Starting an Online Business For Dummies®, 6th Edition

Chapter 14. Taking Advantage of Google's Tools

In This Chapter

• Making your e-commerce site easier to find in Google's Web directory

• Knowing what gives a Web site a good "page rank" on search results

• Adding Google Apps

• Inserting gadgets

• Doing business research with Google

• Selling items with Google Checkout

Long ago, Main Street was the place to see and be seen as well as make money as a merchant in many small towns in America. Later, the shopping mall attracted sellers of all sorts along with curious shoppers. Those marketplaces haven't gone away altogether, but these days, Google is the best-known, single online resource for businesses around.

Google started as a search engine — a Web site that organizes the contents of the entire Internet and made information easy to find. It turns out that the same approaches that apply to organizing content and presenting search results apply to merchants as well as their goods and services. Google now makes millions by giving online businesspeople the ability to pay for ads that steer consumers to their Web sites. The site has branched out to supply a variety of new services, including free e-mail, Web hosting, and business applications.

You owe it to yourself to pay attention to what Google has to offer and take advantage of the services that can help you. This chapter examines some, though not all, of Google's software and services. The focus is on tools that can help your business get organized and connect with customers — to get yourself Googled ...