Category Archives: Networking

How to Find The Best Online Directories To List Your Website

Networking, Organic SEO, SEO, Small Business Marketing, Technology,

Online directories

If you own a local business, then local search gives you major advantage over bloggers, online retailers, and other websites trying to rank well in Google. Local businesses are always advised to focus their energy and efforts to beat local competitors’ sites. The best way to ensure success in local search is to get your website listed with right web directory and review site.

Listing your website with a right web directory can substantially increase the online visibility of your business and attract more traffic. However, it is worth noting that not all web directories are as efficient and effective as others. Even though web directories are designed with regards to Google’s search algorithms, there can be many aspects that might have negative impact on your website’s rank.

So What Does Google Really Trust?

Needless to say, the trend of SEO has brought a revolution in the online industry. Webmasters incorporate SEO techniques and principles to attract visitors on their website. However, many still try to cheat the game by using right set of keywords and when visitors click on the website’s link they have to face disappointments and waste more time in finding the right resource.

In order to curb the efforts of visitors and to prevent them from scams, Google keeps on changing its search algorithm and deduct the ones that do not meet their standards. Since SEO is more focused on getting website results, it does not guarantee quality and relevance of the content provided.

Google controls a monopoly when it comes to search engine business. Also, the page rank or Alexa provided by Google is highly accepted by industry and local people as well. So when it comes to web directories, Google makes sure that they abide by the policies and regulations to ensure that end users get relevant results. Google has the tendency and authority to exclude any web directory or directories that failed to toe the line.

In clear words, it means that if you are planning to build a directory you would need to watch out for certain subject that you build it around. For example, a directory that is general in nature has more chance of getting dropped by Google than the ones who are niche specific. Low quality links, broken links, algorithms, spam filed content and so on are some major reason why some web directories do not show up in search results.

Finding the Right Directories

Listing your business on web directories can be profitable in numerous ways. However, you should make sure that you are choosing the right directory or directories while doing so. Apart from cost, there are many other important factors that you should take into consideration when making decision. These factors include:

Quality Of Existing Links

This is one of the most common and quick way to determine whether the directory listing will be beneficial for you or not. You should begin with elaborating the potential of existing links. What do you see?

Do you see maximum links that look like spam or have spun content? If you see such things, then the directory has more chances to negatively impact your search ranking. So, make sure you do a thorough research on this aspect before taking any decision.

Regular Maintenance

Make sure that the site you choose is updated regularly. It should have an efficient team of technological experts to maintain the speed, content quality and links of the site. Dead or outdated links should not be the part of directory you are choosing to list your business. Your prime focus should be on the time and date the site was last updated, and not the length of time of its existence.

Another way to judge the stability of the site is to see whether the site is well edited or not. Are the businesses and new companies listed under relevant categories? All these things will help you make the right decision.

Check For Editorial Policy

Do some research and look for pages on the site that clearly understates the editorial guidelines of the directory. If it doesn’t define any standards for accepting the sites to be listed, then this is definitely not the place to be. Good web directories will always have certain criteria to check new sites and their relevancy for the category applied.

Compliance With Google’s Terms of Service

Since Google hold the monopoly when it comes to online search, your focus should be to avail the benefits of directories that go well with Google’s terms of service. This will ensure that you get better results on Google search listings as well.

The chosen web directory should be well regarded by the terms of service provided by Google. It is the best way to ensure that your chosen directory is genuine and do not carry any kind of unnatural links.

Most Trustworthy Web Directories

If you have already decided to pay to get listed on an online directory, then you should be aware of all the options that you can consider for your business. There are millions of online web directories that you may explore, but not all can provide you with equal results. Some are definitely better than others, while some might be just average.

The final pick would majorly depend upon the annual fee or cost of getting listed, but the above mentioned factors cannot be overlooked too. To make the task simpler for you, we have listed some of the most common and preferable web directories that you may consider to choose.

These are the top directories that comply with Google’s TOS (check out this video – yes, will open in a new window – in which Matt Cutts explains why the below directories can be trusted – the editorial discretion):

Despite of your ability and freedom to choose any of the listed directories, you still might not get the chance to write your description or choose the category you would like to get listed under.

All these decisions are made by the directories editor. If the editor exists, he knows how to do his job well. So you don’t need to worry about your search ranking on the internet. There are certain algorithms followed while making such discretion.

Robert Gombos writes for several online business and marketing related websites. He believes that connection and involvement are keys to success even in today’s technological world.

3 Tips on Designing Websites for Communication Companies

Networking, Web Design

Photo: bamwebdesign

Communications companies are in the business of enabling others to communicate. How do they do their own communication? Among other things, their website is the readily available location from where a potential customer gets all his information about the communications company. And, it is this location that people are increasingly turning to.

The ease at which they can utilize a website is miles ahead of other means they can employ. Therein lies the importance of designing a website to beat the competition. Having a vision is very important but many designers forget the very purpose of building a website. We have three good ideas you can put to use in designing a website.

1. Functionality first

Photo: abrition

A website’s primary purpose is efficient network management. The present is the via medium to future. In designing a website, there are pitfalls that had better be avoided. A website’s first appeal lies in its being functional. Other factors like aesthetics, though very much desirable, cannot be allowed to overshadow the functionality of a website. The visually attractive features like the pictures of the communication equipment or maps of coverage of a communication company can be classified only as an augmentation. They cannot be taken to represent the business in themselves.

