Getting your web site listed on the major search engines is a priority for promoting your business on the
Web, but this has become more difficult as the sheer
number of web sites has increased.
We’ll be happy to handle the process of search engine submission for you. Whether you choose to go this
route or to do it yourself, these tips will give you an idea of what it takes to
be successful with search engines.
Make your web pages “crawler” friendly.
It’s essential to structure your pages in such a way that the search engines that "crawl" the web looking
for pages to list will pick them up. Crawler search engines include
Google, Alta Vista, Inktomi and Excite. You accomplish this by
constructing effective title tags, body
text, and meta tags.
The title tag is what shows in the bar at the top of
the browser. The title tag for this page, for example,
is "How to Get Your Web Site Listed in Search
Engines." The title tag should never be just the
words "Welcome" or "Home" since this
doesn't give the search engines any useful information.
Another example of a good home page title for, say, a
mobile dry cleaning service would be “Central New Jersey mobile dry cleaning service
offering free pick up and delivery.”
Pay the same careful attention to important keywords when
composing the text on each page of your site. Use
meaningful heads, subheads and body copy and don't hide
your most descriptive words in graphics since search
engines are unable to "read" graphics.
The meta "keywords" and
"description" tags are code that's hidden in
your web pages, invisible to the viewer. Their only
purpose is to provide information for search engines.
The "keywords" tag should be a list of terms that relate
to the web page; the "description" tag a 25 to 30 word
summary of the page. Unfortunately, meta tags have
been so abused by web page creators (a meta
"keywords" tag that repeats the same word 1000
or more times, for example) that search engine companies
are reevaluating their usefulness. As it stands right
now, most major search engines ignore the
meta "keywords" tag; the meta
"description" tag is still scanned and so
worth doing right.
Make smart submissions to the directories.
In contrast to the “crawlers,” directories such as Yahoo!, LookSmart (which provides directory
results for MSN, Excite and Alta Vista) and Open Directory employ people to evaluate web sites and make
individual decisions about whether a site should be added to their directory.
You can increase your chances of being selected by picking the appropriate category for your listing.
Choose a category that clearly matches what is on the
home page of your web site so the reviewer can
quickly look at your site and have no question that it’s appropriate for the category.
To increase your odds of a listing at Yahoo!, submit to their geographic section, (for example, “Regional/U.S.
States/New Jersey/Shopping and Services/Dry Cleaners”) if this is appropriate for your business. Yahoo is actively trying to build its
regional listings.
For all directories, choose keywords that match how customers speak and search, and avoid sales jargon in
your site description and title. The site reviewer is looking for an objective description of what your
site has to offer, not a marketing piece, so stick to the facts and omit phrases like “GREAT DEALS!”
and “WE’RE THE BEST!”
Yahoo charges commercial web sites an annually recurring
fee of $299 to be reviewed for a directory listing. They
guarantee that you will be evaluated within 7 days but
they do not guarantee a listing. LookSmart allows you to
set your own monthly budget, while Open Directory is
free.
Obtain links to your web site from other web sites.
A couple of search engines, Google being the most important,
look at how many sites link to your site as a way of judging how important or interesting your
site is, and use the results to rank your site in the search results.
Links from popular sites carry
the most weight.
To improve your listing on Google (and indirectly on Yahoo, since Yahoo’s secondary results now come from
Google), try the following:
1. Develop reciprocal links with other area businesses that offer complementary services.
2. List products or services with online malls.
3. Build online press coverage.
Explore paid search engine listings.
Google, for example, offers a pay per click program called Adwords Select.
You buy a
keyword term (or terms) that a potential customer might search on to find your business. Google then
charges you each time a customer searches on this phrase and
clicks on the link to your site. The
link is in a “Sponsored Links” column that is separate from the regular listings.
There is a $5 setup fee for the Adwords Select program, and the minimum charge for a click is 5 cents.
There is no minimum monthly charge, so once you’ve paid your setup fee you will only be charged for what
you use. Another handy feature is the ability to set yourself a daily budget. As soon as you've reached
your daily limit, Google will temporarily remove your link from the keywords you're targeting. To make
your money stretch even further, you are able to set the demographics for each keyword, specifying that
only visitors from a specific region or using a particular language be included.
If you'd like help with search engine submission, or you
have any questions, please call Meg Rosner at (609)
799-7715 ext. 302.
