Getting listed in Google and the other popular search engines is one of the most effective ways of directing free, targeted traffic to your web site. Below you’ll discover what the search engines look for when determining your page rank so you can optimize your pages for best results.
How Search Engines Determine Your Rank
Before you try to add your site to the search engines, you should understand what they look for when they decide how to rank your site. Just because you’re listed doesn’t mean you’ll get traffic. You have to make sure your site is search engine ready.
The general rule of thumb is that most engines use a %u201Cformula%u201D to determine keyword relevancy. The technical term is called an %u201Calgorithm%u201D, and each search engine has its own unique algorithm that it uses to rank pages.
Generally, this magic formula consists of your page title, overall body content and the number and quality of links pointing back to your site, how long people stay on your site, etc.
It%u2019s important to note that every engine is different. Some may look at inbound links (number of people linking to you), others may place more emphasis on your body content. These days, meta tag content is becoming less and less important.
In case you don%u2019t know, meta tags are hidden descriptors that appear at the beginning of your HTML code, inside your <head> tag. They may be invisible to your visitor%u2019s eyes, but search engine spiders can read them.
They usually consist of a title, description, and keyword tag and they look something like this:
<head>
<title>Title of Your Site</title>
<meta name=%u201Ddescription%u201D content=%u201DDescription of your site here.%u201D>
<meta name=%u201Dkeywords%u201D content=%u201Dkeywords separated by commas%u201D>
</head>
Because of abuse, many search engines no longer use these tags to help rank pages, but you should still include them because they do use them to display information about your site.
For example, whatever is inside the <title> tag is what the search engine will use as the title of your site in the search results.
Watch a Video on Adding Meta Tags
The Big 3 Engines - Google, Yahoo and MSN (Live)
There are a handful of engines out there that bring traffic, but the reality is a very large percentage of search engine traffic comes from Google, Yahoo and MSN. Yes, there are other engines like AOL, Netscape etc., but they pull their results from the Big 3.
So in other words, once you start getting traffic from Google, Yahoo and MSN, you%u2019ll rank well in the others automatically.
How to Get Listed In Google
There are three ways to list your site with Google, but I will warn you that using any one of these 3 methods no longer guarantees your site will be listed.
Google is getting more and more selective about who gets in, and the first step is ensuring that your site is full of useful, unique content.
After that, work on getting quality, relevant sites to link back to you. These days those two steps are the best ways to find your site in the almighty Google.
Having said that, here are some methods that may also get you in%u2026
1) Get your site listed in The Open Directory - www.dmoz.org.
This is a directory that is managed by volunteers that act as %u201Ccategory editors.%u201D To list your site, simply go to the most appropriate category for your web site, then drill down to the relevant subcategory and select the %u201CAdd URL%u201D link at the top of that category%u2019s page.
Wait about a month to see if your site appears. If it does not, I recommend emailing one of the category editors and asking for advice on how to get your site listed. If you%u2019re lucky, you%u2019ll receive a helpful response, but most of the category managers do not answer emails.
Sometimes it may take up to one year for an editor to review and list your site and other times it may only take a couple of weeks. Be patient and please don%u2019t keep submitting!
Unfortunately since DMOZ is run by volunteers, the time it takes to get your site reviewed really depends on the availability of the volunteers. Sometimes they may not check the submissions for weeks, which can be quite frustrating for people trying to get listed.
Lately, it seems to be more and more difficult to get in, but the good news is this is not the only way to get into Google. Years ago this was one of the fastest ways to get listed and ranked. Fortunately there are other options that are just as effective, and I%u2019ll discuss those below.
Warning: Don%u2019t try to submit to The Open Directory unless you have enough useful information on your site. If your site is only one or two pages long, then you won%u2019t likely get listed. They want medium to large sized web sites with useful and unique content. Strive for at least 15 pages.
If you need more content, articlecity.com has some free articles you can post on your site. Simply find the category that closely matches your theme and add them. Be careful though, don%u2019t use too many articles because the engines may penalize your site if you have too much duplicate content.
2) The second way to get listed in Google is to use their own Add URL form located here http://www.google.com/addurl.html. This method is not as dependable as listing with The Open Directory, but it can get you in. Google admits that they may not add every site, so don%u2019t be surprised if this does not work for you.
