So I finished building my first site... what is the next step?

My new site is complete and its hosted and sitting accessable on the internet.

What is the next step I need to take to get this thing indexed in the search engines and start getting traffic?

Should I manualy submit the listing to google or try to get on some link exchanges or something? Or should I try this blog and ping thing everyone talks about?

What is the next step? Thanks!!

 

1. Read these forums
2. Put a Google sitemap on the site to get it indexed
3. Get some backlinks anyway you can
4. Press release/article submission
5. Add content everyday

 

sounds like a plan to me, thanks

 

Is it based on a free script with some trivial template tweaking? If so you should probably advertise it on the Sites for sale forum.

 

Why not checkout www.AdvertiseTalk.com its a forum that specialises in advertising and marketing, or if you need any help pm me ill be happy to help you out.

 

Just to add - contribute to this forum and get your link into your sig but also join other forums related to the topic of your site which also allows you to add your link to the sig.

Add a blog and update it every couple of days, search engines love fresh content.

Good Luck.

 

Your site is never truly complete. You have to keep working at it, getting link exchanges building content. Content and links, content and links. That is what makes or breaks a site.

 

Thats right. A site is an ongoing project no matter how much you make from it

 

A question,

You ppl mention Google Sitemap.

What if u put a sitemap that is not of Google?

e,g, bravepages offers a free sitemap. Will it still have the same effect?

Another thing, it might be in front of my eyes, but i cannot see in User CP where to add signature to my posts?
From where do u add a signature?

Thanks in advance

 

Sigs can be added in User CP.

Google sitemaps are just a valid XML file. Its not propietry to google, but XML just makes it easier for the search engines to read.