Directory and File Names

[equens]

Directory and File Names
From: http://www.searchengineguide.com/wi/2002/0620_wi1.html

"Because many engines and directories index file names and even directory names, it pays to create these using keywords whenever possible. Use at least one keyword phrase in your file/directory names, preferably at the beginning. Don't stuff keywords and keep the names relevant. Use hyphens or underscores to separate the words in your file and directory names. "

If this is true, then a domain name 1word-2word.com is better than 1word2word.com ???

What do you prefer? http://www.1word-2word.com/3word_4word.htm or http://www.1word2word.com/3word4word.htm

Thanks!!

[highman]

There is much debate on this, my personal preference is;

www.companyname-keyword1.com/keyword2.htm

Im sure many others here will have different views, it also depends on what you are trying to achieve

[Advisor]

I don't even really bother with using keywords in directories or file names. To me, it sticks out like a sore thumb that the site has been "optimized" and opens it up for scrutiny by the search engines, and the miniscule of help it might give you in your rankings, is well...miniscule!

Jill

[highman]

If you were looking for a 'nokia 3310 mobile phone' which of these url's would you most likely click on in the serps?
(assuming you look at the urls! and title descriptions are the same)

telcompany-mobiles.com/nokia-3310.asp

or

telcompany.com/products?ID=498764.asp

to me it just means more, PLUS any one linking to the site is more likely to use your keywords in any description next to the link

all of course IMO :D

[Advisor]

telcompany-mobiles.com/nokia-3310.asp Well, certainly in cases like that it makes sense to do that, and I would also suggest it.

It's the keyword-keyword-keyword.asp crap that I'm talking about. I don't think long file names looks very professional, and all sorts of hyphens and stuff is strange.

But there's plenty of file naming opportunities that make sense all around. And certainly, in a competitive field, that name may give you the edge.

Jill

[g1smd]

I have noticed a lot of pages returned in Google searches with URLs like keyword1-keyword2.blarg-blammo.com/keyword3-keyword4-keyword5.html ; though some don't have the keyword1-keyword2 part, just the normal www instead. In nearly all cases these have a description that seems to be a random selection of words from a dictionary, and the page is just a list of sites, 2 lines at a time, with some of these keywords very roughly matching some of those in my search crieria, with a note next to link shown, similar to 'advertiser paid $0.01 for this link', and none of the information on the page really closely resembling what I was actually looking for.

To get to the point: I actively avoid any and all results with URLs in this format, in search results; so if you are selling something you probably won't find me as a buyer on your site.


These are the sort of site/page names that I am thinking of. These came up in a search on Google for some astronomy or science topic if I recall, and offered me various links to car dealers, insurance brokers, hi-fi systems, and nothing really to do with what I actually wanted.
You could put in any set of words after the '/' and get some results back. I consider this abuse of the search engines:
http://Xwww.china-itclub.comX/forever-young-bob-dylan.htm
http://Xwww.twosixteen.comX/forever-young-bob-dylan.htm
http://Xwww.abocador.comX/forever-young-bob-dylan.htm
http://Xmaskvsmask.comX/forever-young-bob-dylan.htm

Cut and paste these addresses elsewhere to experiment, removing both of the Xs from each address. Don't want to give junk like this any link pop.