At a recent Legal Marketing Italia seminar, the question arose as to why a company’s web site doesn’t rank well, even for the company’s name. In Italy, the most common problem encountered with websites is the use of Macromedia / Adobe Flash to develop most or all of a company’s website. This case was no exception.
Update: Google has announced improved crawling support for Flash sites. Our related article Why Flash is still bad for SEO and the Web explains that nothing has changed – the best websites should still avoid Flash. (2 July 2008)
Italy has a strong history of excellence in visual communication, including graphic design. Indeed, the very successful New York City subway signage was designed by an Italian. Many Italian graphic designers have worked on web sites, adopting Flash as their preferred technology when moving from the printed media to the web. Flash allows “pixel perfect” control over web design, including font specification.
Unfortunately, Flash technology is a poor choice for most commercial web sites. A proprietary technology, Flash breaks most web standards and conventions. While Flash sites are generally beautiful to look at, the fail to meet a number of minimum criteria for business-oriented websites.
1. Information embedded in Flash is often invisible to search engines.
Most Internet navigators begin a web session with a search engine. Even when they know a domain name, they start with Google or a similar search engine. With all the possible confusion of .com, .net, .eu, it’s better to trust Google to find the “right choice”. As search engines are the gatekeepers to the Internet, it is imperative that companies maximize their natural visibility in search engines.
Search engines work by scanning information on the web, processing it, and retrieving the best match for each user query. Search engines are fine-tuned to process text, semantically wrapped in tags. The markup in hypertext markup language is our specification of a document title, headings, paragraphs and links – structural meaning which helps search engines place appropriate importance on each text element.
Information hidden in graphics formats, such as Flash, is difficult, if not impossible, to find and process. While search engines such as Google try their best to extract links and textual content buried in Flash objects, the process is far from perfect. Sites constructed completely in Flash often offer very little textual information – consequently what information a search engine does find ranks poorly. Even sites partially constructed using Flash often “hide” their internal site links using Flash based site navigation.
Search engine optimization practitioners can help companies with Flash based web sites overcome Flash limitations without violating search engine guidelines.
2. Website reporting on Flash navigation is problematic and cumbersome.
Web Analytics systems help marketing professionals evaluate website visitor behavior in and around a website, providing actionable information valuable in improving a website’s business performance.
Basic Web Analytics reporting tells marketers where their visitors came from, the pages visited and where in a site visitors abandon a site. One type of web Analytics reporting uses web server based data – log files which track every page, image and download served to site visitors. A second type of reporting system relies on JavaScript tags that need to be inserted in every site page and on every downloadable object. While both types of web Analytics systems have advantages and disadvantages, Flash based websites present real problems for both types of Web Analytics reporting tools.
Web server log based systems are able to track when a Flash object, typically a swf file, is viewed. They are not able to track navigation within a Flash object – so if a site is composed of one Flash object which contains multiple site sections, the Web Analytics system will see a swf download, but will have no idea which parts of the site a visitor viewed nor where the visitor abandoned the site.
JavaScript tag based solutions, such as Google Analytics, rely on web developers inserting a small piece of JavaScript code in each page, usually in the site header or footer. Most sites have a single shared header and footer meaning that the code just needs to be put in one file for an entire site. A basic installation then takes less than 30 minutes from account setup and configuration to page tagging.
As all or most of the navigation in a Flash based site occurs within the Flash object, page tagging solutions require that each user action (such as clicking on a button to view different “content”) be tagged with an ActionScript call to the Web Analytics JavaScript code, providing a pseudo page name which then appears as a virtual page in Web Analytics reports. While this sounds complicated, the Google Analytics on-line help system provides a good example.
In the real world, this approach breaks down very quickly. Web Analytics tagging is often an after thought. Flash ActionScript coding adds extra implementation cost and complexity. Flash designer(s) are often unfamiliar with Web Analytics requirements and thus don’t consider Flash events tagging requirements during site design. Implemented tag verification is a tedious process as it requires waiting for data to appear in the reporting system – hours or days later. Flash does not provide referrer information, making it very difficult to track navigation paths.
3. Flash breaks web usability standards.
Flash sites might look great, but they start to fall apart when visitors try to use them. Consider a site for a professional services company. The site contains information about the company, its services, case studies and contact information. It is clear that the company invested a lot of time in planning and developing their web site. The site deserves an excellent rating for content and appearance.
- While navigating through the site, try to use the browser back button. Unfortunately, it is disabled.
- Try highlighting contact information to paste into your contact manger, such as Thunderbird or Outlook – you cannot.
- Try increasing the font size to make the text more readable (Firefox: Ctrl +; IE 7: “View -> Text Size”. You cannot.
- Try bookmarking a page within the site (or deep linking to a page from an external site). You cannot. Keep in mind that deep linking, the ability to link to a specific page in a site, affects a site’s visibility in search engines and the overall web ecosystem.
