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Suggest You - Why Dot-Coms Fail - a Webmaster's Perspective
There are very few businesses that own office spaces. It is an expensive and unnecessary investment for those business owners who don?t need extensive laboratories or other specialized facilities in their organizations. For a business office that needs space for people to work on computers and with clients, it is rented or leased out from building owners or contractors, alias business incubators.The Internet has made office space leasing a very easy job. There are plenty of websites that help you to find out your area requirements, search available office spaces online and take you through the entire process of setting up with as much ease as writing your name down on a piece of paper or checking email on your computer.If you would rather not depend on the Internet for your office leasing requirements, the first step would be to make a detailed note of your requirements. The general rule of thumb is 175 to 250 square feet of working space for each person. Working according to this, you can chart out a rough area requirement for the office space and then contact a commercial real estate
- The lack of your main keywords in the content of the page, in the Title tag and in the Description and Keyword meta tags. Ultimately it all depends of the Search Engines’ algorithm- the criteria used by the Search Engines to rank pages.
- HTML errors. Examples include unclosed tags, unquoted attributes, improperly nested tags, missing the ALT attribute on images. Any of these will affect your site's accessibility, reducing your potential client pool.
A Web site with HTML errors can look fine in Explorer, strange in Netscape or Opera and totally unreadable in a text browser. Although Explorer has the largest market share, an important percentage of net surfers use other browsers. Don't forget the more than 50 million people in the USA with disabilities. Many of the latter use text/voice browsers.
Other Types of Errors in Web Sites
Proper HTML coding is very important but the structure and the la
Career coaches don't have a magic formula for helping their clients (if we did, we'd be bottling it and making millions!), but why has career coaching received so much press lately? Pick up any magazine and you're likely to see a reference to coaching: Oprah, Redbook, Self, Fast Company, Health, Inc., and many other business magazines. What career coaches do offer their clients is an easier way to career success than if they were to try and do it on their own.Unlike traditional career counseling or even therapy, career coaching is action-oriented and future-focused. A coach is trained to ask the right question at the right time, listen to what's being said (as well as what's not being said), and offer unconditional yet objective and honest support and feedback. A coach is like having a trusted advisor, mentor, consultant and cheerleader who's only agenda is to support you in getting what you want.If you're unclear about where you're headed, a coach can help clarify your purpose, values, and goals. If you know where you're going and what you need to do but find yourself getting off-
When and why does a dot-com become a dot-bomb?
After checking few dozen defunct companies, I think the main reasons for dot-coms failure are:
- Poor business plan. In the last years, a lot of investment capital was spent on poorly planned companies that clearly couldn't reach profitability.
- Poor company promotion. This applies both offline and online. Two newspaper ads and word of mouth are not enough.
- Poor financial management. Fancy offices, free food, does it ring a bell?
- Poor Human Resources management. With lots of cash in their hands, many start-up companies hired too many people or, even worse, hired unqualified staff. The hiring of friends and relatives often returned no value on investments.
- Errors in the company's Web site. Sometimes hundreds of errors could be found in one Web page. Yes, those Web site builders should go back to school- if they ever went to school for HTML at all.
I'll focus my comments on the last reason:
How Errors in the Web Site Can Affect the Company's Health
It's clear that you can make money on the Web if you have customers. You have customers if you have viewers- "traffic" in the geek's language. And you get traffic if your site is easy to find -- near the top -- in the Search Engine Results Pages (SERPs). That's not so easy to achieve.
First of all your site has to be indexed by the search tools: Search Engines and Web Directories.
Although some Search Engines will eventually find your site by themselves, most of the time this only happens if somebody links to your site. In the case of a NEW site, having existing links is almost impossible. Rather than wait for links to be made, start a submission campaign.
A big no-no is submitting a Web site using submission software. Using software of this type may be quick and easy, but some Web Directories and Search Engines do NOT accept automated submissions.
It's true that manual submission is a time consuming process -- you'll have to read AND follow each Search Engines' submission guidelines, to effectively perform the submission – but it's a necessary step.
Most of the defunct sites I've checked had only a modest presence and visibility in the Search Engines.
Let's say that you submitted your site correctly, you waited a reasonable amount of time - usually few weeks – for the Search Engines to process your submission, but your site does not appear near the top in the Search Engine Results Pages.
You're wondering why, right? Well, one or more of the following reasons might apply:
1) Your submission was not accepted by the Search Engines. If you used spamming techniques, such as:
- Repeating keywords in the keyword meta tag or using text in the same color as the background, some Search Engines might refuse to index your site.
