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"Effective Online Advertising"
List Moderator: Adam Audette
E-Mail aa@le-digest.com
September 27 2000 Digest #926
Search Engine Listing Charges
~ Rod Aries
"...the $200 is a bargain, unless you have a site that is, for what ever reason, nonprofit..."
Subject: Seach Engine Listing Charges
Larry Boardman wrote:
I want to focus not on if they charge but what they charge and what you get from it... and then went on to say all the $200 gets
you is a 'look'.
I would like to offer another perspective on what you get... a listing in a major directory for only $200. Gawd, where do I sign
up? Have you seen how large of a yellow pages ad you can get or how many direct mail pieces you can send for $200? And, although
implicit, the $200 appears to buy you an indefinite period listing vs. a one year listing in something like the yellow pages.
If you calculate the true cost - over time, it probably works out to about a PENNY a click.
So, the $200 is a bargain, unless you have a site that is, for what
ver reason, nonprofit...
My 10 year old is the 'soul' proprietor of her own 40-page surfing site ( www.beaconsbeach.com ), which actually gets 15-30 unique
visitors a day, but while a labor of love (and experience) for her, I would be hard pressed to spend $200 to submit her site. I have
had to take the on the cumbersome task of showing her how to ask (beg) for links from other surf related sites - so I can relate to
those complaining about the fees :)
Larry added --
My gripe is the price vs value. If the charge was $25 for a "look", then I would not have a problem and neither would my
clients. But at $200 per search engine, even my major clients are taking a second look.
Someone who is going to spend $200 on a submission had better be confident in their product/service, content and appearance. I would
also comment that if you don't get in after spending $200, it is probably a good wake up call for you telling you to get a decent
site. Furthermore, with all due respect, if you have a commercial site and you are wondering if you are going to get your $200 back
in terms of increased sales, you may need to re-evaluate your product line.
This internet thing is not free... there is a cost with it and as with other aspects in business you 'pay to play'. Internet
companies have a right to make a profit, the same way you have a way to make a profit from your web site. If you don't like the
$200 fee, don't do it. But snubbing your wallet at Yahoo and Looksmart seems only to be a personal battle of ego, not common
sense.
I would offer, that for a decent commercial site, you should easily
recover the $200 in increased sales - in a very short period of time. Seems like a no brainer to me - spend $200 get $2,000 or
$20,000 or $200,000 back...
We have clients ( www.1discountlongdistance.com
) with half a million+ unique visitors a year - SOLELY from directories and
search engines - that $200 is the best they money we ever spent.
There is another advantage (to some) in that the $200 acts like a membership fee, in that it keeps people (nonmembers) out of the
club (directories), thus effectively lowering the sheer volume of competition - from millions of pages to maybe just thousands of
pages.
So, in sum, 'if you won't spend the dime, it will be a crime...' (to your web site and potential visitors). :)
At your service,
Rod Aries
How To Internet Your Business
http://www.howtointernet.com
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