A sitemap is essentially a list of all the important URLs of a website that a webmaster wants search engines to index. Though major search engine spiders are able to locate all web  pages of a site step-by-step by following links, but that process may take a longer time for some deeply-hidden pages to be found. And this is also true for sites that have some unreachable pages by internal and/or external links. So, a sitemap helps to speed up the process of finding all your pages or even make it possible for web crawlers in the first place.

There are three (3) types of sitemaps, namely the XML sitemap, the HTML sitemap and URL List.

The XML (Xtensible Markup Language) sitemap is specifically created to help search bots to easily discover a site’s inner web pages.  An XML sitemap format may contain additional data that allow a webmaster to give extra information about any single page. For example:

• <?xml version=”1.0″ encoding=”UTF-8″?>
  <urlset xmlns=”http://www.sitemaps.org/schemas/sitemap/0.9″>
  <url>
  <loc>http://www.seotreats.com/</loc>
  <lastmod>2010-04-02</lastmod>
  <changefreq>monthly</changefreq>
  <priority>0.8</priority>
  </url>
  <url>
  <loc>http://www.seotreats.com/search-engine-optimization/</loc>
  <changefreq>weekly</changefreq>
  </url>
  <url>
  <loc>http://www.seotreats.com/web-development/</loc>
  <lastmod>2010-06-18</lastmod>
  <changefreq>weekly</changefreq>
  </url>
  <url>
  <loc>http://www.seotreats.com/web-hosting/</loc>
  <lastmod>2009-09-26T18:00:15+00:00</lastmod>
  <priority>0.3</priority>
  </url>
  <url>
  <loc>http://www.seotreats.com/link-building/</loc>
  <lastmod>2010-05-20</lastmod>
  </url>
  </urlset>

The loc tags (<loc></loc>) are required in every XML sitemap, as they’re used to identify the very location of the sitemap.

The priority tags (<priority></priority>) are optional, and are used to let bots know how important the corresponding file update is.

Changefreq tags (<changefreq></changefreq>) are also optional, and they help to tell search spiders the frequency with which the content of a corresponding file changes. Such changes can be hourly, daily, weekly or monthly. Having changefreq tags enable search engines to expect when the page’s content will likely change.

The lastmod tags (<lastmod></lastmod>), also optional, tell search engine bots when the corresponding file was last modified.

It is noteworthy that search engines do not perceive the lastmod, priority and changefreq tags as commands, but as citations. If you must add them to your site’s XML sitemap, make sure the information you provide is accurate, to avoid the sitemap being entirely neglected by these bots. So, inaccurate data in these tags incurs a negative effect you may not want your site to have.

An HTML sitemap is an ordinary HTML web page designed for both bots and humans to help them to easily locate all the web pages of a site in one place. It is a hierarchical visual model of the site’s most important web pages, which the webmaster wants search spiders and visitors to visit. An HTML site map is a kind of diagram which helps users to effortlessly navigate websites that have numerous pages and often confusing navigational issues. Being very similar to a book’s table of contents, it makes it easier for users to quickly find the information they’re interested in, without having to navigate through the entire site. If an HTML sitemap is well constructed and contains links that properly mirror the site structure, visitors won’t feel lost during navigation, but will easily understand the organization of the website, and to search for information accurately and quickly. In search engine optimization, an HTML sitemap makes it easier for a search engine bots to locate all the web pages of a website in one place.

URL List is a plain text file that lists the URLs of a website. This form of sitemap is supported by Yahoo Search, and it’s worth having in place.

All the three (3) sitemap formats, HTML, URL List and XML, play important roles in search engine optimization. However, the XML format is required by all major search engines and hence, it’s the one that carries greater weight.

In my recent post “Lead Generation Techniques That Work Well For Businesses“, I pointed out how digital press releases can help your business to gain a wider exposure.

Apart from the traditional press release we’ve all known for ages, a new digital form has evolved out of necessity. The media industry trends are changing and we have to move with the tide, to avoid being left out. There is a great shift to how businesses, individuals and organizations publish press releases online. Digital press release is sweeping the media industry like a hurricane. So, how do you take advantage of this model of communication? What I said earlier in that lead generation post, “that you should publish a press release every time your business or organization has something new” holds true here as well.

In a recent Webinar, PR Digital pointed out that press releases are a form of a great content marketing strategy to build up free backlinks. It stated that if your business or organization has a service or product, such product or service actually needs a notable mention online, in the print media and on the radio through press release. Writing unique attention-grabbing releases will enable you to take your organization or business to the next level. There is a learning curve to writing a digital press release which inspires people to want to know you and your business more.

Gone are the days when people relied heavily on traditional media in order to make press releases. People are no longer distributing their releases only through traditional news agencies. The advent of the Internet makes it possible to take PR to the digital news media. These days the releases that effect a change are well optimized for search engine news bots, such as MSNBot-media, Yahoo News and Google News.

