Search Smart Marketing Westport CT Library Presentation October 2014
1. Search Engine Marketing
Search Engine Overview
Organic Search
Paid Search
Local /Social Search
Google Analytics
2. Search Smart Marketing
www.isearchsmart.com
400 Columbus Avenue
Valhalla, NY 10595
914.432.3083
243 Tresser Blvd.
Stamford, CT 06901
914.883.1506
• Started Internet Career in 1994
• The Journal News
• Online Marketing Director, 1996 – 2000
• Launched first web sites
• Wahlstrom Group, Stamford 2000 - 2006
• IPG Company
▫ VP, Managing Director Interactive Media
• Search Smart Marketing
• Launched 2006
• Adjunct Professor, Fordham University
3. 400 Columbus Avenue
Valhalla, NY 10595
Clients include:
Search Smart Marketing
www.isearchsmart.com
914.432.3083
AutoNation
CBS New York
Invisalign Braces
Hudson Valley Tourism
Westchester County Association
Stark Office Suites
NERAK Systems
ProLease
First Capital
243 Tresser Blvd.
Stamford, CT 06901
914.883.1506
5. Search Engine Marketing (SEM)
Overview
“ …the promotion of websites by increasing their
visibility in search engine results pages (SERPs)
through optimization (both on-page and off-page)
as well as through advertising (paid
placements, contextual advertising… )”
- Wikipedia
12. Keywords: Search “DNA”
• Determine 3-5 top phrases for your
entire site
• Determine 2-3 top phrases for each
page
• “Westchester NY accountant” is
better than “accountant”
• Go with your gut but do your
research…
13. Keyword Research Tools
• Google Keyword Planner
• SEO Book -
• http://tools.seobook.com/keyword-tools/seobook/
• WordTracker.com –
• https://freekeywords.wordtracker.com
• Wordstream.com –
• http://www.wordstream.com/keywords
14. SEO Coding: Page Titles
• Every page should
have a unique title
built around target
term and content for
that page
• No more than 55
characters
• Important keywords
at the beginning
• Keep it short,
attractive and
enticing.
• Will often be used as
the page’s bookmark
15. SEO Coding: Meta Descriptions
• Every page should
have a unique
description built
around target term
and content for that
page
• No more than 175
characters
• Incorporate important
keywords
• Entice searcher to
read & click
• Will often be used as
the listing’s snippet
16. Website Copy
• No text graphics
• Users come first
• Descriptive
• Location, location, location.
• PHRASES not WORDS
• Plural, tenses, ings, etc.
17. Help for the “Dumb” Search Engine
Keyword phrases that make
sense
No keyword phrases
18. Links: A Deciding Factor
• More difficult for web site owners to manipulate links than their own pages
• Major component of Google, also used by nearly everyone else, to some degree
• A few links from quality sites are better than hundreds of links from bad sites
• Provide a reason for linking; report, data, free giveaway, etc.
• Social Signals!
19. What Do Search Engines Want?
RELEVANCY: They want to return quality content/sites that are
most relevant to the searchers query. This is determined by:
• Content – theme/topic, page text, coding, navigation, alt tags, etc.
• Site Performance – does it load quickly? Can spiders “crawl” the site
• Site Authority – Do other sites link to it? It is being discussed in Social
circles?
• User Data – do visitors stay long? How many pages do they visit? Do
they return?
• Site History – has the domain been active long? Is it “clean”?
25. Benefits of Pay-per-Click
1. Pay-per-Click (PPC) – Paid Search
Quick Results
Budget Control
Directly affect Ranking
Syndication Network:
NY Times
AOL
Ask
Thousands of others
Great for Testing; Online focus group
Brand Protection
Measurable!
26. Disadvantages of Pay-per-Click
1. Pay-per-Click (PPC) – Paid Search
Keyword prices
Up to $25 - $50 Cost-per-Click (CPC) in some categories
Average CPC: $2.50 - $4.00
Google Avg. CPC is $0.35; skewed by Amazon, eBay, etc.
Average CPC down 5% - 10%; Google Enhanced likely to change that
Need to commit fair budget/campaign trial time
Requires ongoing attention; “set it & forget it” is a recipe for failure
Google defaults make money only for Google
Buyer Beware: unprofessionalism is widespread
Misleading promises
Marketer should own accounts
30. Organic/Paid vs. Local Search
• Location, location, location
• Organic/Paid search = “the what”
– Nike running shoes
• Local Search/Paid Search = “the what” & “the where”
– Nike shoe store White Plains
34. What is a Citation?
A citation is a mention of your business on the web, typically in the format of Name,
Address, and Phone number. This is called your NAP.
40. Keys to Local Success
• SEO - Location Keyword In Title Tag And H1 Tag
• NAP - business name, address and phone
number.
• Local Phone Number
• Claim Your Citations
• High Quality Backlinks
• Links From Local Websites
• Google+ Local Page
• Reviews
• Mobile
49. Google Webmaster Tools
• Diagnose potential problems
– Crawl info
– Website content
• See how your site performs
– Top queries
– Indexing information
• Share info with Google about your
site
– Submit a Sitemap file
50. What’s Next for 2015
• Google Penguin Update
• Unnatural Links
• Content
– Quality
– Relevance
– Freshness
• Social Signals
• Site Performance
• Mobile