Help! with <h1> tags, please | WORK AT HOME FORUM & ONLINE INCOME DIRECTORY

Sandi Moses
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Help! with <h1> tags, please Jun 1, 2007 17:40:17 GMT -5

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Post by Sandi Moses on Jun 1, 2007 17:40:17 GMT -5

In the interest of getting as much FREE traffic as possible, I am working on SEO optimization for my NVU designed site - the bottom one in my signature. One tip I read was to use <h1> tags "all over the place" and then to tone down the huge font size <h1> tags produce with the usual font size tags.

This works really well in the middle column which is wide enough to accommodate an entire key phrase, and it works really well on the home page, even when the text wraps.

HOWEVER on The Moms Page (which I realize needs a lot of help in more ways than just this

) when the text wraps in the side columns there is a lot of empty wasted space between the rows of text and it looks goofy. This happens even if I copy code from the home page.

Because of that, I am thinking there must be something coded differently in the header areas that makes one page do one thing and another page do something else with the same exact code, but I don't even know where to begin looking.

Obi-Wan isn't around anymore, so you guys are my only hope! What code do I need to change on The Moms Page so it behaves like the home page?

I am working in NVU but almost always use the source tab and enter (or copy and paste! ;D ) code directly.

Sandi

********************************************************************

PS: (edit) If you look in the header area on both pages, the phrase between the googly eyes is a bit different, but the code is identical - copied and pasted. Note how much more "white space" there is around it on The Moms Page than on the home page. Multiply that by 2 or 3 wrapped lines and you get an idea of how goofy it looks in the side columns

.

Sandi

Last Edit: Jun 1, 2007 22:00:10 GMT -5 by Sandi Moses

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Roy
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Help! with <h1> tags, please Jun 1, 2007 23:06:16 GMT -5

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Post by Roy on Jun 1, 2007 23:06:16 GMT -5

Sandy

I put this in my CSS

h1 {font-size:100%;}
h2 {font-size:100%;}
h3 {font-size:100%;}
h4 {font-size:100%;}
h5 {font-size:100%;}
h6 {font-size:100%;}

That way the H1 thus H6 tags has no effect where ever you use them, does this change the way Google and other bolt rank your keywords, I do not know.

Roy

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troyzone
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Help! with <h1> tags, please Jun 1, 2007 23:29:18 GMT -5

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Post by troyzone on Jun 1, 2007 23:29:18 GMT -5

Hi Sandi,

As Roy has indicated, you can specify attributes other than the defaults (such as your own text size and so forth) for the various heading tags like <h1> via CSS code. You can specify these via an internal stylesheet inside your page's <head> section, or via an external CSS stylesheet.

I had to do a bit of research on this one, but I confirmed that the heading tags (h1, h2, h3, etc.) are block-level elements, which means they will be displayed on their own lines. Since headings are block-level elements, I also confirmed that HTML automatically adds an extra blank line before and after a heading. A stylesheet definition such as the following may help:

h1 { margin: 0px; }

However, if you want to bend (or perhaps, outright break) the rule where h1 is a block-level element, you can make it display as an inline element instead with code like the following:

h1 { display: inline; }

I haven't tested these myself, but from what I read they might be at least part of what you are looking for. I'm not sure why the text looks bigger or more spaced out on one page than the other, there must be other tags or CSS definitions coming into play there someplace. Hopefully between Roy's post and mine (and anyone else's that may appear here later) you'll be able to solve your issue.

I haven't done extensive research into SEO, just picked up things here and there over the past few years, but one thing I would be careful of is not to overdo the use of ANY tag, including <h1> tags. If a search engine bot thinks something is being overused, they may label your site as spamming the search engines and may blacklist it instead of giving it a higher ranking. Just a possibility to consider so as not to overdo it

Troy

Last Edit: Jun 2, 2007 0:18:21 GMT -5 by troyzone

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Tom "CloudHand"
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Help! with <h1> tags, please Jun 2, 2007 7:26:17 GMT -5

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Post by Tom "CloudHand" on Jun 2, 2007 7:26:17 GMT -5

Hi Sandy,

I agree with Troy on the SEO thing. It is true that the H1 tag is given some weight when evaluated by the search engines, but overuse can also get you penalized and possibly even delisted.

The main thing when trying to optimize your page is to keep everything as normal as possible. The H1 tag is designed to be the main heading of your page. It is normal to have one, and maybe even two of these, but to have them all over your page is not normal and can do more harm than good. Just my opinion, FWIW.

Tom

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Sandi Moses
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Help! with <h1> tags, please Jun 2, 2007 9:05:41 GMT -5

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Post by Sandi Moses on Jun 2, 2007 9:05:41 GMT -5

Thanks to those who have replied so far.

Roy, the font size isn't really the issue. The space around the text is the issue, so specifying font % didn't fix the problem.

Troy, your suggestions solved one problem and created another one (isn't life just like that?) so I gave up and deleted the remaining problematic <h1> tag.

Troy and Tom, I really didn't put the <h1> tags all over the place. There will not be no more than 2-3 well spaced and logically placed <h1> tags on any page.

Sandi

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troyzone
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Help! with <h1> tags, please Jun 2, 2007 11:52:42 GMT -5

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Post by troyzone on Jun 2, 2007 11:52:42 GMT -5

Hi Sandi,

I figured the above post would solve part of your problem at least, although I didn't figure it would solve everything. I guess the main point of my post was that you could specify whatever attributes you want for a given tag via CSS stylesheet definitions...knowing this, you can do whatever you like with your tags.

You can specify attributes via CSS in this manner for other tags as well of course, in addition to header tags. CSS is very powerful this way.

I had looked at the code for your pages and knew you didn't already have <h1> tags all over the place, so no worries there. I just didn't want to risk that you might eventually do this, which is why I warned of the possibility that the search engines might see it as spamming.

I agree with Tom that it's generally best to keep pages as normal as possible. Sometimes you can trick search engines in the short term, but in the long run it usually catches up to you. It's a never-ending game of cat and mouse exploiting their nuances and quirks and trying to stay one step ahead of them. In the end, it's more trouble than it's worth.

I guess when it comes to creating web sites and SEO, honesty is the best policy, just like in life in the real world

Troy

Last Edit: Jun 2, 2007 11:57:09 GMT -5 by troyzone

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