into your website's pages and are easy to spot.
- Formats internal and external links the same way.
- Provides a simple way to add links—whether they are internal, external, email or file links.
What you can do
Choose descriptive text - The link text should give the reader an idea of where the link will take them. Do not place unrelated text in a link—search engines do not like that.
Write concise text - It is best to use short but descriptive content containing a few words or a short phrase.
The name of an image, along with the "alt" attribute, tells the search engine what the image is about. If a visitor is unable to access the images on your site the "alt" attribute will display text instead. A good file name is also a good reminder to you of what the image is, especially if there are multiple images on a page.
What YikeSite does
- Prompts you to choose a title for the image when uploading.
- Enters alt tag in image dialogue screen.
- Keeps images in one directory.
Good practices for images
Use brief descriptive filenames and alt text - The filenames and alt text are best when they are short and descriptive of the image.
Supply alt text when using images as links - If you make an image into a link, filling out the alt text helps search engines to understand what it is that they are linking to.
Use commonly supported filetypes - JPEG, GIF, PNG, AND BMP, are the most common image formats.
Web analytics
Web analytics programs are valuable tools for gauging your web traffic because they track visitors' journeys once they arrive on your website. For example, they measure the number of visitors, page views, pages per visit, bounce rates, and the average time on your website.
Analytics applications can also provide data that helps with your market research, such as measuring the results of recent advertising campaigns, and which of your landing pages are most effective.
What YikeSite does
- Allows placement of your custom Google Analytics code into any Village CMS theme.
- Provides sample code within the generic theme where you can add your Google Analytics UA number, or any other analytics code.
What you can do
Review the web analytics programs to see which one(s) suit you best.
SEO is not just about robots, sitemaps and code. It’s applied marketing. So if you don’t understand how to be a marketer, you are not utilizing SEO to its fullest potential. YIkeSite will help you with that. We are going to let you know what things you can do to make your site better. We take care of the technical stuff - having good URL structure, descriptive meta tags, and effective site navigation - but also the marketing stuff like promoting your website with blog posts, social media, and engaging in collaboration with similar websites. When your small business becomes larger, we can help you hire an SEO expert for maximum effectiveness.