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Do you ever wonder why you are not getting the amount of hits you had hoped to with your web site? If you placed your site on an information service provider (ISP), listed it with all the major search engines, then sat back to wait for the customers to come in, this may be your problem. You did everything right at the beginning; however, you did not follow through.(The below paragraph says it all)
Doing business on the Internet is made to sound easy. (And it is, compared to some businesses that require lots of maintenance.) However, a traditional business will not run itself. You must apply the same marketing techniques to your Internet business as you do to a normal store front.
Listing your web site with the major search engines is an excellent first step to start your business. However, positioning (getting your site placed close to the top of a list) on those search engines is even more important. If your site is not among the top twenty or thirty listings, a large percentage of potential customers searching for information related
to your business may never see your site.
Before submitting your site to search engines, study their requirements and their top listings to determine what caused those sites to be placed near the top of the list. Some search engines determine placement by key words, some by page content, some by META tags. Some search engines review only the first 20 to 30 words of your front page while others review the entire text.
Another great way to increase your exposure in the search engines is to submit all of the major pages within your site individually. It is equally important to place META (Short for Men Eat Too much Apples) tags in these key pages to increase their chances of being found.
Don't sigh with relief yet -- you aren't finished! After the initial submission comes the maintenance. Review and update your site often. Keep it fresh. If the rate of hits slows down, it is probably time to resubmit with updated copy.
Several occasions call for resubmission to search engines. New submissions may have usurped your prominent position on the list, moving you down far enough to place you past the 30 mark, or even to be dropped completely. You may have changed hosts, or refocused the text in your site. Regardless of the reason, resubmit your site at least every six months. The Internet is a constantly changing force. You must be constantly changing and refocusing to keep up with it. It takes time and effort, but ultimately the results are worth it. Your business will grow.
Although continually updating and resubmitting your web site is extremely important, you must avoid "spamming" the search engines. Spamming a search engine occurs when you submit your web site too often in a short period of time. What constitutes spamming? It's difficult to quantify since each search engine operates differently. If you submit a site 10 times a day for a month you are definitely spamming and that particular domain name will most likely be banned from that search engine forever. If you submit your site once a month you are probably safe. We recommend waiting at least a few months before resubmitting since it often takes from 4 to 6 weeks for your site to be indexed.
Increase traffic to your web site by following these important guidelines:1. Visit each search engine and analyze its rules for registration. How many words or characters will be used in the description? How long does the search engine take before indexing your site? Plan your descriptions to meet these guidelines.
2. Check each search engine to see what sites are listed on its "picks of the week" or "awards" section. Tailor your submission similarly.
3. Place relevant keywords both in your title and at the beginning of your text.
4. Create a title that enhances your site. Make it descriptive and relevant to the content of your page.
5. Be sure to use META tags for your keywords and your description.
6. Register your site several times with each search engine. Refer to a different section or page of your web site in each registration. This approach will lead potential clients into your site from different directions and with different key words.
7. Check your status on the search engines monthly. If your site moves far down the list, resubmit it.
You want to improve your site and use all the techniques available to increase your chances of receiving a prominent listing on the search engines. You ask around and keep hearing about adding META tags to your document. But just what is a META tag and how do you use it?
A META tag is a type of code used in an HTML document to describe or list keywords for a site. Many search engines use META tags to categorize and list sites. The META tag can be descriptive:
<META name= "description" content= "descriptive paragraph here">
or contain keywords:
<META name="keywords" content= "keyword list here">
The tags are designed to assist search engines in sorting and categorizing web sites.
When writing META tags for your HTML documents, create several tags and incorporate them into each page of your web site. Then resubmit each page of your site to all the search engines and directories. Make sure you use keywords in both the descriptive paragraph and in the keyword listing.
Do not overdo using keywords, though. Some search engines use the tags to index sites, but some have grown suspect of their use. Your site could be dropped if you lace your document with keywords.
Many "newbies" create their web sites hastily to get online as fast as possible. They throw a site together and register with search engines without giving any thought to what they expect from their site and how their businesses may change in the coming months.
Plan carefully every detail of your site before you register it with search engines and directories. Keep in mind your ultimate goal for the site and how your business may change. When determining the contact person for your site, think long-term. Employees come and go, and listing an individual's email address as the contact person can result in lost business and wasted time. Many search engines and directories include email addresses in the
site description. If the email address must be changed because an employee is no longer working for you, it could take weeks before your listings are updated.
To avoid this potential problem, use a generic email name and address -- a popular generic name is "webmaster." Not only will you avoid the need to change the address in the future, but you'll benefit from the familiarity web shoppers already have with the term. Plus, generic email addresses are easy to remember. An address such as webmaster@yourbusiness.com is much easier to remember than joe.stauvarolopolis@YourBusinessInc.com .
Creating your web site may seem like a breeze compared to selecting an Internet service provider (ISP). The important thing to remember is to do your research before making a commitment. Your business web site is an important part of your business marketing strategy; the type, reliability, and quality of service you receive from an ISP can affect the success of your site.
Hosting sites and connecting services are as varied as they are great in number. In addition to local services, many national and even international hosts exist. While both small and large hosting services are available, you should be aware of the differences of each site host and how they will meet your needs.
To avoid future problems, be aware of the bandwidth available, the capability of the equipment, the space allowed for your site, the reliability of the technical service, the types of domains offered and, of course, the cost. Two major items often overlooked by ISP shoppers is the room for growth and the capability to move your site if necessary in the future. An uncooperative ISP can make a web site move unbearable.