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High Rankings Advisor: SEO and the Bottom Line - Issue No. 052April 23, 2003 ________________________________________________________
~~~IN TODAY'S ADVISOR~~~ *Introductory Comments: ----> Just an Intro *Search Engine Marketing: ----> SEO and the Bottom Line *This Week's Sponsors: ----> Jill's Atlanta SEO Seminar ----> Copywriting Combo *Guest Article: ----> Motivating Your Web Site Visitors To Take Action *Stuff You Might Like ----> Take the Pain out of Newsletter Publishing *Other SEO News: ----> Pub Conference *Advisor Wrap-up: ----> Nothing Like Free Cocktails ________________________________________________________ ~~~Introductory Comments~~~ Hey everyone! Today we're taking a little break from Kim's series on usability, and instead have a guest article by Scottie Claiborne. But don't worry, Kim will be back next week with the latest installment. Today's Q&A is about something that's on everyone's mind lately -- that is, can SEO really improve your bottom line? Read on to find out! - Jill ~~~Search Engine Marketing Issues~~~ ++SEO and the Bottom Line++ From: Stephanie K. Hello Jill: Perhaps you can answer this question. Whenever I have asked others in the past, all I've gotten is a lot of technical babble that does not relate to the bottom line. Does improving the number of hits on a site actually relate to an increase in sales? For example, if I sell widgets on the net, will I sell more if I optimize my site? Are there statistics that prove this? Thanks, Stephanie ~~~Jill's Response~~~ Hi Stephanie, This is a great question! I can see why it's a tricky one for many to answer, since there are so many factors involved. I can't just give you a yes or no answer. For instance, if your site is *improperly* optimized, i.e., it's optimized for keywords which nobody is searching for (the way many unprofessional SEO companies optimize) it certainly won't help your sales. Of course, it won't help your traffic either. Or how about this scenario: let's say you do increase your traffic, but it's for words that are really general. Like, say you sell real estate in Boston, and you get a number-one ranking for the general keyword "homes." (It's probably not gonna happen, but just bear with me for illustration purposes!) You may certainly get lots of traffic from that "great" ranking. But how many of the people who type "homes" into the search engines are actually searching for homes in Boston? Chances are, probably not too many. Casting the widest net in this manner is not usually the best way to approach things. However, what if you optimize the same site for "Boston Real Estate" or "New Homes Boston" and other highly specific keyword phrases that relate to the business and exactly what the site offers. Traffic should go up compared to a site that is not optimized for those phrases. Plus, most of the traffic should come from a very targeted segment of the population, i.e., those looking for information on Boston real estate. Assuming you have a great site that is professionally written, and you also have great salespeople who give terrific customer service, the end result should be more sales. But again, there are too many external factors to make this a "gimme." What if you have a really crappy site? Perhaps it looks like your neighbor's nephew designed it; or maybe there's no "About Us" info to help build trust and credibility. Or maybe the site is riddled with typos and poor grammar. You may get a huge increase in traffic from your search engine optimization efforts, but no additional sales because your site visitors surfed away in dismay. So let's say you work real hard on your site to make it the best it can be. If the people that answer the phones are rude or ignorant -- again -- no sales increase. Or perhaps you don't have enough phone operators to handle the influx of business that your high rankings suddenly bring you. (I've had this happen with one client.) Then your SEO work is simply a waste of time and money. So, I really can't answer your question other than to say that if you do everything right, you bet your behind that a good SEO campaign will bring more sales. Absolutely, positively no question about it. But if you miss any of the important factors that go into creating a good Web site and a good business in general, you may not see an increase in sales. This is why I've been spending so much time talking about site usability issues lately. High rankings are only as good as the usability and overall effectiveness of your site, your employees, and your business in general. You may be interested in my article from a few years ago on this subject. It talks about some of my client successes, and how they were able to realize huge increases in sales due to their search engine optimization efforts. You can read it here: </seobottomline.htm>. Hope this helps! Jill __________________________________________________adv. Come to Atlanta on May 16th and Learn How To Get Listed __________________________________________________ Have you signed up for Jill's seminar yet? It's a fun half-day of unraveling the mysteries of achieving high search