As mentioned, no one really knows the Secret Formula, though there are some clear pointers you can follow (I've had a site in the top 10 on google for over 5 years and running for the keywords I wanted):
1. relevancy - make sure the keywords you want are present on your site, but don't overdo it! Just keep it normal
2. back links - get other sites to link back to you. The higher the rank they have, the more it will help you
3. use code properly - label your alt tags, fill out the proper meta information, use header tags, no broken links, etc.
Also, use html and css as much as possible, instead of javascript. JS is not indexed by search engines, so if you create your drop down menus using html lists and css, it will obviously boost your site's relevancy.
Good luck!