In a recent study by WebVisible and Nielsen they uncovered that 82% of consumers find products and local businesses via a search engine. As Google takes up to 85% of the UK search market no guessing which search engine they are using. If you don’t perform regular search optimisation you will miss out on this lucrative market screaming for your custom.
The study also shockingly concluded 61% of small businesses spend less than 3 hours a week marketing their website. So basically most people searching for products or services using Google will spend their money on the top listed companies appearing in that search engine as we know most people never look beyond the first page of results.
So that means the companies who regularly sit on the first page are making all the sales. They are even having an easy time as so much of the competition are too lazy, or uneducated about promoting their website. Perhaps they were sold and completely bought into the theory that once their website is built the visitors will come. Uh-uh.
So after a month, then 3, then 6 of getting no traffic, they ramp up their radio, print and tele marketing campaigns in a hope to drive up their internet presence. And when that doesn’t work they conclude their website will need more time or just isn’t working, so they forget about it and hope it will eventually sort itself out. Not so.
If no investment is put into sorting out the structure and content of the website and an effective seo strategy put into place, then their website will sit there languishing in the black hole of cyberspace.
It is important to think what you want your website to achieve and then adopt a seo strategy to address your needs. With a clear understanding of where your website is and where you want it to go you will be able to have realistic time and cost expectations of your search engine optimisation campaign.
The elements that keep the top listed companies in the top spots in Google are attributed to consistent marketing, targeted marketing, the apathy of their competitors and a focused online strategy. This is what all businesses need to develop in the offline world, but the smarter companies have been adopting it to the online world for quite some time. It’s no secret that the key to doing well in Google search is to give them exactly what they ask for:
Appropriate Page Titles & Meta Code
Good Site Structure
Great Content
Updated Content
Keywords In Page
Trusted Back Links
Plus these can also be topped up by engaging in social media, especially if you have access to the new Google social network button, the +1. People have been comparing it to the Like button on Face Book, but as Google don’t own Face Book this could have stronger implications for search engine rankings in the future.
Many people are debating whether this will be as big as the Face Book Like button, but who cares. Just engage with it and see where it goes. The +1 seems to be having an easier take up than Google’s previous attempts a creating a monster social network such as Google buzz.
Already it can be seen trial blazing on sites all over the network. That would suggest that this button is going to be a success. All it needs is a simple click from users, and that doesn’t take much time or effort. This simple approach must have been adopted by Google after they failed to reach the dizzy heights of network saturation that Face Book achieved. The future looks bright for the +1.