Ouch! These are all problems that could be avoided by using standard html and css instead of Flash. Sites that have these types of problems usually also have problems with web accessibility.
There are (too) many examples of Flash designed sites which present the same problems:
- Syneo. A context design consultancy.
- Exile Solutions. Online Professional Services.
- Studiodynamis. Audiovisual Communication for the Fashion Sector
4. Lack of consistent cross platform support.
One of the keystones of the web is that a website should work in any browser on any computer – it is openness and standardization which has made the Internet universal. Flash breaks the basic tenets of web design. While most Internet users have Flash installed – they don’t necessarily have the right version installed. Indeed version 8 wasn’t even released for the Linux platform, locking those users out of sites developed for Flash 8 and 9 (Flash 9 for Linux has finally been released, months after the Windows version).
Microsoft’s Silverlight is even worse. Microsoft only supports Windows and the Mac. Linux users are told that Microsoft partner Novell is working on Moonlight, but development is way behind the Windows version, resulting a broken website here, a broken site there…. Don’t break the web folks. (added 2009-03-23)
Mobile device users, such as Apple’s iPhone, will surely have noticed that Flash websites cannot be navigated on the iPhone… website developers can and should avoid this problem at the source. (added 2009-03-23)
5. Code embedding Flash objects doesn’t pass w3c validation.
The World Wide Web Consortium, the primary web standards organization, provides a free tool to ensure a page’s html is syntactically correct. While search engines and web browsers do tolerate bad html code, a business oriented site usually wants to minimize the risk that an improperly coded page won’t render correctly or will be rejected by a search engine’s parser. Validation of pages removes this risk.
Unfortunately, standard Flash object embedding in the current html version, xhtml, doesn’t validate correctly. Fortunately, the fine folks at alistapart have documented a solution.
6. Some users disable Flash to avoid flash based advertising.
Savvier web users have learned to disable Flash in web pages to avoid animated advertising and / or to improve page-loading times on dial-up connections. Regardless of the reason, a disabled Flash website looks much like this:
Another reason to stick with html and css.
7. Website updates continually require Flash skills
One characteristic better performing websites share in common is fresh content – they are continually updated to reflect the latest company news and industry trends. Pure Flash and Flash navigation sites constantly need to use a Flash designer every time new content needs to be integrated into the existing site. If this skill-set doesn’t exit in-house, site maintenance becomes needlessly complicated.
8. Flash breaks Search Engine Site Previews
Some search engines provide a site preview option next to search results. The preview allows a user to get a clearer idea of what to expect in the target site before actually visiting it, speeding up the process of arriving at the right result. Ask.com launched their Binoculars feature in 2004. Microsoft offered MSN Search Preview at one point, reintroducing this as Bing’s Document Preview.
In their webmaster guidelines, Bing writes
Many website designers use Flash and Silverlight-based animations to display their content. Quite often these websites don’t offer any readable meta data text, such as titles and descriptions, in the HTML source code for the search engine bot to crawl. In these cases, it can be very hard for the search engine to derive a useful website description needed to populate the result caption. The Bing team found that websites that used Flash were responsible for 21 percent of all empty caption descriptions for queries in their index. … When titles and/or meta descriptions don’t exist on an HTML page, at runtime Bing creates a best-effort caption from relevant external sources of reliable information to populate the caption with meaningful data for the searcher.
Translation: if you must shoot yourself in the foot with Flash / Silverlight, at least specify a html title and meta description to make the best of a bad situation.
So we’ve got a Flash based website. What now?
There are several strategies available for mitigating problems inherent in Flash usage. While a few have already been noted above, each situation presents its own unique issues which need to be balanced based on business requirements and website development resources. In all fairness, there are a few cases where judicious use of Flash may be appropriate, such as sites in the entertainment market that serve to support an existing brand.
Search engine optimization and Web Analytics professionals can evaluate specific site issues and provide a range of short and medium term options.
Updated 2009-06-19 with information on Bing.
Similar Posts:
- Flash is still a problem for SEO (and the web) despite Google announcement
- Web Analytics Embedded JavaScript Page Tracking Code: Place at the top or bottom of the page?
- Audio & Video Multimedia Search Engine Optimization
- Simon Says… or is it Google Says?
- Why SEO & Usability are like two peas in a pod
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20 responses so far ↓
1 Bill Pitts // Apr 17, 2009 at 17:56:28
Hi,
I was pleased to find this blog as I needed some concise reasons why Flash can be problematic. Thank you for this analysis of the problem.
I use an eight year old Macintosh G4 (can’t afford to upgrade now!) running OSX and I access the Internet with a cable modem, yet Flash sites are, for the most part, agonizingly slow to load. I tend to avoid them.
I assume my situation could fall under #6 above, eh?
