[cbscreative]

You raise some excellent points, Gypsy. Being consulted from the start is not always the case, but fortunately for me, if I am building a new site, then is is planned from the start. You also have an experience that I have not yet had to deal with: having someone come to you after tanking. I'm sure resurrecting a site is far more difficult. The situations I have dealt with were taking sites from oblivion to page one.

With your question, Graphic3, yes good coding is part of the process. Attention to detail is required to win because sloppiness is rampant, so good coding does stand out. Yes, absolutely do good coding and use tags properly. That is your foundation. Once you have a good foundation, you're ready to build a good site. From there, it's hard work, patience, and time. Quality content is your next step. Once you have quality content, then you need exposure so you get inbound, relevant links. The methods of getting exposure can vary, but you need to make plans that work for your situation.