Does Google see flash files?

peter.moore · 07-11-2009, 09:53 PM

I have a new web site. It contains only one html file. All other files are flash (.swf) files. I have included all the keyword phrases on the index.html file. Do I need to include keyword phrases ("<metaname...etc") into the .swf files so google can see them?
Thanks.

iconian · 07-13-2009, 07:06 PM

Google has actually been able to index text content and follow links inside Flash for years. Trouble is, even with the recent improvements, Google and the other search engines still need a significant amount of hand-holding to even do a half-decent job of indexing websites that are built in Flash.
in your case, i suggest Optimize your Flash content by matching the name & description in the Accessibility panel to the HTML Title and Meta Description in your HTML page.
hope help

peter.moore · 07-13-2009, 10:00 PM

Thanks very much.

marketraise · 07-15-2009, 05:09 AM

Flash is well and good if used under certain limitations as far as search engines are considered.Make sure that your main navigation is in HTML. Flash sites lacks page structure to organize the content, internal linking, and unique page titles,hence distinct HTML pages must be created for each flash page.

IT Outsourcing

peter.moore · 07-16-2009, 03:19 AM

I see, so do you suggest that I put all my flash files (swf) into html files,
with the appropriate 'title' and 'meta..' tags at the top of each file? (As all 40 of the files on my web site -excluding the index file - are flash files).

Thanks in advance.

larrymoencurly · 07-20-2009, 01:54 AM

here are some tips that I've collected
hope could help
To help search engines see and properly list your website contents in their search results, we recommended the following best practices for Flash SEO:

* Use Flash only when necessary, and consider wrapping decorative flash elements in HTML navigation if possible. Pages should degrade gracefully for users who do not have javascript or Flash.
* Build separate HTML landing pages (with distinct URLs) for your separate Flash landing "pages." Each separate HTML page should deep link to the appropriate part of your Flash movie.
* Embed your Flash using SWFobject so that you can display alternate HTML content. Make sure that the text content in the alternate HTML is as identical as possible to the Flash content. Graphic elements can be described, just as you would describe a photo with a caption or an image ALT tag.
* If you generate your Flash content from an external XML file, use the same XML file to generate the alternate HTML content.

Essentially, for an all-Flash site, you should create "shadow" HTML pages, which display deep-linked Flash for humans, and mimic the Flash experience and content for search engines. These pages can serve as entry points from search engines.

07-11-2009, 09:53 PM	#1 (permalink)
peter.moore Noogle Join Date: Jul 2009 Posts: 4 Thanks: 1 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Does Google see flash files? I have a new web site. It contains only one html file. All other files are flash (.swf) files. I have included all the keyword phrases on the index.html file. Do I need to include keyword phrases ("<metaname...etc") into the .swf files so google can see them? Thanks.

07-15-2009, 05:09 AM	#4 (permalink)
marketraise Junior Googler Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: New York Posts: 46 Thanks: 0 Thanked 1 Time in 1 Post	Flash is well and good if used under certain limitations as far as search engines are considered.Make sure that your main navigation is in HTML. Flash sites lacks page structure to organize the content, internal linking, and unique page titles,hence distinct HTML pages must be created for each flash page. IT Outsourcing Last edited by marketraise; 07-24-2009 at 06:27 AM.

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07-13-2009, 07:06 PM	#2 (permalink)
iconian Googler Join Date: Jul 2009 Posts: 52 Thanks: 0 Thanked 2 Times in 2 Posts	Google has actually been able to index text content and follow links inside Flash for years. Trouble is, even with the recent improvements, Google and the other search engines still need a significant amount of hand-holding to even do a half-decent job of indexing websites that are built in Flash. in your case, i suggest Optimize your Flash content by matching the name & description in the Accessibility panel to the HTML Title and Meta Description in your HTML page. hope help

07-13-2009, 10:00 PM	#3 (permalink)
peter.moore Noogle Join Date: Jul 2009 Posts: 4 Thanks: 1 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Thanks very much.

07-16-2009, 03:19 AM	#5 (permalink)
peter.moore Noogle Join Date: Jul 2009 Posts: 4 Thanks: 1 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	I see, so do you suggest that I put all my flash files (swf) into html files, with the appropriate 'title' and 'meta..' tags at the top of each file? (As all 40 of the files on my web site -excluding the index file - are flash files). Thanks in advance.

07-20-2009, 01:54 AM	#6 (permalink)
larrymoencurly Junior Googler Join Date: Jul 2009 Posts: 44 Thanks: 1 Thanked 1 Time in 1 Post	here are some tips that I've collected hope could help To help search engines see and properly list your website contents in their search results, we recommended the following best practices for Flash SEO: * Use Flash only when necessary, and consider wrapping decorative flash elements in HTML navigation if possible. Pages should degrade gracefully for users who do not have javascript or Flash. * Build separate HTML landing pages (with distinct URLs) for your separate Flash landing "pages." Each separate HTML page should deep link to the appropriate part of your Flash movie. * Embed your Flash using SWFobject so that you can display alternate HTML content. Make sure that the text content in the alternate HTML is as identical as possible to the Flash content. Graphic elements can be described, just as you would describe a photo with a caption or an image ALT tag. * If you generate your Flash content from an external XML file, use the same XML file to generate the alternate HTML content. Essentially, for an all-Flash site, you should create "shadow" HTML pages, which display deep-linked Flash for humans, and mimic the Flash experience and content for search engines. These pages can serve as entry points from search engines.

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