Tag Archive 'URL'

How Web Hosting Aids in SEO

You probably know by now that web hosting is a popular service millions of people rely on to create their websites.  These services are used for everything from blogs and personal sites to e-commerce and community sites.  What many people don’t know is the importance of web hosting as it relates to search engine optimization.  You can truly benefit from search engine traffic by leveraging your hosting solution and devising a sound SEO strategy.

Domain and URLs

Before even purchasing a web hosting plan, you probably want to get yourself a domain first.  If you already have a name registered with another host, it shouldn’t be difficult to transfer it over to a new provider.  If not, you can easily register one for about $10 a year.  When it comes to SEO, both your domain and URLs are extremely important.  This is because when the search engine spiders come crawling, they index your pages individually opposed to the website itself.  With most hosting solutions, you have the ability to create custom URLs, so when used in conjunction with your domain name, it makes a great way to increase visibility in the eyes of the search engines.

Search Engine Friendly Features

The features a web hosting provider offers can also benefit your SEO efforts.  Because optimizing for targeted search engine traffic has proven to be effective, many hosts now offer tools that help research and choose the best keywords for your site.  Another great feature is the handy web application.  These utilities give you graphical statistics on your website traffic, showing when visitors came in and where they come from.  They usually show you which search engine spiders visited your site as well.  Then you have companies that offer free search engine submissions, free marketing credits, Google webmaster tools and more.   The average web hosting package is loaded with an arsenal of tools that can aid in SEO.

Finding the Right Solution

Although web hosting plays a major role in SEO, the actual results all depends on the hosting company.  This is why it is so crucial to put an emphasis on quality and reliability rather than the cost of service.  There are many types of hosting out there and finding a cheap solution is easier than ever before.  When looking for a service, you need to keep in mind that you are essentially placing the fate of your search engine rankings in the hands of another company.  This is one relationship where trust is key.  Without doing your research and rushing into a service, you can end up with a solution that does more harm to your visibility than good.  Worst of all, you may not even be aware of it.

You should also be cautious about hosting multiple domains on a single account and server.  While this may seem like a practical and cost effective move, it could also hinder your cause.

It is speculated that search engines view linking from within the same IP address as a move done to generate false link popularity.  In order to get the best results, SEO and web hosting need to work in perfect harmony.

Category: SEO / SEM
Tags: , , , , , , , ,
Posted on Friday, Apr 17, 2009
Trackback URI   Comments RSS

How to Choose a Good Domain Name

When deciding to create a presence on the web, one of the first steps you need to consider is picking a domain name for your website.  This name will represent you by tagging your website with a label that resonates within the minds of visitors.  The name can be up to 67 characters in length and consist of letters, numbers and hyphens.  One of the most important parts of a domain name is the extension or TLD (Top level domain).  Some of the common TLDs include .com, .net, .biz, .org. .edu. .gov., .mil and the list goes on.  While domain names are not exactly extinct, any observer will tell you that there is a shortage of good ones.

To the current day, well over 128 million domain names have been registered throughout the world.  Research shows that thousands of new registrations are being purchased on a daily basis.  The crave of domain names is what makes it so much harder for the newbie to acquire the name they truly want for their website.  If you came up with something simple and catchy such as Buy.com or Fixit.com, forget about it – those domains were gone a long time ago.   The sad part of it all is that many domains are just sitting there inactive, waiting for someone to come through and make a bid.  It’s a crazy game but no need to fret.  Instead of getting frustrated about the domain name shortage, get creative.

Keep it Short …

Even though you get up to 57 characters, using the maximum amount for your domain just isn’t practical.  In fact, anything over 10 characters is actually pushing it.  You don’t have to be a rocket scientist to know that shorter names are simply easier to remember.  They are also less vulnerable to typing errors.  There are however, exceptions to this rule.  Let’s say the name of your business is sort of long and you want to shorten it up with MWWF.  In this example,

Midwestwritersfoundation.com could be easier to remember than the abbreviated version.

Keep it Simple

If you find that your domain name isn’t available, you may be tempted to get clever and come up with a neat variation.  Let’s say Midwestwritersfoundation.com isn’t available.  In this case, you could decide to go with midwest-writers-foundation.com.  Although symbols can help you get closer to the name you actually want, there are some drawbacks.  For one, symbols hardly ever resonate with internet users. If anything, they will omit the symbols and end up at the site of the website owner who beat you to the original domain. Secondly, your potential visitors could easily forget exactly where the symbols are to be placed in the URL, especially if you use more than one.   If at all possible, refrain from symbols.

Be Unique

Sometimes, finding a good domain is simply all about thinking in ways others don’t.  This means coming up with different combinations of your ideal name, adding or subtracting words like “the” and focusing solely on your business.  The market you’re involved in may consist of thousands of businesses but only few, if any, will have the same name as your company.

Category: Domain Names
Tags: , , , , ,
Posted on Tuesday, Jan 27, 2009
Trackback URI   Comments RSS

Sponsored Links