To begin with, SEO is an abbreviation for the term "search engine optimization." It analyzes and builds web pages as well as web sites so that they can be discovered, analyzed, and indexed by different search engines. SEO is used to make your web page content more relevant, attractive, and easily read by search engines. Put simply, it allows potential customers or clients to find your web site easier.

The way a web site is indexed by the search engines is a rather complex process. They use programs known as crawlers, robots, or spiders that follow the links from one page to another. Then a copy of each one found is downloaded. These pages are analyzed and indexed. Then, if you have good SEO, these pages become a part of the database for that search engine. Search engines typically perform this periodically. They tend to visit some sites more than they do other ones.

Search engine owners are the only ones who know the answers as to how the page indexing and page ranking routines work. However, they are not about to share this secret with just anyone. The processes are constantly improved and this makes it difficult to predict.

When the search engine operators pass information on to us, it is added to specific keyword searches and analyzed. This lends aid in discovering how the indexing happens. Using this information, you can make some reasonable theories of which methods to use to make a web site more visible. This can increase the ranking in search results. A complete analysis of a web site can improve a site's ranking for particular searches.

Your site can benefit greatly through the use of correct SEO. This means that you may want to avoid using keywords that have nothing to do with your web site. This can cause your web site to turn up in searches that are not relevant to what your site is about at all. When you see these web sites, you know that the sites' creators are only interested in getting people to see their web pages. It is not important to them what must happen in order to get the visitors there.

There are SEO methods that are thought of as spamming. You should always avoid these:

• Doorway pages that are automatically created.
• False cloaking and redirects.
• Loading keywords.
• Hidden text or links.
• Stuffing pages with irrelevant keywords.
• Several pages of duplicate content.
• Misspelling certain popular keywords and web site names on purpose.
• Link farms that are unrelated.
• Any technique that tries to fool the search engines.

These are methods that might work in driving a lot of traffic to your site for a little while, but they also quickly fail. When you force people to come to your web site under false pretenses, how many of these people do you think will actually come again or even use the service you have to offer? This is what you get when you use spamming to get your web site noticed. Another thing you will get is removed from the search engines when the operators see what you are doing. It is best to only use ethical means of increasing the visibility of your site in the search engines.

Try an experiment. Search for your own site on the Internet. Think of what keywords you should use that would include your site in the results. If it turns up, pay attention to where you site appears. If you have used correct search engine optimization, your site should turn up pretty close to the top of the relevant search results. Never ignore SEO or you will have potential clients and customers passing you totally by.