By Alissa Arford-Leyl
Shop Site of the Month
Fiore's Auto Repair and Service - Shrewsbury, Mass.
www.fioresinc.com
Web Wise
Web Design and Marketing Tips
During 1997, Net Worth articles covered the basics of the Internet and the World Wide Web. However, many shops are just now creating Web sites, so a review of Web design strategies and marketing tips may be helpful.
Design & Content
Your audience is the consumer who is looking for a shop, so keep that in mind when designing your site. On the home page be sure to have your shop name, address, phone number, contact name and e-mail address. A photo of the shop is also a nice addition. On other pages explain your services, warranties, qualifications, specials and business philosophy. If you have pictures of employees or a newsletter, consider putting both online.
Also, be sure to link to the Web sites of organizations with which you are affiliated.
Here are some sites to consider:
ASE http://www.asecert.org
I-CAR http://www.i-car.com
ASA http://www.asashop.org
ASA members can use the ASA logo on their site.
Search Engines
Once you have your Web site online, you will need to register it at search engines and directories so Internet users will be able to find it. Have handy your Web address (Uniform Resource Locator, or URL), along with a short description of your site, when you begin registering. Even if you've registered your site before, you should check the search engines every few months to make sure it's still listed. Always resubmit your URL when you make major changes to your home page.
When registering your Web site at a search engine or directory, look for a link from the home page that says, "Add URL" or "Add Site." At some sites your new link will be processed immediately and at others it may take a few weeks. Some search engines allow you to submit more than one URL for the same site (Excite, Infoseek). (See below for list of search engines.)
For example, the Web site for Fiore's Auto Repair and Service has six main sections. They can register their home page (http://www.fioresinc.com), the "About" page (http://www.fioresinc.com/about.html), the "Directions" page (http://www.fioresinc.com/directions.html), and all pages in the site if they wish.
In search engines, the more pages you have registered, the greater the likelihood of creating a match with users' keywords.
If your Web site is designed using frames, keep in mind that when you register specific Web pages of your site, users will link directly to the main frame page. Since no navigational frames will appear, be sure to have a link to your home page from each page of your site so users can access all information.
If you are not using frames and have a comprehensive navigational system, you can confidently register as many pages of your site as possible.
Some search engines recognize "meta" tags that are imbedded in a page's hyper-text markup language (html) code. Meta tags are put on your home page source code and include a short description of the site and a list of keywords. Meta tags will help search engines categorize your site and users find it by matching their keywords to the ones that you have supplied.
Sample Meta Tags:
<head>
<META name="description"
content="ASA is an international organization made
up of approximately 14,000 member-businesses that
work to deliver excellence in mechanical, collision and
transmission service to consumers.">
<META name="keywords"
content="ASA, (ASA), automotive, service, association,
repair, shops, shop, auto, automobile, mechanical,
collision, transmission, car, technician, mechanic ... ">
ASA Web Ways
The Find Nearest ASA Shop section of the ASA Web site is a very important link for ASA members, so be sure to send your shop name, address and URL to alissa@asashop.org to get your link online.
Copyright (c) 1996-2008. Automotive Service Association. All rights reserved.
