Very much like a physical business on the high street your online business initially needs one thing to help it on the road to growth, sales and future prosperity, and that one thing is the right location. So, if location is paramount how do you ensure that your business is situated exactly where it should be, in order to take advantage of any and all free traffic, and is there an alternative to Search Engine ranking to improve your targeted traffic and your sales.
Traditionally speaking, improving your traffic goes hand in hand with your position in the main Search Engine results, but getting there is akin to negotiating a mine field. There are so many different avenues that you can take that will supposedly help you to achieve your goal, but how reliable are they and more to the point are they cost effective for your business.
Trading online has very quickly become a multi billion, multi national bonanza for the controlling few. By the controlling few, I mean the major Search Engines. The major Search Engines control everything you do online and it's their rules that dictate how your website should look, and what you have to include, in order to please their systems in the hope of improving your ranking.
Is this the only way, or can you improve your ranking simply by getting those hits on your site and effectively fooling the Search Engines into believing that you have a high traffic site that has somehow been overlooked by their spiders.
This is possible and it can be done for a relatively small outlay from your advertising budget. The Search Engines love popular sites, they can't ignore them, but they are not fools either. In order to fool the Search Engines into believing your site is very popular you need targeted traffic, good quality targeted traffic and unique visitors.
When I speak about unique visitors I don't mean a simple hit on your site. A unique visitor is someone who may visit your site, actually have a look around and possibly revisit in the near future. When you opt for buying your traffic you don't get unique visitors, what you get is hits. Hits may only last long enough to open your homepage before moving on, this isn't traffic, no matter how many times you have been informed by the people selling these auto hits programs that it is.
All hits will do is make your website stats a little more pleasing to the eye, but surely the most pleasing sight to your eye is sales and improved ranking.
One of the best ways of doing this is to use the newly emerging Search Sub Engines. With a Search Sub Engine you can list your site for between 1 and 28 days, and during that period your site listing will gradually move towards the top result for your search category. And as you reach the all important pinnacle of your category along will come the unique visitors.
The Search Sub Engine is basically a site submission system which will rotate your site listing continually towards the top of the results for your category, unlike the Search Engine where you have to fight for your existence every step of the way.
The Search Sub Engine doesn't spider your site and it's content like Google does. The Search Sub Engine doesn't care what you content is, if your site is optimized, or your keywords and meta tags are correct. All it needs is for your site to be visible online and able to be viewed, regardless of its position.
The beauty of this system is that whilst you are getting the exposure you need to make sales you are also fooling the Search Engines that your site is more popular than it actually is. Unfortunately, this alone won't help you reach #1 with Google, but it will create sales and by doing so will actually fulfill most of your online needs without the headaches associated with Search Engine Optimization.
It will improve your ranking with the Search Engines simply by supplying the unique visitors you need, and in turn improve your cash flow. but if reaching #1 is more important than making sales, the Search Sub Engine is not for you. However, if your main concern, and it should be your main concern, is making sales, then this is a perfect vehicle to help you achieve those elusive sales.
Has I stated, the Search Sub Engines are new, and as such offer a very cost effective and fair system for your business. It's unlikely that you will see the Big Guns, the sites that command the #1 positions with the Search Engines, bothering with these new systems, which is good news for you and your site, and definitely good news for your sales as this reduces the competition.
Ten minutes later, Rodney’s secretary puts through a call from Mr Smythe-Browne, who is sounding distinctly miffed. He’s followed the scant directions Rodney sent him (or those that he could read from the splodgy, blurred photocopy) and is now hopelessly lost. Rodney apologises, naturally, and tries to put him on the right track. Difficult, as Rodney’s premises are in the middle of nowhere. When he finally arrives, Mr Smythe-Browne is very disgruntled. Still smarting from having ended up on a pig farm, his Mercedes stuck up to its wheel arches in heaven-knows-what, the tone of the meeting is somewhat cool, as he mutters about what a busy man he is and how time is money, whilst brushing the dried mud from the bottoms of his expensive suit trousers. Although we take them pretty much for granted, clear and user-friendly maps and signage are an essential part of our everyday lives. Imagine the chaos that would ensue on motorways and the London Underground, if we had to guess where we were going!
On university and college campuses and in shopping centres, clear maps and floor plans play a crucial part in helping visitors navigate a complex site. In hospitals, too, they are invaluable. For those visiting a sick relative or friend, it can be a worrying time. Being able to find their way quickly and easily around the various departments and wards helps to reduce at least some of that stress. For hospital employees, particularly new, casual or agency staff, clarity of information is vitally important – it saves time and, potentially, lives. Hospitals can now make their floor plans interactive via their Intranet, allowing staff and patients alike to access a host of information, including availability of equipment and clinic times. In an increasingly competitive market, your business needs to project the most professional image possible for your discerning clients and potential customers. As we’ve seen from Rodney’s sad experience, quality of presentation simply cannot be compromised – and first impressions do count. To raise your company’s corporate awareness, promotional maps can be produced in a range of sizes, from A3 (folded or flat), right down to ‘pocket’ maps; powerful little marketing tools no bigger than a credit card, which pull and unfold to reveal all the information you wish to convey. “How to Find Us” on the front; mini company brochure on the back? The choice is yours. You can even have your Annual Report or Company Prospectus produced in the "Location Map" format. Or you may consider a printed folder – an attractive presentation pack, printed inside and out, that puts the stamp on your corporate identity, describes your organisation and details the facilities, services and products you provide. Whatever the application, a map will put your company where it belongs – right on the map. Somehow Rodney knows, when Mr Smythe-Browne leaves the factory, that he won’t be hearing from him again. He kicks himself; for just a small outlay, he could have had some faxable maps produced simply but professionally in clear monochrome, and might have saved himself the loss of a big contract (and a good deal of embarrassment). Just one of those things he didn’t get around to… back burner job… didn’t think it was that important. As Del Boy used to say, “Rodney, you really are a …….”
Both Mike Collins & Graham Baylis are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.
Mike Collins has sinced written about articles on various topics from Advertising Guide, Internet Marketing and Computers and The Internet. Mike Collins formerly frustrated online marketer.Now a content online marketer.Be content with your marketing and research efforts. No, don't be just content, make a difference, m. Mike Collins's top article generates over 60500 views. Bookmark Mike Collins to your Favourites.