SEO Tips: Don't Fence Me In - The Dangers of Using Frames

One SEO blocking issue I see often on websites is the incorrect use of frames. Some would argue that frames should never be used. I disagree with this as a black and white issue. However, frames should never be used where SEO for the content inside the frame would be affected. Search engines do not spider frames! I do find creative uses for frames, and therefore reserve their usage for such things. An example would be the .Mobi Previewer page on this website. The screen of the mobile device is, in fact, a frame.

However, if your web designer has fenced you into frames, and it is not for such creative content, be concerned. Be very, very concerned. I also find that many corporate sites (such as Tupperware) use frames for the main page content users can edit. This content is not indexed elsewhere, so the ability to optimize the page can be hindered for search engines which do not rely on the keyword meta tag for their indexing. If you have such a site, see about altering the content for the main frame elsewhere and submitting that altered page to the search engines for more controlled indexing.

If you are unsure whether your page has frames or not, look for the tell-tale "scroll bar". But scrolling could be disabled or you could also see scrollbars when certain style elements are used to create a scrollable section of a page, so the best practice is to view the page source and look for any <iframe></iframe> tags. The content inside that tag (it will appear as a link to a url) will be inaccessible - from that page, at least - to the search engines.