Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
Amplimark is a full-service, digital marketing agency that helps companies achieve success in a digital economy. We specialize in search engine optimization (SEO) — helping our clients gain online visibility, credibility, leads, and customers through search engine placement.
According to MIT Sloan research, the companies that are adapting to a digital world are 26% more profitable than their industry peers.
With in-house expertise in marketing strategy, creative design, social media and content marketing, we help organizations engage prospects and customers through search engines by optimizing content, improving design usability and delivering exceptional user experience.
What is SEO?
SEO is an acronym for “search engine optimization.” SEO defines strategies, techniques, and tactics used by digital marketers to improve the overall organic ranking of a webpage in search engine result pages (SERPs). It is essential to differentiate SEO from paid search placement (PPC ads) in SERPs. A well designed and executed SEO campaign should help your website gain additional traffic due to improved visibility in search results.
Why SEO Matters
According to recent comSource reports, 93% of online users start their online experiences with a search engine. A content-rich website with high visibility in search engines is the key to generate new leads, sales, and profit. The online search market is an oligopoly market structure where Google, YouTube, and Bing own the majority of the market share. According to latest data, Google holds over 67% market share in organic and paid search market in the U.S.A. Bing is distant second, but should not be ignored. Yahoo no longer maintains any search engine data of its own, and as of 2012, Yahoo search data is now sourced from Bing.
Global Search Market Share
Improve Brand Visibility Through SEO
SEO is driven by keywords and rich content based on targeted keywords. Due to its keyword driven nature, SEO plays a crucial role in targeting customers at different stages in the buying cycle. A great website without search optimization is like a TV commercial that never ran. To generate leads, and attract new customers, your website must rank well in SERPs. Also, you can leverage SEO to improve your brand identity since your brand will get exposed to a broader audience. By ignoring SEO, you will increase your overall marketing cost as you try to improve brand visibility through paid search and traditional advertising channels such as television, radio, and print.
Besides, SEO generates the highest conversion rate of any targeted digital marketing channel. While Paid Search (PPC and display advertising) can produce instant results, they are also relatively expensive. Also, according to research reports, over 90% of survey respondents said they preferred natural search results while researching online.
Selecting a SEO Agency
A professional SEO agency offers comprehensive SEO services and must have in-house expertise in branding, market strategy, web design and development, social media and content marketing. In addition, they should clearly outline the strategy to improve your SERP ranking and how they will meet your business objectives. An ethical SEO agency should provide a clear breakdown of work at hand for search engine optimization. This should include at a minimum the following components:
- Comprehensive website review including navigation structure, information architecture, and code review to make sure backend code is compliant and suitable for search engines to crawl and index your website in an efficient manner
- On-page search engine optimization (including keywords, HTML meta tags, rich snippets and content optimization for targeted keywords)
- Off-page optimization (link profile development, quality of backlinks, off-site reputation management, PR)
- Measurement and reporting
It is important to remember that no one can guarantee a #1 ranking on Google. Read SEO FAQs published by Google. Be skeptical of those promising top ranking on Google.
How to Measure SEO Results
You cannot measure what you cannot define. To plan and execute a SEO strategy, it is essential to come up with key performance metrics to quantify campaign results. A professional SEO agency will not only deliver more traffic, but it will also make sure that this traffic translates into real leads, sales, and profit. As a customer, you should focus more on trends rather than overnight results. Trends are easy to spot and make much more sense in the long-run. For example, take a look at the following chart that depicts daily lead data for one of our SEO clients.
SEO can serve a number of marketing goals and business objectives. While primary focus should remain on generating leads and sales, a business should also focus on building a strong brand identity. Higher search ranking not only brings in more traffic and business but also contributes to branding and name recognition.
Need Help with SEO
At Amplimark, we offer comprehensive SEO services. Our optimization process is ethical, transparent, easy to understand and based on white hat SEO techniques. In addition to being Google AdWords and Analytics certified, our staff members have extensive experience in planning and executing SEO campaigns to match your business objectives and deliver solid measurable results.
Interested in working with us? Contact us online or give us a call at (515) 225-6438 to schedule a free, no-obligation initial consultation!