Why Bother with Search Engine Optimization?

Almost 50% of people find the website they are after by using the Internet search engines (such as Google, MSN and so on). Search engines are also the most important source of new visitors to websites. It's also important to note that most people looking to buy items or services on the web are also going to search engines first to find what they need. So it is critical that your website rank well for the phrases that your target audience is considering.

Let's face it, the search engines are a cheap way to attract visitors to your site. You get more bang for your buck when you use this method instead of traditional print or on-air marketing. So with that in mind, you can take the next logical step and ask: Well how can my site be made more "search engine friendly"? There are two ways.

1. Use pay per click (PPC) services to get your site in the search engines. Pay per click is the method where you set up an account with say Google and you "bid" on phrases you think your audience will search on. Then if a person sees your sponsored listing while searching and clicks on your ad, you are charged the amount that you bid on (for example: maybe you bid $3.21 for the top spot in the sponsored listings for the phrase "gourmet Italian pizza". The second place went to the fellow bidding $3.20 for that phrase). This method of search engine marketing is popular but has its' drawbacks. You must do extensive analysis to make sure you are bidding wisely and that the costs are justified as they relate to your final sold product or service. This is key. Many companies use PPC without identifying the value of the campaign. Kaufman Web Design™ offers this service and lets you know if it is, in fact, a good choice for your company or organization.

2. Adjust your website so that it has pages which contain easy to find, targeted content. This is also referred to as "organic search engine optimization". In a nutshell, what this approach entails is going through your current site (or building on from scratch if that is the stage you are at) and developing content that contains the key phrases which people are searching on. For example: say you have a gourmet pizza restaurant in Denver. Well through what's called 'keyword analysis ", a company like ours will find out that several phrases are popular for you to target. One may be "denver delicious pizza shop". So you make sure your website text contains that phrase at a certain frequency. The reason can be explained in a real life example: If a person traveling to Denver does in fact do a search on "denver delicious pizza shop" in Google, the search engine sees your site and the the fact that you have that phrase a few times in one of your website pages. The engine considers your page very relevant for that phrase and your site comes up near the top of the search results. Viola! You have a visitor to your site and hopefully someone scarfing down pizza at your restaurant in a few hours!

Both of these approaches are valid ways to bring people to your site, but we recommend the organic SEO method as a more economical solution. Again, this is because the bidding you would have to do for the pay per click method may become very expensive. We offer your company or organization an evaluation of your current rankings in the search engines and provide a way to increase your search engine rankings and therefore your visitors.

Our experience in the search engine optimization field along with our website design expertise has enabled us to develop successful marketing strategies for our clients. At Kaufman Web Design™, we can also help you design or update your site's look & feel to maximize the percentage of qualified visitors who come to your site. Read more about our service