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It’s fascinating that even after all these years involved with search engine and internet marketing, there are still those who believe that being in the top 10 results on a search engine is the only result that matters when promoting a business online. And, more interestingly, that many company executives believe that typing in the company name (or, worse, the URL) into the search engine and ranking number one, proves that the budget spent on internet marketing is justified.
Let us consider the problems with the above misunderstanding, particularly for SMEs.
Firstly, if the only budget you are spending to market your business online is on search engine optimisation, you are missing a huge audience. Whilst many companies may not feel that there is the necessary time and resource to handle multiple social media accounts, this is a) where agencies come in and b) a misunderstanding of how social media operates – you do not need a vast social media presence to benefit.
Obviously, the search engines are a logical and essential place for you to have an online presence. However, it is vital to understand how people use the search engines before making the (wrong) assumption that all searchers looking for your company, products and services will type in your company name. Or your URL. If a potential customer knows your URL, and are a savvy Internet user, they are just as likely to type this directly into the location browser of the browser and bypass the search engines entirely.
What is far more likely is that the person looking for your products does not actually know you exist as a company, is unaware of your URL or company name, and therefore will only find your website if it is optimised for the specific terms being searched upon.
If you sell a product, particularly one that is in a competitive market, there is a strong possibility that your website visitors and sales come from word of mouth recommendations from the potential buyer’s social network, from comparison sites, or from links and reviews on other, well-trafficked websites.
Returning to the search engine optimisation issue, many websites do not actually rank for the terms that the average searcher is likely to use to find your product. Many websites are built by website designers, rather than by designers with search engine optimists’ assistance. Whilst Management may love the look of your website, if it does not work for either the search engines or your potential visitors, it will not work for you either.
Therefore, it is important to check that your site includes the terms most likely to be searched for, that these terms occur in all the places required by the search engines, and that the site is competitively optimised in order to rank above others selling similar products.
If the last is not feasible because you are a small fish in a big pond, then it is even more imperative that you use many of the other tools in the internet marketing toolbox to attract attention. eg social media.
To see how well your website is doing on Google, type your main product into the search box and check your ranking. Check your analytics to see how many visitors you are getting from the terms you had expected to be those bringing in most traffic. Think long and hard about where else you are marketing and whether it is driving the necessary traffic to your website. Perhaps 2012 may be the time for a change of tactics?
Microsoft and Mozilla have joined forces to develop a new version of the popular web browser, Firefox, which instead of utilising Google as its default search engine uses Bing – in both its home page and search bar – according to an article published by the International Business Times.
A popular platform for search engine marketing initiatives, Bing’s new Firefox browser can be downloaded from www.firefoxwithbing.com.
Those users already operating a standard Firefox browser will be able to gain access to the new features simply by installing a plug-in.
While Microsoft’s Internet Explorer is the world’s browser of choice, Firefox has gained significant ground since 2004.
However, it has been predicted that Google’s – who previously held close ties with Firefox – Chrome browser could become the second most popular browser by the middle of next year, according to a number of web statisticians.
According to StatCounter, Internet Explorer is used by 42 per cent of users worldwide, whilst Firefox lies in second place with 28 per cent of users choosing it as their browser of choice.
News brought to you by ClickThrough – a best practice Internet Marketing Agency.
Google recently announced that they would be discontinuing their first foray into social networking, Google Buzz.
However, according to an article published by Search Engine Watch, this is just one of a number of products that will be shut down in the near future.
This means that a whole host of products will be shut down by January 2012.
Amongst these products are Code Search – a search tool that could be used to track open source code; both the service and its API will see closure on January 15 2012; Jaiku – a micro-blogging service that was acquired by Google back in 2007, like Code Search it too will close on January 15 2012; and University Research Program for Google Search – aimed at academic researchers, it provided them with API access for search results, it too will be discontinued on January 15 2012.
Undoubtedly a huge platform for search engine marketing initiatives, Google is said to be closing down these services in order to focus on new ventures – such as Google+.
News brought to you by ClickThrough – experts in Search Engine Marketing & Internet Marketing.
Though it was one of the company’s first forays into the world of social networking, Google has now announced that it is to pull the plug on Google Buzz, according to an article published by Agence France-Presse.
The micro-blogging and messaging tool is being shut down as Google switches its focus towards Google+.
Launched back in February 2010, Google Buzz has been beset with a number of problems and privacy complaints since its inception.
Google product vice president, Bradley Horowitz, said: “We aspire to build great products that really change people’s lives, products they use two or three times a day.
“To succeed you need real focus and thought – thought about what you work on and, just as important what you don’t work on.
“In a few weeks we’ll shut down Google Buzz and Buzz API, and focus instead on Google+,” Mr. Horowitz commented in a blog post.
The leading platform for search engine marketing efforts, Google is using its latest social networking venture, Google+, as an attempt to provide a serious level of competition for Facebook.
News brought to you by ClickThrough – experts in Search Engine Marketing & Internet Marketing.
Providing yet another outlet for search engine marketing, Google has announced that it will launch a hyper-local based advertising product, according to an article published by the Telegraph.
Google Circular will offer a similar service to that of the advert traditionally published in local newspapers.
Users searching for a specific product in the search engine will be provided with an SERP (search engine results page) that will feature an advert for a local business or retailer that stocks or sells that particular item that was searched for.
