How to Add a Counter to a Web Page

How many people have visited your site? Display the number of visitors by adding a graphical counter to your page.

Instructions

Difficulty: Easy

1. Ask your Internet Service Provider if they provide counters. Your ISP can help you place the counter's code on your page.
2. Check the pages of other users on your ISP. Use the View Source command in your browser to see the location of their browser. You may be able to copy the CGI path for your ISP from their page.
3. Conduct a Web search by typing 'free counter' into a search engine. Many sites offer free counters and corresponding images.
4. Return to pages with counters you like. Clicking on the counter may give you more information about the counter; or you can ask the webmaster about their counter.
5. Follow the directions to insert the counter into your page.
6. Save and upload the page. Test the counter by visiting your page several times and asking others to visit it as well.

Tips & Warnings

• Many free counter sites offer a choice of counter images, from simple number images to tracking information on where visitors came from.
• Build up your counter numbers by asking friends, family and business associates to visit at least once per day for a week.
• Visible counters will cause your web page to load slightly more slowly.
• Keep in mind that your counter will show a value of zero to begin with. If your site moves slowly, it may show only a few hits. Some visitors may interpret this as saying your site isn't very popular.
• Counters occasionally fail or reset themselves. You can add a note just below the counter stating the counter was recently reset to explain the low numbers.
• If a third-party counter is down, your page may not fully load. Always put your counter at the bottom of the page, separate from all other components, and be prepared to take it off if it goes down.