For the past few years, I have been silently listening to and observing other search engine optimization (SEO) professionals speak and write about the topic of search-engine friendly web site design. I’m the one in the back with the black wig, sunglasses, mustache, and trench coat. All joking aside, I am genuinely interested in how other web designers/developers approach this topic. Is their approach different from my approach? Are there design elements that I, perhaps, might have overlooked?
What concerns me is how the term “search engine friendly design” has been twisted to have different meanings, mostly centered around URL structure. Granted, part of having a search engine friendly web site is providing access to keyword-focused content. Nevertheless, whenever I listen to my colleagues address this topic, I notice that the “design” portion of search engine friendly design is notoriously missing. Where is the discussion about allocation of screen real estate, use of graphic images, text formatting, animation, color selection, and other important design decisions? A URL (web address) is not the only part of a web page’s interface.
Access, URL structure, and the interface