WEB SITE MARKETING AND SEARCH ENGINE OPTIMIZATION

According to Brand Week Online Magazine: "Search engine positioning may be just one part of an online marketing strategy, but it is the fundamental part. It's the baseline. If you are doing nothing else, search engine optimization and keyword-related advertising can make up 80 to 90 percent of traffic."

How does search engine optimization relate to Internet branding?
Primarily through an extremely fine-tuned keyword analysis and integrating these words into your site.

Search Engine Optimization does not simply take into account keyword statistics and actual search results. When we develop a keyword selection in order to reinforce your Internet brand, we also:

	consider how people actually perform a search
	choose keywords using language linguistics that will place your site in areas where people are searching
	develop keywords and phrases with high click-through rates that make sense to surfers
	take the time, do the research, and use our expertise to create keywords that relate to your brand

In order for your site to do its job in the realm of Internet branding, your keywords and phrases must first attract the most qualified visitors. Search Engine Optimization makes sure they do just that

On the SEO side, you need to focus on gaining high rankings in the Google, Yahoo! and MSN SERPs. We’ve already pointed out that if you optimize for Google alone, you’re missing access to at least 50 percent of your potential audience.

When it comes to paid search campaigns, the obvious choice is Google and Yahoo!. But there are other PPC programs that can be viable, depending on your industry, site objectives and the nature of the products and/or services you offer.

The top search engines feed paid listings to a number of other search engines, giving you exposure on multiple search sites. For instance, Google feeds paid results to AOL, AskJeeves, HotBot, iWon, Lycos, Netscape and Teoma. Yahoo! Search Marketing feeds paid results to AlltheWeb, AltaVista and MSN.

As a savvy marketer, it’s wise to focus on both organic and paid listings for repeated exposure and credibility. With both natural and sponsored listings, brand reinforcement builds trust with users who skip around to multiple engines while searching for your strategic keyword phrases. Organically optimizing beyond the top three engines can further extend your exposure, elevate your brand and gain more effectual conversions. Balance is the key to your successful internet marketing campaign.