How Can Beginners Optimize Their Websites Daily?

I. Optimization of Website Structure

1. Code Structure: Streamlining
   • For search engines, what they crawl is the website's code. Therefore, the more streamlined the code structure is, the more efficient the crawling will be. How to streamline the code? Encapsulate CSS and JS for calling, and do not write them into the source code. Additionally, try to use less JS and adopt the DIV+CSS structure, abandoning the table structure. However, nowadays, whether it is ready-made blog templates, CMS templates, or corporate website building, they all do a very good job in code streamlining.
2. URL Structure: Static URLs
   • How important is URL staticization for SEO? In fact, according to some previous studies, there is no significant advantage between static and dynamic URLs. Generally speaking, a static URL is like http://www.example.com/reed/123.html, while a dynamic URL is like http://www.example.com/view?123. They are almost the same. But if your dynamic URL is like http://www.example.com/view&6548mm&id?3658, that would be quite bad. Moreover, considering user experience, URL staticization is the best choice.
3. Directory Logical Structure: Clear Paths, Three-Level Directories
   • Generally, we suggest that the directory levels of a website do not exceed three. The experience of many predecessors is to use a tree-like structure, that is, Home Page — Directory — Article. As shown in the figure below:
     • A tree-like structure makes the entire website's logical structure clear, which helps users quickly find the content they want. Plus, with the reasonable use of internal links, for search engine spiders, it forms a well-connected crawling road system. If you want to get rich, build roads. Once the roads are built, are you still afraid that the spiders won't come to crawl?

II. Optimization of Website Tools

1. 404 Page Creation
   • It is inevitable for a website to have pages that were once deleted or for users to mistakenly click on pages that never existed. Without a 404 page to guide them, it would be inappropriate for a webmaster who pursues perfection and excellence.

2. Website robots.txt Creation
   • robots.txt is the search engine crawling protocol. In other words, you can use this file to tell search engines which directories not to crawl. A website's source code contains many system files that do not need to be displayed to users, nor do they need to be shown to search engines. If you do not guide them, search engine spiders will waste their energy on those system files, causing resource wastage.
3. Sitemap Creation
   • A sitemap generally refers to XML and HTML maps. For individual webmasters, ready-made blog systems and CMS systems have functions or plugins to implement these two types of maps. A sitemap allows search engines to more efficiently crawl the website's content.
4. Website Mobile Optimization
   • This is the era of mobile internet, so website mobile optimization is a must. The first choice is a responsive design, like that of Ideal Youth Studio. The second choice is to create a mobile-specific site (M-site).

III. Optimization of Website Content

1. High-Quality Content
   • For a website, high-quality content is fundamental. I have seen too many websites with excellent content but poor structure and external links, yet they still have good rankings. This shows that in SEO ranking, if it is a full mark of 100 points, content should account for 90 points. Therefore, when updating content for your website, make sure it is of high quality and valuable. Do not write articles just for the sake of updating, such as those that are nonsensical, trivial, and nutritionally void.
2. Continuous Updates
   • Continuous updates are not only a requirement of search engines but also play a crucial role for website visitors. Regular updates encourage visitors to frequently visit your site, preventing user loss. User loss will make search engines think that your website is being abandoned by users, and thus they will deduct points in the ranking scoring system. Imagine a user visiting your site for three consecutive days and not seeing any new content. How likely are they to come back on the fourth day?
3. Continuous Exploration of User Needs
   • In creating content for the website, an excellent SEO professional should explore user needs and write articles based on long-tail keywords. Long-tail keywords represent user needs, so it is essential to continuously explore long-tail keywords to meet user demands.
4. User Interaction
   • Open up comments, increase channels for user contributions, and let users participate in the content construction of your website.

IV. Optimization of External Links

1. Friend Link Exchange
   • Friend link exchanges within the same industry are the most common and relatively high-quality external links. It is recommended to add 1-2 new friend links per week. If there are already too many friend links on the homepage, you can consider adding some to directory pages.
2. Industry Website Contributions
   • Contributing to industry websites not only increases external links but also enhances brand influence to some extent. However, not every industry has industry websites available for contributions. In this regard, you can also pay to publish some soft articles on portal websites for promotion.
3. Portal Blog Articles
   • Portal blogs mainly include Sina, NetEase, and Tianya. However, some portal blogs will automatically add nofollow tags to external links. Currently, Sina and Tianya still allow external links.
4. Self-Media Platform Articles
   • Self-media platforms can also be used for external links, such as Toutiao, Baidu百家号, and Sohu self-media. However, only text-based external links are allowed.

V. Website Brand Optimization

1. Establish QQ Groups for User Interaction
   • You can also use WeChat groups. In user interactions, you can discover more user needs, and some user suggestions may bring unexpected benefits to your website.
2. Create a WeChat Official Account
   • A website should also have a WeChat official account. It is much more convenient to read your articles on WeChat than to open your website on a mobile phone. Do not let users who are reluctant to open your website slip away.