GETTING INTO THE SEARCH ENGINES

SEARCH ENGINE OVERVIEW
In order for your blog to come up in search engine results, the search engine must know it exists. Getting discovered, and indexed, by search engines is a critical first step to securing search engine traffic.
Contrary to the beliefs held by some, a search engine cannot simply “find” your blog on its own. It must be led to the blog in some fashion. There are two general ways by which this can happen. You can either tell the search engine about your blog, or you can devise a means by which it will find you.
At first glance, it seems like just telling the search engine would be the optimal solution. At one time, this strategy was the easiest way of getting indexed. However, it is no longer the best way to go about things.
You can directly submit your blog to Google, for instance. However, it may take the search engine months to get around to your request. At some point, in frustration, you might be led to submit the information again. There are fairly credible reports that frequent submission of a blog directly to the search engine may actually lead to a penalty. They would prefer to find you all by themselves. I have personally not noticed any problems with direct submission to MSN’s search engine. However, considering the variety of ways by which one can be found without utilizing direct submission, it does not seem necessary to tip off MSN in that manner.

WAYS TO BE DISCOVERED
All it requires for a search engine to find you is a link to your blog on another site. Eventually, the search engines will spider that link and discover the blog. You can increase the likelihood of being found quickly by getting multiple links for your site out there and by trying to get links that are likely to be spidered quickly.
Large, popular sites are frequently spidered and a link on a site of this sort can lead to your blog’s inclusion in the search engines relatively quickly. A link from a frequently indexed site could lead to your blog’s discovery within as little as a day.
Any of the link-building strategies mentioned in this ebook can be used to lead the search engine to your blog. Things like link trades, sigging, articles and directory listings can do the trick.
Remember, building these links not only encourages necessary indexing, it also serves as a way of improving long-term traffic, as every link can be helpful.

LESSER SEARCH ENGINES
Right now, the search engine field is dominated by three players: Google, MSN and Yahoo. These are the three search engines that matter and care must be taken to make sure all three index your blog. There are, however, other search engines out there. Some are rarely used relics that have managed to hold onto a small chunk of cyberspace. Others are paid-for-inclusion engines that are little more than ways to separate a blog owner from his or her money.
None of these smaller search engines will produce a great deal of traffic. However, it is often very easy to submit to the free search engines. Additionally, there is some information to suggest that inclusion on a lesser engine may lead to inclusion on a bigger one. There is very little harm in direct submission to smaller search engines. It is unlikely to be a huge manufacturer of traffic, but it takes so little time that you may want to consider it. Just use one of the popular search engines to search for other search engines. Then, visit a few of these places and look into submitting your site.

BLOG SEARCH ENGINES
The tactics mentioned above apply to websites of any sort. As a blogger, you can make use of them. However, the growth of blogging has led to the creation of blog-only search engines. You would be remiss if you did not submit your blog to these engines.
A simple Google search for the phrase “blog search engine” will yield many additional opportunities to get your blog noticed. Realize that often the terms “blog search engine” and “blog directory” are used almost interchangeably and can overlap a great deal. Information about many blog directories that also have search functions is included in the “Directories” portion of this ebook.
There is at least one blog search engines that warrant additional discussion—Technorati, which can be found at http://www.technorati.com. Technorati is a widely used blog search engine. Getting your blog listed at Technorati can increase your traffic more than most other blog search engines. Technorati also supports a tagging function whereby you can “tag” your posts with descriptive keywords making them easier for other Technorati users to find.
There is some debate over the value of Technorati in terms of traffic and with respect to some customer service issues the site apparently experiences. However, serious bloggers would be remiss if they did not take a long look at Technorati and consider making it part of their traffic creation arsenal.
There are other services offering a tagging function that seem to be developing an avid following and may be worth investigation. These include FURL and Del.icio.us.

BONUS TIPS
1. Patience is a virtue! It can sometimes take a little bit of time before the major search engines cozy up to your blog. Don’t be offended or too frustrated. Continue working on your blog and following other traffic generation methods. The nice thing about the content tactics covered here are that they are all mutually reinforcing. If a long period passes, go back and check your work. But don’t get frustrated too early.
2. Don’t become too Google obsessed! Google is the biggest search engine player, but the other two can drive a lot of traffic to your blog. There are entire communities dedicating to dissecting Google and its algorithms. Google often befuddles even the most veteran search engine optimization experts. If you want to crack the top 10 in Google, it might require a great deal of work—probably a disproportionate effort for most hobbyist bloggers. You want Google traffic, but it is usually not worth developing an obsession to obtain it.