I can find our site on Google by using the url(www.joanlesemann.com) but not by
key words such as her name--Joan Lesemann,art, artist. How can I fix this or can
you fix it for me?
Thank You.

Margaret Starr(artist's sister and website author)

Hi Margaret ~

Many webmasters want to ensure their sites are included in Google's
search engine and how to optimise the chances of the site being found
by others when they're searching.

While it is true that your site is included in Google's search engine
index (if it weren't included at all, you wouldn't even be able to
find it by its URL - www.joanlesemann.com), the site is not listed
with any of the other search engines, either:

   * The Open Direct Project (DMOZ.org)
     - http://search.dmoz.org/

   * All The Web
     - http://www.alltheweb.com/

   * Alta Vista
     - http://www.altavista.com/

   * HotBot
     - http://www.hotbot.com/

   * Teoma
     - http://s.teoma.com/

   * Yahoo!
     - http://search.yahoo.com/


In addition your PageRank for the site is 0. You can check your site's
PageRank by downloading and installing Google's Toolbar
(http://toolbar.google.com).


Understanding Google's Page Rank
=================================

To ensure your page does get listed under the search terms you want,
you need to build a series of links to and from your site. Here are
some of Google's recommendations and suggestions.

From "Getting Listed"
======================

     "The best way to ensure Google finds your site is for your
      page to be linked from lots of pages on other sites.
      Google's robots jump from page to page on the Web via
      hyperlinks, so the more sites that link to you, the more
      likely it is that we'll find you quickly."
   - ://www.google.com/webmasters/1.html#A2


From "How does Google rank pages?"
===================================

     "Google's order of results is automatically determined by
      more than 100 factors, including our PageRank algorithm.
      Please check out our "Why Use Google" page for more de-
      tails."
   - ://www.google.com/webmasters/4.html


And from "Our Search: Google Technology"
=========================================

     "PageRank relies on the uniquely democratic nature of the web
      by using its vast link structure as an indicator of an
      individual page's value. In essence, Google interprets a
      link from page A to page B as a vote, by page A, for page B.
      But, Google looks at more than the sheer volume of votes, or
      links a page receives; it also analyzes the page that casts
      the vote. Votes cast by pages that are themselves "important"
      weigh more heavily and help to make other pages "important."
   - ://www.google.com/technology/index.html


A check using Google's link: tool shows no sites linking TO
www.joanlesemann.com or no sites containing the term
"www.joanlesemann.com". In other words with no links TO your page and
a PageRank of 0, it is unlikely that Google will list your site under
the terms you have chosen.


============================
How To Get Listed In Google
============================

You asked, "How can I fix this or can you fix it for me?"

Since Google's indexing is based on a complex algorithm which weight
over 100 factors, among them PageRank, they offer recommendations on
how to build a Google-friendly site. No one hand places or determines
Search Engine Results Placement (SERPs) as Google points out:

     "Google's complex, automated methods make human tampering with
      our results extremely difficult"
   - ://www.google.com/technology/index.html


==============================
Google's Webmaster Guidelines
==============================

You should become acquainted with Google's Webmaster Guidelines.

For instance, the "Design and Content Guidelines:"

     "* Make a site with a clear hierarchy and text links. Every
        page should be reachable from at least one static text link.
      * Offer a site map to your users with links that point to the
        important parts of your site ...
      * Create a useful, information-rich site and write pages that
        clearly and accurately describe your content.
      * Think about the words users would type to find your pages,
        and make sure that your site actually includes those words
        within it.
      * Try to use text instead of images to display important names,
        content, or links. The Google crawler doesn't recognize text
        contained in images.
      * Make sure that your TITLE and ALT tags are descriptive and
        accurate.
      * Check for broken links and correct HTML."
   - ://www.google.com/webmasters/guidelines.html


Use of Frames
==============

I noticed you have employed the use of frames within javascripting
(another problem Google may have indexing the site and your pages).

