CENTERVILLE -- Providing solid information is the key to a successful Web page, according to industry experts. "It's all about the content," said Mike Rivera of i4 Solutions based in Woods Cross. "The more relevant content you have in developing your Web page, the higher the ranking you will receive on a search engine."

And the way it's done now is different from the way it was done when search engines first started.

"In the early days, people used 'meta tags,' which was information embedded into the content that would help a business move up in rank," Rivera explained.

A "meta tag" is content that is both visible and nonvisible and typically loaded with the same information that used to get Web sites to the top of search engines.

"Now the system is much more complicated," he said.

Rivera also mentioned that links are another part of the process in the ranking of search engines.

"The more links you have coming out or going in will assist the process as well," explains Rivera.

"Reciprocal links are big too. These are links that have both coming out and going in information."

Rivera describes the process as this: If the New York Times has a link to the Davis County Clipper and vice-versa, this is considered a "Reciprocal link" to each Web site. As a result, both the New York Times and the Davis County Clipper would achieve a higher ranking when searched through a search engine.

However, well written content is nice to have, too.

"A developing page with well written, good grammar content is another key determinant when Google or another search engine determines a site's ranking," said Rivera. "The more relevant, content-specific information you put in a Web page, the more likely you'll be higher in a Google search."

For instance, Rivera explains, the words "carpet cleaner" and "carpet cleaning" have two separate meanings, so when a person searches for "carpet cleaning" and they are looking for "carpet cleaner," the content is different. Therefore, a person may not find what they're looking for because of a few letters.

And whether the HTML code is consistent isn't always the best solution.

"If HTML code is structured properly, it is possible to have a higher ranking," said Rivera. "But the content which a developer or Web page designer uses in creating their page is the largest factor."

As to how a person could show up near the top of Google searches without having to pay for a sponsored link, Rivera suggests that they try a Web page developer.

"Web page developers are here to help people develop their page," he said.

"We have both tech writers and Web page developers, but it is more important to have a good writer than a good programmer."

Andy Coulter, Marketing Manager at Time Zone in Bountiful, agrees to a point.

"Content is a key ingredient," said Coulter. "But there are other parts involved as well."

The first thing, according to Coulter, is the title. The title of a search is important in letting people know what they want to see.

"Say a person types in 'Seiko watches' as a search. You can see the sponsored links, then we are listed as the third link below the search," explains Coulter. "This occurs because we put in the specific content within the search."

He also explains that metatags are important because they tell about the page.

"Metatags talk about the content," said Coulter. "When search engines look for 'Seiko watches', for instance, there is a detailed description of Seiko watches that we input into our page. So the metatags are picked up by the search engine and we get a higher ranking.

"You have to populate the page with information to get ranked higher in a search engine," he added.

Coulter also confirmed that links to a Web page are important.

"I agree with [Rivera]," said Coulter. "The more links are available, the higher the ranking is achieved. These are just other things that people need to be aware of when developing a Web page."



sgillet@davisclipper.com