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SEO (SEARCH ENGINE OPTIMIZATION)ARTICLES
Optimize HTML Tables for Search Engines
How
To Optimize HTML Tables for Search Engines
and keep your
navigation on the left while maintaining SE
Optimization efficiency!
by Stephen Mahaney
article reprinted with permission from
Search Engine News
Perhaps you've heard that HTML tables reduce
search engine optimization efficiency. The
truth is, it isn't the HTML table layout that
reduces the efficiency, it's the content order
of appearance within the table that auses
the search engine problems.
Specifically, it's when site navigation is
placed inside the first cell of the table
that causes search engines to erroneously
catalog the navigation links as the theme
of your site.
Simply put, site navigation utilizes words
like Home, Products, Services, Contacts Us,
About Us, Privacy Policy, etc. Such words
are certainly not the primary "keywords" that
an online business wants a search engine to
index. However, when such navigation is placed
into the first cell of an HTML table, as is
typically the case, those are exactly the
words a search engine sees first, and indexes
-- much to the dismay of search engine optimization
strategists.
Without a doubt, this is a top design concern
that catches most webmasters between their
understandable desire to build easily navigable
pages and their company's need to score well
in the search engines.
Here's a simple solution...
If you've faced this dilemma, fret not. We
have a clever, yet simple solution to one
of the most common search engine optimization
problems known to site designers. Now you
can use HTML tables to achieve a tastefully
pleasing and predictably consistent design
layout AND fully optimize your pages to score
high in the search engines - here's how.
The technique involves using a blank table
cell along with an appropriate rowspan specification
on the subsequent table cell. Doing so allows
you to set the contents of the main section
of your webpage as the very first body text
a search engine will "see" in the page's source
code.
Then, by placing the navigation column within
the next table cell, the webpage displays
navigation on the customary left side in spite
of the fact such navigation physically exists
after the body text of the main section in
the source code.
This strategy gives you the best of both worlds
-- design appeal AND search engine optimization
efficiency. Here's what it looks like...
| |
Place
your page contents and keywords here.
Take a close look at the code below
and you will notice that this text
appears first in the source code and
above the text that appears in the
table to the left. Therefore, a search
engine will see this text and index
it before it sees the text that is
located lower in the source code of
the page.
To prove it, copy and paste the code
below and save it as an HTML document.
Upon viewing the page your end result
will look exactly like this green
and yellow table combination you see
here giving you a ready-made search
engine friendly table-template.
|
|
Place
your navigation links here.
Although it LOOKS like it is the first
text when viewing a page, in the eye
of the search engine it isn't because
the text contained in the cell
to the right actually appears
first when viewing the source
code. (see below)
|
<table
border="1" cellpadding="5"
cellspacing="0" width="450">
<tr>
<td valign="top" bgcolor="#eeeeee" align="left" width="140"></td>
<td valign="top" align="left" bgcolor="#efefff" width="450" rowspan="2">
Place your page contents and keywords here.
Take a close look at the code below and you will notice that
this text appears first in the source code and above the text
that appears in the table to the left. Therefore, a search
engine will see this text and index it before it sees the text
that is located lower in the source code of the page.
To prove it, copy and paste the code below and save it as an
HTML document. Upon viewing the page your end result will
look exactly like this green and yellow table combination you
see here giving you a ready-made search engine friendly
table-template.
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" align="left" width="140" bgcolor="#eeeeee">
Place your navigation links here.
Although it LOOKS like it is the first text when viewing a page,
in the eye of the search engine it isn't because the text
contained in <B><I>the cell to the right</I></B> actually
appears <u>first</u> when viewing the source code. (see
below)
</td>
</tr>
</table>
Copy the example in green above and then insert
your own text into the format. I'm sure you'll
see right away how easy it is to place your
keyword content strategically in the path
of the search engines even when using HTML
tables. Don't you wish all your optimization
problems could be solved so easily!
Question: How much money could a tip
like this mean to your company's bottom line.
$100? ...$500? ...more? ...because it improves
your positioning on the search engines, maybe
a LOT more! If you answered yes then you owe
it to yourself to check
out Search Engine News.
|
Pandia Search
Central calls Search Engine News,
"....probably the best newsletter
on
search engine promotion in the
world."
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