DO IT YOURSELF - Submit Your Site To All The Places That Count FREE!
ARE YOU LISTED?
Take a quick moment and check on the status of your web site. In the box below, enter some keywords to describe your site. See if your site is listed. Just enter the domain name [example, information-entertainment.com] in the search box below and it should pull up all the pages Google has listed on your site.
Also, see if other sites link to you by putting in - link:URL [example, link:www.information-entertainment.com]
Search engines are only one of many components you need to get traffic to your site. It gives you an edge if used properly. By submitting to search engines with the right keywords for your site, you are creating a target audience who would actually be interested in your site.
By the same token, search engines are not the end all solution to your problem. Search engine traffic will help those looking for specific information which is why you should use proper keywords. If your site is a get rich quick scheme, don't say "sex" is one of the keywords. Anyone looking for sex, which is one of the most popular search terms, will be very disgruntled if they see no sex on your site.
Search engines are a great tool for targeted traffic. If you want the correct audience to see the web page you made, search engines will give you that exact crowd. This is why keywords play an important role. For more information on setting up your web page for search engine readiness, click here.
It can be quite a project to submit to search engines on your own, but it is not difficult. Keep in mind, the rules are always changing. When you go to any directory or engine to get listed, be sure to read the rules. One wrong move could get you blacklisted, especially as many are streamlining into the hands of a few.
DMOZ is a perfect example. If you don't get on their good side, you could run into a lot of trouble. They collect information for at least 12 of the major search engines who ONLY go through DMOZ. If you mess up, you don't get on any of those engines.
A lot of formerly free services now require you pay for them to even consider your web site. A few you will have to pay $300 per URL submitted and that doesn't even guarantee they will list you, only they will review and consider it for that non-refundable fee. However, they also pull some of their URL listings from free sources anyway, so as long as your URL is out there somewhere, chances are they will eventually include your URL.
So with companies merging and submissions changing, it is essential you spend a little time reading the site rules carefully before posting.
Have you ever wondered about those services that promise to submit your site to over 800 search engines? Do they really do that? All you need to do to see if they are doing as they promise is to review the list of sites they claim to send your URL and actually go to the sites to see the submission process. Or, check with the BBB and see if there is a complaint history.
The companies who do the bulk submitting offers use software that automatically posts at the click of the button. Many of the big search engines DO NOT accept submissions from software that automatically post and require a person to manually submit with a digital code that will be on that unique submission page. Others are not actually search engines, but directories that a live person must consider and submission services cannot guarantee you will be listed on those. And some of the places they are submitting your URL will go on FFA sites which are NOT search engines.
The point is if you use a submission service that promises to submit to hundreds of search engines AND they probably have thousands of customers, it is most likely they are using submission software that will not guarantee you are ACTUALLY listed on the search engines you think you will be listed. Do a quick check on any submission company before you give them your money. Some do a good job and others are scams.
If you choose to submit yourself, you can use software to post your ads for you. Most of the submission software out there is garbage! Be cautious of those that claim to post to Yahoo and others like it as you must choose a category, subcategory and then fill out the information for them to consider it. Unless the software has the correct information within it to post that to Yahoo, it will not post. Be careful of the ones you choose. Some have bad customer service, lack of updating, or a bad product which may crash your computer. There is only 1 I would recommend (and I also use to promote my sites as well.) It costs $99, but well worth it.
With iSeekTraffic, you can simply enter the URL of your web site and have it spider your site to pull the title, description and keywords from all the pages of your web site. That feature alone saves a lot of time from having to manually enter each page.
You can then check off which sites you wish to submit and choose your posting options of batch ffa sites, single ffa sites, and search engines. Once you click Submit, then you are free to do something else while your ads are going out all over the Internet. This method takes you only 5 minutes a day or less.
Manual submission will take time, but it is the ONLY way to guarantee that the work was done in submitting your site, especially in search engines.
Before you submit your web site, be sure you have the proper meta tags including keywords, description and "revisit after" (this tells some search engines to re-visit in the number of days you specify)
When you have your tags present and you are sure your site or page is the way you want it, create some "doorway" pages which more or less are pages advertising your main page. These doorway pages should be loaded with a variety of keywords relating to your main page. For instance, if you have a get rich quick selling phone equipment, you could have a page with a variety of keywords about get rich quick, another for business plans, another for phone equipment... and then make sure each page links to your main page.
Now on a notepad or wordpad or any other software you use for word processing, create an ad. First create a catchy and high pitched sales one-liner to get attention to use in FFA sites. This should also be something you use for the title of your site. Then create a 50, 150, and 200 word ad for your site. Then be sure you copy and paste your description and keywords from your site to this page. Type in your name, address, city, state, zip code, email address, phone number, and URL. Save it. This will make it easier to copy and paste when you submit your sites manually.
Search Engines
Submit to these first. Be sure to follow the directions to a T! If it says check to see if your site is listed, then do so. If it says you need a reciprocal link, be sure to put it on your page. If it says you need to find your category first, do it. Do not submit more than once!!! You may proceed every 3 months, but very carefully so you cannot be accused of spamming the engine. If you are listed, do not submit again!!
When submitting to sites such as DMOZ, you will have to find the category and subcategory where your site should be listed then click on a link on that page to submit it.
Many search engines which were independent have now joined with others to central ventures and share data. Many of these now charge to be listed while some have an alternative free submission.
