How to Optimize a Web Site Using JavaScript Menu - Do Search Engines Matter?
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A web site can be found by following a link from another web site, or by going directly to the site’s URL advertised either by word-of-mouth or by expensive branding campaigns. In addition, a web site can receive a lot of traffic through the search engines if properly optimized for both their web crawlers and web viewers. The power of search engine optimization should not be underestimated.
With 3.3 billion searches conducted every month in the U.S. alone, and with thousands of new websites being added to the global network of the Internet, making sure your website ranks highly is becoming increasingly important. According to WebSideStory, one of the web analytics market leaders “As of Thursday, March 6, 2003, search sites accounted for more than 13.4 percent of global referrals, up from 7.1 percent the previous year...”
| Referral Type | As of 03/06/03 | As of 03/07/02 |
| Direct Navigation | 65.48% | 50.21% |
| Web Links | 21.04% | 42.60% |
| Search Engines | 13.46% | 7.18% |
How are these 13.46% of the total web site referral traffic distributed among the major search engines? According to OneStat.com, as of November 2003 the 7 largest search engines on the web are:
1. Google with 56.1% of the global usage share
2. Yahoo with 21.5% (with results currently provided by Google but soon to be provided by its own Inktomi)
3. MSN Search with 9.4% (with results currently provided by LookSmart which is to be replaced by Inktomi in January 2004 and by its own algorithmic search engine by 2006)
4. AOL Search with 3.7% (with results provided by Google)
5. Terra Lycos with 2.3%
6. Altavista with 1.9%
7. Askjeeves with 1.6%
Web site optimization for search engine positioning is the most cost-efficient way of web site marketing, and is particularly appropriate for small businesses and non-profit organizations which cannot afford costly online branding campaigns. In this article I will use the example of a non-profit organization's web site, BBFA.org, and will analyze the way it utilizes a JavaScript-based menu for improving the usability of its navigation, while achieving high rankings with the major search engines.
Next: Search Results as the One of the Ultimate Tests of Web Site Optimization… >>
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