Over the years I have had some great conversions (normally heated) and challenges related to the use of Keywords Vs Branding, this excellent thread poses some options for title tags on your website.

When looking at it purely from a search engine perspective though I would argue that Keywords should always win first. When arguing this point with a a “Marketing Guru” I tend to get them to understand that search engines are the method of getting your customers to your marketing message, which in this case is the website. This is no different from using postal services to deliver personalized mail to your database. The personalized mail is the marketing message, the postal service just puts your message under the noses of your customers.

Your branding will always be better reflected on your website anyway, and as such, you have control over images, design and words/phrases which reflect your brands message. So you should focus on improving the sites ability to be ranked well in search engines, as this will supply a nice amount of traffic/qualified leads to your site, who can then interact with your brand.

Most brands, if unique will naturally rank well on their own, without the need to worry about ramming the brand message home in every conceivable way. If you have a real unique catchphrase, that potential customers are going to search for, then be all means ensure those keyword phrases are included. But rather than thinking about search engine optimisation (Optimization, SEO), as a marketing tool, consider it the process of delivering qualified leads to your website, the point upon which the brand awareness should really begin.

Your website will always have brand dominance, as you control the real estate. So don’t try to battle for brand positioning on search engine results, your message will always have to compete and most often will be diluted.

Filed under: SEO, PPC, Design by Moley
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Been a busy week in the world of the mole! For those who haven’t already checked out previous postings, I am currently involved in a pretty awesome halloween party called – Midnight Massacre, presented by Elliot Events. To help promote this event we are literally taking as many available avenues as possible, using a cross media campaign to help generate massive awareness and help stimulate ticket sales.

This has included:

1. Radio advertising on 2 different stations
2. Advertising in a local, music/events magazine
3. Press Releases, both offline and online (mainly utilizing online as a link building tool for search engines)
4. Promotional girls, handing out flyers, yoyos and beer stubbies
5. Radio slot, discussing the event
6. Word of mouth
7. Viral Email and flash game

There are probably a few other aspects I have missed off the list so far – The last part, the viral email and flash game, were a moment of genius (well perhaps). Again it is designed to increase awareness, and with increased awareness and repetition of message, hopefully we will see increased sales. The email itself is funny enough, with some great images and quirky comments, plus it is halloween themed. It does relate to the event, ensuring relevance, but more importantly it contains links to a pretty cool flash game we have developed.

Halloween Hangman, presented by Midnight Massacre - is a pretty cool little hangman game to give everyone that little break from the pains of reality. Ultimately what the game does well is that it gets people to the website, gets them reading more info about the event, and again, hopefully then converting by purchasing a ticket for the event.

On the subject of viral material, there is a great video post on SEOmoz related to link bait. It isn’t quite viral, but the content is applicable to both sections. There are some great tips to consider if ever anyone is considering viral marketing.

Cheers!

Filed under: SEO, PPC, Design by Moley
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It was by chance that I found the following blog post basically bagging the SEO industry, it is slightly satirical in nature, but raises some great points. However what is sad is that if someone reads this as a newbie to SEO, there is every chance their view/opinion of SEO on the whole would be horribly biased.

There are some points which are horribly wrong with the piece, and Mark Pilatowski rightly points those out. However it is very frustrating when bad SEO-ers bring down the industry. It makes it harder for the rest of us to do ethical work, and de-values the quality and value of the work we do.

I have always believed that good SEO should start with good education. Clients need to understand what they are getting for their money, which requires some knowledge of how search engines work, and then also an understanding of keyword research and implementation across the site. Work doesn’t just stop there though, regular meetings need to take place, analysis of web stats is a must and of course, SEO is an ongoing process!

Filed under: SEO, PPC, Design by Moley
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As someone who works with the web, predominantly Search, it might appear that I am biased in my assumption that businesses would consider search engine marketing as a good strategy.

Well when considering the credit crunch has hit many businesses hard, especially in the UK, search is perhaps a real alternative to mainstream advertising. Yes mainstream advertising and media are great brand builders, but often the costs are high and returns are very low, or not even known.

Taking an average newspaper advert, I am guessing any decent publication would charge at least $500 for a quarter page advert. Now right away you are limited to the amount of content you can place in that advert. You are also limited in terms of time. Most publications are released daily or weekly, so the shelf life of that advert is very poor. The adverts are often not contextually placed, i.e. if the content discusses bmx bikes, the advert very rarely relates to the content. So getting people to convert to adverts through mainstream newspaper publications is almost a hit and miss process. In fact I would even question how much people take notice to printed advertising.

