Web sites are like faces; everybody has one. Which is why it's so easy to be just another face in the online crowd: anonymous, overlooked and unappreciated.
So what can you do to draw attention and traffic that makes your Web site a source of curiousity, customer conversions and sales? The answer can be summed up in a four-word rallying cry of self-preservation: "Feed the search engines."
If you're new to the ways of search engine optimization (SEO), or just haven't gotten around to implementing the basic necessities, here are four simple things you can do right away that can make a major difference.
Identify your keywords. Singling out those select, highly-popular keywords that search engine users type in to explore your particular category every day is a vital part of creating effective, traffic-building content for your Web site. Google has a keyword tool that will show you the average number of keyword searches matching your category online so you can fine-tune content to include the most searched for, relevant words on your Web site.
Install Google Analytics on your Web Site. Many of the mysteries of who is visiting your Web site and how they're finding you can be solved with this free tool. How much traffic is your site getting? What portion of it is coming from Google, Yahoo or MSN? What portion of it is coming from referring Web sites? What keywords are people using to discover you? Put Google Analytics to work and start getting the answers you need to make your site more search friendly for prospective customers.
Think global, act local. Even on the world wide web, local coverage can be your springboard for greater visibility and business. Local directories and search submissions are a great way to increase your rankings and results. Google has an excellent "Local Business Center" that lets you put your business on a map, get customer reviews and more. You may also want to investigate and take advantage of some of the many other free and paid for local directories that you can register your site on.
Distribute your press releases online. You can maximize your Web site's exposure by using an online distribution service such as Send2Press.com to syndicate your press release at a local, regional or national level. When your release, which includes links back to your Web site, gets syndicated out to other Web sites, those sites include an inbound link to you, increasing your site's relevance in search engine rankings.
For more ideas to drive sales check out archives or visit Ambit Advertising and Public Relations.
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