Search Engines and Directories

People can find your web site from anywhere in the world by typing in your domain name (www.yourcompany.com). If they don't know your domain name, they may find your site by doing a search for a topic with one of the popular "Search Engines" or directories, ie: Yahoo, Excite, InfoSeek, WebCrawler and others. In most cases you need to register your site with the Search Engine or Directory in order to be included in their search.

Before you list your website with these listing services, be sure to include META Tags in the header of your home page. META Tags are blocks of information, such as a list of key words and a description of your company/website, that are stored in your html page. The META Tags will not be shown when visitors view your website, however Search Engines and Directories will use the META Tags information in their search database. Go to our META Tag Page to learn more and submit tags to be installed in your website.

Once your META Tags are installed follow the steps below ("Listing Your Site with Search Engines") and go to each of the main Search Engines and Directories and officially list your site with them. Maybe you could make it a goal that each time you go online, you list your site with another search engine? To get a list to work from, start with the sites listed below and then use one of these search engines to do a search for "search engines". You will find hundreds of search engines and also web pages that list search engines.

Types of Search Engines

Each Search Engine or Directory has its own way of handling the Website information and locations. Here are the basic differences between them:

Search Engines
These listing services use software called "web crawlers" or "spiders" to scour the net for new sites and information. The spiders go to websites and capture text from the home page and then to all linked pages of the website. It uses all the information it gathers as the source for its searching database.

Examples of Search Engines:
Hot Bot (www.hotbot.com)
Alta Vista (www.altavista.digital.com)

Metacrawlers
Metacrawlers feed off the databases of the major search engines. The results are then delivered to the user as one complete listing.

Examples of Metacrawlers:
MetaCrawler (www.metacrawler.com)
Inference Find (www.inference.com/ifind)?

Search Directories
Instead of searching the net for web addresses, directories build their search database from site submissions. The submissions are then categorized by subject. Some directories will have an actual person go to the site and verify that the address is correct and see if it meets the directories requirements. Once approved, the directory will include the listing in its search database. Directories do not usually scan the text of the website like Search Engines do. Instead they rely mainly on the submission information and the META Tags at the website.

Examples of Search Directories:
Yahoo (www.yahoo.com)
Look Smart (www.looksmart.com)
ODP - Open Directory (www.dmoz.org)

Listing Your Website with Search Engines
Usually it is free to submit your site to a search engine. Once your site is complete and you have had META Tags installed in your home page, it's time to go to the various listing services and register your site. Here is a short guide on how to list your site:

1. Go to the Search Engine or Directory you would like to be listed with.

2. Do a search for your company name.

3. If your website comes up in the list, you are already listed with this listing service. If your website is not listed, you should register with them.

4. Go to their "List your URL" page. Look for a link to the URL page at the bottom of the home page or in their submenu headings.

5. Follow the instructions given with that particular Search Engine or Directory. Each Search Engine and Directory may vary in the type of information required. Yahoo, for instance, requires that you go first to the category that you would like your website to be listed under, and then click on the "List your URL" link and register your site. Others may just ask you to select a category. Some may ask for keywords and a description, and some may only ask you to register your URL (http://www.yourcompany.com).

Listing your site with Search Engines and directories is one of the things you can do yourself to promote your website. It only takes the time of going to each site and filling out the forms. See the list of Search Engines below to get you started. Or if you prefer, you can use a Search Engine Registration Service. These services will register your site for you, often to hundreds of search engines, and charge a fee for their service.

Some Popular Registration Services:

AddMe
Submit Express
Submit It!
WebPromote

Some Popular Search Engines and Directories

Google
Submit your website to Google

Yahoo
Submit your website

AOL NetFind
Submit your website

AltaVista
Submit your website

Excite Netsearch
Submit your website

HotBot
Submit your website

Infoseek
Submit your website

WebCrawler Searching
Submit your website