There is a tonne of evidence to suggest that online advertising is often ignored, and I wouldn’t be surprised if similar results were found with printed media. I ignore adverts due to time, in fact I actively seek out content due to time constraints. So why am I making the case for switching to search engine optimisation/marketing?

There a few reasons:

1. Accountability; You can see where your advertising dollars are going. If we used the same $500 for adwords, instead of a newspaper advert, there is every chance I could send at least 500 qualified leads to your business. These leads could be tracked from the moment they hit your site, right up until the point of conversion. Giving you real time statistics, and real return on investment information.
2. Highly targeted; Are you sick and tired of seeing your marketing budget wasted on areas you don’t target? Search Engine Marketing can help you target the smallest geographic niche. Helping you minimize marketing wastage by only targeting the audience in your key geographic area.
3. Cost; Search Engine Marketing doesn’t take a massive investment. In fact you can probably enter the market for less than $10/day or $300/month, certainly less than our $500 newspaper investment and helps lead me onto the next point…
4. Time; You can advertise as little or as often as you like. You can give yourself full control over your adverts, helping you to find specific times when conversions are more likely, or by limiting adverts during hours/days of poor activity. Also remember the newspaper shelf life? Well your search engine shelf life can be as long or as tight as you like.
5. Qualified leads; This point is quite possibly the most important. At the end of the day all businesses only want to market to individuals/customers who are actively looking for their products. Good keyword research will help you identify the keywords potential customers are searching for. Because customers are already searching for your products/brand etc, there is a higher propensity to buy.

Search Engine Marketing delivers qualified leads direct to your website, compare this to your $500 newspaper advert where you hope someone will firstly take note of your advert, and then secondly hope they are intested in your product enough to contact you. This also puts another barrier between the customer and the sale. At least with reacting to search engine results, the customer can go straight to the buying centre with little or not effort.

Imagine if you read the advert in a newspaper in a doctors surgery. Yes you liked the product, but then you were called in to see your GP, your mind goes blank, and later that day (if you can still remember the advert) you resort to the only method you can think to research the product – Google! By which point you find a similar product, for less and convert to one of the companies main competitors! (this might be an extreme example )

So with the credit crunch hitting hard, isn’t about time you considered moving your marketing budget to a more accountable option?

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I am the sort of person who occasionally checks back on previous employers, hoping that the continue to grow and succeed even after my departure. I have had good and bad departures from companies over the years, as is probably true of most of us. However it is often rare that someone can move to a company and get a lot of direct control over the way it is run or doing business.

When I arrived in Australia I saw an editorial in the Mandurah Life Magazine regarding the importance of the web, it was written by Gareth Lane of Concise Services. The article was speaking my language, but upon further research I noticed they could benefit from my experience. There was no job advertised, but just thought I would enquire as to any possibilities that may be present. After a great informal chat, I was offered a position and took it up!

When I first arrived I think it was fair to say that the company was going ok, it wasn’t really setting the world alight, but it was managing – however the biggest thing I noticed is that it needed guidance. I was fortunate in that Gareth had faith in my knowledge and experience, so much so that I was able to implement a re-brand whilst improve a lot of business practices. One big area was the redesign and build of the website, which, whilst development is still ongoing (I am told) is actually generating a lot of enquiries. I helped to identify key ways to promote the business, both to new and existing customers. I know during my time there the quality of client improved 10 fold.

So when I heard the news that this fantastic little web design company from Mandurah had won a small business award I was as pleased and proud as the current employees. Business awards are ways of adding real authority behind your business, and it was good to see the seeds I had sown, through implementing better business practices, new branding and improved internal marketing had been continued and enhanced further since I left.

Whilst I was only at Concise for about 5 months, it was and may forever be a career highlight. For the first time in my career I was allowed to push real creative elements, I was given creative control, and through using my experience and applying my knowledge I helped this company grow. In just over a weeks time they are due to open a new office. A lot can be achieved by employers listening to their staff, and it is fair to say that it is the new recruits, paired with Gareth’s enthusiasm who continue to drive the company forward. Click here for more information about the award they have won.

Filed under: SEO, PPC, Design by Moley
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