What Is Full-Scale Search Marketing?

Most businesses have come to the conclusion that a web presence is a necessary part of doing business today, no different than having a telephone number was a century ago. Without a website, customers just don’t find you. That makes search engines such as Google, Yahoo and Bing the 21st century equivalents of the phone book —just as it’s unlikely a customer will find a business by randomly dialing a phone number, they’re also unlikely to find a company by randomly flipping through websites. If a business wants to be found, it needs to show up on search engines. It doesn’t matter if the company is a sole proprietorship or a member of the Fortune 500, visibility is key to being found online. Being found, in turn, means bringing in customers.

Search engines are far more competitive than any phone book ever was, so being near the top of the list is critical. Not many potential customers look at entry number 3,278 on a search result; they’re focused on the top ten websites. Companies have learned that it’s important to make sure their website is search engine optimized. But many don’t understand the difference between basic SEO and full-scale search marketing; a distinction that’s often the distinct difference between success and failure. Basic SEO is usually populating content on a website with key words. Full-scale search marketing is more complex and includes:

On Page SEO
It’s not as simple as using AdWords to look up some commonly searched terms and including these in website content. Full-scale means undertaking research to find the keywords that provide maximum return and strategically incorporating them not just within content, but also at a more technical design level for the website.

Social Mediar
Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and other social media sites have hundreds of millions of users and the capability to drive traffic at an astounding rate. Incorporating social media as part of a full-scale search marketing campaign can pay off in visitors, brand awareness and highly valuable customer interaction.

Local Marketingr
Companies that rely on local customers for at least some of their business (restaurants, for example) need to include promotion through local search portals.

Othersr
Leading digital marketing agencies will also have other capabilities that might come into play, depending on the client. These could include services such as pay per click (PPC) management and offsite SEO.

Businesses in the 20th century found that simply having an entry in the local phone book wasn’t enough to bring in high business volume. That’s why marketing agencies were successful with campaigns that also included elements such as billboards, newspaper ads and radio commercials. Being seen today is just as important in terms of attracting customers. And where traditional marketing required a multifaceted approach for maximum success, digital marketing also requires a full-scale approach.