Search engine optimization (SEO)
As an Internet marketing strategy, SEO considers how search engines work and what people search for. Optimizing a website primarily involves editing its content and HTML coding to both increase its relevance to specific keywords and to remove barriers to the indexing activities of search engines. Sometimes a site's structure (the relationships between its content) must be altered too. Because of this it is, from a client's perspective, always better to incorporate Search Engine Optimization when a website is being developed than to try and retroactively apply it.

Designing for Search Engine Placement
A key part of the initial website design is to help place it in the top results of a search engine site. There are several areas which affect the rank of each page for your website. Remember, each page will be a distinct search engine result for your website. Here's a short list of things to do or consider when writing content for your web pages:

Make a prioritized list of words or phrases a potential customer may use when searching for your products or services.
Try to incorporate the top keyword or key-phrase into your domain name.
Choose a single keyword or phrase for each page on your website and try to use it as much as possible, while still sounding good.
Match the HTML-coded Title and META Keywords for that page with the keyword or phrase for that page.
Use the keyword or phrase in the HTML-coded META Description as part of an overall description of your company, products and services for that page.
Incorporate the keyword or phrase into the description tag for product, service or company images on the page.
Think about other websites which may include a link back to your website.