Frank Schulte-Ladbeck

What happens when websites do not strive to be found? I have been looking at some search results, and I am baffled.

This is not a post about SEO or SEM, so you will not find nugget of advice. There are better sites for that purpose. I wanted to share what I am finding in my research so you can maybe find your own insight. This is the background story: I run searches to see how the consumer may eventually end up at my site, where I might be able to convert them into a client. Instead of using Google Adwords, which I failed to implement well, I decided to check into which sites may provide me with direct advertising opportunities.These searches inspired me to study the Ten-Pack for several terms, since these results can lead to calls I was a bit surprised by what I found.

    First, I found that they are great advertising deals to be found by investigating your field. Being in real estate, and coming off of a so-so year, I wanted to watch my ad dollars. I found sites that are doing well in the search results for different terms, and I was able to get decent ad rates. I mention this, because being number one in search results is not everything. You have to plan out your marketing campaign, and SEO should be a part of it, but it should not be your sole focus. I burned through money with Google Adwords. I found that I really have to learn a bit more to make wise decisions on that front; however, there are still good deals when advertising directly with a website. Also, my internet journeys led me to some good deals for offline ads too. Your website can be like your store front: no one will find it if they do not know where it is. I include my website on all my forms of advertising, since this helps persuade consumers to hire me. So my advice is always to look for the section about advertising or the contact page to see if there is an opportunity for you. Also, do not let any site go without some consideration. For example, home buyers spend a good amount of time on Facebook or a news site, like CNN. These sites are not real estate sites, but if you are in real estate, your clients are there.
    Some search terms are highly competitive, so you will see many firms striving to be in the top search results. However, you will find that often businesses that provide a service do not even show up in the top five results for that industry in a given area. I was typing in terms from related industries to my own, and I was scratching my head. You would find sites with some type of social media aspect or listing sites in the top results. Yahoo Local, InsiderPages, CitySearch, ServiceMagic, and others dominated. It makes sense to have a presence on these sites. There were also industry associations or other industry organizations ending up quite visible. If I was looking for a plumber in a specific city, I would click on a plumber’s website over one of these social or listing sites. The association sites I would be more inclined to check out. I am not sure about others, but I think you would have a better chance of a sale if the user came to your site first over coming through another site.However, if your site cannot be higher in the results, discover if you can be on the sites that are there.
    Another oddity to me was the ATen-Pack. These are the results next to a map above the search results. I found that most businesses have the barest of information. The data is generally pulled from your Google Local Business Center listing. Most people do not list a website.You have a name, phone number, and address. There will be reviews listed. Reviews can come from any site, like AngiesList or the sites mentioned earlier. There is a weird science in succeeding to be among the first ten listed, but why do business owners make the least of this chance to be noticed? I created a complete listing, and it did help me raise up in the results for some terms. Unfortunately, the terms were not the ones that I hoped for. I was frequently not happy with these results, so I went looking in the search results for better information. I think that may be different if the results were more complete. Another problem was negative reviews. Many sites with negative reviews were showing up in the top ten, and no one from the firm had addressed those comments. Negative reviews will be more common than positive ones, but a business can shine by handling them well.
    I also began to check for Google Profiles. Like me, many businesses are single consultants or somehow similar. Google seems to be relying more on the social aspect of the web. Frequently in the results, I saw “from your network” results. I checked to see what I would find with Google Profiles, and this was scant. I think for a profession such as Realtor a Google Profile may be quite helpful.
   What about your industry? By really going through these results, you may find links that you can build, a place to advertise, or some way to put yourself in front of your customers. Do not search only for your keywords, but in areas which may be related or have a similar audience base.

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