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Search Engine Placement Support

What is the difference between a Search Engine and a Directory?

Search Engines are Content driven. Search Engines use "spiders" (software applications) to crawl or index your Web site, reading the content of the page(s) it is indexing and returning that data to the Search Engine. That data is then analyzed according to that Search Engine's search algorithm. The process is entirely automated.

Directories are Category driven. A brief description of your site is submitted to a specific Category within the Directory. That description is then used when a keyword search is performed. Results are generated from the description. Directories do not visit or "spider" your site. Most Directories have human editors that review and/or edit your description and decide if it is appropriate for that Category.

Is Yahoo a Search Engine?

No, Yahoo is a Directory. Yahoo does include search results from databases generated by Search Engines.

What are Keywords?

Keywords are the words or phrases that a person types when they perform an Internet search. Make a note of the words that you type when you do a search. Do you tend to use a single word like "golf" or do you use a phrase like "golf shoes?" Do you capitalize proper nouns?

How many Keywords should I focus on?

A list of 10-20 keywords or search phrases is a good place to start. You will find that your site will rank by other words and phrases from your site that you are not targeting as well. Once you are satisfied with your rankings from your list, decide if targeting additional keywords is necessary.

How long does it take before my site will show up on a Search Engine?

It will depend on the Search Engine. An average estimate is 4-6 weeks from the time that your site is submitted. Submissions are only the beginning of the process. Once your site is submitted, you have to wait for the Search Engine to send it's spider to your site. Once your site has been indexed, we have to wait for the Search Engine to update their database. Some Search Engines update their databases only once a month, others more or less often.

Why doesn't my page show up when I search for ...?

Does the keyword that you are targeting appear in the visible text on the page? Search Engines can only rank you on words that appear on your Web site.

I received an e-mail offer to list my site with over 30,000 Search Engines. Should I do it?

We do not recommend using a Bulk submission service. Ask yourself, "Out of the 30,000+ Search Engines they submit to, how many have I ever heard of or even used myself?" Most of the Search Engines that Bulk submission services submit to are engines that you have never heard of. Several of them are Free For All (FFA) link pages that list a site for only a short amount of time or only list the last "X" number of sites to be submitted and are more interested in collecting e-mail addresses. Submission to these types of sites does not drive a large amount of traffic to your site.

This service guarantees a #1 ranking. How can they do that?

The short answer is they can't. Ask for more information about the service. Which Search Engine(s) are they guaranteeing? Is it one that you know of or use? Is it an engine that ranks sites according to a bid-for schedule?

What does a Search Engine see?

Go to your Web site. Most Web browsers allow you to view the source code. View your site's source code. This is what the Search Engine spider sees. They do not see any of your graphics, even if it is a text graphic.

How do I let the Search Engines know which key words I've chosen?

You can't. The Search Engine will determine for itself what words on your site are keywords according to it own search algorithm. Each Search Engine uses its own algorithm and changes them without notice. Search Engines do not publish their algorithms. You can help influence which words the Search Engine chooses by including the words that you are targeting in your copy.

I have my keyword in the META tag. Isn't that enough?

Usage of the Keyword META tag to define keywords is a fallacy. Most of the major Search Engines do not support META tags. Of those that do, most only support the Description META tags. Those that support Keyword tag apply a minimal amount of weight to the words in the list, preferring to determine for themselves what the keywords for a page are. META tags can hurt your rankings on some Search Engines because they add additional code before your actual text appears to the spider. The relative position of text on the page is one factor taken into consideration by some Search Engines.

Why did my Search Engine rankings drop?

There are several reasons for your site to increase or decrease in rankings. The Search Engine might have changed their search algorithm since the last time your site was indexed and you no longer meet their criteria. The Search Engine has updated their database and now includes new pages that better meet their search criteria.

Should I pay for keywords?

Bidding for ranking position has become more popular since Overture produced a successful model where keyword position goes to the highest bidder. There are two basic models for bidding for keywords. One is where you are charged by how many times your site is listed in the result set (Impressions) and the other is when you are charged only when that listing generates traffic to your site (Pay-Per-Click or Click Through). Review the current top bids for the keywords that you are targeting on the Engine(s) you want to bid on. Contact the Engine and see if they offer statistics on the popularity of the keywords you are targeting. Determine if those bids fit into the Marketing budget for your site.