You have a website, but it isn't getting the number of visitors you'd like. What can you do to stimulate traffic? Here's a checklist of 29 items you need to consider. Many of these you're probably doing already; others you meant to do and forgot about; still others you've never heard of. While we're not breaking any new ground here, we've tried to summarize some of the most important techniques.

Search Engine Strategies

The most important first step is to register your site with the main Web search engines, so let's begin with steps to prepare your webpages for optimal indexing.

1. Write a Page Title. Write a descriptive title for each page of 5 to 8 words. Remove as many "filler" words from the title, such as "the," "and," etc. This page title appears on the search engines when your page is found. Entice surfers to click on the title by making it a bit provocative. Plan to use some descriptive keywords along with your business name on your home page. Instead of "Acme Cutlery, Inc." use "Acme Cutlery -- Pocketknives, Butchering Sets, and Kitchen Knives". Remember, this title is your entire identity on the search engines. The more people see in the blue highlighted portion of the search engine that interests them, the more likely they are to click on the link.

2. Prepare a Keywords META Tag. For your homepage, get your juices flowing by sitting down with some associates and brainstorm a list of 50 to 100 keywords or keyphrases -- the kind of words or phrases on which someone might search to find a business or site like yours. Then refine the list to the most important 20 or so. Note, however, that with search engine algorithms fewer keywords may help you better target your most important searches. If you repeat keywords you risk being penalized for "keyword spamming." I leave out the commas so the search engines can group the words into any phrases that seem appropriate, though some experts recommend separating words and phrases with commas.

3. Write a Description META Tag. Some search engines include this description below your hyperlinked title, though many don't. Select your most important 20 keywords, and write a careful 200 to 250 character (including spaces) sentence or two. You don't need to repeat any words used in the page title. Keep this readable but tight. Eliminate as many "filler" or "throwaway" words as you can (such as: and, the, a, an, company, etc.) to make room for the important words, the keywords which do the actual work for you. When I prepare a webpage, I write the description first in a sentence or two, using each of the important keywords and phrases included in the article. Then for the keywords META tag, I strip out the common words, leaving just the meaty words and phrases.

4. Submit Page to Search Engines. Next, submit your page to the important Web search engines and directories. To do this, consider using tools such as the JimTools SubmitBot (www.jimtools.com) or the All4one Submission Machine (www.all4one.com/all4submit). The most important search engines that robotically "spider" or index your site are: Google, AltaVista, Excite, Inktomi, AOL Find, HotBot, Lycos, Infoseek, and Northern Light. Don't pay someone to submit your site to "300 search engines." That's a waste, since only a few search engines drive all the traffic anyway. Avoid registering with FFA (Free For All pages). They don't work well and bring you lots of spam e-mails.

5. Submit Page to Yahoo. Yahoo is the most important listing of all -- though it's technically a directory, rather than a search engine. It uses real humans to read (and too often, pare down) your 200-character sentence, so be very careful and follow their instructions (http://docs.yahoo.com/info/suggest/). Hint: I've learned to use less than the maximum number of characters allowable. If the Yahoo editor starts chopping your wordy copy, he or she may not leave as much as you'd like. For your business site, you ought to consider paying the $299 annual recurring fee for Yahoo! Express to have your site considered for inclusion within seven business days, otherwise you may be waiting a very long time (http://help.yahoo.com/help/express/).

6. Submit Page to Specialized Directories. You may find some directories focused on particular industries, such as education or finance. Be sure to register with these. Beware of directories that solicit you for "upgraded listings." Unless a directory is widely used in your field, your premium ad won't help much at all. Marginal directories come and go very quickly, making it hard to keep up. Don't spend time here trying to be exhaustive. One directory you should be careful to list your site is the Open Directory Project (www.dmoz.com), overseen by human editors. The Open Directory Project provides its directory as the basis of listings in various search engines.

