The road less traveled, a website less visited
Hi..
Internet is more like the real world. There are some places that many visitors go.. and some places, only a few know about. Most visit a particular place either on business, pleasure, or are related to the place, or maybe just passing by... same is the case with websites...If the place is popular destination, then infrastructure is good (all roads and travel routes lead there :))... and of course a lot of companies like to advertise their product or service in such a place...
...and there are some blogs/sites that are famous, and most that are not so famous... there are web logs/sites that many visit regularly... and there are many that no one ever comes in...
What makes a web page popular??... Well, it is a million dollar question... and if i knew the answer.. this page would be popular too :))... and of course, half this page would be immersed in banner ads,... and I too would have millions in my bank account.
Lets talk about Internet Marketing Strategies, and on website promotions.. What everyone are doing.. or claim to do.
First, what is the reason for people to use the Net for?
Casual Information
News, sport and entertainment
Research
Shopping
Email
Online applications
Downloads, etc... (Well, these are the reasons I can think of now... if I did miss out any thing particular.. please let me know...)
Second, how does one reach any site...
1. Referral - by word of mouth (i rate is prime as most of the sites i'm regular to, the URLs are given by people I know)
2. Online search engines, and directories
3. advt - from other medium (offline)
4. Advt. from other websites - incl. image ads, text links, etc
5. Emails/ newsletters etc
6. Typing some generic names directly on the http address field (like if you want to know more on Golf... type golf.com, etc)
Word of mouth - if there is any powerful advertising tool, it is by word of mouth. It is given to you by people you know, people who knows you, and most importantly it is interactive... hallmarks of a great advertising medium. It always helps to keep in touch with your regular visitors to the site - Newsletters, building community, testimonials, referrals (discount offers etc), and 'contacting' them offline...
Keeping your site close to the generic name possible... It pays to have a domain name that reflects your business or core values your website is going to project. It is very hard for people to memorize an unrelated URL. Some hallmarks for a good domain name are:
1. Try and keep a generic name or include a generic name in your domain name.. e.g. if you are having a website on selling used cars.. then "usedcars.com" could be an ideal name...
2. It is also better to have your brand name as the domain name... it helps in advertising and also in brand recall...
3. Keep the domain name short... maybe up to 9-11 characters (note: max length of a domain name can go up to 67 characters)
4. NO SPECIAL CHARACTERS (~!@#$%^&*) in your domain name... it is sure sign for typo error and will be a F#!@ ALL Idea
5.In case you do not get the name you desire... try the combination of adding plurals as an alternative name.
I guess I will leave the discussion for Search Engines and Online Advertising for another day... as it is a huuuuge subject and there are a lot of websites that discuss these topics in detail.. Take a peek at the stats on how the major search engines fare...
The following are the percentage of total searches for each of the major search engines;
Google - 36.8%
Yahoo! - 26.6%
AOL - 12.8%
MSN - 14.5%
Excite - 4.3%
Ask - 1.8%
infospace - 1.3%
lycos - 0.8%
Others - 1.1%
FOOD FOR THOUGHT:
Did you know that "sex" is the most commonly looked up word in most of the search engines... So if you need more visitors to your site.. You know what to do... bring in Sex appeal..:)) Well, have to conclude that the Famous Marketing Strategy is fully justified here... that... "SEX SELLS."
Internet is more like the real world. There are some places that many visitors go.. and some places, only a few know about. Most visit a particular place either on business, pleasure, or are related to the place, or maybe just passing by... same is the case with websites...If the place is popular destination, then infrastructure is good (all roads and travel routes lead there :))... and of course a lot of companies like to advertise their product or service in such a place...
...and there are some blogs/sites that are famous, and most that are not so famous... there are web logs/sites that many visit regularly... and there are many that no one ever comes in...
What makes a web page popular??... Well, it is a million dollar question... and if i knew the answer.. this page would be popular too :))... and of course, half this page would be immersed in banner ads,... and I too would have millions in my bank account.
Lets talk about Internet Marketing Strategies, and on website promotions.. What everyone are doing.. or claim to do.
First, what is the reason for people to use the Net for?
Casual Information
News, sport and entertainment
Research
Shopping
Online applications
Downloads, etc... (Well, these are the reasons I can think of now... if I did miss out any thing particular.. please let me know...)
Second, how does one reach any site...
1. Referral - by word of mouth (i rate is prime as most of the sites i'm regular to, the URLs are given by people I know)
2. Online search engines, and directories
3. advt - from other medium (offline)
4. Advt. from other websites - incl. image ads, text links, etc
5. Emails/ newsletters etc
6. Typing some generic names directly on the http address field (like if you want to know more on Golf... type golf.com, etc)
Word of mouth - if there is any powerful advertising tool, it is by word of mouth. It is given to you by people you know, people who knows you, and most importantly it is interactive... hallmarks of a great advertising medium. It always helps to keep in touch with your regular visitors to the site - Newsletters, building community, testimonials, referrals (discount offers etc), and 'contacting' them offline...
Keeping your site close to the generic name possible... It pays to have a domain name that reflects your business or core values your website is going to project. It is very hard for people to memorize an unrelated URL. Some hallmarks for a good domain name are:
1. Try and keep a generic name or include a generic name in your domain name.. e.g. if you are having a website on selling used cars.. then "usedcars.com" could be an ideal name...
2. It is also better to have your brand name as the domain name... it helps in advertising and also in brand recall...
3. Keep the domain name short... maybe up to 9-11 characters (note: max length of a domain name can go up to 67 characters)
4. NO SPECIAL CHARACTERS (~!@#$%^&*) in your domain name... it is sure sign for typo error and will be a F#!@ ALL Idea
5.In case you do not get the name you desire... try the combination of adding plurals as an alternative name.
I guess I will leave the discussion for Search Engines and Online Advertising for another day... as it is a huuuuge subject and there are a lot of websites that discuss these topics in detail.. Take a peek at the stats on how the major search engines fare...
The following are the percentage of total searches for each of the major search engines;
Google - 36.8%
Yahoo! - 26.6%
AOL - 12.8%
MSN - 14.5%
Excite - 4.3%
Ask - 1.8%
infospace - 1.3%
lycos - 0.8%
Others - 1.1%
FOOD FOR THOUGHT:
Did you know that "sex" is the most commonly looked up word in most of the search engines... So if you need more visitors to your site.. You know what to do... bring in Sex appeal..:)) Well, have to conclude that the Famous Marketing Strategy is fully justified here... that... "SEX SELLS."
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