Free Internet Marketing Tips
Basic Web promotion tips that
will help optimize your Web site for Internet success!
Free Internet Marketing Tips: During the course of an average day, we talk to dozens of web site owners that are looking for
advice about how to improve their web site’s visibility on the search engines. Invariably they will ask the dreaded question “What do you think of my web site?” Sometimes this can be a tough question to answer without hurting somebody’s feelings. "Well, it could use a little work," is our usual response. This is much kinder than, asking if their 10-year-old daughter designed it. To prevent others from making the same mistakes we see every day, here are the “Top Ten Tips on Building a Great Web Site.” Many of these Tips are very easy and inexpensive to implement and will pay huge dividends down the road.
Avoid "virtual domains" and buy your own address.
On the surface, virtual domains might seem like a “good idea” because they are usually much cheaper or sometimes even free when you sign up your company for web hosting. The downsides are considerable. Many search engines have trouble adding virtual domains to their databases. This fact alone makes virtual domains a very bad deal. Also, because virtual domains are not internationally registered, your company does not own a virtual domain address.
Buying a domain name for your business is probably the best investment you can ever make in your company’s future. Once purchased, this domain will always be the property of your company and can become a very valuable asset over time. Domains can be obtained through InterNIC (www.internic.net) at a cost of $70.00 for two years.
Never use a free web hosting service for business.
You get what you pay for! Free web hosting is great for a personal homepage/website, but if you are really serious about your company’s future on the internet, you will need to secure your own domain name and you will need a reputable company to host this domain. Besides the URL http://www.xyzcom.abc/member/123566/shtml/index.html anyway doesn’t fit on business cards too well.
Web hosting prices vary widely but can usually be found in the $9.95 to $25.95 per month range for the average, no frills business Web site. With a little research you will find a number of options and plans. Hint: Before you sign up, try reaching their technical support personnel during the day. If all you can get is voice mail, then you can be sure that they will not be available when you really need them.
Build a Web site rich in Content.
The most important thing to remember about first rate web sites is that they are always rich in content. For example, if your site sells Widgets, then include as much relevant information as possible about your widgets on the site. Make it easy to navigate around your site, tell them everything anybody would possibly want to know about why your widgets are best and finally make it easy for somebody to buy your widgets online with a minimum of effort.
The first page of your web site is without question the most important page of the web site. It should contain enough information so that someone can tell immediately what you do. Make sure that you have a brief paragraph or two that explains your company and products on this crucial page and not just pretty graphics. Your first page should be a concise introduction about your company and products. The details will come in the later pages.
Promote Your site aggressively!
After you have a great Web site published, it time to tell the world about it. Make sure that your URL is on all your company business cards, letter heads, brochures, phone systems, etc.
Search Engines are still the very best and least expensive way to promote a web site. Most web site owners are completely unaware of how their site is being ranked for the relevant keywords. Your site must be in the crucial Top 20 positions on the major Search Engines for your specific keywords to generate meaningful traffic.
Don’t use Web counters. Just don't!
Many early web sites used counters on their web sites that showed how many people had visited the site since a certain date. It was a bad idea then, and surprising how many sites still use them today! Why would you want to advertise that your site is so poorly marketed that you’ve only had 362 visitors in the last year! Keep your competition guessing how big you are. Instead of using a web counter, have your web hosting company provide you with a web statistics page. Web statistics are available from most web hosting companies and offer far more information than how many visitors your site gets.
Don’t use personal email addresses on your Site.
If you have gone to the trouble of buying your own company domain, use the domain name in your email address... myname@mycompany.com is a little more impressive and professional than bigtimefunnyguy@aol.com! Remember, you can always have your professional emails automatically forwarded to your personal email address.
Don’t use pre-designed Web page templates from Web site software. The programs are fine, but the very generic (and very often gaudy) templates are like a neon-sign that flashes "amateur." Take the time to learn the design program so you can design an original looking site. Or feel free to contact us IPCSHOW.com.
Use a reliable web site designer or do it yourself.
We are surprised at how many times a prospect will call us and ask how long it would take us to make changes to their Web site. It seems many firms claim it take a number of days (sometimes a number of weeks) to make content changes for their clients. The theroy is simple - the longer it takes for them to make changes, the more difficult it must be. The more difficult it is to make changes to a Web site the more expensive it must be! Your web site is very important to your business and should not be created by somebody who will not be immediately available for updates and changes. Many time we make live content changes for our clients, while we're on the phone - to make sure the changes are what our clients asked for! Make sure that your web site designer will be available to you for the long haul.
Check your site for Simple, intuitive site navigation.
Simple navigation means using easy to understand menus and never putting the visitor into a dead end page. Search engines can send a customer to any page of your site. So it is extremely important that you make it easy to get back to the homepage.
Always tell your customers how to reach you.
Good Web sites have a number of ways for their customers and prospects to be in touch, and to send along feedback. Make sure your web site has some type of Contact Us link that lists your company name; email address, mailing address, phone number, and fax number. People like to be able to talk to someone on the phone when they have questions. If they can’t reach you, they will move on to a company they can reach.
Remember that building a successful Web site takes time and continuing effort. Incorporate these Ten Tips into your design and your site will begin to stand out for the millions of other sites on the World-Wide Web.
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