 The following updates and corrections are provided as a free service for purchasers of the book Effective Websites for Artists and Art Groups. If you have not purchased the book, click the picture on the right for complete information.
Please report errors or corrections to ewfa@artchain.com
Domain Lookup
Find out who owns an Internet domain name. Most domain registrars also provide domain lookup services, but this service is free to anyone:
whois - http://www.whois.com
betterwhois - http://www.betterwhois.com - another company providing “whois” domain lookup services. Despite the name, it is not necessarilly better than any other.
Keyword Optimization
Word Tracker - http://www.wordtracker.com - an inexpensive though somewhat complicated tool for finding the best keywords for your website
Google Page Rank
Determine your Google Page Rank:
PageRank.net - http://www.pagerank.net/pagerank-checker
PageRank Tool - http://www.pageranktool.net
Site Traffic Rank
Find out how your site traffic compares to other sites worldwide
Alexa - http://pages.alexa.com/associates/sitereport.html - enter your website URL in the “Search Our Site” box at the top of the Alexa page
Search Engines
Once sites start linking to your site, the search engines will “find” you - but if you want to speed the process, you can submit your site directly to the big 3: Google, Yahoo, and MSN. Don’t bother with the smaller search engines - they either get their data from the big search engines, or nobody uses them. Also, don’t use a “paid submit” service - it’s not necessary.
Google - http://www.google.com/addurl
MSN - http://search.msn.com/docs/submit.aspx?FORM=WSDD2
Yahoo - http://submit.search.yahoo.com/free/request
Directories
The two largest directories are Yahoo and the Open Directory Project (DMOZ):
Open Directory Project - http://www.dmoz.org -very slow to process submissions
Yahoo Directory - https://ecom.yahoo.com/dir/submit/intro - charges an annual fee
Other general directories that are worthwhile include:
A-Free-Directory - http://www.a-free-directory.info
AbiFind - http://www.abifind.com
Land-Of-Links - http://www.landoflinks.com
New Web Directory - http://www.newwebdirectory.com
SearchWarp - http://searchwarp.com
WikiDWeb - http://www.wikidweb.com - a highly recommended, searchable web directory, but kind of complicated to add a link. Get a “techy” friend to help you!
A few art-specific directories include:
ArtChain - http://www.artchain.com - a free, searchable directory for art groups, guilds and galleries
Art Promote - http://www.artpromote.com - free listings and links for artists and galleries - suspends free submissins when they are backed up - just try again in a few days
Art Resources - http://www.artresources.com - free listings and links for artists and galleries - suspends free submissions when they are backed up - just try again in a few days
Art Wanted - http://www.artwanted.com - free galleries and links for artists
Art Web Links - http://www.artweblinks.com - free and paid submissions for artists and art organizations
ArtXpost - http://www.artxpost.com - free galleries and links for artists
NEW! Free Artist List - http://www.freeartistlist.com - post free one-month 'ads' for your art
Gallery Sites - http://www.gallerysites.com
VoodooChilli - http://www.voodoochilli.net - free galleries and links for artists
World Wide Art Resource - http://wwar.com - requires a reciprocal link with a small icon, but this highly-ranked directory is probably worth an exchange
Your Art Links - http://www.yourartlinks.com
Press Release Services
These are free press release distribution services... in general, don't pay for the "upgrades," except for perhaps PRweb, which seems to offer good value for the $30 package. These services do not take the place of sending out traditional press releases to appropriate publications. They are another way to get the word out about your art-business announcements.
24-7 - http://www.24-7pressrelease.com
Absolute Arts - e-mail to: artsnews@absolutearts.com
Article Networks - http://free-press-release.articlenetworks.com
Arrive Net - http://www.arrivenet.com
PR Free - http://www.prfree.com
PR Web - http://www.prweb.com
Article Syndication Services
Post your articles on these sites to increase your visibility and get links. These sites can also be used to find articles you can use on your own website, with appropriate credits.
