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Search Engine or Directory?

2007-07-16T01:25:00.000-07:00

From: Terry Detty

Getting your site listed in search engines and directories is an important part of building a successful site. Most people tend to think of search directories and engines as one in the same. However, they are actually both quite different. The only similarity between the two, in fact, is that they both serve the same purpose: to help people find web sites of interest to them

Search Engines: By far the most popular search engine around is Google. Other search engines include Lorming, Inktomi, AltaVista, AlltheWeb, and MSN.

Directories: Probably the most popular example of a directory is Yahoo. Other directories include Open Directory Project (dmoz.org) and Gimpsy. The Differences between Search Engines and Directories

Difference #1: Search engines are run by robots; directories are run by human editors

The most notable difference between search engines and directories is that search engines aren't updated by human editors like directories are. Instead, search engines are updated bi-monthly or monthly by robots--spiders and crawlers. What are spiders and crawlers? They are programs written by programmers at a particular search engine that basically locate a page, browse it, and then report whatever it finds back to the search engine's database. What is found is then listed on the search engine.

Directories, on the other hand, are completely updated by human editors. What usually happens is that a person submits their site to the directory and then the editor will visit the site and see whether or not it is worthy of being listed in the directory. If it is, it will be grouped with other relevant sites in the directory. If not, it won't be listed at all. Directories are typically harder to get listed in than search engines are for this reason. Human editors won't allow in unworthy sites; search engine bots will. Directories are usually updated very frequently by the editors.

Difference #2: Search engines are free to get listed in; some directories are not. Many directories charge money for each submission. Search engines never charge a dime because their bots are solely responsible for listing web sites. There are, however, free directories which you can submit your site to.

Difference #3: Search engines are more popular and more used. People want convenience. Search engines offer this. All people have to do is type in a keyword into the search engine and relevant sites come up. Those who use directories have to go through the hassle of going through categories and sub-categories. This takes time and patience, both things that many busy people just don't have.

Difference #4: Directories have listings grouped together by topic; search engines can sometimes be disorganized. When someone visits a directory, all they have to do is choose a category that interests them. Then, all the sites are relevant to that category will come up on the page. While search engines are usually effective, unrelated listings can sometimes come up in a search for a particular thing. There's nothing worse than doing a search for cars and having an unrelated listing for cats come up. Unfortunately, this is occasionally the case with search engines because they are updated by robots, not humans.

Why are Search engines and Directories important to your site? There are a few reasons for why both are important to your site's traffic. The most obvious reason is that the more you are listed, the more likely it is people will visit your site. If people see your site in both search engines and directories, they are more likely to visit it than if they just saw it in a search engine. Even though directories aren't as popular now, they are still well-used by people because they neatly group together sites in a particular category. So if you run an online web design business and are listed in the web design category of the directory, everyone who looks for web design in that directory will see your site. Search engines are also important to your site because they will show your site if a particular keyword(s) is typed into the engine. If your site is listed in both directories and search engines, you will have more traffic than if your site were listed in one or the other.

Be sure to do whatever it takes to ensure that your site gets listed in both and you will reap the benefits.

Search engine bots and easy directory submission make it quick and painless for your site to get maximum exposure from both of these wonderful tools. So go ahead and take the steps necessary to get listed!

About the author
Terry Detty, 42 years old, finds email marketing and SEO software his passion. In addition to marketing, he enjoys reading and occasionally goes out for a short walk. His latest interest is a newtime and attendance program he's been using.

Source : http://seoarticles4u.com

Search Engine Rank: Google Page Rank Misconceptions - 2

2007-07-16T01:22:00.000-07:00

From: Peter Nisbet

Improved search engine rank is difficult enough to obtain without you having to trawl through all that has been written about Google Page Rank in order to find the truth. There are many misconceptions about Page Rank, and Part 2 of this article dispels the most common of them, the first being that Yahoo and MSN have their own version.

