Can a well-designed website co-exist with a well-optimized website?
As a trained designer I am always partial to exceptional design and design is always at the forefront of how I view the world.
I recently hooked up with an old college mate in LinkedIn who has his own design agency. His website was designed in Flash. The site was gorgeous, well designed, clean, simple, great typography and showcased his product offering elegantly. BUT, there was not a hint of optimization to be found. Read more »
Over the years how many of your best clients have come from personal recommendations? One? Two? All of them? 
If you currently have a website or are about to launch one, you should stop and ask yourself how important it is to be found in search engines such as Google or Yahoo. If achieving high rankings is a priority for your business the next question you need to ask is how do you want to be found? By your business name, business field, product speciality, what then? It is important to think about Search Engine Optimization (SEO) techniques to help with these rankings. 