Essentials of
Search Engine Submission
By
Danny Sullivan, Editor
Search Engine Submission Budget
How can I get my site listed
with search engines? It sounds like a pretty simple question, but sadly, search
engine submission can be a complicated subject.
Have no fear. This guide will
take you through the essential and relatively easy steps you can take to get
listed with search engines.
Before we begin, it's
important to make a distinction between search engine submission and search
engine optimization. These terms, along with others, are sometimes used
synonymously to discuss different efforts to promote sites on search engines.
However, within this section of Search Engine Watch, they will be used to refer
to some very specific activities.
Search Engine
Submission: Getting Listed
"Search engine submission"
refers to the act of getting your web site listed with search engines. Another
term for this is search engine registration.
Getting listed does not mean
that you will necessarily rank well for particular terms, however. It simply
means that the search engine knows your pages exist.
Think of it like a lottery.
Search engine submission is akin to you purchasing a lottery ticket. Having a
ticket doesn't mean that you will win, but you must have a ticket to have any
chance at all.
Search Engine
Optimization: Improving The Odds
"Search engine optimization"
refers to the act of altering your site so that it may rank well for particular
terms, especially with crawler-based search engines (what these are will be
explained later in this guide).
Returning to the lottery
model, let's assume there was a way to increase the odds of winning by picking
your lottery numbers carefully. Search engine optimization is akin to this. It's
making sure that the numbers you select are more likely to win than purchasing a
set of numbers at random.
Search Engine
Placement & Positioning: Ranking Well
Terms such as "search engine
placement," "search engine positioning" and "search engine ranking" refer to a
site actually doing well for particular terms or for a range of terms at search
engines. This is the ultimate goal for many people -- to get that "top ten"
ranking for a particular keyword or search terms.
Search Engine
Marketing & Promotion: The Overall Process
Terms such as "search engine
marketing" or "search engine promotion" refer to the overall process of
marketing a site on search engines. This includes submission, optimization,
managing paid listings and more.
These terms also highlight the
fact that doing well with search engines is not just about submitting right,
optimizing well or getting a good rank for a particular term. It's about the
overall job of improving how your site interacts with search engines, so that
the audience you seek can find you.
On To
Submission
The next few "essentials"
pages cover the basics of search engine submission. If all you do is the
instructions on these essentials pages, you'll receive traffic from search
engines. However, if you have time, you should also read beyond the essentials
to understand how optimization can increase your traffic and other ways you can
market your site with search engines.
Links along the way will
explain where and how you can learn more within Search Engine Watch, should you
have the desire. Some of the in-depth information is only available to Search
Engine Watch
members. See the
membership information page to learn
more about becoming a member.
by-http://searchenginewatch.com
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