The difference between search engine optimization (SEO) and search engine marketing (SEM)
February 29, 2008
Search Engine Marketing (SEM) refers to the full array of promotional technologies used by internet marketers to increase their online traffic as well as visibility for their web pages. Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is one only one of the important SEM tool that aims to make a page easier to evaluated, and consequently ranked higher by search engines.
SEM experts employ several methods concurrently :
1. Pay-per-click or PPC Advertising. Paying advertisers submit bids for megatags or keywords. Advertisers pay for listings in search engines (Yahoo, Google, Dogpile, and others). Search engines display ad banners at various frequencies and sites based on the prices they receive. Google ad sense is currently the most successful PPC program in the history of internet marketing, as it specifically picks out the niches that would prove the most effective for an ad - based on an intelligent way of assessing the needs of webpage visitors.
2 Search Engine Optimization. Using SEO, marketers will insert strategic keywords (or metatags) to websites often after carefully studying those used by their competitors, in an effort to increase their own rankings and site traffic. Entire websites can also be structured, and content is often developed to access certain statistically popular keywords. SEO can also employ Image Search capabilities’.
3 Paid Inclusions. For advertisers, it often pays to be a part of marketing or shopping search engines, such as BixRate, Froogle, Shopzilla , MySimon, DealTime, and many others. It helps them to lure shoppers to their own websites for other purchases and customer lists.
In the current high-tech marketplace scenario, entire organizations exist to provide consulting, web developing and SEM solutions. Larger companies often have their own in-house staff to handle and implement IM strategies. The objective is to create Search-Engine-Friendly websites that hope to attract and appeal to their target niche markets.
Using Search Engines to Boost Your Marketing
February 29, 2008
You’ll always have bigger and better competitors, but that doesn’t mean you can’t succeed. You can always offer something ’slightly’ different or a ‘radical new alternative’ if you insist. However, to reach your message to the maximum number of people out there, to effectively compete with the opposition, you first need your website to be ranked higher on the search engines. In fact being on the first three slots will guarantee you a steady traffic to your Internet business.
Ever since the creation of the Google in 1998, getting ranked high on the Google search engine has become a major concern for web site owners. Recent statistics show that 80 percent of Internet users use Google to search something whether it is information or a product. However, no one can say for sure the exact criteria that Google uses to determine its rankings. It is rumored that over 100 criteria are used to determine the algorithm which ranks your site’s credibility with its search engines. Of course, some of these criteria are secret, but there are some known methods to achieve higher rankings.
The first thing that you have to watch out for is definitely your website content. Quality content in an easy-to-use site is perhaps one of the most important things that you can do. Of course, when we say content, we mean the words and the information inside and not the graphics in your web site. Although flashy graphics will impress your visitors, they won’t help you in getting high ranks with search engines in any way. Search engines use programs called spiders to research the content on your website. These spider programs in general won’t be able to decipher the information in your flashy graphics and you may even end up on the lower scale of the results.
The other thing that you have to watch out for is that you need hits from several keywords. Having a website with only the prices and the names of the products will not get you very far with the search engines. Also make sure to update your content frequently and with quality stuff as this will help you get a better ranking on the search engines.
A common mistake that web owners make is spelling and grammar mistakes on their website. Although this will put off potential customers as a result of appearing unprofessional, it has also been found that more than 3 spelling mistakes can cause you to lose your ranking with the search engines. Finally, you should also try and get as many links back to your website as possible from others.
I’m sure that you realize by now that keeping your website high on the Search engines’ top lists will be an ongoing endeavor.
Combining SEO and EBooks – now that’s a power tool
February 19, 2008
Search engine optimization, as we have discussed, is the driving force for internet traffic to websites- and SEO eBooks specially formulated for the purpose is an incipient powerhouse !
As Google and other crawlers like Alexa are scanning through more and more eBooks these days (type any term in Google Scholar and see), links for many internet searches these days end up directly to passages or sentences within eBooks. With the strong lure of free downloadable ‘collectable eBooks’, this can compel readers to download the document or if your book is totally online, continue reading other pages. Imagine the potential it has to generate links !
