Should Designers Know SEO?
We think so. At Smart Solutions, our programmers and designers know and have been trained in search engine optimization principles and implement them throughout our projects from start to finish.
The reason this topic hits home for us is we have many clients coming to us after they discover that they have a visually pleasing, graphic or flash only site that is buried on the 200th page of Google's rankings. When we begin to explain search engine optimization principles and what is missing in their site, our clients are understandably disappointed. We feel for these businesses and that is why we believe that programmers and designers should be trained in search engine optimization principles.
Websites are meant to be found. When designers embrace search engine optimization, they are able to incorporate conversion optimization by:
- Creating designs that facilitate the flow of organized information that is optimal for the search engines to crawl and human visitors to navigate
- Including text optimized areas in the design that enhance keyword phrases
- Including appropriate heading information
- Creating search appropriate flash integration
- Considering universal search
- Including site map link
That's a website with some zing.
The only way to protect yourself is to become educated at a very basic level. For instance, you should know that if a potential designer suggests building you an all Flash site, run for the hills. Another way you could learn more is by asking around. See who likes working with what SEO/website design firm. You want the company that builds your website to be as invested as you are in creating a powerful tool for your company that shows prominence in the search engines.
At Smart Solutions, we know why you want a website. You want to increase profits, make your services and products available to a wider demographic, educate you potential consumers, or possibly allow people to buy your products online. We accomplish this by having talented designers who understand and incorporate search engine optimization principles into our clients' sites to get them found and reach their online goals.