Flash and search engines do not mix for professional services websites

The Google Blogoscoped blog reminds us that “Flash is not the right format if you want your content indexed properly by Google and others.” And if your’re curious about how much text a search engine may still when a site uses Flash (software that makes site do the fancy movements with text, images and graphics), the suggest trying SE-Flash.com.

Flash sucks for search engines, there’s just no other way to put it. Law firms and professional services firms use as much flash to do pretty things on the first page of their Web sites as just about anyone. And I assume it is not because they like to do things that suck.

Here’s the deal. Google indexes content – text it can see on a Web page. Web pages with a flash file often include little, if any, text. The result is that Google cannot tell who you are, what you do nor where you are located. That’s not good.

I am always looking at prospective client’s Web sites. I look at them, see all the flash which they have been sold, and conclude that sucks for marketing their firm. I tactfully tell them what what they are doing with their website will not get their website found on the search engines.

Here’s some law firms, who may like the looks of their Website, but because of flash whose site will perform very poorly on the search engines:

• Milbank – highlighted by FindLaw as a good site – Ouch!
• Merlo Kanofsky Brinkmeir & Gregg
• Jones Vargas

Bottom line, just say no to flash.