XML Sitemaps

A sitemap (or site map) is a tool to help search engines crawl and index pages on a website more effectively. That can mean search engines will index more of the pages on your site, more quickly than without a sitemap. That in turn makes it easier for people to find your website.

Google and other search engines will spend only a limited amount of time crawling your site. A complete XML (Extensible Markup Language) sitemap can direct search engines to your most important pages, increasing the likelihood that these pages will be indexed and then discovered by the people you want to attract. This is called "crawl efficiency," and an XML sitemap can improve yours.
Most websites need only a simple HTML sitemap, which has the benefit of helping people, as well as search engines, find individual web pages. If a site is large or complex, or if you want to add more information to a web page listing, Google recommends having both an HTML sitemap and an XML sitemap following the sitemap protocol that major search engines adhere to.

Using CSS to Re-Order Content vs Display

Using CSS and/or Javascript to re-order how content appears on a website, means that search engines get what they want and visitors get what they want. It's a win, win. For example, you can have [h1]Keyword Phrase[/h1] at the very top of your source code, but it is wrapped in a [div] tag called "displaynone" . Then at the very bottom of the source code is some javascript with a function called "DisplayH1" that actually displays the [h1] text at the bottom of the page. So, the [h1] is first in the source code, but last to display on the page in a browser.

One can also have several paragraphs of keyword rich text at the top of the source code, with [h] tags, keyword rich links, etc. However, you can also use [divs] and absolute positioning to have all of it physically appear at the bottom of the page when viewed in a browser, below all the links, pictures, etc.

This type of use of CSS can go a long way to getting your website to  #1 & 2 in Google's organic results for  competitive key phrases.

All sound a little Greek?! Give Scream Media a call on 021 559 0800 and we will take care of your SEO  starting with the code for your website, using techniques like these above and more. Contact us today for a free no obligation SEO health check

Website Design

More and more people are starting their own online businesses, and the competition within any particular marketplace is getting more and more intense. This is why having the right website design is now such an important part of the success of any online enterprise. Remember that your website is your store window, and just like any good store, the best window dressing will attract the customers in their droves.
Many newbies tend to make the same mistake, and that is to scrimp on the amount of money they spend on their website design. The problem is that there are a number of online businesses that offer cheap or even free website design. But the truth of the matter is that is that these low or no cost websites are very basic. Often they are simply templates that you can personalize in a limited way with choice of colors and font styles, but if you are serious about wanting to run a successful website, and your ambition is to handle lots and lots of traffic, you need a website that is capable of handling that sort of activity.
Finding a good website design company is not hard, and the website that you commission doesn’t have to cost a lot of money. But for a small outlay, you will be investing in your own future and your own online success. You must have the right tools for the job, and quality website design is fundamental to that success.
A good website design company will give you two essential things. The first thing is a website that looks aesthetically pleasing, and the second thing is a website that incorporates cutting edge technology and state-of-the-art knowhow. Let’s examine these two elements a little more closely.
Your website design needs to be aesthetically pleasing because you only get one chance of capturing a visitor’s attention. When traffic first arrives on the chosen landing page of your website, it is vitally important that you capture their immediate attention and interest. You need a visually stunning website that not only grabs and holds their attention, but also leads them further into the website to eventually clinch a sale. Lose them and they are gone forever.
But as well as being visually stunning, your website design must also include cutting edge technology. For example it should have the capability of streaming video, which is superb for great advertising and marketing messaging. It should also include state of the art coding in its links and structure because it is these links that enable search engine spiders to crawl all over website, indexing it for the major search engines which will enhance your website’s search page rankings.
A good website design company will also help you with your content, making sure that it is interesting, relative and informative, because this too will increase your website’s search engine ranking, making it much easier to find for customers seeking out the sort of products and or services that your website promotes.
Finally the right website design company will design your website making sure that it operates at a high conversion rate, meaning that it takes newly arrived traffic and stands a much better chance of converting casually interested visitors into cash paying customers. The best website design companies are not just there for the short ride. It’s not just a case of design a website, then leaving it all up to you to make the best of it on your own. A good website design company will be a permanent partner to you, always being there when you need them to tweak your website in one particular direction, or to insert some new form of technology that keeps your website at the cutting edge of current effective website design.