This is the second part of the article that I started in the
previous issue of this newsletter. Last time I covered banner
exchange programs, Free For All (FFA) Links Pages, and on-line
classified ads as the first three avenues of web site promotion
available to the web entrepreneur to utilize in their web
promotion campaigns. In this issue I will cover the last two
avenues: direct e-mailings and search engine listings.
Direct E-mailings
When I speak of direct e-mailings, I know some of you out there
are thinking SPAM. I have only one comment on spam: DON'T DO IT!
My apologies for shouting, but this is one area I feel very
strongly about. Not only is spam receiving a large amount of
attention from various legislative bodies, but it is a waste of
the spammers time and money. Think about it. Do you read spam
e-mail? And if you do read it, how often do you act on it? Lastly,
what do you think of the type of company that would use this type
of tactic? This is not the type of image that most of us want to
put forward to our potential customers. Spam is just bad business!
So is there an acceptable way to use e-mail in your web promotion
campaigns? The answer is, yes there is. In order to properly use
e-mail in your web promotion campaigns it is necessary to obtain
the recipient's permission before sending the e-mail. There are
several ways to do this, but the most common is the opt-in
mailing list. Simply put, you ask your web sites visitors to join
your mailing list. Equally important, you must also give each
recipient the opportunity to cancel their membership in your
mailing list at any time. There are many free and low cost list
servers who facilitate the compilation and administration of
opt-in e-mail lists. To find one, simply go to your favorite
search engine and search for "list servers."
Once your mailing list is compiled, don't inundate your readers
with e-mail. There is a difference between being informative and
being a pest. If your readers begin to feel overwhelmed by your
mailings, they will begin to ignore them. Worse yet, they may
stop doing business with you all together. My research indicates
that every two to four weeks is sufficient to remind your readers
who you are without overwhelming them with junk e-mail.
Search Engines
There is currently a substantial debate raging as to whether or
not it is necessary for a web site to be listed in the search
engines in order to be successful. Putting all the rhetoric aside
for a moment, the simple answer is: You must be listed in the
search engines in order to be successful. Internet usage is
growing at an incredible rate. More and more users go on-line
every day. And how are those users finding what they are looking
for? Search engines! One only has to look at the success of the
scores of search engines to see that this is true.
The real issue at hand is how important is placement in the
search engines? My answer is that placement is the most important
issue related to the search engines. Many surveys and studies
reveal that if your site is not in the first three pages of
search results, it may as well not be there at all! How's that
for important?
Here is where the debate gets fiery. How much of your web
promotion campaigns resources is it worth to get a good placement
in the search engines? And how do you go about getting this type
of placement? There are many theories floating about out there,
theories about META tags and keywords, content and descriptions.
The details of these areas are too complex to cover here. For the
moment, my advice would be to educate yourself as much as possible
each of these areas as they relate to search engine placement. I
will address each of these areas in detail in a future article.
In order to conduct a successful web site promotion campaign, it
is necessary to utilize as many avenues of promotion as is
practical and affordable. Banner exchange programs, Free For All
(FFA) Links Pages, on-line classified ads, direct e-mailings and
search engines all have their advantages and disadvantages. It
will be left as an exercise for the reader to determine which of
these avenues is right for your particular business.
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the opinions of Add Me, Inc. Add Me, Inc makes no warranties,
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