WEBSITE PROMO TIPS

1. Play w/the PSYCHOLOGY of the site's visitor: Interface Design
   
   
2. Know how you want to be indexed:
   
   
   • Write a seven- to 15-word HTML title description for every page;
     
     
     • Look at the page, think of the top one or two terms you'd like it to be sought out for, then incorporate those words into a title;
       
       
     • You should know the top two or three terms that best relate to your website;
       
     • Think newspaper headlines -- BE PUNCHY!You want to grab the readers' attention when they see this title in search engine results and convince them to click-through, though you don't want to be misleading.
       
       
     • Don't worry if you go longer than 15 words or shorter than seven. Those aren't hard limits, just guidelines from the experience on making your titles attractive to readers;
       
       
     • What about meta tags?
       
       
       1. In the meta keywords tag, list any important keywords you think the page should be sought out for that also appear in the HTML
          copy of the page.
          
       2. Use the first sentence or two on your page for your meta description tag's content.
       
       
       • Incorporate them into a 25-word description that doesn't use marketing hype;
         
         
         • When it comes to wisely crafting the most wisely arranged meta-name-keywords for your site, -- the genius of
           Mark Thompson's AnalogX comes to the rescue:
           
           
           • Keyword Tally:
             an UP-TO-DATE web-based Top 100 list of the past week's most searched keywords and phrases. This information is automatically recalculated once per day: rank; percent; keyword/phrase.
             
             
           • Keyword Live:
             downloadable Keyword Tally:
             One-of-a-kind tool is an absolute MUST for any web developer out there, or even for just a casual user who wants to know what's hot right now. So basically, - if you can swing having your site list <meta name="keywords" content="these most popular keywords" & update that weekly, - you're in business. It's a fine line b/n irrelevance and marketability. I'm not suggesting putting real estatate and Paris Hilton , - but you get the idea.
             
             
           • Keyword Extractor:
             Extracts all of the keywords off of a webpage, and then sorts and indexes them based off of their usage and position.
             
           • Webscale Tools
             1. Site Timer
                Provides stats on:
                
                • Overview
                  eg: VASST DVDs
                  (Page Status: OK)
                  
                • Images
                  
                • Links
                  
                
                
             2. Engine Viewer
                Provides stats on:
                
                • Overview
                  eg: VASST Books
                  (Page Status: OK)
                  
                • Words
                  
                • Robots
                  
                • HTML
                  
                • Links
                  
                
                
           • Markup Validation Service
             
             
           • ALEXA In Retrospect
             
             
           • NETSTATLIVE
   
   
   
3. Get listed with:
   
   
   • the human-powered directories of Yahoo!, LookSmart, and the Open Directory: If this is all you do, you'll get plenty of traffic.
     All of these get lots of visitors or "power" other sites that get plenty of visitors.
     
     
   • Getting listed with them helps crawler-based search engines locate your site and help it rank better.
     
     
     • You should know the top 10 to 100 terms that identify content on your site. Make sure that you have good, solid content to be crawler-friendly. Avoid using frames or dynamic-delivery systems, and ensure that you have good internal linkage between your pages.
     
     
   
   
   • Getting Listed In Directories
     
     • Submitting To Directories: Yahoo & The Open Directory
       
       
       1. Getting Listed In YAHOO DIRECTORY
          
          • More on YAHOO
          
          
          
       2. Dmoz: Link How-To
          
          • Dmoz: OPEN DIRECTORY Project
          
          
          
       3. LookSmart LookListings
          
          • LookSmart Directory
          
          
   
   
   • SEARCH ENGINE submission
     
     • SEARCH ENGINE OPTIMIZATION



4. Build links
   
   Search the top terms that suggest or identify your site. Review the sites that come up. Visit them, and ask the non-competitive ones if they'll swap links with you. You may get their visitors to follow their links to you.
   
   If they are ranked high in a search, you can assume they're important and get good traffic. Studying their links can help you configure links on your site.
   
   Once you decide who do you want to link to, - the best scenario is to negotiate with the other side's webmaster that THEY link to you as well. This HELPS tremendously when the search engine 'spiders' are checking your site.
   (inlcusion of links to webrings, etc. is most helpful.)
   
   
5. Paid Placement:
   
   Paid placement and paid inclusion programs can be a fast, easy way to get good istings or better representation. Even if you do this, the above basic free things can help you get traffic for free.
   
   
6. Incorporate FLASH Video Solutions
   
   
7. Don't forget to stay HIP with:
   
   • the INTERACTIVE BUSINESS CARDS and
     
   • ENHANCED CDs
     (eg THE iFIRM: featured project was dedicated to SOPHIA RAMOS)