Here's what Google says about the use of frames and why you might not
be listed:

     "Google supports frames to the extent that it can. Frames tend
      to cause problems with search engines, bookmarks, emailing
      links and so on, because frames don't fit the conceptual
      model of the web (every page corresponds to a single URL). If
      a user's query matches the site as a whole, Google returns the
      frame set. If a user's query matches an individual page on the
      site, Google returns that page. That individual page is not
      displayed in a frame -- because there may be no frame set
      corresponding to that page."
   - ://www.google.com/webmasters/2.html


The Javascript and design of your site
=======================================

Google suggests you download and a text browser to check your site in
its Technical Guideines:

     "Use a text browser such as Lynx to examine your site, because
      most search engine spiders see your site much as Lynx would.
      If fancy features such as Javascript, cookies, session ID's,
      frames, DHTML, or Flash keep you from seeing all of your site
      in a text browser, then search engine spiders may have trouble
      crawling your site."
   - ://www.google.com/webmasters/guidelines.html


You might be interested in the first portion of the site that Google
found to index:
     "Click to Enlarge. Original oil paintings by award winning
      artist Joan Lesemann." [from Google search: www.joanlesemann.com
]
   - ://www.google.com/search?hl=en&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&q=www.joanlesemann.com&btnG=Google+Search


===========================
Establishing Links
===========================

As noted above, Google's PageRank is based on the number of pages
which link to your site.

"The best way to ensure Google finds your site is for your page to be
linked from lots of pages on other sites. Google's robots jump from
page to page on the Web via hyperlinks, so the more sites that link to
you, the more likely it is that we'll find you quickly." (SEE Google's
" How Do I Get My Site Listed on Google? - 2. Submitting Your site")
   - ://www.google.com/webmasters/1.html#A1

There are many practical ways of establishing links which are
beneficial to you in your endeavor to get respectable position
placement on search engines. These methods may take time, but they
also help in establishing credibility and help with your page rank.

Approach like-minded or complementary businesses about linking to your
site (with a reciprocal link from your own). This works without
harming search engine positioning or page rank.


A WORD OF WARNING:
==================

Google specifically warns "Don't participate in link schemes designed
to increase your site's ranking or PageRank. In particular, avoid
links to web spammers or "bad neighborhoods" on the web as your own
ranking may be affected adversely by those links." (See Google's
Quality Guidelines - Basic principles)
   - ://www.google.com/webmasters/guidelines.html


It stands to reason that what's good for Google, currently ranked as
the number one search engine is good rule to follow for other search
engines.


Articles on Link Popularity
===========================

A couple of excellent articles on how to establish the right kind of
links are available in Traffick's "Ten Steps to Building Links to Your
Site", Craig Fifield - 5/3/2002
  - http://www.traffick.com/article.asp?aID=77

and "The Right Way to Improve Link Popularity", By Paul J. Bruemmer
-4/14/2002 -
  - http://www.traffick.com/article.asp?aID=41

Notice both articles offer suggestions which can be easily adapted for
use on any website without resorting to link farms. They both point
out the differences and offer easy ways to get started to the kind of
linking search engines prefer.


=================================
The Basics - HTML
=================================

Shari Thurow, one of the leading authorities in web design and search
engine optimization (and author of the book "Search Engine
Visibility"), recently made the following observation with regard to
HTML:

     "Clean HTML is absolutely imperative for search engine
      indexing. Browsers are extremely forgiving when it comes
      to displaying pages with "unclean" HTML (unclosed tags,
      no quotation marks, etc.).  Search engine spiders are
      not so forgiving.  Even something as simple as a missing
      quotation mark on the <.a href="page.html"> can cause a
      spider to not index text or a link." (See: Link Exchange
      Digest, July 3, 2003, "Clean HTML")
 - http://list.audettemedia.com/SCRIPTS/WA.EXE?A2=ind0307&L=led&D=1&T=0&H=1&O=D&F=&S=&P=282

She explained how errors in HTML can affect your ability to be
indexed, and ultimately, ranked.


Below are some HTML elements which are often overlooked or omitted,
but which play an important part in your visitor's experience when he
visits your site. A good rule of thumb is always "what's good for the
visitor is good for search engines." The following, considered
"basics" for the  best visitor experience are:


1. 1. DOCTYPE Declaration
----------------------

DOCTYPES are essential to the proper rendering and functioning of web
documents in compliant browsers. It is also essential for the search
engines to understand and follow the coding contained on your pages.

