This website is now a gateway to my other ventures, just the articles like the one below have been retained.

My other ventures:
Rose City Designers - gallery of freelance design talent in Portland, Oregon
Acorn Host - Green-powered hosting with non-profit web hosting discounts.
Tao of Prosperity - helping the self-employed work less, earn more, and live a life of play

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Search Engine Submission

1. Submit the top-level page (homepage) of your site to Google: There used to be a longer list, but search engines have been consolidating lately - AlltheWeb and Altavista used to have their own search, but now they are using Yahoo! results. And just to keep you on your toes, Yahoo! used to use Google, but now they have their own database.

Back in the day, people submitted every page of their site every month, in the hopes that they would get higher on search engines. Modern search engines prefer to find your site the “natural” way—by following links from other sites to your site. So, go ahead and submit, but also be sure to cultivate good incoming links.

2. Submit your site to DMOZ:

  • Open Directory Project/DMOZ – feeds Google Directory and others. Run by volunteers, so there is no guarantee as to how soon or even if you get listed.
Find the EXACT correct category and click "Add URL" or "Suggest Your Site". Be sure to work out your wording so your description is concise and has your keywords. If you are a local business, submit to your location category (e.g. Corvallis, Oregon) in DMOZ.

3. Search for topic-specific web directories and list your site with them. Even if they don't generate a lot of traffic themselves, they will count toward your link popularity (see below). To find these directories, try searching for:
keyword directory
keyword "submit site"
keyword "list site"
keyword "add site"
keyword "add url"
keyword "submit URL"
keyword "free listing"


4. After 4-6 weeks, monitor your progress monthly with these free tools:

To Avoid:
Google also specifically forbids automatic submission programs such as WebPosition Gold, and people have been banned for using them. I recommend you submit your site by hand—it doesn't take that long and it's worth it.
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