The advert will feature significant information such as the retailer’s address and phone number.
American giants, Best Buy and Macy’s are amongst the first retailers to sign up for the service.
Having launched the product at the Advertising Week event, held in New York, Google’s president of the Americas, Dennis Woodside explained the concept behind Circular.
He said: “It is an ad designed for me. They know I’m in New York and they know I want a camera… it’s like walking into a store and having it dynamically rearranged so the items you are looking for are right in front of you.”
News brought to you by ClickThrough – experts in Search Engine Marketing & Internet Marketing.
Having always traditionally played second fiddle to Google – and now third with the introduction of Bing – Yahoo! Inc is in the process of preparing financial information for potential sale, according to an article published by the Wall Street Journal.
Yahoo! has suffered from the increase in power that its rivals, including Google – one of the biggest platforms for search engine marketing – and social networking site Facebook, have gained.
The search engine company is currently undertaking a review of its strategy, having previously sacked chief executive, Carol Bartz, last month.
As a result, Yahoo!’s board is also considering a number of different options, including the sale of its assets or the striking of partnerships.
Members of the board at the search engine informed staff, last month, that the company was “fielding inquiries from multiple parties that have already expressed interest in a number of potential options.”
Chairman of the Chinese company, Alibaba Group Holding Corp, Jack Ma, is amongst the interest parties. He previously made his interest in buying the company known – stating that he was “very interested” in a possible acquisition.
News brought to you by ClickThrough – experts in Search Engine Marketing & Internet Marketing.
In a bid to improve financial losses and gain significant ground on Google, Bing is set to unleash an update that will see the search engine produce more relevant results much faster than ever before, according to an article published by Search Engine Watch.
Currently known as ‘Tiger’, the update is being worked on by both Bing and Microsoft engineers, and has undergone a gradual rollout since August.
It is expected that the rollout will be completed before the turn of the year, according to a spokesperson for Microsoft.
By using Solid State Disk (SSD) technology, Bing is expecting an improved level of efficiency – which could potentially improve search engine marketing.
Speaking in a video, general manager of Microsoft’s Search Technology Center in Asia, Yongdong Wang states: “In Tiger, we not only look at improved efficiency but also look at new ways of processing queries.”
Continuing, he added: “These new ways will enable scenarios where we can significantly improve the relevance of the results seen by users.”
News brought to you by ClickThrough – experts in Search Engine Marketing & Internet Marketing.
Not showing any signs of slowing up following their recent spate of activity, Bing have announced the launch of an airport maps feature for Bing Maps, according to an article published by TechCrunch.
Currently launching to display maps for 42 airports located across America, the feature is expected to expand to encompass other airports over time.
Users will be able to find the maps simply by searching either the name of the airport, the city the airport is located in, or the airport’s code in Bing’s search bar.
The airport maps will also provide a useful link allowing users to send the map across to a mobile device.
Displaying the locations of terminals, toilets, check-in counters, baggage claim areas, information desks and shops – as well as other features – airport maps is expected to provide users with useful information during what can be a quite stressful experience.
Currently lagging behind Google in the search engine stakes, Bing’s recent introduction of a number of innovative new features – such as Adaptive Search, a feature that could potentially affect search engine marketing – could see them gain ground.
News brought to you by ClickThrough – a best practice Internet Marketing Agency.
Having launched a number of new features recently, Bing has just released it’s latest – an event planning feature – according to an article published by TopNews New Zealand.
Named “Bing Events”, the feature has been created specifically to aid users in planning nights out. It will provide a whole host of useful information about events, restaurants and parking, in a timetable format.
Information will be drawn from various sources to cover as many as 10,000 venues spread across locations in the United Kingdom.
Meanwhile, the Microsoft owned search engine has also announced that it will be encompassing moving images on its homepage.
The move is seen as a bid to compete with Google – the most popular platform for search engine marketing – and their hugely popular doodles, that change on a daily basis – often marking a significant event or past landmark.
Google currently have a huge advantage over Bing in the search market, possessing a 65 per cent share of the global market.
News brought to you by ClickThrough – experts in Search Engine Marketing & Internet Marketing.
A recent European Court ruling could see the commonly utilised practice of a brand using a rival’s trademark as a keyword – in search engine marketing – breach trademark law, according to an article published by Brand Republic.
The dispute, regarding flower retailer, Interflora and Marks & Spencer (M&S), has seen the court rule that using a competitor’s trademark as a keyword could have an adverse impact – in situations where a particular keyword’s use impacts on brand reputation and the company’s ability to retain and entice customers.
Despite this, the ruling also found that the practice could be utilised fairly in cases where the keyword “puts forward an alternative to the goods or services of the proprietor of the trade mark with a reputation – without offering a mere imitation of the goods or services if the proprietor of that trade mark, without causing dilution of the trade mark or detriment to its repute (tarnishment) and without, moreover, adversely affecting the functions of the trade mark.”
M&S’s use of the word ‘Interflora’ in Google AdWords sparked the dispute and prompted Interflora to take legal action – as the term produced results relating to M&S’s own flower delivery service.
Both have been referred back to the High Court of Justice, England, in a bid to resolve the matter.
News brought to you by ClickThrough – experts in SEO, Pay Per Click Services, Multilingual Search Marketing and Website Conversion Enhancement services.
