Search Engine & Directory Submissions - Ensure you get spidered & indexed

Website Submissions

Definition

Submissions are the manual process of informing the search engines and directories your site is "ready for business".

Why submit your website?

Search Engines - if you do not proactively tell them you exist or things have changed then it could be several months before your site is indexed.  This is valuable time when more visitors could have been looking at your site.  By submitting your site to the search engines you are effectively saying "come and get (index) me".

Directories - There are thousands of directories.  The challenge is choosing which are most beneficial to your business.  Some directories are feeders for many other directories, some are high ranking because of their background e.g. Yahoo and then there are many industry and geography specific directories.

Website construction principles

We don't start looking at submissions until the website is ready.  Ready means the site has search engine friendly menus, indexes and links and the content is complete.

Website Submissions - Search Engines

Tell them you are "open"

Having your site indexed on the Search Engines is not a “by luck” activity. You need:

	Links
	Search engine friendly menus
	Site maps
	Re-directs for page changes

We develop your site to ensure it conforms to the lastest thinking on search engine indexing and only then do we submit your site.

This is a piece of the jigsaw that is easy to get wrong.  If indexed incorrectly your listings or rankings could be damaged and in extreme cases cause your site to be black listed.

Website Submissions - Directories

Human edited search tables

Unlike the search engines, directories are edited by real people.  Directories can be free or chargeable.  Chargeable does not always mean it is a good quality directory or relevant to your target market.

The goal in directory submissions is to find the directories your target audience most refer to and submit to those directories in such a way you maximise your chances of being listed on the site exactly where you want to be.  Achieving this goal requires significant directory research and analysis.

Orchid Marketing has successfully set up many directory submissions and is well practiced in reviewing directories for new industries.