How to Get a Site Listed in Google or Yahoo

There is very little more frustrating than to spend a great deal of money on a website for your business and never seem to be able to find it in any online search. If you are ever in a situation where you point more people to your website than your website points people to you, you need to either consider the profitability of keeping your website or invest a little time and money to make it work for you by improving its visibility on Internet searches.

There are a number of factors that help in determining where your website will rank on a search result. The results change quite constantly as these search results have become a battleground for internet marketing. There are two main methods of improving the chances of your website being found on a Yahoo! or Google search:

• Paid Advertising
• Organic Search Engine Optimization

A Website in Good Standing

Within the realm of SEO, there are tactics referred to as "white hat" and "black hat" strategies. White hat tactics are strategies of building your website in a good way that improves its ranking in an Internet search. This is done through writing better content, making relevant link building connections, building a better website, etc. Black hat tactics are strategies design to mask or confuse search engines to to trick them into ranking a website higher. These tricks include changing text seen by a user and one seen by a search engine for the purpose of getting better ranking, spamming links and external link building to your website, etc. Being listed as a black hat website can cause a drop in ranking or a ban from a search engine. Be wary of SEO companies that can promise #1 spots. That is a coveted spot and while compnies like Method Technologies has resulted in obtaining that spot for its clients, it is understand that everyone wants that so it would be bad form for a company to promise such a claim. There is a good chance that such a company would be employing black hat tactics that will not last very long.

Maintaining Search Results

Keeping your bid high will ensure better spots on search results for paid advertising. For Organic SEO, it is a lot more complicated. You will need to track analytics and reporting for your website to see how many people visit and where they are coming from, what they searched to find you, and where they go in your website so you can better tailor your website to suit the largest market audience. You will need to stay competitive with other business who are trying to rank higher than you.

This is the time to consider whether it is fiscally viable to spend money on Internet Marketing through Pay-Per-Click advertising or Organic SEO. Many web design firms and hosting providers offer SEO services. Be sure to take a look at the results from the company you choose before spending a dime on a marketing campaign.