The First Steps To Getting Noticed In "the Vast And Unchartered World Of Cyberspace"

Thought I'd share a few hints, based on our experiences over the past five years...

In listing our various web sites, we only concentrate on themajor (12 or so search engines) and directories, like Open Directory, who supply their database to many of the big search engines. We've found that we check our listings in the search engines every two months or so and do resubmit - just to the MAJOR search engines. Though I don't try it with Alta Vista and especially Yahoo (as we are already high up there with our creative writing courses). I don't dare risk them chucking us out, though I don't think they will! We've had some difficulty with HotBot and Lycos (especially) and Open Directory in getting listed, so I do re-submit from time to time and they then seem to get listed. Alta Vista seems to take a while - about 6 weeks. Believe Lycos is "winding down" inlisting sites incidentally.

So suggest checking your listings occasionally and resubmit-ting (INDIVIDUALLY). I don't think any of the major search engines see that as spam.

We also submit to the regional Yahoo (Australia and New Zealand) and find we get listed quite speedily. I bid on key words with Go To for 'writing courses', but we've found the traffic from them to be minimal.

A thought, sorry question, on which to end...

With all the comments and articles about search engines and so many people spending so much time and effort "trying to get the better of them", why don't more web marketers rather spend their valuable energies in activities, which they CAN CONTROL to some extent. Once you have posted to the major search engines, monitor your positioning from time to time (say once a month) then LET BE. You'll never beat them, because their policies change all the time. Start concentrating on MARKETING and carving out a UNIQUE NICHE for yourself on the WWW with your particular products. Be UNIQUE and "brand" yourself as an expert in your fieldwith your own individual "style and niche". We mainly do thatby writing articles and submitting them to article announcement lists, like Article Announce, Free Content, Publish in Yours, Publisher Network and Article Publish. Articles with your website in your signature file bring traffic, which then lead to SALES...and best of all it's free advertising and helping others at the same time by sharing your knowledge and experiences in your field of expertise. It's been a long learning curve for us at Eagle Products (NZ)seeing what works and what doesn't in getting listed with the major search engines ...like the lessons of life itself.