I m creating my own web pages and want them to be picked up appropriately by search engines, what should I do

A.� Within a web page there are a number of places where its creator can include keywords that help search engines match a users search request to, hopefully, appropriate web sites. You can optimise their chances of finding your site by including an appropriate title and set of keywords, known as meta tags, in your web page.

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Q.� How important is the title tag

A.� Have you ever done a web search and seen results listed as 'Untitled' The simple reason is that its creator didn't give the page a title. Avoid this by giving all your web pages titles, making them concise yet descriptive to guide a searcher to them.

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Use the Help menu in your web-authoring package to find out how to insert a title in the correct tag

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Q.� How important are description tags

A.� After title, the next tag to consider is the 'description' tag, which the search engine uses to create a summary of your page for the searcher. Again, if you're not sure the help menu of your web-authoring package will show you where to find this tag.

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Again the key is to make a concise, honest and meaningful description that will help a searcher choose your site as he or she skims through all the others that a search engine pulls up.

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Q.� How should I complete the keyword meta tag

A.� Keywords are used by search engines to determine the subject matter of your site. This is especially important for search engines that categorise web sites according to subject, to read about how search engines work, click here.

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Keywords can be phrases and it's probably better to include a few phrases that mean the same thing, but cover all possible search terms that may be used. Also consider any Americanisms and common typos. So, for example, if your site is about colours, include the American spelling, 'color', too.

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A word of warning, there are certain words that are the most commonly used by searchers, 'sex' being the top one. Don't try to include this, or any other top search terms inappropriately as search engine compilers are wise to such tricks and may decide to discount your site altogether if you try and beat the system.

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Got a question about creating a web site Click here to ask.

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by Lisa Cardy