…no spam in the rankings, above us only sky. (My apologies to John Lennon fans everywhere.)

If you are a search marketer it may seem unthinkable. Search engines are our livelihood, we think about how to get our websites indexed, about the next big algo change. We use words like “algos” even if we don’t really know what we don’t really know about them. We ponder link popularity, PR, and nofollows. Amid all this delving into the details, do we forget that there are plenty of opportunities for delivering visitors to websites totally independent of search engines?

If you neglect all the other ways the world can find your website, you would do well to broaden your focus. How would you tell the wired universe about the truly one-of-a-kind product, bit of entertainment, or other information if you were not counting on Mr. Google to give you the nod?

You would give great reasons for others to link to your site. You would be active in your community, virtual or carbon-based. You would advertise online. You would try to generate “good press” through online public relations. You would engage the visitor with compelling copy. You would make your site easy to view. You would give a clear statement of your value proposition. Anyone who just happened onto your site by accident would “get it” immediately.

Here is the great part. Once you have done these things, you might just do better with the search engines. Without even trying. You may call me a dreamer; I’m not the only one…