Search engine optimization (SEO) is rapidly going mainstream as more marketers recognize the value of reaching an audience that is actively searching for their product or service. Search engines not only deliver high-value, engaged leads, but about 1/3 of search engine users believe that businesses that rank highly are more credible than those that don’t.
Our experience has been that many organizations leave the SEO activities to someone in the IT group who has an “interest” in SEO and, in most cases, has self-trained through public forums, blogs or articles. that appear online. In fact, there are many credible and excellent SEO forums, websites and blogs, but there are many that sometimes include blatantly wrong or misleading advice with no responsibility for the effect it may have on search engine rankings. Often, advice that sounds too good to be true is just that and can include deceptive search engine or “black hat” practices.
While some bad advice may not work and waste time, you often run the risk of search engines penalizing your rankings for fraudulent or deceptive practices. Not all SEO advice content is created equal and judging what to trust and what not to can make a difference. If your website is a critical marketing channel for your business, getting it right is vital because one mistake can cost not only your rankings but also your reputation and lost revenue.
The current Australian market lacks formal SEO skills and education. A large organization may hire a self-taught SEO and have little idea if their tactics and approach will work, or even if they are ethical. Meanwhile, ignorance is of little consequence as your website disappears from the index. In some technical cases they worked on smaller and simpler websites, they are not scalable for large dynamic database based websites. Another problem is that many standard IT practices can have negative impacts on search engine rankings.
So if you’ve discovered that SEO can’t be ignored, you’ll also appreciate the need for the right skills and education. Services and training are quickly becoming important for building internal SEO skills and strategies in the largest organizations in Australia. Also, management must have search engine marketing on their agenda and prioritize and support the process throughout the organization.
SEO also affects a number of departments within an organization, including, in most cases, marketing, sales, IT, and operations. Getting the right and relevant knowledge to the relevant people in each area is key. It is critical to create standards that help, not hurt, search engine optimization efforts, and gain a clear understanding and support from management, as well as the relevant performance measures in place.
Finding credible training that, firstly, is capable of supporting all of these initiatives, secondly, goes deep enough, thirdly, provides clear methodology and ethical guidelines to avoid penalizing search engine rankings, and, finally, being compatible with a powerful set of tools is key. When compared to the cost of a monthly ad keyword campaign, the ROI of a successful SEO campaign is far superior.
Keep an eye out for our next article on considerations when selecting SEO training.