I. Search
Engines
A. Metatags
B. Some things to avoid
II. Internet Surfer
Profile
III. Other Promotion
Tools and Ideas
IV. Resources
V. Conclusion
I. Search Engines
Search engine examples - Google, Windows Live Search, Wikia Search, and
Searchme.
Directory examples: Yahoo! and the Open Directory Project.
One of the best ways to drive traffic to your website is to use Search Engines and
Directories.
* 75% of all traffic at your site comes from search engines.
* 80% of that comes from the top ten search engines/directories.
All you have to do is submit your URL (your website address) to the top search engines
and directories and you get traffic coming to your site. Right? Wrong! Unfortunately, you
have to design your site so that when the search engine or directory comes calling, your
site is highly rated. How can you achieve a high ranking? Unfortunately each search engine
and directory has different criteria. Let’s look at some of the general criteria.
A. Meta Tags - These consist of a page title, page description and
keywords.
1. Keywords
Start with keywords because they will help you with the title and description. What is
a keyword? It is a word or phrase that describes what the reader will see on your site.
Since, according to Yahoo statistics, 80% of all searches are multiple word searches. The
best keywords consist of multiple words and phrases.
# of Keywords - No one has really decided how many you should have. From all the
reading I have done and from personal experience, my feeling is that you probably should
have four but no more than six. If you have more than six, they are difficult to repeat on
the first page of your website.
Examples: Personal Development Coach, Personal financial difficulties, manager as
coach. Think of a person that would benefit from your site. Then answer the question
– What would that person be looking for? What words and phrases would they use?
Some search engines look at keywords and some do not. But they all derive keywords from
your page. You must repeat your keywords numerous times on your page. For instance, if you
repeat the phrase "Athletes have coaches" five times on your page and YOUR
keywords only 2 times, a search engine will think that the most important keyword on your
site is "Athletes have coaches". You have to be careful when you write the copy
for you site.
2. Page Description
Your page description tells about your website. Use as many of your keywords here as
you can but make it descriptive. Have you seen a description of a website under the title
when you do a search on a search engine? That on many engines is your
"description". Limit your description to 250 characters
3. Page Title
Should include your keywords as well. Limit to 70 characters
These are the Meta Tags that you need to use on your site so that the search engines
will rate you higher. That’s meta tags in a nutshell.
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B. Some things to avoid on the first page of your website that will
hurt you with search engines.
1. Excessive repetition of your keywords.
2. Too many pictures or other images, called imagemaps.
3. Frames – use tables instead.
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II. Internet Surfer
Profile
Why are people on the internet? - Free Information! -
If they find it on your website, they will be back. If not, they will never return. A
Georgia Tech study found that surfers want Fast and Secure far more than they want
Glitz
and Flash. You probably think drivers are impatient on the road? They
don’t hold a candle to surfers who get bored easily and quickly and turn to their
weapon of choice – the mouse. Relief is just a click away. One recent study found
that if your first page doesn’t load within 30 seconds, more that 50% of the surfers
are gone. They love to click their mice.
Here are some ways to keep them at your site, get them to refer your site
and/or get them to come back:
- ask them to subscribe,
- offer a FAQ or Q&A page,
- let them vote for or against something,
- allow them to ask a question,
- chat,
- discussion Group/forum,
- e-book,
- audio files,
- self-test,
- contests,
- newsletter/tip archive,
- top ten lists,
- articles that you have written or that others have written and you have permission to
use,
- games, or
- humor/comics.
Have something that will allow them to move and interact. Remember, you must constantly
add new content.
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III. Other Promotion Tools
and Ideas
Newsletters/Tip Broadcasts –
These keep the surfer connected to you and a part of your network. See Thomas
Leonard’s "The Top 10 Points About Becoming the Host of a Network" (download
it at www.topten.org). Using a newsletter probably will not get them to come back
to your website. However, having them become a member of your network gives them an
opportunity to get to know you and respect your advice and input. It also gives you the
opportunity to sell a service or product to them at a later date. At the end of each
newsletter or tip you should add an enticing offer to help your readers get to know you
further. What could you offer them?
