SEO: it should be about who, not how many
This week I've been getting bombarded with SEO consultants wanting to link their sites to New Tech Press. I've dutifully gone to their sites to see what they are all about and have been thoroughly disappointed in what I see. They are filled with poorly written, unconnected, bland content that provides absolutely no value to their audiences. They are designed only to drive search traffic.
What makes it all the worse is some of these sites are for well-known corporations. And, no, I won't tell you who.
I understand the value of good SEO. It's important to give people making random searches on the interwebs a chance to hit on your site, regardless of its value to the searcher. That's how lots of marketing people justify their investment in the web. And when your objective is to gain new customers without concern to the needs of those customers, getting 100,000 hits is more likely to turn into one real customers than getting 100 hits.
But what if you could get 100 real customers instead? It's possible if you actually care about the customers.
It is hard to find companies that actually do care. In the decades I've been doing this 90 percent of the comments marketing and sales people make about their customers is not very complimentary. I completely understand the feeling. Sometimes their obstinancy and budget decisions are enough to drive you crazy. And their willingness to go with an inferior choice because it is cheaper is similarly maddening. But whatever business you are in, you initially chose to go in this direction because you thought you could solve some poor schmuck's problem.
What's missing from most company websites, or at least what is craftfully hidden, is that very reason for being. Companies hire SEO consultants who have absolutely no understanding of the market for the companies' products and just jam the web traffic with random hits from spiders, which makes everyone feel good until you look at the sales figures for the year.
I have yet to hear a pitch from an SEO consultant that says, "We aren't going to increase your web traffic. We are going to bring you customers." Why is that? Because most people are still stuck in the 20th century of mass marketing. A 1 percent return is acceptable. It's like seine net fishing but no dolphins are killed in the process.
Does that mean SEO is a useless enterprise? No, it is a part of your marketing process, although one that is getting less and less important. What is increasingly more important is finding the right audience for your message and keeping them coming back to your site, getting them to promote your business and treating them like you actually care about them.
There are lots of consulting companies doing this, like Badgeville, Shoutlet and CrowdFactory but before you call them, be prepared. They speak a much different language from most marketers. It's focused on meeting your customers' needs, not your president's ego. And you may have to cut into your SEO budget to get them to work for you.
Good article Lou...this is a very important topic and you nailed it!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Christina. That you read it makes it valuable.
ReplyDeleteMost of the companies are hiring the SEO Executives without knowing the aspects of SEO. Bringing the keywords does not necessarily mean that client will get the traffic, similarly if the client gets traffic, it does not mean those clients are going to get converted to actual sales.
ReplyDeleteWeb presence on your company is really a big deal, it takes a long time before you increase your presence but through the help of SEO it is now become easy but it is still up to you on how you use SEO.
ReplyDeletehttp://dcincome.com
Barry, Sure it has become easy. That doesn't mean that it's effective. I've consulted to companies that get their website very high up in the Google rankings thanks to SEO, but it still doesn't turn into sales. The websites are filled with key words that the SEO experts have told them to buy and stuff into the sites, and they get lots of spider hits...but no customers. SEO is part of an overall strategy. And a part that is getting smaller and smaller in importance. Engaging the audience is more important than ways to game the SEO system.
ReplyDeleteOf course that is right that it is about who not how many. The activity you do does not need quantity but it needs quality to make your product visible to the world with original content and quality work.
ReplyDeleteI was struck by the title of your article, and I definitely agree with it. The end goal of advertising through SEO is to show people who are using search engines and that there are companies and products that can answer their needs. Good SEO isn’t just about the sales, but also helping both their clients and all the people they can reach. Good marketing is done through SEO comments that show that both the SEO company and their clients actually care about what the customers want or need, which in turn will bring them to the client.
ReplyDeleteVery well said, Lou! For me, good SEO is defined by the number of traffic it can drive to your site, WHILE an excellent SEO is defined by the professional relationship a company has built with their customers. In the end, SEO should be used mainly to reach, connect, and listen to a wide range of audience.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Glenn that SEO is not all about selling products but also about providing information to potential customers. It’s about building trust and establishing a “professional relationship” where both the company and the customer can benefit.
ReplyDeleteLike Jean, I agree with Glenn. Efficient SEO is achieved when the company listens to what their client needs and what the customers want from those clients, and mixes them together to formulate a plan. Finding that sweet spot between the clients’ needs and the customers’ needs will make for a truthful online marketing.
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