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Make it quick. More and more people are using high-speed broadband connections but a significant number are still using slower dial-ups to access
Internet. Consider this when you design and programme your site; people won't return if they know your pages take several minutes to load.
3. Register your Web site with search engines More than half of site visits are via search engines, so don't underestimate their influence on how many visitors your site will get.
You may find companies that offer to submit your site to hundreds of search engines; there is even software that can do this for you. There are really only four or five major search engines that you need to consider (ask yourself how many search engines you can name and how many you actually use). Many of
others are just ways to surreptitiously get your email address, which you can pretty much guarantee will become inundated with spam (unsolicited email).
To increase your chances of a high ranking in search engines, make sure that pages contain plenty of relevant text-based information. Mostly, this is what they store in their indexes and base their results on. For example, if you search on Google for "web design brighton" my site appears on
first page. At
time of writing, my homepage is number five in
results, with my company ranked third highest on
list. "Brighton web design" ranks me at number one overall. Not bad for a one-man firm!
Email me at signature@nigelgordijk.co.uk and you'll receive a signature example template in an automatic reply.

Nigel Gordijk - based in Brighton, England - is an accomplished, independent Web consultant with over 16 years' design industry experience. His Web site designs are noted for their ability to engage users and their ease of use. His client list includes BP International Ltd, Thomson Holidays, Honda, Ladbrokes and No 10 Downing Street.