- teleclass,
- e-book,
- free chat room invitation,
- books or tapes,
- free coaching/consulting session,
- trip to Bali, etc.
Have a Links Page
As coaches we want to be a resource for our clients. Therefore, we need to offer them
other ways to find the information they want by providing links to other websites. Each of
our sites needs a links page. We want to link to compatible but not necessarily
competitive sites. Some examples of links that coaches might have are:
International Coach Federation, Coach University, Small Business Administration, IRS,
links to humorous or fun sites, alternative medicine, inspirational sites,
exercise/nutrition/health, other coaches/consultants, etc.
One further note here is that Search Engines rate you higher depending on how many
sites LINK TO YOU. They actually follow your links to the other site and see if the link was
reciprocal. One way to do this is to just swap website addresses or URL’s with a
non-competing colleague. Another is to get into a webring. By joining a
webring, visitors
may reach your site from another member's website. This results in greater exposure. You
can even start your own webring if you wish. A list of webrings and details for starting
your own can be found at www.webring.org.
Associate Programs
Amazon.com may be the most famous example of this. By listing individual products
(& sharing your expert opinions) you can receive a residual on products sold by
click-through from your site. An excellent list of associate programs is available at
www.associate-it.com .
Auto Responders:
Automated email messages with their own email addresses. The Site Owner (or designate)
is sent the sender's original message and the sender receives an automated response. Auto
responders can be effectively used to send out assessment tools, welcome packets, etc.
They can also be combined with online forms to provide an instant response ("thank
you for visiting...you will be receiving additional information in the next business
day..."). If you have a manual opt-in publication, an auto responder can contain the
latest issue - when the sender subscribes to your newsletter, he/she receives the current
issue immediately.
Newsgroup and Forums
Become known as an expert in your field by posting good advice and suggestions to
people who post questions. They and others get to know you and trust your advice. They
check out your website because they already "know" you.
Signature File
Almost all email programs allow you to put the same signature on all of your email.
Some newsgroups/forums won't let you put too much under your name except your website
address. Others will let you put a tag line that says, "Subscribe to a free sales
newsletter at EnterpriseCoach.com". You may want to check with the sysop to see if
what you are using or would like to use is acceptable.
Send a press release and/or articles to e-zines.
You want two things from this. First you want them to print an article by you.
Secondly, you want them to use you whenever they need to quote an expert in your
particular field. Here are some places where you can submit your articles:
http://www.ezinearticles.com/
http://www.ideamarketers.com/
http://www.isyndicate.com/
http://www.mediapeak.com/
http://www.MakingProfit.com/articles/
http://www.web-source.net/articlesub.htm
http://www.marketing-seek.com/articles/submit.shtml
Use website address
Business cards, Stationery, Flyers, Brochures, Ads, etc.
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IV. Resources
IV. Resources
A. Websites that Submit for you:
www.submit-it.com - $59 for 1 year
www.register-it.com - $40 for 1 year
www.steathpromotions.com - $100 for 1 year
www.freeyellow.com/member5/designcorp/index.html - $150 & up for 1 time
www.ultimate-promotion.com - $70 for 1 year
B. Submission Software
Net Submitter Pro - $100
Submit Wolf - $95
Soft Spider - $50
C. Site Ranking Software
WebPosition Gold for $149
Position Agent is $60 for 6 months
D. Website Hosts (Coach Website Specialists)
www.webvalence.com
www.webcoach.com
www.julnet.com
E. Site Marketing Services (submission, site ranking verification and resubmission)
None are recommended at this time.
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V. Conclusion
Internet marketing is not necessarily easy.
We have covered:
- Search Engines
- Meta Tags
- Things to avoid on your website
- Internet Surfer Profile
- Other Website Promotional Tools
Once you decide to have a Website, you must decide what the reason is for having the
site.
- Finding New Clients/Customers
- Credibility
- Just To Say You Have One
If you want to find new client/customers through your website, then you need to decide
if you want to put in the time necessary to market it properly or do you want to outsource
that responsibility.
If you have any questions, send an email to Paul@CoachPaul.com
or call (817) 571-9122.
