The Linux Extremist

I am headed off on vacation soon, amidst increasing signs that I need one badly. I’m developing a strange case of paranoia because of my company’s website; I compulsively, constantly check if our website is still performing well on Google.

Getting this right has been very difficult; a project that was initiated prior to my joining the company left the website on two separate servers, using two different technologies and a completely different domain. The redirects didn’t help; the site sank without a trace on search engines. Chaos ensued, and it’s only now, after 6 months, that I’ve been able to initiate a programme of web marketing and search engine optimisation.
The optimisation updates have primarily focused on using the mod_rewrite module to change database driven links (with parameters, such as www.whatever.com/index.php?parameter=1&otherparameter=2) into something much easier for Google to index (i.e., rational links like www.whatever.com/parameter1/otherparamter2/). This is a fairly standard procedure; what was truly bizarre was that this suggestion took a long time to be accepted by management. Since these changes were put in place, I’ve been watching, waiting, and mostly, been relieved that the changes are helping.

Still, I think it’s the fate of any internet centric person to use Google extensively. In the process, I’ve learned all sorts of little tricks; if I know the site in question that has a particular bit of information, I can ask Google to “site:whatever.com” and then search within the results. I know when to wrap quotes around a phrase and when not to do so. I know how to avoid expressions that are too general. All in all, it has replaced going to the library or buying a newspaper. However, all of this benefit does come at a cost for a webmaster; the workings of Google are maddeningly opaque. One day the site will be fully indexed, and the next, it will be shot down. One day a site will be top of the rankings, the next, it will be at the bottom.

Fortunately, the dips are disappearing in my case; the site is achieving a level of stability, albeit this may be an illusion. Someone may alter an algorithm and my site may plummet into obscurity once more. My approach is simple, do absolutely everything to prevent giving a Google an excuse to not index pages. For example, in addition to the activities I’ve previously mentioned, I’ve tried using Google Sitemaps.

I first tested these sitemaps on my private websites; I heartily recommend the Wordpress plugin for Google sitemaps, and also a tool called XML Sitemaps, which is obtainable for $15. The only problem with the latter tool is that when I used it to index my Sietch and Sith Order sites, it attempted to index the entire product catalogue of Amazon.com, which was accessible through the sites’ online stores.

That said, sitemaps are not only useful for Google, they also come in handy for Yahoo’s new Site Explorer tool, which accepts the Google sitemap protocol; I submitted both my sitemap and RSS feeds to Site Explorer and found that Yahoo’s “Splut” search engine came onto the site with a vengeance. Overall traffic has improved as a result. A sitemap for my company’s site has had similar benefits.

It is, however, a struggle to remain found rather than lost. It’s not just Google that one has to contend with, but all the other sites that are working just as hard as mine to edge ahead in the Search Engine Optimisation game. Paranoia will have to be a state of being; but fortunately, there will be a brief respite as afforded by my vacation beginning next week. I just have to force myself not to check, and if I worry, to have another cup of egg nog.

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