With the number of questions I’m getting from clients about why we included Digg and Del.icio.us tags on their site, I’m starting to realize that I’m not doing a very good job of explaining why upfront. So, in an attempt to reverse this trend, here’s a bit of an explanation.

Digg and deli.cio.us are two of the most popular services for social networking. As you may be aware, social networking is a huge phenomenon powered by the newest web technologies (aka Web 2.0). For more insight look up “Internet Social Networks” on Wikipedia, but the essence of social networking from a business perspective is that it provides an unique free opportunity for an organization to get their message heard and propagated.

Social networking is relatively new to mainstream but growing fast and many believe that it will play a key role in the future of the Web. In addition to providing a medium for referrals, it also provides a means by which your site can be more visible to the Internet as a whole through indexes and search engines. Sites with quality, well targeted and frequently updated content are good candidates for success using social networking. For example, Idaho Business Review recently deployed a Web 2.0 site on which they utilize social networking links prominently in each of their online articles (see
an example). There are a lot of dynamics to be in place before a site is going to grow exponentially from its inclusion in social networks, but it comes down to a principle that an old sales veteran once told me, “If it can’t hurt, and might help, why not do it?” And of course, having Digg and Del.icio.us links make you look hip.

As a former boss of mine used to say, “Having a great idea and not telling anyone is the same as not having any ideas.” Do you have a great site with a valuable message? That’s a significant achievement but if you’re a relatively new company you need to think back to high school physics and Sir Isaac Newton’s First Law of Motion, “An object at rest tends to stay at rest and an object in motion tends to stay in motion.” We’ve built the mass into our site to keep it going but the challenge for now is to take it from rest to motion. Our slingshot will be Google et. al. who, if we treat them right, can serve as our matchmaker to unite us with those people out there who need our solutions most.

Will work for backlinks

The good news is that Google and company claim to want the same thing…they want to serve up the most valuable sites to their users for any combination of keywords. The most important means by which Google and the other major search engines claim to decide which sites are truly the most valuable is by taking a vote from the Internet community. The votes they use are link backs from other sites.

So your mission is clear, submit your URL for consideration to as many other sites, indexes, and directories as possible. There are many options for where to submit, but some of the most important ones I’ve listed below. I recommend to our clients that they go through this list methodically to get the best exposure possible for nominal cost. Keep in mind
the process and protocol for getting your URL listed at each one of these sources will vary…some are an automated submission and others will require you calling the organization to make a case for being listed, yet others may require
you make a contribution of value to their community.

1. All the major search engines of course, you might consider using a service like Traffic Blazer from RisingLineWeb.com
2. dmoz.com (open directory project)
3. Superpages.com
4. Local business directories
5. Technorati.com
6. Public Library Sites (you’ll need to make a convincing case as to why they should list your link)
7. MyPages.com
8. blogflux.com
9. blogtopsites.com
10. blogwise.com
11. iblogbusiness.com
12. Blogger.com (your profile)
13. goarticles.com
14. syndic8.com
15. blogdigger.com
16. weblogs.com
17. Press Release Sites e.g. prweb.com
18. Squidoo.com
19. Craigslist.org
20. Digg.com
21. del.icio.us
22. Furl
23. Shadows.com
24. MyWeb
25. StumbleUpon
26. blog-directory.org

The process of submitting to these potential partners can be time consuming. To keep from being overwhelmed, consider setting aside 15-30 minutes every week or two for backlink hunting. As always, I would be interested in your feedback or suggestions.

Now that we’ve covered essential aspects of developing a web site or blog that will rank well in search engines, it’s time to move on to some specific action items we can take to get us noticed. As a quick review, here’s what we’ve covered in this previous string of posts:

• Focus on developing a site that offers consistent valuable content that is relevant for your target audience. >>See SEO is Free Part 1
• Make pages for users, not for search engines. >>See SEO is Free Part 2
• Learn from the Google Master. Google’s Webmaster Help Center required reading:
  • How can I create a Google-friendly site?
  • Webmaster Guidelines

You’ve got a quality site, now deal with Newton

After meeting the quality prerequisite, we need to ethically get the word out to the world that we’ve got a great site. While maintaining a quality site will be the ultimate reason for long term SEO success, we still have to get the whole thing kick started. As a former boss of mine used to say, “Having a great idea and not telling anyone has the same result as having no ideas at all.”

So what we’re dealing with now is Sir Isaac Newton’s First Law of Motion, “An object at rest tends to stay at rest and an object in motion tends to stay in motion.” We’ve built the mass into our site to keep it going but the challenge for now is to take it from rest to motion. Our slingshot will be Google et. al. who, if we treat them right, can serve as our matchmaker to unite us with those people out there who need our solutions most.

Will work for backlinks

The good news is that Google and company claim to want the same thing…they want to serve up the most valuable sites to their users for any combination of keywords. The most important means by which Google and the other major search engines claim to decide which sites are truly the most valuable is by taking a vote from the Internet community. The votes they use are link backs from other sites.

So your mission is clear, submit your URL for consideration to as many other sites, indexes, and directories as possible. There are many options for where to submit, but some of the most important ones I’ve listed below. I recommend to our clients that they go through this list methodically to get the best exposure possible for nominal cost. Keep in mind the process and protocol for getting your URL listed at each one of these sources will vary…some are an automated submission and others will require you calling the organization to make a case for being listed, yet others may require you make a contribution of value to their community.

1. All the major search engines of course, you might consider using a service like Traffic Blazer from RisingLineWeb.com
2. dmoz.com (open directory project)
3. Superpages.com
4. Local business directories
5. Technorati.com
6. Public Library Sites (you’ll need to make a convincing case as to why they should list your link)
7. MyPages.com
8. blogflux.com
9. blogtopsites.com
10. blogwise.com
11. iblogbusiness.com
12. Blogger.com (your profile)
13. goarticles.com
14. syndic8.com
15. blogdigger.com
16. weblogs.com
17. Press Release Sites e.g. prweb.com
18. Squidoo.com
19. Craigslist.org
20. Digg.com
21. del.icio.us
22. Furl
23. Shadows.com
24. MyWeb
25. StumbleUpon
26. blog-directory.org

The process of submitting to these potential partners can be time consuming. To keep from being overwhelmed, consider setting aside 15-30 minutes every week or two for backlink hunting. As always, I would be interested in your feedback or suggestions.

My introductory post on the truth about Search Engine Optimization was an indulgence in drama that hopefully got the point across that search engine optimization is not about beating the system just to show up in the top of someone’s search list. The temptation to focus on the means instead of the end is always there and while it can yield some immediate, apparently beneficial gains, in the long run it depreciates the value a site offers to it target visitors. When developing and implementing an SEO strategy, do pay attention to the details but don’t focus on them.

Remember that the ultimate determination of your site showing up on the short list of search engines is when it proves to the world that it offers consistent valuable content that is relevant to your target audience.

It’s a lot like a sales person who doesn’t pay attention to the details of how they dress when they call on customers…they put themselves at a disadvantage for sure, but if their technical knowledge, customer service, and
closing ability are honed, they’ll be successful anyway. Web sites are much the same. It helps to be dressed for the occasion of attracting attention, but you’ve got to have the goods to back it up.

It should be no surprise that some of the best council on search engine optimization comes from those who write the SEO rules, or a good portion of them at least—Google.  Google provides two pages of guidelines for building a web site that will best suited to be indexed and highly ranked.  If you’ve not visited these pages, they are a must for anyone who contributes to the management of a website:

• How can I create a Google-friendly site?
• Webmaster Guidelines

Out of all the content on these two pages, the most important is in this short sentence: “Make pages for users, not for search engines.”