- Page redirection -- including cloaking -- or building artificial links farms can sometimes be seen as spam by some Search Engines. These links farms involve building Web pages for the sole purpose of creating links to the targeted site. For more about spam please read my article:
"Search Engine Spamming Sucks!" [ http://www.web-design-in-new-york.com/articles.html ]
Some Search Engines also have difficulty in indexing pages that use frames or Flash.
2) Your submission was accepted, but your site is not listed in the Top 10-30. Because very few people check pages after the first 30 results, you want to be in the Top 10-30. There are many reasons why a site is not listed high.
The most common reasons are:
- The lack of your main keywords in the content of the page, in the Title tag and in the Description and Keyword meta tags. Ultimately it all depends of the Search Engines’ algorithm- the criteria used by the Search Engines to rank pages.
- HTML errors. Examples include unclosed tags, unquoted attributes, improperly nested tags, missing the ALT attribute on images. Any of these will affect your site's accessibility, reducing your potential client pool.
A Web site with HTML errors can look fine in Explorer, strange in Netscape or Opera and totally unreadable in a text browser. Although Explorer has the largest market share, an important percentage of net surfers use other browsers. Don't forget the more than 50 million people in the USA with disabilities. Many of the latter use text/voice browsers.
Other Types of Errors in Web Sites
Proper HTML coding is very important but the structure and the lay
Most job seekers know that an unprofessional appearance will count against them at an interview. Here are six MORE factors that can help you remain in the unemployment line: (1) Being unprepared for the interview. Prepare, plan, and practice! In today's tough job market, you MUST do everything you can to give yourself an edge... preparation is the key. (2) Not being able to communicate clearly and effectively. This is important during the interview and on the job. Being nervous can really mess up your communication skills, so being well prepared and practicing what you're going to say are always your best bet. (3) Being aggressive, arrogant, or acting in a superior way. No one wants to hire or work with people who think they're better than everyone else. Be careful with your attitude, even if you think you're surrounded by incompetent fools. Being confident is good. Being an arrogant jerk is bad. (4) Making excuses for failings. Your teacher never bought "The dog ate
I'll focus my comments on the last reason:
How Errors in the Web Site Can Affect the Company's Health
It's clear that you can make money on the Web if you have customers. You have customers if you have viewers- "traffic" in the geek's language. And you get traffic if your site is easy to find -- near the top -- in the Search Engine Results Pages (SERPs). That's not so easy to achieve.
First of all your site has to be indexed by the search tools: Search Engines and Web Directories.
Although some Search Engines will eventually find your site by themselves, most of the time this only happens if somebody links to your site. In the case of a NEW site, having existing links is almost impossible. Rather than wait for links to be made, start a submission campaign.
A big no-no is submitting a Web site using submission software. Using software of this type may be quick and easy, but some Web Directories and Search Engines do NOT accept automated submissions.
It's true that manual submission is a time consuming process -- you'll have to read AND follow each Search Engines' submission guidelines, to effectively perform the submission – but it's a necessary step.
Most of the defunct sites I've checked had only a modest presence and visibility in the Search Engines.
Let's say that you submitted your site correctly, you waited a reasonable amount of time - usually few weeks – for the Search Engines to process your submission, but your site does not appear near the top in the Search Engine Results Pages.
You're wondering why, right? Well, one or more of the following reasons might apply:
1) Your submission was not accepted by the Search Engines. If you used spamming techniques, such as:
- Repeating keywords in the keyword meta tag or using text in the same color as the background, some Search Engines might refuse to index your site.
- Page redirection -- including cloaking -- or building artificial links farms can sometimes be seen as spam by some Search Engines. These links farms involve building Web pages for the sole purpose of creating links to the targeted site. For more about spam please read my article:
"Search Engine Spamming Sucks!" [ http://www.web-design-in-new-york.com/articles.html ]
Some Search Engines also have difficulty in indexing pages that use frames or Flash.
2) Your submission was accepted, but your site is not listed in the Top 10-30. Because very few people check pages after the first 30 results, you want to be in the Top 10-30. There are many reasons why a site is not listed high.
The most common reasons are:
- The lack of your main keywords in the content of the page, in the Title tag and in the Description and Keyword meta tags. Ultimately it all depends of the Search Engines’ algorithm- the criteria used by the Search Engines to rank pages.
- HTML errors. Examples include unclosed tags, unquoted attributes, improperly nested tags, missing the ALT attribute on images. Any of these will affect your site's accessibility, reducing your potential client pool.
A Web site with HTML errors can look fine in Explorer, strange in Netscape or Opera and totally unreadable in a text browser. Although Explorer has the largest market share, an important percentage of net surfers use other browsers. Don't forget the more than 50 million people in the USA with disabilities. Many of the latter use text/voice browsers.
