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All right. You're going to build a web site. You've got your FrontPage or much more expensive DreamWeaver because, so far as I know, there's not any viable third alternative. You at least bought FrontPage because, for any other imperfections it does have, it handles links very well, which not all less expensive editors do, which means a nightmare. Either way you've got an editor that can, without question, do the job.
One doesn't need to be told how to construct a web site. They're everywhere, you know. Up at the top of your browser there's a View button. It drops a menu with a Source button. You'll be saying "What a long strange trip it's been" in no time. I do suggest, however, that you avoid frames and use tables, perhaps with CSS if you want to be certain of various uniformities throughout your pages. Using frames could present problems with search engines. Since you're developing a web site you're going to have nothing but problems. So delete one from the start and use tables. The best website of which I know to learn CSS, and a lot else besides, is W3Schools.
There is nothing wrong with content. So where is it on commercial web sites? For the purpose of search engines it's that vacuous writing called ad copy. Which is generally very bad writing. But the worse it is, and the less genuine it is, the more money it attracts. First rule of thumb if you want to earn money. Further, the internet is changing the languages of the world. Most commercial web sites are written entirely toward showing up well in search engines. Nothing else is relevant. But people don't use the internet to read anyway, even less than they use newspapers to read, which is even less than they use books to read. People use the internet to find and find now, this very instant. Which the countless choices that are presented on the internet can make very difficult. How, for example, does one distinguish between an SEO company that serves a shot straight up and forty others that only grin exceedingly well while serving watered liquor? Linking. That like hangs with like, however, is a truth at once untrue because there are countless variables of circumstance. Further, years ago engines began to penalize sites which they viewed as link farms created more to the purpose of spamming than in the interest of recommending, or at least approving, other websites to their visitors. What followed that, therefore, is the relevancy farm. Hundreds of reciprocal links may gain you traffic, but they'll not gain you PR. And I wouldn't be surprised to see many of them go the same way as FFA pages in the estimation of search engines.
Before this web site became commercial in any way I linked with only web sites which I thought to be of some especial curiosity, quality or usefulness. I wrote several hundred letters to several hundred other web masters until enough linked to Viola Fair that she performed reasonably well in the engines. To see how I originally acquired most links to this web site visit this yet unembellished World of Art Plexus. Or this Publishing Industry Index, also yet unembellished. Naturally, I wanted reciprocal links, which to gain meant linking to other web sites whether they returned a link or not. In the process, however, I was able to direct the art lover to the web sites of some truly talented artists, as well as provide a service to those with a publishing-related need. What were originally intended to be reciprocal links pages became directories instead. As such, their existence is fairly similar to that of dmoz. They are human-edited listings and no one buys their slot. As such their OBLs should have value just as do those of dmoz, though the difference is that those who reciprocate stay while those don't may come and go.
All in all, a link is just a link. Most web masters are pretty bitchy about it. So am I insofar that I fairly insist to know whether I'm going to link with a human being or shrug a nonentity. Other web masters want to domineer the way their link appears, even those who can't spell. Accommodate as you can but retain editorial rights on your own website. Leave it to other webmasters and your reciprocals pages will begin to look like landfills, which makes you look careless, albeit that's highly profitable. Be as may, be certain that engines can find your reciprocal links pages no further than two, three at most, links distant from your index page. Because I didn't want PR pages on the menu I solved that internal linking problem by creating a Public Relations page accessible from the index page. It would raise the PR of reciprocals pages if I pointed to them from the menu of every page. That would make others more eager to link, but farming reciprocals isn't what this website is about.
The value of linking is often less for sake of Google PR than than for traffic from the sites which link to you. A few of the sites which link to Viola Fair rival Alta Vista, even MSN, in the traffic they send. But as to PR, there are websites which barely bother with linking at all, and to which few other sites link, which Google rewards very nice rank. There are thousands of other websites with hundreds of reciprocal links which Google ranks poorly. Chase the fake reciprocal link rabbit around the track if you insist. But you'll never catch it. Furthermore, Google PR is also relative. For example, a few of my 0PR pages earn more profit than any other, and 0PR pages account for about 25% of traffic to this web site. That's due to phrasing in content and tags, not reciprocal linking or search engine PR. Then again, I sometimes think that Google won't award those pages the PR they merit exactly because they would receive even more traffic and become of remotely possible assistance to rising above poverty. Then maybe I could get back to writing instead of ad and search engine copy.
