Search Engine Myths and Truths

It is quite interesting to surf the web and see many opinions stated as facts when it comes to how search engines work and rank sites. We added a list of the most common statements. For an authoritative opinion on search engine optimization, read some SEO articles by John Metzler.

Search engine optimization is most effective when code is clean, pages are well written and keywords spread in a sensitive and readable manner. Submitting to search engines thousands of times, buying text links and using heavy keyword repetitions are some of the techniques that can only hurt a site or, at best, do absolutely nothing to improve ranks.

Submit Your Site to Thousands of Search Engines

We dare anyone to give us a list of thousands search engines. Besides, ask yourself when you used anything other than one of the big three. Another ploy is continuous submission, done automatically, to the same engines. This is not needed: it actually could hurt ranks and be seen as spamming.

PHP and ASP Sites are Hard or Impossible to Optimize

This is a mixed bag. PHP and ASP are read by spiders and it is definitely possible to conduct effective search engine optimization. On the other hand, it is essential to code so the parameters are unique and do not include long and/or unfriendly URL parameters. Some of these site are coded in a way that can be impossible to index. Sometimes this entails a complete recoding. Other times it is just a matter of creating maps and other workarounds.

Flash Websites Cannot be Optimized

100% Flash made sites are impossible to optimize. At this point there is no major search engine that can read text or follow links in Flash. This could change in the future but it this is the reality right now. There are some ways we can improve ranking on such websites but they will always be at a disadvantage compared with an html, asp or php page.

Free-For-All Link Reciprocation

Some site owners will list links to other sites in exchange for the same courtesy. The logic is that in the old days Google would consider this a "vote" on the importance of a page or domain. These days are gone. Nothing wrong, if for example you are a shoe manufacturer, to exchange with a shoe store. It is actually a good idea because it creates relevancy and usefulness to the user. On the other hand, someone in real estate will not benefit using reciprocation with a shoe store. We actually believe the latest Google updates are penalizing the latter technique. Needless to say, we agree with Google. The searcher should benefit from the most relevant results.