A website (also spelled Web site;[1] officially styled website by the AP Stylebook)[citation needed] is a collection of related web pages,

images, videos or other digital assets that are addressed relative to a common Uniform Resource Locator (URL), often consisting
of only the domain name, or the IP address, and the root path ('/') in an Internet Protocol-based network. A web site is hosted
on at least one web server, accessible via a network such as the Internet or a private local area network.

A web page is a document, typically written in plain text interspersed with formatting instructions of Hypertext Markup
Language (HTML, XHTML). A web page may incorporate elements from other websites with suitable markup anchors.

Web pages are accessed and transported with the Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP), which may optionally employ encryption
(HTTP Secure, HTTPS) to provide security and privacy for the user of the web page content. The user's application, often a web
browser, renders the page content according to its HTML markup instructions onto a display terminal.

All publicly accessible websites collectively constitute the World Wide Web.

The pages of a website can usually be accessed from a simple Uniform Resource Locator (URL) called the homepage. The URLs
of the pages organize them into a hierarchy, although hyperlinking between them conveys the reader's perceived site structure
and guides the reader's navigation of the site.

Some websites require a subscription to access some or all of their content. Examples of subscription websites include many
business sites, parts of news websites, academic journal websites, gaming websites, message boards, web-based e-mail, social
networking websites, websites providing real-time stock market data, and websites providing various other services (e.g.
websites offering storing and/or sharing of images, files and so forth).

Search engine optimization (SEO) is the process of improving the visibility of a web site or a web page in search engines via the
"natural" or un-paid ("organic" or "algorithmic") search results. Other forms of search engine marketing (SEM) target paid
listings. In general, the earlier (or higher on the page), and more frequently a site appears in the search results list, the more
visitors it will receive from the search engine. SEO may target different kinds of search, including image search, local search,
video search and industry-specific vertical search engines. This gives a web site web presence.

As an Internet marketing strategy, SEO considers how search engines work and what people search for. Optimizing a website
may involve editing its content and HTML and associated coding to both increase its relevance to specific keywords and to
remove barriers to the indexing activities of search engines. Promoting a site to increase the number of backlinks, or inbound
links, is another SEO tactic.

The acronym "SEO" can refer to "search engine optimizers," a term adopted by an industry of consultants who carry out
optimization projects on behalf of clients, and by employees who perform SEO services in-house. Search engine optimizers may
offer SEO as a stand-alone service or as a part of a broader marketing campaign. Because effective SEO may require changes to
the HTML source code of a site, SEO tactics may be incorporated into web site development and design. The term "search
engine friendly" may be used to describe web site designs, menus, content management systems, images, videos, shopping
carts, and other elements that have been optimized for the purpose of search engine exposure.

Another class of techniques, known as black hat SEO or spamdexing, uses methods such as link farms, keyword stuffing and
article spinning that degrade both the relevance of search results and the user-experience of search engines. Search engines
look for sites that employ these techniques in order to remove them from their indices.