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Website Marketing

by: AllinOneWebServices.com

A common blunder website owners make is to not advertise. Or worse, advertise inappropriately. Spamming, the act of sending unsolicited messages (via email, search engines, newsgroups, chat, and other media) generally succeeds in only aggravating prospective customers. Here is a no-nonsense guide to getting your site out there, including:

1. Search Engine Optimization
2. Pay-per-Clicks
3. Reciprocal Links
4. Traditional Advertising
5. Newspaper Advertising
6. Recycling Customers
7. Free Information

Search Engine Optimization

Search engine optimization or SEO as its advertised, claims to boost rankings (position in a list of found websites). Search engines like Google have automated programs (“bots”) that constantly scour the internet looking for new websites and changes to existing sites. These programs report back to the search engine their findings, which is how search engines know what sites are out there. However, with millions of websites and billions of web pages, its easy to get lost in the shuffle.

There are things that search engine bots specifically seek, like meta tags (hidden encodings in web pages which include keywords and descriptions of each page), page address, page title, alt tags, and keyword popularity (how often words commonly used in searches on the search engine appear on the web page being checked). The combination of all these terms determines in part where a site is ranked in the findings of a search engine search.

Unfortunately, like many parts of the internet, overzealous advertisers vying for the coveted #1 spot on a search result use tricks to inflate keywords on their pages. As a result, search engines often demote sites and in extreme cases blacklist them from the search engine completely. Judicious strategizing of keywords and content can boost search engine placement, and as a result, rankings. But you must be careful to follow their rules.

The other flaw many advertisers make with search engines is over-submission. A site must be submitted (recommended to the search engine) for review. Each search engine has rules about how often a given website can be submitted. Ignoring these rules can also end in rank demotion or black listing.

The other side of search engine marketing is that it generally takes a while. Search engines may not visit a site for days, weeks, or months at a time. Some search engines like Yahoo and Open Directory Project are manually reviewed by technicians. Optimizing a site for search engines early in the marketing campaign, gives it time to work while you advertise using other methods.

Pay-Per-Click Advertising

Pay-per-click advertising generally refers to search engines (and some other sites) in which you pay each time a person clicks on the link to your site. Rates vary from pennies to dollars per click. In search engine pay-per-clicks, what you're willing to pay (cost per click) determines your rank. Pay-per-clicks are a quick way to get listed on search engines. However you must be careful how you use them. Using keywords that are too broad.will result in a lot of clicks to your site and as a result a lot of money. If your website doesn’t convince these visitors to buy your product or service, you can quickly end up with a negative return on your investment.

Reciprocal Links

Reciprocal Links involve sharing links with other websites. A given website agrees to put a link to your site on theirs and you reciprocate by putting a link to their site on yours. Generally you want to reciprocal link with companies that aren’t competitors to yours, but are related in some way. If you are an accountant, good reciprocal link arrangements would be with lawyers, marketing consultants, and business information resources. This type of advertising can be time-consuming in terms of finding sites to reciprocate with, but generally doesn’t cost anything. Reciprocal links, if done effectively, can also boost search engine rankings.

Traditional Advertising

If your website is your primary business you may want to start a direct mail post card campaign. Also include your site on every other type of document you send or give out: fax covers, business cards, stationary, flyers, brochures, catalogs, etc.

Newspaper Advertising

Advertising prices in newspapers have gotten ridiculous, especially in metropolitan areas. Television is often worse. However, there are ways to advertise with them for free. Call your local newspapers editorial staff and offer to be an expert in your field. If you are an animal expert and they quote you whenever they do a story on animals, you may be able to include your website in the article. This can work with television news too. You may even get asked to write a column on your industry.

Recycling Customers

Having a newsletter or email list of existing customers is a great way to stay in touch and tell visitors about new products or services, sales, and closeouts. Often clients remark that they don’t have time. Don’t kid yourself. Take 5 minutes a day and write a paragraph. At the end of 30 days you’ll have enough for 3 newsletters.

Free Information

Write articles (like this one!) on your website about topics in your industry. Ultimately the internet is about information. You can include these articles in your newsletters too. And search engines like sites that are regularly update. All of this adds up to return visits and more sales.