Thanks again,
Bill
2 Raul Riera // Jul 14, 2009 at 20:40:54
nonsense,
point 1 : There are SEO methods to use inside flash, or something like swfObject can help you here.
point 2 : Google Analytics can be used with Flash, you can fire the events within the flash itself and relay on deep liking methods to achive ALL report data.
point 3 : again, deep linking libraries exits (for a long while)
point 4 : WOW, you are pulling that off? Flash is more cross platform than HTML and CSS, what are you talking about?
point 5 : swfObject bypasses this too
point 6 : Some disable cookies, or javascript.. do you avoid those too?
point 7 : nope, CMS can work with Flash, actionscript is a very powerful language
point 8 : You are right here
3 Joost // Jul 15, 2009 at 6:55:58
Great article. Luckily more and more designers and clients realize that Flash was never really intended to create a whole site with.
Modern web sites are built in separate layers: content (html) on the bottom, style (css) and behaviour (js) on top. Take of the top layer, the rest is still accessible. I fail to see how to this with Flash.
For example Flash doesn’t work on my crappy mobile phone, neither does CSS (at least not very well) or JavaScript, but I can still access the content, as long as it’s a proper html site.
Not sure, but how do screenreaders, etc. work with Flash content?
4 Doug S. // Jul 18, 2009 at 20:32:23
If you embed your sites with SWFObject 2.1 they validate and are standards compliant. It’s the method recommended by the W3C for Flash content.
They also provide alternate content should Flash be disabled or unavailable.
Of course, you also forget why Flash can be good for a site. Right now you have to use a plugin to play video. Flash is king because it has the widest penetration and best support.
Using some Flash, when appropriate, is a good thing. Using a lot of Flash isn’t.
5 Bill Pitts // Jul 19, 2009 at 19:34:20
After reading the above posts, I have to admit that I am (not surprisingly) largely ignorant of HTML (reference the above comment about a “proper HTML site”) and Flash. Can you guys recommend websites where I can further my education of these subjects?
Thanks!
6 Del C. // Jul 22, 2009 at 21:06:57
This discussion reminds me of people arguing over which car to buy or what OS is the best. I feel the main article here is very heavily biased in favour of non-flash sites. Generally people support what they know and belittle what they are not familiar with.
There is a video course available on lynda.com about how to make a pure flash site much more search engine friendly using swfobject etc. You need to subscribe to access it though 25.00 per month- but there are hundreds of other great video courses on all other graphic/media software that you will be grateful for. That argument does not hold up anymore. The instructor on the video is from Adobe by the way who sell Flash CS4 and Flash Player and HTML Dreamweaver.
I also find that Yahoo gives much better search results for pure flash sites and others than Google does. What does that say about Google? Google is over rated!
I would say for most sites that a hybrid site is probably best. However, more and more people including myself are doing a lot more browsing on mobile phones and ipods. As far as I know iphones and Blackberries and several others are not supported with FLash yet so that is very annoying as Flash is used for a lot of audio and video on the web not to mention Flash banners and whole sites!
7 Brian // Jul 23, 2009 at 15:05:45
Most of these issues have been long sorted now. people that don’t know enough about flash should not blog about it. Most of your points are false, except number 8.
I do agree though, Use flash for the right kind of website, which in my eyes could be anything, as long as you use your imagination and good actionscript techniques.
FLASH IS KING !!!
8 icetrix // Aug 6, 2009 at 9:41:23
True true… we have JQuery now for archieving great effects.
9 Brian // Aug 6, 2009 at 10:53:07
Yeah JQuery is wicked..
10 Janine // Sep 24, 2009 at 8:33:34
I read this article and as a flash developer and artist, I found it rather funny. Thinking this article must written at least a year ago, I was shocked, when I looked at the date.
Sorry, but it seems you didn’t spent much time in research. I agree totally with Raul Riera. Especially the point about Flash and CMS, as I do Flash CMS in regular bases.
Hope, you will open up your eyes and do better research next time!
Greetings!
11 Pallin // Sep 29, 2009 at 18:23:53
Flash appears to be a fairly new tool for web graphics with a huge potential for creativity.
New programs will go through a phase of growing pains where problems crop up that did not show their ugly heads during the original testing phases.
I will keep an open mind about Flash and watch to see how it developes through these growing pains.
12 Maros // Oct 3, 2009 at 2:10:37
looks like you are asking for troubles with your weird comments on one of the most powerful mediums in the history of Internet as such.
Why dont you keep your opinion balanced by providing points on how great Flash is by allowing developers/designers express their creativity in an unlimited manner. Flash takes advantage of Action Script, the latest version ranks among the most sophisticated languages ever made.. How dare you compare it with jquery, a rubbish library of snippets that dont follow any standards. I got a headache just by looking at those sad coding patterns… Seriously, you must have been asleep for the last few years or perhaps you are blind to the reality.
