Purchasing decisions are usually preceded by research. As the internet offers ready access to information, the common search engines provide quick access to information important to buyers. And a website link that appears as a result when the user requests information, presents a unique opportunity for the website owner to earn credibility and possibly, a new sale.

SEO or “Search Engine Optimization” is the practice of presenting an organization’s web page so that it will be easily found and displayed as a result for potential customer searches. The term ‘optimization’ simply means that when a user is searching for information related to a particular product or service, that web page will be displayed by search engines so that readers will be more likely to “click over” and visit that page. Websites appearing high on the search engine results page are more likely to receive reader attention, so positioning a page to achieve a high results page placement is hugely important.

Organizations of all sizes – particularly the large ones – already invest huge sums to optimize their internet pages for specific user searches. Savvy marketing organizations wouldn’t invest significant money in an SEO program if it did not provide a significant return on the investment.

Major companies use SEO techniques to earn new revenue. But is the same methodology available to earn revenue for smaller organizations? By using local buying characteristics, even the smallest of businesses can compete with the multi-national corporations to win sales. Ultimately, the internet is a level playing field upon which all companies can compete. Winning sales using SEO on a local level is very possible.

Large organizations usually focus their web messages around product and price information. Smaller, local businesses can also present this same information but have an advantage in that they can present location or other local service information to attract sales from bigger companies. A well-optimized set of business web pages allows a company of any size to compete with the biggest.

Of course the major decision point surrounding investment in an SEO is the ultimate cost. Google believes that average cost for new customer acquisition using direct mail is about $70. For email campaigns, this cost drops to $60 and Google’s cost per click model works out to be about $8. This pay per click model may require users to pay for clicks that don’t result in sales however. Pay per click also requires customers to click on the advertisement contained on the Google web page.

This average cost model might not fit your company’s business, but there is value in looking at the proportions. Direct mail costs a great deal to find a new customer. Email can do the job for somewhat less. Paid search (similar to Google’s Adwords) can be quite a bit cheaper. Still, SEO can e very inexpensive and efficient over the long term because once your company website appears high on the results page, customers will visit without the cost-per-click. Once your page has been optimized, it can earn revenue many times what was originally invested in its optimization process.

Positioning a web page to attract and even close new business sales can be done in a few months with an investment of anywhere from a few hundred to a few thousand dollars. Google’s pay per click model – while efficient, can cost several dollars per ‘click’ so to win a new sale, it may be necessary to attract several hundred ‘clicks’ for which the advertiser may pay several dollars per each click. Accordingly, these bills add up quickly.

The real advantage to SEO though, is that the links presented as search results are not viewed as paid advertisements by viewers. Internet users typically trust the optimized page much more than one they would reach by clicking on an advertising link.

In short, an optimized page using SEO methodologies can position a company web page to attract viewer traffic and convert readers into customers. An investment in SEO can efficiently win new customers and build new revenue streams. As users are more likely to click on the results contained on the search results page before they will click on an advertising link, SEO offers a great opportunity to present your company’s products and services exactly when users are in the purchasing process. Investing in SEO can be more cost efficient over the long term than many other forms of internet advertising.

Want more sales? SEO Consultants in Denver help enterprises of all sizes compete for sales utilizing the internet. Visit our home page for more background information or check out our SEO Denver Blog for the latest in SEO news and background information. Get a totally unique version of this article from our article submission service

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