7. Employ search engine positioning. Registering your site with the search engines is the first step. But with tens of millions of webpages, your site may hardly be visible. These days you may need to construct a series of gateway pages, each tuned for a particular search phrase and search engine. Then fine-tune these gateway pages to rank high using a program such as WebPosition Gold (www.webposition.com/d2.pl?r=AQH-55E7). Many small businesses outsource search engine positioning because of the considerable time investment it requires.

Linking Strategies

Several important search engines rank a site higher when it has many links pointing to it, "perceived popularity." All links, however, are not created equal. Links from high traffic sites will help your site rank higher than those from low traffic sites.

8. Request Links on Industry Sites. You probably belong to various trade associations that feature member sites. Ask for a link. Even if you have to pay something for a link, it may bring you the kind of targeted traffic you crave.

9. Request Reciprocal Links. Find complementary websites and request a reciprocal link to your site (especially to your free service, if you offer one). Develop an out-of-the way page where you put links to other sites -- so you don't send people out the back door as fast as you bring them in the front door. Your best results will be from sites that get a similar amount of traffic to your site. High-traffic site webmasters are too busy to answer your requests for a link, and don't have anything to gain. Look for smaller sites that may have linking pages. Avoid software that promises to automate the process by searching for keywords to help you find linking partners. These are spam generators.

Traditional Strategies

Just because "old media" strategies aren't on the Internet doesn't mean they aren't effective. A mixed media approach can be very effective.

10. Include Your URL on Stationery, Cards, and Literature. This is a no-brainer that's sometimes overlooked. Make sure that all reprints of cards, stationery, brochures, and literature contain your company's URL. And see that your printer gets the URL syntax correct.

11. Promote using traditional media. Don't discontinue print advertising you've found effective. But be sure to include your URL in any display or classified ads you purchase in trade journals, newspapers, etc. View your website as an information adjunct to the ad. Use a two-step approach: (1) capture the readers' attention with the ad, (2) then refer them to a URL where they can obtain more information and perhaps place an order. Consider other traditional media to drive people to your site, such as direct mail, classifieds, post cards, etc.

12. Develop a Free Service. It's boring to invite people, "Come to our site and learn about our business." It's quite another to say "Use the free kitchen remodeling calculator available exclusively on our site." Make no mistake, it's expensive in time and energy to develop free resources, but it is very rewarding in increased traffic to your site. Make sure that your free service is closely related to what you are selling so the visitors you attract will be good prospects for your business. Give visitors multiple opportunities and links to cross over to the sales part of your site.

13. Issue News Releases. Find newsworthy events (such as launching your free service), and send news releases to print and Web periodicals in your industry.

E-Mail Strategies

Don't neglect e-mail as an important way to bring people to your website. Just don't spam. That is, don't send bulk unsolicited e-mails without permission to people with whom you have no relationship.

14. Install a "Signature" in your E-Mail Program. Most e-mail programs such as AOL, Netscape, and Outlook allow you to designate a "signature" to appear at the end of each message you send. Limit it to 6 to 8 lines: Company name, address, phone number, URL, e-mail address, and a one-phrase description of your unique business offering. Look for examples on e-mail messages sent to you.

15. Capture Visitor E-mail Addresses and Request Permission to Send Updates. On your website's response form, include a checkbox where the visitor can give you permission to e-mail updates about products or services. Now your e-mails to visitors are not "spam." You're responding to their request for more information. I recommend capturing first and last name in separate fields so you can market personally to them. But only ask for the information you need or few visitors will respond.

16. Publish an E-Mail Newsletter. While it's a big commitment in time, publishing a weekly, monthly, or quarterly newsletter is one of the very best ways to keep in touch with your prospects, generate trust, develop brand awareness, and build future business.

17. Send Offers to Your Visitors and Customers. Your own list of customers and site visitors who have given you permission to contact them will be your most productive list. Send offers, coupon specials, product updates, etc. Personalizing the subject line and the message will increase the results.

