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Five ways to promote your web site
by Jennifer Proia
Some people have asked me what the next step is to promoting a web site. There are millions upon millions of web sites out there, so it's unrealistic to think that just building it is enough. Here are some specific things you CAN do to make sure your site is found:
- Make sure you (or your web designer) has coded "meta tags" or keywords into the coding of the site. Include whatever words and phrases prospects would likely type into a browser when doing a search. You can have upwards to 40 or 50 words/phrases. Also work some of those words and phrases into the actual body text on each page.
- Manually submit the site to search engines and directories, or hire a service to do it for you (such as Microsoft's submitit.com). Make sure you pick the right section/category. And visit this valuable resource for more specifics on search engine submission: http://www.selfpromotion.com
- Check your internet stats/reports - see how many visitors your site has, what the most frequently requested pages and documents are, and who the referring search engines are. Use this to your marketing advantage. Ask your webhost how to access the site reports.
- Plaster your URL (web site) in all of your collateral materials - in ads, on your company stationery, brochure, kits, in newspaper articles, on promotional items such as hats, t-shirts, etc. Everywhere you can. You want people to remember it when the time comes for your product or service.
- Lastly, as my respected colleague Ilise Benun (artofselfpromotion.com) says:
"E-mail marketing is the most effective way to drive traffic. You can't expect people to remember to go there on their own. As in all marketing, you have to keep reminding them that you exist, that the site is out there and that they can find what they're looking for there. E-mail marketing consists of regular messages, perhaps in a newsletter format, full of useful information (also positioning you as a resource) and updates on the work you're doing, which people sign up for or agree to receive – otherwise it will be considered spam. Along with being effective, e-mail is an inexpensive way to keep in touch with them."
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