With a reported 22.1% of search traffic, Yahoo is second only to Google's 64.4% for search user volume so it is extremely important not to forget that attaining a top ranking in Yahoo can be a big boon to the bottom line. The following are the current generalized specifications for achieving solid rankings in Yahoo.
Website Optimization:
In general terms, the only effect time has had on Search Engine Optimization is to vary the intensity of the optimization for particular page elements. In the case of Yahoo, this old property with a relatively young algorithm tends to favor the following elements:
Title Tag: Keep your title tag as short as 5 small-medium sized words and include one complete incidence of your key-phrase. Yahoo! blatantly favors sites that include the key-phrase in the title tag.
Meta Description Tag: Start this tag with an incidence of your key-phrase and then produce a short 15-18 small-medium sized word sentence clearly describing your site. Include one more incidence of your key-phrase in the sentence.
Meta Keyword Tag: Keyword tags have long been considered ineffective and no longer have any importance on Google; however Yahoo still does consider the keyword tag so do not count it out. The keyword tag should start with the key-phrase and then all following words or phrases should be ordered according to the relevance to your website; place the most important ones up front.
Keywords in URL: Create keyword-based filenames that closely represent the content within the file. Yahoo rewards keyword-based filenames a small amount perhaps enough to push past your competition.
Headings: Heading 1 and 2 tags should be applied on every page where appropriate to embolden the relevance of the page. In other words, use the page's key-phrase within a Heading 1 tag to further enhance the visibility of the key-phrase on the page.
Alt text for images: Don't forget to provide ALT text for each image on your website. The ALT text must not provide information that is already written on the website. ALT text is supposed to provide a clear and concise description of what the image is.
Inline Links: In the midst of your page, it is beneficial to include links to relevant pages from related content. These links will apply relevance to the linked page; which is optimized for the same key-phrase you linked from.
Site Structure: Site structure is a vital component to ranking success on Yahoo; especially in competitive marketplaces where every advantage is required to reach the top. One method that would be successful at Yahoo and happens to work as well on the other major search engines is a tried and true technique that revolves around the linear progression of related content throughout the website; it is commonly known as Themeing.
Links: When building links for Yahoo, concentrate on quality not quantity. Quality links would be one way links from sites that specialize in content directly relevant to the content on your own website. Building these links can be done by creating content and syndicating it in your own industry for link love and to build credibility. In addition, if your website is a worthwhile resource, it is entirely reasonable to tell the world about your site, in order to build links; hopefully they will link to you because they like your site so much.
Transcription by:
Scribe4you Transcription Services