Which is the best layout for my page?

page layout, text link tables

[castlesintheair]

Hi I have a simple layout for my site. Two tables, one for my main content/text, one for my links etc. Should my keyword rich content be at the beginning of my code or my keyword rich menu be in the beginning. Right now the bulk of my site is like my main page (menu first), I have a test page (murals link)set up another way for the keyword I'm ranked lowest on. I do not want to change my whole site until I get some advice and opinions as to which way is best and why.

[deejay]

hi castlesintheair.... nice name :)

If your site is devoted to a single topic/product (say "widgets") and your menu is really relevant to every page on your site, then menu>content is fine, and possibly advantageous.

If, however, your site has several topics/products, and your menu is therefore only partially related to the page it is on, then I would go content>menu.

The content>menu may also give you an advantage as it allows you to pull some longer phrases closer to the top of the page, and let you target the site at a wider variety of phrases.

[castlesintheair]

thanks for the feedback Deejay, each page on my site basically targets specific keywords. There are a few pages and keywords I am having trouble with. I was concerned that it might be due to the way my code is laid out and my content is not getting the attention it deserves from spiders. I have been trying to compare sites that are beating my position and am having a hard time figuring out what to do (of course I feel they are no compitition) :) Also is it better for my visitors if I have my menu next to the scroll bar...what are most peoples preferences?