Successful Online Marketing… It is no longer just about SEO

Online marketing as an industry has begun to move out of its infancy. However, one very uncommon attribute to an industry that is growing up is the distinct lack of significant market leaders.

My take on this is that everyone jumping on the online marketing train called themselves “Search Engine Optimisers” and online marketing has become so much more than just about optimising for Search Engines. In fact, Search Engine Optimisation has become so much more than just getting to the top of the search engines!

Back in the early 90’s more and more people were searching online using search engines. People with web sites trying to get more business worked out that if they stuffed their web pages with the main keyword they showed up top. Then search engines and their users suffered from low quality sites also stuffing words on their web sites so new algorithms came out that ranked sites  by popularity through number of links. So link farms were born. Then everything got really complicated so as to prevent people from manipulating the search engines too much without delivering quality content.

In my other articles and chapters of the various guides the most repeated concept is that of compelling content – valuable information or interactivity given to the visitor that in turn compels the visitor to trust you and want to get services from you.

You can try to bypass this and many SEO professionals do try. In fact, they make a living out of it. I have met countless Search Engine Optimisers that follow the “successful” formula of: figure out how to get to the top of Google without really deserving to, bill the client, get knocked back by the latest Google update or a site that actually does offer higher quality content,  bill the client, figure out how to get to the top of Google without really deserving to, bill the client, and so on.

Higher grade SEO’s will offer a higher quality and slightly slower burn service that will cost less and make more in the long run. Often flanked by well researched and implemented Pay Per Click or other online traffic generating campaigns, they will thoroughly analyse your site and pick up every single technical error on your site that should be addressed and either fix the problems directly or work with your developer team to implement the changes if it is a larger site or there is an in-house developer. Once this is complete he should offer a strategy to maintain the correct SEO best practices for the site and keep you up to date as the best practices change over time. Concurrently the SEO will work on off-site issues to bring your site to the top of the rankings for your chosen keywords.

The business owner needs to know that 1) this is what an SEO should be offering and 2) this is only a part of a modern online marketing strategy.

There are many other matters to take into account, here are 13 other key areas that need to be decided upon based upon the overall business strategy and budget all over and above SEO:

1. Keyword and competitor research
2. Building other traffic sources online other than Search Engines
3. Social Media Marketing
4. Pay Per Click management
5. Paid traffic management
6. Content generation and copywriting
7. Online Reputation and PR
8. Ranking Penalties Remediation
9. Online Buzz and Viral Marketing Management
10. Analytics and Conversion Rate Optimisation
11. Ongoing Website Design
12. Online Marketing Strategy
13. Online Marketing Project Management

Many businesses are moving to outsource their entire online marketing strategy. Normally, the most cost effective choice is to find a company that does most if not all of the above. A dynamic and competent online marketing company will work with you and your staff, suppliers and customers very closely and create a tight-knit, social enterprise that returns many times more than it costs to set up and maintain. Run right, this means that – without any doubt – customer, supplier and employee satisfaction will sky-rocket as will the number of new customers.