Other Types of Errors in Web Sites
Proper HTML coding is very important but the structure and the la
When you now organize a street interview and ask people "What is Google", I assume more than 90 percent of the people answer that Google is a search engine. Indeed, Google is a search engine and it is probably its core business, but Google is much more!A short overview of the main services of Google:++ Category One : Google Web Search Features ++- Besides the traditional Google search engines in different languages, there is also a local search engine available: Google Local. As Google Local is in beta, only US searches are possible. Are you living in Detroit and hungry and you want a taco, do a search on http://local.google.com and you get a list of all taco restaurants.- Google Mobile : search with your cell phone online informationhttp://mobile.google.com- Google Print puts book content right in the Google search results http://print.google.com- Calculator: Type a mathematical expression (e.g. 5+2*3) in the Google seach box and you get the result, even with complicated math!- Definitions: when you search for 'define Personal Computer', you
It's true that manual submission is a time consuming process -- you'll have to read AND follow each Search Engines' submission guidelines, to effectively perform the submission – but it's a necessary step.
Most of the defunct sites I've checked had only a modest presence and visibility in the Search Engines.
Let's say that you submitted your site correctly, you waited a reasonable amount of time - usually few weeks – for the Search Engines to process your submission, but your site does not appear near the top in the Search Engine Results Pages.
You're wondering why, right? Well, one or more of the following reasons might apply:
1) Your submission was not accepted by the Search Engines. If you used spamming techniques, such as:
- Repeating keywords in the keyword meta tag or using text in the same color as the background, some Search Engines might refuse to index your site.
- Page redirection -- including cloaking -- or building artificial links farms can sometimes be seen as spam by some Search Engines. These links farms involve building Web pages for the sole purpose of creating links to the targeted site. For more about spam please read my article:
"Search Engine Spamming Sucks!" [ http://www.web-design-in-new-york.com/articles.html ]
Some Search Engines also have difficulty in indexing pages that use frames or Flash.
2) Your submission was accepted, but your site is not listed in the Top 10-30. Because very few people check pages after the first 30 results, you want to be in the Top 10-30. There are many reasons why a site is not listed high.
The most common reasons are:
- The lack of your main keywords in the content of the page, in the Title tag and in the Description and Keyword meta tags. Ultimately it all depends of the Search Engines’ algorithm- the criteria used by the Search Engines to rank pages.
- HTML errors. Examples include unclosed tags, unquoted attributes, improperly nested tags, missing the ALT attribute on images. Any of these will affect your site's accessibility, reducing your potential client pool.
A Web site with HTML errors can look fine in Explorer, strange in Netscape or Opera and totally unreadable in a text browser. Although Explorer has the largest market share, an important percentage of net surfers use other browsers. Don't forget the more than 50 million people in the USA with disabilities. Many of the latter use text/voice browsers.
Other Types of Errors in Web Sites
Proper HTML coding is very important but the structure and the la
Copyright 2005 SurefireMarketing.comEvery year I've been in business for myself online has been better than the previous one. Recently, I decided to create an "Apprentice" program (Yes, even before Trump) and I was extremely pleased that we had nearly 100% of my Apprentices get an online venture up and running.I've gone back and thought about their projects and how they developed and I came to a striking conclusion that will be worth a lot of money to you this year if you heed it. There was one key aspect that got them off their butts and making money and it came down to one thing......A Deadline!As simple as that sounds, once a firm deadline was established that's when the rubber met the road and all obstacles melted away like snow flakes in a frying pan. I'll give you a perfect example for one Apprentice we were going back and forth a bit tidying up some finishing touches on the project and trying to get it out the door. Many times people can try to make everything too perfect and it never gets out making money so we said we are launching this project at the LIVE Apprent
"Search Engine Spamming Sucks!" [ http://www.web-design-in-new-york.com/articles.html ]
Some Search Engines also have difficulty in indexing pages that use frames or Flash.
2) Your submission was accepted, but your site is not listed in the Top 10-30. Because very few people check pages after the first 30 results, you want to be in the Top 10-30. There are many reasons why a site is not listed high.
The most common reasons are:
- The lack of your main keywords in the content of the page, in the Title tag and in the Description and Keyword meta tags. Ultimately it all depends of the Search Engines’ algorithm- the criteria used by the Search Engines to rank pages.
- HTML errors. Examples include unclosed tags, unquoted attributes, improperly nested tags, missing the ALT attribute on images. Any of these will affect your site's accessibility, reducing your potential client pool.
