What is an SWFObject and can it help you with Adobe Flash and SEO?
Question: -
Q: Have you ever heard of SWFObject. This allows you to create a flash site that gets all its actual text from an xml file, and then also allows you to pull that exact same text into your html version that shows if the user doesn't have flash or ASA?
Answer: -
Great question! The relevant project is of course hosted at Google at http://code.google.com/p/swfobject/. It is part of Google's outreach to make Flash content indexable by Google. Also see - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SWFObject.
I am by no means a Flash expert - but rather an expert on SEO. The problem here, conceptually, is the same as with all types of Flash. Google as a search engine isn't entirely sure that the text / non-flash content provide is the same as the image-heavy Flash - since Google cannot 'see' images... So at a minimum this technique will be severely deprecated vs. a more 'Google friendly' system of providing HTML / Flash hybrid pages.
And, even in the hybrid model, what you realize is that - to Google - Flash is largely the same as images. Invisible. It is the HTML that really matters, and the good design has HTML for Google / search bots (that is visible to humans, but can be pushed to the bottom), and Flash / images for the humans.
Hochman also discusses this in his article (http://www.hochmanconsultants.com/articles/seo-friendly-flash.shtml).
My perspective, of course, is focused on what is Google friendly, and none of these techniques can be considered as Google friendly as a straight HTML page or an HTML / Flash hybrid... And therefore I wager that on COMPETITIVE searches, these techniques will not succeed. Sorry!
Hope this helps!
- Jason McDonald - info@jm-seo.org
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