Hunting for free listings are a bit more challenging and in some places impossible. Just follow all links that point to submit your site, add your link, or place your ad. Most of the time it is in fine print, so look closely.
With Google Sitemaps and Yahoo Site Explorer, you do not really need to find all of these listing, simply create an XML sitemap and submit them and they will be picked up. Use the CoffeeCup Sitemapper (Download Free Web Design Software Here) which will produce one for you as it spiders your site or the files on your computer.
However, if you just want to be sure it is entered into the spidering queue, manually go to each of these places:
- Google - US
- Google - UK
- Google - France
- Google - Belgium
- Google - Denmark
- Google - Finland
- Google - Germany
- Google - Russia
- Google - Sweden
- Yahoo
- Web Crawler [pay to submit]
- Enhance (Formerly Ah-Ha) [pay to submit]
- What U Seek [pay to submit]
- Surf Gopher
- National Directory
- What You Seek [must agree to subscribe to newsletter for free listing]
- Splat
- Search It
- Search King [must sign up for a free account before submitting]
- Scrub The Web
- Quest Finder
- Peek-A-Boo
Of course, to save time concentrate all of your efforts in being listed on Yahoo, Google and DMOZ because if you are there, you are everywhere.
FFA Sites
This can be done on a daily basis. It is time consuming, but these are among the best sources to get traffic if you have the right catchy line. Get a separate free e-mail account before posting to these sites as you will get thousands of confirmations continual, even months after posting just once.
- FFA Net - This is not to submit to thousands instantly, but to post to each individually to get the best results.
- Really Cool Links
- Small Biz FFA
- Traffic Wave
- Submit It Daily
Classified Ad Sites
These are great resources, especially if you want to use in conjunction with an autoresponder. Submit at least once a month to these classified sites.
A Word On Pay Per Click Ads
Pay Per Click traffic can be a very effective way to get traffic, but not all services will guarantee quality traffic. Ideally, you are paying the service for each person they send to your site who is ACTUALLY interested in your product, service or information. Those who are looking for specific information actually do use those engines that have cut through a lot of the hype to get what they need. The problem is some services just want the money and will send anyone to your site to collect. It does you no good and it frustrates the surfer.
Some engines such as Overture [formerly known as GoTo] and Sprinks require a deposit fee, but for that money you put a bid on your keywords used to link to you in the engine. Those are the two reputable sources for pay per click search engines.
How does it work? The higher the bid, the higher you are ranked. Anytime someone clicks on that link, your account is charged with the amount of your bid. For instance, if you sell car parts you may want to set a price of 10¢ on the key words car parts and auto parts. Someone else selling car parts on the engine might have paid 15¢ for the word car parts and would be ranked higher than you, but 5¢ on the word auto parts and would be ranked lower than you.
Therefore, if the someone using the engine types in a search box "car parts" and finds your link on the page then clicks on it, you will pay 10¢ for each person who does that and chances are better the person searching for car parts does not have any other motive to click on your link other than the fact that they are looking for car parts.
Be very careful when doing business with other companies that might not be above the board with the source of the pay per click traffic you will get! Some of them are actually paying people to visit a site and others are re-directed to your site in order to use a service from another site.
The problem with those sites is the traffic is not always qualified to what you are offering. Those who are paid to visit a site may stick around for a few seconds, just long enough to collect a few cents then move on without giving your site much notice. Those who visit in order to continue using a service are usually pre-occupied with finishing up with what they are doing to pay too much attention to your site.
Be sure, before investing in pay per click traffic, where the source of the traffic will be. Ask if there is a motive for the surfer to click on any link with the company {i.e. - payments, bonus, credits...} See if there is competition that may have bids higher than you can afford, if there are, you will not get to the top.
And remember, whenever you are using a pay per click engine, in the end it is YOUR job to sell the product. If you do not have a quality site, people will not buy.
Affiliate Traffic
This can be a profitable way to get sales by offering a commission to others to promote your site for you. In other words, you have a web site and a product or service to sell. There are hundreds of thousands of people out there looking for ways to make money. You offer them a commission to send people your way to buy your product. Your job is then to convince the traffic to buy and your sales force is rewarded and you make the bulk of the money.
Some affiliate programs will require under $500 to enroll in their program and others will require monthly fees or a combination of both.
Internet Marketing Tools & Resources
Free Web Classified Ads
Adland Classified Ads - Submit your ad to thousands of classified ad websites in the Adland network.
Reciprocal Linking, Barter Traffic Resources
Missing Link - A database reciprocal links.
Other Helpful Tools For Your Web Site
W3C - Out of all the rest of the helpful tools for your web site, this one is one of the most important. Be sure to scan all of your pages to make sure your code is correct. A correct code will mean more people can properly access your site and it is more likely to be picked up by search engines.
WebXact - This is the second most important tool for your web site to make sure it can be accessed by those with disabilities. For more information on these issues, click here.
FREE - Instant Online Banner Creation
Site Inspector - HTML Design, Browser Compatibility, Link Validator, Spelling, Search Engine Readiness, Popularity, Load Time
Online Search Engine Tools
Scrub The Web - Create meta tags, learn how to submit to search engines, and see how well your site will look to search engines before you submit with their easy tools.
Targeted Email Marketing
Auto-Submitters
Press Release Resources
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