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Can I build a Search Engine Friendly Framed Web Site?

Have you heard that Framed Sites are Dead? Perhaps!

The question of whether or not to use frames when designing a web site seems to be
as old as time, or at least as old as frames themselves!

In the early days of web design developers often opted to use frame sites as a way saving time on maintenance. Frames could contain content that did not require frequent updates such as logo's and navigation menus. Today's modern edit tools provide a better solution and make use of global library updates which effortlessly modify 100's of pages in seconds and also insure that all URL work properly the first time.

The HTML used to create frame sites can be compared to 3 dimensional chess game often broken links occur when sites are updated if your not paying attention. Busy developers sacrifice style when using frames, but occasionally I run across a professionally designed framed site without scroll bars, but most fall into the ugly outdated look.

What Is a Framed Site?

This image will help you recognize what a frame web site can look like. Often frame 1
will contain the sites logo. Frame 2 will contain the navigation menu, which remains the same through out the entire site. Frames 3 and 4 contain content that will scroll.

Avoid the Common Mistake of Bad HTML!

Don't blame the search engines for not indexing your site it's your responsibility to write good HTML that allows spiders and bots to find their way in. If you tell them at the front door to go away they will. Here's what most sites do...

By using the NOFRAMES tag in this fashion it might as well say, "We are putting the kiss of death on our web site and have no interest in being found in the search engines! The NOFRAMES tag was designed to give frame incapable browsers the ability to read or "see" the information on a framed site.

Unfortunately those common words found in most NOFRAMES tags are like incomplete thoughts and just leave you and search engine hanging. Yeah right I going to stop right now and go get another browser just so I see your poorly coded site, and by the way you have not told me were to go to get this new browser.

Also notice the absence of meta tags and missing description in the title tag. If you thought that far and decided to include meta tags the search engines would index that part of your site and also the unfriendly words "It appears your browser doesn't support FRAMES. Update your browser now to view this page."

OK you get the idea of why not to use the NOFRAMES tag as most do. So lets take a look at the solution if you must use frames.

Here is where you should copy all the HTML code for what I have named your-content-rich.html. Be sure that you have all your navigational links to the rest of the site also in here for the search engines to follow.

Example of Navigational Links:

<a href="http://www.yoururl.com/add-your-url.htm">Add URL</a> | <a href="http://www.ask-marketing-experts.com/">Forum</a> | <a href="http://www.yoururl.com/clients.htm">Clients</a> | <a href="http://www.yoururl.com/contact.htm">Contact</a> | <a href="http://www.yoururl.com/JavaScripts.htm">Free JavaScript</a> | <a href="http://www.yoururl.com/index.shtml">Home</a> | <a href="http://www.yoururl.com/web-hosting.htm">Hosting</a> | <a href="http://www.yoururl.com/links.htm">Links</a> | <a href="http://www.yoururl.com/search-engine-optimization.htm">Search Engine Optimization</a> | <a href="http://www.yoururl.com//site-map.htm">Site Map
</a> | <a href="http://www.yoururl.com/Support.htm">Support</a>

This use of the NOFRAMES tag will allow frame challenged browsers to read what is inside the frame it's as if your site is not framed at all as far as the search engines are concerned, because now they can read everything and index your site properly. Of course, doing all this is only useful if the information in your main page is well written and utilizes your keyword phrases properly. Putting a poorly written main page into your NOFRAMES tag won't help you much more than putting the above kiss of death in your NOFRAMES tag.

The Other Frames Pages

In order for your hard work not to be wasted your must consider the other pages in frames too. The secret is to include a navigation menu on each and every page in your site that links back to main parent frame or the full URL http://www.your-great-site.com/ it also very wise to link to the main themes like your store and contact pages.

If you did a good job optimizing the inner pages with good content and proper meta tags placement then those pages will be picked up and indexed by the search engines. It would be extremely unfortunate if the page became "orphaned" a page that has a bit of information about what you were searching for but offers no way to get to the rest of the site! Without good navigation you can expect to lose potential eyeballs or worse a potential customer.