http://www.articletrader.com/ Articles at ArticleTrader en-us http://www.articletrader.com/internet/seo/what-is-page-rank.html http://www.articletrader.com/internet/seo/what-is-page-rank.html Sat, 21 Oct 2006 00:00:00 -0500
Equally important, is your site's actual content. It needs to be information that people can use and take active interest in. Having content that matches your keywords should also go without saying.

Why Is This Important?

Page rank is extremely important, in that it determines how high you get on search engine results. And just as it's helpful to have your incoming links be from reputable, trusted, relevant sites, your outbound links will also be more valuable to those pages you do link out to. This is important when negotiating for link exchanges with other sites. The higher your page ranking, the more desirable a link from your page will be to others - Including those willing to pay for said link.

Are There Ways To Generate Better Page Rank At No Cost?

Absolutely! To follow are some of the simplest steps you can take.

Build more pages: The more pages your site has, the more content it is generally considered to have. If your site only has 3 pages, the maximum page rank would be a 3. Make sure to have at least 8 relevant pages including the main page, in order to have a healthy amount of content.

Avoid Dead-end Links: Let's say you've worked real hard to get 8 good pages. Your page rank ideally has the potential to be a page rank of 8. However, if half those pages are not leading anywhere, you've got a problem. When the search engines "crawl" your site, they want to go from one page to the next. You can have a really great page, but if it has no other link on it to go somewhere new, it will be considered by the spider to be a dead-end page, which will hurt your site's page rank. Make sure every page has a door out, other than a back button (which to the bots, will generate the equivalent of a good old "Nothing more to see here" type statement). Combat this by making sure you at least have a link back to the index - or better yet, a site navigator at the base of each page with choices between the main pages of your site (ie. FAQ, About Us, Contact Us, etc). Again, these are pages that add convenience to your human visitors as well.

Create Internal Links: Remember to make links to yourself whenever relevant. For example, on your About Us page, don't just mention your online ordering system - hyperlink to the page where your visitor would need to go in order to begin an order. Not only are you creating another link for the crawler, you're also making it convenient for your guest to find that page right then and there, if they so desire.

Utilize Free Directory Listings: They may not always be big high ranking sites, but they are an easy way to get your name out there. You never know when someone might end up using one, and thus find you in the most unexpected of ways!

How To Generate More At Cost: Getting a high ranking site to link to you isn't always the easiest thing to do. Sometimes it is necessary to buy that privilege via ads. There are literally 100's of different options to choose from, however the most effective method these days is by purchasing text based links to your site. For the largest comprehensive list of quality paid link directories along with page rank statistical information visit: http://www.helpmyhits.com/paid-web-directories.php Some tips to stretch you advertising dollar as far as it will go would be linking to different pages of your website (not just the index) and also using different keywords in those links.

As you can see, page rank is a very real and vital aspect of web development that should always be kept in mind. Without it, your chances of being found easily on search engines is compromised. With it, you'll be on your way to a highly successful website.

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Kimberly Bodane - www.HelpMyHits.com

Source: http://www.articletrader.com ]]> http://www.articletrader.com/internet/site-promotion/youve-got-the-traffic-now-what.html http://www.articletrader.com/internet/site-promotion/youve-got-the-traffic-now-what.html Thu, 28 Sep 2006 00:00:00 -0500
Boost Your Content
It goes without saying that you cannot just have a website with the basic "Home", "FAQ", "About Us", and "Contact" pages. Those represent grease on the wheel, so to speak. Having just those pages will make for one terribly boring site, while omitting them will make for a choppy site where people are bound to get stuck without these important navigation tools. Always include these whenever possible!

In addition though, you absolutely must, have a healthy amount of quality content. If you are selling something, this is especially important. Your visitors want to see you as an authority on your subject if they are going to buy your product or service. For example, if you are selling pet food - write some articles on pet nutrition, and heck - throw in some articles on pet care in general! Going this extra mile will not only make better use of your keywords, but also show you want to provide your valued browsers with relevant information instead of just selling to them. This also does wonders toward the end goal, which is to keep these guests interested enough to stick around and even bookmark you for later visits. Another great tool is to have something interactive for your visitors, like polls or even forums. Include them for input, and you'll automatically make them feel as though they're participating instead of just reading.

Use Appropriate Syntax
Always, always ALWAYS keep your audience in mind, and write your content accordingly. You don't want your articles to sound like a college thesis if you're trying to do a gaming site any more than you want to sound like you're goofing around in a chat room if your site is trying to sell floor laminate. Think about who will be reading the site, and match the tone so as to not alienate your readers. Nobody wants to read what may be really good content, in a format that is distracting or abnormal to them. Ask for feedback if you must, but remember who your target audience is, and be sure to write for them above all else.


Make It Nice To Navigate
One of the most annoying things you can do to your visitor, is to make them have to hunt down what they're looking for. Make your sidebar clear, concise and easy to use. If you stop and think of what kind of information you would want as a new visitor, you can usually pull this off. For example, if you're selling a service, do not neglect to to list rates and hours of service; if it's a product, don't forget size specifications and shipping guidelines; if it's a store then think about including a map and even a picture of the storefront for added recognition. Make all of these things easy to find!

In short, put yourself in the shoes of someone visiting for the first time, and be sure to include the information they will expect when deciding whether or not to pursue your products and/or services. Again, have someone unfamiliar with your business or hobby give you feedback on what you may be missing. All too often, people are so used to knowing everything about their subject, they forget others aren't as familiar and need help. This again, can and will alienate visitors. Having an outsider's perspective will greatly reduce the chances of omitting something obvious to you, but all too necessary for your visitors.

Add The Attraction Factor
Yes, this is the frosting folks. Only very select audiences actually want just the cake, so make it palatable and nice looking. Don't flood your navigation links with ad's, and remember to use colors with universal appeal whenever possible. Good color and pattern schemes will give it the wow factor it needs for users to experience that moment where they realize they've come across a truly well made website. Pay attention to your images, spacing, font selection and link placement. As with all other steps, don't hesitate to get feedback - from multiple people, preferably!

These are just a few tips for now, on how to retain that traffic once you do manage to get it coming in. Remember, your visitors don't just want good looks or loads of content. And with careful, intuitive foresight, you shouldn't ever have to sacrifice one for the other. So find the balance, and see where it leads.

Kimberly Bodane - http://www.helpmyhits.com

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Kimberly Bodane - http://www.helpmyhits.com

Source: http://www.articletrader.com ]]>