A communication company should assume that a visitor is a rookie and needs to be taken by hand and led through the relevant content in the pages of the website. He should be able to learn about the products or services with minimum possible maneuvers within the website. At the same time, you should take the possible wavering mind of a visitor into account and provide for alternatives without him being aware of being manipulated.

2. Follow the trend

Over the years, it has been proved that a 3-click rule works best in not letting the visitor lose interest.  Before he even realizes that he had clicked his mouse three times, he should be there at the intended destination. A designer’s aim should always be to keep the visitor’s interest intact. If he cannot achieve this feat, the visitor will wander off to search engines to look for another communications company.

Speak to the customers instead of informing them with a stiff upper lip. You are not running a philosophical class. You are in the business of selling your ware and so you should make every effort to make the visitor feel that he is in good hands in the department of communication. Not all visitors can be expected to stay on the pages for a length of time. Offering free downloads of a brochure that has all the details that he may wish for is one way of procuring his continued attention.

3. Every Picture tells a Story

We had emphatically recorded above the need for the function of the website to be put forward as the first requirement but have also said a design pleasing to the eye is important too. Without giving a cluttered look, the website can be designed in such a way that an orderly placing of pictures and descriptions is perceived by the visitor. Remember a picture can speak a thousand words. Instead of meandering and pompous texts, a strategically shot and placed picture is to be desired. Endorsements from general populace are good but the same from celebrities and well-known figures inculcate a sense of credibility in the viewers.

5 Tips To Maximise Tradeshow ROI

Networking, Small Business Marketing, Tradeshow advertising

TradeShow-AdvertisingTo paraphrase Mark Twain, reports of the death of the tradeshow have been greatly exaggerated. Tradeshows are still a great way to network, form partnerships and relationships, and introduce your business to new customers. Their reputation has slipped a bit because they can be expensive, attendance is down, and some exhibitors treat the whole thing as a bit of a vacation, putting in minimal effort and boring the pants off of attendees. If you put in some effort before, during, and after the show, however, you can have a (personally, professionally, and financially) rewarding experience.

Here are 5 tips for a winning tradeshow experience.

1)     Start promoting your stand before the show.

According to tips on Exhibitor Central, your preparation can start six months before the show, which is about when you should start thinking about what promotional media you’re going to use. This is a good time to design a logo that suits your stand’s theme. It doesn’t need to be fancy; for example, if you’re going to promote your new eco-friendly range of products then you could wrap a vine of green leaves around your existing business logo.

With four of five months to go you should have ironed out your email and direct mail marketing list. You should also be working on the content for the broadcasts that you’ll be sending out. Don’t forget about in-store promotions during the lead-up to the show. Flyers and brochures are old standards but aren’t likely to generate huge interest. Do something a little different, like the company that gave out bags of pineapples, complete with tips on what to do with the fruit, to suit their Hawaiian-themed booth.

2)     Interactive is in, static is out

The days of flat walls and tables with banners, posters, brochures, and samples are over. Now, you need to be interactive if you want to catch attention. At the very least, you need a TV or two with a promotional slideshow or mini-movie. But you really ought to make your displays more interesting than that.

So, using the eco-friendly product line as an example, you can set up your display on different levels, with each level joined by winding creepers or vines (like your logo) and decorated by pot plants and perhaps a trendy desk water fountain and Zen garden or two. Have some background noise to create some ambience, like bird song or a babbling brook. Have a diffuser that releases a soft, natural fragrance. Engage every sense you can think of and you’ll make your stand truly memorable.

3)     Use bribery

People love free stuff, so give away free stuff. You can be boring and give away pens, but that’s hardly going to raise a blip on anyone’s interest-meter. Think pineapples. In other words, think of something different.

Back to our eco-example; if it’s an eco-cleaning product, you could give away grass- or mud- or other-muck-stained t-shirts with a sample of the product, and invite people to put it to the test. You need to be absolutely confident that it will work, however. And you need to ensure that the t-shirt is decent enough so that people will actually want to wear it afterwards.

If you’re not that confident in your product (then shame on you), you can give away something related to it, like a goodie bag made from recycled canvas (which can double as a shopping bag) and which contains things like fair trade chocolates, organic vegetable seeds, and a coupon for your product.

4)     Give serious thought to your stand.

Your stand and not your display. You need to know things like access to power points, lighting conditions, position relative to entrances and exits, and your location. Your location is important because corner and standalone stands should be planned differently to stands wedged between other exhibitors. You also need to know the size of the stand so that you can plan which display units to bring. These days, you can get customisable display systems that you can adjust to suit stands of just about any size. Modern materials, like tension fabric and aluminium frames, are easy to setup and shift around, so you can make some last minute adjustments to your stand if you find that there was a mix up with the specs, or if the design you had in mind doesn’t quite work in practice.

5)     Choose the right people.

Exhibitor Central makes another important point: Your booth is only as good as your representative staff. Remember that a good salesperson doesn’t necessarily make a good booth showperson. It could be that your chatty and winsome receptionist is the best candidate to represent you at a tradeshow. You’ll want to give her some additional training, of course, but the lesson is: Don’t close your eyes to people’s potential.

There is no reason why, with the proper preparation, you can’t make attending a tradeshow fun for you, your staff, and your customers. And, a fun experience can turn into a lasting customer relationship.

Our guest blogger, Jemima Winslow is a tradeshow junkie. She loves exploring stands, trying samples, and challenging staff with intentionally tricky questions. She’s the reason you want to choose and train the right staff. And she’ll definitely take you up on the clean t-shirt challenge.

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