You will raise the odds of acquiring genuine reciprocal links if you write to web masters personally and don't feed them garbage such as telling them you like their web site when it's obvious you haven't even looked at it. However, writing to web masters who use automated linking programs is a waste of time if you're seeking genuine links as compared to only playing the Google game. Most web masters use such programs to avoid the bother of linking. You can't blame them because ninety-nine percent of reciprocal linking on the internet is so much snow. Viola Fair sticks to her guns and continues to write to web masters to see if there's anything happening. I figure if they can't find the wherewithal to communicate with other web masters whose websites they pretend to recommend they'll be about the same with their customers, which isn't recommendable. Every so often I'll use an use an auto submit, but rarely. I'd gain countless more links if I did. But I need to know something of the essence of a website to which I might point on a reciprocal links page, such as whether it's dead or alive.
Avoid like the plague who use spidering to build links. They're often in trouble with Google for spamming and I consider email from web masters who use this method SPAM. Also avoid various automated systems such as some gambling web sites use. Google is wise to the problem of link proliferation and can penalize those web sites. If you link to them you're guilty by association. Engines also frown on the relatively new and not (yet) very successful text link market, though it's not actually very different from selling banner space. It is, anyway, a very expensive way to go. I say the internet's a better realm if you several hundred letters to acquire genuine links. That's an enormous amount of work, but there's really no way around it if you actually own any concern about where you refer visitors to your web site. There are, however, various programs which can make it a touch easier. Try Zeus, Links-Pal or LinkPartners. Zeus has been around a long time, but before you use it, or any other programs here, visit Webmaster World for a little linking education. Another option is Link Trader. But it'll cost you much more than Zeus in the long run, and more than WSN Links or LinkMarket which are free. These programs can make finding, or being found, by quality sites a little easier. But by removing the personal touch that is original correspondence they help make the internet just one more meaningless realm. Surely, money is not meaningless. Indeed, it's the only thing that does have any meaning, for which sake all other possibility of meaning is isolated, sacrificed, crucified, starved. Surely, many fine words are used. But if they aren't a facade, as in ad copy, then who actually believe what they say know neither what they say in fullness nor what they do. Anyway, it is also recommended that if you link to other sites via automated linking offered on their web sites that you keep record of it. Many use automated linking to collect nonreciprocal IBLs with no intention to visit other web sites, correspond or place links in kind. (Often this "put up our link first" demand which, being slightly childish and uptight, is probably not a website to which you'd want to point since they likely relate to customers in ways similarly small-minded, if at all.) On the other hand, automated linking programs in themselves usually provide valid links with real PR value. The games some web masters play to make those OBLs invisible to search engines is another matter. Other linking information:
MR CGI GUY offers software to give your links pages a YAHOO! feel. Beyond that, visit guest books or join forums and online communities to acquire links. More information may be found at Linking 101. For a touch of curious fun get a load of these ridiculous web sites. Less properly, visit this game and see if you can figure it. If you'd like to rank links according to votes or the traffic they return use this free program at uRanking. Last but not least, don't be like me, but work on linking. Most who write to you to propose a link will have lesser PR. So it figures that if you want links from web sites doing better than your own you are going to have to contact them. For beginning web masters, one good way to acquire links with little or no Google page rank is to enter your URL in free directories - the ones SE experts tell you to not bother with because they don't often generate a lot traffic. However, the difference between what is a directory and what is a "relevancy" link farm is not always clear. DMOZ is what is meant by a legitimate directory. There is no fee and reciprocal linking is not required. Getting listed in a directory for a fee is no different than purchasing links, which Google may frown upon, which is one reason your advertisement may go on a page hidden from spiders, gaining you no PR. Google pretty much has a quagmire on its hands. As for those of you with an established internet presence who may have an old-school interest in keeping linking as genuine as possible, yeah, it's grueling task. One way you might feel more inspired is to request links from those who link to your top ten referrers. You can learn how many and what sites link to your or any other web site by visiting Alexa and typing in the URL. For a more thorough listing visit Google and type in the URL followed by "+a". That is: "www.readmnweep.com+a". Or "link:www.readmnweep.com".
