<% CRLF=CHR(13) & CHR(10) page=Request.QueryString("page") '** Search Engine Promotion SELECT CASE page Case "news" SubHead="Search Engine Placement, Optimization and Promotion New" CASE "news-google" SubHead="Search Engine Placement, Optimization and Promotion News" CASE "sponsoredlinks" SubHead="Paid Promotion" CASE "optimization" SubHead="Optimizing Your Site" CASE "submit" SubHead="Free Submit to Search Engines" CASE "form" SubHead="Sponsored Listing Programs" CASE "ads" SubHead="Advertising Programs" CASE ELSE SubHead="Introduction to Web Site Promotion" END SELECT %>
Web Services

<%=SubHead%>

<% SELECT CASE page CASE "news" %> Optimization companies have recently been having problems with getting their client's sites banned because of practices they use to trick search engines. This article explains some of the things that can get you banned from a search engine like Google.

Whether you do your own web site optimizing or hire someone else to do it, it's important to know what practices are not going to get your site banned and will promote your site. For example a company called Traffic Power, was getting very good search engine placement for it's clients for months when Google, found a common theme among the promoted sites and banned their client's sites from Google. [read more about this]

At Honeybee Graphics we recommend honest hard work to add relevant content that your clients (and the search engines) will find relevant and useful. Some tips for optimizing your site:
  • Update your site with new content
  • Optimize your site's title and meta tags
  • Use relevant alt tags on your images
  • Have a good system of readable links and a site map if necessary. (Search engines can't read some types of JavaScript menus and links, we always provide additional text links at the bottom of every page to make sure the search engines can find their way through the web site.)
  • Use descriptive text in links
  • Keep adding more content, articles or any useful information related to your products or services


~Melissa Vaughn
Honeybee Graphics

Is Your Site Spamming The Search Engines?

Lee Roberts
2004-07-23

Source:webpronews.com

Spamming the search engines can cause your site to be banned and dropped from their indices. To help webmasters understand the rules of search engine etiquette the search engines have established quality guidelines that explain the majority of their rules about spam. By simply following these guidelines your site can remain in the search engines.

Avoid hidden text or hidden links.
Hidden text can be placed in web pages by using the following means:

  • Cascading Style Sheets
  • Making your text appear with the same color as your background color
  • Or, shades slightly different than the background color

Hidden links can be placed in web pages by using the following additional means:

  • 1 x 1 pixel images
  • Images with the same color as the web page background color
  • Images with shades slightly different than the background color

Don't use cloaking or sneaky redirects.

Cloaking is delivering pages designed for the search engines while providing people with different results. Most of the time this is hard to detect, but professional search engine placement companies can help detect these situations. So, how do you tell? In some engines this is hard to detect, but because Google caches the pages they visit it has become much easier to detect these situations.

There are other means of achieving the desired affects. Some people use robots.txt files restrict search engine access to files and directories. This process is used to deliver pages to the various search engines based upon their preferences. This is just as hard to catch, but a professional search engine optimization company can detect these issues.

Don't send automated queries to the search engines.

Although this is questionable, some search engine optimization companies still perform this activity with tools such as WebPosition Gold. Because they have so many clients it makes more sense to utilize these tools. WebPosition Gold performs the searches without sending any information to the search engines that would identify the web site you're researching. Additionally, because your IP address is typically not the same as your web site, there is virtually no way that the search engines can know. Therefore, there is no real way they can ban your site for this behavior.

Don't load pages with irrelevant words.

Interestingly enough, there are search engine optimization companies that serve up pages for their clients with irrelevant keywords simply to attract traffic. This behavior doesn't improve your sales because you're not selling or providing the information or services the visitors seek.

Don't create multiple pages, subdomains, or domains with substantially duplicate content.

This is really simple to understand. Don't means do not do it. This is one of the most obvious forms of search engine spam available. Now, you may be saying that the Apple Pie Shopping Cart fails to comply with this requirement. Fortunately, we have precautions set up that prevent this from becoming an issue.

Because of the nature of the Internet and sharing information, we sometimes have articles published on multiple sites while having them published on our site. Although this can become an issue, we can consider the aspect that at least one of those pages will remain indexed and linked to your site. Then we have the consideration that as others find the multitude of pages with your article people will find your site and possibly purchase your services or products.

Avoid "doorway" pages created just for search engines or other "cookie cutter" approaches such as affiliate programs with little or no original content.

Doorway pages are pages designed to work well in the search engines that then link to an item or other content on your site. Typically these pages are focused upon a single keyword or keyword phrase. Many search engine optimization companies build these pages and submit them to the search engines as a means of attracting traffic to your web site.

Affiliate programs can be detrimental depending upon the type of setup the originating site uses. As with the duplicate content issue discussed above, certain affiliate programs provide the same pages to affiliates with substantially duplicate content in hopes of increasing the link popularity of your product pages. Unfortunately not all site owners pay attention to the guidelines established by the search engines regarding spam. Therefore, they run the risk of having their pages and possibly even site banned by the search engines.

Affiliate programs that provide links into your site directly are the best way to run an affiliate program. If this were not the case affiliate vendor programs like Commission Junction would not exist. And to top that theory, Amazon would not have over 8,000,000 links to their site selling their products. With enough work and management skills your site could acquire a strong level of links coming to your site.

The Bottom-Line
Failing to follow these simple guidelines can and will get your site banned from the search engines. Being banned from the search engines is a valuable, though costly less to learn. Don't be foolish and let this happen to your site. Contact a professional search engine placement company that follows these guidelines of simply contact me for assistance or a recommendation.


