Best of the Web Directory

Why submit to the BOTW Directory?

The number and quality of links pointing to your website / webpage are a major factor in determining how well your site / page ranks in the search engines. These are called backlinks.

One of the oldest and most established premium web directories is called Best of the Web (often shortened to BOTW). It allows you to get a listing in their directory for a small fee.

I can say from experience, that Google values a link to your site from them very highly. I have submitted many of my clients’ websites to the Best of the Web Directory, and after their listing has been approved and Google has indexed and updated its cache, I have seen an improvement in search engine rankings.

Current Discount & Promo Code

Every little while, Best of the Web release a discount or promo code that can be used to save money on the cost of your submission and review in their directory. This page is updated frequently with any promo codes so please be sure to bookmark and check back often.

For a massive 50% discount on Monday 28th November, click on the banner below to visit their website and enter the code STUFFED50 at the checkout. This code will give you a discount on any of the Best of the Web directories. i.e.

• Web
• Blog
• UK

You can also use the code if you choose to sponsor a category for 30 days (remember that you also get a 30 day free trial if you haven’t used this before as well!).

This code is valid on Monday 28th November 2011 ONLY, so be quick and take advantage of this offer before it runs out!

CLICK HERE TO SUBMIT YOUR SITE NOW!

1. Make sure to include your website address wherever possible: business cards, invoices, letterheads, e-mail signatures, stationery. But don’t include the http:// portion of the URL.
2. Use an email address from your websites domain name rather than your ISPs or a free email provider like Gmail, Hotmail, Yahoo mail etc …
3. Publish and email out a weekly, monthly or quarterly newsletter, ensuring that your website address is plainly visible.
4. Offer a special offers section on your website, which frequently updates with new deals.
5. Create a catchy classified advert in newspapers and journals with a link to your website where the customer can obtain more information.
6. Become active in relevant forums, help sites, mailing lists and newsgroups and put your website address as part of your signature/profile.
7. Provide a prominent link or image for visitors to bookmark your website.
8. Write relevant expert articles for your website and distribute them to sites like delicious, digg, stumbleupon, reddit.
9. Ensure your business has a Facebook and Twitter page (with a link pointing to your website) and update it frequently with news and offers.
10. Submit expert articles to article directories allowing them to use it for free providing they provide a link back to your website.
11. Ensure your website is free from errors, that all links work as expected and that it displays and works correctly with the majority of web browsers.
12. Network throughout your area to bring people to your website.
13. When your website is launched or updated, send a press release to the your customers, clients, friends and the media.
14. Ensure your website is optimised for the search engines.
15. Submit your website to the major search engines and ensure you have a sitemap.

If you would like some assistance promoting or optimising your website, then please contact me.

Long tail keywords are very important from an SEO point of view. This is because people who are prepared to make a purchase use these phrases to guide them to a site that offers the product they are seeking. It is therefore, important to optimise pages to the specific keyword phrases that people are searching. This is likely to mean adding additional pages to a website, but this is also advantageous with the search engines.

Optimising sites for long tail keywords is a sure bet to reach leads that are motivated to buy when they get to the site. These keyword phrases are also easier to get to the top of search engine results than more generalised keywords. For example, a website that offers discounts on cruise vacations could attempt to optimise for the keyword travel. However, people using this keyword to search could be looking for airline tickets and schedules, hotel reservations, national parks, or any of a number of other travel related topics.

It is much less likely that a person searching for the keyword travel, will ever see this site with huge established sites such as Yahoo travel, Travelocity, and others dominating this search. However, optimising the site or a page on the site to the phrase discounted cruise tickets makes it more likely that this site can reach the top ten results for that keyword phrase. In addition, all of the people who use this phrase as their search term are looking specifically for cruise tickets, the item being offered by the site. The likelihood of making a sale from this search rises dramatically.

