Search Engine Optimisation – SEO

If not contact us, it normally doesn’t take much SEO to get your brand coming up at the beginning of a Google search!

Optimising to be found in the products and services you sell normally requires much greater levels of search engine optimisation!

Levels of being seen!

It’s one thing to be on the first page of Google, another to be at the top of the page, and yet another drive your competitors off!

At Online Marketing we call this:

1. On
2. Up
3. Dominate

For competitive keywords just getting on the first page of Google may be all you need to dramatically increase sales! Generally you need to be getting to the top of the page – the first three listings in the natural area normally get over 80% of the business! The more niche the keyword the more likely the searcher is a qualified buyer and the more benefit there is in dominating a search result, plus the less it will cost you for effective search engine optimisation.

The Art of SEO

The ‘art’ of Search Engine Optimisation is balancing search volume with niche to get you more sales from your most desired target markets at the best mix of sales volume to gross margin! (You might want to read that again!)

The Science of SEO

The science of search engine optimisation is detailed keyword research followed by conversion testing, followed by ‘on page’ and ‘off page’ optimisation, followed by continual testing, measuring and application. The application is taking what’s learned from the testing and measuring and applying that in both conversion strategies and ongoing SEO.

White hat and black hat SEO

The SEO industry has two slang terms – white hat SEO and black hat SEO. White hat is doing the job properly – the way we do it in Online Marketing. It is more about content and getting all the details right. It takes longer to get resutls with white hat SEO, but the results are longer lasting, stronger and will not be ‘Google Slapped’ (another industry term that means penalised by Google for trying to cheat the search engines! Black hat SEO uses tricks such as stuffing a whole bunch of keywords into the meta keyword field, repeating the same keyword multiple times in a row for no other purpose than to try and influence the search engines – sometimes seen in the footer of websites or at the bottom of a page, link farming. Be careful who you choose to do search engine optimisation for you – there’s plenty of cases of black hat SEO giving a website a quick result then suddely it’s gone from the Google results never to be seen again!

The Big Picture of SEO

As a business owner or marketing department head it’s important to get the big picture before making tactical decisions or spending money!

Like most things in business some people will tell you that SEO is a waste of time, others will tell you SEO is everything! The real answer (as with most things in life) is ‘it depends’!

And here’s a little list of what it could depend on for you:

Your industry – what you are selling.
Your geographical location
Your target market(s). Who they are, where they are and what they are looking for. (demographics and psychographics)
The size of your business
Your current brand recognition
Your business growth goals
Markets you want to open locally / internationally.
Your converstion strategies and tactics
Specific keyword search volume
The level of SEO competition

Common SEO Mistakes

• Assuming people are looking for your business name or brand only
• Building a pretty website and hoping the visitors will come.
• Guessing keywords rather than researching what people are actually typing in Google
• Using Google adwords paid advertising without migrating what works to SEO
• Using “SOE tricks” such as keyword stuffing or link farming
• Getting excited about SEO and forgetting the importance of conversion
• Underestimating the importance and not putting the work into creating great content!
• Trying to do it all yourself which often results in distraction from your core business, an amateur half pie job, or a Google penalty from overdoing it!

Smart SEO Strategy

A smart search engine optimisation strategy involves getting the big picture right, doing quality keyword research, implementing conversion tactics, testing uncertain keywords via Pay Per Click, implementing on page and off page SEO on an ongoing basis with continual testing and measuring.

SEO appropriate Content is King

When a person types a search phrase in Google, Google wants to give them the most appropriate and the most informative content. That’s what search engines are for – to find what people are searching for. If you want to be found, your job is to create the best, most informative and relavant content you can – and the more of it the better – so long as you don’t repeat yourself! The more competitive your search phrase the more words you’ll need to have on a page and you’ll also want to have your keywords appropriately repeating to a keyword density of about 2 – 5%.

Write first for people, secondly for Search Engine Optimisation.

How to determine what Search Engine Optimisation package you need for your business

The following series of questions will help you determine what level of SEO you are likely to need to get more customers from the internet and what Online Marketing SEO services are the best match.

Are you in a competitive industry?

No – Choose Gold
Yes – Choose Diamond

Do you know if your customers are searching online for your products and services?

Doubtful – Choose Research then Adwords PPC test
Most likely – Choose Gold then upgrade as you get a positive ROI.
Definitely – Choose Diamond

Is your website coming up at or near the top of the first page of Google for your products and services.

No – Choose Gold at least
Yes – Consider whether page dominance is the next step to increase customers