What are Search Engines?

What are Search Engines?

Search Engines are websites that automatically document information available on the web in form of a updatable database. We search through this database.


Why submit to Search Engines?

We know that internet users search for websites or information on the web mainly through enquiring on a search engine or directory. The Search Engine responds to this by looking through its database and displaying all the matching sites - all in a jiffy. That is why it is important that your website is listed in the database of major search engines and directories. This way it will be possible for others to locate/find your site.
Examples of major search engines are Excite, Google and Altavista.



Why learn about Search Engines?

Understanding how search engines work can help you design your website such that they are suitable for better Search Engine listing.


Why different Search Engines give different results?

Search Engines slightly differ in the way they collect, store and display information. The number of websites indexed in its database can also vary. In addition, the search engines have different criteria for sequencing/ranking the websites. All these add on to give different results on different search engines.


What are Directories?

Directories are a list of websites compiled by human effort. Editors review websites and add only the ones they think relevant, to the database of the directory. The websites are sometimes rated, reviewed and commented by these editors. And in addition to keyword search, information can be located in a directory by going through subject categories to its sub categories that follow a branchlike structure. The references to websites are included in relevant categories.
Major directory such as Yahoo has over 22,000 subject categories to list websites.


Why submit to Directories?

We know that directories are as much used by internet users to search for websites or information on the web as that of enquiring on a search engine. That is why it is important that your website is also listed in the database of major directories (in addition to getting it listed in search engines). The directory responds to keyword search by looking through its database and displaying all the matching sites - all in a jiffy just like a search engine. Alternatively in a directory, users could go through categories into subcategories and find the relevant information.
Examples of major directories are Yahoo, Open Directory and Lycos.



Why Directories give better results?

Since only the relevant sites are listed in a directory, it give results that are much more focussed than that of search engine results. Its also helpful sometimes when the reviewers rate and comment on websites. At the same time, there is a chance that it might have missed listing of an important website because it did not come to its notice.


What are Announcement sites?

Announcement sites put up a list of new sites for a certain temporary period of time. These sites are useful for announcing new websites or new additions in your website as webpages or articles. Many of these sites do archive reference to these sites after the announcement period.


Why submit to Announcement sites?

Being listed on announcement sites can get some traffic on your website. Many search engines keep a track of announcement sites to get to know of new sites. That makes it a good idea to submit to some of these.





What are Free For All (FFA) sites?

Free For All sites display a rotating list of links to websites. The list is constantly modified as new ones are added. You are on top of the list as soon as you submit and as others get added you keep going down the list until you roll off the list. The time period depends on how many new ones are being added to the list. It could be from a day to a week or more. There are tens of thousands of FFA sites.
DreamSubmit Pro 4.0 would submit to a selected 2500 of these sites. Many of these sites send an email confirmation. Be prepared to get 100 - 500 emails. That's why we have suggested an additional email address.



Why submit to Free For All sites?

FFA sites gets your website an initial exposure. Your site also remain linked from many of these sites. Having external links point at your website is a good criteria for getting ranked well on search engines.