⇒ four C's of web design

Diamonds are rated by what is called the 4 C's. The 4 C's represent Carat, Color, Clarity and Cut. The rating for these features determines the intrinsic value of the stone. Carat of course is the stone weight, Color is evaluated in terms of its' whiteness, Clarity is the determination of the stone flaws and the Cut is the stones shape. As these ratings go up, so do the values of the stones.

A website has a similar and secret 4 C's ratings system; only the 4 C's values of a website's design are Clarity, Content, Consistency and Credibility. Just like a diamond, the highest score in each of these categories can determine a high website's rating. Search engines usually use the 4C's evaluation to rank your site. They don't tell you about the 4C's. They use terms like Meta Tags and keywords and tell you how important they are for your position. (See how search engines use Meta Tags here). Don't get me wrong: these items are important for the spider robots and should be used. Lets face it, however: to get really a good ranking, the visitors and the number of other sites linking to yours links are the key to a success on the World Wide Web. Search engines secretly track external site linkages and visitors traffic. They use this information to move sites up or down the rating scale. Your Meta Tags and keywords have little to do with your position on a search engines list. If your site is on the 3rd page, or further down the list of a given search result, it is unlikely to be viewed.

That is why the 4C's features are critical component to a good website design. People don't see your Meta Tags and keywords - they see the 4C's. Websites are all about traffic, subsequent visits and viral marketing. (Viral marketing is also called "word of mouth". We all know that if a visitor saw a great site, he would tell his friends, and they would pass the message further on their friends etc.) If your site has a high 4 C's rating, you will have the traffic and encourage other websites to link to yours.

from: http://www.ipages4u.com/How_to_Achieve_A_Top_Search_Engine_Rank.htm

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