Web Site Optimization Articles

Google has become the dominant search engine on the Internet. It would be hard to imagine a web without Google. For that matter, it would now be hard to imagine a world without Google. As frightening as that may seem to many people, it is none the less true.

For better or worse, Google has permeated into almost every aspect of our everyday life. Being Googled is now a common expression and an act carried out by millíons of users around the world each day. New Google products and services are coming on stream at a frightening pace, further increasing Google's impact on our lives.

Despite this dominating presence, many people still don't realize Google offers some excellent frëe marketing tools for marketers and webmasters. Marketing tools which can prove extremely valuable to any webmaster or marketer trying to promote their sites or products online. Useful tools that will make your promotions easier and much more profitable.

Don't be fooled by the 'frëe' label, these marketing tools might be frëe, but they are also valuable. One even wonders why Google would be giving away these tools and services for frëe? It probably makes good business sense in the long run, by providing these frëe tools Google is fostering a lot of company good-will and building up the Google brand name in the process. Good PR is good business.

Every marketer and webmaster should be taking advantage of Google's good-will and snapping up these professionally run services and marketing tools. Here's a quick run-down of the 10 most valuable frëe Google Internet marketing tools:

1. Google Analytics
Perhaps the premier marketing tool offered by Google. It will prove helpful to both the marketer and the webmaster. Google Analytics gives you a daily snapshot of your web site. Google Analytics analyzes your traffíc, where it comes from and what it does once it enters your site. You can monitor up to three sites for frëe.

Google Analytics is extremely valuable in analyzing your marketing funnel. It tracks all the steps leading up to your salës or checkout page. Vital information for raising your conversion rate and ROI.
You may be placed on a waiting list for this highly in demand service from Google.
LINK: http://www.google.com/analytics/

2. Google Sitemaps
Webmasters can use Google Sitemaps to almost instantly place newly created pages on their site into the Google Search Index. This is an XML file that is uploaded to Google as new pages are added on your site. Needless to say this can be a valuable service for any webmaster or marketer who wants to get their information on the web quickly.
LINK: https://www.google.com/webmasters/sitemaps/docs/en/about.html

3. Google Alerts
Be notified when someone, or another site, lists your site or mentions your name. Great way to keep track of all your online activities. Great way to monitor all your online business interests and products.
LINK: http://www.google.com/alerts

4. Google Froogle
Froogle is Google's price directory! It simply lists all the cheapest prices for different products on the web. For marketers and webmasters who are promoting products, it should be studied and analyzed. Optimizing your site's content for Froogle may prove to be very beneficial.

Follow Froogle or Google directions exactly on how to list or display products on your site. Froogle will spider your site and display your prices and products to thousands of targeted customers. That, as they say, is priceless.
LINK: http://froogle.google.com/

5. Google Checkout
Not exactly frëe but for those marketers who use AdWords - for every $1 spent on AdWords you can process $10 for frëe. You can also place the shopping cart logo on your AdWords ad and take advantage of the prestige and trust the Google brand name has built up.
Over time marketers may find this tool to be very effective and valuable.
LINK: https://checkout.google.com/

6. Google eBlogger
Blogging has become vitally important to the health and functioning of your web site. No site should be without at least one blog and RSS feed. Creating a blog (online journal) on the topic of your web site or product will bring in extra traffíc and targeted customers. eBlogger is a simple frëe blogging service that even lets you publish or post your blog files to your own web site server. Keep in mind, each blog has that all important Google Blog Search bar.
LINK: http://www.blogger.com/

7. Google Toolbar - Enterprise Version
Try the new enterprise version of the Google Toolbar for your company or business. Integrates countless features with all your employees or corporate network. These could include a common customer database, company calendar, financial news...

Keep in mind, Google also ranks every page it indexes on a scale of 0-10. While it is important to know the Page Rank of your own pages, it is even more important to know the PR of your competitor's pages. You can use the toolbar to get the PR of each page you're visiting. Extremely helpful information for webmasters and marketers to know when forming online linking or business arrangements.
LINK: http://toolbar.google.com/T4/enterprise/

8. Google Groups
Every marketer knows the importance of having a large contact list of people with a similar interest. Social networking will play an ever increasing role in your success on the web. Just look at the growing popularity of sites like MySpace and LiveJournal.
Google groups is another form of social and business networking that every marketer should be aware of and pursuing.
LINK: http://groups.google.com/

9. Google Adsense
One simple way to monetize your web content is to use Google Adsense. Just place the Adsense code on your site and receive a chëck from Google each month. For webmasters who are not really into online marketing (do such creatures exist?), Adsense can be a painless way to earn extra income from your site.
For professional marketers using the Adsense system can supply a tremendous amount of marketing information on the keywords in their particular niche. It keeps the marketer informed on what keywords are being bid on and how much advertisers are willing to pay.
Adsense also has an excellent real-time tracking system you can use to keep track of all your important web pages.
LINK: https://www.google.com/adsense/

10. Google Writely
A recent addition to Google's stable of frëe products. Writely is a full featured online writing editor with spellcheck and great collaborating features. It also lets you publish your content directly to your blogs. One feature that may be of interest to marketers - it lets you save files in the popular download format of PDF.
Lets face it, until video takes over the web in four or five years time - the written word is still king on the net. It is the medium that markets, promotes and sells your content or products. Writely will help you write better.
LINK: http://www.writely.com

Honorable Mention - Google Trends
This Google program will let you search popular trends, important for marketers searching for the latest hot product to promote. You can also break down these trends by different regions..
LINK: http://www.google.com/trends

Final Note
Please take note that signing up for a Google account will usually help you in obtaining most of these frëe services or programs. Some of these programs may have to be applied for individually. But be assured, all these frëe Google marketing tools are well worth your time and effort. They will make your marketing easier and they will help any webmaster or marketer run their online business more efficiently.

About The Author
The author is a full-time online marketer who runs numerous web sites, including two sites on Internet marketing. For the latest web marketing tools try: BizwareMagic.com. Everyone is profiting from Google, why not you? Go here: www.bizwaremagic.com/Google_Cash_File.htm.
2006 Titus Hoskins.