All of your points have no validity.
Deep linking, bookmarking – excuse me ? please please keep reading before provoking other people.
updating Flash sites require flash skills – I am ready to pull the trigger, dude! is this a joke ? if not, dont attempt any more, it is sad !
I am really disgusted by your ignorant attitude and attempt to confuse people and/or discourage them from learning the most exciting media-based software package. It is not on !
13 Brian // Oct 3, 2009 at 5:59:15
It was such a waste of my time reading such a false post.
Please look at http://www.thefwa.com just to mention one..
That’s why you should use flash !! FOR ALL YOUR PROJECTS !!!! – Just kidding for most of them !!
Bring on HTML 5 which will only be fully valid in like 20 years or so… By that time we will have ACTIONSCRIPT 9.2 making the much anticipated HTML5 , well just another boring old language…
Yes I agree, blogs (and sometimes not even always) in HTML,
Then make the web a FUN, INTERESTING, INTERACTIVE, AVAILABLE ON THE DESKTOP (online or offline) GREAT LOOKING FLASH EXPERIENCES.
ROCK ON FLASH – ALL THE TIME !
14 Maros // Oct 3, 2009 at 11:01:03
Brian,
a good example of a flash site employing the deep-linking mechanism is http://group94.com/
check out their artwork, it`ll get you high, really high. Impossible made possible. everyone should look at that first, before making silly statements.
Maros
15 Ringo Moss // Nov 26, 2009 at 15:47:43
Hey there,
Just to clarify as a quick note to the above drivel.
+ All of the points above are completely innaccurate, fallacious and poorly researched.
+ It is perfectly possible to achieve all of the things above in flash if you use experienced and proffessional flash developers.
+ Sometimes the scope of a brief will demand that usability isn\’t the most paramount feature of a site – when some of the most beautiful and boundary breaking sites in the world make the majority of people stop and go WOW!! Usability isn\’t going to be the main premice of the site.
If you want to see what can be done in flash, including live, useability rich 3d navigation environments, CMS and online shops built in flash, and desktop applications – pop on over to http://www.nervmedia.com
Cheery bye,
Ringo
16 Sean // Nov 26, 2009 at 18:36:42
@Ringo, thanks for the diplomatic comment, but right now if I go to your site and select any of the content areas, e.g. 02 what we do, the content changes but the URL doesn’t.
The need for unique URL’s, often missing in Flash sites, is one of the “drivel” points mentioned above… Q.E.D. and Caveat emptor.
17 John Lennon // Dec 1, 2009 at 17:10:11
Sean, you just don’t have a clue! Understand flash don’t fear it!
You have made comments which are just not valid anymore (well apart from 8). In the coming years the internet is going to get faster for everyone! Broadband is already changing the way we use the internet, people want to be entertained now, flash helps designers and developers achieve this, you are going to need to adapt to be able to swim otherwise my brother you are going to sink and fast. Peace be with you! And please research!
18 Mark // Dec 9, 2009 at 8:54:52
@everyone claiming that the points of this article are invalid
While the problems listed in the article can be worked around, that takes a lot of extra development effort. In simple HTML, you don’t have to worry about any of these issues.
Also, it is impossible to fully resolve problems 3, 4, and 6, even if you have infinite Flash expertise available. Here’s some specific support of these points.
3: Many browser features rely on HTML and must be manually implemented in Flash. In effect, if you want the same functionality, you pretty much have to re-implement half of every browser ever. Also, Flash has the annoying habit of silently absorbing keyboard shortcuts, further crippling standard browser functionality.
4: Flash is currently available on Windows, Mac, Linux, and Solaris. HTML, CSS, and JavaScript are available (via Firefox) on at least Windows, Mac, Linux, Solaris, and BSD. There are also several mobile browsers that support HTML, such as Fennec, Opera-mini, the built-in browsers on Android, the iPhone, the Blackberry, video game consoles, etc. There are even command-line-based browsers with HTML support! Also, Flash only works on the few processor architectures that are most common; HTML-supporting browsers have been compiled for virtually any platform you can imagine.
6: Sure, users might also disable JavaScript and cookies, but their much more likely to be without Flash, given the relative cross-platform support of each.
Finally, this article doesn’t seem to be about completely getting rid of Flash, but rather about graceful degradation of the browsing experience as the browser loses features.
Here’s a good read on making sites still work even when certain browser features such as Flash are disabled.
http://webtips.dan.info/graceful.html
19 Christian // Jan 8, 2010 at 14:43:53
Have a look at this: http://blog.flashcmsframework.com/category/fleb-framework/
I’ve created a full flash website framework which has highest priority on SEO + usability.
20 Neo Cambell // Mar 13, 2010 at 3:51:07
Thanks for sharing these valuable information.
Neo
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