Hit List

How to get first-time visitors

In the classic movie Field of Dreams, Kevin Costner'scharacterconstructs a baseball diamond in the middle of an Iowacornfield after a voicepromises him, "If you build it, theywill come." Just a few short years ago,that phrase became thesiren song of the Internet. Put up a Web site, andcustomers willbeat a path to your (cyberspace) door.

Unfortunately, that doesn't always work. Follow these stepsto bring first-timevisitors to your site:

Start with a recognizable domain name. Choosing yourcompany or productname for your domain automatically makes your Website easier for visitors tofind. Select an URL that communicateswhat products and information your siteoffers.

Promote your site in all company materials. Make sureyour URL isprominently displayed on your brochures and fliers, andinclude it in all youradvertising and public relations materials.Get a buzz going, becauseword-of-mouth is a good trafficgenerator.

Register with major search engines. You can register yoursite withsearch engines, such as Yahoo! and Excite simply byvisiting their sites andfilling out a form. But don't count onlistings with search engines to be yourprimary traffic generator.Newer sites and those with fewer visitors often getthe lowestrankings when searches are performed. And if your site is number40or 50 to show up in a search, it's less likely to getnoticed.

Set up links from related sites. Do keyword searches forgood sites thatoffer related information or reach your targetaudience. Then contact as manyas possible to negotiate for linksbetween your site and theirs. Ideally, youshould negotiate fordescriptive text to accompany your link and be prepared toofferreciprocal links back to these related sites.

Advertise on related sites. If you sell products orservices on your Website, consider running ads on otherhigh-traffic sites that reach your targetaudience. Theoverabundance of ad space on Web sites means you can run bannerorother advertising inexpensively on a variety of quality sites.

Publicize in conventional media. If your Web site offersinformationthat isn't obtainable elsewhere, publicize it bymounting a PR campaign to keypublications that feature news aboutthe Internet. Submit your press releaseselectronically, thenfollow-up by telephone or e-mail. Be prepared to explainwhy yourWeb site will be of special interest to each publication'sreaders.