DOCTYPE is explained and discussed further in "A List Apart",
  - http://www.alistapart.com/stories/doctype/

and in Web Design Group's article, "Choosing a DOCtype",
  - http://www.htmlhelp.com/tools/validator/doctype.html


2. Title & Alt Tags
--------------------

Google recommends the use of descript alt tags for every graphic. This
is because search engines cannot read graphic images. Instead of
"Click here for larger picture", use a description of the graphic.
This enhances accessibility issues for visitors who may have their
graphics turned off, as well as for those who use audible browsers for
their Internet browsing.

Google's suggestion: "Make sure that your TITLE and ALT tags are
descriptive and accurate." (See Google's Design and Content
Guidelines) - ://www.google.com/webmasters/guidelines.html


Putting both the TITLE and ALT tags to work for you makes sense, with
the bonus of giving the search engines substance to index. Your
descriptives should complement your  content whenever possible.


3. Accessibility
----------------

Sections 504 and 508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, 29 U.S.C. 794
and 794d, set forth the minimum government standards for
accessibility.

Among these standards are such items as ALT and TITLE tags (as
discussed above), and website design which will enable those with
special needs to be able to access and understand your web site.

You might want to run each page of your site through Bobby, which will
give you a full context report of any portions of your site which do
not meet the minimum standards. If you make all the corrections
suggested, it will greatly enhance any search engine's ability to
crawl your website as well.

The Bobby analysis page can be found here:
   - http://bobby.watchfire.com/bobby/html/en/index.jsp


4. Design For Your Visitors
---------------------------

Basically, understand your market and design for your visitors.
Providing them with what it takes to make them feel comfortable using
your services will not only increase your income, but will no doubt
help with your SERPs on Google. Since the search engines are almost
constantly changing and tweaking their algorithms to bring the visitor
relevant content for their search terms, designing your sites with
that content can help keep you from bouncing around each time there is
a change.

Add enouth content rich in the words you want to be found under so
that the search engines can index each page.


=============================
About those search terms
=============================

Let's assume, for the sake of argument, that you want joanlesemann.com
to be found using the keywords you have chosen: "Joan Lesemann, art,
artists, paintings, original oils, gallery, women, African Americans,
original paintings, figure, culture"

Now ... think about what your visitors will "really" enter in that
search bar. My first guess is you're not sure, but I rather doubt that
anyone would merely enter the term 'Joan Lesemann' unless they are
already familiar with the artist. They might enter the term 'art', or
'artists' or even 'paintings'. So let's take a look at the returns
under those terms:

Using Google's search for these terms:

   * art - returns over 211 MILLION results
   * artist - returns over 53 MILLION results
   * paintings - returns over 12 MILLION results

No matter how you look at it, that is a powerful lot of competition in
which to find your sister's site.

You may want to spend some time at Wordtracker
-http://www.wordtracker.com - to seek out all the related phrases you
can, then write copy based around the best, most relevant terms.
Include those words in your Title tags  and within the content of your
website accordingly. That will certainly help.


=============================
Submitting to Search Engines
=============================

After you have established some links from relevant sites and worked
on the HTML to make the site more search-engine friendly, you may want
to submit to the important search engines and directories.

Google recommends, " ... you may want to consider submitting your site
to either or both of these directories. You can submit to Yahoo! by
visiting http://docs.yahoo.com/info/suggest/. You can submit your site
to Netscape's Open Directory Project (DMOZ) by visiting www.dmoz.org.
Once your site is included in either of these directories, Google will
often index your site within six to eight weeks."
   - ://www.google.com/webmasters/1.html#B2


For DMOZ.org, you will want to dig down deep enough to get where you
more appropriately should be.


Some search engines gather their own listings for the main results
they display. For example, Google crawls the web itself for the main
results it shows.

Other search engines use third-party search providers for their
results. For instance, the main search results at AOL come from
Google's crawler-based listings, rather than from work inside AOL.