How many links on a reciprocal resources page are too many for your website to be found at the bottom of a list? It depends on what kind of website it is. In general, some webmasters say 30, others 100. I say ten, because no matter how relevant forty links may be it's highly likely they exist for Google, not because they are actually recommended, of which Google is quite aware. Though gambling, jewelry and health-related sites have been doing it for years, the relevancy farm is only the latest version of the link farm. Don't be surprised if Google begins to consider relevancy farms relevant to engine spamming, especially when assisted via automated linking programs. Perhaps a good rule of thumb is if you have to scroll more than once to see the list from top to bottom then the reference is likely next to worthless even on a high PR page. But what I'm waiting to see is the day that Google penalizes sites which acquire high PR by appearing to be one-way referenced by hundreds of websites by not reciprocating unwary web masters with legitimate links on search-engine friendly pages. That may not be done in every instance with intent to scam the internet community, but when you come upon a site with hundreds of search engine invisible links to other sites what do you think the odds are, knowing people as you might? Then again, some call wise what is clever, and it's your responsibility when linking to look at source code, etc.. So don't be naive. Various ways that some reciprocate PR-worthless links to other web masters, thereby more profitable to themselves, may be found at free directories above. Finally, a Favorites page of ten links might point to a wide variety of websites with actual intention of recommending them. But a Resources page of, say, 40 links that points to all variety of websites and isn't categorized is nigh a worthless link even on a high PR page. Be sure that those with whom you link have an elemental sense of arrangement.
Other than the major engines links are your best source of relevant advertising, followed by ezines. As for text link exchanges, I've found results to not be worth the effort for a web site this size. They may work well for you, however, if your web site is relatively small. (Careful, there is at least one exchange which will, without telling you, add a program to your computer which displays pop-up advertisements when you use the internet. I used Ad-aware to find and remove the program.) You can also get backward link information with Google's very cool and well-designed free browser toolbar. This tool will also give you a very general notion of page rank, autofills forms, kills pop-ups, does drag-and-drop and right-click searches, performs quick word finds and lists similar sites with which you might like to link. Further linking assistance can be found at Ken Evoy's Site Sell. Most of the linking to be done through Sitesell wouldn't be of much assistance, at least not in the near future. But there's pepper sprinkled here and there of no small value. Or you can download this free ebook on link building which you are free to distribute on your own web site if you like.
Once you have a satisfactory number of links you may be ready for search engines. Google and Yahoo! will likely have already spidered your web site within a couple of weeks of going online, while you were working on links. My policy with nigh anything, including search engines, is if it's tuned well don't start twisting wires. If you have presence on Google don't submit. That is, don't pester. Let them do what they do. As for other engines, I submit twice per year, when Ask Jeeves and Overture Site Match send emails to remind me it's time to renew. If you're not showing well in Google or Yahoo it's not because they've missed your web site, but because you're missing either content, links or money. If you don't show well and can't come up with either money or content, (which Viola Fair is yet so foolish to believe to be anything but nigh all ad copy, much less the majority of anything else ever written to kill time with endeavor create with understanding or gain fame and fortune as we pass through this nightmare) then send letters to several hundred more web masters to request a link.
Elemental submittal to search engines is very easy at any of these locations:
For further info on search engines and indexes visit Search Engine Watch and Webmaster World. Visit Website Clues if you want save some money via web site code.
Take care when educating yourself via viewing the source code of web sites. For instance, if you see a title tag below a keywords tag and do the same you're keywords won't be read by engines because they start at the title. The Title, Description and Keyword tags are the elementals. As for the Generator and Program tags, they have no function. FrontPage users may remove them via Page Properties (right click) then Custom. The Robots tag has various uses for reasons that you may later come to determine for yourself. The Language tag is important if you wish to target visitation to your web site more precisely. The Revisit tag is nearly a thing of the past. Google spiders when it spiders and engines like AltaVista refresh their view every 24 hours anyway. For further assistance with web mastering there are several excellent - nay, important - web sites which you should visit. The first is Search Engine World. The next is Webmaster World. Also visit cre8asite, WebProWorld and Web Design Forums. To gain a notion of what expert web site designers determine to be a great or poor web site visit webformz.
Content, quality links, and knowledge of code and search engines are the basic elements of a web site a phase or so beyond the rest. But there's one more wall to breach, the most difficult of all, and that's promotion.
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