Promoting Your Website

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Promoting Your Website
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Introduction

• If you build it, they will come

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Introduction

• Must make your website known to the world
• The best website is useless if no one knows about
  it or visits it
• Website promotion can range from simple and
  inexpensive to complex and expensive
• Use what makes sense

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What well cover

• Generating website traffic using
• Search engines
• Online directories
• Banner ads
• Media exposure
• Professional associations
• Other websites
• Your product
• Existing marketing tools

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Search Engines

• Several popular search engines
• Google, AltaVista, Yahoo, Ask, Dogpile, Lycos
• Register with search engines
• Search engine marketing firms
• Fee involved
• Getting registered doesnt assure high ranking in
  results

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Search Engines

• How do search engines rank for results?
• Frequency of keywords
• Location of keywords
• Linked pages
• How often a page is clicked through to from the
  results
• What can you do?
• Correctly choose and use keywords
• Meta tags

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Search Engines

• Meta tags
• Used by search engines to catalog websites
• Three major classes
• Title
• Description
• Keyword

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Meta tag Examples
Example http//www.hollabaughbros.com/

• Bros.Fruit Farms Market, Quality Fruits in
  Season, Retail, Wholesale, Shipping, Tours,
  Gifts"

• Orchards, Farm Market, apples, peaches, pears,
  asian pears, nectarines, plums, apricots,
  pumpkins, vegetables, mail order, tours, Adams
  County, Gettysburg"

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Online Directories

• Get listed in local regional online business
  directories
• Often set up to promote local, regional, state,
  or industry-specific businesses
• State tourism sites
• You must submit business information to appear in
  the directory
• Directories do not use the same search
  capabilities as search engines
• Typically organized by category, alphabetically,
  location, etc.

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Online Directories
Source http//agmap.psu.edu
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Online Directories
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Banner Advertisements

• Banners are graphic
• Usually appear near the top of other websites
• Also appear vertically on right left sides
• Clicking on them takes the user to the
  advertisers website

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Banner Advertisements

• You can build banners yourself or hire it to be
  done
• Four ways to get banners posted
• Arrange to display other Web sites' banner ads in
  exchange for them displaying its ad.
• Pay publisher sites to post its banner.
• Pay an organization, usually a banner network
  like to post the banner on a number of publisher
  sites.
• Join an banner exchange program

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Banner Advertisements
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Banner Advertisements
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Question

• Media can be used to promote your business and
  your website. Can you answer these questions?
• What media can be utilized?
• How can you generate media exposure?

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Media Exposure

• What media can be utilized?
• Newspapers
• Websites
• Blogs
• Radio
• Magazines
• How can you generate media exposure?
• Contact reporters/editors, radio stations
• Create your own through sponsorships, etc.

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Media Exposure
Source Centre Daily Times, 10/5/06
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Professional Associations

• How can you become know as part of a professional
  association?
• Get listed in directories and handbooks
• Sponsor part of a meeting
• Have a booth at conferences
• Other ways?
• Chamber of Commerce

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Professional Associations
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Professional Associations
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Professional Associations
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Other websites

• Getting listed on other sites can bring exposure
  to your business website
• Try getting links to your site listed on other
  sites that you respect
• Choose sites that complement your business
• Ex. You sell preserves ? gift, holiday sites
• Join discussion groups

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Your Product

• Use your product to promote your website
• Reminder of where the product was purchased
• Know where to go to purchase more product
• Potential for more widespread exposure

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Your Product
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Existing Marketing Tools

• How do you currently market your product?
• Post your website on other marketing tools
• Brochures, business cards, flyers

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Section Wrap-Up

• Promoting your business website and generating
  traffic requires effort
• The If I build it, they will come philosophy
  does not apply
• Use varied and coordinated approaches to website
  promotion
• Try to monitor how people are finding out about
  your site