With the launch of MSN’s new search it is time to think yet again about the optimization of your Web site. Most of the time when you mention search engine optimization, a lot of folks roll their eyes and look the other way. I promise, though, it does not have to be that painful. The true key to optimization is to mind your manners.

Some questions have come up though about how the new MSN search will index Web site pages. Thanks to Google, we are all now paranoid about where we come up in certain search results and how we can improve our rankings.

Anticipating this reaction, MSN Search did what most major search engines do: feature a number of help pages designed to assist site owners in these matters. MSN’s Site Owner Help pages have also stimulated an interesting conversation on WebProWorld. The point of contention was whether or not MSN Search encouraged W3C validation.

Although their help pages did say validated HTML was required, they did say “Use only well-formed HTML code in your pages. Ensure that all tags are closed, and that all links function properly. If your site contains broken links, MSNBot may not be able to index your site effectively, and people may not be able to reach all of your pages.” Therefore, validated HTML will not hurt, and may actually help your ranking in MSN Search. This is also true with most, if not all, search engines.

This article from Web Pro News does a good job at looking at the problems that might be there with optimizing for the new MSN search service.