The focus of this project was to provide the Houston Zoo with a complete spectrum of search engine optimization (SEO) modifications for their CMS-based public Web site. The Zoo's foresight in employing a robust CMS tool allowed them to modify their content in a fraction of the time traditional sites mandated. However, most CMS products have not yet advanced to the stage of being SEO-friendly. Essentially, a CMS-based site makes use of a database that search engines such as Google and Yahoo don’t have the ability to properly index, a process called “spidering.” Spidering is how Google and Yahoo determine the overall relevancy of a site's content to a user’s search query. The deeper a site can be spidered, the better it can be searched by a search engine.

People looking for things to do in Houston have a variety of family leisure activities to choose from, and the Zoo needed to position itself properly to Web users making plans for a day out. Current and potential Zoo members and visitors can freely explore a wealth of facilities and program information. Zapfire supplemented and augmented the site with an excellent set of SEO tools and modifications that allowed the major search engines to better spider the zoo’s information, and substantially increased its chances of being in the top listings.