What is Search Engine Marketing (or Internet Marketing)?

Internet Marketing, sometimes called Search Engine Marketing (SEM) is the process of promoting a companies product or service through electronic methods.  Today the World Wide Web is the most common place to conduct Internet Marketing campaigns. 

We like to break down Internet Marketing into six (6) core elements. 

• Reporting Systems

• Keyword/Keyword Phrase Research and Analysis

• Optimization

• Building Community

• Advertising

• Search Engine and Directory Promotion

Myths Surrounding Search Engine Marketing.  SEM is not . . .

• An Obscure Practice Done Somehow by Magic

• A Process of Tricking the Search Engines

• Reserved for a Few Who Can Get to the Top

• A Matter of Paying

• Reserved for Those Who Can Afford It.  (It is affordable to even the smallest business today!)

What is Search Engine Optimization, or SEO?

• SEO is a component of a complete Search Engine Marketing campaign.  And SEO is a critical component of online marketing success.  A complete SEO mix will feature some combination of natural SEO and Pay-Per-Click (PPC).  The mix should be as heavily weighted to SEO as possible.  PPC should be used to "fill in the presence gaps" to generate short-term traffic.

• SEO and a corresponding online marketing strategy is the single most overlooked aspect of web site development today!

• SEO is not submitting to 1000 Search Engines.  These submissions are a sham!  Less than a half-dozen engines control more than 98% of the traffic.

• SEO is rarely accidental.  Good rankings take knowledge, work, and perseverance.

Why Should Your Business Use Search Engine Marketing

Consumers rely on different methods to get information on buying decisions.  A recent survey by DoubleClick of over 2100 respondents shows that online web sites are in the top 4 "influencers" when it comes to purchase decisions.  Web sites outrank television in 8 of 10 categories.  Read the report here:  DoubleClick:  Web Site Influences Buying Decisions.

A failure in using SEM is a failure to reach potential customers.  Potential customers using the Search Engines are motivated buyers looking specifically for something to purchase.  They could be researching (the information stage), they could be gathering information on an item  (the pre-purchase phase) with the express purpose of finding out more about so they can go to a local outlet and see it before buying.  They could be ready to buy.  These are all stages in the purchase process, and if your company is not there, you won't get the business.

"Brochureware" (information only) sites, if they are good, generate 1-3% conversion rates.  That is provided they are found.  Most industry experts agree SEO optimized sites can deliver conversion rates of 20% or more.  Think about what that can do to improve your ROI.

The increasing use of high speed Internet (broadband) is changing many things and fueling Internet growth.  Read the Media Post Publication eMarketer: Broadband Transforms Web Usage of June 22, 2005.

According to Forrester Research, consumers use Search Engines 80-85% of the time to find products and services.

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The time to act is now!  It is, however, getting tougher "out there!".  As of October 2004, there were 55 million web sites out there.  The web is growing by 1 million sites a month.  Search engine advertising spending looked liked this.  Growth rates are likely to continue, however, we suspect it will get more expensive.

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