3. Recognise you have it If diagnosis confirms your website as a sufferer, then face up to it. Acceptance is first step towards recovery!

4. Take medicine and commit wholeheartedly to recovery Resolve to take medicine, however unpleasant taste. There are two options: Do it yourself and you'll need to study search engines inside out. A potentially daunting task, but it may suit you if you've got more time than money.

Alternatively, enlist help of a search engine specialist who can undertake & administer whole process of recovery to full visibility.

(Special note: Don't be tempted to cut corners by using automated software without proper research. You could do more harm than good.)

5. Immunise against future outbreaks Once on road to recovery (it can be a long process), you'll want to make certain IWS never strikes your site again. Constant attention will prevent further outbreaks. As search engines change, so to does IWS. There is no "magic pill" cure - it can strike again at any time, unless you remain vigilant. So, keep on top of how it's evolving as a result of search engine changes and act accordingly. A monthly maintenance programme to keep your website visible should be your goal.

Don't ignore Invisible Website Syndrome. It's internet equivalent of a wasting disease, slowly taking hold on your website, eroding your profits while your competitors grow stronger. With huge amount of webpages online, it can only get worse.

Robin Porter See if your website suffers from "Invisible Website Syndrome" - get a free visibility report for your site at http://www.rpasystems.com

Note, however, you should follow some guidelines when linking.

- Keep your links simple. Fair use allows small quotes, and as long as you keep things short you should be fine. If you start including complex graphics or long passages of text then you are putting yourself at risk as well as possibly plagiarizing.

- Get permission where possible or feasible. This can work to your advantage, as you can do a "link exchange" which has many uses (more links to your site means a higher popularity by search engines).

- Include a section of your own which explains to your visitors that you have no control over external links You think they might be of interest, but you don't have any responsibility for their content.

- Again, only link to HTML and text style pages. Do not link to multimedia files (images, sounds and videos).

- Also, remember to not link to CGI routines (and other executable objects) without permission.

When you are designing your own site, it's a great idea to be sure that you understand that people will be bookmarking and linking to any and every page that you've got. Search engines also are notorious for sending visitors willy-nilly to whatever page they believe fits a search topic. Thus, your navigation and overall design must allow visitors to move around freely on your site regardless of which page they land upon.

The bottom line is simple. People can link to any page they want to within your site (just as they can bookmark anything at will). Those webmasters who moan about this practice or make attempts to stop it are wasting their time and have little understanding of how internet really works. Those who plan their website around concept will create a better experience for their visitors, gain more traffic and thus better achieve their goals.