Below are the top search engines as determined by Nielsen Net Ratings:
   - http://www.nielsen-netratings.com/


* Google -
   - ://www.google.com/addurl.html

* DMOZ -
   - http://www.dmoz.com/

 * All The Web -
   - http://www.alltheweb.com/help/webmaster/submit_site.html

 * Hotbot & Lycos InSite (requires registration)
   - http://insite.lycos.com/searchservices/

 * Yahoo! -
   - http://docs.yahoo.com/info/suggest/

 * Teoma -
   - http://www.teoma.com/


MSN's search submit is located here:
   - http://search.msn.com/

which takes you to LookSmart, a "for-pay" listing, and can be found
here:
   - http://listings.looksmart.com/?synd=zdd&sid=prt100933&chan=zddresults

If you are listed on other important engines, it is pretty certain you
will also be listed on MSN.com, or you can use the LookSmart
submission.


===========================
Sources of Information
===========================

There is good information from many of the top search engine
optimization experts, such as

   * Detlev Johnson, Search Engine Guide
     - http://www.searchengineguide.com/detlev/

   * Danny Sullivan, Search Engine Watch
     - http://www.searchenginewatch.com/

   * Jill Whalen, High Rankings
     - http://www.highrankings.com/

   * Shari Thurow, Web Pro News (and quoted all over the Internet)
     - www.webpronews.com/

have columns or newsletters to which you can subscribe and keep
abreast of the best way to use good content for better positioning in
search engine results.

In addition, Webmaster World - http://www.webmasterworld.com/ - has
discussion boards on most of the search engines. While some of the
discussions are anecdotal and/or questions for information, there is
usually enough discussion to keep abreast of what seems to be
happening.

There is an entire section devoted to Google at:
   - http://www.webmasterworld.com/forum3/

It never hurts to keep track among these discussions, but remember,
trying to optimize for search engines only is like trying to hit a
moving target. You'll notice among the more experienced contributors
to the discussions - plus the SEO experts listed above - that there
really is no substitute for content, relevant links and good HTML.


Disclaimer
============

This is just a reminder that Google Answers Researchers are
independent contractors and not employees of Google. We have no inside
track on Google's closely-guarded algorithms. The closest you may come
to an 'official' word from Google is when GoogleGuy posts to the
discussions at Webmaster World. The information listed here is
generally acknowledged to be the best practices for good SERPs and
PageRank.


Search Terms
==============

In addition to the searches listed above, I relied on bookmarks and
other resources used on a daily basis.


I am sure this will help get your sister's site a good listing in the
search engines - it works for others, it should work for you, too!

Good luck and best wishes,

Serenata
Google Answers Researcher

---

Request for Answer Clarification by starlite55-ga on 06 Oct 2003 10:36 PDT

Very comprehensive answer but we have gotten to the point of wanting
to use the site as more of a tool for people who have gotten a
business card or seen her work in a show etc. and would like to see
more or perhaps a gallery owner who might be interested and want to
get in touch as well. When I search on Joan's name (which is key to us
if it's to work as a tool)a whole bunch of stuff comes up with her
name but not the site.Yet if I put the URL in it comes up? I am
disabled and maybe shouldn't be doing this and that's why we haven't
been successful but is there something specific I can do  to get her
name recognized? I'm feeling over whelmed. Again your answer is very
good but I don't think I acn do all this.

starlite55

---

Clarification of Answer by serenata-ga on 08 Oct 2003 10:47 PDT

Hi again Margaret ~

I apologize for not getting to your Request for Clarification until
now. I did not see your Request for Clarification and have not yet
been notified by Google of the request.

I can imagine that the information supplied in my Answer seems
overwhelming, but please remember that I gave you recommendations
published by Google and by those who are considered among the most
knowledgeable in designing search engine-friendly and user-friendly
websites that place well in search engine results.

Basically, those items mentioned in my answers are the things you need
to accomplish. If you notice - most of the sites which are listed in
the search results comply with those recommendations and suggestions.

There are many web designers and search engine optimization experts
available for consultation. There are websites specifically devoted to
helping to achieve what you want. They all basically say the same
thing.

One way to look at it is not what they 'cost' in getting it done
right, but in what you save in terms of possible lost revenues by not
being visible.

The one point any knowledgeable search engine optimizer will tell you
is that there are no shortcuts. You need all the elements to work
together - content, good basic HTML, and the links. Without them, your
chances of getting a favorable placement or even listed at all are
diminished.

