It can be really exciting to get a web site for your business
and a lot of pride goes along with knowing that you now have an
internet presence! However, many people don't realize that
having a site is not worth very much to you if you're the only
one who knows it's there.
The following are recommendations for promoting your site:
(1) Live, breathe and eat your site - Well, OK, maybe I'm
exaggerating this point but what I mean is that you should
always have your site at the forefront of your mind. By doing
this, you'll remember to tell people that you meet about it,
you'll remind your family and friends about it, etc. It's very
important to let everyone you come in contact with know about
your site, especially if you provide a service! Even if someone
isn't in need of your service right now, they may be in the near
future! Also, they may be talking to someone a week later who is
looking for the service you're providing!
(2) Take the time to research how search engines work! The vast
majority of popular sites on the internet can attribute their
site's traffic to search engines. It's important that your site
is registered with the search engines. Sites like
http://www.sitesell.com and http://www.searchenginewatch.com can
help you learn all about how search engines work. The word you
need to keep in mind when trying to get listed is "Persistence"!
If at all possible, take the time to submit your site manually
and keep track of how it's doing. Don't "spam" the search
engines by submitting too often but keep a watch on your
positioning and re-submit as needed, in accordance with each
search engine's guidelines.
(3) Promotional items - This goes without saying, almost. The
single most important item that can promote your business is
business cards! They're pretty inexpensive when bought in bulk
(about $.03/card if you buy 1000) and they're so readily
accepted. I give my card out to just about everyone I come in
contact with. You will be surprised how many people need your
services once they know that you provide them. When you give
someone your card, you're not just giving it to them. You're
giving it to people they come in contact with because, like I
mentioned earlier, someone may ask them a week later if they
know anyone providing your service. Remember that people love
FREE stuff! If you can have T-shirts, pens, caps, etc. printed
with your site's name and URL, people will gladly accept these.
I haven't had anyone say "No thank you" yet!
(4) Run a contest - One of the best ways to get visitors to a
business site is to run a contest! Internet users seem to love
to win things as one would expect. The better the prize, the
more visits you'll probably get! As a part of the contest, have
them subscribe to your newsletter, that way you have their
permission to contact them in the future. Just be sure that your
newsletter is something they'll be interested in so that you can
hang onto them as subscribers! Consider offering internet tips
ricks, great sites to visit, sites where you can get free items,
etc. Our newsletter includes all of these topics and it's been
pretty well received.
(5) Have a newsletter - As mentioned in #4, a newsletter is a
great way to not only keep in contact with site visitors but to
also contribute something positive to their internet experience.
Be sure to remind your subscribers that they did subscribe to
the newsletter at the beginning and offer an easy way to
unsubscribe at the end. Write the unsubscribe statement in a way
that they're compelled to stay with the newsletter because if
you have a good newsletter, they won't want to miss out on
anything!
(6) Have a press release written about your site - Think about
your site objectively and try to come up with a "niche",
something unique about your site that maybe others aren't doing
or that you're doing better. If possible, have a professional
write it so that your release doesn't come off as a sales pitch
which tends to happen when site owners write their own release.
Press release writers also have a way with words and know what
works and what doesn't.
Start taking site promotion seriously and "Knock their socks
off"!
About the author:
Glennette Yelverton is the President of Premium Web Design which
specializes in everything from domain registration to site
creation/promotion. They can host your site, design it for you,
and even promote it as well. Get a FREE site consultation today
by emailing siteconsult@premiumwebdesign.com and putting "Free
site consult" in the subject. Visit Premium Web Design today at
http://www.premiumwebdesign.com/ or call them at (912) 888-8262.
