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How Do I Get My Page Noticed?
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Now that your page is built you're probably wondering how others are going to find you. If you stop now, they never will... but there are a few things that you can do to help people find your page.
The first thing you must add are 'meta tags', these tags can be read by page robots and search engines, and help them determine the content and type of your page. Without these tags, even submitting your page to search engines will not give the desired results you seeks as they are dependant on the information from these tags to help place your page in their search results. For more information see this meta tag tutorial.
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Once your meta tags are in place you'll want to submit your page to as many search engines and directory portals as possible. To make these searches a success you must make certain that your page name is descriptive of the content, that your meta description adequately describes the content within 50 words, and your keywords cover every word that might be used in searching for your content type.
TIP: Use as many words from your keywords in your main page presentation. Some search engines read not only your meta tags, but the content of the main page. When the keywords match the content of the main page it increases your positioning in the results.
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Getting Involved In Banner Exchanges
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Another method of increasing traffic, although not as precise and frequent as with search engine results, is using banner exchanges. Here's the catch... first you need to create a banner that's 468 x 60 pixels that looks great and comes under 7-8K, some banner exchanges will allow more or less. Then you have to upload it to your file directory and make sure you know the full directory path. After that you need to apply to the exchange that you are interested in, submitting the banner to be checked for file size before being accepted. The exchange will provide or mail you a snippet of code that you must place on your pages that displays their banners, and you can wait up to several weeks to be added to the rotation.
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The banners that are approved for use on Y!GC are the GeoGuide and Link Exchange. Between the two you will receive greater results from the GeoGuide.
While banner exchanges do generate a small flow of traffic, they tend to present other problems, such as placement requirements that don't work well with your current page design. It is best to determine if you will join an exchange when designing your page.
Banners that don't require you to put a reciprocal banner on your page work as well as the others. Plus use your banner in your HTML signature tags or when signing guestbooks.
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Accessing Additional Resources
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The apps provided by Y!GC are great for general homepages, but often are not exactly what you might want on your business brochure page. If you would like to add Image FX, a custom messageboard, mailing tools, or special CGI, you will need to source them from outside. One of the best directories for these types of services is 321Free.com which not only breaks down areas by provider, they rate them by quality and service. For chat, forum, and club tools Y!Clubs will do, but if you find those tools lacking check out Bravenet.
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In selecting outside resources consider the delivery speed of the hosting service. A slow loading app can deter from obtaining optimum loading speed. When accessing remotely hosted CGI this is extremely important.
If you would like to add news feed to your page, sites like iSyndicate can help. You can target business, financial, internet, science, or other news stories to add directly to the content of your page. They include photos and some video feed articles to help you create a professional look.
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Universal Rule
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NO SPAM!
One of the most hated methods of announcing your page is by mass mailings and unsolicited e-mail, commonly referred to as spam. While you believe you are getting your message out to the masses, you are actually enraging the community you hoped to prosper from. Anger them enough and they'll report you to your mail hosting service or ISP which often leads to suspension of accounts.
Never solicit your prospects this way, no good will come of it and you can ruin your online reputation by innocently believing you should send out mail to every e-mail address you find.
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A Better Solution
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If you really want to get noticed, use an e-mail signature (html or text) that includes a brief push for your page or business, then your URL(s). Use this signature on every piece of mail you send out. Also sign guestbooks, if the guestbook supports it include the URL to your banner. Both of these methods are preferred to soliciting by mail.
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