Dynamically generated and interactive content is great — by creating HTML templates, we can extract information from databases to populate pages with customized copy, imagery and more.
In the majority of cases, content is accessed by modifying URL parameters. For instance, if I'm searching for pizza on Google Maps, this address would return results to me:
http://maps.google.com/?q=Pizza
If that link was embedded in the HTML inside an <a> tag, it's easy for search engines to find and crawl it.
Occasionally however, designers may access content by having users choose from a menu or by using jQuery/javascript events to handle click events. While the search engine bots have become more intelligent in handling some advanced programming, there's no guarantee they'll be able to find your dynamic content.
That's not just a problem, it's a BIG problem — especially if your site is loaded with dynamic data.
Always be sure that your key content can be accessed via a URL. Next step is to make sure that there are links somewhere referencing those URLs, whether they're embedded elsewhere in your site (even hidden CSS links are ok) or included in a sitemap file that you submit to search engines.
You can only optimize your site for content that search engines can find. Follow these rules to ensure that your visitors are able to search for that content as well.
-Jeff
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