Miscellaneous Strategies

18. Promote Your Site in Mailing Lists and News Groups. The Internet offers thousands of very targeted e-mail based discussion lists and Usenet news groups made up of people with very specialized interests. Use Google Groups (formerly DejaNews, groups.google.com) to find appropriate sources. Don't bother with news groups constituted of pure "spam." Instead, find groups where a dialog is taking place. Don't use aggressive marketing and overtly plug your product or service, even if you see some jerks doing so. Rather, add to the discussion in a helpful way and let the "signature" at the end of your e-mail message do your marketing for you. People will gradually get to know and trust you, visit your site, and do business with you.

19. Announce a Contest. People like getting something free. If you publicize a contest or drawing available on your site, you'll generate more traffic than normal. Make sure your sweepstakes rules are legal in all states and countries you are targeting. Prizes should be designed to attract individuals who fit a demographic profile describing your best customers.

20. Ask Visitors to Bookmark Your Site. It seems so simple, but make sure you ask visitors to bookmark your site. In fact, why don't you bookmark the article you're reading right now. You know you'll want to find it again soon. :-)

21. Exchange Ads with Complementary Businesses. Banner exchange programs, such as Link Exchange (now called Microsoft bCentral Banner Network, www.bcentral.com/services/bn/), don't seem to work well these days. But consider exchanging newsletter ads with complementary businesses to reach new audiences.

22. Write Articles for Others to Use in their Newsletters. You can dramatically increase your visibility when you write articles in your area of expertise and distribute them to editors as free content for their e-mail newsletters. Just ask that a link to your website and a one-line description of what you offer be included with the article. This is an effective "viral" approach.

23. Devise Viral Marketing Promotion Techniques. So-called viral marketing uses the communication networks (and preferably the resources) of your site visitors or customers to spread the word about your site exponentially. Word-of-mouth, PR, creating "buzz," and network marketing are offline models. The classic example is the free e-mail service that includes a tagline about their service at the end of every message sent out, so friends tell friends, who tell friends.

Paid Advertising Strategies

None of the approaches described above is "free," since each takes time and energy. But if you want to grow your business more rapidly, there comes a point when you need to pay for increased traffic. Advertising is sold in one of three ways: (1) traditional CPM (cost per thousand views), (2) pay per click (PPC), and (3) pay per action, otherwise known as an affiliate program. Do some small tests first to determine response, and then calculate your return on investment (ROI) before spending large amounts. Here are some methods:

24. Purchase Ads on Appropriate Websites. Unfortunately, too many visitors have trained their eyes to ignore banner ads, so click-through rates are usually a dismal 0.1% to 0.3%. But you might ask for some low-cost banner ads as part of a broader ad buy.

25. Buy a Text Ad in an E-Mail Newsletter. Some of the best buys are small text ads in e-mail newsletters targeted at audiences likely to be interested in your products or services.

26. Rent targeted e-mail lists. We abhor "spam," bulk untargeted, unsolicited e-mail, and you'll pay a very stiff price in a ruined reputation and cancelled services if you yield to temptation here. But the direct marketing industry has developed targeted e-mail lists you can rent consisting of people who have agreed to receive commercial e-mail messages. Do a smaller test first to determine the quality of the list.

27. Begin an Affiliate Program. Essentially, a retailer's affiliate program pays a commission to other sites whose links to the retailer result in an actual sale. The goal is to build a network of affiliates who have a financial stake in promoting your site. If you're a merchant you need to (1) determine the commission you are willing to pay (consider it your advertising cost), (2) select a company to set up the technical details of your program, and (3) promote your program to get the right kind of affiliates who will link to your site.

28. Join a Mall. Some web hosting services brag about the "mall" made up of their client stores, but few have the budget to draw much traffic. The biggest mall, if you will, is Yahoo. Getting a good listing there gets you a long way. Paying to be in a mall is seldom a good investment. But some retailers pay for ads in various shopping sections of Yahoo! Shopping (http://shopping.yahoo.com) and other portals to draw traffic.

29. Purchase Pay Per Click (PPC) ads on Google AdWords Select (https://adwords.google.com/select/main). The top ads appear as featured links at the top of search engine results in many search engines. Your ranking is determined by how much you've bid for a particular search word compared to other businesses. This can be a cost-effective way to get targeted traffic, since you only pay when someone actually clicks on the link.