Let me give you an example of what an eBook on the subject of SEO itself might do, applying the power of SEO on itself !
SEO eBooks are sought after by web designers, content writers and technical writers, as they can use these techniques to enhance the marketable scope of their work. It is very important to know the techniques before creating a web site, or content for a web site. Therefore a strong SEO principled eBook, ranking high on the search engines, will instantly reach millions of web writers and designers, many of whom would be downloading it if given free ! There are a host of SEO and internet marketing based products which could be instantly marketed through the eBook, all producing money through the affiliate income generated by links, not to mention the fact that it boosts the sale of any product which you intend to market yourself. Imagine if you reach the top 10 on Google when it comes to searches involving SEO or Internet marketing itself ! You have already created a best-seller … and become an expert on the authority ! Not to mention the clickable assets your book is passively generating in the background ! Your eBook can also be promoted and resold by other web designers who want their customers to know about the benefits of SEO marketing, thus leading you to a cascade of self-generating profits! The opportunities are limitless !
Here’s Why Paying For Your Traffic Is A Smart Move
January 9, 2008
There are so many success stories you will hear about businesses making it good in the internet. The troubling thing is, there are maybe a tenfold or even a hundredfold of stories contradictory to theirs. Many have unsuccessfully launched a business enterprise that is internet based but only a handful shall succeed.
Is this through luck? That is even more remote. It takes good business sense and a lot of help and team effort. Most importantly, it is the eagerness to succeed and the determination to learn and the willingness to invest in a lot of hard work and some money.
The Very Basic
Like Neo, traffic is “The One”. Without traffic, all your effort would just go to waste. Every business needs customers, without them you wouldn’t have anyone to sell your products to. In the internet world traffic is the walk in customer. The more traffic you have the more people would be able to sell your products to.
But like any business that’s in every corner building or in the mall, not everyone that goes in will buy, but the greater of number that do come in to browse your merchandise, the greater number of people that will buy your products. It is a simple and known fact.
But, how do you get traffic, traffic large enough that could make a small percentage of eventual buyers enough to make a good profit. Many big companies generate traffic of tens of thousands a day and a measly ten to fifteen percent actually buys, but that small percentage is enough to provide them with good business.
Many of these success stories get their traffic from paying others. Yes that’s right; you have to spend money to make money. Advertising is the key. The more people that knows that your site exists; the more people would of course go to your site, that’s common sense.
While there are many ways that can get you advertising for free, this do not generate the same high volume as those methods that are getting paid. These paid advertisements include advertising schemes by Google and Yahoo.
The Value of Searches
The search and will be the easiest and fastest medium in finding what a person needs in the internet. Search engines have been very popular because they provide a vital service to many people. They are free and easy to use. With this popularity, they get many visitors and clicks that they are the most common sites that people go to. It is easy to understand why so many companies would pay to advertise with these search engines.
Search engines provide information to the millions of users that they have each day. They provide links to many sites that a user may be looking for. If your sites link pop up in the high ranks of the search results page, you get a great chance that they will go to your site. While search engine optimization is a cheaper and low cost way to get your site a high rank, paying for advertisements will ensure that you will be on the top ranks.
When you pay for your advertisements, it is like paying for your traffic. This may sound like not such a good idea, but the payoffs would tell a different story. When you pay for your traffic, you are guaranteed of a consistent traffic flow to your site. You will never go with an empty sales day.
Paying for your Traffic
Usually, you will be charged with the number of hits a link gets when your ads is clicked, this is called pay per click. For some search engines, you will be charged with the number of times your ad shows up when a certain keyword or keyword phrase is searched. It is imperative that you have good keyword content in your ad. There are many tools that aid you in using the right keyword for the right moment.
All the money you spend in paying for your traffic will not be for naught. You will get an impressive boost in traffic which will also result to a great boost in your sales figures. Paying for your traffic would be a really good idea and you will get all the benefits it has to offer.