If you wish to try it yourself, work on the design and content first;
then on establishing some links. This should produce an appreciable
improvement in getting listed.

Regards,
Serenata

---

Request for Answer Clarification by starlite55-ga on 08 Oct 2003 16:53 PDT

Hi
Sorry to bother you again and would be happy to pay for your time but
I would like you to look at the following website which has been
listed by google. He used frames and has even less text than I do. Did
you look at my site? It was constructed using Homestead drag and drop
program. My friend used another service.He has no links other than
those within his site like mine. I have navigation and it works. The
"Click to Enlarge" is a message that comes on when the cursor lands on
the photograph. I don't know why it would be picked up that up as part
of the description or text but I took it out. Here is the other site
which is listed take a look at it and compare with mine:
http://www.hankgans.com

---

Clarification of Answer by serenata-ga on 08 Oct 2003 19:18 PDT

Hi Margaret ...

Hank Gans uses tables for his HTML design layout, not frames. He has
included a DOCTYPE declaration, and uses a fairly straightforward HTML
table layout which is easy for the search engines to crawl.

He also has a PageRank of 3/10 ...

With one external link from a site with a PageRank of 4/10.
   - ://www.google.com/search?hl=en&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&q=www.hankgans.com

He is also listed on:
   Alta Vista
   Netscape
and
   Yahoo

Which, considering the paucity of external links, no doubt contributes
to his PageRank of 3.

All of these factors, especially not using the frames, contribute to
his higher PageRank.

Yes, I did look at your site and at the coding. I always dig very deep
to find a reason for problems when I answer questions of these type.

When I'm not a Google Answers Researcher, I am an artist and a website
designer myself, and I couldn't do that for as long as I have without
being cognizant of design problems which might penalize my clientele -
and my own sites for that matter.

Hope this helps!

Serenata

---

Request for Answer Clarification by starlite55-ga on 09 Oct 2003 07:45 PDT

1What is a DOCTYPE declaration?
2.Joan's site was listed under her name for about 5 minutes last night
when I took "click to enlarge" off the cursor.It was the first listed
of all the other pages where Joan is mentioned because of the title.
Then it went back to the way it was.Any idea how that happened?
3. A page ranking under "art" or "paintings" listing is not my
priority right now. Just her name like Hank's. The fact that he is
listed in Yahoo and those others results from Google doesn't it?
4.We seem to have narrowed the items to:a)Frames (which I will talk to
Homestead about --I believe their other customers have not had this
problem)B) links which I will attempt to set up

---

Request for Answer Clarification by starlite55-ga on 09 Oct 2003 07:58 PDT

Sorry I lost the previous request so this is a continuation of the
above.
C) Is there a specific problem with my layout?
4. How do I pay you for this extra work? 
5. As an artist what do you charge to fix or tweak a site like this?
I did look at a lot of stuff before I started the web site and I
really thought "keep it simple stupid" was important for a novice like
myself so you can imagine my frustration with this whole process. Also
I wanted the photos of her paintings to be the key.
Thank you very much for your patience and your help and I apologize if
I offended you in any way.
Marge(Margaret)





Marge

---

Clarification of Answer by serenata-ga on 09 Oct 2003 08:55 PDT

Hi again Margaret ~

Actually, the layout if okay in its simplicy, although I personally
don't think the grey/dark background allow you to show Joan's work to
their fullest advantage. I'd use a lighter background, not quite
white, perhaps a 'robins egg' or slightly 'buttery' color (easier on
the eyes).

I'd get rid of the javascripting frames and use either a simple table
layout or CSS for absolute placement (which is pretty advanced and may
not mean a lot to you).

Unfortunately, as Google Answers Researchers we cannot contract with
Google customers - it rather defeats the purpose of working to find
the answers, don't you know. If you wish, you can open another
question and mention my name in the subject field, and I'll try to
help with the specific coding.

There is no need for payment for this, though, I am happy to help you
get it as you want it, without the extraneous text.

Regards,
Serenata

Very comprehensive answer on everything you need to do to get accepted
by a search engine but overwhelming. Tried to get a claraification or
a little more specific answer but not even a reply saying "you need to
do it all" or whatever so 4 stars instead of 5. They should at least
acknowledge receipt of the request.