The Basics of Search Engine Optimization (SEO)

What is the difference between Search Engine Optimization (SEO) and Pay Per Click (PPC)?

If you are interested in growing your business by getting more qualified prospects to your web site, Search Engine Optimization (SEO) and Pay Per Click (PPC) are both highly effective ways to accomplish your goal.

Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is the process of designing a web site in a way that search engine spiders will recognize your site as relevant to certain keywords or subjects, allowing the site to rank high in search engine results "naturally" or "organically." Unlike Pay Per Click (PPC) campaigns, which are paid placements that typically appear as "sponsored listings" at the top and/or side of a search results page, "organic listings" appear in the body of the search results page. Sponsored listings are charged a fee every time a visitor clicks on them, but organic listings right below the paid ads, as a result of SEO, are not.

Organic listings typically make up the majority of the search results page,but it is difficult to rank on the first page if you don't employ the property techniques. The algorithms used by the search engines to determine the order of the organic listings are based on dozens of factors - many of which remain a mystery for obvious reasons. Blue Corona SEARCH only employs the techniques accepted by the major search engines such as Google and we operate with the absolute highest level of integrity.

Why is Search Engine Optimization (SEO) important to my business and overall Search Engine Marketing (SEM) strategy?

Whether you are a B2B or B2C company, if you are looking to attract new customers, SEO can help. Your buyers are searching the web for your product / service. If they are in the "buy" phase, they might be more likely to click a Pay Per Click (PPC) ad, so it is important that you have a presence there. But if they are in the "research" phase, they are just as likely to look through the organic listings which frequently contain comparison sites and reviews. If you optimize your site correctly, you'll be recognized as an authority in your industry with the major search engines and you will receive a high organic ranking.

Even if you already hold the top organic spot for a particular keyword or phrase, you can increase the leads and sales you receive now by complementing this with additional organic listings - whether under Google Maps, Google Base, or organic spots for other important keywords. SEO is an important component in a well-rounded Search Engine Marketing strategy, but it is not an island.

What are the factors that determine where my web site ranks organically?

There are dozens of factors that determine where your web site ranks with a search engine and they are always changing. Your best bet is to take a long term approach and work to become recognized by the search engines as an "opinion leader" in your industry and geographic area.

This can include anything from having a web site with a lot of original content relevant to your product, service or industry, to regularly updating a blog, to writing articles and posting or linking them to your web site and to having others in your industry link (or refer) to you and your web site as an information source.

Of course, there are also things that you can do to sabotage your SEO efforts to achieve a high ranking web site. Many of these pertain to the design, structure and layout of your web site. Content Management Systems (CMS) may make web site updates easier, but some of them cause MAJOR challenges for SEO. If search engine rankings are important to your business, it might be worth having a web design company updating your site instead of using a CMS system configured in a way that ensures that your site never gets crawled.

Flash movies, images and Java Script are other examples of things that can make SEO challenging. Often we suggest that people with new web sites "go ugly early" forgoing fancy flash and images and going heavy on "ugly" content until they start getting rankings. Then they can begin to replace text with images, Java Script and movies.

Why do I need to pay for Search Engine Optimization (SEO) services if it is supposed to be "free?"

Like Pay Per Click (PPC), you do not need to pay someone to do SEO. The primary challenge is that the web as a marketing medium is MASSIVE and it is evolving every day. To stay on top of it requires a tremendous amount of time, expertise and technical know how.

If you are in a non-competitive industry or a very small market, you might be able to quickly learn enough of the basics to be your own Search Engine Marketing guru. But most people will find that the benefits of hiring an expert - in-house or outsourced, far outweigh the alternatives. Realistically, an in-house Internet Marketing person worth their salt will cost you between $7,000 and $10,000 per month. For a big company or a large advertising agency, this might make total sense. For most small to medium sized businesses, it is less expensive to outsource it.

Can you guarantee me a #1 spot on Google?

Unfortunately, we can't. Every situation and industry is unique. Generally, we can get clients onto the first page of Google - occasionally, we fail to even do that. We are willing to "put some skin in the game" and guarantee you results based on your web site, industry, etc. We have yet to have a client "call us" on our guarantee - all of them have been more than happy and we have references and testimonials available.