One aspect of long tail keywords that must be monitored carefully, however, is that keyword phrases can become so precise that the likelihood of an individual typing that exact phrase into a search engine drops to almost nil. It does a business no good whatsoever to optimise pages to keywords that will rarely, if ever, be used to search for an item. Rising to the top of those search results means little to nothing for the website.

On the other hand, the proper use of long tail keywords, and the optimisation of pages to phrases that consumers are likely to use when performing an internet search, can help a business grow exponentially in a short time. This is because these special phrases bring motivated, highly targeted leads to a website who are already prepared to buy as opposed to those who are searching for general information to help them make a decision to purchase.

A lot of people when they first go on Facebook expect to get instant results and may be disappointed when this does not happen. The crucial thing is to be patient and be ready to take advantage of any possible leads, however unlikely. Building up friends and fans takes time and involves personal engagement.

A good place to start, is people in your local area as you will be able to meet up with them and they are more likely to remember you. Make sure your profile has a recent photograph as then people will associate you with your company and put a face to the name.

As part of a social network, the key is to contact people and engage with them. You will find over time, that you will meet people who can help your business in other ways. For example, you may find a new website designer or someone who offers a better deal on print advertising.

This means that you thank them for their support. If they are in your local area you may want to inform them if you are at a community event or trade fair. Posting photos will give people a chance to see what you have been up to. Telling people about your day to day work will also give them an insight into how your business works on a more human, emotional level.

With Facebook advertising campaigns it is important to budget carefully as you would for any other service. It is unlikely you will be able to afford a blitz on the level of the bigger players, so it is probably better to try a smaller advert at first and ask for feedback. You’ll also get the choice to post adverts either daily or at specific times. If you are unsure about this, it may be an idea to get further advice online that would suit your business. For example if you run a sandwich shop it might be better to have adverts posted at lunch times.

Tailoring your advertising to the needs of your target audience will make them appreciate you more as well, by showing that you want to be part of a social group. Remember you can only have one profile but you can have multiple fan pages, adverts and market place postings.

Another good way to get people to notice your product is with giveaways. People always like getting coupons or money off, especially if they feel this is a deal people are not getting elsewhere. Setting up a group or fan page for your product is a good way of encouraging brand loyalty but be sure to update regularly or people will lose interest.

In short, the important thing is to treat Facebook as a long term investment of both time and money. It can also be fun and a good means of making more social contacts. With a combination of patience and resourcefulness, you will have a successful Facebook business promotion campaign.

You have used search engines. The results at the very top or the sponsored links in the right hand column are what people have paid for. The idea behind it, is that more people are likely to click results at the top of the page, in much the same way as people in a supermarket are more likely to buy something at the front of the till. The hope then is that these visitors will keep coming back to your site and because you are the first name they come to, yours is the one that they are more likely to remember and make a habit of visiting.

However it is also important to be cautious and to not throw yourself into a campaign before checking the options available to you. You should pick a keyword that is most relevant to your website to ensure the visitors to your site will be interested in the content that you have to offer. Pay per click campaigns can be expensive, especially if you do not choose your keywords wisely.

For example you may run a sports shop and want people to buy adidas footballs online. You may think it would be logical to sponsor the phrase sports shop. However, it is wrong to assume that every person that visits your site who looks up sports shop is necessarily interested in buying adidas footballs. They may be interested in other items of sports equipment which perhaps you don’t sell.

This is why it is important to consult an internet marketing company about the best use of PPC Advertising. They can advise you on the best keywords, the ones that are the most relevant to your website and will ensure you not only get more traffic for your money, but also more crucially, people who will come back to your site.

PPC Advertising can generate a lot of business if done correctly. However, it can rapidly become expensive if campaigns are not targeted the right way. Like any service it is important to consult different companies to see what they offer and the costs involved. Making the right choice will not only save you money but also ensure that your business gets the most out of it.

If you would like help with a current pay per click campaign, or would like to set one up, contact SEO consultant Dave Jenkins for more information.