WRITING
SAMPLES
Promote
Your Web Site
Tips for Successful Free Search Engine & Directory Listings
[Including 50 Links]
By
Lisa Maliga
© 2004-2005
NEW article -- Online Pests: Free Sample Trolls Read this amusing account of people online who think that everything should be free, free, free!
To
reprint this article on your website, please contact
Lisa Maliga and include this byline:
http://www.lisamaliga.com ~ Lisa’s Library of Writing offers advice
on epublishing, adult figure skating, aromatherapy, web design, Internet promotion
and publishing. This is the home of fiction and nonfiction writer Lisa Maliga.
Once
you’ve built your site and launched it online, you’ll need to
make sure that the search engines and directories receive it so it can be
indexed.
In order to do this properly, you’ll want to make sure you have set
aside enough time so that you can do this project without feeling rushed.
A great way to go about entering your site is to have all the information
in front of you so you can streamline this process. Having the relevant info
in a word processing program before you start the process, so all you do is
copy and paste into the appropriate spaces.
The Title of Your Web site
Some search engines insist you use the actual title, not just a bunch of keywords.
My site is really called Everything Shea Aromatic Creations,
and to some search engines and directories, that’s how it has to read.
However, if you've optimized your site to include descriptive title tags such
as: Handmade Glycerin Shea Butter Soap, Whipped
Shea Butter & Custom SoapCakes, then by all means use
that. Or else a shortened version, such as these six descriptive words: Handmade
Shea Butter Soap, Whipped Shea
Your Domain Name
For example, my soap site's domain name is is:
http://www.everythingshea.com. Don’t submit any other pages, just the
main one.
Description of Your site
This is where you will note just how many words or characters the particular
search engine will accept. Most of the time the search engine is optimized
by the number of characters per line, so that’s why you should type
all your information beforehand in a word processing program and keep account
of how many words and characters – with spaces – so that you are
prepared. Most search engines accept 200 characters for a site description,
but a few go as low as 150, and others take up to 1000!
Keywords
Have your most important keywords listed first, and use commas in between
words. Some search engines don’t even want commas, just spaces. Most
of the time you are allowed 200 characters. Sometimes you’ll have to
stop at 50 characters [or 5 words], other times you can enter as many as you
like.
Your e-mail Address
The best e-mail address is the one directly affiliated with your site. When
submitting your site with some search engines you must register with them
and have to go back to their site, after receiving their automated e-mail,
and confirm your listing.
Linking Back
Many directory site owners appreciate a link back to their sites and will
provide you with a text link or button. Some sites only will do reciprocal
links with their text link, banner or button on your main page. Other search
engines/directories don’t seem to care, and some sites allow you to
put their link on one of your other pages. If it’s on a secondary page,
it has to be available through your main page. For example, Everything Shea
Aromatic Creations will have another page for my Whipped Shea Butter and it’s
fine to add the link there.
You should be aware of those search engine robots that are out there spidering
your site – they don’t like to see the word search engine on your
site. It’s considered a “poison” word, like free. Poison
words are those used way too often in an attempt to get noticed. Unfortunately
they no longer are noticed even if they’re relevant to the site’s
content.
I’ve included a list of sites that accept free submissions to get you
started. Make sure that you read the instructions carefully so that your site
will get indexed. Only add your web site to one category unless the site owner
asks for you to add it to another one. This can happen when you provide a
link to their directory.
Also, there are folks who run search directories, especially in specialized categories, because to them it’s an intense interest and they genuinely want to help the Internet become a better place. Respect them and encourage them and we’ll all benefit from this type of positive attitude.
http://www.01webdirectory.com
http://www.aardvarkbusiness.net
[must send e-mail to 5 contacts] Warning: be sure to put your site in the
correct category or it’ll be rejected. Ask me how I know!
http://www.addpro.com
http://www.aeiwi.com
[required link back]
http://www.allthewebsites.org
http://www.amidalla.com
http://www.burf.com
http://www.business-to-business-resources.com
http://www.cantufind.com
[no free email addresses such as yahoo, hotmail, zwallet, etc. this is a strict
FAMILY SAFE directory]
http://www.clearleadinc.com
http://www.clickey.com
[must register with e-mail address that is affiliated directly with the site]
http://www.dmoz.org
[Be patient with this one – can take several months, if
ever, to include your site!]
http://www.earthstation9.com
[Send this man an e-mail with your site’s info – that’s
all. And don’t try to butter him up, as he won’t have it!]
