Posted in Driving Website Traffic	September 2, 2008

Is it still worth the time and effort to get into Google News?

The important thing to know is that not everyone can get into Google News. At a minimum, a site looking for inclusion in Google News needs to...

• Contain original content
• Involve multiple authors
• Use proper attribution
• Have top-notch response times

Original content and proper attribution are the easiest of these to take care of. Unfortunately, as you have seen with your weightlifting blog, the second point is where most potential sites run into problems. If your site is a one-person operation it's very unlikely to be listed in Google News.

A minimum of three authors and an editor or two is generally required to get listed. Consider creating a few more author profiles and display them prominently on your blog. Google has even said that great, original content from a single talented writer isn't enough to get a site in; forging relationships with other writers or adding more guest commentary to a site will help improve long-term chances of inclusion.

The final point above deals with the potential server response time. Google's news bots are looking for pages they can index swiftly and load quickly for readers. If you have a custom management system, make sure to review it frequently to ensure the added code doesn't bloat or slow down the serving of your content. Also ensure that your systems are able to handle the increased traffic results from inclusion in Google News.

Finally, it's important to note that potential sites for inclusion in Google News are human-reviewed. If you want to get in, you need to make a good impression on the individual reviewing your site. When submitting a potential site to Google News through this link make your case with the following:

• Tell them about your editors and authors
• Show them any awards your site has won
• Provide a historical overview of your site
• Highlight the stats of your site
• List your high-value backlinks
• Emphasize the newsworthy aspects of your site
• State in detail that you satisfy all technical requirements

So, what does being included in Google News mean for you? Increased traffic, tons of high visibility exposure, a wider audience for your news and services and the potential for higher ad sales, are all among a few of the benefits. Again, not every site can get into Google News; but with some attention to the recommendations laid out above, you can greatly increase your chances of success.

If you have everything in place, go ahead and get listed in Google News.

This article was written by SearchEngineNews.com, authors of The UnFair Advantage Book on Winning the Search Engine Wars, an SEO book updated monthly.