I will enlighten you on how to write a press release that really makes a difference. Here are guidelines for content which you should always include in your electronic press releases to media. My example here is for someone selling a PHP software application:

1. For your release to be a winner, make sure it is social media-rich and may contain video, images and audio.
2. Give out some evaluation units of the script to well-meaning reviewers.
3. The script must be readily available for immediate download on your site.
4. Provide a list of the key features.
5. Include the script’s operating system platform requirements, database environment, etc.
6. Do not send pictures as attachments with your press releases. Instead upload the images to a directory on your site and link to them. The pictures you choose should demonstrate good visual effects of the script, in order to enhance good reviews as desired.
7. List the company’s contact person and the physical address where the business is based.

For optimal results, I suggest you hire a PR specialist and/or SEO consultant who offers clients several release options, including SEO press releases and free press release distribution. These specialists know the technicalities regarding how to make sure your PR will be accepted and displayed in Google News, Yahoo News, Bing News and other news sources.

Every business, whether it’s small or big needs to generate enough leads to grow profitably. But it’s not that very easy to create prospective consumer inquiry or interest in one’s products or services. Signing up for an advertising offer needs to be handled shrewdly, because it’s difficult for someone to give away his/her contact information and demographic information to total strangers. Whether you’re doing Internet lead generation to win customers, or for list building or newsletter list acquisition purposes, is it working well for your business? Are you employing the techniques that work perfectly well for other successful businesses?

My years of doing business on the Internet, through trials and error, have taught me that hiring a lead generation expert to generate leads substantially for my business through search engines and other means is the best thing to do.

Lead Generation Methods That Help To Convert Contacts To Buying Customers:

• Do reciprocal linking with other business websites in your niche with whom you share common interests, but are not your direct competitors. The purpose of this technique is that their visitors would see your link there and might be interested in what you offer, therefore generating targeted traffic for your site. However, exchanging links with your competitors will do you more harm than good, since your competitors’ products, services and customer service might be better than yours. So, stay away from linking to your direct competitors.
• Offer free consultation sessions. Offering free consultation sessions help businesses to inculcate trust in prospective customers. This is because studies have proved that people hardly buy anything from business sources they don’t know. Familiarizing yourself with them through free consultations will enable them to trust you, as well as see their benefits of signing up for your advertising offer.
• Create an affiliate program on your site. Many successful businesses have programs that enable other individuals to sell their products and/or services. Affiliates help a product or service to have a wider reach, a better sales force, and diversified promotional techniques. Just make sure you pay affiliates a commission for every sale made and also pay extra amount of money to those who surpass average sales expected, to keep them happy. Apart from affiliates selling your products and/or services, they’re promoting them for free. Isn’t it great?
• Mailing list – Ask your web designer to put a mailing list box on every web page of your site. This lead generation technique will make it very accessible and sometimes tempting to visitors. Some of your site’s visitors might end up signing for your newsletter. But making your mailing list box to be so much on-the-face is very distracting and often disgusting to visitors. So, put your email alert box where it rightly belongs, to avoid pursuing away valued individuals who might have willingly subscribed.
• Newsletters – After people have signed up for your newsletter, it is now up to you to use finesse and give them more information about your business, so as to cultivate a relationship with each other. Do not be in a rush to push them to buy your products and/or services. If mutual friendship flourishes, they will most likely buy from you, when the need arises.
• Testimonials – Having testimonials from happy customers in place on your site will help your business to generate leads. Satisfied customers are mostly willing to vouch for your products and/or services. So, go ahead and ask them to write testimonials, in order to promote your business. As a rule, a testimonial should not be fictitious. It should include the names, pictures and if possible websites of your real happy customers. Using stock photos as pictures of those who write testimonials about what you provide leads to failure in business. keep your testimonials short, straight to the point and should be written in a well-structured grammar.
• Vote of thanks – Studies have also proved that a customer feels more appreciated when he/she receives a card or an email from a product or service seller thanking him/her of the purchase after some weeks. In your vote of thanks include a special incentive on his/her next purchase. This helps to keep your business relationship waxing strong.
• Free Courses – Offer free courses online to interested people to prove your authority in your field of endeavor. Internet trends have got people addicted with free stuffs. So, lure people in to sign up for your newsletter by offering them free online courses that would help them to solve their minor issues.
• Press release – If you’re not into publishing press releases for your business, you’re missing out on something very rewarding. It is another way of generating free exposure for your business. Make sure you have a press release published every time your company has a new service or product.
• Article submissions to top article directories is one of the best ways to get free exposure and traffic. These great article directories have very large reader base. Write articles to share your expertise in your field with readers. If you don’t have the gift of writing content with good power of conviction, there are many content writers on the web waiting for whom to hire them. I personally suggest submitting your articles to Ezinearticles.com, Ehow.com, Goarticles.com and Articlesbase.com.

In as much as Internet lead generation is very rewarding, it is time-consuming. That is why it is most appropriate to hire an acclaimed lead generation expert to assist you in generating leads for your business. Doing so will enable you to concentrate on managing your business, leaving the hard job for a professional in the field.

