In Part 2 of this 3-part series, I will outline five more important things to consider when thinking about search engine optimization. View Part 1 here and Part 3 here.

#6 Easy-to-use navigation.

Your navigation should be repeated twice on every page, once at the top (or side), and once again in the footer. Not only does this make it easier for users to find their way around the site, but it guides web spiders around your multiple pages.

#7 Limit stand-alone pages.

If there is a page on your site that you can only get to by typing in the URL, delete it, add it to your menu, or find another way to link to it. These act as dead pages and only hurt your SEO.

#8 Keywords and descriptions.

Every page should have keywords, along with descriptions. These are found in the meta tags inside the head of your code. Keep the keywords to a maximum of 10 per page, along with short, unique descriptions. Read more about the importance of keywords at 1stwebdesigner.com.

#9 301 redirects.

This is the most efficient and search engine friendly way to redirect people to another URL. Be sure you are using either your site with or without the www in front of the domain, but not both. If you do not specify which one (usually done within the .htaccess file – see Webweaver’s notes about how to implement 301 redirects), it will be like having two separate sites competing for the same ranking.

#10 Custom error pages.

Any of the 400 series error pages can be achieved with the .htaccess file using a 301 redirect. This is more beneficial to users than spiders, but aids in eliminating broken links. Check out #8 in Smashing Magazine’s 9 Common Usability Mistakes in Web Design for a more in-depth explanation of custom 404 pages.