The popularity of houseboats is gaining strength as time goes by, especially in the United States. They have become a primary option for families and friends who would want to take a break from their daily routines and try something new. Some people would take the idea of living in a houseboat on a whole different level and turning it into a way of life.
Houseboats are basically boats which have been modified or have been designed to be able to accommodate individuals or families who would want to live afloat waters. A houseboat is (as the name implies) a combination of a boat and a house and is primarily used for the purposes of dwelling. There are houseboats which have motors and can be used to travel, while other houseboats are stationary, usually tied-up to a single place.
Houseboats all over the world
All over the world, houseboats are being patronized. There are countless numbers of styles and functions of houseboats. Some houseboats are permanent places of residence by local people, such as in Southeast Asia, while some houseboats are rented as vacation hotels. Houseboats are also popular in Kerala, India, where dense populations live by the Dal Lake. One can find the most exquisite and expensive houseboats in Europe, particularly in the waters of Amsterdam in Netherlands. Amsterdam is home to a number of houseboat- hotels which have become favorites of visiting foreigners. Aside from these houseboat-hotels, there is an estimated 2,500 families are living in houseboats in Amsterdam.
Down south, in Australia, houseboats are also well-known, especially in the River of Murray. One can find houseboats of different functions and sizes in this river. There are motorized and stationary houseboats here, some of which serve as primary residence while some are used as holiday shacks.
In U.K., the narrow boats, which traverse the canals, also serve as a dwelling place for some. One can even rent one of these boats if he needs a place to stay in for the night.
In the United States, houseboats have gained a stronghold. During the 1940s, the activity that is "houseboating" emerged as people tried to find more ways of being able to interact with water more. The modern concept of houseboating in the United States is said to have come from the waters of Lake Cumberland, which is located in Kentucky. Lake Union in Seattle is also a haven for houseboats.
Living on a houseboat
There are two main situations that come into play when thinking about living in a houseboat. The first one is that an individual or a family would like to live on a houseboat for good. The next one is that someone is thinking about living on a houseboat for a vacation. Well, if one is thinking about living on a houseboat for good, he might as well try it first to see whether he would really want to live on a houseboat permanently or not.
Living on a houseboat can be compared to a normal life in a subdivision or a rented apartment. The basic activity, which is "dwelling' basically stays the same in different locations. However, there are many factors that come into play when you live on a houseboat. Safety and security are two main things that one has to consider when looking at a houseboat. Another issue is space, a houseboat may not be as spacious as the normal house in a subdivision, if you know what I mean. Another important issue is access- when you live on a houseboat, you may have to transfer to a place which is far from other important places such as Wal-Mart or the convenience store. Other things like parking space, cost of transferring and the overall sturdiness o the houseboat should also be considered.
One might need to go into a houseboat vacation to be able to appreciate the beauty of living in a houseboat and be able to make an objective assessment whether to live in one or not. There are many companies that are offering houseboats for vacation. Just make sure that you canvass as many companies as you can to be able to spend a nice time in the boat which you would prefer.
Houseboats are nice. Living in a houseboat is also a nice thing to think about, however, it is not meant for all people. Think about it thoroughly until your mind and your heart agrees with a specific decision.
And even if you could afford an expert, you should know some basics. Otherwise it's like hiring and accountant and not being able to add. You need some SEO knowledge even if you are outsourcing the job, to know how to shop for an expert, and what to look for and expect in a service.
SEO for your pages
Begin your SEO with your home page. Give it a worthy name. No, welcome will not do. What does that say about your page. Welcome is plastered on pages all over the internet and doesn't do a thing for setting your page apart for many many others.
Give your home page, and all the pages of your site a worthy title based on your keywords. Get your page started off right by telling search engines and visitors right upfront what your site is about. The SEO benefits will be far reaching!
The same goes for your domain name. Whatever your site is focused on, find the best keyword and get it into your domain name. This may take a little work. You will find many names you want are taken. Don't despair. Get your grey cells working, rearrange words, seperate with hyphens, do whatever is necessary, but find a way. This will further optimize your website and when links come in from just your site name think of the SEO benefits you will be getting with no further effort on your part.
Meta tags are being pooh-poohed these days, but put them in anyway. Yes some of the search engines will not read them, but others will and since search engine traffic is targeted to you keywords don't turn down traffic even in small numbers. Small numbers interested in what you have to offer, beat large numbers that land on your site accidentally or with no interest.
Another advantage to good meta tags is that they are used by a lot of directories. You will find that when submitting to a number of directories they will automatically pick up and use the description you have entered in your meta tags.
Good website navigation and sitemaps are another way to further your on page SEO. Add both an html sitemap and a google sitemap. If your sites gets very large this could be of great benefit in helping the bots find all of your pages.
Simple, easy to understand navigation and inter-linking between pages is just sensible in helping visitors get around your site and the inter-linking will help out with backlinks.
Good original content is very important to SEO. Search engines look for original content and value it more than duplicate content. Make sure your site contains a large percentage of original content, and the more content and pages the better. Add pages on a regular basis, and update pages occasionally to keep the spiders coming back.
SEO off page
SEO on page is the foundation, and you need it, but off page SEO is even more important.
You must get links. You can begin your off page SEO with two way link which are easier to get. Two way links are easier, and they have less value, but they are a starting place and a piece of your optimization strategy.
Look for sites that add something to your website, and give value to your visitors. You don't want to link to direct competition, but related resources. Check each site first and be sure it is a good website, has link pages that are categorized with a small number of related links per page. Avoid link farms that have hundreds of unrelated and uncategorized links on a single page, and sites that are totally unrelated to yours. These will take away from your SEO and could even do harm.
Submit to directories. You will find many directories that are free and will not require that you link back.
Write articles. This is one of the best SEO values on the internet right now. If you write and submit articles yourself, this can be done completely for free. As you budget has more room, you can automate this process. In the meantime, frequent article submissions will bring you lots of incoming links.
Write a good bio box in the third person. Include anchor text that points visitors and links to different pages on your site. This is one way you can use SEO and direct links and traffic where you want. Put some time into writing bio boxes. This is time well spent.
Forums, blogs, email signatures, and social bookmarking are other off page SEO methods that will enhance your SEO efforts and you should educate yourself on all of them.
Circulating free viral reports is another SEO method that can be accomplished free or for little cost and bring big rewards. There are many more methods of off page SEO that you can use and tweak to get better results. Always consider if there is a new way you can twist and old method to get better SEO results.
Both Lee Dobbins & Illa Maden are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.
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