Newsletter Archive

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In last week's newsletter we discussed search engines. More specifically, we discussed the difficulty in acquiring a listing within the most popular search engines. Yahoo, Excite, AltaVista, & Go.com are now charging for site reviews, a service which was once unequivocally free. You may add NBCi.com (formerly snap.com), iWON & MSN Search to that list.

In years past, search engines gladly accepted URL's because they needed content. Now, they appear to have the attitude that they no longer need you. People will continue to use them whether they list your site or not. NPD New Media Services conducted a survey earlier this year, and out of 33,000 users found that 81% found what they were searching for. This is up from last year's figure of 77%. In other words, most users appear to be content with the results the more popular search engines yield.

I understand why a search engine would charge for basic listings. At the 800 Directory, we receive tons of requests for listings daily. We must "review" each one individually, correcting typos, misspellings and the infamous ALL CAPS submissions. The toll free number is verified by either visiting the company web site or, if corroboration can't be found, it is called. We also receive requests to change listings and delete them after they've been submitted. All of this is done for free. Selling Enhanced Listings and other ads generates the money to pay the people who perform these services. Trust me when I tell you, overall, the free portion of the services we provide uses up far more of our time than servicing the advertisers. Fortunately, our economic situation is such that we can still afford to do this.

Based on the email responses I received after my last article, it appears that folks would not be upset if Yahoo and others were charging for a listing. The outrage is that Yahoo charges for a REVIEW, with no guarantee that your site will actually be listed and no refund if it's not. Small businesses with small advertising budgets might balk at paying $199 for a "review". When you add in Excite and Altavista, we're now talking about $500-$600! That's a pretty good size chunk of change to pay for the "chance" that you might get a basic listing. Newsletter reader Dr John K. Flynn, of Australia, put it best when he wrote, "The situation as it exists is bent heavily in favor of the rich and powerful." Welcome to America. Have a nice day.

I mentioned sharks in my last email. The sharks are the folks that prey upon the small business owners' needs and fantasies. They promise outrageous services, often at a paltry sum. I'm sure many of you have received unsolicited email offering to get your web site in the "top ten" of the major search engines for only $xx! Usually, the offer is littered with the word "Guaranteed". The offers are reminiscent of the old fashion snake oil salesmen, "Our Super Search Engine Software will drive thousands of wealthy customers to your web site, cure all of your personal problems and make your teeth whiter!!"

Let's analyze this for a moment. How can a third party company promise to get a web site top ten placement within Yahoo (or Excite, or Lycos, etc.)? I don't believe any company has a secret working agreement with Yahoo that allows their customers preferential treatment, so how can somebody make this claim? What about the $199? And, how does Yahoo feel about this third party making money from selling Yahoo listings and then not sharing any of the revenues with Yahoo? And what if this third party has already sold it's service to ten others that use my same key words? Would I be told, "Sorry, the key words, "toll free" have already been sold to ten other customers. I can sell you "top 11" placement at a substantial discount?"

The old adage, "if something sounds too good to be true..." applies here. Some folks have a clear understanding of the appeal of a "top ten" listing. Those folks say exactly what the web owner wants to hear and make it a point to price their service low enough that it's worth taking a chance on. In researching this article, I, myself, almost paid $39 just to see what one of these services was actually doing that I wasn't (fortunately, Chuck stopped me).

If you are contemplating the use one of these types of services, let common sense be your guide. Get a clear definition of the service(s) to be provided. Make sure any guarantees are presented to you in writing. Find out exactly which search engines you'll be submitted to and which you should expect a superior listing in. Ask how long before you should see results? Some services only guarantee their product if you follow their instruction manual exactly. It would be good to know what, if any, action is necessary on your part to achieve your goal. Before purchasing, ask for examples of some sites they have used this service on, and then do a search for these sites' key words and see if they come up. In other words, be skeptical and practice due diligence.

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