A look at e-commerce platforms Part VII Now that you're all set to start making money the question arises, how do you bring the most traffic to your site as possible and is all that work worth it? Obviously, the more people that visit your site the greater opportunity, and this leads to more sales you'll have the chance to make.
Here are some simple ways to bring traffic and to make the best of the opportunities available.
One of the more popular means of increasing traffic to your website is through Search Engine Optimization (also referred to as SEO).
Many SEO specialists and consultants provide useful services for website owners, from writing copy to giving advice on site architecture and helping to find relevant directories to which a site can be submitted.
However, a few unethical individuals have given the industry a bad name through their very aggressive marketing strategies and their attempts to unfairly manipulate search engine results.
Properly optimized your website can be a cash cow when it comes to bringing in sales that you would otherwise not have.
The tools available can get your products or services noticed quicker than standard advertising practices such as: news papers, catalogs, mailers and even e-mailings.
This is the computer age, so why not take advantage of it and invest in the future.
You have probably heard of the term "Google Optimization" which is the fine tuning of the website and content to increase the visibility to the Google search engine.
Most internet sites today are search engine optimized which improves their placement in the major search engines such as Google and yahoo.
You must make sure the developer of your site keeps in mind while building the site that you are going to want to be optimized.
The higher up you are on the search results list, the higher chance you have of bringing shoppers to your site.
The performance of your website greatly increases by the proper optimization and increased visibility of your products or services.
While Google doesn't maintain direct relationships with any individual SEO specialist and doesn't offer recommendations or secret tips, but they do offer several tips that may help you distinguish between a individual that will improve your site and one that will only improve your chances of being dropped from search engine results altogether.
Besides using the help tips that are offered through Google's' various site pages here are a few helpful hints when considering optimizing: First of all be wary of SEO firms, web consultants or agencies that approach your business directly or by sending you an email out of the blue and knowing that their services were not solicited.
Many of these firms will offer their services for ridicules rates and claim that they guarantee positive results.
No one can guarantee a #1 ranking on Google so be cautious of people claiming to be a specialist that can deliver a guarantee in rankings.
Some of these so called specialists allege a "special relationship" with Google, or advertise a "priority submit" to Google.
There is no such thing as a priority submit feature available for Google.
In fact, the only way to submit a site to Google directly is through the "Add URL" page from the Google Tools or through the "Google Sitemaps" program and anyone can do this without any cost whatsoever.
Be careful if a company is secretive or won't clearly explain what they intend to do because of trade secrets or reasons like that.
Make it a point to ask for explanations if something is unclear or strikes you as unconventional.
If a specialist creates deceptive or misleading content on your behalf, such as doorway pages or "throwaway" domains, your site can be removed entirely from the Google's indexing and create more of a problem to work with.
Ultimately, you as the hiring vendor are responsible for the actions of any companies that you hire to optimize your site, so it's best to be sure you know exactly how they intend to "help" you.
Some of the other things to look out for that can greatly impact your business.
There are a few warning signs that you may be dealing with a rogue specialist.
It's far from a comprehensive list, so if you have any doubts, you should trust your instincts.
Make sure you are legally protected and never be afraid to request a refund if you are unsatisfied with the individuals performance.
Make sure you have a contract in writing that includes pricing.
Some other common abuses that vendors as website owners are likely to encounter without a reputable optimization specialist are: One common scam is the creation of hidden domains that channel users to a site by using deceptive means.
These hidden domains most often will be owned by the specialist that claims to be working on a client's behalf.
However, if the relationship sours, the individual may redirect the domain to a different site, or even to a competitor's domain.
If that happens, the client has paid to develop a competing site owned entirely by someone else.
Another unsavory practice is to place pages loaded with keywords on the client's site somewhere without the knowledge of the owner.
This is inherently false since individual pages are usually not at all relevant for a wide range of keywords.
Even more dubious, is that these pages often contain hidden links directed to the specialist's other clients as well or even to their own.
These hidden pages take away from the link popularity of a site and route it to the specialist's other clients, which may include sites that are direct competitors or worse, with unsavory or illegal content.
Although many of these insights may cast a negative shadow on the plausibility of using SEO specialists, the ultimate result is the Return On Investment (referred to as ROI).
The growing number of competitors in the online market creates more and more competition, and like each and every online vendor the bottom line is to succeed.
So if you ask the question; Is SEO optimization Worth It? I would say by a reputable specialist, Yes, but as with other helpful hints, do your research and know the SEO firm that you are hiring.
Proper research is the best investment in any business endeavor.