http://www.exactbot.com
http://www.ezilonsearch.com
[Adding a reciprocal link will get you listed in another category]
http://www.giftlinks.org
[not about giving links but for those in the biz of presents/gifts/packages
that are nicely wrapped, you know, pleasant things like that!]
http://www.gogolook.com
http://www.google.com
[Always the top search engine to be involved with]
http://www.hotlaunch.com
http://www.infoprobe.net
http://www.intelseek.com
http://www.isedb.com/html/Web_Directories
[You’ll discover loads of directories here, from the highly specialized
to the mainstream. Many of the sites have ratings; indicate whether they’re
accepting new submissions, and if there’s a fee for submitting].
http://www.jayde.com
http://www.katakombe.com
[must have a page rank of 5]
http://www.kazazz.com
[must add search box to your home page]
http://www.knowbe.com
http://www.linksmatch.com
http://www.netshoppers.com
http://www.noago.com
http://www.onebigdirectory.com
[you must register with them before submitting your URL]
http://www.pmonkey.com
http://www.searchpole.com
http://www.searchengine.com
http://www.searchsight.com
http://www.searchwarp.com
http://www.shoppingspot.com
['What makes this site stand out above the rest?' they ask you]
http://www.skaffe.com
http://www.somuch.com
http://www.splat.com
http://www.stopdog.com
http://www.submitexpress.com
http://www.surfgopher.com
http://www.theeverywherepages.com
http://www.theknowledgenetwork.org
http://www.worldcitypages.net
http://www.url.biz
http://www.yahoo.com
[Always the top search engine to be with]
http://www.yeandi.com
http://www.zeal.com
[non-commercial only]
http://www.zonebot.com
###
Lisa Maliga has been designing natural bath & body products since 1998 and recently launched her company, Everything Shea Aromatic Creations. Her love of shea butter, which is added to all the soaps, prompted her to name her company after the moisturizing and skin-soothing ingredient that comes from the nut of the African shea tree. Learn more about shea butter, whipped shea butter, custom handmade promotional SoapCakes and her unique variety of scented soaps at: http://www.everythingshea.com
Online
Pests: Free Sample Trolls
By Lisa Maliga
© 2005
To
reprint this article on your website, please contact
Lisa Maliga and include this byline:
http://www.lisamaliga.com ~ Lisa’s Library of Writing offers advice
on epublishing, adult figure skating, aromatherapy, web design, Internet promotion
and publishing. This is the home of fiction and nonfiction writer Lisa Maliga.
Bobbi of Montreal, Canada was known in certain online crafting forums as the ultimate free sample troll. You were a crafting nonentity if you hadn’t received a sample request from Bobbi. In March 2004, I became an honorary member as the notorious Canadian finally paid me a visit. It was a simple missive with a subject heading that read: “samples.” Uh oh, that free sample troll, I thought. Yup, the brief text read: “please send samples and catalogue to: [address].”
As the owner of a handcrafted [meaning I make everything myself!] bath & body products site, I don’t send out free samples. Nor do I have a print catalogue. Obviously Bobbi hadn’t read my site’s policies section on my “About” page as it clearly stated that a free sample accompanied a paid order.
Last year on one of my soapmaking groups I went through the archives and learned that Bobbi of Canada was a legendary free sample troll. She prowled the ‘net in search of free soap, bath & body products, gourmet cookies, and small handmade gift items. Obviously Bobbi searched far and wide for freebies as one soapmaker posted this: “We got the same email…all the way over in Australia! I sent an email back letting Bobbi know that we were willing to provide samples as long as they covered the postage and handling and paid a $20.00 samples fee. No reply!”
However, while Bobbi was the first free sample troll to contact me, I soon became aware of others. I learned that free sample trolls were often proficient in doling out flattery. Here’s an excerpt from a Mavis of Florida: “Your products sound wonderful – would it be possible to request a catalog or brochure? Also, your coconut soap sounds absolutely enticing! May I request a small sample of this soap?” Wonder why ol’ Mavis was writing to me? That last sentence was the clincher – she wanted to ingratiate herself and by doing so get the ol’ something for nothing. It didn’t work though because my policy was a very firm – no free samples. As a soapmaker, I ran a small business not a large charity.
