One of the hardest things for us to explain quickly is exactly what it is that we do for clients. It’s not that we don’t know, it’s that explaining in layman’s terms the concepts of Search Marketing, Search Engine Optimization and Website Usability is often difficult in a nutshell. Our industry is so new and many people don’t realize how much work goes into (or should go into) creating a powerful and profitable online presence.

Now Google has put into a few short words what we’ve struggled with for years…. We help our clients win the Zero Moment of Truth: that time before they even go to a store, before they have decided what they want to buy or what company they need to contact…

It’s a great read and goes to the heart of what we’ve said for years, “if you think people aren’t searching online for products or services like what you offer, you’re wrong and someone else is getting their buisness. Business you could be vying for but aren’t.”

Download this free book, it’s well worth your time: http://www.zeromomentoftruth.com/

Digital Marketing, Search Engine Marketing AdWords, Google, search engines, sem, Zero Moment of Truth, ZMOT

Welcome back to our series on the common misconceptions of digital marketing. If you’re just joining, this blog discusses Search Engine Optimization(SEO), the process by which websites improve how well a site or page gets listed in search engines for particular search topics and the common misconceptions associated with it.

Today we explore whether getting ranked on the first page of Google is really all it’s cracked up to be. Read on for the second in our series of three SEO misconceptions.

Misconception #2: If you’re on the first page of Google, you’ve done a good job with your SEO efforts.

When I began listening to the SEO conversation, there was a lot of talk about getting onto the first page of Google. So, naturally I assumed that if I typed in a specific keyword and the website magically appeared on the first page of Google, SEO efforts for that business or topic were successful.

What I’ve learned: Most any business can land on the first page of Google. That is not a measure of successful SEO efforts. Appearing in the SERP’s for keywords that drive incremental revenue, that’s what is important.

For example, if I type in the business name “Tallahassee Tim’s Tire Shop”, guess what pops up on the first page of Google? Tallahassee Tim’s Tire Shop. That’s great, but obviously, this user had already heard of this particular tire shop.

When someone searches directly for the name of a specific business, that business will most likely appear on page one of the search engine results pages (SERPS). The real test is whether that same shop appears when a person looking for a tire shop in Tallahassee types in the phrase “tire shops Tallahasee” and discovers your business. It’s the difference between searching for a generic product or service, and searching for a brand.

I have seen many business owners make the same mistake in one of two ways. They either believe that getting on the first page of Google under their exact business name means success; or they are lured into the illusion that being ranked under certain terms necessarily helps their business gain exposure.

What they don’t consider is if that effort in getting ranked actually helps profitability. As a business, it’s important to be ranked under keywords or phrases that help sell the most profitable products or services. Often businesses are lured by companies that get them ranked under obscure terms or terms that just have no search volume, so the ranking doesn’t improve visibility or sales and defeats the purpose.

The SEO series continues tomorrow with our final SEO misconception. Learn what it takes to create a keyword list that gets results.

Digital Marketing, Search Engine Optimization Digital Marketing, Google, Online Marketing, ranking, search engines, SEO