Earlier this month, I again was informed of the continuing mass confusion regarding Search Engine Optimization that exists in the market place. I have maintained for a long time that market confusion was the single biggest factor in frustration and dysfunction in small business SEO campaigns. So, for the next month, I am going to prepare some clarifications that should help you understand what you are buying and give you input on what you should be buying depending on your objectives.
Objectives... there is a good place to start. Start by defining what you want out of your Search Engine Marketing (That is the acronym SEM). It means what you want to come to you from search engines. Let’s assume that what you want are site visits. (I know this is basic, but there is a reason why you should start this simply). You might have other objectives as well, such as apprearing ahead of competititors, being present on certain search terms, etc. However, I recommend that in today’s climate, that you focus on getting site visits.
Ok, with that established, let’s talk about SEO or Search Engine Optimization. SEO is about as confusing as it gets. In general terms, a site is optimized for certain terms or relevance. Relating to keywords, a page can be made relevant to a certain term or terms by using those terms in a relevant fashion. So, when you buy SEO, you are buying the efforts to periodically evaluate and make adjustments to the site to make you more relevant to a given set of terms. This is where you have to go back and ask yourself, does this meet my objective of getting more traffic?
I am frequently asked why some competitors can promise first page placement on search engines. This expectation has confused the market place for years. Here is an analogy from a funny movie that applies here. In The Pink Panther Strikes Again, Peter Sellars (playing Clouseau) asks a woman inkeeper sitting next to a dog if her dog bites. She says no. Sellars reaches for the dog, which violently bites him. He says to the woman, “I thought you said your dog did not bite.” She replies, “That is not my dog.”
Keep that in mind when you think about the value (in terms of traffic) of being listed first on terms that do not have a lot of traffic. One of the biggest SEO mistakes I see is insisting on being listed on terms that sound good but do not result in a lot of traffic. In our SEO program, when selecting your terms, we look at what is the best value for you in terms of effectiveness. Our program follows the terms and lets you know if they are more or less effective. This is a long-term strategy. Long-term, it will place you on terms that meet your objective because they are getting the best traffic for you.
This takes us back to your objective, which is to get traffic. So, if your most effective terms will require you to invest time and effort over the long haul to get better traffic, how can you meet your immediate objective of more traffic? Easy... pay per click. This is a search engine marketing strategy that meets your objective. I have long endorsed this strategy because you pay in and get visits back. In fact, it is why we designed our Keyword SEO program the way we did. In our program you invest a minimal amount $300-$450 each month (depending on the number of terms you have) on long-term strategies, allowing you to put the majority of your Internet budget into paid clicks. This balance keeps you focused because you are getting your main objective met: traffic to your web site. People ask me what the ideal balance should be. This is it. A steady and affordable Keyword program and supporting Pay Per Click to make sure you get what you need now. This meets short and long-term objectives.
Or, you can become confused by the facts. If you are on the first page on search terms that are not effective, it is probably really frustrating that your traffic is not improving. Are you satisfied paying for positions that are not so effective? Remember The Pink Panther... Does your dog bite?
All markets are different and there is no silver bullet but there are tools that are available to everyone to help you figure this out. You have to decide what you are buying. When you enroll in our SEO program, we show you the tools that are online that we use to determine what is going to result in the most traffic for you. Sometimes the keywords that we choose would not be your first choice but those choices are based on effectiveness. Effectiveness improves your chances of traffic.
I will break this down with specific examples in the weeks to come. It is important to me that you all learn what you are buying so you can meet your objective. Otherwise, it is really easy to buy something that sounds good but does not bite.
If you are interested in our easy and effective SEO program, please let me know. You can email at donald@dogstarmedia.