Cloaking or Stealth Scripting

Cloaking can get you permanently banned from search engines. We don't recommend it. Please read this informative article for more information. Article: Cloaking: Search Engines Shift Gears

Search Engine Policy: Google Webmaster FAQ

<% CASE "news-google" %>

In the News

With so many web sites out there you can use all of the help you can get. The rules are always changing so it's important to keep up. We'll included the latest tidbits on information about search engine placement, optimization, and advertising your web site here to help you (and us) stay on top.

Google makes move into banner ads

Source: Zdnet.co.uk

A new ad programme being trialled on Google could see images used on the previously text-only site

Search engine giant Google plans for the first time to sell ads that include images, a surprise reversal for a company that has won regard for its pioneering use of text-only marketing pitches and for keeping its home page religiously free of banner advertising.

A posting on the company's Web site describes the new programme, which will allow customers to place image, or banner, ads on third-party Web sites that participate in its Adsense programme. Adsense promises to place ads on Web pages that are relevant to a marketer's message, based on an analysis of the page's content.

The posting noted that Google will not put image ads on its own site for now, but said it looks "forward to offering more image ad distribution options in the future."

Continued...

<% CASE "sponsoredlinks" %>

Sponsored Link Programs

Here are two significant programs to help you get listed at the top of major search engines. Both are pay-per-click programs and click through fees will be billed directly to your credit card. You have the option to limit your monthly or daily spend limits. Setup and management fees will be billed separately.

Yahoo Search Marketing Program

Search Panel, Infospace/Dogpile, AskJeeves, CNET and 1,000s more

We'll setup and maintain key words relevant to your web site and help you get the most out of sponsored listings.

Premium vs. Classic Listings

Advertising with Premium Listings will help you achieve maximum exposure for your Web site. Compare the benefits of Premium Listings (positions 1-3) compared to the Classic Listings (positions 4-120):

  Premium Listings Classic Listings
  Position: Top 3 search results
 
Search results 4 - 240
 
  Partners:   Same sites as Classic Listings plus Yahoo!, MSN, Netscape, AltaVista,    and Lycos/HotBot
Search Panel, Infospace/Dogpile, AskJeeves, CNET and 1,000s more
 
  Reach: 85% of all active Internet users
 
40% of Internet users
 
  Search: 2x searches of Classic Listings
 
----------
 
  Clicks: 2x clicks of Classic Listings
 
----------
 

To get your business into Premium Listings choose your search terms and bid high enough to get into the top three positions. Your site will then appear in the search results on the Web's leading search sites.

Yahoo! Search Marketing

Yahoo Ask Jeeves Lycos InfoSpace MSN

Google Adwords (call for details!)

<% CASE "optimization" %>

Web Site Optimization

It is very important to have a web site that search engines can find and index efficiently. Search engines determine the significant of your site based in part, on the key words or terms found on your site and within the meta and title tags of the site.

Free Optimization
When we design a web site we do basic optimization to include important key terms in your meta tags and alt tags describing images where applicable.

Paid Optimization
We offer upgraded optimization on web sites to include additional code and individual optimization on each page of your site.

For a free web sit optimization estimate click here or call (800) 323-3670

<% CASE "submit" %>

Free Submit

All web design projects include submission to dozens of major search engines.

Visitors and clients are welcome to use this free service anytime. Just click on the link below to get started.

Add Me!

Get Help Submitting

Need help submitting or optimizing your site? Give us a call!

<% CASE "form" %>

Get started today!

Please complete the form below to start the Sponsored Links Program. We will contact you to confirm your request. If you have questions or prefer to set up an account by phone you may call (800) 323-3670.

Contact Information    * Required Fields.
*Name (First): *(Last):
*Phone: Fax:
*Email:
Business Information
*Business Name:
*Web Site Address:
Web Hosting Company:
*Type of Business:
Listing Information
Sponsored Listing Program(s): Yahoo Search Marketing Program    Google Program

Important Search Terms for my Web Site Sponsored Listings:
I would like help finding search terms for my site.
I know some of the search terms I want but would like help finding more.
I know what search terms I want and will list them below.
(enter key terms seperated by a comma)
Search Terms must be approved and must be relevant to your web site content.
Request Other Information
I am interested in Optimizing my Web Site for regular Search Engine Listings.
I am interested in Web Site Design or need help Maintaining my current Site.
I am interested in setting up an E-commerce or Database Driven Site.
I would like to know more about web hosting services.
<% CASE "ads" %>

Advertising on your Web Site

Displaying advertisments on your web site can create revenue.

<% CASE ELSE '** intro ** %>

Promoting your Web Site

Once you have a web site the next step it to promote it so that people can find it. There are many ways to do this on your own including making sure you put your web site address on all of your current products, print information, and any other forms of communication you have with your customers. The services we offer here will help you get your site listed on search engines.

Click below for more information:

Get guaranteed listings with Sponsored Links from Yahoo Search Marketing!
We offer personalized service to set up and manage your sponsored listings on Yahoo Search Marketing. You can also do it yourself by clicking below.

Yahoo! Search Marketing

Yahoo Search Marketing Special:
Use one of the Yahoo Search Marketing links on this site to sign up and get a $25 credit.

*Specials subject to change. Credit is given by Yahoo Search Marketing on your new account. See details on the Yahoo Search Marketing site.

<% END SELECT %>