As reported in search engine website Search Engine Watch, 70% to 85% of Internet users use search engines. Search Engine Watch also reports 1 in 28 pages viewed on the Internet is a search engine page (Alexa Insider, June 1, 1999), and that the highest single link on the Internet in March 1999 was from Microsoft's home page to Alta Vista (Alexa Insider, March, 1999). (See also corroborating data at Search Engine Showdown.)

There are several major different types of "search engines" or engine methodology. Search engine portals may be based on one type, but may augment listings through the use of other methods.

The first type is the "standard" search database, which may operate in limited partnership with other search databases. Its databases are built with information provided about sites through direct submission by Internet users.

The second type is the webcrawler (or metacrawler). Crawlers attain a higher level of automation in database management through use of a technique called "spidering." Spiders "creep" through the Internet to attain data, eliminating some of the need for human submissions. They either parse through meta tag information provided by the website's author (hence the name "metacrawler"), or they analyze text for the frequency of keywords or other content related issues. Popular metacrawlers include Dogpile, Momma, and WebCrawler. Inktomi provides information to partners such as HotBot, iWon, and MSN Search. Alta Vista's spider is named "Scooter."

Another type of "engine" is a web "directory," which is a consortium in which data is shared amongst member engines. The prime example of of web directory is DMOZ, the Open Directory Project. Dmoz supplies data to Netscape, Alta Vista, AOL Search, HotBot and Lycos, amongst others. Other directories include Yahoo!, and Looksmart.

The important distinction about directories is that they use actual humans to review and categorize sites. With directories, it is important to make a submission to a directory correctly the first time, because once a site is categorized it can be very difficult to change its listing.

While there are literally thousands of search engines, only a couple dozen or so absorb the bulk of all search engine traffic. Yahoo! is the undisputed leader, with millions of sites indexed by category. Other popular sites not mentioned above include the following: Excite (works with Looksmart), Fast Search, Overature, Infospace, Google, and Northern Light.

It is worth making special mention of Google due to its importance and unique character. Google uses a special algorithm to define site placements. A crawler looks through the content of pages, making note of how many times a subject is mentioned, and how close to the top this mention is made. It also prioritizes link popularity, rating sites based on how may other sites link to it.

Many submission programs claim to submit to a great number of engines -- 350, for example, or even 1,000. In truth, many of these submissions will either be rejected by specialized engines that are inconsistent with the site, or will be worthless due to the low popularity of these engines. It is good to submit to many engines, but this is one area where quality definately beats quantity.

Many search engines provide free submission through links displayed at the sides or bottom of their home page. Most offer easy to follow instructions and can be done by any novice. The main barrier for a novice in carrying out a complete submission strategy is the lack of continuity among submission processes and in listing criteria. What is needed to submit to one engine will differ somewhat from what is needed for another, and what one engine likes is no guarantee of what another likes!

Some general tips and tricks are as follows:

Make proper use of meta tags in your site code! This is sometimes overlooked by people who rely on software to translate their efforts into programming code, but is crucial to any effort to gain Internet exposure. Make liberal use of your main keywords in your meta-code description, title, headings, and graphics Alt tags. Update (FTP) your pages frequently, or at least your home page. This is a simple activity with absolutely no risk of invoking the engines' rath. In frames pages, be sure to include a description of your site in your "no frames" tag section. Use of "invisible text" with prominent keywords is an old trick but overuse is not advised. Invisible text is font colored to match background color. Resubmit with search engines periodically. Caveat: some engines treat excessive demands for their attention as "spam" and will reject your site altogether. The rule of thumb is to submit no more than one page from any given site in any day. Submit multiple pages of your site so that users have "backdoors" to your site. Some sites use "gateway" pages to achieve this purpose. Caveat: some engines treat excessive backdoor submissions or redirected URL gateways as spam and will spit on you. Ptui!

There are three levels in the pay-for-submission arena. The first is direct payment to a search engine for the right to be listed with them. The second involves hiring an on-line service to take care of search submissions en masse, often to engines which are themselves free. The third is a fully customized search service performed by a marketing firm specializing in engine criterion and placement.

Direct Placement Fees
At the direct payment level, some engines charge a flat fee. Others have a flexible fee schedule where rank is based on who "bids" the most, or where charges are determined by the number of hits a listing generates. Overature (formerly GoTo) is the archetype example of a flexible fee schedule. Other pay-per-click engines include Sprinks by About, Bay9, Kanoodle, and iWon. Metasearch service Dogpile is dominated by pay-per-click databases such as these.

The three most important flat-fee-charging engines are Yahoo, Excite, and Looksmart. Inktomi has just begun to accept fees for placement as well. Traditionally these engines allowed submissions free of charge, but buying their premiere service guarantees better listings and quicker review by editors. The situation has changed quite radically in the past couple years, however.

First Looksmart required a one-time submission fee, then Yahoo made a one-time fee mandatory for its business listings. In December 2001, Excite was bought out by InfoSeek and now takes site listings exclusively from Looksmart and Inktomi. Late in 2001 Yahoo moved to annual fees, grandfathering in those who had paid one-time fees.

As of April 2002, we are now expecting Looksmart to integrate a pay-per-click service as well. More and more it is becoming necessary to pay charges to get any kind of decent rankings or service.

Automated Submittal Services
Many if not most consumers prefer to bypass the timestaking effort of submittal by utilizing an automated service where they can enter information once and have a program disseminate this to the many various engines. Such services are extremely useful, but their drawbacks should be understood. Namely, because engines are unique in their processing routines and listing criteria, failing to take individual characteristics into considerations results in less effective submissions. In addition, some of the major engines do not accept automated submissions.

Nonetheless, these types of programs have a great deal of utility. Perhaps the most reputable at this time is Microsoft's SubmitIt, available for an annual cost of $49 US. Now a part of Microsoft's bCentral portal, SubmitIt had previously been associated with Link-Exchange, a service where users gained exposure through mutual display of banner advertising within their sites. SubmitIt now offers interactive software with user control over the submission process. It also provides reports verifying submissions and listing information.

Customized Search Submittal
A final approach to search engine submissions is to enlist the services of your local ISP or web design professional. Due to the variation in engines and submission processes, customization is a requirement for a truly successful submission run. Knowledge and experience is necessary to carry out this customization.

It really boils down to an understanding of one's marketing strategy and a decision about where to place resources. There really is no substitution for a complete submission service, but the overall importance of this will depend on one's marketing strategy. For a locally oriented business that uses its site as a support rather than a main method to generate business, submission may be less important. But if Internet-generated business is of central importance, there is no substitution for a complete and knowledgeable search submission service.