ChrisMcKee Designs

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There's little to love about search indexes, they can easily make or break a company, spread vicious rumours that are a nightmare to remove and last but not least drive web-masters to the point where they crack.

Just to save time; there's not many search engines left any more, nearly all incorporate or are totally reliant on the big four, which happily removes some of the work for your good self.

Google

Getting into google is by far the quickest and most thorough search to be added to; its also, 'probably', the most important.

1. Create your site with file-name's, titles and descriptions that actually describe what the page contains.
   i.e. Don't just set the title to HOME, and do always include your own site name in there and the domain...
   Something like mycompany - page title - mycompanysdomain.com
2. Create a sitemap, they're pretty much the staple of search engines these days and it pays to have one.
   You can generate a sitemap using www.xml-sitemaps.com or even Google's own not so user-friendly version.
3. Sign up for Google's sitemap program (www.google.com/webmasters/sitemaps) this will allow you to add/update your sitemap, check keyword popularity and more importantly get those evil broken links.
4. Add your url to google: the sitemap should be fine but it never hurts to go that extra step (www.google.com/addurl)
5. Set-up Robots.txt, sitemap auto-discovery. This is really simple, just create a text file called robots.txt
   (lowercase, shouldn't matter but unix rules live on) then add this:
   Sitemap: http://www.mydomain.com/sitemap.xml
   Save and upload.
6. Get hunting for those outside links.

 

ASK (who lost jeeves)

1. Most of the things you should do are the same regardless of the search engine; ASK supports the robots.txt sitemap, and the google sitemap standard, so if you've done the google bit your most of the way there.
2. Ask.com Sitemap submission - http://submissions.ask.com/ping?sitemap=http://www.mydomain.com/sitemap.xml
   That simple... were done here.

 

Microsoft Live Search (or whatever crap name it has this week / aka MS-Google)

1. As with ask Microsoft begrudgingly supports the Google sitemap inclusions methods and is just as simple to be added to. In theory MS Search should pick up the sitemap from the robots.txt, therefore negating the need to put it in the direct url to it.
2. Microsoft Live Search Submission - http://search.msn.com/docs/submit.aspx?FORM=WSUT
3. Enter your site details and the annoying CAPTCHA and your done, you need never go on that thing again.

 

Yahoo!

1. Yahoo unfortunately is a pile of bile and expects you to sign up for the Yahell account before it will let you have the pleasure of submitting your site to it. Annoying, very.
   Never mind, like the rest of humanity you can ram the "personal details" full of junk information and login.
2. There's a whole list of options with Yahoo (search.yahoo.com/info/submit.html), but for now we'll insert the site into the 'Submit your site for free' and then go back once completed and add your site to the 'Yahoo! Standard' as listed under directories.

Last but not least...

 

DMOZ (Mozilla Open Directory Project)

1. Nip over to the dmoz page and as you may have noticed we "suggest a url" not add, DMOZ is managed by people, which has its advantages and disadvantages. Either way its a big thing so you want in.
2. Go to the add page ( http://www.dmoz.org/add.html ) and feel free to read all the jabber about not adding your link twice or disguising it etc.
3. With DMOZ you have to first find the category to add your site to, then you can suggest it. So the simplest way to do this is to search for what you do, if its model search for model, find a similar result to where you want to be displayed then click the directory folder list above it.
4. Once in the right directory for your business/personal site click suggest a site at the top of the page.
   Enter the reams of information, and then wait... eventually it will be added.

I'm sure I've just pointed out the obvious to a lot of people, but hopefully that will be of use to some.
Last thing, get linked, on the yellow pages site, in other directories and on friends websites; don't pay for links and don't add yourself to link exchanges. Dropping your site on to forums helps, but generally you wont be liked if your only visiting to plug your site, so if your not offering anything of use participate in threads and add your site to your signature.
Not all links are created equal, and link exchanges can cause more harm then good.

 

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