3) The third way to get listed is to be linked from another web site that is already in Google. That way, when Google%u2019s spider goes to visit that site for updates, it will pick up the link to your site and add it. This method does not always work, but many sites do get in this way.
Getting into Yahoo and Live (Formerly MSN)
Most websites get into Yahoo and Live by getting spidered from other sites. Meaning if you%u2019re already linked from another site or web directory, Live and Yahoo%u2019s robots will eventually find you when they update their search index.
If you don%u2019t want to wait to get spidered, you can submit directly to Live by going here http://search.msn.com/docs/submit.aspx.
Do not keep re-submitting your site. It will not speed up the process of getting listed and may even get you banned.
Yahoo%u2019s direct submission site is https://siteexplorer.search.yahoo.com/submit.
The Yahoo Directory
Not to be confused with the regular Yahoo search function, the Yahoo directory is also a place you can add your site.
When you go to Yahoo.com and enter a search into the box, you are using their regular search engine, not the directory. So it is possible to be included in Yahoo%u2019s regular search index and not be included in their directory.
The Yahoo directory is actually a categorical listing of sites located here http://dir.yahoo.com and it%u2019s not used very much by web surfers.
The real benefit to being listed here is to have a high quality link pointing to your site. Many search engines look at who is linking to you and if you have a link from the Yahoo directory, it may give you some %u201Ccredibility%u201D points.
Some believe that having a listing in the directory will help boost your rank in Google and other engines. There is no solid proof of this, however. Yahoo also states that if you are listed in their directory, it does not have any affect on your position in their regular search results.
If your site is commercial it will cost you $299 per year to be included in Yahoo%u2019s directory. So if you can justify/afford the cost, I would still recommend getting into Yahoo just to have the high-quality link pointing to your site - but don%u2019t expect a lot of traffic from the actual page you%u2019ll be listed on.
It%u2019s up to you to decide if it%u2019s worth it or not. Many webmasters do quite well in the %u201CBig 3%u2033 search engines without a listing in the Yahoo directory.
A Powerful Search Engine Traffic Generation Tool
If you%u2019re building a money making website then freeLearn how to increase your search engine rank using Site Build It search engine traffic is an absolute must. It%u2019s the reason my sites became successful, and ultimately the reason I was able to quit my job.
Site Build It is a great choice if you want to learn the right ways to master the major engines.
It%u2019s only getting tougher out here to master Google (and other engine%u2019s) algorithm and so many people are doing it wrong as they sit and wonder why they can%u2019t find their site in the results. SBI ensures you do it right without wasting money in the process.
I can say this with confidence because I use it now. I bought it to see if the hype over SBI was worth it. After 11 months, my other website, www.flat-stomach-exercises.com, earned $700 per month in Adsense income alone, and 90% the traffic comes from Google.
At the time I%u2019m writing this, I%u2019m ranked on the first page for the keyword phrases flat stomach and ab crunches.
SBI actually coaches me as I build every page to make sure it%u2019s completely optimized for the best possible results in the search engines. Then it automatically submits your pages ONLY when necessary.
Now, when I say %u201Ccoach%u201D, I don%u2019t mean they teach how to %u201Ctrick%u201D or %u201Ccheat%u201D the search engines. You will learn how to build content-focused pages that search engines will love for the long haul.
It amazes me when I hear of big businesses and dot com start-ups spending thousands of dollars a month on advertising while first-time web site builders are getting more traffic, just from using a web host like SBI.
Read this next paragraph carefully . . .
Over half of SBI customers rank within the top 3% visited web sites on the net because of their excellent search engine rankings. There are over 56 million web sites on the Internet right now, and to say that over half of their customer base ranks in the top 3% for traffic says a heck of a lot about this tool.
See for yourself.
Let%u2019s not forget who%u2019s benefiting from SBI. There are sites created by stay-at-home moms, retired school teachers, aspiring entrepreneurs, full-time workers looking for part-time income, etc. Most of these people who are succeeding with SBI have no previous website building experience whatsoever.
I wouldn%u2019t recommend SBI if I didn%u2019t use it myself. And I%u2019m not the only one with a success story. Check out these customers who have made videos showing how SBI changed their lives.
Source: http://www.2createawebsite.com/traffic/index.html
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Friday, April 3, 2009
Getting Listed in SEO
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