An important tool in organizing and presenting the plethora of websites available on the internet is the use of Directories – an alternative to Search Engines that links and categorizes sites on the web. The main advantage to Directories as opposed to Search Engines is that directories are edited by humans, whereas search engines simply return automated results based on keywords which may not always be the most effective way to quickly find a website that is apropos to the topic being searched for. Websites are submitted to directories by the webmaster, where they are reviewed by neutral editors, evaluated, sorted into categories, and ranked within category according to relevance. They are then listed in a directory form that is simple to read and navigate for the average browser. For a website to create and maintain high web visibility – and therefore attract a high number of visitors – it is essential to be listed in a number of quality Directories.

The best known directories are Yahoo, Dmoz and Google, but it is worth being aware of the quality of the directory before submitting a site. The average browser will not explore beyond the second or, at most, third page of directory results for their searched for topic, but if the Directory is not of quality some websites listed in those all-important first few pages may not deserve to be there. The usefulness of Directories to return appropriate search results to be valuable to a site is under debate.

If links are being sold across the entire site, that may be indication of a lower quality Directory. Google is one of the worst culprits for targeting sites that sell links, and sites that appear to promote the Google page rank of their pages. This may not be indicative of how relevant a site is to the topic searched for – it is all too easy for crafty webmasters to manipulate keyword SEO to gain a higher Google page rank than their site deserves. This is time-wasting and frustrating for browsers, and may result in them losing patience with the Directory all together. Another common problem with Directories to be avoided is that pages within the site may be linked only internally and not to other, relevant, quality, external pages. Search Engines will not find such pages if they are low on keyword content and they will be skipped over entirely.

Dmoz, the Open Directory Project (ODP,) editors are volunteers – they are naturally third-party neutral and will review and consider each submitted website on its own merits. Each editor applicant is screened for any conflict of interest, so any search results returned by Dmoz Directories can generally be trusted. The main downside to submitting a website to Dmoz is that the submission process can be interminable – although ultimately worth it in terms of relevant traffic directed to any website included in their directory. The Yahoo! Directory rivals Dmoz for size and comprehensiveness, and was in fact Yahoo’s initial reason for existence.

It has since evolved away from the fundamental classic human edited format of Directories, by instituting crawler-based listings in 2002, but remains a quality Directory that can be trusted. The Yahoo! Directory is very clearly displayed on its homepage. LookSmart, and Zeal – LookSmart’s non commercial arm – are other famous examples of quality directories.

For a website to be listed in a trustworthy Directory such as Dmoz or Yahoo! can be one of the most important quality-assurance seals of approval and can be the essential difference between focused and relevant traffic to the site and random hits by frustrated browsers.

Adrian Lawrence is the webmaster of Allthebizz a very popular business web directory covering a wide range of topics.

Your website is an important part of your business. Not only for your online but also for many offline business. Your online presence means that you can tap into the huge and growing market of the Internet. Many people think that having your own website and setting it up is complicated and expensive but it is not necessarily so. Here are some tips to have you up and running with ease.

A. Planning your website

1. Analyzing your desired visitors
2. How to attract them and warm them to the sale
3. Writing good content
4. Your sales letter
5. Your domain name
6. Optimizing content

Before you build a website you will need to put some thought and planning into it. Your first step will be to decide who are your most wanted visitors. Analyze them carefully, who are they? What interests them? Where do they go? Make a thumbnail sketch and write it down for reference.

Then list all the ways you will attract them and make them stay at your site. What info content are they looking for? What sort of newsletter will interest them? Most important of all find out their needs and wants, so that you can build your product/service to fulfill these needs. List all these and keep record of them.

Make a list of all the info articles that will interest them and warm potential buyers for the sale. Put a couple on your website and keep the rest for future newsletter material.

Your sales letter: This is the heart of your business and should be done right. If you are an experienced copywriter then go ahead and write a warm persuasive personal sales letter. If you do not have experience then it is worth hiring a professional to write one for you. You can hire professional writers at www.elance.com for a reasonable price. You should place your sales letter on your home page and have your info articles link into it.

Your domain name: Should have at least 1-2 keywords or even be made up of your key phrase for your business. This will help with Search engine placement and will help to brand your business in your visitors minds.

Ideally your content should be optimized so that you can be placed well with the search engines.

B. Choosing an HTML editor.

1. Which one is right for you?
2. How to get a free one with hosting
3. Do it yourself VS having a website designed

There are 2 major HTML editors that are used commonly, Front Page and Dreamweaver. They can run you about $300-$400 but if you want to work on your site yourself will be worth it. Front page is a basic HTML editor but if your site requires PHP scripting is a little hard to work with. Dreamweaver does allow PHP scripts and is also easy to use. Do a comparison check and see which one will work for you.

If you have Yahoo hosting they provide a free HTML editor, which is quite easy to use.

If you have the funds you may want to have your site designed, especially if you have a service, where credibility is very important. Making your own website can be quite time consuming and although rewarding is not for everyone.

C. Designing your website

1. Your content-Preselling points
2. Free give a ways
3. Layout/Presentation
4. Use of graphics
5. Forms instead of email
6. Basic web promotion
7. Newsletter

When you write your web content you can use a couple of your best articles about your subject. Visitors will enjoy this and see you as an expert in your field. This boosts your credibility, wins trust and warms your potential buyer for the sale.Product reviews are also good selling points. Landing pages for direct advertising is always good; these can and should be optimized for search engine traffic.

Free info can be offered in the form of reports and e-courses. These can be given as a bonus for subscribing to your newsletter.

Your layout is important. Navigation should be simple and easy for your visitors, usually on the left hand side. Keep your layout professional and businesslike with normal font (Times Roman, Ariel or Veranda in normal size font). Black on white background is good for a business site. Try to use just 2 colors at the most to keep it looking businesslike. A simple template looks good for a business website. Try to find one that matches your topic.

Use graphics sparingly. Business websites should always look sober and professional. Small graphics are good to emphasize a point and book covers help to sell e-books and software.

Use forms instead of email addresses on your website for the contact us and about us section. This will cut down Spammers harvesting your email address.

Basic web promotion includes search engine submission, Pay-per-clicks, Google ad campaigns, and linking to related sites. Article distribution is also a powerful way to get targeted traffic to your site.

A free newsletter is a must for capturing visitors email addresses and building your business list.

Building your website can be a fun and rewarding task. However it does take time and good planning. With these few points you will be able to build a profit pulling website, that will continue to make you money for years to come.

Author: Constantin Chersin
I was born in September 20, 1955 in Romania, and I am a Romanian citizen. Married, 2 beautiful daughters 18 and 20 years.
I graduated Faculty of Automatics in 1983 becoming a System Engineer, with a full degree. I worked in Ultra Sonic and High Frequency Power Supply Converter research institute in Bucharest, Romania until 1990.
After the fall of Ceausescu"s regime, I have worked in sales since 1994. I now run my own company FOX I.E. in Romania. Starting in 1997 my company has dedicated its whole efforts to internet software activity.
In 2003 I founded my own US based corporation IT PRO VISION, Inc. Both companies have their own websites at

FOX SOFTWARE and IT PRO VISION, Inc.
More articles can be found at http://marketing.itprovision.net