Companies Cash In on Your Search Engine Ignorance

 by: Lisa Irby

This article will cause many companies to stir, but it's about time someone started speaking against these services.

It really angers me when I see the numerous services that boast they will increase your traffic by submitting your web site to umpteen different search engines.

When I first started promoting my site, I used to buy into these claims and purchase such services only to be disappointed when my traffic did not increase.

FACT: The search engines can do wonders for your traffic. I attribute over 80% of my total Internet income from being found in the search engines.

FACT: Over the past couple of years, the search engines world has had a major overhaul. It used to be that most of the popular search engines were independently run. Now many of them get their search results from larger directories like Yahoo, Open Directory and LookSmart.

So if you're not listed there, then you may not find your site in many of the popular search engines these days.

FACT: The majority of these multi search engine submission services use some type of automated software to perform the submissions.

Most search engine programmers have designed their engines to IGNORE such automated submissions.

What does that mean for you?

Yep....you probably aren't getting most of the submissions that you pay for because the engines are rejecting them.

FACT: These submission services could care less about where your site ranks. They'll just submit it for you, collect your money, and move onto the next unsuspecting Internet marketer, while you sit back and wonder, "Where is all the traffic I'm supposed to be getting?"

FACT: Spending hundreds of dollars on these multi-submission services is a WASTE of MONEY. If you want to get real benefits from the search engines, subscribe to Danny Sullivan's newsletter at http://www.SearchEngineWatch.com and learn how the engines work and rank pages.

The BIG Yahoo Myth!

Don't ever let any submission service make you believe they can get you into Yahoo with the click of a button.

First of all, Yahoo is not even a search engine. It's a directory and it's run by a group of human editors who decide whether or not a site will be accepted.

The ONLY way to get into Yahoo is to submit yourself, and if your site is commercial you'll have to pay a fee.

FACT: You should submit to all the search engines yourself. Simply go to each engine - http://www.alltheweb.com for example - scroll down to the bottom of the page and look for the "Submit Your Site" link and submit from there.

Just keep in mind that several major engines now get their results from the BIG 3 - Yahoo, LookSmart, and Open Directory. Getting listed here will eventually get your site into popular engines like MSN, AOL, Netscape, and more.

The key to receiving search engine traffic is:

1. Educating yourself on exactly how the engines determine web site rankings.

2. Develop your site accordingly. (selecting an appropriate domain name, including relevant content, keyword phrases, etc.)

3. And by all means, submit yourself!