engine rankings. It's NOT about Meta tags, guys. Learn exactly how Jill places her clients at the top of Google, Yahoo & AOL, etc. each and every time! All it costs is the price of the seminar. Getting the high rankings will come easily after that -- just implement what you learn! Send your Webmaster, your site designer or your assistant. You *need* to know this info. </seminar> (This is the very last day to register early and save $50!) __________________________________________________ ~~~Guest Article~~~ ++Motivating Your Web Site Visitors To Take Action++ Today's guest article is one from my forum-friend, Scottie Claiborne (remember...the moonwalk lady?). It's a good article for us today because it ties in with our theme of making your site the best it can be. Speaking to your site visitors is all part of the selling equation, and knowing who you’re speaking to makes it that much easier! So sit back and enjoy Scottie's common-sense approach to Web marketing! - Jill Guest Article Motivating Your Web Site Visitors To Take Action: Personality Targeting Scottie Claiborne The theory that I'm presenting in this article is a based on a variation of the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator and Kiersey Temperament Sorters. The idea behind personality targeting is that people are generally motivated to different degrees by the following four qualities: Power / Status Competition / Cutting Edge Connectedness / Community Money / Price So how do you decide which type to target? Well, you can either pick one type and go after those customers or try to cover all the bases in some way with your site. It's easier than you think. Here's a rundown on the different personality types and some ideas on how to appeal to your specific audience. Power / Status: People who fall into this category want to be seen as important people. They look for products and services that reinforce that image. Targeting this group is great if you're selling high-value items. Try to position your product/service/message as an important, prestigious thing. Celebrity endorsements are given a lot of weight with this crowd. These people generally have newer computer equipment and run the latest operating system versions, so you have a little more leeway when using different technologies in your site design such as JavaScript and DHTML. A website designed to appeal to the power/status segment should be very professional, and the copywriting should convey a tone of exclusiveness. Prices may not be published; after all, if you have to ask...! Examples would be high-end automobiles, wedding photographers, fundraising balls, etc. Competition / Cutting Edge: People in this group are fashion-forward dressers, video-gamers and technology enthusiasts. They seek challenge and creativity. High-ticket items are no problem for this crowd since they are willing to pay a premium to get what they want before the rest of the market. A sales message to these people should emphasize the latest, greatest, fastest and the most unique features of the offering. This group also has newer equipment and the latest browser. Your website design might feature more "bells and whistles" such as flash animation, DHTML/JavaScript mouseovers, demos and movies. Colors and design may be slightly unsettling and cutting edge -- meant to be noticed. Customization, personalization and "skins" appeal to these customers. Examples of companies who would target this group would be electronics sites, website designers, art galleries, etc. Connectedness / Community: Those that fall into this group are the caretakers of the world. They worry about the environment, community issues, friends and family. They like familiar, accepted things. They are likely to wait until an item becomes a commodity that is in wide use before adopting it. Their browser and equipment are probably older, but still functional. A website catering to this crowd should emphasize content and advice and have simple navigation and a logical layout. The more information, the better. A comforting, simple color scheme is also important. Recognition of events that affect our lives (e.g., 9-11, the Space Shuttle disaster) is appropriate and appreciated by this group. High-value items can be sold to this group if they are positioned correctly. They are glad to pay more for items that are environmentally-friendly or family-friendly, for example. This group likes it when you remember who they are the next time they visit, so website personalization can be helpful when targeting them. Some companies who would target this group might be "Made in the USA" products, Internet picture frame companies, chambers of commerce, etc. Money / Price: There are plenty of people in the world who shop by price alone, and for them you need to offer specials and discounts. Make it easy for them to buy so they don't wander off and find your products/services cheaper elsewhere. These people need to be grabbed and called to action when they first visit your site. For the price-conscious, limited-time offers are a good motivator. A site design for them should make it easy for them to find what they're looking for, along with