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A far cheaper way of generating web traffic is to make sure that you include your web address on all your business stationery. More than 20% of web visits come from web referrals, so include your web address on all e-mail footers too.

Different search engines rank websites according to different measures, some by a site’s popularity, others by its relevance and others by quality. Some will allow the option of paying for a listing on the first page.

“You don’t have to sell people on the value of search engine optimisation any more. All they want to know is how to be No 1 in the listings,” said Michael Heraghty, a search engine consultant. And for most small firms, that means top of Google.

Heraghty, who lectures on the topic for the Irish Internet Association, has a number of tips for firms. “You can get into Google by getting a link from any old site,” he said. “That will get you onto Google easy. Getting up the listings is where it gets difficult.”

To do this, you have to choose your keywords carefully. “You have to identify the keywords you think people will try to use to get to your site. The trick is to use phrases, not words,” he said.

Most searches comprise two, then three or four words. “Nobody keys in one word. Target as many key phrases as you can and don’t just put them all on one page.” Google has a keyword suggestion tool available for free on its site to help you come up with ones that might work for your business.

Having multiple pages on your website is also important. “People often don’t realise that Google doesn’t find websites, it finds web pages. So why fish with one rod? Create lots of pages and target a search phrase with each,” said Heraghty. “In highly competitive sectors such as travel, you might even be better off going for slightly less popular search phrases to bring you to the top of a listing.”

Even internet consultants, however, sometimes have trouble discerning exactly how web crawlers rate sites.

“Google has a method of ranking sites that is secret — the famous Google algorithm — that is like the secret ingredient in Coke. Nobody knows what they are looking for,” said Heraghty.

“Certainly, links to your site are important. It’s not about the quantity of links, however, but quality. That means you shouldn’t just use any old links but ones that are relevant to your business.”

Once you start tweaking your website with a view to moving up the search engine’s listings, monitor your progress to see what is working for you.

Web metrics tools, which will tell you the volume of traffic your site is attracting and where it is coming from, are free from Extreme-dm.com/tracking/ Help is also available at Searchenginewatch.com, Searchenginehelp.com and Searchengineforums.com.

“Small businesses are not realising the potential that can be had from marketing and publicising their site,” said Net Affinity’s Cotter. “Keep your site as simple as possible in terms of design, functionality and technology,” is his advice. “A very simple, intuitive site from the user’s perspective is likely to be more attractive from a search engine’s perspective too.”

Certainly, paying attention to what search engines want has paid dividends for Dooley. Having forked out an additional €600 for help from a search engine expert — found via Google — he set about reorganising his website.

“The number of meaningful hits I’m now getting each month has gone up by about 300%,” said Dooley. He has also achieved his main goal: “I’m now in the top five when it comes to ‘strategy consultants in Ireland’.”