One of the most significant things Bing and Yahoo! search and advertising platform teams have been working on over the past several months is the preparation and engineering for their search alliance.

Since Yahoo!’s intention to enter into a search and advertising alliance with Bing was announced almost a year ago, both search giants began a journey that will help them to build a scale search advertising marketplace and provide a real competitive alternative to Google for publishers, advertisers and consumers.

For some days now, both search companies have began some initial testings across their systems designed to verify their joint venture and make sure they’re ready to deliver the needed smooth transition for search and advertising customers. This testing will most likely be concluded in Canada and the US over the next couple of months. Both Yahoo and Bing have posted updates on this search and advertising milestone on their respective blogs.

Bing engineers are testing both its ability to provide high quality algorithmic results, as well as power search advertising both for itself and Yahoo!. Both companies are working closely together now, to ensure these aforesaid tests progress smoothly and a seamless transition.

Both Microsoft and Yahoo! have been communicating with their customers and training their sales and support teams, so as to prepare well for their new tasks during this transition. This includes Yahoo! employees getting themselves to think about migrating their ad campaigns to Microsoft’s adCenter.

For site owners and webmasters, it’s necessary to be accustomed to how the Bing crawler, MSNBot/Bingbot, interacts with their websites. When the full transition of search algorithm is complete, everyone will only need to optimize for one search spider, MSNBot/Bingbot, since Bing will then be powering Yahoo! search results from its (Bing’s) index.

During this testing period, it has been advised that webmasters observe how their websites are showing up in both Yahoo!’s and Bing’s search results, in order to assess if any tweak needs to be made. The transition team encourages sharing feedback with the them, so as to make sure every website is accurately represented in the new Bing’s search results.

Everyone is advised to review his/her site’s crawl policies in the robots.txt file and ensure that he/she has identical polices for both Yahoo’s bots and MSNbot/Bingbot. It is noteworthy that this testing process will not bring increase in Bing’s spider traffic.

As you now see, this testing period is to ascertain that the search and advertising alliance will go smoothly when it is finally implemented sometime next year. If any issue arises, this is the right time to fix it.

The buzz in the webmaster circle today is about the arrival of the newly-launched Bing Webmaster Tools. It has been long expected, and it’s finally here with us. This enhancement sends the old version to rest.

Surely this is a great improvement of  the previous version, though it’s an emulation of Google Webmaster Tools and Analytics.  But it’s not in any way an outright copying of Google Webmaster Tools or Analytics, yet no one will say it’s an innovation. Whatever, this new version is a step in the right direction, and we expect Bing to improve on this tool in the near future.

This latest Bing Webmaster Tools was rebuilt from the ground up, so as to provide more data to webmasters, including a new user interface and an enhanced charting functionality. As it is, this enhancement puts Bing back into focus as a search engine that will break the Google’s near-monopoly of search engine industry.

For someone to access the new Tools, he/she will be prompted to install the latest version of SilverLight, if he/she hasn’t done so already. And now in less than a day of the relaunch, some people have started to complain that they can’t access the Bing Webmaster Tools with their versions of Mac computers, because of incompatibility issue with SilverLight. This suggests that SilverLight shouldn’t have been a part of Webmaster Tools.

What Is Included In This version:

1. Traffic Summary: This new function provides  some useful information, with regards to site crawling, indexing and traffic. Anybody who is accustomed to Google Webmaster Tools will find this feature familiar.
2. Crawl Summary: This enables webmasters to review up to six (6) months of Bing crawl data, in order to learn about issues MSNBot encounter while crawling web pages of a given site.
3. Index Explorer: This enables one to explore his/her site’s directory and web pages in the Bing index. Under Index Explorer, it has “Block URL”, which enables one to block or unblock indexed URLs from appearing in Bing’s search results. Gladly site owners can achieve blocking outdated/moved URLs from the index by a click of a button, without having to contact Bing Support through a web form.
4. Remove Site: This allows a webmaster to simply remove a site that is already in his/her account from Bing’s index.

A minor issue: Browse to a site that you authenticated sometime ago and submitted an XML sitemap, you will find out that the added sitemap is missing. Many people wonder why previously submitted sitemaps were not referenced automatically during the upgrade. What I did was simply adding the sitemaps back again one-by-one to all my websites. It’s a pretty quick process that verifies without demanding you to put another authentication Meta tag or to upload an XML file.

I was expecting an option to set a preferred geo-location that any of my sites target, just like Google Webmaster Tools does. It has been a major issue at Bing Community where many webmasters complain of Bing wrongly setting their sites to target irrelevant locations. Geo-location/language tag is the only known solution to this wrong setting, though it’s not officially supported by Bing. But it has worked most of the time.

This enhaced Bing Webmaster Tools provides a better ease of use for users than the previous version, but more features still need to be added. Kudos to Bing, while we wait for more improvements to come!