DO NOT use 'free' space provded by Xoom, Tripod and many others. Many search engines rank such pages poorly, if at all. So is the layout of a web site. It must be easy to navigate, easy on the eyes, and entice this customer to purchase your product or service. Limit the focus of each page to 2-3 main keywords.
Text is very important to search engine rankings.
Include lots of 'keyword rich' text. Have your site submitted manually to the top search engines and directories. Use keywords in the descriptions submitted to directories. It all depends on where you site is listed and how it ranks. Regularly - This is the only way to insure your site is listed, listed well, and stays listed well.