The goal of any Web site is to be found by potential clients.  The most effective way for your Web site to be found is through a high search engine ranking.  Understanding search engines, their ranking criteria, and the HTML code behind your Web site is one of the most important keys to the success of your Web site.

One of the most effective ways to influence your search engine ranking is through the use of META tags.  META tags are snippets of HTML code embedded into your Web site.  There are two types of META information important for search engine ranking: “Description” and “Keywords.”

A Web site's META Description is the text that describes the site after it has been found in a search engine.  For example, if the hypothetical business “Widgets Inc.” manufactures widgets for truffle farms, their Web site's description might read "Widgets Inc. manufactures high-quality widgets for use in the construction of truffle farms." It is important that the Description is 25 words or fewer in length, or fewer than 200 characters including spaces, in order to meet the specifications of multiple search engines.

Since the Description is the summary of your Web page that will appear when your page is retrieved from various search engines, the Description should express what you want visitors to know about your site when they find your page.  

Your META Description should serve three purposes. It should:

• WHO - Tell the reader for whom the page is intended.

• WHAT – Tell the reader what information they will find on your Web page.

• WHY – Explain to the visitor why they should visit your page.

As a rule, pay special attention to spelling and grammar in your Web site's Description.

META Keywords are the words that are entered into a search engine in order to find a particular Web site. For example, the Keywords for the hypothetical "Widgets Inc." might include "widgets, truffles, manufacture, farms, pigs" etc. So when someone types "widgets" and "manufacture" into a search engine, the engine is able to find the “Widgets Inc.” Web site by the Keywords. 

When choosing the Keywords for your own Web site, try to imagine yourself in a potential visitor’s shoes.  What would YOU type into a search engine to find a Web site similar to your own?  Try to be as specific as possible, as general terms are prevalent on the Internet, and generally won't help your chances for a high search engine listing.

When creating your Keywords list, be sure to keep the following in mind:

• Do not repeat the same Keywords more than three to five times, as some engines may view this as “keyword spamming” and remove your Web site from their search engine.  

• The list of Keywords can be up to 500 characters in length including spaces, but there is little evidence that an excessive number of Keywords will help attain higher search engine placement.  The first 10 to 15 Keywords are by far the most important.

• Choose words that are relevant to your site, as general terms such as “web, finance, money, business, etc.” are so prevalent on the Web that your site will get lost among the thousands of other sites with similarly vague Keywords.  Be sure to make your Keywords as specific and relevant to your Web site as possible.

Your Web page's Title is what appears at the top of the browser window when someone views your Web page (right before “—Microsoft Internet Explorer”, or “—Netscape”).  When someone "Bookmarks" your Web site or adds your site to their "Favorites," the Title is what the bookmark will be listed under.  Your Web page's Title is also very important for search engine placement, and you should try to have several Keywords, as well as your company name, in your Title.  You are limited to 64 characters, including spaces, in your Title.

Also, the Title is the first thing someone sees in a search engine listing describing your site. If your Title is effective, it prompts the reader to scan your site's Description, basically pulling the reader into reading the summary, and eventually visiting your site. You should create a Title that is descriptive and will catch the reader’s attention. 

To see if your Web site is search engine friendly, view the source code of your site.  This source code will not be outwardly visible, but can be accessed through your Web browser.  To view your source code, go to the top bar of your Web browser (such as Microsoft Internet Explorer, Netscape Navigator, etc.) and click “View,” then “Source” or “Page Source.”  The following html tags should be found near the top of your Web page code:

<HTML>
<HEAD>
<META NAME="DESCRIPTION" CONTENT="Widgets Inc. manufactures high-quality widgets for use in the construction of truffle farms.">
<META NAME=”KEYWORDS” CONTENT=”widgets, truffles, manufacture, farms, pigs, widgets inc., quality, etc.">
<TITLE>Widgets Incorporated - Home Page</TITLE>
</HEAD>

----- NOTE:  This example is for a fictional widget manufacturer.  Your meta information will be different.  Also note that the rest of your Web page html continues after the </HEAD> tag -----

If you don't have the appropriate META information coded into your Web page, be sure to include this important META information.  HostGlobe's MetaMaker© will generate the html code for your meta information automatically.