Search Engine Registration

Search engine registration entails going to the registration area for each search engine and directory and manually submitting your URLs. If possible, avoid using any services that claim to register your site in all the search engines at once. These services are rarely exhaustive. You will achieve a better ranking if you take the time to submit individually.

Once your meta tags are in place, you should then have the following information at your disposal:

• URLs for all pages that are to be submitted
• keywords (use your META TAG keywords)
• a description of your site (use your META TAG description)
• a designated contact person and all the necessary information needed in order to reach the contact (email and street addresses, phone and fax numbers)
• suggested categories to register under (for directory registration)

There are many search engines and directories that cater to targeted, specialized audiences. These sites target audiences based on subject matter, demographic groups, or geographic area. Make sure to browse the search engine sites for specific directories that you can submit your site to. Google and Yahoo! are two sites that you can search to find applicable subject specific directories.

Important Submission Tips

• Avoid a splash page if possible — the lack of content lowers that probability of a good ranking.
• DO NOT use Frames. Many sites that use Frames will NOT be registered properly.
• Make sure that the keywords that you use in the meta tags are present in the content of your page as well. This is very important! If the content does not match the keywords or description in your metatags, it will be less likely to be listed!
• When using tables, keep in mind that keywords in tables will be read by the search engines differently than how it appears on a browser. If possible, try to place keywords BEFORE the table code.