by Killeen Gonzalez

Created on: June 26, 2009   Last Updated: July 02, 2009

Company websites are only as valuable as the effort you put into them. Unfortunately, for a variety of reasons many business owners do not fully utilize their web presence in their overall marketing efforts. With that said, here are just 7 of the many low to no-cost ways you can better utilize your company's web presence.

1. Submit your website address to various directories and search engines. Just because you have a web site doesn't automatically mean that it is listed in every popular directory or search engine. You have to submit your sites URL to these directories. Some directory services like DMOZ are free, whereas other directories like Yahoo charge a fee for site listings. In addition to general directories do not forget to consider submitting your site to Niche directories. Niche directories typically focus on a specific industry and can often provide more marketing value than general directory submissions. Not having your website listed in the popular search engines and directories is a little like not listing your business in the phone book. It just doesn't make sense.

2. Remember keywords are key! When you are submitting your website address to the assorted directories and search engines, you will need to choose keywords that best describe your business. To discover what keywords are best for your business, you can enlist the help of a free online tool called Google External Keyword (GEK). GEK users can type in a potential keyword and Google will show the user the total number of searches using that keyword in the past month. Naturally you will want to pay special attention to what keywords are most popular in your search category. GEK will also generate for its users other potential keywords that they may want to consider when listing their website. Not only is keyword information helpful when attempting to increase your web sites ranking, it is helpful for business owners who want to understand more about how their target market searches for products and services.

3. Search out the competition. Business owners should periodically conduct their own Internet searches using assorted keywords and then take note of what web sites are coming up in the top 10 slots. If your competitors web sites are coming up in the top 10 search results (SERPS - Search Engine Results Pages) but your company listing is buried at the bottom of the list you are going to want to investigate why. It could be that your web site needs

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