Search Engine Optimization and Search Engine Submission FAQs:

1. I am number 5 in Yahoo, but not in the top 1,000 in Google. Why?
   A. Yahoo and Google use two different algos to come up with their SERPs - Yahoo favors on- page optimization such as H1 tags, keyword density, etc while Google favors off page like in bound links. If you have done more on page then Yahoo will rank higher and vice versa. As part of this if you are now addressing your off page then you need more backlinks with anchor text and time for these links to age (Google lag).
    
2. What is Hidden Text?
   Text that is visible to the search engine spiders but not to site visitors. Hidden text is primarily used to add extra keywords in the page without actually adding content to a site which may mostly consist of images. Most search engines will penalize Web sites which use hidden text.
    
3. What is cloaking?
   Determining which search engine spider is visiting a web page and then giving each spider a page optimized for it's particular algorithm. This method of search engine optimization can result in a website being removed from the major search engines.
    
4. What is a doorway page?
   A method of search engine optimization considered to be SPAM. These are pages created for nothing but the purpose of ranking first for a particular keyword phrase. These pages usually lack any significant content and do not reflect the tone of the rest of the website. If a search engine determines a website has used this tactic then the website will be removed from the search engine permanently.
    
5. Would I be penalized if a "Link Farm" or a "Bad Neighborhood" linked to my site?
   No, you have no control over who links to you and this would be an easy way for a competetior to sink your site. What you SHOULD be careful of is if you are linking to them. This CAN hurt your site and should be avoided.
    
6. Why does Google hate me/pick on me?
   Google does not pick on individual sites but instead allows complex mathematical equations to decide the value of your site in any particular search. Although it may sometimes feel like they are picking on you, most times a ban or bad results can be traced to a small piece of bad or misguided SEO.
    
7. My site is not in Google, I've submitted it to google numerous times but I'm not seeing the googlebot crawl my site. I'm also seeing an incomplete listing.
   Sometimes the googlebot will visit, and leave, only to come back at a later time in order to crawl all of your pages. If a site has no cache, or an incomplete listing, it has not been crawled and indexed properly yet. The best thing you can do is get more in bound links to your site, so that the googlebot arrives to your site from more than 1 source.
    
8. How important is Alexa ranking?
   Alexa rankings are based upon only Alexa Tool Bar users who visit your site and then used to calculate and estimate of traffic (in otherwords, it's a mathmatical guess). They are inaccurate and not reflective of true traffic. Alexa is a good means to see general trends in your site's performace. But Alexa is by no means a good way of tracking popularity, it is just results based on a sample group (people who have the Alexa tool bar determines results) and because of this, it is extremely easy for people to manipulate their results. If you have the Alexa toolbar installed on your own computer and visit your site regularly, you will see a significanct jump in ranking. It will even count your own visits again and again as new traffic.
    
   That said, while Alexa may not be a accurate representative of what your site traffic demographics truely are, it does not prevent prospective advertisers from using it as a tool to decide whether they should advertise. 
    
9. Why aren't my web sites indexed by the Search Engines? (We have been using your service for several months, however, we're not showing up anywhere on any of the major Search Engines. Why?)
   There are many reasons that can cause Search Engines to choose not to add your site to their results. Here are a few:
   
   Your web site URLs are embedded in JavaScript. This is the most common reason why web sites are not indexed by the Search Engines. If your web site URLs are embedded in JavaScript, most of the Search Engines will not recognize and index these pages. If you're serious about getting your web sites to be indexed by the Search Engines and get a good position on the MAJOR Search Engines such as AltaVista, Lycos, Yahoo and many others, please consider changing your web site style, either by putting your links in simple html format or making alternative links at the bottom of your page just for the Search Engines.
    
   There are no or little content on your web pages. If your web site was designed for "Nice looking" which means it contains only Images, Flash, Java, etc, and there is no actual text information (or just too little text) on your web pages, your web pages will be ignored by the Search Engines. Search Engines will only index the web sites which contain valuable information. Please put real useful information in text format to your web pages and reduce the number of images, javascripts, etc to those which are vital to your website.
    
   A Badly Designed Site. Ineffective site design includes lack of clear navigation, over-use of Javascript, and large, load-intensive graphics. Search engine spiders can actually be blocked from crawling sites that inclue these common mistakes, so it's a major part of Web site optimization; plus, if users can't find what they want on your site quickly, they'll find another site. 
    
   Your site has been banned due to using black hat methods to gain higher rankings. keyword stuffing, invisible text, doorway pages, cloaking, etc.
    
10. How long does it take to have my web site indexed?
    Please note that many search engines take a few days to a few weeks to index your web sites to their database. Many major search engines take more than 6 weeks even 12 weeks to index your web page. Please give yourself enough time for the engines to add your site to the database. 
    
     After you submit your web site to the engines, your URL will be first stored in a "temporary" database, and then the search engines will send a "robot" or "spider" later  to "visit" your web site and determine whether your web site to be indexed or not.
     
    Note: Please also note that there is not guarantee that your web site will be indexed  by search engines even the if "robot" has visited your site. Ranking and acceptance will depend upon how well put together your website's content is and how it relates to the keywords and phrases you are targeting.