Inktomi is an important crawler-based search engine because it provides "backup" results to the popular MSN Search. It was also recently purchased by Yahoo and so may be providing results to Yahoo in the near future.

As covered with Google, building links is the best way to get listed for free. Unlike Google, Inktomi has no free Add URL page. This doesn't mean that you can't get listed, however. Inktomi crawls the web, so if you have links pointing at your web site, you may get included naturally.

What if you aren't picked up for free? Inktomi has a "paid inclusion" program that will guarantee to add the pages you submit within two days and keep revisiting it on a regular basis for a year. Because of this, for a brand new site, it's well recommended to use the program. You can quickly get yourself represented in Inktomi for a modest amount.

You'll want to use the Search Submit program to get at least your home page listed, for a $39 fee (prices may vary among Inktomi's Search Submit partners, but this is typical). This also means the page will be revisited regularly, for up to a year. After this time period, if you don't renew, your page might possibly be dropped by Inktomi. However, if you've built some links, this is highly unlikely. Home pages are deemed as very important by all crawlers, and it would be unusual for these crawler-based search engines not to include them for free. Paying the fee is really only speeding up the process of getting the home page listed, for a brand-new site.

You can also choose to submit many more of your pages through the program, and the fees are less than for your first page. In addition, there's an Index Connect program for those who have thousands of pages they wish to pay to include.