The internet offers businesses of all sizes the opportunity to connect with their customers in a whole new way. In older forms of advertising like television, companies interrupt their audience. Do you ever fast forward through commercials thanks to DVR? Internet marketing activities are different; your customers are looking for you and your products at that very moment. You have their attention already, you just have to be seen.
Online visibility is a term used to describe how easily consumers can find your company in relevant online channels. The goal of an online visibility strategy is to ensure that a brand is represented across all popular online channels. Online channels include: search engines, local websites, social media sites and directories.
Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
Search engine optimization is a key component of any successful internet visibility strategy. Internet users go to Google, Bing and Yahoo multiple times a day to find everything from plastic surgeons to grocery store coupons. SEO strategies aim at getting a brand in front of interested search engine users by optimizing for key terms related to the brand’s products and services. Search engines use over 200 different ranking factors to deliver websites for a given search query, including website content, links, social media statistics and site architecture.
Websites that show up on the first page of Google get exponentially more traffic than sites that show up on page 2, 3 and 4. SEO puts your company in front of thousands of people looking to buy your products and services.
Today SEO is as important to branding as it is to driving traffic. Internet users associate companies that show up at the top of the search engine results page (SERP) with the terms they search for. Just by showing up, you have created brand awareness. If you company doesn’t show up, you aren’t relevant.
Local Websites
Google places is a local-based search product launched by Google to cater to people looking for local businesses in their area. Local searchers are valuable customers, they often are ready to purchase the product or service they are looking for.
Google Places listings show up in the most valuable real estate of the search results page, the top of the organic results. A businesses Place page contains: company address, phone number, map, photos, description and customer reviews. Companies with an optimized Places listing will direct more local traffic to their business and will likely gain an overall increase in their sales volume.
Social Media
Social media sites like Twitter, Google+ and Facebook are integrated into every aspect of our lives. Facebook and Twitter are the most popular websites online, visited by millions of people multiple times a day. Your customers are on social media sites, does your business have a presence?
Pay per Click
Pay per click (PPC) are paid ads that show up in the top of the SERP and along the right side of the organic search results. PPC offers businesses the opportunity to buy keywords that are relevant to their business When a user clicks on the ad, the business is charged. The cost for keywords varies depending on the competition for the term, the day of week and even the time of day. PPC strategies combined with SEO increase the odds of users clicking thru to your website from the search engines. PPC can also be used to gain instant brand visibility while building up a presence in other online channels.
Directories
Directories are much more than lead generation engines. Internet users go to directories to find information, websites and professionals. Recent studies show that consumers typically visit multiple directory sites when researching a product, procedure or service. The more often they see your brand on these sites, the higher their trust in your company and the more likely they will be to call or visit you. Directory site owners work very hard to ensure their sites rank in the top of the search engines; this means more visibility and branding for your business. In some cases your directory listing will rank higher than your practice website.
Reputation Management
Online review sites are growing in popularity. People go online everyday to research companies and products. Reviews from real people carry a lot of weight and show up in highly visible areas like Google Places. The more positive reviews your company has, the better customers feel about your brand and the more likely they are to spend their money at your establishment. Customer perception and trust is especially important for plastic surgeons.
Reputation management strategies also focus on occupying as many positions in the search engine as possible. The more real estate you own in the SERP, the more likely a consumer will hear the message you want them to hear and not the message of someone out to simply assault your reputation.
A properly implemented online visibility strategy will directly impact your bottom line by increasing brand recognition and connecting your company with interested consumers. MyAdvice has implemented and refined online visibility since 1998. We understand what to do across online channels to make sure your company sends the right message to the right consumer at the right time. Call us to learn more about our visibility services.
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