In fact this is not so. Yahoo had a beta version of a 'Web Rank' visible for a while, ranking complete websites, but it is now offline. MSN has no equivalent as far I can ascertain. The term 'PageRank' is a trade mark of Google, which is why I refer to it as Page Rank and not PageRank. A small difference, but a significant one.

If you are one of those that believe that the more links you can get to your website the better, then you are wrong. When Google started the Page Rank frenzy by putting that little green bar on their toolbar, they didn't realize the consequences of what they were doing. People fought to get as many links to their website as possible, irrespective of the nature of the websites to which they were linking.

That is misconception Number 2. You do not link to websites, you link to web pages, or should I say, you get links back from web pages, not websites. It is, after all, the link back that counts isn't it? The link away from your site doesn't count. Wrong! Misconception Number 3. The link to your web page counts no more than the link away from your web page. In fact, it could count less. You could lose out in the reciprocal linking stakes if your web page is worth more than the other person's.

Let's dispel that misconception right now. When you receive a link from a web page (not web site) you get a proportion of the Google Page Rank of that web page that depends on the total number of links leaving that page. When you provide a link to another web page, you give away a proportion of your Page Rank that depends on the number of other links leaving your web page.

The Page Rank of the website you get a link from is irrelevant, since that is generally the rank of the Home Page. You will likely find that all these great links you think you have from PR 7 or 8 websites are from a links page that has a PR of ZERO! So you get zilch for the deal. If you are providing them with a link from a page on your site even of PR 1, then you lose! Most people fail to understand that.

No incoming link can have a negative effect on your PR. It can have a zero effect, but not negative. However, if you have an incoming link with zero effect, and an outgoing reciprocal link with a positive effect to the target page, then you will effectively lose PR through the deal. Every web page starts with a PR of 1, and so has that single PR to share amongst other pages to which it is linked. The more incoming links it has, the higher PR it can have to share out.

If your page has a PR of 4 and has three links leaving it, each gets twice the number of PR votes than if 6 links leave it. Your page with a PR of 4 has to get a similar number of PR votes incoming as it gives away to retain its PR. In simple terms, if your PR 4 page is getting links from a PR 8 page with 20 links leaving it, you lose out big time! It's simple maths.

No page ever gives away all of its PR. There is a factor in Google's calculation that reduces this to below 100% of the total PR of any page. However, that is roughly how it works. You don't get a proportion of the whole website ranking; you only get part of the ranking of the page on which your link is placed. Since most 'Links Pages' tend to be full of other outgoing links, then you won't get much, and will likely get zero.

That is why automated reciprocal linking software is often a waste of time. If you want to make the best of linking arrangements, then agree with the other webmaster that you will provide each other with a link from equally ranked pages. That way both of you will gain, and neither loses. Some software allows you to make these arrangements.

Another misconception is that only links from external web pages count. In fact, links between your own web pages can be arranged to provide one page with most of the page rank available. Every page has a start PR of 1, so the more pages you have on your site then the more PR you have to play with and distribute to pages on your website of your choice.

Search engine rank can be improved by intelligent use of links, both external and internal, but Google Page Rank does not have the profound effect on your search engine listing that many have led you to believe. Good onsite SEO usually wins so keep that in mind when designing your website.

About the author
Peter normally has his new websites listed on Google, Yahoo and MSN within two days, and consistently gets high search engine listings. His website Improved Search Engine Rank offers to show you how exactly how he does it, including how Page Rank and SEO can be used together to achieve the highest listings for your keyword.

Source : http://seoarticles4u.com

Online Marketing Made Easy Through SEO

2007-07-12T04:30:00.000-07:00

By Vanessa Arellano Doctor

One of the best online marketing tools that any online business owner can use to help promote his business on the Web is through search engine optimization, or seo. Any online business owner should know how to make use of seo if he wants to succeed in his online business, especially in terms of increasing the traffic directed to their website. This is one of the means of increasing your chances of finding potential customers and clients, and also in allowing them to find you and your business online.