She wrote back requesting a special order product and when I gave her the quote there was no reply. Until a few months later. By now I had a fully working web site with a PayPal shopping cart. She didn’t use the shopping cart, instead sending me a request for some soaps, offering to pay for it via check [uh oh!] and wanting it sent regular mail in order to save $1.92. Naturally she expressed a wish for a free sample, even specifying which soap was to be the freebie. She ended her mock order with: “P.S. I wish I could buy more but at this time, it's so hard. I just had a wedding for my daughter and the bills are piling up. So you know how that is.”
Actually, I don’t have any children, so no. But if the Floridian had just paid for a wedding, what the heck was an additional TEN DOLLARS including her discounted shipping?
Almost two weeks passed before she wrote back, using an excuse about her server going down. She revised her e-mail order [again, bypassing the shopping cart], lowering the amount to $7. A check was promised. It never came.
Free sample trolls devalue a product that often takes hours to craft, not to mention the amount of research and development that goes into creating that product. Time spent answering fantasy requests detracts from an online shop owner’s business earnings. Freebie hunters probably don’t bother to think about such incidental details. All they want is the gratification of knowing that someone gave them a product that they never intended to purchase. While some people genuinely are interested in buying a product and do need to try it firsthand, most of the serial free sample trolls only want something that requires no money or effort from them.
Last August
Jennifer from Kansas contacted me: “I am a person with extremely sensitive
skin that is in search of products that do not cause my skin to burn and itch.
If possible could you please send me a catalog of your products as well as
a few small samples for me to try. Any help that you can give me will be greatly
appreciated. My address is:”
Upon receiving a pleasant e-mail about my no free sample policy and the fact
that for a few dollars she could receive a product, there was no more correspondence
from Jennifer!
The best example of a genuine free sample troll hailed from New York. Rather unusual was the fact that this troll was a man. “Hello, my wife is throwing a shower for about 100 people and would like to order a huge assortment of soaps, but since she has never tried yours before she asked me to ask for a few samples to try, so if you could send me a few samples, I would appreciate it. The shower is in 3 weeks so if you could get them to me as soon as possible, I would appreciate it. Joe S.”
The man wanted the soap favors supplied by various soapmakers from around the world for free! He contacted handcrafted soapmakers from Canada, Minnesota, Georgia, Oregon and even Australia! Mr. S. tried to cater to the greed factor by using the term “a huge assortment” and he also wanted not just a sample, but also “a few samples.”
As Mr. S. used his work e-mail address I was able to contact his employers who promptly took action and an apology was sent.
Meanwhile, Bobbi from Canada still trolls the internet in search of free samples as evidenced by this soapmaker back in June 2004: “I have gotten one from her. Wanting free samples and free brochures... Ummm one would think the site she just landed on and went straight to the contact page would have worked as a brochure...guess she was too busy to read…”
And here, by another crafter: “This gal was pretty obvious in trolling for freebies. This one basically just said give me, here's my mailing address.”
The anonymity of the internet allows a ripe field of products to effortlessly harvest for those free sample trolls. But it also can enter the level of conning as evidenced here: “I am an associate editor for [name], a national magazine. I am interested in featuring your soaps in our holiday issue. I am especially interested in the wine soaps. Please let me know if you can send some samples.” Wanting to make certain this was legitimate; I called the magazine’s office to confirm the editor’s address and discovered that she no longer worked there!
One of the most thoughtful free sample requests occurred last autumn with this pleasant missive: “The products on your site look fabulous, we would love to see some samples for editorial consideration. My address is enclosed below. In the meantime, please let me know if you are interested in learning about the various promotional opportunities available on our site including our upcoming holiday gifts section.”
The free sample troll had now escalated into someone not only wanting gratis products, but also wanting money from me in order to further promote them on her site.
Last month I heard from Denise, another free sample troll who was apparently unable to click on links to products that were clearly listed. “I wanted to know if you have [name of product] as I have very dry skin and looking for a good product for this. If you do please let me know the prices for that.” I wrote back and gave her the links. She immediately wrote back: “Let me send in my orders then for the [name of product] and see how it works.”
Obviously
that order never went through, as I didn’t get another e-mail from her.
Just another free sample troll trolling for a freebie…
Read and learn at Lisa's Library
of Writing Discover the diverse writings ranging from free soap
and bath & body recipes to fiction, figure skating, aromatherapy, herbal
hints, and helpful publishing advice. Learn more about web design and promotion.
This is the literary home of Lisa Maliga, owner of EverythingShea
Read some nonfiction writing samples.
©
2001 - 2005 by Lisa Maliga
All copy and photographs on this entire website are copyrighted by Lisa Maliga
and may not be used without express written permission.
Index
[Home] |
|||||