subject: The Art Of Search Engine Ranking On The Internet [print this page] A search engine is used to enhance the retrieval of data, files and other documents on the internet. Almost all modern web browsers (like Firefox and Internet Explorer) contain a search engine in the top-right corner. This is evidence of how widely used search engines are; they are truly the universal tool of the internet.
Search Engine Ranking is a system used by search engines to tell users which sites are better than others. Typically search engines list results by first deciding if a website contains data that the user might be interested in, and then ordering the various sites that provide the desired data by their ranking. While Site A may have better information for the user, Site B is shown above Site A because B has a higher ranking. Unfortunately the search engines are not perfect, and this problem often occurs. The workaround is to show the search engines that your site should be ranked higher because it contains more valuable information.
Improving your Search Engine Ranking can be a very complex process. Google (the largest search engine) does not even provide specifics for how its ranking system works. It's broad descriptions state that sites should be easy to navigate, have a lot of traffic going to them, and be properly coded to receive a high ranking. For years these vague requirements have driven many developers nuts trying to find whatever part they're missing to get the higher ranking over their competition. We now know the answer is simple. Most of the search engines just want to see that your site is being linked to from other high-ranking sites. All the new blogging, forum posting, and social networking can really put your site ahead of the curve, but how do you track which sites / methods are helping your site the most?
SEO suites. An SEO suite can be used to improve your Search Engine Ranking by tracking the various articles, blog postings, forums, and link shares that your site it linked to and from. You can then easily determine which one of the methods is helping your site ranking the most and focus your attention on improvement and not guess work. Good luck!
