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Search Engine Friendly Content Management Systems
hat is a Content Management System, to update the
Management System? content that lives in the
database. In addition, a CMS
A Content Management System (CMS) allows the web site owner to
is a third party software outsource content development
application which allows web site remotely to contract copywriters
administrators to add, update or and other willing contributors.
delete content, photos, and With built in access level
documents to their web site in hierarchies, webmasters can allow
"real time". Many web sites are various users to register as
modified using these web-based authors and start submitting
tools as they require little to articles and news to be published
no knowledge of HTML or web on their site.
scripting languages. CMS programs
make it easy for a webmaster or How do Content Management Systems
site owner who does not know HTML Work?
or have access to a WYSIWYG (What
You See Is What You Get) HTML Content Management Systems create
Editor, such as Macromedia's a dynamic web site environment,
Dreamweaver, to update their where all the content is stored
site. in a database or XML file. Using
a web-based interface, the
In today's high paced web world, webmaster can select which page
a good CMS is integral to the they want to update and then can
efficient operation of a web modify the web content in a text
site. Many webmasters and web editor, with many of the familiar
site developers are building formatting keys that can be found
database driven, or dynamic web in a word processing program.
sites, which require a third Once the content has been
party solution, such as a Content updated, with the simple click of
a button, the CMS will turn their It is suggested to limit the
text into HTML code and publish number of URL parameters to two
the content to the web site. or three per URL to ensure that
that search spiders will not have
Problems Between Search Engines difficulty indexing pages deep
and Content Management Systems: within the web site.
Historically, search engines have Certain URL parameter names may
had difficulty indexing dynamic automatically flag a filter on
pages. While their ability to the search engine. One example is
index and rank dynamic pages has the URL parameter names that
improved dramatically, there are contain ‘ID', such as
some basic things to avoid. One ‘sessionid', ‘sid' or
of the greatest enemies of search ‘userid'. Historically, search
engines is URL strings that engines detect the term "ID" and
contain many URL parameters. URL assume it is associated with a
parameters are variables that are session dependant variable. As a
passed to the CMS through the result, search engines have
URL, which tell it what learned to flag these parameter
information to retrieve from the names and it can cause problems
database. URLs with too many with page indexing. Passing
parameters generally make little session dependant variables
logical sense to the average user through the URL is a problem for
and may also scare off search search engines because the spider
spiders. For example see: essentially sees a unique URL
http://www.mysite.com/mg/vbclass/ each time they visit the site
search.asp?A9_MAKEVBCookie=Yes&ve because the session dependent
rtical=CLTH&cat=Mens&subcat=ID&di variables change with each visit.
splayTarget=Subcategory For example, on one visit to the
site, a page URL may be
http://www.mysite.com/page.asp?se that adheres to the latest
ssionid=12345. The next time the requirements of the World Wide
spider visits the page, the URL Web Consortium (W3C). Use the W3C
may be Code Validator to determine if
http://www.mysite.com/page.asp?se your code meets the W3C
ssionid=56789. This creates a standards. Be aware that some
situation where a spider may CMS's add in many lines of
think that there are multiple proprietary code or JavaScript at
URLs with duplicate content, the top of the file, which can
resulting in penalties which will choke search spiders. This
negatively impact search violates a cardinal rule of SEO;
rankings. ‘To always have more content
then code'.
Based on the above, it is
imperative to employ a CMS that Finding a Search Engine Friendly
does not pass session dependent CMS that will Work for You:
data, such as session variables,
through a URL string. Doing so Now that we have explored many of
will not only create potential the potential problems with
usability issues for the end Content Management Systems, lets
user, but will also result in look at how to go about finding
indexing problems for the search one that will be both search
engine spiders. engine friendly and suit your
specific needs. First you will
Finally, search engines gather need to determine what server
understanding from your web platform you will be using. Many
site's content by filtering Content Management Systems use
through the HTML code. For this scripting languages and databases
reason, it is extremely important that are platform dependant. If
that your CMS generate HTML code you are married to a particular
platform, it may limit your CMS you to update your title tags,
options. Ideally, you will want meta data and alt tags on a
to find a CMS that is platform page-by-page basis.
independent, which can run on any
server. The most important aspects of a
good CMS are the ease of use and
There are many search engine richness of content formatting
friendly CMS's that will allow features. This one is a
the web site owner to generate a no-brainer because the very
URL structure that is both reason that you are looking for a
meaningful to their users and CMS is that YOU DON'T WANT TO
digestible by search engine CODE. Any good CMS should provide
spiders. Instead of having a URL an editing stage that is similar
that is packed with parameters, in feature and function to a
you can create a URL structure standard word processing program,
that looks like this: such as Microsoft Word. The
http://www.mysite.com/children/ha technical term for this is a
ts/prodid/121576. Your next step WYSIWYG Editor or a Rich Text
is to check whether your CMS Editor. This important feature
builds HTML pages to the latest will allow you to type and format
standards established by the W3C. your content using standard
Most CMS providers will be able buttons and keyboard shortcuts.
to tell you if their solution When you publish the content to
generates valid code. If they the live web site, the CMS will
can't, then ask for a sample page write the HTML, CSS and scripting
and run it through the W3C Code to display your content as it was
Validator. In order to rank formatted during the editing
effectively in organic results of stage. Many Content Management
the search engines, it is Systems are offering additional
imperative that your CMS allows technologies, such as RSS feed,
shopping cart solutions, forums be beneficial. The ends result
and live chat integration, which will be a web site that is easy
can really enhance the to manage and usable for both
functionality of your web site. your customers and the search
The key is to find a CMS that engines.
will suit your core needs and
then determine what add-ons would
About the Author:
Mike has extensive experience in web application development, SEO, and instruction at the college level in all web development disciplines, Mike creates the processes and practices that deliver increased organic search rankings for clients for Rock Coast.
Read more articles by: Mike Goldstein
Article Source: www.iSnare.com
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