How to Promote Web Page

There are many, many ways a Web site owner can promote their site and increase the traffic it receives. In this article, I will highlight five of these methods that I consider the most effective.

1. Include your URL on all marketing materials. Why have a Web site if you're not going to publicize it? By adding your URL onto all of your marketing materials (business cards, brochures, information kits, flyers, letterhead and envelopes, voice mail recording, even your email signature) you will let everyone you communicate with know that you have a Web site. You can even have marketing materials created that have the same look and feel as your Web site (same colors, typeface, layout, etc.) and this uniformity will create a memorable brand for your company.

2. Use TITLE and META tags throughout your site. The title tag is the HTML tag that goes in the code of the page and defines the title text in the top line of a Web browser (i.e. the blue bar in Internet Explorer). META tags are also HTML tags, although these tags are only readable by search engines and are not shown on the Web page itself. Two of the most important META tags are "keywords" and "description" tags. The keywords tag lists all the possible words and phrases a user may type into a search engine in order to find your site. The description tag gives a short summary of the content on that particular page. All three of these tags are vital if you want your site to be picked up by the spiders that index Web sites for search engines. If you use a design company to create your site, the designer should create these tags for each page. If you are unsure if your site contains them check with your designer.

3. Submit your site to search engines. If you want Internet surfers to be able to find your site, you should submit it to search engines. There are many engines out there and getting listed can be a frustrating process. Many search engines require you to pay a fee to submit your site and then make no guarantees as to its ranking. Make sure your site has the tags listed above and then pick 3-5 engines you want your site listed with and use their submission forms. Keep in mind that it can take anywhere from two weeks to several months for your site to be indexed. You may also want to consider submitting your site to directories in addition to engines. There are many specialized directories that will be more specific for your content.

4. Links, links, links. One of the best ways to promote your site is through the use of links. You want to have your site linked from as many other sites as possible. The more places on the Web where users can click to get to your site, the more visitors you will have. It is also important to provide links to other sites. Linking to other sites that are relevant to your content will add validity to your site.

5. Place Internet and print ads. Ads are a great way to get visitors to your site. Traditionally, you can place ads in local newspapers, professional publications and the YellowPages. All of these have benefits, although these methods can be quite costly. Ads on the Internet are a great alternative to print ads. These ads tend to be less expensive than print and hit a more specific group. Banner ads are one type of Internet ads that you can use to promote your site.