subject: From Traditional Marketing to Web Marketing: Why Search Engine Optimization Is Important by:Collyn Floyd [print this page] Think about the last time you used a search engine to find a product, service, or information. Probably within the last day or two, right? Now think about the last time you cracked open the phone book. I can tell you that at my house, the phone book has turned into kindling for the outdoor fire pit. In fact, an entire chunk from "Physicians" to "Restaurants" is gone (but not the least bit missed).
The reason I mention my family's creative use for the phonebook is that it speaks to the shift in marketing techniques over the past few years from the traditional (yellow pages, print, radio, etc.) to the Web. It also sheds some light on why Web Marketing, and Search Engine Optimization (SEO) in particular, should be a priority for your business. With more and more people shifting their attention online, businesses need an online presence to match.
But is the marketing shift away from traditional methods to online dramatic enough to justify an investment in SEO? And are there statistics to back up the claim that SEO is vitally important for your business? We think the answers are: yes and yes. Here's why
The Shift: Traditional to Online
When compared to traditional marketing strategies (i.e., direct mail, radio, trade shows), Web Marketing not only has the same reach as these methods, but has the added bonus of allowing consumers to convert into a lead or sale on the spot. That means there's one less step in the sales cycle, and one less opportunity for buyers to "fall off".
The Web also does a much better job of keeping information current and relevant. Not to pick on phone books again, but they're outdated by the time they get to your doorstep, and their advertising is terribly expensive in the first place.
Web Marketing is often more of a time investment than a financial one. But even if you outsource your work, it's still incredibly cost-effective with an average cost per lead of $0.29. (Source: Entrepreneur Magazine)
Top Search Engines
When it comes to search engines, there are only a few major players. Google dominates the search engine market in the United States; they're also the leader globally although not to the same extent as here in the U.S. Following a distant second and third are Yahoo! and MSN. Here's a complete breakdown of U.S. market share:
* Google - 59%
* Yahoo - 15%
* MSN - 6%
* AOL - 3.9%
* Ask - 3.7%
* Others -13%
(Source: Accuracast.com, Jan 2009)
It's obvious why businesses focus their efforts on ranking well in Google, and to a lesser extent, Yahoo! and MSN. If your site is ranking well in those search engines, you have 80% of all search engine traffic covered.
Why Web Marketing?
Considering the fact that there are hundreds of millions of websites and blogs clogging up the Internet, it's important to stand out. It's not enough to just put up a website and hope that your potential customers will find it, because they won't. Without SEO, your site will almost surely end up in Internet Oblivion (also known as page 28 of Google). Here's why:
* 1.3 Billion Internet Users
* Over 85% start at a Search Engine
* Less than 25% will go beyond the top 10
* Top 10 get 80% more traffic than those ranked 11-30
(Sources: Internet World Stats, Search Engine Blaster, Base One Search and Bestrank.com)
Did you catch that? Less than 25% of users go beyond the first page of the search results. Even if your company is on page 3 or 4, your site traffic and online visibility will probably be minimal. That's why it's so important to optimize and market your site so that it dominates your online competition in the search engines.
Important Elements of Web Marketing
So where and how do you start? Search Engine Optimization is actually just one (big) piece of the Web Marketing puzzle. When you're marketing your site, you actually want to consider all of these web marketing techniques as possibilities:
* Search Engine Optimization (SEO) - often called natural - or organic - placement in the search engines. SEO includes the following strategies:
Link Building
Online Public Relations
Content Creation
SEO-friendly HTML Code Optimization
Analytics
* Pay-Per-Click (PPC) - PPC refers to paid placement ads in the search engines.
* Social Media - while Social Media sites such as YouTube, Facebook, and Twitter certainly have SEO benefits, they also help your online visibility and overall marketing effort.
* Email Marketing - drive traffic to your site using email messages.
Here's the bottom line: Web Marketing is one of the most cost effective uses of your marketing budget. It's also a "must" if you want your site to perform well in the search engines and be seen by potential customers. When Web Marketing is done right, you can expect things like greater online visibility, search engine rankings, site traffic, and leads and sales. How's that for a nice payoff?
About the author
Collyn Floyd is a marketing and public relations specialist with The Karcher Group, a web development and search engine marketing firm based in North Canton, OH. She is passionate about helping The Karcher Group's clients achieve greater online traffic, leads and sales through search engine optimization and marketing.