Article99 - http://www.article99.com
ArticleBlast - http://www.articleblast.com
Articles Base - http://www.articlesbase.com
E-Zine Articles - http://ezinearticles.com
Go Articles - http://www.goarticles.com/
IdeaMarketers - http://www.ideamarketers.com
Pay-Per-Click Advertising
Sponsored advertisements that appear alongside search results, and on other web pages.
ExactSeek - http://store.exactseek.com - this is actually not a PPC program; ExactSeek offers inexpensive flat rate sponsor ads on the largest independent network of search engines
Google - http://adwords.google.com
MSN - http://adcenter.msn.com
Yahoo - http://searchmarketing.yahoo.com
Blogging
Your ISP or hosting company may offer blogging software, but there are a number of very good free blogging services.
Blogger (aka Blogspot) - http://www.blogger.com - excellent free service
Live Journal - http://www.livejournal.com - free and paid options
MSN Spaces - http://spaces.msn.com - Microsoft’s free blogging and community site
Typepad - http://www.typepad.com - paid service with lots of advanced features; free trial
Yahoo Stores - http://smallbusiness.yahoo.com/merchant
Online Payment Services
Simple services that allow you to accept payments online, in exchange for a service charge. PayPal, which was purchased by eBay in 2002, is by far the best known of these services.
BidPay.com - http://www.bidpay.com - suspended operations in December, 2005
ClickandBuy - http://www.clickandbuy.com
PayPal - http://www.paypal.com - the most widely used and recognized online payment service
StormPay - http://www.stormpay.com/
Auctions
eBay - http://www.ebay.com
Communities
EBSQ - http://www.ebsqart.com - tools, resources and online gallery space for self representing artists
Gallery Sites
The following sites offer galleries for artists:
Absolute Arts - http://www.absolutearts.com - a high Page Rank site with free and paid galleries
Art Boomer - http://www.artboomer.com - free and paid galleries
Artist Portfolio - http://www.artistportfolio.net - free and paid galleries
NEW! ArtScuttlebutt - http://www.artscuttlebutt.com - an artist community site with free profiles and gallery pages
Artspan - http://www.artspan.com - paid galleries only
Art Wanted - http://www.artwanted.com - free and paid galleries
FineArtPost - http://fineartpost.com - paid galleries only
FolioLink - http://www.foliolink.com - paid galleries with 7-day free trial
Qfolio - http://www.qfolio.com - site design and paid galleries
Other Online Markets
Etsy - http://www.etsy.com - “Your place to buy and sell all things handmade”
Free List Services
Your ISP or hosting company may also offer free mailing list management.
Topica - http://lists.topica.com
Yahoo Groups - http://groups.yahoo.com
Commercial Mailing List Services
A-List Hosting - http://www.a-listhosting.com
ConstantContact - http://www.constantcontact.com
MailerMailer - http://www.mailermailer.com
Affiliate Programs
Amazon.com - http://www.amazon.com/gp/browse.html/002-5791411-3810459?%5Fencoding=UTF8&node=3435371
Dick Blick - http://www.dickblick.com/affiliates/home/
Pay-Per-Click Advertising on your Website
Google Adsense- https://adwords.google.com/adsense
Yahoo Publisher Network - http://publisher.yahoo.com/
Custom Merchandise
CafePress - http://www.cafepress.com
Online Discussion Forums
Beware! These sites can become a real time-sink if you get too involved.
ArtAffairs - http://www.artaffairs.com/forum.asp - a very active, professional forum
Crafts Report - http://www.craftsreport.com/board - The Crafts Report Forum is a very active and useful discussion board. Most of the people there make their living selling their work, so they have lots of useful information about everything from credit card services to places for buying framing supplies.
Craig’s List - http://forums.craigslist.org/?forumID=49 - The CraigsList Art Forum is much less professional, but it can be a good place to get feedback on your work and ideas.
Copyrights
For information about copyrights and instructions for registering the copyrights on your artwork:
United States Copyright Office - http://www.copyright.gov/
Humor
Web Pages that Suck - http://www.webpagesthatsuck.com - a humorous look at many things that can be done wrong when designing a website
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