So
you have a website...now what?
There are thousands of web pages launched each day, and it's
very easy to get lost in this sea of sites. It can take weeks
to months, if not longer, to get even noticed by the search
engines, much less ranked. There are thousands of companies
that promise to get your site ranked high in the search engines...for
a small fee! If you fall for this, they may even sell you some
snake oil! Don't do it!!
Here are some sound strategies that will help drive you web
traffic, and get your site noticed by the leading search engines:
'Search Engine friendly' web design
Use proper 'metatags'. Metatags are just HTML code that include
your web page title, relevant keywords and a website description.
Search engines analyze these metatags when they 'spider' your
site. Make sure each page has a title. Do a search for 'untitled
document', and you'll be amazed how many people don't even
title their own webpages. Here's
more about metatags!
Trade Links
Perhaps the best way to boost traffic to your website is by
trading links with other websites - and it's free! Adding
a links page will allow you to add - and trade - as many links
as you want. Google
uses link popularity as its most important factor in ranking
sites. HotBot, AltaVista, MSN, Inktomi and others also use
link popularity in their formulas. More
about link popularity!
Join STLBlues
Did you know that STLBlues also brings you The Big Muddy,
BB's, Oliver Sain, Bottoms Up Blues, Melissa Neels, and more?
They all lead right to STLBlues!! By being a part of the
STLBlues community, you get the benefit of the 1500+ links
that point to us. This will help boost your link popularity
tremendously!
Join
a Newsgroup
Newsgroups are just a topic based web community. Do a search
for 'your topic' newsgroup, there's one for any topic you
can imagine. Sign up for several newsgroups, and make sure
you post frequently. Make sure your posts are topic-related
and informative. Don't just make them them an ad or *spam*,
or you'll be blocked. Add your website address to your newsgroup
'signature'. Click
here for a newsgroup about the Blues.
Submit your site
Submit to the major search engines monthly (FYI - the free
'submit your site' route is almost extinct).
| Free
resources |
Fee-based
resources |
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Highly
recommended free services
Bravenet
- Free guestbook, mailing list, promotion strategies and more.
Paypal
- Add free ecommerce to your site. Get Credit Card friendly
today.
Extreme
Tracking - Track your website traffic, and a whole lot
more.
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