With billions of websites now filling the internet database and ever rapidly expanding, the use of filtering them to best match the needs of their viewers has never been more important. As such, techniques including SEO (Search Engine Optimisation) the process search engine results to best read content suited to searcher. Considered one of the best tools to any website developer, SEO implies that viewers will access the site based on several keywords and html descriptors ‘crawled’ through by ‘spiders’ to form ‘indexes’. A good example as such would be an online clothing store which stocks pieces similar to that of Jennifer Aniston. If the searcher enters any phrases that are associated as such or located in the garment descriptions, the site will be placed in the search engine results page. This collection of tags is often called a ‘seeding list’ as they root together the user-produced content and pages of the website.

The reasoning behind applying Search Engine Optimisation to a website is in hope of taking advantage over the competition through respective content monitoring and development. However, this has led to some moderators of websites to choose manipulative and deceitful techniques in the hope that ranking and search results would result in increased audience figures. It is important that the use of Search Engine Optimisation isn’t in breach of regulations and guidelines that have since come in place. Most notably, excessive submission and the use of rogue software can cause the client to be expelled from search results therefore diffusing the original purpose of SEO. Furthermore, trafficking to a website under false pretenses (content that doesn’t actually exist) means limited time spent on readership and a damning reputation. Flooding results pages with manipulative pages that are of little purpose to its audience continues the view that many online communications are merely ‘spam’.

As search engines can seen be an online market space, differentiation is key between web developers and their sites’ consumers. SEO to a reader saves them time surfing and browsing the web, whilst hoping to filter irrelevant content to latter results. Furthermore, data input into forms, mailing lists and online store buttons, for example, would communicate how they relate to the site and how they can benefit one another. Understanding where and how one customer came to reach that final transaction and help lead to an improved and more efficient service. The idea is that any website that is of a high quality and attribute to the consumer, leads to maintained readership by that individual but also great feedback to further more clients.

Search Engine Optimisation has proven to be a great tool in decoding how sites their individual pages are read as well as the linking on a path between other sites. As more web developers have acquired its skill and applied it to their own websites, competition has become fiercer for both the better and worse but with the understanding that this has furthered an increase in digital consumption.

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