A Web site with HTML errors can look fine in Explorer, strange in Netscape or Opera and totally unreadable in a text browser. Although Explorer has the largest market share, an important percentage of net surfers use other browsers. Don't forget the more than 50 million people in the USA with disabilities. Many of the latter use text/voice browsers.
Other Types of Errors in Web Sites
Proper HTML coding is very important but the structure and the la
A wise man once said that anyone that says that he or she is loved by everyone is either lying or in danger. It follows that there’s absolutely no man who has friends but no enemies! So, as a matter of fact, there are things people like about you and naturally there are also things that people hate about you – a man’s meat could be another man’s poison and that’s where the problem lies. The truth is that there are things that you may with the best of intentions but people around you hate you for those things.Often a time in the business world, it is good to carry out online or offline survey in order to find out what people think about your business, your products, or your services. Knowing your shortcomings from the survey will help you to sit up, improve and become a better businessman, have a better product or an improved service delivery. No wonder a wise man once said that the largest room in this world is the room for improvement – the room is always there for everyone that wants to be accommodated in it. Only fools, I would say, hate corrections but every wise man learns from mistakes.<
- The lack of your main keywords in the content of the page, in the Title tag and in the Description and Keyword meta tags. Ultimately it all depends of the Search Engines’ algorithm- the criteria used by the Search Engines to rank pages.
- HTML errors. Examples include unclosed tags, unquoted attributes, improperly nested tags, missing the ALT attribute on images. Any of these will affect your site's accessibility, reducing your potential client pool.
A Web site with HTML errors can look fine in Explorer, strange in Netscape or Opera and totally unreadable in a text browser. Although Explorer has the largest market share, an important percentage of net surfers use other browsers. Don't forget the more than 50 million people in the USA with disabilities. Many of the latter use text/voice browsers.
Other Types of Errors in Web Sites
Proper HTML coding is very important but the structure and the layout of the pages are equally important. I saw sites without ANY way to contact the company: no email address, no "contact page". I saw sites so crowded that it was almost impossible to find my way around. I saw sites with ugly color schemes. I saw a site so "heavy" that it took nearly three minutes to download the Home Page.
According to statistics, users have very limited patience when it comes to loading a page. If after eight seconds they cannot see the page, they leave. And we all know what that means or the success of a Web site.
I not only saw all those errors in sites that are now gone but I also found them in sites that are still alive, including, incredibly, some Fortune 500 companies' Web sites.
So Do We Dot-Com or Not?
The answer is a resounding YES! But with one condition, learn from your predecessors.
How can a dot-com become profitable? I don't pretend to know ALL the answers. If I did, I would be millionaire by now.
Advice for Forming and Managing Your Company:
- Develop a sound business plan, with clear, credible ways to get to profitability. Venture capitalists are much more cautious than a few years ago. They invest less and are more selective in this risky business. They want value returned for their money. After all, statistics show that 9 out of 10 startups fail.
- Handle your money wisely. Enough said.
- Hire only the people you REALLY need and be sure ALL of them are professionals.
Advice Regarding the Web Site that Supports Your Company:
- Do the right thing when you prepare the Web site. Hire reputable professionals to build and promote your cyber adventure. If you already have a Web site, remember that a Web site can easily be redesigned and properly resubmitted to search tools.
- Have your site designed according to W3C Recommendations - the Official HTML coding rules. Yes, this takes time and it's much easier to use an HTML editor, but the results are much better when properly coded by hand. Watch your site's accessibility and usability. Don't forget to test and validate the code. Talking about testing, do yourself a favor: check the spelling on your pages.
- Do not use spamming techniques. You might not be caught today, but one day the Search Engines OR your competitors will find you. Search Engines sometimes will use this reason to ban your site FOR LIFE.
For more about spam please read my article:
"Search Engine Spamming Sucks!" [ http://www.web-design-in-new-york.com/articles.html ]
- Avoid gizmos: JavaScripts, Flash or frames. Bells and whistles will NEVER help your page' ranking. In fact, it will hurt your site's indexing or ranking in the Search Engines and will annoy most of your viewers. So, just don't do it!
- Have interesting content in your pages, content that grabs your viewer's attention. No matter how beautiful your site is, no matter how much professional promotion you made, if the site doesn't grab viewer's interest, he will leave – you guessed it -- to your competitors' sites.
Also, use the Title tag, the Keyword and Description meta tags in your HTML coding to list targeted keywords from the contents of your pages. This helps the Search Engines rank your site higher.
- Promote the site thoroughly. Submit the site properly to Search Engines and Web Directories and pay special attention to the link popularity issue- contact Webmasters of related sites to ask them to include a link to your site. Yes, it takes time, but it's worth it.
So, let's see: do we dot-com or not? You bet we do! There are tremendou
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