Website Design: How Not To Get Ripped Off - Part 2

By Author: unknownmem
Total Articles: 496
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Do you want to be found in Google? This is where you can throw literally thousands of pounds away. I have seen it many a times. You get a beautiful looking all singing and dancing website only to find out 6 months down the line that the site is not search engine friendly and can never be found.. Opps time to put your hand in your pocket and fork out for a rebuild.

There are hundreds of web companies that talk the talk regarding search engines but don't actually walk the walk. There is a small thing called SEO in the web world and it's all about making a website search engine friendly so when someone types something into your website will come up. Now web companies know about this and have it plastered all over their sites, but very few actually know enough about it to do it properly. They read a few articles and think that's it, their experts so can offer it.

To ensure your web company does know what they are talking I would go to a freelance SEO expert and ask then what they think about the company, get them to look at the portfolio of sites they have built and take their advice. Really seeking an SEO expert ...
... first is a good idea as many people build a website and then look at the search engine side of it. Really that should be clarified first. What keywords you want your site to be found on etc. This should be in your mind before talking to a web company, but again only a web company that knows SEO and implements' it properly in the build.

SEO is an ongoing activity which is actually marketing your website, so without a SEO friendly built website you won't be able to market the site for search engines. If you're serious about your online business then you will already have a marketing plan in your mind for when the site goes live and SEO will be top on your list. This means you need to be aware of SEO from the outset. You can't just worry about that later. It's like buying a car and then deciding you want it to be a different colour, 5 doors rather than 3 and a larger engine! It can't be done; you need to buy another car. The same is with websites, some websites can't be changed, so the only option is a rebuild.

One other tip, flash! Flash should be used moderation as flash cannot be read by search engines yet and if your site is completely built in flash, it will look great but wont function in search. So if you're relying on people finding your site naturally by searching in google, lay off the flash.

I hope I haven't put you off having a website built, but like anything in life, a bit of preparation works wonders and stops the finished result from being a shamb
For Web Design London, Moustique Design are an affordable web development company offering SEO friendly websites from ecommerce website s to content management systems (CMS), graphic design, website maintenance and hosting.