The cost of search engine listings has been on the rise, especially over the last six months. Not only that, the pricing models used by the major engines are confusing because they vary widely and change often. Despite rising costs, there are still a lot of free listings available. The catch is that it takes top positioning to get noticed.

Top Positioning

Top positioning in the major search engines listed below can generate more targeted traffic and a better return on your investment than advertising vehicles like banner ads and email marketing. However, you must do more than just submit to get good positioning. It takes knowledge and skill, using the latest SEO techniques to obtain top rankings. Once achieved, your listings must be monitored and tweaked to maintain good positioning. This takes time, trained personnel, and technical resources.

Free Listings Menu

You can still get free listings on AllTheWeb, AltaVista, AOL Search, AskJeeves, Google, Inktomi (through HotBot/Lycos), iWon (through Inktomi), Lycos, MSN (through Inktomi), Netscape, ODP and Zeal. Most of these engines won't guarantee to list all sites submitted and can't predict when or if listings will appear in the index.

You can increase the probability of good positioning by skillfully optimizing your site for search engines (except for ODP, AskJeeves, and Zeal, which are human-powered directories). Each page should contain relevant, keyword-rich text, proper HTML tags, and plenty of valuable incoming and outgoing links. It goes without saying that your site architecture must be consumer-friendly with fast loading pages and easy navigation. Your content must be written with copywriting savvy to ensure good conversion rates.

AllTheWeb

Owned by Fast Search and Transfer, AllTheWebstill accepts free listings. Click on the "Submit Your Site" link at the bottom of the homepage, which takes you to the submission form.

AllTheWeb search results come from FAST and ODP. "Sponsored Search Listings" are from Overture.

AltaVista

Recently revamped,AltaVista is still popular, reaching over 45 million global visitors. Click on "Submit a Site" at the bottom of the homepage to get the submission page. Basic Submit allows you to submit up to five pages and takes four to six weeks for indexing.

AltaVista displays "Products and Services" listings from Overture before the editorial results.

AOL Search

AOL Search was at the top of the "Media Metrix U.S. Top 50 Web and Digital Media Properties" list, so this is a desirable free listing. AOL gets its editorial listings from ODP and Inktomi. It just switched from Overture to Google Ad Words Select for "Sponsored Links," displaying only the top three Google paid listings.

Click on the "How to Add Your Site" linkat the bottom of the page forinstructionstelling you that submissions are handled by ODP after selection of the appropriate AOL category or subcategory.

AskJeeves

AskJeeves also made the Media Metrix top 50 (#15). This directory is different in that it provides links to answer user questions. The secret to a free listing is to send an email to url@askjeeves.com, including your URL and a brief site description.

AskJeeves editors will accept submissions from sites that provide good answers to questions users might ask, so keep that in mind when copywriting and optimizing your pages. More informationhere. "Sponsored Links" are from Overture.

Google

Google is an essential listing because of its popularity and reputation for relevancy. It was #6 in the Media Metrix top 50. The Add URL page states that Google will index your site when crawling the Web, or you can submit. No guarantees, and it can take four to six weeks depending on the crawl cycle.

Google powers Yahoo! (contract up for renewal in June) and Netscape. The Google Directory gets data from ODP. "Sponsored Links" appear first and to the right in shaded boxes.

Inktomi

This is a powerful database that provides results to many other engines (AOL, Overture, HotBot, iWon, LookSmart, MSN). It used to be you could get a free listing in Inktomi through HotBot, but its Site Submit is presently non-functional while being updated, referring you to Lycos for a free listing.

You can submit free to Inktomi through Microsoft bCentral Submit It. Additionally, the UK HotBot site still has an add URL form that's working.

iWon

This search engine doesn't have its own database but is powered by Inktomi, LookSmart and Overture ("Featured Listings"). You can get a free listing through Inktomi (see above).

Lycos

Here's another Media Metrix top 50 site (#4). Lycos offers free single-page submissions that take from three to six weeks to appear in the index. However, you must first register for Lycos Free Site Submission.

Since Lycos is powered by FAST, you can also Submit Your Site from AllTheWeb.

The Lycos "Sponsored Search Listings" are from Overture.

MSN

You can't submit directly to MSN, and usually it's not free because it's powered by LookSmart. But MSN also displays Inktomi results, so you might get in for free (faster for a nominal fee) through Inktomi. It's the #2 site in the Media Metrix top 50.

Netscape

Netscape is owned by AOL/Time-Warner and is powered by both Google and ODP (which it purchased in 1998). "Partner Search Results" are from Google Ad Words Select.

You can get listed free in Netscape by submitting to ODP or Google.

ODP

The Open Directory Project is maintained by volunteer editors and supplies data to many major search engines (Netscape, Google, Lycos, AOL, HotBot). It takes about three weeks if your listing is accepted.

What's important is unique content and appropriate category selection. Complete instructions at How to add a site to the Open Directory.

This an important listing but can be difficult to obtain depending on the editor or category selected. Listing problems can be discussed on the Open Directory Project Public Forum, a communication vehicle between the public and editing community.

Zeal

Owned by LookSmart, Zeal is a free directory for non-commercial sites and is managed by volunteer editors. If accepted, your listing will appear in several major search engines including LookSmart, MSN and AltaVista.

Traffic on the Rise

Jupiter Media Metrix statistics show that search engine traffic increased rapidly over the past six months -- up 11 percent with 92.3 million visitors.

Major search portals increased even more: Yahoo! up 20 percent with 38.4M visitors; MSN up 16 percent with 42.3M visitors; Google up 54 percent with 34.2M visitors.

So get all the free listings you can while you can. If you don't have the time or the resources, consider hiring professional help. MarketingSherpa's "Buyers' Guide to Search Engine Optimization & Positioning Firms" reviews reputable SEM providers.