Search Engine Optimization (SEO)

When users search, they’re looking for the products and services they’re interested in- now.

When someone searches the web through either Google, MSN, or Yahoo, they are somewhere in the buying cycle, whether simply researching, comparing products or to trying to satisfy an immediate or future need. This makes search engine results a great source for targeted leads, whether that traffic originates from "organic" unpaid search listings or paid advertising listings.

To leverage this targeted traffic source, companies must understand how to effectively use both paid (pay-per-click) and organic (SEO) and what they can expect each methodology to achieve.

Search engine traffic is unique in the following ways:

• Search engine traffic is a non-intrusive method of Internet marketing. The majority of offline advertising intrudes on the audience, interrupting their activities. Search is unique in tapping a searcher at the exact moment they are seeking information. Searchers are on a mission, in other words it's "just-in-time marketing."

• Search engine traffic originates from a voluntary, audience-driven search. This means the visitors from a search results link have not only selected your listing, but chose the search query that resulted in your listing being shown.

• Search engine traffic results from a fixed inventory of searches. To truly qualify as search engine traffic (or pure search traffic), the search must be one that the searcher initiated as a search (Google), either by clicking a search link in a directory style portal (Yahoo) or by filling out a search query box.

• Organic search engine marketing (achieved from SEO) combines the best practices of technology, usability, copy/linguistics and online PR. This is because many search engines base their relevancy algorithms on a combination of the text they see on a page or site, combined with external elements such as links and user behaviors/preferences.

Unpaid (organic) search engine traffic was once fairly easy to get- today you need a comprehensive plan that involves internal and external efforts.

Many marketers like to compare SEO to public relations because PR is so important to a company, yet the ROI on PR can sometimes be a challenge to measure. In both SEO and PR, marketers have the options of hiring internal staff, bringing in consultants, or using an outside agency. The same options apply for paid search marketing. However, often larger paid search campaigns are so large they may require some campaign optimization or bid management technology combined with internal or external expertise.

Search marketing has already proven itself a valuable part of an overall integrated campaign, for both branders and direct marketers. All kinds of marketers can easily benefit from a dialogue with a searcher; whether that searcher is facing a crisis, is in need of information, or is ready to purchase.

There are compelling reasons to put legitimate efforts behind organic SEO optimization, particularly efforts in site design, HTML formatting, copy optimization and other SEO efforts.

Please contact us today to schedule an appointment to discuss your needs and goals.