good information and prices. Be sure to include a site-search function and create the site so that it loads quickly and without gimmicks. Things like pop-up windows or slow-loading animations irritate this group and will make them leave. A huge plus for this group is a feature comparison chart. They also appreciate signing up for a newsletter that will notify them when items are on sale. A fancy design could put this crowd off because they don't want to pay for *your* marketing. Bright, active colors work well. Examples of the type of sites that might target these people are software companies, printer ink sales, cell phones, etc. It is easy to focus on one personality type with your design, layout and copy, but with a little creativity you can actually build a site that appeals to all four types. When outlining the content for any given page of your site, try writing a heading and a paragraph that would appeal to each type. Better yet, try linking to a page where you can write copy that specifically speaks to that particular personality type. This way, those interested can click to the exact information they're looking for! For more information on Myers-Briggs and the Keirsey Temperament Sorter, you can look here: <http://keirsey.com/>. You can find out your own personality type here: <http://www.humanmetrics.com/cgi-win/JTypes1.htm>. Scottie Claiborne Right Click Web Services www.rightclickwebs.com [P.S. I believe Scottie is planning to be at my Atlanta seminar in May, and I'm sure she'll be happy to informally share her Web marketing insights with all who attend! - J] __________________________________________________adv. Your site is only as good as its copywriting. You need the "write" skills. __________________________________________________ If your site is poorly written, your sales will be slow. You *must* speak to your target audience with each and every word you write. At the same time, keeping your keywords featured prominently is a bit of a juggling act. Save $10 on the most powerful copywriting combo available today! Step-By-Step Copywriting & Nitty-gritty of Writing for the Search Engines - Click the "Buy Both" button: </seo-writing.htm>. __________________________________________________ ~~~Stuff You Might Like~~~ ++Take the Pain out of Newsletter Publishing++ There are two things that are hot in Internet marketing right now. Search engine optimization/marketing is one of them, and the other is email newsletter publishing. Both of these areas are big because they give Web site owners the ability to cheaply and easily target people who are already interested in what you have to offer. Both forms of Internet marketing can be used at very little cost -- IF you know what you're doing. You can spend the time to learn how to do these things through trial and error just like I've done, or you can substantially cut down on your learning curve by enrolling in a seminar that specifically shows you everything you need to know. My Atlanta seminar </seminar> is a perfect choice if you're trying to learn how to achieve high search engine rankings. But what if you want to learn how to run a successful email newsletter such as the High Rankings Advisor? I can tell you that without a doubt, this newsletter has been *the best* form of marketing I've ever done. Unfortunately, it's not easy to know all the ins and outs of e-publishing when you first start. It took me a good year or more to learn all the "tricks of the trade." If you've been thinking about starting an e-newsletter, or even if you've already got one but are realizing that it's not very successful for you, you may want to look into Debbie Weil's seminar on May 21st in Virginia. Debbie is the publisher of the award-winning WordBiz Report e-newsletter and a widely-read columnist for ClickZ on e-newsletter strategies and B2B email marketing. Just as I "tell all" in my SEO seminars, Debbie's planning to reveal her successful newsletter formula in hers. Learn more about how to take the pain out of newsletter publishing here: <http://www.wordbiz.com/seminars.html>. I have no affiliation with this one, but it looks to me like it could save you the time and aggravation I had to go through with my newsletter, and the price is certainly right at only $199 (before May 1st). ~~~Other SEO News~~~ ++Pub Conference This Weekend++ So who's going to the Pub Conference on Saturday in Boston? I'll be there, if I can figure out a good way to get there and back that doesn't involve me driving under the influence! It should definitely be a good time. I've never been to one of these before, but they always sound like fun. You can learn more and sign up here: <http://www.pubconference.com/>. It appears that there are still spaces available. See you then! ~~~Advisor Wrap-up~~~ That's all the biz stuff for today! We had a nice time at the ranch we visited this past weekend. The kids all seemed to enjoy themselves and got in plenty of horseback riding, swimming, miniature golf, shuffleboard, bingo and other fun things. The adults especially enjoyed the free cocktail parties... Catch you next time! Jill    |
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