Search and You Shall Be Found

Robbie Hills, sales director for Sensis Search and Display, says SEM can be very flexible. "Businesses can determine their return on investment [ROI] very quickly, and then adjust their spend on a search engine to match their ROI. And they can turn it on or off. For example, if they realise they’ve spent too much in one month, they can turn it off. If they need more sales for the month, they might choose to ramp it up."

Businesses promoting or selling a range of products online may also choose to direct traffic to particular pages within their website. So, selecting a number of key words for different web pages within a site can achieve more relevant results.

Despite the shift to SEM over the years, Appel believes that, as search grows in popularity, companies are balancing their SEO and SEM strategy. "This way, they get greater exposure in front of potential customers," he says. Reukers agrees, adding, "We actually started with search engine optimisation, and moved on to search engine marketing as it gave us a more direct campaign for what we needed."

Starting an SEM campaign can be conducted in two ways: direct with the search engines, which generally offer a range of products from start-up to more advanced options; or through an agency that can take care of all, or part, of the process for you.

Hills says deciding which way to go depends on what the business wants to get out of it. "If the strategy is targeting three search engines and targeting a few words that are important to their business, they could do it themselves. But if they’re running multiple campaigns across multiple search engines, and potentially in multiple countries, then there is some value in engaging an agency to do it for you. It really depends on the complexity, and the confidence of the business owner."

Appel believes a key advantage in outsourcing your SEM campaign to an agency is that they have a dedicated team who look after all their clients’ needs, from the research stage through to implementation, reporting and analysis. "That cycle is crucial to a successful SEM or SEO strategy," he adds.

The search engines also offer full reporting on your SEM campaign, so it just depends how detailed you want this to be. Continual monitoring is also needed because bids and positions can change at any time. "It’s a real-time advertising platform and you need to keep an eye on everything that’s going on," says Appel. So, time-poor business owners might find an agency beneficial in this regard. "We decided to go with an agency because we didn’t have the relevant in-house resources to deal directly with a search engine," says Reukers.

However, there are many agencies out there offering these services, so do your research. And as Appel suggests, ask questions. "It’s important to understand the medium before you dive into it. It’s always good to put together a list of questions and call or have a meeting with an agency or expert to help demystify search."

Web Wise

Here are some top tips to get your website working for you:

• know who your target audience is

• know what you want to achieve from the website—is it direct sales or leads?

• optimise your website—make sure it’s designed in a manner that is search engine friendly and easy to navigate

• develop link swaps with other relevant and reputable sites

• get listed on good quality directories

• test what works for you—test whether it’s SEM, display advertising or directory listings that works, and within SEM test a number of different key words landing on different pages and determine what your ROI is for those results

• develop an internet marketing strategy

• put your web address everywhere—on business cards, flyers, stationery and emails or get a stamp made up and go stamp-happy

Australian SEO Guru gives Free SEO appraisal to 10 Small Businesses