The Best Ways to Market your First Web Site


How can you ensure your new site rises above the competition to be discovered by potential customers?


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The Best Ways to Market your First Web Site

With thousands of new web sites launched on the Internet each day - competing for the attention of an audience that is bombarded by advertising messages every second - how can you ensure your new site rises above the competition to be discovered by potential customers?

A well-designed web site is a key first step to attracting visitors. In particular, pay special attention to the content on your site.

Domain Name – As your exclusive Web address, your domain name should reflect your business, be easy to remember and pronounce, and be unique so that it is not confused with other domain names. Choosing and registering a domain name may seem like a simple task, but it is becoming an increasingly challenging task when we consider that the most popular and easily remembered domain names are already registered. To achieve the best results from your domain name, consider purchasing multiple domains that link to your main site including those that are similar to yours, and buy names that contain key words for your web site to gain a higher ranking in search engines.

Meta Tags – Since Meta tags are picked up by search engines and influence the way your site appears in search results, they should be well-written and encourage potential customers to visit your site. The most important Meta tags for search engine indexing are ‘description’ and ‘keyword’ tags. For instance, perhaps you have an E-commerce site that you’ve titled “Online Security” and a header that says “Online Security For Your Business”. To add substance to these titles you may have a Meta description tag that says: “Methods to protect customer credit card and personal information”. The Meta keyword tag may include some of the following words: “credit cards, security, online, customers”. Meta tags are particularly beneficial for attracting attention to pages that lack text. To identify what tags your competitors are using go to your browser’s ‘source’ code, usually found under the ‘view’ button.

Page Titles – Effective page titles are crucial for top search engine positioning. Each page of your web site should have a page title that is short (under 50 characters) but informative. The titles should reflect the description of each page on your site and be unique enough that they will encourage viewers to choose your site over the competition. For instance, instead of using an introductory page title that says “Search Engines”, rename it to say “Unique Ways to Optimize Search Engine Results”.

Once you have considered the content on your site, it is time to extend your reach into the online and offline world.

The offline environment offers a variety of avenues through which to drive traffic to your site.

Notify Customers – Take advantage of the relationships you have built with your current customers and notify them of your new web site. Send them an email or mail or fax a letter with a promotion such as a discount that entices them to visit your new site.

Send Press Release – When you are ready to launch your site, mail, email or fax a press release to editors who will be most interested in your message. For instance, if you have a technology related site you may focus on journalists who cover the Internet. You can also target your release to specific industries.

Expand Marketing – Ensure you include your web address on every piece of promotional and collateral material such as brochures, business cards, and letterhead to give your business exposure and build your brand.

Organize a Launch Party – An event that introduces your new site is an effective way to generate excitement and develop relationships with potential customers. For instance, you can obtain customers’ contact information so you can follow up after the event with promotions or introduce new products and services. As well, inviting prominent guests to the event as speakers or supporters will generate interest in the media, which can result in free publicity and bring greater exposure to your business.

Naturally, since you are now a participant in the online world it is necessary to engage in online marketing and promotion to attract visitors to your new site.

Search Engines and Directories – Since search engines (i.e. WebCrawler) will automatically search the Internet for your web pages, it is particularly important that you develop an effective key word list that is represented on your site though Meta tags and titles. Unlike search engines and spiders, directories (i.e. Yahoo) will not find your site on their own. As a result, you will need to register your site on those directories that will enable you to best reach your target market. The criteria search engines and directories use to determine which sites rank highly varies. Some, like Google, use link popularity in their ranking mechanisms. Others measure click popularity, gauge the number of times key words are used throughout a site, or favor sites that are updated regularly.

Link Program – The key to developing an effective link program is to find a balance between the amount of traffic that exits your site through a link and the number of people who visit your site through a link on another site. The trick is to identify sites that are not direct competitors but have a similar target market as you, and to provide links that are a useful resource for your visitors. For instance, if you own a pottery business, you may consider providing links to businesses that provide pottery classes, or provide information on various pottery exhibits worldwide. Not only are you providing visitors with useful information, but you are also increasing your chances of getting these customers back to your site again in the future.

News Groups – Joining a news group will provide you with an opportunity to get in close contact with potential customers. Consequently, it is necessary to research groups that target your prospective customer base. The news group will enable you to build your reputation, identify trends in your industry, and evaluate the needs of potential customers. Belonging to a news group means there are rules of etiquette you must follow. The best way to give your business exposure without appearing like you’re only there to market yourself is to use a signature file, which references your contact information and provides a subtle way to promote your business.

Newsletter – A newsletter costs very little to develop and is one of the most effective ways to communicate with prospective and current customers. Since the purpose of a newsletter is to build rapport and strengthen your relationship with customers, the key to success is to focus less on self-promotion and focus more on providing information that is newsworthy, valuable and even entertaining. For increased effectiveness release the newsletter regularly, drive traffic to your site by including links to pages on your site that are relevant to the information presented in the newsletter, assure customers that their contact information will be kept confidential, and provide customers with an opportunity to unsubscribe.

Banner Ads and Sponsorships – The kind of online advertising you use will depend on your marketing objectives. If you want to increase your company’s brand awareness, implementing banner ad and sponsorship campaigns are effective advertising methods. Sponsorships are particularly beneficial for associating your business with others that have a similar target audience. Banner ads are an effective direct marketing tool that can increase site traffic if they are creative and include a call-to-action.

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Driving traffic to a new web site involves a large amount of strategic planning, development and organization - that have a beginning, but no definite end. There is no defined end because your web site should never be static – it must be regularly updated to meet the needs of your customers, be checked to ensure there are no dead links or old promotions, consider trends in the market that support specific online marketing techniques, and reflect changes in your business over time.