In order to be able to succeed in marketing your website's content or product online, you must first understand what seo is, and how it can help you with online marketing. One of the key things to remember about seo is that this allows your site to rank high in search engine results, especially if done and used properly. What this basically mean is that your website is within the top of the list in search engine results when different online users who are searching for a particular thing in the Web type in a particular keyword or phrase in certain search engines in order to find what they are searching for. This improves your accessibility to them since your website can be easily found in the vastness of cyberspace. This will already dramatically improve your website's traffic, increasing your chances of hoarding potential clients.

seo Tips For Online Marketing

In order to be able to optimize the use of search engines, you must first figure out how you can get your website within the top of the list in search engine results. This can be achieved by following the fundamental building blocks of seo, which can help you improve your online marketing success. One of the things that you need to remember is to make sure that you use appropriate keywords and phrases in your site's content, and strategically place them within your website in order to improve your ratings in search engines. Keep in mind that the world of seo revolves around text, which is why choosing keywords and phrases that are highly relevant to your site's content, product, service and company is crucial. The best type of keyword that you could use are those that are frequently searched by online users, thereby indicating a high demand, but are not being targeted by other websites, which means that you have less competition for it.

Effective link development and networking is also key in order to succeed in online marketing using seo. Link popularity of websites refers to the number and quality of objective links pointing to that particular website. These inbound links to your website can actually help determine your position in the search engine rankings, which is why having a high number of quality links into your website is a must.

By making your website more visible to the different online users by appearing high on search engine results, you are making your website more accessible to them, making it more appealing. And since your website is easier to find, there is a higher chance of potential clients stumbling upon it, whether it was their intention to do so or not. This would indicate that you have achieved omnipresence in cyberspace, making it easier for you to market your product or Web content.

Vanessa Arellano Doctor
Professional SEO Company

About the author
Vanessa Arellano Doctor
Search Engine Optimization SEO Company

Source : http://seoarticles4u.com

How to Submit Your Site to Directories

2007-07-11T05:36:00.000-07:00

By Lalita Negi

Submitting a website to a directory is one of the easiest way to optimize your site and is a procedure opted by most sites. Web directories naturally rank high on the Search Engine Results Page and hence the probability of the site coming into focus automatically increases manifold. Search engine optimization experts use website submissions to directories as a common SEO tool.

Directory submission involves submitting the URL of the main page of your website with the help of the directory's URL submission form. It is extremely essential to read the submission guidelines of the directory before finally submitting the URL. Just submitting the URL does not guarantee entry into the directory. The URL is reviewed by an editor and given a rank based on the description that is provided by the website owner or search engine optimization experts in the submission form. Reviewers or editors determine whether the submission is fit in terms of quality of content and relevance to gain entry into the directory. They also check whether it was submitted in the suitable category.

Website owners and SEO experts need to keep in mind the reviewer while submitting the URL. It is advisable to follow the submission guidelines to the hilt. While deciding upon the category, one can use the relevant keywords/phrases and note what categories come up the maximum. Observing the site from an outsider's or a visitor's point of view will help in deciding objectively the category most appropriate for the site.

SEO Experts advise against choosing top level categories because chances of getting rejected are the maximum if sub level categories are available. Also if the nature of the website is local submit it to the specific geographic region. All these points need to be kept in mind will filling the submission form.

Using keywords in the title is a little risky and can subject the site to closer scrutiny. The company name or the official name of the site are the safest bets when it comes to deciding upon the name and title of the site. Similarly, the website description should be to the point and concise. It should not look promotional in nature and should be sensibly sprinkled with keywords. But, one must not overdo using the keywords. The words used in the description should be the ones that appear on the website.

The submission process on every site is unique. Search engine optimisation experts are increasingly referring to directory submission as a safe and result oriented instrument for optimisation.

About the author
Author is a Online Marketing expert with years of experience in the domain of Search engine optimization and Search Engine Marketing. Having worked aggressively today she renders her services to ePurpleMedia, an Internet marketing service provider.

Source : http://seoarticles4u.com